The Bulldogs have scored just 24 points across their opening three games, the least they have notched up to start the year since 1964.

Foran is expected to return from a shoulder and hamstring injury against St George Illawarra next week, as both sides search for their first win of the season.

It will be a welcome return for a Bulldogs side who have made the most errors in the NRL and are ranked in the bottom two for points, tries, run metres, line breaks, tackle busts and offloads.

"He will help. He will lift the players. Just that experience he brings will help," coach Dean Pay said.

"We all need to do a better job than what we are doing.

"Everyone who is involved with what we do when we get in our good ball.

"We seem to be a little lost and frantic with what we are doing. And that causes errors."

The Bulldogs routinely blew chances early in Sunday night's loss to Manly.

They coughed up possession while attacking the Sea Eagles' line four times in the first 20 minutes, frustrating coach Pay.

It came after Pay switched his halves combination from the opening two rounds, dropping Brandon Wakeham for Jack Cogger.

Foran had trained at five-eighth for the majority of the return from the coronavirus shutdown before tweaking a hamstring, but Pay insisted that didn't warrant the attacking problems.

"It's no excuse, we should be better than that," Pay said.

"We need to be better again next week with the errors we make when we do get down the field

"We've got to find some more patience in what we are doing and getting through out sets.

"Because we're not building any pressure at all."

CANTERBURY'S ATTACKING WOES:

Points: 24 (15th)

Tries: 4 (=14th)

Average run metres: 1235 (15th)

Linebreaks: 6 (15th)

Tackle busts: 50 (16th)

Offloads: 15 (16th)

Completion rate: 68 per cent (15th)

Errors: 45 (16th)

(Stats: Fox Sports Stats)

Australian Associated Press