Canterbury has kept their NRL finals aspirations alive with an impressive 44-14 victory over St George Illawarra, who are nearly guaranteed to receive their first wooden spoon as a joint venture.
Matt Burton, now playing at right centre, scored twice, contributing to the Bulldogs' strong 24-0 lead by halftime at Allianz Stadium on Saturday night.
Addressing previous concerns about their offense, Canterbury achieved their highest score of the season, with halfback Lachlan Galvin assisting on two tries and scoring one himself to secure a convincing win.
For the Bulldogs to reach the finals, they must win their remaining games, hoping North Queensland loses once, allowing them to surpass the Cowboys on for-and-against.
This scenario hinges on Canterbury defeating strong contenders Penrith next week, while the eighth-placed Cowboys must lose to either Wests Tigers or Canberra, neither of whom will make the playoffs in 2026.
However, the Bulldogs still have a shot at the top eight, a significant improvement after being near the bottom four just 12 weeks ago.
"We can't think about too much, we just need to win games," Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo stated.
He added, "We came in last Monday understanding we just needed to get this one, and we'll come in this Monday and have the same mentality."
Ciraldo believes, "If we get the same effort and tidy up a few execution things, then we might give ourselves a chance, but we'll have to be better than what we were tonight."
The victory may carry a cost, as veteran Kurt Mann sustained a groin issue after winger Enari Tuala withdrew before kick-off.
Mann is likely to be sidelined for at least a week, while Tuala may return against Penrith after injuring his knee during practice.
Back-to-back wins had given the Dragons a glimmer of hope to escape last place, but now they require victories in their last two games, Gold Coast losses in all three of theirs, and a significant for-and-against swing to avoid the wooden spoon.
"We haven't even spoken about it," coach Dean Young remarked about their impending fate.
Some mistakes from Red V contributed to the Bulldogs' substantial first-half advantage.
"It was just a disappointing performance from us tonight... We just put ourselves under too much pressure," stated Young.
Bronson Xerri started the scoring for the Bulldogs, snagging a Galvin kick on the left while his teammate Jonathan Sua was in the bin for a hip-drop tackle.
Following Burton's first try, Jaeman Salmon broke through two defenders, helping the Bulldogs advance, leading to Jacob Preston's try.
Burton secured his double after a pass from Dan Atkinson hit the ground and bounced up for Jacob Kiraz, who found his center.
After halftime, Galvin extended the lead to 30 points by backing Xerri for another try, but Dragons winger Mat Feagai scored twice while Burton was in the bin for a professional foul.
Additionally, Dragons hooker Jacob Liddle suffered a calf injury shortly before the Bulldogs' third try and was helped off the field.