Canterbury Bulldogs legend Michael Ennis has taken a swipe at the clubs' recruitment following suggestions they've gone cold on a potential deal to bring Josh Reynolds back to Belmore.
The Daily Telegraph first reported the Bulldogs' interest in Reynolds as part of a recruitment raid the club is eyeing off as a result of the salary cap space freed up by the deregistration of Corey Harawira-Naera and Jayden Okunbor.
Bulldogs coach Dean Pay admitted Reynolds was on the club's radar, but hinted they were waiting on a response from the Tigers.
But Reynolds' big-money contract at Concord appears to be the stumbling block, with the former Origin playmaker set to earn a staggering figure in the vicinity of $900,000 next year.
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Immortal Andrew Johns believes the Bulldogs should be targeting younger players, but for Ennis the homecoming of 31-year-old Reynolds is a "no-brainer".
“This highlights a huge problem for the Bulldogs and that is they have just taken their eye off the ball when it comes to recruitment,” Ennis said on Fox League Live.
“The stuff about Josh Reynolds really frustrates me because I love the thought of Reynolds not only for the romantic return that rugby league would love, but it would be an enormous shot in the arm to have their favourite son come home.
“At a time when their coach is off contract and there is a lot of speculation around that and a lot of indecision form the club.
“To bring someone home like Reynolds that took them to two grand finals and won an Origin series. That in 14 games averaging just 36 minutes a game for the Wests Tigers has created six try assists and had three tries and numerous amounts of repeat sets of six.
“And the fact that it would only be short-term to get them through this period is an absolute no-brainer for me.”
Reynolds has only played 14 games for Michael Maguire's side since joining in 2018, and was reportedly granted the chance to speak with rival clubs in the off-season, with Reynolds himself declaring a Bulldogs homecoming the ideal finish to his career.
Kieran Foran's contract occupies a large chunk of Canterbury's salary cap, and the return of Reynolds could put a further stranglehold on their recruitment of other players.
But Ennis believes the combination of the experienced pair is exactly what the Bulldogs lack this year.
“Where Foran is at with his career he loves to play direct and control the game and the unpredictability of Reynolds could be what saves the Bulldogs’ season,” Ennis said.
“When you turn up to training and you see your halves sometimes you don’t really know where other clubs are at. You don’t see the standard that other people are training at. What other level they are at.
“The Bulldogs at the moment are comfortable with Brandon Wakeham, who is only a young kid I don’t want to be too tough on him because I’ve liked some of the stuff that he has done and I’ve like defensively what Lachlan Lewis has done.
"But they're not going to be a top-four side with that halves pairing."
Ennis went on to say if the Bulldogs passed up on Reynolds it would add to the list of what he believes have been some shocking recruitment decisions in recent years.
“It is 18 months with this short season and if ever you need someone like Josh Reynolds it is this season.
“I was really frustrated with the Bulldogs for a period of time with some of the decisions that were made.
“It was because I saw players like James Graham, Josh Reynolds and Dale Finucane be allowed to walk out the door. I don’t think I need to say anything else.”
