TRADITIONAL cheerleaders - and their knee-high boots and short skirts - have been high-kicked out of Canterbury.

The Bulldogs last week ended their partnership with the dance studio responsible for choreographing match-day routines for the past 12 seasons. Instead, from next year onwards, dancing will no longer be the priority of the squad.

GOOD IDEA OR JUST POLITICAL CORRECTNESS? TELL US BELOW

Pre-match and half-time performances are set to be abandoned in favour of off-field work, such as hospital visits, corporate entertainment and further education. Different outfits will be designed to suit each occasion, but none will be anywhere near as revealing as last season's costume.

And, when auditions start over the next few weeks, aspirants will need more than just the right moves.

"They'll also go through an interview, because we want to take this through a more professional evolution," Bulldogs CEO Raelene Castle said.

"A big part of that is bringing the girls in-house and employing them directly through the club.

"We invest a lot in our cheerleaders and we want to maximise that investment by having them exposed to the same community and learning programs as everyone else in the club.''

Ms Castle, the former chief executive of Netball NZ, said she understood there would be "debate over the merits of keeping scantily-clad girls dancing''.

"We want to go in a more professional direction, where they do more than just dance in revealing outfits,'' she said.

"They'll still be doing cheerleading at the game, they will still have pompoms, but we're going to give them more opportunities as well.

"I can't see how that's a bad thing."

But several members of last year's squad - known as "the Belles'' - can.

Opponents have established an online petition to "Save the Belles'', which yesterday had attracted several hundred messages of support.

Ms Castle revealed "The Belles'' name was not assured to survive because the cheerleading would be reduced to a small component of their future role.

"We probably wouldn't call them cheerleaders in future," Castle said.

"We want them to be ambassadors and have a much greater role in promoting what this club stands for."