Being identified by a former international as one of the players that Canterbury should dispense with wouldn't be the greatest thing to hear about yourself.

It is a good thing then that Michael Lichaa is made of strong stuff.

Not that that attribute alone will necessarily win him a new contract at Belmore. With the drumbeats about a clean-out at Canterbury getting louder and the Bulldogs eyeing a play at off-contract Wests Tigers pair James Tedesco and Aaron Woods, there are naturally going to be losers out of the equation.

Lichaa, being off contract himself, could be one of them. There are others whose deals run out at the end of the season, too, such as Josh Reynolds and Will Hopoate. Then there is the talk of further Bulldogs players being shopped around to other clubs.