Lottoland used to be a fortress for Des Hasler when he coached the Sea Eagles, but the now Bulldogs mentor found out the hard way just what it's like to have the shoe placed on the other foot.
The Bulldogs were outclassed in all facets on Saturday afternoon, thrashed 36-0 by a Manly side that hadn't won at home since July 31, 2016.
Canterbury produced their worst 80 minutes of the season to move to 1-3 after four rounds, with the Bulldogs facing the daunting prospect of taking on a battle-hardened Broncos side next Thursday night.
Having seen his side taken apart by the Sea Eagles, Hasler said his troops had to "turn it around quick-smart" for their crunch game at ANZ Stadium.
"We really couldn't get into it. We were flat, they out-enthused us and we were down in energy right across the park so that's disappointing," Hasler said after the game.
"We didn't help ourselves at all and consequently they brought plenty of that… and I guess you could liken it to a bit of an old ambush, couldn't you?
"I think coming off the win against the Warriors and the performances against the Storm and Roosters had a lot of positives in them. It's early in the season and you'd like to say that sometimes you have those games.
"We were terribly flat, and Thursday can't come around soon enough. Our players know that.
"We're pretty experienced campaigners and they know that – they're aware of that – and we need to turn it around quick-smart, and that'll be Thursday night."
Bulldogs skipper James Graham said the best tonic for Saturday's performance was to get back on the field as soon as possible to show the club and its supporters what the Bulldogs are made of.
"Thursday can't come around soon enough," he said. "It's a short turnaround but I actually think that's a good thing considering the situation that we're in tonight."
