Canterbury say they're starting to feel like the big dogs in the NRL kennel again.
After being lacklustre against the competition's heavyweights this season, the Bulldogs turned a corner last week with an 18-16 win over Brisbane.
Going into the clash, last year's grand finalists were 2-7 against top-eight teams, a stat back-rower Josh Jackson said was not lost on the playing group.
However, the win over the ladder leaders keeps them inside the top eight and has them brimming with renewed confidence four weeks out from the finals.
"We weren't really playing well (against top-eight teams) before that," Jackson said.
"There's a real drive in the playing group to play better and (the ladder) is tight. We've got to win - it doesn't matter how."
Jackson said the side's 18-16 loss to Cronulla at their spiritual home of Belmore in round 20 proved to be a wake-up call.
The Bulldogs were heavily tipped going into the game, having put in a spirited performance three weeks earlier against Melbourne at the same ground.
He said the loss rammed home some hard truths which they had taken on board.
"(The Cronulla game) was definitely one of the turning points," Jackson said.
"We spoke about doing the simple things right. We've really fixed that up in the last couple of weeks.
"There's always room for improvement but we're on the right track."
The Bulldogs take on Gold Coast on Sunday at Central Coast Stadium.
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