what does the future hold for the western bulldogs?

[Ed_Gein]

just looking through their squad and it really is amazing the amount of aging quality in their squad. what perhaps might be concerning for the doggies is that a fair chunk of these players will probably retire in and around the same 2, maybe 3 year period.

boyd, cross, giansiracusa, gilbee, hargrave, lake, morris and murphy are all 29 or 30 and were all a crucial part of their success in making the top 4 a couple seasons running over 2008-2010.

of course they still have the quality of griffen and cooney to lead the charge in the midfield, but what about the quality around them in the 18-24 age bracket? is there really enough coming through to make a rejuvenated charge into the finals again within the next 2-3 years? or are the heading for a bit of a spell down the bottom to rebuild?

 

[Defacto]

I think they have some really positive signs for the future. I thought libba looked good, daulhaus looked like he can swing games and wallis started to work him self into the game. Also that debut player who kicked a few looks like he'll be handy.

Couple in the backline didn't look too bad. For me it's the old heads that have let them down so far.

 

[CF]

they need a rebuild to be frank as their aging stars are just not good enough to take them to a flag. They have some promising young players at the moment too but I think this year will see them a middle of the road team with a possibility for 7-8th if they get their s**t together.

There are long term problems that need fixing at the club and it may take a couple of seasons to see the fruit of that.

 

[Kwality]

This is not the time for doom & gloom at the Dogs - I rate their young guys & even though the Eagles rolled over them eventually, they got back into the game early & showed fight.

The only disappointment for me was the crowd, the lack thereof.

 

[Barry_Badrinath]

They've been around the mark for a while but missed their shot at the premiership and finals looks unlikely for the next few years. They don't have enough good young players to replace the retirees simply because they haven't had access to decent draft picks and haven't been trialling many young kids (since they've been winning). The club hasn't really done anything wrong, it's just the way it goes.

The plus side is they still have Griffen and Cooney so their "future midfield" is already half built, unlike a lot of rebuilding teams. The next 2-3 years should be bottom 5-8 finishes so they should get some decent picks. If they draft well they could rebound quickly like West Coast. If not it could be a 5 year break from finals.

 

[Jentleman Geff]

There's a lot there to work with in the younger age groups - frankly Boyd, Cross, Giansiracusa, Gilbee, Hargrave, Lake, Morris and Murphy probably got the best out of themselves which sadly was as much as 3rd/4th.

They still need to sort out how to draft talls.

 

[ausbacker]

It's difficult to get a measure on the Bulldogs as their defence was missing Williams and Morris, two players critical to their structure. The Bulldogs need to throw a heap of cash at any decent tall of note that may become available in the next year or so.

 

[Ed_Gein]

There's a lot there to work with in the younger age groups - frankly Boyd, Cross, Giansiracusa, Gilbee, Hargrave, Lake, Morris and Murphy probably got the best out of themselves which sadly was as much as 3rd/4th.

They still need to sort out how to draft talls.

i wonder if they would have managed to sneak a grand final berth in 2009 if they had gotten hall a year earlier. i rated them, it was just unlucky that their best few years there were at the height of st kilda and geelongs dominance as well.

 

[Kwality]

It's difficult to get a measure on the Bulldogs as their defence was missing Williams and Morris, two players critical to their structure. The Bulldogs need to throw a heap of cash at any decent tall of note that may become available in the next year or so.

Meantime play Ayce Cordy !!

 

[100action]

We are in our 2nd year of rebuilding, if you were hinting at possibly another run for the premiership by the threat title then obviously no, this was apparent after round 1 2010.

We will probably stay in the bottom 8 for 2-3 years where we rollover our 1999-2001 draft group and then wind up for another shot at the premiership.

 

[juzzo]

Think their in massive trouble. Hall and Ward are unrecoverable losses. A fit Lake and Cooney could help them avoid bottom 4.

 

[LordLucifer]

We have been wondering what will happen at the Dogs when their more established players get older and are in the twilights of their careers.

I think we are about to find out over the course of this season the answer to that question.

If the Dogs are not successful on the field, they do not have very much appeal to a potential newbie footy follower especially when there are two new entities in the competition who will have success very soon.

Finances have always been tough at the Western Oval and a lack of success won't help that factor either.

Will they be a viable option going forward ?? In the immediate short term yes, over the next 2-3 seasons, probably not.

The AFL will help them out with some financial assistance to cover some outstanding expenses but if they don't maintain a competitive playing list, their overall future will be in a perilous state.

 

[shoe]

Actually I expected them to be far less competitive.
They have some good quality young talent developing through the team, more than I gave them credit for.

And Daulhaus, boy, he looked dangerous every time he got near it. Slippery one too.

This isn't their year but they aren't dead & buried for sure.

 

[Morris Major]

need to rebuild, which is fine with me since i see enough quality from some of the young players to be positive about the future. not sure when we're bottoming out though, should we start this year and just write the next few off or give finals one last go?

considering all the teams who are entering/in the rebuilding phase, i think we're better off than Saints and Port, possibly Melbourne and Brissy.............possibly.

 

[MaddAdam]

They need a rebuild but should be fine. McCartney was the right choice as coach and they drafted an absolute ripper in Clay Smith.

They won't be great this year but they'll give it a crack and it will be a real development year. If they can do well with the "super draft" and their Ward compo pick as well as their "natural" pick, both of which could possibly be later stages of top 10, then they are very nicely set up.

Financially, they have all their eggs in the pokie basket and their membership is going backwards. But we're in Year 1 of the new 5 year AFL funding cycle. The pokie thing isn't going to go away as long as the Greens hold balance of power and will need to be dealt with.

The membership thing is more of a worry - they have had ten years of having more success than not at exactly the time the western suburbs of Melbourne were the fastest growing region in Australia and the end result is that they are currently the Vic team with the fewest members.

The AFL have actually taken some of the west off them in terms of schools and suchlike promo stuff - they've given Wyndham to us and Melton to the Bombers.

They also don't have a lucrative secondary market anymore now the GWS have taken Canberra off them.

I find it very difficult to see the AFL using all carrot to forcibly merge or relocate a team.

That said, I can see a team, probably one that hasn't had success in a long while believing AFL spin - $100m offer! - and agreeing to a merger ot "co-location".

Not saying it will be the Dogs. Just saying I can see it happening.

 

[cleveland]

Another norf suppoter getting stuck in about membership lol

 

[MaddAdam]

Another norf suppoter getting stuck in about membership lol

Mate, that post was very measured.

The reality is that after ten years unprecedented population growth in the west of Melbourne, the WESTERN BULLDOGS have the lowest membership of any Vic side.

If you can't see why that might be a very big problem, then hey, you just blame North supporters or whatever.

 

[finders]

Footscray/WB havent really engaged with the West of Melbourne for a very long time .I think you will find that the majority of their members come from east of the Westgate Bridge.

I go to Footscray and beyond on business a lot and you wouldnt know that an AFL club was was based there.

There are 1.5 million residents in the west and it is the fastest growing area in the nation but the WB membership number is the worst of the Melbourne clubs.

They like North need success to keep viable and without the AFL handouts would no doubt go under.The current side will be lucky to make the eight this season.

It also looks like Smorgans time is up and he just seems to be going through the motions.

The Dogs need new leadership that will propel the club forward into the future or they will become just another struggling club like they have been sadly for most of their VFL/AFL history.

 

[Prem87]

Unlike WC and Ess, the Bulldogs and Richmond have no quality backman to build their team around. They have midfield talent and a couple of decent forward options but they are still to skinny and are 3 years away. Ess and WC have very even young lists all over the ground although they still require more elite midfield talent.

 

[bunsen burner]

They s**t.

I thought they were okay on the weekend, but looking to the future they don't have much. Dollhouse looks like he could develop into A-grade, don't mind the look of Markevic, and Smith too early to tell. Griffen is a gun and Cooney is still A-grade.

They going to need more than that. I think they'll be around the bottom of the ladder for a few years so hopefully Dogs fans are realistic about McCartney's expectation. A few good draft choices and everything can change.

 

[Eastern Rangers]

Think their in massive trouble. Hall and Ward are unrecoverable losses. A fit Lake and Cooney could help them avoid bottom 4.

The bulldogs must play the kids.

Wallis, Dauhlhouse, Libba, Howard, Smith, Roughhead, Cordy and Wood are all quality prospects.

Cooney, Griffenn, Higgins are still in there prime. Cooney will need to play on in any capacity he can.

Plenty to work with but they might go down some more before they go up.

 

[NTRabbit]

Cooney, Griffen and Higgins sure, but Cooney has a degenerative knee that has already put him past his best artificially quickly, and Higgins is shockingly injury prone.

I also don't understand how a team that more or less has cart blanche over the entire west of Melbourne can have so few members. Sure, you don't have to be from Collingwood or Carlton to support Collingwood and Carlton these days, but with such a huge area someone ought to be asking serious questions of the board over their off field strategies.

 

[Testekill]

Our biggest problem is that we're missing quality in the 24-28 range thanks to some poor drafting. The club went wild with trading for players in 2003 and Cooney is the only player that we got that year that is still at the club. Same as with 2006 where we have nobody left over that we recruited that year.

 

[tugga]

Cooney is still on one leg. That is a worry.
No ruckman.
Defence looks frail.
But they have Liberatore, Dalhaus and Smith coming through that look very promising, particularly Libber. Throw in Wallis as well.
Not all doom and gloom.

 

[MightyHawks]

The Dogs will probably finish bottom 4-6.

They can't help the fact that their older players are ageing and need replacing.

Finishing 15th and getting a high draft pick is probably the best thing that could happen to them.

There's a lot of promise with a number of young kids - Libba, Wallis, Howard, Dalhaus, Clay Smith etc.

Two poor years in 2012-3 might mean that when they rise up again they'll return to top 4 and a possible Grand Final appearance when Cooney and Griffen are the veterans