It started with some dumplings and a few spring rolls at a restaurant at Canterbury Leagues Club, but Reed Mahoney didn’t need a succulent Chinese meal to know he was back home ahead of this week’s game against his former club.
Mahoney was spotted with Bulldogs supremo Phil Gould in late 2021 before he signed a deal to rejoin the club where he played his junior footy.
The workhorse hooker wasn’t distracted by the move last year, helping the Eels reach the grand final, but he’s relished the move back to Belmore, where he’s played with more freedom and relished the leadership role alongside Matt Burton.
Mahoney is expecting to be targeted by everyone on Sunday afternoon when he returns to CommBank Stadium, but don’t expect him to prepare any differently when he takes on the Eels.
“It’s just another game,” he joked.
“I feel like I’ve probably grown up a little bit. There’s definitely a lot more responsibility on myself. It doesn’t change too much with my footy capacity, but off the field it’s definitely helped as a person.
“When I first came to the joint on day one of pre-season, it felt like I was in the right place. I’m super proud to be here and to be a Bulldog.”
Not much has changed for Mahoney in terms of making stacks of tackles each week, but his attacking output has gone up a gear with the hooker becoming more involved in the red zone.
He’s already had five try assists this year compared to just seven last season when his main job was getting the ball to Mitch Moses and Dylan Brown as early as possible.
“At Parra, there are a lot of boys that are very dominating football players. They have their own right to do that, and that’s fine,” he said.
“They’re the ball runners of the team, and then you’ve got international forwards, international halves and an international fullback.
“For me (the biggest change is) probably running the ball a bit more and things like that.
“It’s something that I’m still building and still getting right. I’ve got a bit more freedom to take the line on here and I’m still balancing when to run and when not to run with balancing having to make a few tackles a game.
“It’s all part of the journey.”
Mahoney says the Bulldogs must shut Moses down after he set up four tries in the win over the Tigers, with Canterbury’s defence sure to be tested after they capitulated against the Rabbitohs on Good Friday.
The Bulldogs do get several key forwards back for Sunday’s game, with Moses expecting a big performance from Mahoney, even if that means shutting down all modes of communication before their reunion.
“He’s been playing outstanding footy. He’s obviously the captain over there and he’s really taken that with both hands,” the Eels playmaker said.
“I won’t be talking with him this week. It looks like he’s loving his footy at the moment, so good on him.”
