All he is concerned about is how they end the season ahead.

Rock bottom for the first half of 2019, Canterbury lost only three of their final 10 games to finish just three points outside of the top eight.

As much as he wants to start fresh, Pay acknowledges building on that momentum and experience will be crucial for success in 2020.

"This year is a different year to last year, so we've got a big season coming up," he told AAP.

"We've got to make sure that we play well enough to put ourselves in the contest every week and keep building respect for ourselves.

"It all starts again and that's our attitude towards the season.

"We've got to start again and make sure that we put performances out there to compete every week."

One of the biggest hurdles is the absence of star half Kieran Foran, who is expected to miss at least the first half of the season due to the shoulder injury he suffered playing for New Zealand.

However, the multi-million dollar star managed just 14 games last year and in his absence a new combination of Jack Cogger and Lachlan Lewis arose.

Cogger will get another chance to step into Foran's shoes this year, while talented youngster Brandon Wakeham, who played three NRL games last year, is nipping at his heels.

"They've both got different strengths but Jack's got a few more games under his belt and a little bit more experience than Brandon," Pay said.

"They both kick well and they're tough defenders, so they've got a fair few similarities about them.

"It's just about combinations and making sure they fit into the team well, and they're both doing that at the moment.

"It's going to be a difficult decision."

Bench forward Chris Smith's season has been ruined by a knee injury suffered in the NRL All Stars game.

Schedule-wise, the Bulldogs have a tough draw midway through the year.

Between round 7 and round 12 they will play in Queensland four times and visit New Zealand once, with a Sydney game at Belmore Oval crammed in the middle.

Pay's plan to combat this is to get the squad used to travelling as much as possible, taking trial games to Papua New Guinea as well as Port Macquarie.

And while these are significant hurdles to overcome, a developing club identity of toughness can help them thrive in difficult conditions.

"We build off the back of what we did last year, we defended really strongly and that's the cornerstone of what we want to keep building," Pay said.

"If we keep defending well it's going to keep us in games for longer, it's been a fairly strong focus for us over the off-season.

"I think we've still got one of the youngest lists in the competition, we're still a young footy team and we're still developing.

"That's our challenge, to make sure that they keep getting better."

CANTERBURY

Finishes over the past three seasons: 2019 - 12th, 2018 - 12th, 2017 - 11th

Coach: Dean Pay

Captain: Josh Jackson

Key gains: Joe Stimson (Storm), Dean Britt (Rabbitohs)

Key losses: Fa'amanu Brown, Danny Fualalo, Michael Lichaa (released)

Best team: 1. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, 2. Nick Meaney, 3. Will Hopoate, 4. Reimis Smith, 5. Jayden Okunbor, 6. Kieran Foran, 7. Lachlan Lewis, 8. Aiden Tolman, 9. Jeremy Marshall-King, 10. Dylan Napa, 11. Corey Harawira-Naera, 12. Josh Jackson, 13. Adam Elliott, 14. Sione Katoa, 15. Joe Stimson, 16. Raymond Faitala-Mariner, 17. Renouf To'omaga.

Predicted finish: 13th

Australian Associated Press