Western Bulldogs have what it takes to create a dynasty like Hawthorn, Shane Crawford writes

SHANE Crawford knows all about creating a dynasty. Now the Hawthorn premiership star thinks the Western Bulldogs can do just that.

THIS is a start, not an end for the Western Bulldogs.

If that sounds strange for a club that on Saturday won its first premiership in 62 years, it isn’t ... for this 2016 premiership side reminds me so much of the Hawthorn of 2008.

It’s not just the age demographic, which shows that youth knows no fear when coached the right way. It’s also about the commitment to team-first football that had me thinking on Saturday night about that Hawks’ side of eight years ago.

We won a flag before we were meant to — at least according to those outside the club. Internally, we knew we were ready, just as I am sure Luke Beveridge’s Bulldogs were certain they could do it on Saturday.

There is no such thing as not being ready to win a flag. If you are good enough, you are ready. And if you want it enough, and plan for it, nothing is impossible.

Luke Beveridge is drenched by Marcus Bontempelli during the post-match celebrations. Picture: Getty Images.

While the Hawks didn’t win the premiership the year after that 2008 success, or even for a few seasons after that, the nucleus of that side stamped their greatness on the game with three more flags from 2013-2015.

The Dogs are capable of achieving more, too. Beveridge, who wasn’t at Hawthorn in 2008, but was there for the threepeat, will be emphasising to his young team that more success beckons for them.

RELIVE: BULLDOGS WIN HISTORIC PREMIERSHIP

INCREDIBLE GESTURE: COACH HANDS MEDAL TO INJURED SKIPPER

HUGE INJURY: Dale Morris played Grand Final ‘with broken back’

CHAMPION: JJ wins 2016 Norm Smith Medal

Bevo was super confident going into Saturday’s game — confident but not complacent — when I spoke to him during the week, and you could see that confidence was not misplaced.

He knew he had a team on the rise capable of performing the extraordinary on footy’s biggest stage.

Clarko was the same with his group in 2008, and look what happened to them.

Beveridge said this week that the Whitten Oval trophy cabinet has plenty of room left in it, and by the time this team reaches its peak — which might still be a few years off — it could be a lot more crowded in there.

Clay Smith and Luke Dahlhaus celebrate the premiership win. Picture: Mark Stewart

The similarities are everywhere from Saturday’s fairytale team to the Hawks of 2008.

Just like us in 2008, they went into the game as underdogs, with a young, enthusiastic, tactical coach, and from a club that had almost been merged by the VFL-AFL, so the similarities are there.

Both teams had injury issues through the year, and emerged stronger because of it. The Hawks had some issues that year — and I was probably one of them with my knee tendinitis — and we managed to find a few more players because of it, which held us in good stead.

The same thing can be said of the Bulldogs, who lost their captain and a host of others, some of whom were fortunately back at the right time.

Clarko’s adage of “replacing one soldier with another soldier” was adopted by Beveridge at the Whitten Oval. He believes in it, and, more importantly, his playing group, believes in it.

Marcus Bontempelli soaks up premiership glory. Picture: Mark Stewart

Neither coach was frightened of making the hard decisions at the right time. Clarko gave one of our big ruckmen Simon Taylor a rest late in the season, and all that did was open the door for a young player in Brent Renouf. As hard as a decision as it was, Renouf kept Taylor out of the side for the finals.

Beveridge has never been frightened to make a hard decision. He dropped Jake Stringer just before the finals, but the decision ended up as one of his most important of the season. He wasn’t happy with Jake’s defensive output and wanted to send a message not only to him, but also to the team.

Stringer was able to come back for the finals, and now has a premiership medal. His teammates got a lesson in the importance of team defence.

We rested players late in the season in 2008, and had our key players fresh for the finals. Bevo didn’t have the same luxury given their injury list, but he got some key players such as Tom Liberatore, Jack Macrae and a host of others back at precisely the right time.

Bulldogs players celebrate as Josh Kennedy ponders another Grand Final loss. Picture: Toby Zerna

He also resisted the temptation of playing injured players in Saturday’s Grand Final, even if it must have been hard for him to run the pen through Matt Suckling and his Achilles.

We knew in 2008 that more success would likely follow. The Dogs must surely believe the same.

Bevo has learnt so much off Clarkson. Tactically, he won the battle with John Longmire and he used his intimate knowledge of Buddy Franklin perfectly.

He had a great relationship with Franklin when he was at Hawthorn, and in knowing Buddy’s strengths and weaknesses, he was able to devise a plan to keep the man who was potentially the game’s most capable player in check.

Buddy needs space to be a force, and the plan to deny him that space was a massive part in keeping him to only 12 touches and one goal on Saturday. Limit his movement, cut off space, and it would keep him quiet. Tick, tick and tick.

Easton Wood and Luke Beveridge hug after the game. Picture: Getty Images

Franklin had Joel Hamling on him for most of the day, and the Bulldogs’ youngster did a great job, but he had so much assistance from teammates that it made Buddy’s task too difficult.

Importantly, the Dogs forced the Swans to go wide at every opportunity, and slowed them down, which made it hard for them to get any flow into their game.

This premiership was all about hope, you could see that from the parade on Friday. The support the players got from long-suffering Bulldogs fans was unlike anything I had seen before, or am likely to see again.

And Bevo’s team embraced that, owned it as a badge of honour, and never looked like wilting. The 1954 premiership cup has a new companion, and there could be more on the way in the coming seasons.