Losing halfback Burton to Blues camp earlier in the week, coach Cameron Ciraldo unveiled a new-look spine in Karl Oloapu and Kyle Flanagan and while the two sides traded sets for the first 10 minutes, the Sharks soon took the wind out of the Bulldogs’ sails.
The Bulldogs got on the board 10 minutes before half-time when Flanagan got one against his former club.
In his first game back since being dropped to NSW Cup in Round 9, Flanagan looked to have a point to prove when he fooled Sharks defenders, scooting from dummy half to burrow over the line and score.
But the second half was all the Sharks who had a 30-point lead in the 47th minute.
A consolation try to Kurtis Morrin in the 71st minute brought the final score 48-10 but that’s as close as the visitors came to reducing the deficit.Ciraldo said there were good signs early and his side started with real intent.
“I thought the boys really ripped in there,” he said.
“Sometimes you just need something to go right for you and we’re not having much go right for us at the moment.
“But with 50 or 60 missed tackles, clearly we need to work on that.
“We need to buy into the defensive pressure and the system we’ve got in place.”
The Bulldogs have a bye in Round 17 before taking on the Knights on Sunday, July 2, from 2pm at Accor Stadium.
