Trent Barrett has stood down as head coach of the Bulldogs in the NRL.

The club announced the decision on Monday morning, after a meeting on Sunday night to decide the fate of the coach.

"As this is a challenging time for all parties, the club would like to respect Trent's privacy and wish him all the best for the future," the statement said.

The club had a win and two close losses to start the year, before a 44-0 thumping at the hands of Manly began a run of four defeats of 20 points or more that ramped up the pressure on the coach and his side.

The Bulldogs' most recent win came in round eight with a 16-12 victory over the Roosters.

The victory followed an unorthodox intervention by the club's general manager of football, Phil Gould, to take over Bulldogs training.

The move raised further questions about Barrett's future — he denied claims he was being undermined by Phil Gould at Canterbury, declaring the Bulldogs players "know who the coach is".

His resignation followed a 16-6 loss to Newcastle at Lang Park during the Magic Round, when the Knights ended a seven-game losing streak. 

Barrett's departure comes despite an expensive recruitment drive that has included the additions of Josh Addo-Carr, Matt Burton, Tevita Pangai, Matt Dufty and Paul Vaughan.

It's unclear who will be in the coach's seat for Friday's match against Wests Tigers, but assistant coach David Furner or NSW Cup coach Michael Potter loom as the most likely candidates to take over in the short term.

Longer term options are thought to be headed by premiership-winning duo Paul Green and Shane Flanagan, whose son Kyle is on the Bulldogs' books.

Others drawing speculation as potential candidates include St Helens coach Kristian Woolf and Cameron Ciraldo, who is an assistant at Penrith, as Barrett was before joining the Bulldogs.

ABC/AAP