Matt Burton has brushed off his State of Origin demotion with little fuss as Canterbury prepare for their most crucial three weeks of football in eight years.
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Burton became one of NSW's hard-luck stories for Origin II, leapfrogged by Connor Watson as bench utility despite being 18th man in three of the past four games.
That has come with upside, however, for the Bulldogs.
Frustrated at regularly being without him as he acted as a Blues reserve, Canterbury will have Burton at their disposal against the Sydney Roosters on Saturday in Gosford.
And while coach Cameron Ciraldo refused to say whether his five-eighth had been hard done by, he said Burton was showing no sign of playing the victim.
"He came back on Monday and he's normal Burto," Ciraldo said.
"He's excited about playing footy and he's refreshed after the bye. He's ready to do the job for the team.
"It's good for us.
"We'd love to see him in and around that arena, but we know that when he does reach his potential or get close to that potential that he'll be there, no doubt."
The next three games between byes looms as crucial for the Bulldogs, after three straight wins before last week's rest.
They entered round 16 with the potential of finishing it in the top four, while they then face Cronulla and Warriors in the following fortnight.
Wins in two of those three matches would go a long way towards the Bulldogs' first finals appearance since 2016.
Such is Canterbury's improvement, both their attack and defence is the best it has been at this point in a season since the Bulldogs last made the grand final in 2014.
"The results over the past month say we've taken steps forward," Ciraldo said.
"But I feel like we've been doing that all year. We've been really consistent, played well in a lot of games.
"We haven't always got the result and sometimes hurt ourselves in the back end of games.
"But the last six weeks we've played some really good footy and had little wins along the way that we're recognising what they are."
Those three most recent wins have all coincided with Toby Sexton's addition to the team at halfback in place of Drew Hutchison.
"He was in a shootout (with Hutchison) for a position over the pre-season," Ciraldo said.
"He had to go away and work on some things and he just did it with such a good attitude and the character he is. And he got some reward for the hard work he put in behind the scenes.
"He's added a bit to our plays, taken the line on and directed the boys around well. He's playing with bravery and isn't afraid to play what he sees."
Australian Associated Press
