The blow-by-blow
The final game of Round 23 saw the Western Bulldogs face off against the bottom-placed West Coast Eagles. While the Bulldogs started as the obvious favourites, the Eagles played well last week against the Crows, and a similar pressure style game against the Dogs had some thinking an upset may have been on the cards.
By the end of the first quarter, those thoughts were laid to rest.
The Eagles did a lot of attacking early, with Noah Long getting the first score on the board with a behind. The Bulldogs would tie the score a few minutes later through their ruckman, Tim English. The Bulldogs then got the first goal of the game through Sam Darcy, one of the Bulldogs’ two talismanic forwards.
The Bulldogs almost picked up a second goal in a short period, after Bontempelli steamed through the wing and delivered it to the advantage of Aaron Naughton, but the ball bounced off Naughton’s chest. However, it wasn’t long before the Bulldogs got their second goal of the game through Sam Darcy again.
They looked ominous.
The Dogs continued their fast start with Sam Davidson beating his opponent in a marking contest before slotting through his first goal of the game. Darcy was almost set to kick his third goal of the quarter, but the tall forward dropped a mark and collected the crumb, handballing off to Naughton, who missed his snap under pressure.
Naughton would get on the board shortly after this, marking a kick over the back and converting from the set shot, with the Dogs already piling four goals before the Eagles could kick their first. While the Eagles managed to curtail the Bulldogs’ scoring ability for a while, they still had issues getting the ball into the hands of their forwards in dangerous positions, as the Bulldogs were able to repel everything that the Eagles were able to throw at them.
Bulldogs’ captain Marcus Bontempelli had a shot at goal after winning a free kick in the forward line, but the star pushed his kick across the face of the goal. Ed Richards did marginally better than his captain after he also won a free kick, but his shot swung to the right and went through for a behind.
Aaron Naughton should have had his second goal of the game, but his shot lacked the power and was marked by Eagles defender Reuben Ginbey in the goal square. Rhylee West then pounced on an error by the Eagles’ defence, but he was pressured into missing from a few minutes out.
The Bulldogs continued to pepper the goals without kicking a goal as Matt Kennedy had a shot from 50 meters on the run, but he also could only manage a behind. This was the final score of the quarter as the Eagles finished the first quarter without registering a single goal, as they trailed the Bulldogs by 28 points at the end of the first quarter.
It could have been a lot worse.
Starting the second quarter much like they ended the first, the Bulldogs continued to do most of the attacking without much success. The Eagles finally score their second shot at goal through Matt Owies, but the former Blue wasn’t able to register a score. The Eagles’ ruckman, Matt Flynn, finally registered his team’s first goal after marking in front of Tim English.
The Dogs finally managed to get through for a goal after chaining a series of handballs that eventually ended with Joel Freijah. Bulldogs debutant Jordan Croft almost got a goal with his first kick in football, only for Aaron Naughton to mark it on the goal line. However, it wasn’t long before Jordan Croft did snag his first goal, after taking a spectacular mark over the top of Eagles defender Hamish Davis.
The Dogs just keep unearthing big forwards. It is almost embarrassing for other clubs.
Matt Owies finally got the Eagles’ second goal of the quarter and the game after Bailey Dale turned the ball over in a dangerous position. Against the run of play, the Bulldogs got their eighth goal of the half through Sam Davidson. After a disastrous error by a pair of Eagles defenders, Jordan Croft was able to stroll into an open goal and kick his second goal of the quarter and the game.
The Bulldogs then extended their lead after Ed Richards kicked the team’s tenth goal, to extend the lead out to 49 points. Bulldogs’ captain Marcus Bontempelli then kicked the next one, after he was left alone at centre half forward, pushing the margin out past 50 points.
Goodnight, Eagles.
Bulldogs forward Aaron Naughton was then cut open after colliding with his teammate, Sam Darcy, as the two of them competed in the same marking contest. The Bulldogs continued to pressure the Eagles, and with seconds remaining left in the half, Jason Johannisen intercepted a kick from the Eagles’ defence but could only manage a behind, extending the halftime lead out to 56 points.
The Eagles started much better in the second half. Right from the opening bounce, Tim Kelly won the ball out of the centre and found Tyler Brockman, who in turn, found Jobe Shanahan. Unfortunately, Shanahan’s shot hit the post. The Eagles continued to apply pressure around the ball, and they eventually found their third goal through Noah Long. After a barren first half, the Eagles were finally connecting with their forwards, but Jobe Shanahan kicked his third behind of the game.
Sam Davidson kicked his third goal of the game and the Bulldogs’ first of the second half to push the lead back out to 54 points. Rhylee West finally got his first goal of the game, which extended the lead to an even 10 goals. Aaron Naughton kicked his third, as the Bulldogs were able to get free goal-side of their Eagles defenders.
As the third quarter progressed, Bulldogs’ forwards continued finding space with ease, as Sam Darcy joined Aaron Naughton and Sam Davidson with three goals for the game. Williams then took a spectacular mark over Marcus Bontempelli, but missed his chance to kick his first goal since Round 19.
With the seconds ticking down to the end of the third term, Elijah Hewett found Matt Owies, who failed to register a score, with his shot coming just as the siren rang to end the third quarter.
The Bont registered the first score of the final quarter with a behind, taking the Bulldogs’ lead back to 72 points. Rhylee West then kicked the first goal of the final quarter. Jamie Cripps finally got his first goal of the game in the fourth quarter after the Eagles took advantage of a 50-metre penalty conceded by Sam Darcy.
Marcus Bontempelli kicked his second goal with his 26th possession of the game, pushing the Bulldogs’ lead back out to 78 points with over 10 minutes still left in the game. Riley Garcia then burned teammates Jordan Croft and Oskar Baker after he chose to have a shot at goal instead of passing it off to his teammates, who were in better positions.
Jordan Croft then extended the Bulldogs’ lead to a round 80 points after missing a set shot as the Dogs began rolling out some party tricks. Rhylee West then joined Aaron Naughton, Sam Davidson, and Sam Darcy with his third goal of the game. This took the Bulldogs’ lead out to 86 points.
With only 2 minutes remaining in the game, Bontempelli had a chance to kick his third goal of the game and push the lead past 90 points. Ed Richards also kicked a behind to push the margin to 88 points with time running out. Ed Richards then had the final shot of the game, kicking his second, which pushed the final margin out to 94 points.
An expected result?
Perhaps. Let’s have a look at some of the individual moments or areas of interest.
Guns have their colours lowered
One of the Eagles’ biggest issues this season has been the fact that their star players haven’t stepped up when needed, and that again happened this game. Liam Ryan, Bailey Williams, and Jamie Cripps kicked a single goal between the three of them, albeit with limited service.
However, the biggest issue is undoubtedly with Tim Kelly. Kelly, who joined the Eagles in 2020 from Geelong, and finished 5th in the Brownlow in his second season at the Cats, has seen his form completely diminish after he chose to come back to West Australia.
He was recruited as a player who was supposed to be the finishing touch to give the Eagles another tilt at a flag, but as the club has fallen away, so too has the impact of Kelly. And given his confession in the pre-season, he is no longer playing like he loves the sport.
It’s a damn shame, because Kelly’s skill set is the type that could elevate those around him. However, as it stands, he is a number on the list, and little else.
Threes all around
A big part of the thing that makes the Bulldogs so threatening is their two key forwards in Aaron Naughton and Sam Darcy. If only one of those two get off the chain, Bulldogs’ opponents can find themselves drowning in quicksand as they are very difficult to stop. However, this game against the Eagles saw neither of the two key forwards truly take the game by the scruff of the throat.
Instead, each forward seemingly chose to attack at a time and the team managed to spread the load of goals around significantly more players. Aaron Naughton, Sam Darcy, Rhylee West, and Sam Davidson all managed to secure three goals for the Bulldogs, as they shared the love in the big win. Meanwhile, Marcus Bontempelli, Ed Richards, and debutant Jordan Croft all kicked two goals each.
On the flip side, not a single Eagles player managed to kick multiple goals in this game.
A clear indication as to which team is the “haves” and which team is the “have nots” in this equation.
Another key forward
Jordan Croft has been a name that has been working away at VFL level for the better part of two years, and now, as the Dogs turn the corner and push hard to claim a finals berth, he has made his way into the senior side.
At 20 years of age, he has a massive upside, and given the Dogs’ wealth of tall talent up forward (they still have Jamarra on the list, regardless of whether he plays for them in the future, or not), he has had to work hard to force his way into the team.
He is a big unit, has great hands, and it is only a matter of time before this two-headed monster at the Whitten Oval adds a third head to make it the Darcy/Naughton/Croft trio that terrorises the AFL defenders.
The Dogs have truly been blessed by being able to access high-quality young forwards, be it via father/son picks (Darcy and Croft), or by their Academy picks (Jamarra).
Imgine they get Ugle-Hagan back up nd running in 2026?
Far out… they’ll be a forward juggernaut.
Of course, if they do, four tall forwards really don’t go into three spots.
What happens here is anyone’s guess, but if I was a betting man, the words “Jamarra” and “trade” would be used in unison quite a bit over the next couple of months.
The run home
The Western Bulldogs and the West Coast Eagles now have one game remaining for the home-and-away season. Next week, the Dogs host the other West Australian team, Fremantle, in a game that could potentially have massive ramifications for the top 8. Whoever loses next week between these two teams could potentially miss finals altogether, as this opens the door for the Gold Coast Suns, who currently occupy ninth spot with a game in hand.
While the Bulldogs are currently tied on points with the Suns, they have a significantly higher percentage, so if they lose, the Gold Coast Suns could sneak into the finals by winning their two remaining games. However, winning the game would see them jump above Fremantle as well as Collingwood, Hawthorn, and the Giants on the ladder if results go their way, as all those teams would have 15 wins and the Bulldogs have a stronger percentage.
For the West Coast Eagles, their last game of the season will be back in Perth as they host the Sydney Swans. Win, lose, or draw next week, the Eagles are guaranteed to finish at the bottom of the ladder, registering only a single win for the entire season, four games behind 17th-placed Richmond, who registered five wins for the season. This will give the Eagles their second wooden-spoon finish in the last three seasons, a significant fall from grace since their Premiership back in 2018.
That said, the number one pick beckons, and the rebuild continues. West Coast have been missing a heap of talent, and if they get the expected compensation for the departing Oscar Allen, they will hit the 2025 draft with the first two picks.
