‘No fan base out there that does it like Bulldogs fans’: Good Friday clash set to smash regular-season record

Canterbury players have been belting out the lyrics “the Dogs are having a party” after every win this year, and the club is hoping 70,000 fans can join them for the biggest regular-season event of all time when they host the Rabbitohs on Good Friday. Bulldogs officials were hopeful last week of a record-breaking crowd around 60,000, but those figures have soared in recent days with speculation more than 70,000 people could be at Accor Stadium to shatter the regular-season attendance record. The club is offering $10 tickets without any online transaction fees this week for some seats, with the game set to smash the previous record of 59,708 when the Roosters beat the Rabbitohs in the final round of the 2013 season. “It’s a game that you circle as a player,” prop forward Max King said. “Everyone has already hit me up for tickets, but I’ve exceeded that so I’m having a few dramas. “But I’m pumped and I can’t wait.” The Bulldogs are the only unbeaten team left in the competition, while the Rabbitohs sit in fifth spot and are playing with a lot more confidence under Wayne Bennett. It sets up what should be one of the biggest events of the year, with the blue and white brigade to turn Accor Stadium into a western Sydney cauldron overflowing with the sort of atmosphere that we saw in the first week of the finals last year. Bulldogs skipper Stephen Crichton has enjoyed incredible support while playing for Penrith, NSW and Samoa, but nothing compares to what he’s experienced from fans who have come alive after being starved of success for so long. “There is no fan base out there that does it like Bulldogs fans,” he said. “It’s going to be very special to run out in front of our home fans because the energy that they bring and the community spirit they have is second to none. “They haven’t really had the success that they’ve wanted over the past few years. Last year was a step in the right direction, and the way we’ve started this year has brought the community together even more. “That was probably the biggest vision that Ciraldo (Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo) has here as a club – to be connected within the club and then uniting and inspiring the community to come together.” The noise and passion the crowd brings doesn’t guarantee anything on the scoreboard, but the players thrive off it and feel bound to perform even better to thank their loyal fans. “I truly believe we have the best fans, and it’s crazy to see how they celebrate after a win where they have to shut down the streets of Belmore,” strike centre Bronson Xerri said. “It just makes you want to play for them because they’re so passionate. Us boys love it and we love to see it.”