‘He’ll captain his state’: Phil Gould predicts Stephen Crichton will eventually captain the Blues, but 2025 isn’t the right time

Phil Gould is certain that Stephen Crichton will eventually captain the Blues, but the Bulldogs general manager of football doesn’t think this year’s series is the right time for him to take the reins.

Crichton has emerged as one of the best leaders in the NRL, with the strike centre named Dally M Captain of the Year in 2024 in what was his first season at Canterbury after moving across from the Panthers.

The representative star had never captained a side before last year but it didn’t show, as his incredible actions on and off the field helped the Bulldogs end their finals drought, with the club now on top of the table thanks to their fearless leader.

He would do a wonderful job if picked to lead his state by Laurie Daley, but the returning Blues coach has plenty of options including incumbent skipper Jake Trbojevic.

If he isn’t picked, then Nathan Cleary and Isaah Yeo would be the other leading candidates, with Gould confident that Crichton will eventually lead NSW and Samoa.

“Stephen Crichton is a very special human being. He’s not just a great footballer, he’s also a very special human being,” he said as the club launched its Game-Changers Program in Belmore on Tuesday morning.

“You see the great footballer on the weekend, but we see the human here and the effect he’s had on this club.

“I knew Stephen when he was a kid coming through the junior system at Panthers when he was a young boy, and he’s always been special. Not just a special talent as a player but as a bloke.

“He came here to a new club when he was very young and was handed the captaincy reins, which was a big ask.

“The way he’s taken to it and the role that he’s played has influenced a lot of the players here in the way that we do our business.

“It influences the way that our club is perceived, and that’s a special mark of the respect that he commands.

“I have no doubt that he’ll be a representative captain, both for his country and his state at some stage.

“There are a lot of good candidates with a lot of experience at the moment, so I don’t know if he needs that burden right at this point in time because there are some leaders there for us.

“But certainly in the future he will captain his country and he’ll captain his state.”

The Game-Changers Program is an educational initiative designed to equip high school students with the essential skills they need to thrive in today’s world, with Tuesday’s launch featuring kids from local schools, major sponsors, police officers and other important guests.

And while the off-field program is an important tool for the next generation, Crichton showed how he could be a game-changer on the field with a stunning second half to lead the Bulldogs to an incredible come-from-behind win over Canberra.

Crichton carved up on the right edge and made sure none of his teammates gave up despite being down at halftime against the high-flying Raiders.

“You just give Crichton the ball and good things happen,” teammate Kurtis Morrin said.

“He just goes about his business. His head is always screwed on, even when we were down in that first half, he never looked like he was going to lose.

“He just gives that confidence to every other player in the team.”