Western Bulldogs’ spirit and belief carried them to Grand Final glory, writes David King

SYDNEY brought their intensity and courage fitting of their Bloods heritage, but the Western Bulldogs’ spirit and belief carried them to the glory, writes David King.

The Western Bulldogs celebrate on the podium. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

SYDNEY brought their intensity and courage fitting of their Bloods heritage, but the Western Bulldogs’ spirit and belief carried them to the glory.

I outlined my keys to the Grand Final in the Saturday Herald Sun — and here’s how they played out on the big day.

TRIBUTE: BEVO’S GESTURE TO INJURED BOB

PARTY TIME: HOW THE DOGS ARE LIVING IT UP

1. FAST START

THE Bulldogs prevented the Swans from getting off to the hot start they were accustomed to. They came out with a fierce aggression at the contest. The game was tight and the Swans just couldn’t break free. Their entries into forward 50 were under enormous pressure and they scored just 1.2 from their 11 entries for the quarter, their lowest first quarter score for the season.

The Bulldogs needed to come out strong and quell the Sydney surge. Mission one accomplished.

Lachie Hunter loves to dish it out by hand. Picture: Colleen Petch

2. HANDBALL GAME

THE Bulldogs’ fast-paced handball game surged them into an unlikely Grand Final. This was going to be tested by Sydney’s elite midfield pressure, but they stuck to their guns and handballed their way from the inside the contest to outside in space.

The poor Bulldogs kicking kept the Swans in the match. They kicked at just 61 per cent efficiency, well below their season average of 65 per cent. The Dogs had 34 clanger kicks, 14 more than the AFL average. But their unrelenting strength in their contest and their capacity to transfer the ball from the contest via hand allowed them to continually reload.

 

3. TERRITORY BATTLE

THIS part of the game was relatively balanced until the final quarter. The Bulldogs won the quest for time in forward half — 67 per cent to 33 per cent. They had 22 inside-50s to Sydney’s seven. This field position dominance came on the back of an utter domination at stoppage and in the contest.

The Bulldogs, across the season, won the contested possession count by +16.5 a match, the second-best differential ever recorded. In the final quarter they showed everyone how they achieved this feat. Their Bulldog-like ferocity won the contested possession count by 15 and the clearance count by 6.

Tom Liberatore loves one-on-one footy. Picture: Tim Carrafa

4. ZONE v ONE-ON-ONE

THE Bulldogs’ high pressure zone reigned supreme over the Swans’ one-on-one tactics. The Swans simply couldn’t penetrate the Dogs defence. Sydney started with the ball 50 times in their defensive 50, they managed to take just five of these chains into forward 50 and failed to register a single score from these thrusts. Across the season the Swans averaged 42 points from their defensive half, ranked second in the AFL, but in the big dance they were restricted to just 15 points.

The Swans committed 32 defensive half turnovers and the Bulldogs were able to punish them for 4.6.30 from these mistakes. The Swans’ ball use off halfback has emerged as an issue, but this was a colossal win for the modern press over the one-on-one style defence.

Josh Kennedy was huge for the Swans. Picture: Getty Images

5. STAR INFLUENCE

THE Swans’ star midfielders rose to the top. Josh Kennedy finished with 34 disposals and three goals in a performance worthy of a medallion. Tom Mitchell was always a chance to have an impact on the scoreboard and he delivered two crucial goals in the second quarter along with 26 disposals and 12 tackles. But unfortunately injuries prevented other stars in Lance Franklin, Dan Hannebery, Isaac Heeney and Luke Parker from truly shining.

One man didn’t win the match for the Bulldogs — it was a true team effort. Marcus Bontempelli was his usually impactful self, Jason Johannisen was the springboard off halfback, Tom Boyd had a career defining match, Liam Picken was their heart and soul yet again, while Jack Macrae continued to run and create opportunity.

Yet none of these players stood out as an absolute star. Team performance carried the Bulldogs over the line to a historic premiership.

Coach Luke Beveridge has broken the drought for the Bulldogs and other teams will likely try to replicate their model, but for now who cares. The Doggies were way too good when it mattered the most.