- Aussie men’s pursuit cycling team won Olympic gold in 1984 & 2004
- Canterbury Bulldogs went onto win footy premierships the same years
- Aussie pursuit quartet again snared gold in Paris against Great Britain
- Some eager Bulldog fans are adamant it is an omen ahead of NRL finals
Bulldogs NRL fans are daring to dream big based on a bizarre Olympic pattern that could see them end up as premiers in 2024.
In 1984 – when Canterbury beat Parramatta 6-4 in the Grand Final at the SCG – the Australian cycling men’s pursuit team won gold at the Los Angeles Games the very same year.
Two decades later the Bulldogs again lifted the Provan-Summons Trophy following a hard fought win 16-13 over the Roosters at Sydney Olympic Park – and months earlier in Athens, it was gold for Australia in the men’s cycling team’s event.
Fast forward to the Paris Games where Aussies Oliver Bleddyn, Conor Leahy, Kelland O’Brien and Sam Welsford combined to stun Great Britain, footy supporters in Belmore began to get excited.
And given Cameron Ciraldo’s men currently sit in fifth spot on the NRL ladder with the finals looming, the question has to be asked – will lightning strike for a third time in a sporting sense?
‘Go the mighty Bulldogs….great team, we can do it again,’ posted one enthusiastic fan in response to the Facebook post from Random Stats Guy.
Another said: ‘The stars are aligning.’
A third weighed in with: ‘These are the stats I come to see.’
Bulldogs NRL fans are daring to dream based on a bizarre Olympic pattern that could see them end up 2024 premiers (Braith Anasta is pictured, after winning the 2004 Grand Final)
In 1984 and 2004 when Australia’s cycling men’s pursuit team snared Olympic gold the Bulldogs later won their rugby league Grand Final – will history repeat itself in 2024 after the Aussies (pictured) won in Paris?
Facebook page Random Stats Guy alerted Bulldogs NRL fans about an omen they are happy to support
Some Bulldogs fans could be accused of being ambitious given the club hasn’t played finals footy since 2016 – but there is no doubt they are on the rise.
Led by new captain Stephen Crichton, Bulldogs premiership winner Braith Anasta likes what he sees at Belmore.
‘I think he (Crichton) has been their buy of the decade,’ NRL 360 co-host Anasta said.
‘I don’t think he’s just the best centre in the competition, I think he’s just behind Nathan (Cleary) at the moment as the best player in the game.
‘He’s been a phenomenon, an incredible signing.’
And after seven wins from their last nine NRL games, Canterbury are primed to feature in September after several recent lean years.
On Saturday night, another resurgent team this season – the Dragons – host the Bulldogs at Kogarah Oval from 7.35pm AEST in what looms as a suburban ground blockbuster.
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