WB Game Day V Port Adelaide R10 2020

[merantau]

Game over now. 23 points down. Getting smashed at the contest. Jekkel and Hyde performance. We are well off the pace and I can't see us getting better overnight.

[angelopetraglia]

Bruce & Bont playing largely as a key forward have taken 1 mark between them.

Naughton can't come back quick enough.

That mark from Bruce was on the wing too!

[bulldogsthru&thru]

Adelaide will beat us the way we’re going. I hope they do too because it’s about the only things that’ll instigate some serious change. We’re a long way off being a competitive finals side. We’ve got players regressing when they should be hitting their prime. This only 4 hrs after a flag. Something just isn’t right and it’s time to figure it out, make the hard calls and start all over again

[dukedog]

I liked the intent. But for some reason. No reward for effort just drains the players. Is this style sustainable unless its pin point... we should have been 25 plus up at half time. So even going into the 3rd. But. We will go down by 50 plus after being ahead at HT

[bornadog]

Too many players not contributing:

Mclean, Weightman, Vandermeer, Bruce, Wood, R Smith - what hope have you got

[1eyedog]

Nothing has changed. Nothing.

[comrade]

They brought the heat in the middle that qtr.

We can't sustain a game plan that requires us to win clearances and I50's by 10-20 to squeak over the line. Good teams will get their turn to dominate in the middle, and we will get obliterated when they do.

The game plan holds up against sh*t teams where repeat inside 50s break poor defences down. Against sides that have half a clue, we're completely out of our depth.

We're no better than an 8th-14th position side and that's not changing any time soon.

[Bullies]

And Gowers is not even in the side.

[angelopetraglia]

You can only put in effort for no reward for so long. Agree. You work your backside off .... dominate them and go in even. You then cough up cheap goals from stupid turnovers. You confidence is absolutely shot then.

[kruder]

Bruce & Bont playing largely as a key forward have taken 1 mark between them.

Naughton can't come back quick enough.

Bont has never done anything forward, I just don't understand why they play him there.

[whythelongface]

Unfortunately we are simply not good enough at the moment. We desperately need another key forward.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

Come on dogs. Dig deep. English to the forward line. Cordy to the ruck and Brucey can throw his weight around down back. We need to change it up.

[josie]

We must be the worst contested marking side or close to it this year. Our inability to punch ball out of oppo hands around ground seeing as we cannot take a mark for love nor money is telling too. Is it confidence?

Whenever Cordy has a one on one in oppo F50 it is odds in he will lose out. Could Lewis Young be worse?

[bulldogsthru&thru]

Doesn’t matter who we play. We could have Kennedy at FF and he wouldn’t take a mark with our horrific game style and woefully poor skills

[DOG GOD]

Our one trick pony game plan needs a massive overhaul, and if the current coaches can’t do it, or refuse to do,it, find a group who will.

[ReLoad]

Our bottom 6 players each week are abysmal. The rotation of that 6 is irrelevant at best.

I’m afraid we’re totally and utterly cooked.

[MrMahatma]

Bad qtr.

Not over.

[Mofra]

Bruce to HF, Wallis' paddock. Bont on ball. Our only chance.

It is time to put Daniel on a wing? We need his footskills delivering into the forwards.

[ratsmac]

Bevo needs to do this!

https://youtu.be/UyHPJKwUYWg

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Bevo always looks out of ideas in the box.

How much longer has he got?

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

Why aren't we wearing black armbands for David Darcy?

[FrediKanoute]

Bruce to HF, Wallis' paddock. Bont on ball. Our only chance.

It is time to put Daniel on a wing? We need his footskills delivering into the forwards.

This - There needs to be a link between forward and back!

[Sedat]

That's a better spot up by Roarke

[ratsmac]

We are no chance unless we win some hard ball.....obviously

[Rocket Science]

Bruce to HF, Wallis' paddock. Bont on ball. Our only chance.

It is time to put Daniel on a wing? We need his footskills delivering into the forwards.

Then who's going to scythe us out of defensive fifty with smart dsitribution? JJ?

Daniel's often getting involved multiple times in the same chains, only for us to piss it up against the wall that is Port's interceptors before it trampolines all the way back.

[Eastdog]

Why aren't we wearing black armbands for David Darcy?

Yeah was thinking we might be wearing black arm bands tonight.

[Sedat]

Wally is very strong 1-on-1. Shame he is only 180 odd cms tall

[GVGjr]

That's more like it. Lets get a few more

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Great again by Wallis

[FrediKanoute]

Mitch Wallis has been out best player......no goals, but he has been involved in them all just about

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

Easton Wood again..cannot hit a 15 metre pass

[Eastdog]

Nearly another mistake resulting in a Port goal.

[comrade]

Wood needs a spell.

[Sedat]

Wood disposals no better than Billy Gowers

[ratsmac]

Easton wood is a shadow of his best

[Topdog]

Bruce looks so confused, how???

[Grantysghost]

Effort is better this quarter. But continually bombing it with their aerial power is not a good idea.

[Eastdog]

3 terrible moments tonight from JJ.

[Sedat]

JJ again. We have gifted them 4 goals through JJ and Wood fundamental errors when Port weren't even threatening

[comrade]

Stick to photography JJ.

[jeemak]

JJ has made a complete fool of himself tonight. A complete fool.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

JJ has been in Ports top 5 tonight.

[angelopetraglia]

JJ again, three goals coughed up with school boy errors

[bornadog]

You can mark down three goals because of JJ

[kruder]

We just not creative from the kick ins when we need to score. We have had men out, but just continue to go wide all night

[Eastdog]

Mitch Wallis is our best forward

[1eyedog]

JJ needs to be dropped

[Mantis]

How bad was that kick by Dunks?

Like really.

[angelopetraglia]

Mitch Wallis. Superb again. Big issue that he is our only threat. He should be the icing. Not the cake.

[Topdog]

Haha Mitch wanted that goal badly.

Played really well and deserved one

[ratsmac]

I don't know whose worse us or the umps

[Sedat]

Mitch might have some limitations but he is such a smart player. Our best natural key forward.

[Topdog]

How bad was that kick by Dunks?

Like really.

Incredibly poor kick

[ratsmac]

Game set match

[comrade]

Ricciuto is a massive wanker.

[merantau]

Lloyd goals but we are being teased.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

Mitch just hits the contest so hard that he causes oppo to panic.

[Grantysghost]

How bad was that kick by Dunks?

Like really.

I realise why we have the handball club when I see a kick like that. Technically did everything wrong.
Mitch Wallis is a really good footballer.

[ratsmac]

Mitch Wallis heart and soul

[Topdog]

We just lose our brains anytime near 50

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Geez Smith has been ordinary with his disposal for a few weeks

[EasternWest]

Timmy I love you but....

[merantau]

We just can't seem to kick a goal at a crucial time. Richard misses. Critical error.

[dukedog]

We should play lewis young. Shack. Naughton. Bruce and english forward just to see what happens. Daniel in the ruck. Least we could say bevo tried somethin ��

[jeemak]

The crowd makes all the difference with holding the ball in a game like tonight.

[ratsmac]

We can be so dumb sometimes. English??

[Mantis]

We just can't seem to kick a goal at a crucial time. Richard misses. Critical error.

Yep.. we never kick the half chances do we?

As Bailey Smith misses another one.

[merantau]

Bailey Smith misses with a snap.

[comrade]

i don't think I've ever seen a player more out of form than Bruce.

[DOG GOD]

i don't think I've ever seen a player more out of form than Bruce.

He is playing in a bulldogs fwd line remember

[MrMahatma]

Surely Bruce gets dropped?

[comrade]

Bruce has literally been hit in the back twice, facing away from the incoming ball.

[angelopetraglia]

10 minutes of momentum and three terrible JJ cheap turnovers have cost us the game.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Name me a club whose supporters aren't, ours included?

Sydney swans?

[comrade]

Another 1 arm spoil from Brucey.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

I'm done with Bruce.

Piss him off to playing scratch matches for the opposition with JJ

[jeemak]

JJ capping off a great night by foot and hand.

[angelopetraglia]

Bruce misses a chest mark. JJ can’t make the distance from 30m. Sums up our night.

[EasternWest]

Sydney swans?

Well maybe. But that's probably because they don't know the rules.

[Sedat]

Bruce dropped chest mark and JJ garbage finish sums up the night

[jeemak]

I'm done with Bruce.

Piss him off to playing scratch matches for the opposition with JJ

We've broken him. He doesn't work anymore.

[angelopetraglia]

2.6 in last quarter. Lose by 13. Seriously. That game was there for the taking. So dissapointing.

[ratsmac]

Port dropping the ball and bulldogs dropping the ball are 2 different things

[comrade]

Bruce dropped chest mark and JJ garbage finish sums up the night

It was poetic in a way.

[GVGjr]

Geez Smith has been ordinary with his disposal for a few weeks

Since he got cleaned up a few weeks back? He might be a bit gun shy at the moment. He will get better

[Rance Fan]

Bruce the new Gower's!

[EasternWest]

2.6 in last quarter. Lose by 13. Seriously. That game was there for the taking. So dissapointing.

Never mind that - it should have been over by half time.

[angelopetraglia]

Saints kick 12.1 win at Port. We kick 5.12 ... not even surprised.

[ratsmac]

JJ wow.... terrible

[GVGjr]

i don't think I've ever seen a player more out of form than Bruce.

But you don't understand the job he's being asked to do :)

[The bulldog tragician]

I thought we were in for a belting at 3.4 time. It's almost worse that the effort was still there but skill errors, dumb footy and an impotent forward line meant it was all for nothing. It really hurts to create so many chances and squander virtually all of them.

[Happy Days]

If we had any aerial threat inside 50 we would’ve won that game handily. Good thing is we know a guy.

[GVGjr]

Saints kick 12.1 win at Port. We kick 5.12 ... not even surprised.

The game was close when you look at scoring shots but we aren't composed at all.
Port are a good side and our effort was pretty good but we weren't organised or composed

[Mofra]

Surely Bruce gets dropped?
We need one more tall, not one less.

He's not in great nick but KT wouldn't have got a touch in the same situation tonight.

No marking power on the HF line has killed us.

[EasternWest]

If we had any aerial threat inside 50 we would’ve won that game handily. Good thing is we know a guy.

Superman?

[MrMahatma]

Surely Bruce gets dropped?

[ratsmac]

Honourable loss yay to us. I'm filthy but it was still a massive improvement from last weeks effort.

[Mofra]

Shit by JJ. Kick it higher!

[G-Mo77]

Bloody hell. We were good enough around the ground but that forward line? I should have went to sleep at half time.

[ratsmac]

Surely Bruce gets dropped?

Thats an understatement

[The bulldog tragician]

We've broken him. He doesn't work anymore.

One handers. Strange flailing efforts with his arms swinging around wildly. It's like he has come from a distant planet and doesn't know yet how to mark a ball. I don't think I've ever seen a player so completely devoid of confidence in the one thing he's good at.

[GVGjr]

Surely Bruce gets dropped?

Don't hold your breath on that. As Mofra pointed out we need to add a tall not necessarily take one away

[comrade]

We need one more tall, not one less.

He's not in great nick but KT wouldn't have got a touch in the same situation tonight.

No marking power on the HF line has killed us.

I don't believe that for a second. He was outmarked multiple times and dropped ones he got his hands too. Other times he was hit in the middle of his back because he misjudged the ball and was caught facing the other way. That has nothing to do with the quality of our forward entries and everything to do with a bloke that's unfit and out of confidence.

Naughton plays that role tonight and we probably win.

[Mofra]

Libba had more contested possessions tonight than any player in the competition this year. Yes, I love him.

[josie]

Effort was there. Need another forward to support Bruce. He looks tired & devoid of confidence.

Wally and Libba tried their guts out.

Possibly time to give Tim a rest.

[MrMahatma]

Flag is ours for the taking

[bulldogsthru&thru]

The sad thing is that’s the sort of game you’d be happy with if we were up and coming. But we’re meant to be playing finals and pushing top 4. It’s just nowhere near good enough and we don’t have the right game plan. It just isn’t going to cut it. It’s just hack football. Bruce has a mare but to be fair no forward in the world would take a mark with our setup

[comrade]

The sad thing is that’s the sort of game you’d be happy with if we were up and coming. But we’re meant to be playing finals and pushing top 4. It’s just nowhere near good enough and we don’t have the right game plan. It just isn’t going to cut it. It’s just hack football. Bruce has a mare but to be fair no forward in the world would take a mark with our setup

It's not just about taking marks. It's about stopping your direct opponent from doing it, too. Failed miserably in that respect.

His lack of fight tonight was embarrassing, one of the worst performances in a Bulldogs jumper for a long time. Worse than Gowers last week, IMO.

[whythelongface]

Whilst Bruce is poor he is really playing a lone hand as our tall up forward. It appears he is being double teamed. He needs help (not just with his own hands) and we desperately need someone to assist. If Naughton is not available maybe play English forward and ruck with Sweet.

[angelopetraglia]

Port are on top of the ladder with 144%. If they are the best team in the comp ... gee whiz. So disappointing as this year is wide open and we have just not delivered.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Footage of Bruce from Adelaide Oval

976

[ratsmac]

I can't help but think West instead or Roarke or Weightman would have made more of a difference in a game like this tonight. Not the difference but it was a close game so who knows

[bornadog]

JJ cost three goals, Wood gave one away as well with his pathetic pass, plus JJ should have nailed that last shot. Very disappointing when you lose by 13 points.

[The bulldog tragician]

What was our ruck tactic tonight (genuine question)? English often not present at stoppages and either JMac or Dunkley took it. Not sure what we were doing, was English dropping back to backline? You'd never get an intelligent analysis from any of the Four Stooges, who didn't even seem to notice until right near the end. The coverage was really putrid tonight.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

We didn't fold. Did we make mistakes? Hell yeah. But we took the game on. I'm just not seeing it's all gloom and doom. I thought McLean and Richards were better tonight. Dunks will be better for the run. On this year's form, that would have been an 8 goal loss in front of their home crowd. I'm looking forward to the Lions.

[Prince Imperial]

We need one more tall, not one less.

He's not in great nick but KT wouldn't have got a touch in the same situation tonight.



KT after his knee injury maybe, but that's simply not true concerning a player who was a champion in a very weak team. Bruce's performance tonight was simply beyond incompetence.

[The bulldog tragician]

JJ cost three goals, Wood gave one away as well with his pathetic pass, plus JJ should have nailed that last shot. Very disappointing when you lose by 13 points.

Also Lippa who is a very clean kick at goal streaming in from 50 but gave it to Richards who lately is an awful shot for goal. Would much prefer Patty to have taken the responsibility.

[comrade]

We didn't fold. Did we make mistakes? Hell yeah. But we took the game on. I'm just not seeing it's all gloom and doom. I thought McLean and Richards were better tonight. Dunks will be better for the run. On this year's form, that would have been an 8 goal loss in front of their home crowd. I'm looking forward to the Lions.

Yeah, you can't knock our effort to fight it out to the end. That was a positive.

[Sedat]

We literally gifted Port 4 goals from horrendous errors in passages of play when Port weren't even threatening. That really hurts.

We did so much right tonight. The result sucks but the effort cannot be questioned at all.

[Prince Imperial]

What was our ruck tactic tonight (genuine question)? English often not present at stoppages and either JMac or Dunkley took it. Not sure what we were doing, was English dropping back to backline? You'd never get an intelligent analysis from any of the Four Stooges, who didn't even seem to notice until right near the end. The coverage was really putrid tonight.

Too be fair to them, they are watching on TV like the rest of us.

[FrediKanoute]

2 goals 5 behinds in the last. You have to say that we shot ourselves in the head.

Some very gettable goals too. For me the moment was Richards to make it two in a row.......misses

[angelopetraglia]

Terrible two days for Melbournians. We are all feeling it. Locked down with no end in sight. Footy is one of the rare things we still have left as a great distraction. Something to look forward too. A win would mean so much for us all to get us excited about this festival of footy. Feeling so flat.

[The bulldog tragician]

We didn't fold. Did we make mistakes? Hell yeah. But we took the game on. I'm just not seeing it's all gloom and doom. I thought McLean and Richards were better tonight. Dunks will be better for the run. On this year's form, that would have been an 8 goal loss in front of their home crowd. I'm looking forward to the Lions.

Yep. Makes it tougher to bear, but we still could have won it with six minutes to go. We were a massive chance, it was in our forward half for a long long time.

[The bulldog tragician]

Too be fair to them, they are watching on TV like the rest of us.

Ricciuto aka Crusty the Clown was there.

[angelopetraglia]

We literally gifted Port 4 goals from horrendous errors in passages of play when Port weren't even threatening. That really hurts.

We did so much right tonight. The result sucks but the effort cannot be questioned at all.

Agree. But it keeps happening. Every week. Three of those turnovers were clearly against the trend of play when they didn’t even look like getting the ball let alone scoring a goal. They are absolute confidence killers.

[Mofra]

We literally gifted Port 4 goals from horrendous errors in passages of play when Port weren't even threatening. That really hurts.

We did so much right tonight. The result sucks but the effort cannot be questioned at all.
Yep.

We weren't as close in the game as we perhaps thought, but we're not as far away from sorting our problems out as we think.

Imagine a genuine HF gun in our team like Martin. I really think 2-3 players could completely transform this team.

[The Pie Man]

We had that little faith in Bruce forward that Crozier drifted down

Given the state of our forward line, perhaps it’s a move to consider more often

[The Pie Man]

Yep.

We weren't as close in the game as we perhaps thought, but we're not as far away from sorting our problems out as we think.

Imagine a genuine HF gun in our team like Martin. I really think 2-3 players could completely transform this team.

Like a gun left footed junior?

[Sedat]

Footage of Bruce from Adelaide Oval

976
It's almost getting to Ben Brown territory, where we need a circuit breaker with Josh. I know he is lacking support but some of his aerial contests were laughable and showed a player horribly out of form and with no confidence whatsoever.

[merantau]

We may well see this as a lost opportunity. But was it really? We might have won if EVERYTHING had gone right for us in the last quarter. But surely that would just be like stuffing a bri nylon shirt in a dodgy gearbox.
Our goals come as a result of pressure not poise or SYSTEM. We don't have a game plan that stacks up against good teams.
Some of our quality players are well below their best.
The writing is on the wall. I don't think we will make the eight as we surely have to win five out of the next seven and if we lose against Brisbane that becomes 5 out of the last 6.

[Rocket Science]

Don't mind the look of that up and coming ruckman Macrae. English better watch his back.

[angelopetraglia]

Dixon took marks from balls he wasn’t entitled to even get a look at. Bruce had a number of chances that literally had his name on the and he couldn’t grab them.

By the way, how cheap was the free kick to man mountain Charlie against dwarf Caleb. Charlie clearly flopped.

[Grantysghost]

The effort was very good. I thought Mclean played quite well tonight. Was our entries into 50, we played like we had Charlie.
Bruce is constantly in a wrestle he doesn't have the anaerobic ability to separate from the defender. Granted entries were poor but so was he.

[whythelongface]

We didn't fold. Did we make mistakes? Hell yeah. But we took the game on. I'm just not seeing it's all gloom and doom. I thought McLean and Richards were better tonight. Dunks will be better for the run. On this year's form, that would have been an 8 goal loss in front of their home crowd. I'm looking forward to the Lions.

I agree. Sure there were aspects of our game which sucked and these are recurring aspects, which is disappointing. Certainly can’t fault our effort and looking at the teams we looked significantly younger. Thus there is an upside. We will lose to Brisbane but if we can win 5 or 6 of the last 7 games we can sneak into the finals and anything can happen.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

I agree. Sure there were aspects of our game which sucked and these are recurring aspects, which is disappointing. Certainly can’t fault our effort and looking at the teams we looked significantly younger. Thus there is an upside. We will lose to Brisbane but if we can win 5 or 6 of the last 7 games we can sneak into the finals and anything can happen.

This is literally the line our club has been spitting out for a couple of years.

Just because you're young doesn't mean you're good, nor does it entitle us to rapid improvement.

The whole 'lets just get there, once we get there anything can happen' is systematic of our approach to kicking goals ie. Bang it in there enough and hope a couple fall through.

I really don't share in the optimism of this side at all, I actually think we're miles away from being a top 4 side.

[soupman]

Monday night football, for when getting angry on the weekend just isn't enough.

Bloody hell, this is the vent thread yeah?

Bruce was atrocious. I don't think there has ever been a player to so consistently disappoint me in contests. Even when he does well he should have done better. Legitimately worse than Gowers tonight.

JJ, did some great stuff in the first half and really took them on well. Then made that handball, then that kick. Wtf? Also can he piss off with his shots on the run. He hasn't kicked one on the run for what feels like a decade. That last shot was always going to be a point, although I applaud his creativity this time round.

English, is he ok? I'm sure he was tired but if thats the reason he wasn't on the last few minutes thats pretty poor management by the coaching staff. How do you not have your only ruckman positioned to even turn up for the last few minutes of a game you are still a huge chance of taking?

Easton Wood. C'mon man. I love you. Why you do dis to me? Dumb kicks, no impact whatsoever in defence, I think for each of his first three touches my reaction was surprise that he was playing.

We are so predictably infuriating, all effort, no reward. This game was basically an exact copy of about 10 honourable losses from the last few years. I would like to try something different please.

[comrade]

I really don't share in the optimism of this side at all, I actually think we're miles away from being a top 4 side.

I'm starting to worry we're going to waste the Bontempelli era.

[Hotdog60]

I know Sweet may not be ready but with shorten quarters would help him run out the game and it would give us another tall option up forward.
Also he can rotate with Tim in the ruck. English look spent and was moving around at a jog.
I would also make an example of JJ and drop him so the other senior players don't get to comfortable.
Richards can go back to his position.

[bulldogsthru&thru]

It's not just about taking marks. It's about stopping your direct opponent from doing it, too. Failed miserably in that respect.

His lack of fight tonight was embarrassing, one of the worst performances in a Bulldogs jumper for a long time. Worse than Gowers last week, IMO.
Absolutely. Couldn’t agree more. Even just to get the ball to ground would at least be the minimum you’d think (even though we’d have no players in position to get the ground ball).

I suppose what I was trying to say is that we had ZERO quality entries into our 50 tonight. So a Josh Kennedy wouldn’t even have a chance of scoring. And unfortunately most of our games are that way. Yet every other team in the comp seems to at least get 4 or 5 threatening opportunities. Our game plan doesn’t stack up. It clogs the game up with too many numbers around the ball so there is never any clean entry. Unfortunately the few chances we had tonight we completely butchered off half back

[SonofScray]

Feel like I've watched that game many times over between 2017-2020. Can think of three games v St Kilda, two v Collingwood and perhaps one v Carlton where the scoreboard ground to a halt despite looking in reasonable shape for long stretches.

Bruce was awful. The most damage he did all night was to Bontempelli when he crashed into him three times late in the game up the ground. Can barely raise a trot, leap or kick the footy. Get him on a treadmill and the man shakes quick smart.

Our forward line, excusing King Wally, is a mess and I'm not sure where the improvement comes from. We play this ridiculous high risk, no reward game plan and spend all our tickets on defending and rebounding for no result. If we aren't up for it physically, we get belted. When we are, if we don't hit the scoreboard, games are taken away from us with 10 clean possessions.

[bornadog]

I thought Bevo's coaching was brilliant tonight, unfortunately some players let him down.

[Happy Days]

That game was immensly frustrating and our efforts at entering the forward line were diabolical and our defenders were kinda shown up and even still we were two horrible JJ unforced self owns from winning the game against the top side away.

I really liked McLean's game. He gave a really poor effort chasing Byrne-Jones after Jonas' first intercept mark and after that was on, bringing the sort of heat that we are desperately lacking. He might be a solution after all. Lloyd and Wallis were pretty nice too.

But van damn Bruce was awful. I get that we made some sort of effort to have the ball deliberately brought to ground to play to the other forwards strengths, but he didn't look anywhere near it in any single marking contest all night. There should be a mandatory league wide rule that if the ball hits you in the numbers in a marking contest from the front position you can't play the next week. It happened to Bruce twice so do the math.

[SonofScray]

By the way, how cheap was the free kick to man mountain Charlie against dwarf Caleb. Charlie clearly flopped.

I'd pay it every time, to be honest. However! He did push Cordy in the back it seemed.

[Eastdog]

https://www.westernbulldogs.com.au/news/788701/gallant-bulldogs-pipped-by-power


Gallant Bulldogs pipped by Power
The Bulldogs have fallen by 15-points to the league-leaders Port Adelaide in a hotly contested encounter at the Adelaide Oval.

A third quarter lapse has cost the Western Bulldogs victory against ladder leader Port Adelaide in a spirited contest at Adelaide Oval on Monday night.

The Bulldogs were the superior team for three of the four quarters, but conceded four-straight goals in the third term, which ultimately proved to the be the difference.

The Dogs were left to lament a dominant first half which yielded just three goals from 25 inside 50s, which came off the back of a strong midfield performance.

But the Power lifted in the premiership quarter, taking the lead and stretching out to a 23-point advantage.

From there, it was always going to be difficult for the Bulldogs to claw their way back away from home.

The Dogs fought out the game admirably with eight scoring shots to three in the last stanza, and had their chances to snatch victory, but eventually ran out of time.

Tom Liberatore was outstanding in a losing cause, ending with 25 disposals, 20 of which were contested – the most of any player in a single match this season. He also had seven tackles and four clearances.

Jack Macrae led all comers for possessions with 28, while skipper Marcus Bontempelli had a game-high eight clearances to go with his 22 touches.

The loss leaves the Bulldogs with a 5-5 record, ahead of a five-day break and a test against another top four opponent, the Brisbane Lions, at the Gabba this Saturday night.


PORT ADELAIDE 1.2 3.2 7.5 8.7 (55)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 2.5 3.5 3.6 5.12. (42)


GOALS
Port Adelaide: Dixon 2, Gray 2, Farrell, Ladhams, Powell-Pepper, Wines
Western Bulldogs: Lloyd 2, McLean 2, Weightman

BEST
Port Adelaide: Butters, Wines, Ladhams, Rockliff, Gray, Amon
Western Bulldogs: Liberatore, Macrae, Smith, Wallis, Bontempelli, Dunkley

INJURIES
Port Adelaide: Nil
Western Bulldogs: Nil

[Prince Imperial]

Ricciuto aka Crusty the Clown was there.

Wouldn't expect anything else from him. Great footballer but a peanut.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

Terrible two days for Melbournians. We are all feeling it. Locked down with no end in sight. Footy is one of the rare things we still have left as a great distraction. Something to look forward too. A win would mean so much for us all to get us excited about this festival of footy. Feeling so flat.

Dig deep number 38, dig deep. I feel you're pain. We're all going to come out of this including our footy team 1500 km's away.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

2 goals 5 behinds in the last. You have to say that we shot ourselves in the head.

Some very gettable goals too. For me the moment was Richards to make it two in a row.......misses

To be fair to Rusty, he copped a big knock on his knee early but played on.

[FrediKanoute]

Monday night football, for when getting angry on the weekend just isn't enough.

Bloody hell, this is the vent thread yeah?

Bruce was atrocious. I don't think there has ever been a player to so consistently disappoint me in contests. Even when he does well he should have done better. Legitimately worse than Gowers tonight.

JJ, did some great stuff in the first half and really took them on well. Then made that handball, then that kick. Wtf? Also can he piss off with his shots on the run. He hasn't kicked one on the run for what feels like a decade. That last shot was always going to be a point, although I applaud his creativity this time round.

English, is he ok? I'm sure he was tired but if thats the reason he wasn't on the last few minutes thats pretty poor management by the coaching staff. How do you not have your only ruckman positioned to even turn up for the last few minutes of a game you are still a huge chance of taking?

Easton Wood. C'mon man. I love you. Why you do dis to me? Dumb kicks, no impact whatsoever in defence, I think for each of his first three touches my reaction was surprise that he was playing.

We are so predictably infuriating, all effort, no reward. This game was basically an exact copy of about 10 honourable losses from the last few years. I would like to try something different please.

I am going to keep defending Bruce till the cows come home. He creates a contest so the ball comes to ground. The problem is he cannot do it alone. I that was Naughton out there today we would screaming for him to be put back in the backline. Naughton/Bruce only work if you have another tall. We needed Schache or Lew Young in there tonight to take the pressure off them. Its a pretty easy game if you are a defender knowing that the only man flying for the ball is Bruce.

[Danjul]

I know that I have used this already but it shows tonight’s result was predictable.

The back six are good, but short. Dixon is 200cm and 105kg. None of our six are one on one possibilities. Does Port exploit that weakness. If so, Do we counter their advantage by having 4 of the backmen jump against him. That didn’t work out well last week because it leaves opposition crumbers to hurt us.

It will be interesting to see how it goes.

on the second point, Bruce kicked goals when Naughton was absent . He worked well with Schache who played well as an effective decoy and got some goals himself. I think the team needs Naughton, Bruce needs someone who makes the opposing players think twice about loading up on him. It wouldn’t hurt to tell our guys to stop kicking it over his head.

Both points say the team is crying out for height. Preferably someone who can prop up English too.

So what did we do? Reward Weightman for his 4 possessions last game with another. And he gets 5 .

The frantic game plan which scrambles the ball forward for a negligible return burns the players out by halftime. And then the opposition moves ahead. Who didn’t see it coming. I know many will take comfort from the fact that we ‘could have won ‘ but we didn’t and never were going to.

[FrediKanoute]

To be fair to Rusty, he copped a big knock on his knee early but played on.

Had that been Gowers running into an open goal and missed they way Richards did we would have crucified him....let him rise up again 3 days later and crucified him again.....

The point is - kick that goal - whoever the player is and its a 12 point game with momentum.

[FrediKanoute]

I know that I have used this already but it shows tonight’s result was predictable.

The back six are good, but short. Dixon is 200cm and 105kg. None of our six are one on one possibilities. Does Port exploit that weakness. If so, Do we counter their advantage by having 4 of the backmen jump against him. That didn’t work out well last week because it leaves opposition crumbers to hurt us.

It will be interesting to see how it goes.

on the second point, Bruce kicked goals when Naughton was absent . He worked well with Schache who played well as an effective decoy and got some goals himself. I think the team needs Naughton, Bruce needs someone who makes the opposing players think twice about loading up on him. It wouldn’t hurt to tell our guys to stop kicking it over his head.

Both points say the team is crying out for height. Preferably someone who can prop up English too.

So what did we do? Reward Weightman for his 4 possessions last game with another. And he gets 5 .

The frantic game plan which scrambles the ball forward for a negligible return burns the players out by halftime. And then the opposition moves ahead. Who didn’t see it coming. I know many will take comfort from the fact that we ‘could have won ‘ but we didn’t and never were going to.



I don't often agree, but on this occasion I think you have nailed it........

[bornadog]

I am going to keep defending Bruce till the cows come home. He creates a contest so the ball comes to ground. The problem is he cannot do it alone. I that was Naughton out there today we would screaming for him to be put back in the backline. Naughton/Bruce only work if you have another tall. We needed Schache or Lew Young in there tonight to take the pressure off them. Its a pretty easy game if you are a defender knowing that the only man flying for the ball is Bruce.

Bevo mentioned last week that Bruce is measured in different ways, and you have nailed what he is meant to do - if you can't mark it, bring it to ground.

[soupman]

Bevo mentioned last week that Bruce is measured in different ways, and you have nailed what he is meant to do - if you can't mark it, bring it to ground.

Surely the bar is set higher than that? We could wheel Aaron James out and he'd be just as effective in that role.

Bruce is our only key forward and one of our few accomplished forwards, he needs to contribute more than just getting in the way.

I'm all for bringing in another tall, sure it might help Bruce out but it also offers us someone who might contribute a bit more positively to the sides efforts going forward and actually earn a shot.

[comrade]

So if Bruce is measured on bringing the ball to ground and/or giving our smalls opportunities, he also failed miserably given the Port defenders intercepted all night.

[angelopetraglia]

So if Bruce is measured on bringing the ball to ground and/or giving our smalls opportunities, he also failed miserably given the Port defenders intercepted all night.

On any measure. Impossible to defend Bruce’s game tonight.

[bornadog]

On any measure. Impossible to defend Bruce’s game tonight.

and I am not defending him that is for sure.

He was rubbish tonight and I am beginning to wonder if we made a blunder in recruitment.

[bornadog]

JJ very emotional after the game

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Eef3XgQUEAA9oRr?format=jpg&name=900x900

[angelopetraglia]

and I am not defending him that is for sure.

He was rubbish tonight and I am beginning to wonder if we made a blunder in recruitment.

It’s difficult to judge on a season that is just crazy by any measure. But the key stats don’t look good for him.

-11 goals in 10 games (six of those in a single game).
-3.3 kicks per game average
-2.2 marks per game average

[bornadog]

It’s difficult to judge on a season that is just crazy by any measure. But the key stats don’t look good for him.

-11 goals in 10 games (six of those in a single game).
-3.3 kicks per game average
-2.2 marks per game average

He was the 5th highest contested mark last year. He is over weight, can't jump anymore and out of form. I will give him one thing, he is not lazy and doesn't lack effort, gives 100% but it is not working for him.

[Sedat]

JJ very emotional after the game

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Eef3XgQUEAA9oRr?format=jpg&name=900x900
Bevo in his presser very pointedly made a reference to the JJ handball howler late in the 2nd qtr completely changing momentum of the game. I wonder if he gave JJ a big cook after the game that resulted in this outpouring of emotion.

[Danjul]

and I am not defending him that is for sure.

He was rubbish tonight and I am beginning to wonder if we made a blunder in recruitment.

Bruce is a distraction.

How is it the forward line can’t kick goals? Because there is no coordination between the forwards , or between the midfield and the forwards.

So what has to change? The way the ball is kicked and where it’s kicked. Also, how often it’s kicked.

Then give each player a specific role based on their talent. For example, Dale has never been a play maker. His talent is to find space, receive the ball and kick goals from 35-45 metres. That gives 20 goals in 5 games. But we have played him in a way that might give an occasional goal.

We have only one player who can make a goal out of nothing and that’s Wallis. The rest have to be used better.

[FrediKanoute]

It’s difficult to judge on a season that is just crazy by any measure. But the key stats don’t look good for him.

-11 goals in 10 games (six of those in a single game).
-3.3 kicks per game average
-2.2 marks per game average

He kicked 6 with Schache playing next to him. He looked far more effective when naughts was out there (if anything Naughton was struggling). He was never the sole key forward at the Saints and GWS. He was always a player who worked best as a tandem.

[FrediKanoute]

Bruce is a distraction.

How is it the forward line can’t kick goals? Because there is no coordination between the forwards , or between the midfield and the forwards.

So what has to change? The way the ball is kicked and where it’s kicked. Also, how often it’s kicked.

Then give each player a specific role based on their talent. For example, Dale has never been a play maker. His talent is to find space, receive the ball and kick goals from 35-45 metres. That gives 20 goals in 5 games. But we have played him in a way that might give an occasional goal.

We have only one player who can make a goal out of nothing and that’s Wallis. The rest have to be used better.

Again I agree. Much as Gowers was a distraction last week. This game was lost at the selection table. The decision not to play another tall makes us one dimensional.

[angelopetraglia]

He kicked 6 with Schache playing next to him. He looked far more effective when naughts was out there (if anything Naughton was struggling). He was never the sole key forward at the Saints and GWS. He was always a player who worked best as a tandem.

He took 43 contested marks in 22 games last year. Elite. He has taken 8 in 10 games this year. Something amiss. The Saints were not exactly handing it to him on a silver platter last year either.

[Eastdog]

Efficiency Inside 50
Power - 18 shots from 35 inside 50s (51%)
Bulldogs - 19 shots from 39 inside (49%)


Tackles in forward 50
Power - 10
Bulldogs - 15


Marks in 50
Power - 7
Bulldogs - 5

[Danjul]

Efficiency Inside 50
Power - 18 shots from 35 inside 50s (51%)
Bulldogs - 19 shots from 39 inside (49%)


Tackles in forward 50
Power - 10
Bulldogs - 15


Marks in 50
Power - 7
Bulldogs - 5

39 inside 50s for 5 goals. That’s 1 goal for every 8 entries. That’s terrible.

Now I have done the maths and converted it into a form everyone can understand, it’s over to the coaches to fix the problem.

[Sedat]

He kicked 6 with Schache playing next to him. He looked far more effective when naughts was out there (if anything Naughton was struggling). He was never the sole key forward at the Saints and GWS. He was always a player who worked best as a tandem.
Bruce was poor in the first 2 games in tandem with Naughton. He has had 9 average to very poor games and 1 excellent game this season - that's unacceptable output on any measure.

[G-Mo77]

Bruce was poor in the first 2 games in tandem with Naughton. He has had 9 average to very poor games and 1 excellent game this season - that's unacceptable output on any measure.

But Naughton was doing pretty well in those games when Bruce was playing. He's there to take heat off the other guy if there is no Naughton playing there should be Schache out there.

[G-Mo77]

Bruce is a distraction.

How is it the forward line can’t kick goals? Because there is no coordination between the forwards , or between the midfield and the forwards.

So what has to change? The way the ball is kicked and where it’s kicked. Also, how often it’s kicked.

Then give each player a specific role based on their talent. For example, Dale has never been a play maker. His talent is to find space, receive the ball and kick goals from 35-45 metres. That gives 20 goals in 5 games. But we have played him in a way that might give an occasional goal.

We have only one player who can make a goal out of nothing and that’s Wallis. The rest have to be used better.

I thought McLean was pretty good up there last night. He was drafted as a forward and has done pretty well there before the last season or two, we turned him into an inside mid after that.

[G-Mo77]

JJ very emotional after the game

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Eef3XgQUEAA9oRr?format=jpg&name=900x900

While I feel for players who take on that blame for a loss I wonder if JJ gets back from this. Since 2016 he's had special attention from opposition players and has gone to water. From what I see we have a lot of players when the going is tough they're not mentally strong enough to challenge themselves, challenge their opponent. IMO JJ falls in that category and I wonder if he'll ever be the same.

[Bullies]

Bruce came back in very ordinary condition after the first ISO break and it showed. He has played catch up since and you can't do that at this level. He is paying for it now. If you look at the condition he was in when we played Port in the pre season game they are two different players.

[Vred]

Despite another loss (don't get me wrong, they put me in a mood for the next few days) we're talking about the top of the ladder here, the team alot of people are touting as GF contenders this year, the fact that we played so well and even had them beaten for 3/4th of the game is a good thing.

Yes, we are young, yes, we have list issues, our forward line is in *!*!*!*!ing shambles, we have star players who are making under 12's skill errors, but honestly I was happy with what was put out by the team last night, minus a 10 minute period in the third.

If we can ajust and fix the forward line, we might just be able to take Brisbane out at home.. Not holding my breath, but it's a possibility.

[azabob]

I'm starting to worry we're going to waste the Bontempelli era.

That is seriously dark.

[Vred]

That is seriously dark.

Game day thread, I don't think we're in THAT bad of a spot, we've beaten some good teams this year, and considering the lack of training, the change to peoples lifes, corona, all that jazz, we could be going way worse.

[azabob]

Game day thread, I don't think we're in THAT bad of a spot, we've beaten some good teams this year, and considering the lack of training, the change to peoples lifes, corona, all that jazz, we could be going way worse.

Comrade has a point though.

As a club we have not fired a shot since October 2nd 2016.

[comrade]

Game day thread, I don't think we're in THAT bad of a spot, we've beaten some good teams this year, and considering the lack of training, the change to peoples lifes, corona, all that jazz, we could be going way worse.

Our slogan for this season should be: Bulldogs 2020...it could be worse.

[SonofScray]

I'm starting to worry we're going to waste the Bontempelli era.

We are wasting it. Or it has already been wasted.

[bornadog]

Bruce came back in very ordinary condition after the first ISO break and it showed. He has played catch up since and you can't do that at this level. He is paying for it now. If you look at the condition he was in when we played Port in the pre season game they are two different players.

At least someone on hear acknowledges Bruce's condition. I have been calling him over weight, but maybe I should have been saying out of condition.

[EasternWest]

At least someone on hear acknowledges Bruce's condition. I have been calling him over weight, but maybe I should have been saying out of condition.

This doesn't make any sense. Most everyone has been calling him overweight.

[bornadog]

This doesn't make any sense. Most everyone has been calling him overweight.

Well a few have questioned me on this.

[comrade]

This doesn't make any sense. Most everyone has been calling him overweight.

Lol I think most of my posts in the month after the ISO break were variations on 'damn Bruce is fat'.

[Happy Days]

Riewoldt on the pre-show for one of our games mentioned that Bruce had made a habit of coming back to pre-seasons in less than stellar condition. Can’t imagine current circumstances would be ideal for a player with such a mindset.

[EasternWest]

At least someone on hear acknowledges Bruce's condition. I have been calling him over weight, but maybe I should have been saying out of condition.


Well a few have questioned me on this.

That's quite the difference.

Regardless, you're right. Bruce's endeavour is good but his lack of conditioning means his ability to actually play under fatigue is poor.

We can't afford to drop him IMO, but he desperately needs to improve his fitness - and I'm not sure how possible that is in the compressed format.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Riewoldt on the pre-show for one of our games mentioned that Bruce had made a habit of coming back to pre-seasons in less than stellar condition. Can’t imagine current circumstances would be ideal for a player with such a mindset.

As frustrating as Bruce is right now - and I reached boiling point last night - he's not THIS bad.

Come pre-season he needs to put in the yards and develop chemistry with other forwards and I'm confident he'll be much more productive in 2021, but I hope we learn (we never seem to) that he NEEDS support. Yes - Naughton is preferred but if he's injured, it HAS to be Schache or it HAS to be Young.

[Jam Donuts]

Yep.

We weren't as close in the game as we perhaps thought, but we're not as far away from sorting our problems out as we think.

Imagine a genuine HF gun in our team like Martin. I really think 2-3 players could completely transform this team.

Can we please get 2 or 3 players that can kick straight at goal. Seriously 5 goals 12 is ridiculous, the game should have been all but over in our favour in the first quarter, it may be time to release habitual point kickers and try and get some accuracy from somewhere, the guys who keep kicking points are useless to us.

[Jam Donuts]

KT after his knee injury maybe, but that's simply not true concerning a player who was a champion in a very weak team. Bruce's performance tonight was simply beyond incompetence.

If we had KT we would have won, simple.

[The bulldog tragician]

Though Bruce has been very poor we bomb it to him and he also has his teammates attempting to outmark him. We rarely manufacture a one on one contest for him. He’d win his fair share of those just from his strength.

[Happy Days]

Though Bruce has been very poor we bomb it to him and he also has his teammates attempting to outmark him. We rarely manufacture a one on one contest for him. He’d win his fair share of those just from his strength.

I think this is by design. Creating goals by luck and all that stuff is a lot easier (?) with the ball on the ground.

[bulldogsthru&thru]

Though Bruce has been very poor we bomb it to him and he also has his teammates attempting to outmark him. We rarely manufacture a one on one contest for him. He’d win his fair share of those just from his strength.

Spot on. I've been banging on about this for a while. Sadly with lockdown I've been watching my fair share of footy and we are by far the worst team (maybe except Adelaide, that's a maybe though) at generating quality F50 entries. We didn't have a single entry last night that ressembled anything of quality. It's diabolical.

Bruce's issues aren't the problem. They are a sympton of a larger issue. OK I admit he was terrible last night with his positioning and his poor ability to create a contest but you are right in that our putrid delivery and then other forwards don't help his cause by jumping for the same randomly kicked skyball. We only have to look at his one good outing vs North. He was unstoppable and you know why? Because that's the only game this year where we have had quality delivery into our F50 and our forwards have worked well together. Sadly Schache was a large cause of that and he no longer gets selected but more sadly is the fact that I think North contributed more to our success than we did.

[GVGjr]

At least someone on hear acknowledges Bruce's condition. I have been calling him over weight, but maybe I should have been saying out of condition.

I tend to think some people focus too much on age, height and now weight. They're minor considerations in assessing a players performance.
If it was a problem with his weight then the club wouldn't or shouldn't be playing him.

What we can say about Bruce is that he just isn't performing well and has played just one good game for the season.
On form, he shouldn't be selected each week.

[The bulldog tragician]

Spot on. I've been banging on about this for a while. Sadly with lockdown I've been watching my fair share of footy and we are by far the worst team (maybe except Adelaide, that's a maybe though) at generating quality F50 entries. We didn't have a single entry last night that ressembled anything of quality. It's diabolical.

Bruce's issues aren't the problem. They are a sympton of a larger issue. OK I admit he was terrible last night with his positioning and has poor ability to create a contest but you are right in that our other forwards don't help his cause by jumping for the same ball. We only have to look at the game vs North. He looked like unstoppable and you know why? Because that's the only game this year where we have had quality delivery into our F50 and our forwards have worked well together. Sadly Schache was a large cause of that but more sadly is the fact that I think North contributed more to our success than we did.
Another tall who leads has to be part of the picture if he’s to become a decent player for us. He’s surrounded by slowish guys who aren’t natural crumbers. We fight hard to lock it in when it hits the deck but that creates more packs and congestion. Our goals are so hard to get. The one where Wallis tapped it to McLean was great persistence and winning multiple contests but oh for a few cheapies or what other sides do to us... getting it out the back and a simple chain of unattended players waltz to goal.

[Axe Man]

Emotional post-game scenes after brave Bulldogs’ close loss to flag contenders Port Adelaide (https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2020-jason-johannisen-crying-port-adelaide-defeats-western-bulldogs-luke-beveridge-press-conference/news-story/80f13ffab16d27f6ff521e0f591c8896?fbclid=IwAR3H6m-k6YizQghgh3i95koNapb1rzRqkqab3WUjyuxBX6Aq37hZs8y3Fjk)

Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge says his slide “let one slip” against Port Adelaide, lamenting several crucial turnovers during a valiant loss to the ladder-leaders.

Despite matching their opposition in clearances and contested possessions, the Bulldogs lost their second straight game on Monday night, going down to the Power by 13 points to take their 2020 record to 5-5.

Melbourne champion Garry Lyon described the Bulldogs’ effort as “brave” while Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy said Beveridge’s troops “didn’t lose any friends”.

“Their workrate is sensational, they’ve got a very young side and if you’re a Bulldogs supporter, you’d be pretty keen to be on the train at the moment,” Healy told Fox Footy’s On The Couch.

Despite this, Beveridge and the Bulldogs were left devastated after a game that saw them boot 5.12 from 39 inside 50s, while the more efficient Power kicked 8.7 from 35 entries.

Gun defender and Norm Smith medallist Jason Johannisen was seen close to tears post-game in the Bulldogs’ rooms. In the footage that aired on On The Couch, Johannisen was consoled by teammate Caleb Daniel, runner Daniel Giansiracusa and assistant coach Rohan Smith.

Lyon said Johannisen had a “couple of bad moments” during the game and may have taken it to heart.

Healy added: “I think everybody understands that we’ve all made serious blues and you can flagellate yourself, but ultimately his best efforts were there for everyone to see.”

Speaking to reporters post-game, Beveridge his side had “the game on our terms” for most of the night, but “invited” the Power back into it via a “couple of blatant turnovers”.

“We could have controlled, or made better use of, the football,” he said. “Those two or three times were really outside and open scoring opportunities for us too. It’s theoretically a possible 12-point turnaround.

“But to their credit, they won the day.”

A key area where the Bulldogs were dominated was around contested marks, with the Power winning the count 21-6. Charlie Dixon (5 contested marks) and Mitch Georgiades (3) starred up forward, while Trent McKenzie (3), Tom Clurey (2) and Tom Jonas (1) controlled the air in defence.

With Aaron Naughton sidelined due to injury, Beveridge said his small and mediums forwards were “struggling to compete in the air” at the moment.

“Their defenders took a few too many intercepts, but it happened at the other end of the ground too with Dixon and Georgiades taking eight between them. But that’s where we’re at,” he said.

“We’ve got to continue to pick sides that are going to get across the ground and win games on our terms. We had our opportunity tonight, so we let one slip.”

Healy said the Dogs would be “lamenting a lack of marking power” inside 50.

Lyon added: “They’re hanging out for Aaron Naughton as much as Port Adelaide would’ve been for Charlie Dixon (when he was injured). If Charlie Dixon plays for the Western Bulldogs (on Monday night), they win.

“They’ve tried so many different players going through there over the journey. They think they’ve got one in Aaron Naughton, they hope they have one in Josh Bruce, who only had two possessions.

“This is the balance that Luke Beveridge comes up with. Last week the effort was appalling against the Richmond footy club and there was no redeeming qualities in that at all. This is full of redemption, except on the scoreboard and they haven’t been able to convert.”

[Axe Man]

If we had KT we would have won, simple.

Granted a 63 year old with dodgy knees probably wouldn't have been any less effective than Bruce last night, but I'm not sure he could have dragged us across the line.

[bulldogsthru&thru]

Emotional post-game scenes after brave Bulldogs’ close loss to flag contenders Port Adelaide (https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2020-jason-johannisen-crying-port-adelaide-defeats-western-bulldogs-luke-beveridge-press-conference/news-story/80f13ffab16d27f6ff521e0f591c8896?fbclid=IwAR3H6m-k6YizQghgh3i95koNapb1rzRqkqab3WUjyuxBX6Aq37hZs8y3Fjk)

Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge says his slide “let one slip” against Port Adelaide, lamenting several crucial turnovers during a valiant loss to the ladder-leaders.

Despite matching their opposition in clearances and contested possessions, the Bulldogs lost their second straight game on Monday night, going down to the Power by 13 points to take their 2020 record to 5-5.

Melbourne champion Garry Lyon described the Bulldogs’ effort as “brave” while Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy said Beveridge’s troops “didn’t lose any friends”.

“Their workrate is sensational, they’ve got a very young side and if you’re a Bulldogs supporter, you’d be pretty keen to be on the train at the moment,” Healy told Fox Footy’s On The Couch.

Despite this, Beveridge and the Bulldogs were left devastated after a game that saw them boot 5.12 from 39 inside 50s, while the more efficient Power kicked 8.7 from 35 entries.

Gun defender and Norm Smith medallist Jason Johannisen was seen close to tears post-game in the Bulldogs’ rooms. In the footage that aired on On The Couch, Johannisen was consoled by teammate Caleb Daniel, runner Daniel Giansiracusa and assistant coach Rohan Smith.

Lyon said Johannisen had a “couple of bad moments” during the game and may have taken it to heart.

Healy added: “I think everybody understands that we’ve all made serious blues and you can flagellate yourself, but ultimately his best efforts were there for everyone to see.”

Speaking to reporters post-game, Beveridge his side had “the game on our terms” for most of the night, but “invited” the Power back into it via a “couple of blatant turnovers”.

“We could have controlled, or made better use of, the football,” he said. “Those two or three times were really outside and open scoring opportunities for us too. It’s theoretically a possible 12-point turnaround.

“But to their credit, they won the day.”

A key area where the Bulldogs were dominated was around contested marks, with the Power winning the count 21-6. Charlie Dixon (5 contested marks) and Mitch Georgiades (3) starred up forward, while Trent McKenzie (3), Tom Clurey (2) and Tom Jonas (1) controlled the air in defence.

With Aaron Naughton sidelined due to injury, Beveridge said his small and mediums forwards were “struggling to compete in the air” at the moment.

“Their defenders took a few too many intercepts, but it happened at the other end of the ground too with Dixon and Georgiades taking eight between them. But that’s where we’re at,” he said.

“We’ve got to continue to pick sides that are going to get across the ground and win games on our terms. We had our opportunity tonight, so we let one slip.”

Healy said the Dogs would be “lamenting a lack of marking power” inside 50.

Lyon added: “They’re hanging out for Aaron Naughton as much as Port Adelaide would’ve been for Charlie Dixon (when he was injured). If Charlie Dixon plays for the Western Bulldogs (on Monday night), they win.

“They’ve tried so many different players going through there over the journey. They think they’ve got one in Aaron Naughton, they hope they have one in Josh Bruce, who only had two possessions.

“This is the balance that Luke Beveridge comes up with. Last week the effort was appalling against the Richmond footy club and there was no redeeming qualities in that at all. This is full of redemption, except on the scoreboard and they haven’t been able to convert.”

Yuck

[bornadog]

I tend to think some people focus too much on age, height and now weight. They're minor considerations in assessing a players performance.

Sorry GVGjr, these have to be taken into consideration. The sport is now made up of professional athletes. No longer can just talent get you over the line. You have to be in tip top shape, no matter what your height is, or age is, but running around with a few extra Kgs doesn't cut it.

Tell me, forgetting Bruce's playing performance, do you think he is at his best conditioning and fitness?

[1eyedog]

Sorry GVGjr, these have to be taken into consideration. The sport is now made up of professional athletes. No longer can just talent get you over the line. You have to be in tip top shape, no matter what your height is, or age is, but running around with a few extra Kgs doesn't cut it.

Tell me, forgetting Bruce's playing performance, do you think he is at his best conditioning and fitness?

Do you know his weight and fitness levels from his time at the Saints BAD?

[Ozza]

Bevo in his presser very pointedly made a reference to the JJ handball howler late in the 2nd qtr completely changing momentum of the game. I wonder if he gave JJ a big cook after the game that resulted in this outpouring of emotion.

I suspect he didn't need to tell/cook JJ. One of those situations where it is pretty obvious, and everyone in the room knows it.

[bornadog]

Do you know his weight and fitness levels from his time at the Saints BAD?

No I don't, but I can see from the naked eye he is not the same.

As poster Bullies said, he came back from iso out of condition and as you know, it is difficult to catch up. Last year he was the 5th best contested mark in the AFL, now he can barely leap.

Watch this and tell me if it the same player:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjTY5fFLx6w

[Axe Man]

That's clearly a different player BAD, are we sure Josh doesn't have a twin brother that's currently running around in the number 17 for us?

[1eyedog]

No I don't, but I can see from the naked eye he is not the same.

As poster Bullies said, he came back from iso out of condition and as you know, it is difficult to catch up. Last year he was the 5th best contested mark in the AFL, now he can barely leap.

Watch this and tell me if it the same player:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjTY5fFLx6w

I'm honestly not sure BAD it's difficult to tell from the highlights. I mean highlights are always highlights and you could get together a roll of lowlights from 2019 as well - just ask any Saints fan.

He may have a bit of extra weight but he's been back training in our system for over two months and should be as fit as he is going to get. He's definitely moving better in those highlights. I don't know our delivery does not help him nor does the congestion in our forward line. Another decent target would also take the heat off him a bit. He appeared really frustrated last night. I'm thinking it's a confidence issue and a total lack of any cohesion with our game plan.

I'm still optimistic about him you don't lose his ability over night.

[GVGjr]

Sorry GVGjr, these have to be taken into consideration. The sport is now made up of professional athletes. No longer can just talent get you over the line. You have to be in tip top shape, no matter what your height is, or age is, but running around with a few extra Kgs doesn't cut it.

Tell me, forgetting Bruce's playing performance, do you think he is at his best conditioning and fitness?

But the AFL game has a variety of players with different ages, heights and weights etc. That's what makes the game so good
From my perspective if players are selected to play for the club in our best 22 then the club is OK with their condition so it really comes down to the performance that we should be assessing and that applies to Bruce and anyone else.

Perhaps Bruce likes wearing a tighter jumper than others and perhaps he is 2kg over an ideal weight for him but if he is selected then the MC has signed off that he is good to go. This applies to players returning from injury.

I don't see a need to consistently have an overrider that someone is too old, too young or carrying a couple of kg in assessing their or the teams performance. We need to deal with all this at the selection table and at the end of the year with our list management decisions.

Even if Bruce is a couple of kg overweight is it really impacting to the point where he can't mark or kick straight?

As an example, Easton Wood looks in great shape but I assess both of them in the same light purely on the performances they produce.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

No I don't, but I can see from the naked eye he is not the same.

As poster Bullies said, he came back from iso out of condition and as you know, it is difficult to catch up. Last year he was the 5th best contested mark in the AFL, now he can barely leap.

Watch this and tell me if it the same player:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjTY5fFLx6w

He's definitely moving and jumping a hell of a lot better here.

I too think he is a couple of kgs overweight, but you wouldn't think it'd impact him so dramatically to the point where he can't get off the ground, can't read the flight of the ball and can't even take simple chest marks.

[Mofra]

How about we list the no 1 KPFs that deserve a pass mark this year? There's not many.

Dixon (Georgiadis, Westhoff/Marshall)
Kennedy (Darling, O Allen)
B.King (Day, Holman, Greenwood as support)
M King (Membrey, Ryder/Marshall)
Taberner (Lobb, Mundy/Fyfe resting forward)
Hawkins (Ratagalea, Rohan, Fort/Stanley when fit)

and perhaps

J Cameron (Finlayson, Himmelberg)

Notice a pattern? Many KPFs are struggling, and the ones who aren't have two marking teammates in support.
Apologies to Wallis and Gowers/Dale/Schache, but Bruce is a few percent off his best and miles off in terms of getting meaningful support in the air.

[comrade]

He's definitely moving and jumping a hell of a lot better here.

I too think he is a couple of kgs overweight, but you wouldn't think it'd impact him so dramatically to the point where he can't get off the ground, can't read the flight of the ball and can't even take simple chest marks.

I think it's a cumulative effect. He came back out of shape so fatigues easier, can't cover the ground as well or get separation. Now after 6 weeks of game time, the lack of conditioning has caught up to him in the sense that he is so out of touch, it's drained him of all confidence which we're seeing in the mistimed jumps, the dropped marks, the ball hitting him in the back etc.

If he was cherry ripe after the iso break, I think we'd be seeing a very different player. He's paying the price and it's my hope that he learns from this and gets what he can out of 2020, but sets himself for a massive pre-season .

[Danjul]

I suspect he didn't need to tell/cook JJ. One of those situations where it is pretty obvious, and everyone in the room knows it.
every week we have someone singled out as the reason why a valiant young inexperienced team didn’t win. I think it was Vandermeer against Carlton, Gowers against....., Gardner against....., now JJ.

All players in every team make mistakes. But we have a frantic game plan that wears players down unnecessarily, gives poor returns for effort and leaves us in danger of a loss with any mistake.

Time to single out the two reasons why winning is simply a random event, poor game plan and poor team selection.

[bornadog]

Time to single out the two reasons why winning is simply a random event, poor game plan and poor team selection.

Can't agree. Bevo coached brilliantly last night and almost knocked off the top team who is far more established than us.

Our issue is we don't have the cattle on the ground, and some good players injured/unavailable. You put Hunter and Naughton in and we would have won last night.

[Bullies]

He's definitely moving and jumping a hell of a lot better here.

I too think he is a couple of kgs overweight, but you wouldn't think it'd impact him so dramatically to the point where he can't get off the ground, can't read the flight of the ball and can't even take simple chest marks. i think when you don't have the fitness/conditioning as you should in this standard of footy then you get caught out. He doesn't seem able to have the second effort. He always seems buggered after the first. Fatigued also causes you to drop the marks you should take. As i said if you look at his pre season against Port you would see a different player who actually looks fit and up and about. I think the couple of months on the farm didn't help.

[bulldogsthru&thru]

Can't agree. Bevo coached brilliantly last night and almost knocked off the top team who is far more established than us.

Our issue is we don't have the cattle on the ground, and some good players injured/unavailable. You put Hunter and Naughton in and we would have won last night.

What did Bevo do last night that was brilliant? Genuine question as all I saw was the same old same old.

[bornadog]

What did Bevo do last night that was brilliant? Genuine question as all I saw was the same old same old.

Our clearance and stoppage play denied Port the ball in the first half, but we just couldn't capitalise on our chances. SDo we set up better and we also pressured Port and stopped the ball shooting out of our forward half. We also matched up pretty well where we could, although they had a height advantage around the ground and killed us in cont. marks.

We can say all we want about the lack of talls, but I believe relying on Weightman, Vandermeer, Richards to mop up and kick goals is a problem at this stage in their career. Richards started off well and picked up a quick 10 disposals, but after his minor injury only had 3 more touches. Mclean, although played well in the last quarter, I thought he was poor in the first half picking up only 6 or so disposals.

[jeemak]

I'm wondering whether Bruce was asked to run as much at the Saints as he is in our set up. Whilst he might be a couple of kgs off perfect playing weight it may be compounded by having to cover more kms.

[FrediKanoute]

He's definitely moving and jumping a hell of a lot better here.

I too think he is a couple of kgs overweight, but you wouldn't think it'd impact him so dramatically to the point where he can't get off the ground, can't read the flight of the ball and can't even take simple chest marks.

What strikes me about the clip of Bruce from last year is the amount of space he has to work with. The forward line is open and he is not wrestling his opponent continually. Now his ability to create space may be due to him being fittter/lighter, but equally it could be because of they way the Saints play and keep the forward line open, move the ball quickly, deliver it to the right spots. Also, 5 mins of footage does not make a season.....its just the best bits.

[Sedat]

As frustrating as Bruce is right now - and I reached boiling point last night - he's not THIS bad.

Come pre-season he needs to put in the yards and develop chemistry with other forwards and I'm confident he'll be much more productive in 2021, but I hope we learn (we never seem to) that he NEEDS support. Yes - Naughton is preferred but if he's injured, it HAS to be Schache or it HAS to be Young.
He's basically our Steven May. In both instances, it is very poor for a high priced senior recruit to be so unprofessional in their preparation.

[chef]

Bevo in his presser very pointedly made a reference to the JJ handball howler late in the 2nd qtr completely changing momentum of the game. I wonder if he gave JJ a big cook after the game that resulted in this outpouring of emotion.

Would he need to give him a bake?

He stuffed up at work and cost his team a win. Im sure hes harder on himself than any one else, even posts in this thread.

[chef]

Poor old Bruce desperately needs a run in the ressies. His confidence is shot.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

While I feel for players who take on that blame for a loss I wonder if JJ gets back from this. Since 2016 he's had special attention from opposition players and has gone to water. From what I see we have a lot of players when the going is tough they're not mentally strong enough to challenge themselves, challenge their opponent. IMO JJ falls in that category and I wonder if he'll ever be the same.

Not mentally strong? JJ? Not buying that. Made a couple of shocking mistakes last night. So much so that i had to do a double take. But plenty of credits in the bank. Still shows plenty of dash and breaks the lines.

[Grantysghost]

Problem for our forwards is clearly the over handball. You can not time your leads at all.
Most other teams who create handball chains 1.) Mainly handball to a player moving forwards (towards goal) and 2.) Keep it to one or two.

You recruit key forwards and keep the same plan it seems odd to me, and you cant consistently rely on contested marks from bomb kicks as it's too easy for the modern day defence to counter.

[1eyedog]

Problem for our forwards is clearly the over handball. You can not time your leads at all.
Most other teams who create handball chains 1.) Mainly handball to a players moving forwards (towards goal) and 2.) Keep it to one or two.

You recruit key forwards and keep the same plan it seems odd to me, and you cant consistenly rely on contested marks from bomb kicks as it's too easy for the modern day defence to counter.

I agree leads must be so stop start all the time.

[Danjul]

Would he need to give him a bake?

He stuffed up at work and cost his team a win. Im sure hes harder on himself than any one else, even posts in this thread.

Was this the deciding factor? I strongly doubt it.

We have a game style which generates 1 goal from every 8 entries. In other words 1 goal from every 8 potential goals.

Any work place that averages 1 in 8 went out of business long ago.

All JJ was doing was running madly around while looking for a ridiculous handball (as directed?)

[Grantysghost]

Was this the deciding factor? I strongly doubt it.

We have a game style which generates 1 goal from every 8 entries. In other words 1 goal from every 8 potential goals.

Any work place that averages 1 in 8 went out of business long ago.

All JJ was doing was running madly around while looking for a ridiculous handball (as directed?)

Macrae is to blame on that occasion. Insane sideways chip created unnecessary pressure.

[chef]

Was this the deciding factor? I strongly doubt it.

We have a game style which generates 1 goal from every 8 entries. In other words 1 goal from every 8 potential goals.

Any work place that averages 1 in 8 went out of business long ago.

All JJ was doing was running madly around while looking for a ridiculous handball (as directed?)

It wasnt the deciding factor, but he coughed up a couple of goals and fluffed a straight forward shot. He would be feeling like he cost the team the win, he did look devastated.

But hes a champ and he'll get up and go again. I have plenty of faith in him.

[jeemak]

Not mentally strong? JJ? Not buying that. Made a couple of shocking mistakes last night. So much so that i had to do a double take. But plenty of credits in the bank. Still shows plenty of dash and breaks the lines.

That he was still trying to take the game on with his second and third major skill blunders suggests he's actually pretty solid mentally.

[Eastdog]

https://www.westernbulldogs.com.au/news/789458/key-takeaways-round-10


Key Takeaways: Round 10
The hot topics and talking points to emerge from Monday night's loss to the league leaders.


1. Inaccuracy bites Dogs

The Bulldogs had their chances on Monday night, but unfortunately couldn’t capitalise.

In a dominant first half display, the Bulldogs largely controlled the game inside their forward half, but only had 3.5 to their name at the major break.

And after trailing by 23 points at the final change, the Bulldogs found some momentum in the last quarter – but kicked 2.6 for the term.

It was a ‘what if’ night for the Bulldogs, who could have toppled the ladder leaders on their home turf.


2. Contested ball king

Tom Liberatore set a new competition benchmark for 2020.

The tough midfielder became the league leader for contested possessions in a match on Monday night, when he accumulated 20 of them.

On a night where neither team was able to get a free-flowing game style going, Liberatore’s work around the ball was pivotal.

His ability to bring others into the game has been spoken about plenty, but those 20 contested possessions – and four clearances – helped do just that, again.



3. Power control the skies

Perhaps the most telling factor on the night was the Power’s aerial abilities.

The Bulldogs managed just six contested marks for the night – with no player taking more than one – as opposed to the Power’s 21.

Five Power players had multiple – with Charlie Dixon claiming five to be a presence forward.

Trent Mackenzie (three) and Tom Clurey (two) were able to have an impact in defence, despite plenty of fight from the Bulldogs’ forwards.

Overall, the hosts claimed 67 marks compared to the Bulldogs’ 44.

[mjp]

https://www.westernbulldogs.com.au/news/789458/key-takeaways-round-10


Key Takeaways: Round 10
The hot topics and talking points to emerge from Monday night's loss to the league leaders.



3. Power control the skies

Perhaps the most telling factor on the night was the Power’s aerial abilities.

The Bulldogs managed just six contested marks for the night – with no player taking more than one – as opposed to the Power’s 21.

Five Power players had multiple – with Charlie Dixon claiming five to be a presence forward.

Trent Mackenzie (three) and Tom Clurey (two) were able to have an impact in defence, despite plenty of fight from the Bulldogs’ forwards.

Overall, the hosts claimed 67 marks compared to the Bulldogs’ 44.

So - we have the #1 and #2 rated contested marking players from 2019 on our list but this is somehow a weakness?

Holy heck it is a strange season.

[comrade]

So - we have the #1 and #2 rated contested marking players from 2019 on our list but this is somehow a weakness?

Holy heck it is a strange season.

Pretty sure instead of getting Josh Bruce, we traded in his less talented cousin Bruce Josh.

[bornadog]

Pretty sure instead of getting Josh Bruce, we traded in his less talented cousin Bruce Josh.

Very Funny :D:D:D