| 2003 Bulldogs RLFC season | ||||
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The 2003 Bulldogs RLFC season was the 69th in the club's history. Coached by Steve Folkes and captained by Steve Price, they competed in the NRL's 2003 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season 3rd (out of 15), and making the finals after finishing the previous season with the wooden spoon due to salary cap breaches. The Bulldogs went on to come within one game of the 2003 NRL Grand final but were knocked out by the Sydney Roosters.
Players
The Bulldogs' status for the 2003 season:
Departing players: Darren Smith (retired), Paul Rauhihi (North Queensland).
On contract: Braith Anasta, Roy Asotasi, Hazem El Masri, Jamie Feeney, Tony Grimaldi, Glenn Hall, Ben Harris, Corey Hughes, Glen Hughes, Shane Marteene, Willie Mason, Travis Norton, Mark O'Meley, Luke Patten, Adam Perry, Steve Price, Steve Reardon, Andrew Ryan, Brent Sherwin, Willie Talau, Johnathan Thurston, Matt Utai, Nigel Vagana (two to be added).
Off contract: Gavin Lester, Brett Howland, Dennis Scott, Nathan Sologinkin.
Results
| 2003 Season Results | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Opponent | Result | Bulldogs | Opposition | Date | Venue | Crowd | |||
| 1 |  South Sydney Rabbitohs | Win | 34 | 26 | 15 March | Telstra Stadium | 42,017 | |||
| 2 |  New Zealand Warriors | Loss | 20 | 24 | 23 March | Ericsson Stadium | 16,229 | |||
| 3 |  Wests Tigers | Win | 38 | 6 | 29 March | Campbelltown Stadium | 15,774 | |||
| 4 |  Parramatta Eels | Win | 30 | 10 | 4 April | Telstra Stadium | 24,907 | |||
| 5 |  Newcastle Knights | Loss | 6 | 12 | 11 April | EnergyAustralia Stadium | 22,212 | |||
| 6 |  St. George Illawarra Dragons | Loss | 14 | 24 | 19 April | Telstra Stadium | 33,379 | |||
| 7 |  Canberra Raiders | Loss | 22 | 28 | 26 April | Canberra Stadium | 19,372 | |||
| 8 | New Zealand Warriors | Win | 18 | 12 | 2 May | WestPacTrust Stadium | 21,989 | |||
| 9 |  Sydney Roosters | Win | 32 | 26 | 9 May | Telstra Stadium | 27,132 | |||
| 10 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Win | 18 | 16 | 17 May | WIN Stadium | 11,555 | |||
Ladder
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Penrith Panthers (P) |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 659 | 527 | +132 | 40 |
| 2 | Sydney Roosters |
24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 680 | 445 | +235 | 38 |
| 3 |  Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 702 | 419 | +283 | 36 |
| 4 | Canberra Raiders |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 620 | 463 | +157 | 36 |
| 5 |  Melbourne Storm |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 564 | 486 | +78 | 34 |
| 6 | New Zealand Warriors |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 545 | 510 | +35 | 34 |
| 7 | Newcastle Knights |
24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 632 | 635 | -3 | 32 |
| 8 |  Brisbane Broncos |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 497 | 464 | +33 | 28 |
| 9 | Parramatta Eels |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 570 | 582 | -12 | 26 |
| 10 | St George Illawarra Dragons |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 548 | 593 | -45 | 26 |
| 11 |  North Queensland Cowboys |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 606 | 629 | -23 | 24 |
| 12 |  Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 497 | 704 | -207 | 20 |
| 13 | Wests Tigers |
24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 470 | 598 | -128 | 18 |
| 14 |  Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
24 | 7 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 557 | 791 | -234 | 18 |
| 15 | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
24 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 2 | 457 | 758 | -301 | 10 |