Following on from last weeks ANZAC pre-season cup hit out, the Bulldogs have had a little time to look back on the successes and lessons from the day.  Having prepared relatively well, the GB team performed admirably, losing by the narrowest of margins to North London in the first match and paying for a lack of accuracy in front of goal (hitting the post twice to miss out on an extra ten points).  The team then pulled off one of the biggest shocks of the day by beating a very competetive London Swans in the second game before finishing the group stage with taking a masterclass from eventual winners Wandsworth.

GB Coach Charlie Kielty was in a reflective mood, and certainly felt that the day was a valuable experience for this relatively new squad.  Here is his overview of the day.

"Overall it was another positive step in the development of the GB Bulldogs.

"The first game against Nth London saw the boys a bit over excited so some basic errors were made. The Bulldogs had opportunities to win this game but unfortunately squandered them and lost by 5 points.

"The next game was against London Swans. The Bulldogs regrouped and committed themselves to the team game plan. This worked well and the Bulldogs looked in control for the whole game and won by 14 points.

"The final game was against Wandsworth who were well and truly a couple of notches above all other teams on the day. Wandsworth hit the ground running and quickly scored a couple of goals. The GB players made a couple of basic mistakes and the class of the Demons meant the Bulldogs were made to pay the ultimate price each time by conceding goals.

"The tournament was a great opportunity to see where we are at with our development and it looks positive. Our competiveness against Nth London and London Swans shows how far we have come, and the game against Wandsworth showed where we want to be."

This opinion was backed up by Adam Bennett, Vice-captain of the team and defensive rock.  "It was a great opportunity to get the squad together for the first serious test of International Cup year, and offered a good benchmark that we will need to raise ourselves to down in Oz. It's always tough matching up the Brits against full teams of Aussies, but it was encouraging to see how the players acquitted themselves, particularly the newer and younger members of the squad. A good learning experience for all and a good measure of those areas we need to develop."