On an emotional afternoon which saw club legend Josh Reynolds play his last ever game in the NSW Cup, the Bulldogs brought the huge crowd into the game early when Jacob Preston scored in the third minute and Matt Burton converted for a 6-0 lead.
Come the 14th minute, the Broncos were in and got there again in the 19th minute before the Bulldogs hit back.
Jake Averillo finished off a superb team try that featured offloads from Corey Waddell, Tevita Pangai Junior and Jacob Kiraz, with the score locked 12-12.
But it took the Broncos just two minutes to take the lead back before Averillo made it a double in the 29th minute.
The Broncos lost their winger to a sin bin in the 39th minute but they were still able to strike first after the break.
A late try to Waddell added some respectability for the Bulldogs but they allowed the Broncos to have the final say, with the score finishing at 44-24.
Bulldogs coach Cameron Ciraldo said he thought his side started well.
“It was 22-18 at half-time and I was pretty confident if we could get our game on we’d be right but the try three minutes after half-time set us back and I don’t know if we ever recovered,” he said.
The Bulldogs next take on the Panthers on Sunday from 2pm at BlueBet Stadium in Penrith.
