AFL: Western Bulldogs have been bullied by Geelong under Chris Scott

Luke Beveridge has achieved a great deal in his time as the coach of the Bulldogs, yet his record against Chris Scott and the Cats makes for ugly reading. So how do the Dogs make a stand?

(L-R) Luke Beveridge and Chris Scott.

Luke Beveridge is unquestionably the Western Bulldogs’ greatest coach – he has them on track to play finals for a club-record fifth-straight season after a premiership in 2016 and grand final in 2021.

But Beveridge’s 2-9 record against Chris Scott is one elephant in the room.

It’s Beveridge’s worst head-to-record record from 35 coaches he’s been pitted against, outside of one-off losses to caretakers Scott Camporeale, Ash Hansen and Jaymie Graham.

Beveridge and Scott are fierce competitors and would be acutely aware of that record. Welcome to football’s unspoken rivalry.

Luke Beveridge is 2-9 against Geelong (his worst record against any club) while Chris Scott is 14-2 against the Dogs (his best record).

The Dogs treat trips down the highway like interstate games and spend the previous night bunking in Torquay.

Beveridge doesn’t want his players spending hours behind the wheel before taking the field against Geelong.

“Forever and a day while I’m coaching the Bulldogs if we’re playing Geelong at Geelong we’ll do the same thing,” he said in 2016.

In 2021 the Dogs sought permission from the AFL Players’ Association to train through their mandated four-day bye, with a clash at GMHBA Stadium their next assignment.

They had planned to give their players a break after that game. But the Covid winds suddenly changed and the Dogs spent the following week locked down in Perth.

They never got their bye. But they played their hearts out at the Cattery – and led by one point at the final siren.

Anthony Scott quelled Tom Stewart in the second half, the inside work of Tom Liberatore, Marcus Bontempelli and Jack Macrae was inspirational and Toby McLean put the Dogs in front on his return from an ACL.

But Gary Rohan then broke their hearts with a clutch goal kicked after the final siren.

The Dogs were devastated and left to rue their inability to force stoppages in the final 90 seconds – a lesson in risk management.

Cats players mob Gary Rohan of the Cats after his after-the-siren goal in 2021.

The Dogs have thrown punch after punch after punch at Scott’s team and struggled to land that knockout blow.

Last year they trailed 51-11. Then, Stewart was concussed and they got within five points in the last quarter … only to lose by 13.

In the rematch at GMHBA Stadium the Dogs led 26-0 before the Cats kicked 13 of the next 15 goals to win by 28 points.

In 2020 – when quarters lasted just 16 minutes – the Dogs kicked the only six goals of the first term.

Yet Scott looked so calm at the break. He switched things around and engineered an 11-point win, despite still trailing by nine points deep in the last term.

In 2016, the year the Dogs won the premiership, they beat every team except the Cats. They might’ve got lucky avoiding them in September.

The clubs appeared headed for a semi-final showdown when Isaac Smith, playing for Hawthorn, marked on the siren in the qualifying final.

The Dogs had eliminated West Coast the previous night and were booked to play the loser of that match. But Smith shanked his set-shot and the Dogs rolled his Hawks the next week.

The possibility of a Dogs-Cats grand final was also shelved when Sydney ambushed Geelong with the first eight goals at the MCG in the preliminary final.

Perhaps it wouldn’t have mattered, given the magical form of those September Bulldogs.

Plus, in round 19 that season the Dogs led the Cats by five points at GMHBA Stadium with Liberatore and Macrae silencing Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood respectively.

Liberatore led Dangerfield 12-3 for disposals, 7-2 for contested possessions and 2-0 for clearances before he hurt his ankle in 2016.

Then Macrae ripped his hamstring and Liberatore hurt his syndesmosis. It took medical miracles to get them back for the start of the finals – but Dangerfield cut loose in the second half that night.

He always cuts loose against the Dogs. Dangerfield has polled 17 out of a possible 27 Brownlow Votes against Beveridge’s team under Scott.

In those nine matches Dangerfield has averaged 30 disposals, six clearances, 506m gained, nine score involvements and 130 ranking points.

Dangerfield has polled more Brownlow votes against the Dogs (23) than he has against any other club. He polled 11 in his first four games against them as a Geelong player.

But on Saturday night Dangerfield (hamstring) won’t be there. Nor will Mitch Duncan, Cam Guthrie, Max Holmes, Rhys Stanley or Esava Ratugolea.

Meanwhile the Dogs are healthy – only Jason Johannisen is missing from their best 23.

Club legend Brad Johnson told Fox Footy the Dogs’ approach this week should be “relentless” – a spike on most weeks.

Johnson said the Cats were “ripe for the picking” and noted a Bulldog win would push them 12 points clear on the ladder.

But the hoodoo has seen Geelong win 20 out of its past 23 games against the Dogs. Liberatore has played 205 matches and beaten every club at least four times … except the Cats.

Libba is 0-10 against them. Caleb Daniel is 0-9, Bailey Dale is 0-5 and pup Cody Weightman is 0-3.

That will surely be in their minds this week, just like Tom Hawkins (16-3), Mark Blicavs (11-2), Smith (10-2) and Brad Close (4-0) will be thinking they are never really underdogs against these Dogs.

Beveridge’s two outlier wins against Geelong have been relatively unconvincing.

In 2018 – which was the Dogs’ worst year under Beveridge (13th) – Harry Taylor out-marked Roarke Smith seconds before the siren.

But Taylor missed a simple set-shot as 11 Dogs jumped around on the mark as if it were a callisthenics class.

Bulldogs players celebrate following Taylor’s miss after the final siren.

Harry Taylor is consoled by Dangerfield.

In 2019 the Dogs kicked five goals in the first three quarters and then five in 10 minutes as Aaron Naughton swung the match. They won by 16 points.

That’s been it.

But this looks a different Geelong team.

The reigning premiers are staring at four-straight losses for the first time since 2006 and have already been beaten by four teams the Dogs have swatted away this year – Carlton, Richmond, Fremantle and GWS.

Saturday night at Marvel Stadium is the perfect opportunity for Liberatore, Daniel and Dale to break their duck.