Belmore Oval EntryThe new look Bulldogs have suffered a pre-season training frustration; after being locked out of their Homebush training facilities. The team were forced to run their training approximately 9km further down the road at the Belmore Sports Ground as their new setup at Homebush was unavailable.

Their newer setup at Homebush was off-limited as the turf was removed in December.

A frustration for new clipboard man Kevin Moore has meant the viewing of video sessions at Homebush and then a relocation to the old Belmore Ground to run through on field drills and ball work.

Bulldogs chief executive Todd Greenberg was hoping their Homebush base was sorted by the end of January; but at this stage its still annoying as players and officials move between the twin locations.

“It’s frustrating having to train at two different venues, but we’re hopeful of resolving the issues with Sydney Olympic Park as soon as possible,” Greenberg mused.

The Bulldogs would have liked to put on a more professional look yesterday as new buy David Stagg strode out for his first session since being signed by the club.

The move made easier for Stagg by the fact that former Broncos players Michael Ennis and Ben Hannant were there to welcome him to the training paddock. Stagg also excited at dropping the utility tag, as he forges his own mark at the Bulldogs.

“I enjoyed my time up in Brisbane, but at the same time I’m certainly looking forward to the opportunity down here and playing in the one position, which was certainly a big incentive for me,” Stagg said.

Widely regarded as a defensive expert, Stagg is keen for more Origin work despite being south of the border. He also said the family environment at the Bulldogs was another factor he had decided to shift to Sydney; however the old term of ‘family club’ probably doesn’t hold the same stature it used to – with Belmore having more than it’s fair share of internal fighting between officials and crowd behaviour that is anything but ‘family focused’.

Coach Moore was happy enough with Stagg and his first hit-out “He’s played just under 100 first grade games, won a premiership and played Origin footy. It’s a real coup for the club and just augurs well for the season ahead.

“Obviously at the Broncos, with so many Origin and international players, David was just keen to be in the 17 . . . now he’s 25 and got to the stage where he wants to find himself a niche in the game and sees himself as a 12 or 13, and that’s the position I’ve got in mind for him.”

By ricky

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