Cameron Ciraldo’s coaching career almost died before it began. It’s been six years since he waltzed into Phil Gould’s Penrith office armed with a resignation letter during his time as assistant to Anthony Griffin.
“I’m glad Gus said no,” Ciraldo quips after officially being unveiled as Canterbury coach on Wednesday.
Incoming Bulldogs head coach Cameron Ciraldo at Belmore Sportsground on Wednesday.Credit:Louie Douvis
If it wasn’t for the marathon five-hour meeting with Gould, the most sought-after rookie coach in the history of the sport would have been lost to it.
Gould and Ciraldo are now reunited at the helm of the Bulldogs, armed with an assignment as large – if not greater – than the journey they embarked on together at the foot of the mountains over a decade ago.
The noise surrounding Ciraldo has been deafening. A five-year deal for a rookie coach is unprecedented.
Ciraldo is a new-age coach with an old-school attitude. His greatest strength is his ability to connect with young players on a level that many coaches in the NRL struggle to reach.
He knows he may not have the same luxuries as head coach.
“As an assistant coach players look at you differently,” Ciraldo told the Herald.
“You’re more like an older brother. As an assistant, you’re the one telling the jokes and keeping the atmosphere light-hearted. I had guys at Penrith for eight or nine years. We built trust.
“I want to come in here and build that same trust so they can come to me. I treat the players how I would want to be treated. I know things are going to be different as a head coach.”
Lessons learned amid LA fires
During a study trip to the United States with Panthers coach Ivan Cleary a few years ago, the pair found themselves inside the headquarters of the LA County Fire Department as flames raged across the city forcing 200,000 residents to abandon their homes.
Penrith Panthers coaches Cameron Ciraldo and Ivan Cleary. Insert: Los Angeles Lakers NBA superstar LeBron James and his Los Angeles mansion.Credit:NRL Photos, Unlimited Real Estate, Getty
NBA superstar LeBron James was one of them, evacuating his Los Angeles mansion as a Californian wildfire roared up the slopes to the city’s Mountaingate area.
A state of emergency had been declared, with chief Derek Alkonis ordering a state of readiness during the 9am leadership conference.
It’s there Ciraldo would learn about the three C’s – clear, calm, concise – the motto behind Alkonis’ communication strategy.
Cameron Ciraldo and Ivan Cleary drive past the raging Los Angeles fires last October. Insert: LeBron James’ tweet and LA County Fire Department chief Derek Alkonis.
“It doesn’t matter what emotions, thoughts or feelings are going on inside of you,” Alkonis told them. “You must create a perception of being calm and confident.”
Even on Wednesday morning, just hours before fronting the cameras in Bulldogs colours for the first time, Ciraldo was reading over the report he wrote from that very trip.
Dealing with pressure, and making decisions under such a state, is something very few assistant coaches can comprehend until they are in the hot seat.
While it will pale into insignificance compared to the furnace he will face from round one next season, the 37-year-old was thrust into the spotlight for most of the year as speculation over his future ran wild.
Cameron Ciraldo is embarking on his first NRL pre-season as a head coach.Credit:Louie Douvis
“It was definitely uncomfortable,” he said. “I didn’t have to deal with that in my playing career. But to have a mentor like [Cronulla coach] Craig Fitzgibbon, he’d gone through it himself. Just being able to ring him and bounce things off him was a blessing. To have him as a mentor was awesome.
“He told me that head coaching is uncomfortable. He said it was great practice being able to deal with that speculation. Whilst it’s not pressure of winning and losing games, it’s still pressure and speculation, which is uncomfortable. I need to get used to uncomfortable.”
There’ll no doubt be plenty of uncomfortable moments when it comes to the recruitment of players, particularly those who hail from the Penrith Panthers.
Ciraldo has been highly respectful of the Panthers during his contract negotiations, refusing to talk about the Bulldogs until his job with Penrith was over.
Cameron Ciraldo and Ivan Cleary enjoy their last captain’s run together before the grand final earlier this month.Credit:Rhett Wyman/SMH
But in three weeks’ time the likes of Stephen Crichton, Brian To’o and Liam Martin will become free agents. The coach knows how he is going to handle it.
“I’ve got my own values and morals and I’ll stick to that,” Ciraldo said.
“It’s not going to be me approaching any Penrith players. I’m sure if a Penrith player can’t fit in there, I’d like to think I’d be one of the first people they call. But I won’t be calling them.
“A lot of people at Penrith have done a lot of hard work over a number of years and I’m not going to try and rip that apart. I have my own job to do. This is a development club here now at Canterbury.”
Balmain fan who had to turn down the Tigers
One of Ciraldo’s earliest memories of rugby league was sitting inside the then newly built Sydney Football Stadium, among the sea of black and gold at the 1989 NSWRL grand final.
A five-year-old Ciraldo was crying on his father Nick’s shoulder as the Balmain Tigers suffered an agonising come-from-behind loss to the Canberra Raiders in the iconic decider.
Nick was a Tigers tragic – of the Balmain variety at first. Every second weekend from March to September each year, he would take his son to Leichhardt Oval to watch their beloved Tigers.
Even after making his debut for the Sharks as a 20-year-old in 2005, Cameron’s progression to the top grade did little to dampen the euphoria of the Benji Marshall-inspired grand final triumph of the amalgamated Wests Tigers, celebrating the win into the early hours of the morning.
Benji Marshall, Cameron Ciraldo and Tim Sheens.Credit:Getty, NRL Photos
It made the Wests Tigers’ pursuit of Ciraldo even more appealing. But after giving strong consideration to linking with Sheens at the joint venture club, he just couldn’t take the leap.
“At the end of the day it just didn’t feel right,” Ciraldo said.
“It was hard for me because I was a Balmain fan growing up and it’s a club with big plans in place. All I can say is that it just didn’t feel like it was the right club for me. The longer the Canterbury conversations went on, the more it felt like it was the right place for me.
“At the end of the day you have to trust your gut instincts and you live and die by that. I’m comfortable that Belmore is the right place for me.”
Ciraldo has roots entrenched into Canterbury area. He played school football for Nuwarra, often competing in Canterbury knockouts.
He also spent a lot of his young life down the road from Belmore Sportsground at his grandmother’s house behind Belmore Boys High School.
“I spent a big part of my childhood at the RSL,” he said. “My grandmother worked there for 40 years.”
“The whole Canterbury Bankstown area has an identity. It is a really unique community. I love the multiculturalism of the joint. As a grandson of migrants who came out from Italy for an opportunity, this area still has the same identity.
“That’s what we represent. The Bulldogs have a proud rich history and it’s all built on hard work and toughness. That’s the sort of team I want to coach. To be back coaching in the area, it feels like home.”
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