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Canterbury's defence has put them on the verge of a NRL finals return, but it is an improvement in attack that will give the Bulldogs a chance to strike.

If ever there was a play that summed up Canterbury's rise out of the NRL doldrums, it came with 47 seconds left in the first half at Belmore last week.

With scores locked at 6-6 with Canberra, Bulldogs No.7 Toby Sexton made the snap decision to kick for touch from a 20-metre restart.

Needing to bounce the ball into touch to regain possession, he succeeded.

 From the resulting scrum, Stephen Crichton kicked for a flying Jacob Kiraz and the winger was only narrowly denied a try in the corner.

Kicks from the optional 20-metre restart are as rare as it gets in rugby league in 2024.

Sexton's attempt was the first this season, and only a precious few have been attempted since the introduction of the seven-tackle set from restarts in 2014.

"I've been speaking about it, though," Sexton told AAP.

"I knew the rules around it, and there was a minute left, and I wanted to get a bit of field position. So it was a good time to do it. 

"I did it in Queensland Cup when I was playing at Tweed once, and it was in a similar situation.

"The whole team here gives me so much confidence just to back myself no matter what."

Sexton's confidence is showing, with Canterbury having won eight of 10 matches with him at halfback as they push for what once seemed a most unlikely top-four finish.

So too is the Bulldogs' confidence, with the likes of Crichton giving them a long-missing swagger ahead of Saturday's clash with St George Illawarra.

Sexton's kick was the kind of play that would likely never have been dared in recent years at Belmore.

Before the start of this season, Canterbury had not scored 40 points against any team since 2016.

That was when they last played finals, and when the Bulldogs last averaged more than 20 points per game in attack.

And while the Dogs of War are back with their best defensive season since 2012, there are signs of a new-found attacking freedom under Cameron Ciraldo and attack coach Jason Taylor.

"Our defence is our strongest point at the moment," Sexton said. 

"But we know if we want to do something serious in the comp, we have to get our attack on as well. 

"Before our last bye we came together as a leadership team and spoke about what we could improve.

"I think we've made some really good adjustments in the past few weeks, and been able to score points. Looking forward, that's going to be our biggest thing."

Sexton too can feel it.

After being let go by Gold Coast last year and stating this season in reserve grade, he is within touching distance of his first finals series.

"The whole coaching staff have put a lot of confidence in me to do my job," Sexton said. 

"Part of my job is to have a good kicking game and steer the boys around. But they also give me a lot of confidence to back myself when I see something."