Canterbury Bulldogs set to make play for Panthers young gun Matt Burton
The Canterbury Bulldogs are reportedly targeting Penrith young gun Matt Burton as a long-term five-eighth.
Despite having yet to officially announce Panthers assistant Trent Barrett as the club's new coach, the Dogs have set about their rebuild with gusto, eyeing-off Burton just days after bagging Raiders star Nick Cotric in a massive coup.
The 20-year-old is contracted at the club until the end of 2021, but hasn't found himself a mainstay of the Panthers' line-up since the return of Nathan Cleary and Tyron May from suspension.
Canterbury's interest in Burton comes just a week after Penrith warned Barrett not to poach from the club's youth-filled talent pool.
Matt Burton of the Panthers runs the ball Getty
The club announced they would allow Barrett out of his 2021 deal but publicly stressed they didn't want him taking any key Panthers to Canterbury.
But Bulldogs officials remain determined to lure Burton to Belmore, and they will reportedly kickstart talks from November 1.
Bagging a player like Burton would give the club some much needed stability in the halves, securing a long-term five-eighth option to off-set Kieran Foran's continued injury issues.
