The Canberra Raiders say they have not been approached by the Canterbury to release assistant Dean Pay from a two-year contract extension, but it's unlikely they will stand in the way if he's offered a head-coaching job.
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The Bulldogs and coach Des Hasler face a showdown at Belmore on Friday when the club's board meets to discuss Hasler's future.
Pay has emerged as one of the leading candidates on the Bulldogs' list if they part ways with Hasler and need a new man to fill the void for the 2017 season and beyond.
Pay signed a new two-year deal in August to remain as part of Ricky Stuart's coaching set-up in the capital as the Raiders set their sights on building a dynasty.
The Raiders are keen to keep Pay on their roster but it is believed the Green Machine is unlikely to stand in Pay's way if he is offered a head coaching position at his former club.
Hasler and the Bulldogs are at loggerheads and the tension is set to boil over at a crisis meeting with the club's directors.
Pay has emerged as a contender to replace Hasler if the Bulldogs dump the two-time premiership-winning coach from the final year of his contract.
Pay, a Bulldogs premiership player from 1995, is carving out a successful coaching career and has helped Stuart transform the Raiders. He has also led the NSW junior State of Origin side.
Raiders chief executive Don Furner said the club had not been told of any coaching movements, but wasn't surprised Pay's name was being mentioned as a Bulldogs target.
"I only know that Dean is with us until 2018 and he hasn't said anything to us," Furner said.
"When coaching speculation comes up, good candidates always get mentioned so we're not surprised that he's getting mentioned around all of this.
"But as far as I know, he's with us. Dean has been an assistant coach for a long time, not just in Canberra so he's got experience.
"If our assistant coaches are getting targeted, it's a good sign [for what we're building]. But we don't want to lose them obviously."
Bulldogs director Steve Mortimer put the blowtorch on the board by declaring the club was "losing its DNA" with Hasler in charge.
Pay was a hard-nosed prop for the Bulldogs in the 1990s before he switched to Parramatta during the Super League war.
He is viewed as someone who understands the Bulldogs culture and capable of guiding the club to another premiership. Hasler has led the Bulldogs into the finals for the past five years, including two grand final appearances.
Despite his record there appears to be a massive divide at the club and Hasler's future is on the line.
Meanwhile, Raiders prop Paul Vaughan is yet to make a call on his immediate future as he weighs up offers to lure him away from Canberra.
Vaughan has emerged as an off-season recruitment target after slipping out of the Raiders' top 17 during the season.
Vaughan has turned down an opportunity to play for Italy in the World Cup qualifiers in Europe and is instead trying to make a decision on where he will play next season.
The 25-year-old is contracted to Canberra until the end of 2017 but the St George Illawarra Dragons have tabled a lucrative offer in a bid to bolster their forward pack.
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