Embattled Canterbury mentor Kevin Moore says he can't hear the death knell for his NRL coaching career, dismissing rumours he will soon be sacked.

Moore said speculation about his tenure was a direct result of the Bulldogs' middling season, but was adamant his underperforming team could still feature in the finals.

Bulldogs chairman Ray Dib took the extraordinary step this week of assuring Moore's future in a letter to fans, amid speculation a loss to Melbourne on Saturday night in Adelaide would lead to the coach being replaced.

Moore, contracted until the end of next year, said the speculation was not distracting him from the task of reviving the fortunes of the 10th placed Bulldogs.

"I have been around the game long enough, things like that are going to happen when you're not performing," Moore said in Adelaide on Friday.

"The only way to change it is by performance and that is what we'll be striving to do.

"We're technically equal seventh so any team in that position, if you can string four or five wins on the trot, you're going to find yourself comfortably in the eight.

"And then you are starting to prepare for semi-finals, so that is what we're aiming to do."

Moore appealed for perspective about the record of seven wins and eight losses for a team touted as premiership contenders.

"We are not even two-thirds of the way through the year, so I think it's important that we keep things in perspective," he said.

"And from my point of view the players need to come up with a really good performance tomorrow night, we're coming up against the competition leaders and a team that is renowned for its quality so we need to make sure that we're very good."

The Bulldogs will host the Storm in a nominal home fixture at Adelaide Oval without star NSW hooker Michael Ennis, who was injured in Wednesday's State of Origin decider.

His prognosis remains unknown with the No.9 missing scheduled scans in Sydney on Thursday due to delayed flights out of Brisbane.

"He leaves a big hole for us, he's our only state of origin player ... but we need to manage that and need to be better when we're missing key players," Moore said.

"The message that I will be sending to our boys is that we need to stand up and whatever we lack without Mick being there, we need someone else to put their hand up and make sure that we're not deficient."

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