Canterbury Bulldogs general manager Phil Gould meets with player’s representatives after training punishment in which he was made to wrestle each of his teammates

Other sources who have spoken to Bulldogs players at the session have played down the severity of the punishment, which a member of the coaching staff argued only lasted just over three minutes.

Ciraldo, in his first year as an NRL head coach, has defended his efforts to lift the training standards and culture of the Bulldogs, with the club missing the finals for a seventh straight year.

He received the backing of Edwards,…