PC2011/12RP "Sons of the West" : Western Bulldogs 2015

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Just loving the layout of this story. So simple but yet effective.

 

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ROUND 7 - BYE​

 

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ROUND 8 v COLLINGWOOD​

Round 8 will see the Bulldogs take on Collingwood at MCG. The Bulldogs have made three changes, Robert Murphy (Broken Ankle), Luke Dahlhaus (Back Strain) and Will Minson (Suspended) are all out. Stewart Crameri, Jason Johannisen and Matthew Boyd who hasn't played since round 1 will come into the side.

 

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BULLDOGS COME FROM BEHIND TO WIN THEIR SECOND GAME OF THE SEASON​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Honeychurch 6, Bontempelli 3, Crameri 2, Grant 2, Hunter
Magpies: Goldsack 4, Cloke 3, Grundy 3, White 2, Swan, Greenwood

BEST:
Bulldogs: Honeychurch, Bontempelli, Cordy, Wood, Talia
Magpies: Goldsack, Toovey, Reid, Elliot, Pendlebury

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs : Bontempelli 30, Talia 28, Wood 26, Dickson 24, Liberatore 23
Magpies: Goldsack 27, De Goey 25, Toovey 24, Reid 23, Pendlebury 21

The Bulldogs have come from behind to win their second game of the season against the Magpies in front of 55,096 at the MCG. Collingwood were infront most of the match. They were 2 goals up at each break until the final quarter where the Dogs kicked 4 goals to 2 to win the match. Mitch Honeychurch starred up forward for the Dogs kicking 6 goals. Marcus Bontempelli collected 23 touches and 3 goals and Michael Talia 28 touches and 4 tackles both played impressive games. Ayce Cordy was dominant in the ruck winning 39 hitouts to 21. For the Magpies, Tyson Goldsack impressed up forward with 4 goals and 27 disposals. Brodie Grundy and Travis Cloke both kicked 3 goals.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I thought we played really well today. We dominated them most of the game. We we won the disposals 461-186, won the tackles 64-28 and won the inside fifties 79-38. With those stats you really would have thought that we would comfortably win but Collingwood were able to score from the limited opportunities that they had to score while we had many opportunities to score but weren't able to convert.
I was very happy with how Mitch (Honeychurch) played this week. He has started as the sub the last couple of weeks but kicked 3 goals last week so we thought of giving him a starting spot which seems to have paid off.

 

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ROUND 9 v WEST COAST​

Round 9 will see the Bulldogs take on the winless Eagles at Domain Stadium. The Bulldogs have made two changes with Ayce Cordy and Lachie Hunter both omitted to make way for ruckman Will Minson and debutant Toby McLean after his 8 goal haul in the reserves.

 

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EAGLES SOAR IN THEIR FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Grant 2, Crameri 2, Dickson, McLean, Stringer
Eagles: Darling 2, Lucas 2, Rosa 2, Shuey 2, LeCras 2

BEST:
Bulldogs: Minson, Talia, Stringer, Bontempelli, Macrae
Eagles: LeCras, Rosa, Yeo, Selwood, Ellis

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs : Stringer 26, Wood 25, Bontempelli 25, Talia 23, Jong 20
Eagles: Yeo 33, LeCras 31, Sheppard 29, Ellis 27, Cavka 23

West Coast have won their first game of the season with a 20 point win over the Bulldogs in front of 36,975 at Domain Stadium. The Bulldogs led by a goal at quarter time but were over run in the second quarter and weren't able to come back into the match. Mark LeCras was one of the best on ground with 31 touches and 2 goals. Elliot Yeo and Brad Sheppard were influential across half back collecting 33 touches and 29 touches respectively. Sharrod Wellingham, Xavier Ellis and Damien Cavka all finished with more than 20 disposals. For the Bulldogs, young guns Jake Stringer and Marcus Bontempelli continued their impressive season form collecting 26 and 25 touches respectively. Will Minson dominated in the ruck winning the hitouts 33 to 14.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I thought the boys played quite poorly today. Over recent weeks we have been dominating the possession and inside fifties but continue to not take those opportunities. Today we had 72 inside fifties but only kicked 7 goals. We really need to improve on scoring as we missed 14 times also.
Jake (Stringer) and Marcus (Bontempelli) continue to perform. They have been up there with our best players this year. I've been also very impressed with Will (Minson). He didn't have a great start to the year but has improved in the ruck.

 

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ROUND 10 v HAWTHORN​

Round 10 will see the Bulldogs play 3rd on the ladder Hawthorn at Etihad Stadium. The Bulldogs have gone unchanged for the first time this season.

 

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Ruckman a late withdrawal from selected side​

Will Minson is a late withdrawal from the Bulldogs side. Ayce Cordy is his replacement.

 

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HAWTHORN DOMINATE AGAINST INACCURATE BULLDOGS ​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Stringer 4, Crameri 2, Macrae, Honeychurch
Hawks: Puopolo 4, Roughead 2, Simpkin 2, Rioli, Mitchell, Shiels, Ceglar, Lewis

BEST:
Bulldogs: Stringer, Morris, Talia, Wood, Crameri
Hawks: Roughead, Puopolo, Ceglar, Mitchell, Gibson

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Wood 37, Stringer 31, Liberatore 24, Morris 23, Boyd 21
Hawks: Burgoyne 27, Birchall 25, Lewis 24, Gibson 22, Bruest 22

Hawthorn have continued their dominant 2015 form with a 22 point win over the Bulldogs. Hawthorn were dominant in the first three quarters of the game leading by 43 points at 3 quarter time but a strong last quarter from the Bulldogs reduced the margin. It was the battle of the Roughead's with Jarryd Roughead winning the duel collecting 21 possessions and 2 goals. Paul Puopolo played well up forward kicking 4 goals. Shaun Burgoyne 27 touches and 8 marks, Grant Birchall 25 touches and Jordan Lewis 24 touches were all prolific in the win. For the Bulldogs, Easton Wood continued to impress off half back collecting a career high 37 touches. Jake Stringer moved forward towards the end of the game kicking 4 goals and racking up 31 touches. Tom Liberatore played one of his best games of the season finishing with 24 touches and a game high 13 tackles.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
It was always going to be a tough game against the Hawks and it showed. They were very dominant against us for most of the game. They layed 66 tackles to our 20 which is very poor by us because we didn't win a lot of the ball. But the boys were very strong in the last quarter which reduced the margin quite significantly.
Jake (Stringer) was moved to deeper into the forward line which may be a more permanent role for him because of the work he did there today.
I thought Libba stood up today. He has had a very quite start to the year but he was able to get a hold of the ball today and laid a lot of tackles which is very pleasing.
We will need to make a couple of changes after Marcus (Bontempelli) injured his Achilles. He should be back within the month.

 

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ROUND 11 v NORTH MELBOURNE​

Round 11 will see the Bulldogs tackle North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium. Both teams have had slow starts to the season and will be looking to win this match. The Bulldogs have made two changes, Marcus Bontempelli (Achilles) and Easton Wood (Suspended) are out and Nathan Hrovat and debutant Josh Prudden will come in.

 

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JAKE STRINGER SHINES AS DOGS WIN THIRD OF THE SEASON​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Stringer 10, McLean 2, Hrovat
Roos: Nahas 4, Harvey 3, Cunnington 2, Brown, Dal Santo

BEST:
Bulldogs: Stringer, Morris, Macrae, M.Boyd, Talia
Roos: Harvey, Dal Santo, Adams, Mullett, Goldstein

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Biggs 40, Morris 29, Macrae 29, M.Boyd 26, Smith 23
Roos: Gibson 36, Dal Santo 30, Adams 28, Mullett 25, Harvey 22

The Bulldogs have won their third game of the season with a 13 point win over North Melbourne. The Bulldogs led at every change but pulled away in the fourth quarter to win by 2 goals. Shane Biggs was instrumental in the win finishing with a career high 40 touches. Jake Stringer dominated up forward kicking 10 goals and taking 16 marks. Dale Morris, Jack Macrae, Matthew Boyd and Clay Smith all finished with over 20 disposals. For the Roos, Sam Gibson finished with 36 disposals but it was North's small forwards doing most of the damage. Robin Nahas, Brent Harvey and Ben Cunnington kicked 9 goals between them. Ruck duo Todd Goldstein and Ben Brown dominated in the ruck winning the hitouts 30 to 21.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I was very happy with the boys performance this week. We have been putting in a lot of hard work through the last few weeks and at training and it has paid off today. I thought our work around the ball was exceptional as we dominated the clearances 27 to 9.
Jake Stringer was fantastic today. He is really relishing playing that full forward role and it is really good to see.
I was also pleased with the way Jack Macrae and Shane Biggs played today. With Marcus (Bontempelli) and Easton (Wood) out some boys needed to step up and thats what these guys did today.
Hopefully we can continue this form into the next few games.

 

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ROUND 12 v FREMANTLE​

Round 12 will see the Western Bulldogs take on top of the ladder Fremantle. The Bulldogs will remain unchanged for the game.

 

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FREMANTLE A LEVEL ABOVE BULLDOGS​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Stringer 5, McLean 3, Jong 2, Prudden
Dockers: Pavlich 4, Neale 3, Barlow 2, Hill 2, Sandilands, Taberner, Fyfe

BEST:
Bulldogs: Talia, Morris, Crameri, Stringer, McLean
Dockers: Fyfe, Neale, Pavlich, Sandilands, Mayne

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Crameri 44, Talia 38, Smith 25, Morris 23, Roughead 19
Dockers: Fyfe 34, Suban 24, Mayne 24, Walters 21, Neale 21

Fremantle have won its 10th game of the season with a 17 point win over the Bulldogs in front of 36,647 at Etihad Stadium. Fremantle made light work of the Bulldogs in the first 3 quarters leading at the final break by 42 points but a dominant last quarter from the Bulldogs reduced the margin. Young gun Nat Fyfe was one of the best for Fremantle collecting 34 touches and 13 tackles. Matthew Pavlich and Lachie Neale were instrumental in the win kicking 7 goals between them. For the Dogs, Stewart Crameri starred in his new position on the win finishing witth 44 disposals, 26 marks and 3 tackles. Michael Talia and Dale Morris continued there impressive work in defence racking up 38 and 23 disposals respectively and combined for a total of 20 spoils between them.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
Clearly, we were disappointing for most of the match. It was always going to be a tough game but our first 3 quarters were poor. They were on top of us for most of the game but some of our younger guys were able to step up in the final quarter to reduce the margin and avoid what could of been an embarrassing loss. From this game we can see that we really need to put in a 4 quarter performance.
I was very impressed with how Stewart (Crameri) played in his new role. He wasn't having much of an impact up forward so I told him that we would move him up to the wing which seems to really suit him.
We might need to make a couple of changes because some of the boys haven't been putting in anywhere near enough into their games.

 

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MID SEASON REPORT​

Statistics Top 3
Possessions
1. Jake Stringer 262 @ 23.8
2. Dale Morris 259 @ 23.5
3. Michael Talia 255 @ 23.1

Marks
1. Jake Stringer 120 @ 10.9
2. Tory Dickson 98 @ 8.9
3. Will Minson 66 @ 9.5

Tackles
1. Tom Liberatore 64 @ 5.5
2. Michael Talia 51 @ 4.6
3. Dale Morris 40 @ 3.6

Goals
1. Jake Stringer 24 @ 2.1
2. Stewart Crameri 13 @ 1.3
3. Lin Jong 12 @ 1.1

Hitouts
1. Will Minson 98 @ 14
2. Ayce Cordy 62 @ 12.4
3. Jordan Roughead 31 @ 2.8

Injury List
Robert Murphy - Broken Ankle - 11 Weeks
Luke Dahlhaus - Back Strain - 8 Weeks
Marcus Bontempelli - Achilles - 3 Weeks

 

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Fairly accurate results at the moment. Except for Brisbane in the top 8

 

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ROUND 13 v MELBOURNE​

Round 13 will see the Bulldogs take on Melbourne at the MCG. The Bulldogs have made three changes with Ayce Cordy, Tom Boyd and Josh Prudden all omitted to make way for Will Minson, Lachie Hunter and debutant Bailey Dale.

 

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Late withdrawal from selected side​

Liam Picken is a late withdrawal from the Bulldogs side. Koby Stevens is his replacement.

 

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DOGS TRIUMPH OVER MEDIOCRE DEMONS​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Stringer 4, Jong 2, Minson, Stevens, Dale
Demons: Howe 2, Grimes 2, Hogan, Kent, Lumumba

BEST:
Bulldogs: Biggs, Talia, Morris, Stringer, Minson
Demons: Neal-Bullen, Dunn, Lumumba, Jones, Salem

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Crameri 38, Biggs 30, Talia 27, Liberatore 23, Smith 18
Demons: Neal-Bullen 34, Lumumba 26, Jones 24, Grimes 23, Dunn 22

The Bulldogs have held on to win their 4th game of the season with a 14 point win over Melbourne in front of 35,140 at the MCG. Stewart Crameri was outstanding collecting 38 touches and 23 marks playing off the wing. Shane Biggs and Michael Talia finished with 30 and 27 touches respectively playing off half back. Jake Stringer played a solid game up forward kicking 4 goals. For the Demons, youngster Alex-Neal Bullen continues to impress collecting 34 touches, 3 marks and 5 tackles running across half back. Ruck duo Mark Jamar and Max Gawn battled hard in the rucking winning 28 hitouts to 27.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I thought the boys played superbly today. It was a very close contest as both teams wanted to win but we played splendidly across the whole four quarters to come away with the win.
Our defenders were sensational today and have been this season. The guys have really had to step up and work hard with Bob (Murphy) being out but and have been able to not let anything in.
Stewart Crameri has really settled in to his new role, hopefully he is able to keep this form up through the rest of the season.
Hopefully next week we can keep this momentum going and win 2 in a row.

 

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ROUND 14 v ST KILDA​

Round 14 will see the Bulldogs take on St Kilda at Etihad Stadium. The Bulldogs have made two changes with Koby Stevens and Jarrad Grant both omitted to make way for Tom Boyd and Marcus Bontempelli.

 

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SAINTS SURVIVE LATE SURGE FROM DOGS​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: McLean 2, Boyd 2, Stringer, Smith, Bontempelli, Honeychurch
Saints: Hickey 2, Billings 2, Longer, Steven, Bruce, Schneider

BEST:
Bulldogs: Minson, Talia, Morris, Bontempelli, Macrae
Saints: Schneider, Billings, Geary, Fisher, Roberton

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Crameri 30, Talia 25, Bontempelli 23, Biggs 22, Liberatore 21
Saints: Schneider 31, Gilbert 29, Dunstan 24, Roberton 22, Fisher 21

St Kilda has just held on against a fast finishing Bulldogs to win their 4th game of the season. The Saints were ahead all game and came into the last quarter with a 15 point lead but a valiant effort from the Bulldogs reduced the margin to 2 points. Veteran Adam Schneider showed that he still has what it takes finishing with 31 touches, 26 marks and a goal. But it was the Saint's defence holding the team together. Sam Gilbert, Dylan Roberton, Sam Fisher and Jarryn Geary were all impressive in defence all finishing with more than 20 touches. For the Dogs, Stewart Crameri has continued his superb form on the wing collecting 30 touches and 15 marks. Marcus Bontempelli had a solid return from injury racking up 23 touches, 9 marks and a goal.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
The boys were quite dissapointed after today. We played a very average 3 quarters but the boys were able to dominate in the last quarter but was unfortunately not enough in the end.
There weren't too many players that stood out today though Stewart (Crameri) has put together three solid performances. Michael Talia was also very good today.
Alex Greenwood looks line to make his debut after an impressive season in the reserves.

 

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ROUND 15 v CARLTON​

Round 15 will see the Bulldogs tackle Carlton at the MCG. The Bulldogs have made three changes with Jake Stringer (Suspended), Lachie Hunter (Omitted) and Bailey Dale (Omitted) all out and will be replaced by Jarrad Grant, Luke Dahlhaus and Easton Wood.

 

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DOGS TOO GOOD FOR BLUES​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: McLean 5, Boyd 2, Dahlhaus 2, Smith, Macrae, Honeychurch, Hrovat
Blues: Jones 2, Casboult 2, Gibbs, Carrazzo, Curnow, Armfield

BEST:
Bulldogs: Morris, McLean, Crameri, Minson, Talia
Blues: Jamison, Murphy, Henderson, Walker, Simpson

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Crameri 36, Roughead 26, Minson 22, Jong 22, Morris 20
Blues: Ellard 38, Bell 26, Tuohy 22, Murphy 21, Henderson 21

The Western Bulldogs have won comfortably by 29 points against Carlton in front of 47,113 at the MCG. The Bulldogs dominated most of the match and came into the final quarter up by 7 goals. But Carlton battled on during the last quarter to reduce the margin to 5 goals. Young forward Toby McLean played his best match for the Bulldogs kicking 5 goals and taking 6 marks. Stewart Crameri continued to star on the wing collecting 36 touches and 25 marks. In defence, Jordan Roughead played one of this best games for the season finishing with 26 touches, 2 tackles and 11 spoils. For Carlton, David Ellard finished with a career high 38 touches while Zac Tuohy and Tom Bell collected 26 and 22 touches respectively across half back. Tall forwards Liam Jones and Levi Casboult combined for 4 goals.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I thought the boys were spectacular today. Last week the boys were very dissapointed after losing by 2 points but they were able to bounce back very well. Stewart played exceptionally today. He is relishing the opportunity to play on the wing.
I thought our spread of goalkickers today is a sign that many guys are able to take the chances and kick goals from them. We saw that today with Toby (McLean). He has been playing quite well but today really stepped up in the absence of Jake Stringer.
I was impressed with Will's performance today. For a big man to get 22 touches and 17 marks while rucking is very pleasing.

 

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ROUND 16 v ESSENDON​

Round 16 will see the Bulldogs take on Essendon at Etihad Stadium. Jordan Roughead (Suspended), Tory Dickson (Omitted) and Jarrad Grant (Omitted) are out and make way for Jake Stringer, Liam Picken and debutant Joel Hamling.

 

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BOMBERS SHOW TOO MUCH SKILL FOR DOGS​

GOALS:
Bulldogs: Stringer 4, Jong 3, McLean 2, Honeychurch, Hamling
Bombers: Giles 4, Bellchambers 3, Ambrose 3, Heppell 2, Carlisle, Watson, Goddard

BEST:
Bulldogs: Morris, Stringer, Minson, Talia, Wood
Bombers: Watson, Goddard, Giles, Heppell, Bellchambers

DISPOSALS:
Bulldogs: Talia 29, Minson 27, Morris 25, Wood 23, Crameri 22
Bombers: Zaharakis 25, Howlett 24, Goddard 24, Dempsey 22, Watson 21

Essendon has finished strongly to run away with a 23 point win over the Bulldogs in front of 35,833 at Etihad Stadium. David Zaharakis and Ben Howlett set up most of Essendon's attack forward finishing with 25 and 24 disposals respectively. But most of the damage was created up forward. Jonathan Giles (4 goals), Tom Bellchambers (3 goals) and Patrick Ambrose (3 goals) were all influential in the win. For the Dogs, defender Michael Talia continued his excellent form collecting 29 touches, 3 tackles and 10 rebounds. Will Minson battled hard all day for the Dogs collecting a career high 27 disposals, 17 hitouts and 6 tackles.

Luke Beveridge's comments:
I thought that Essendon out played us today. It was always going to be difficult playing a top four team but not all the boys played their role the best they could unlike the Essendon boys. We lacked a lot of effort in the first half of the game but were able to pull ourselves back in the third quarter.
We lacked a lot of run and weren't able to set up many chances for our forwards to score as we were beaten in the inside fifty count 62-40.
Jake Stringer has come back superbly after his suspension. He just needs to work on his accuracy as he kicked 4.4.
Also, Will Minson has impressed me again. For a big guy like him to get 27 touches and 6 tackles shows how hard he works around the ground.

 

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ROUND 17 v ADELAIDE​

Round 17 will see the Bulldogs tackle Adelaide at Etihad Stadium. The Bulldogs go in unchanged for the match.