By Dean Ritchie

14 February 2008 - The Daily Telegraph

A BULLDOGS lobby group, which claims it can influence more than 200 voting members, has decided to back the rebel ticket in Sunday's AGM at Belmore.

Called Back to Belmore Inc, the group says the current board has shown "blatant ineptitude" and has urged fans to vote for Graeme Hughes, Andrew Farrar, Barry Ward and Paul Dunn.

The Back to Belmore committee meets every month but claims to have not had any motions or recommendations heard by the current board.

The group, which monitors all key decisions made by the club, officially comprises of only seven directors but claim to have support of more than 300 fans - allegedly including 200 voting members.

In a letter distributed to Bulldogs fans, Back to Belmore president Luke Brailey writes: "Substance, competence and conviction are important qualities for the board of directors to possess.

"No one has a better understanding of the history, culture and tradition of the mighty blue and whites than the [rival] candidates do."

Brailey predicted the rebel ticket would, as directors, listen to and digest the thoughts of supporters. "As members of the board, these candidates would work hard at developing plans to effectively return the family club to its former glory," he said.