AFL Round 14 Western Bulldogs v Fremantle: All the news, analysis and fallout as Marcus Bontempelli leads Dogs to a big win
Another day, another Marcus Bontempelli masterclass – this time with an outrageous goal-of-the-year contender. The skipper was, again, the catalyst as the Bulldogs jumped into the top eight.
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The Western Bulldogs’ 67-point win over Fremantle was conjured by those we’ve dared to draw a line through.
Marcus Bontempelli barely trained all week due to illness and was no certainty to suit up against the Dockers.
Tom Liberatore is one more head knock away from another retirement discussion.
Rory Lobb has been booed by his own fans amid trade murmurs.
Tim English had half a season to prove that he’s worthy of a life-changing contract after struggling to recapture his 2023 All-Australian form.
But all four were instrumental on Saturday at Marvel Stadium.
Bontempelli was the difference.
The inspirational skipper missed both of the Bulldogs’ training sessions this week, only completing a light captain’s run on Friday. You wouldn’t have known it.
Bontempelli shrugged off illness to kick a goal of the year contender in the second term, pushing past Dockers defenders Alex Pearce and Luke Ryan to maintain the Bulldogs’ momentum. First, he halved a contest in the air, a mean feat given Fremantle’s intercept abilities. Then, he kept his feet once the ball hit the deck, paddling the ball up into his path. Then, he got goalside, flipping onto his left and snapping truly.
If Michael Jordan has the ‘Flu Game,’ then this will be known as Bontchitis.
“He did some really special things Marcus,” Luke Beveridge said post-game.
“I think that goal that he kicked, I said to the players at half-time that he competes in the air when it’s one vs. three, he’s got every right to go to ground after that aerial contest but he kept his feet.
“You could see the strength, he fends off and he finishes. We talk about the little things in footy. There’s no replacement for brilliance and team-lifting stuff. It optimises what he does.
“It’s an influential game from him after he was pretty crook. He’s got a sty in his eye. He’s run down. But like the rest of the midfield brigade, he set a really strong example.”
Bontempelli was equally influential in the midfield, finishing with 30 disposals, seven clearances, three goal assists and three goals of his own as the Dockers regretted their decision to back in their midfield and resist a tag.
Fremantle’s midfield has been one of the AFL’s best so far this season. But Liberatore simply didn’t care.
Two games into his return from what threatened to be a career-ending concussion, Liberatore set up the win in the first half, racking up 19 touches. He finished with 28 disposals, 15 of which were contested, and also had a game-high 10 clearances.
Crucially, he allowed the likes of Bontempelli and Ed Richards to float forward and be aggressive, knowing that he’d form an extra layer of defensive cover. He also played a minding role on Dockers star Caleb Serong, the man who towelled the Dogs up last time the teams met.
A return to form is a significant boost for the Bulldogs’ finals hopes.
“I don’t know how many examples there are of players who come back from concussion and play the house down,” Beveridge said. “He wasn’t at his best last week and sometimes being task-orientated for a little bit and not needing to be creative can right the ship a bit.”
Conducting the midfield orchestra was English. Ranked the ninth-best ruckman coming into the clash, English faced a significant challenge against Fremantle’s dual threats Sean Darcy and Luke Jackson who took the chocolates when the sides met earlier this season.
He wasn’t dominant. But he was important, finishing with 14 touches, nine marks, 24 hitouts, six tackles and two goals. Darcy had more hitouts, finishing with 38. But English had nine to advantage to Darcy’s 11 from greater opportunity, giving his midfield the upper hand as they piled on scores from stoppage.
“Tim had to shoulder a lot of that load in the ruck,” Beveridge said.
“He was really important in the scheme of things.”
Then there was Lobb. Maligned for a good chunk of his career, jeers erupted early in the afternoon every time he got near the footy. But against his former side, Lobb proved to be one of the matchwinners.
He took just one mark inside 50 but he didn’t need to because his biggest impact was halving contests and ensuring that Pearce or Ryan didn’t get a look in the air.
His work rate was also significant, finishing with 19 touches, six marks and 11 score involvements. In the third quarter, he won a centre clearance in the ruck and powered forward past Luke Jackson, snapping the easiest of goals when the ball spilled out the back.
He added a third goal in the final term, putting an exclamation mark on the sort of performance that should be a benchmark, not an outlier.
“I’m really pleased for Lobby,” Beveridge said. “Under a lot of pressure, against his old side and I thought his game, with the weight on his shoulders, was tremendous.”
The Dogs put the Dockers under enough pressure to make mistakes.
But don’t discount the output of four individuals putting their side right back in top eight contention.
Dockers bow to Dogs in the presence of greatness
– Ronny Lerner
A goal-of-the-year contender from Western Bulldogs champion Marcus Bontempelli has highlighted his team’s thumping 67-point victory over Fremantle at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.
After competing with Fremantle key defender Alex Pearce for a contested mark in the Dogs’ forward line late in the second quarter, the Dogs skipper outmuscled both Pearce and Luke Ryan to win his own crumbs. Then, in one motion, he slapped the ball on his boot under pressure with one hand while turning his body goalward to split the big sticks with a sensational snap from 25m out.
It was the crowning jewel of the champion Bulldog’s performance which featured 30 disposals (13 contested), eight marks, seven clearances, five tackles, 682 metres gained and three goals, and will probably ensure another three votes for him on Brownlow night.
The Bulldogs fell 11 points behind in the first quarter, after Fremantle kicked four goals in a row, but the hosts hit back with full force to pile on 12 of the next 13 goals to firmly shut the door on the Dockers.
Fremantle responded with six of the next seven goals to apply some cosmetic surgery to the scoreboard, but Justin Longmuir’s side left it far too late to make any meaningful inroads into their massive deficit, and the Dogs kicked eight of the last nine majors to restore their supremacy and run out 23.11 (149) to 12.10 (82) winners.
The Bulldogs’ pressure was absolutely ferocious for most of the game, and they enjoyed a commanding lead of the tackle count in the third quarter (46-31), as well as tackles inside 50 (12-5), despite finishing the match with far more disposals (376-302). It lead to a bevy of Fremantle skill errors which the Bulldogs feasted on.
Despite the hosts missing twin towers Aaron Naughton and Sam Darcy from their forward line, the Dockers’ vaunted backline struggled to cope with the Dogs’ forward entries, of which there were plenty to negotiate as the hosts had a massive buffer in that stat (48-32) at three-quarter time.
BONT YOU CAN'T DO THAT 🤯@Coles | #AFLDogsFreopic.twitter.com/CuakT4YL3q
— AFL (@AFL) June 15, 2024
The Dogs produced 10 individual goalkickers, including Rhylee West, who bagged a career-high four majors, as well as Cody Weightman, Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, Bontempelli and Rory Lobb, who each kicked three.
Luke Beveridge’s team registered its biggest score of the year, while Fremantle conceded its worst total of the season and suffered its heftiest loss of 2024 just one game after smashing Melbourne by 92 points.
Tom Liberatore returned to form in his second game back from concussion, finishing with 28 disposals (15 contested), nine clearances and five tackles, and limited the influence of Freo star Caleb Serong when the match was up for grabs in the first half.
The Dogs were also well served in defence by Bailey Dale and Lachie Bramble, who each collected 30 touches.
Exacerbating the result for Fremantle was the loss of veteran Michael Walters to a hamstring injury in the second quarter.
“I can’t really explain it at the moment,” A shellshocked Justin Longmuir said post-match.
“Going into the bye (last week) with a big win and everyone pumping their tyres up, I said to the players after the game it just looked like a team who was desperate to keep their season alive and a team who was comfortable playing each other.
“There was no warning signs for me during week ... but I couldn’t fault the players’ attitude at training and their application to meetings.
“We have to dig a bit deeper as to why ... we’ve got some soul-searching to do after that.
“We can’t accept it. We need to understand why and we need to learn from it.
“It’s a good reminder that the opposition you’re coming up against are not going to give you any favours for having a good win or where you are on the ladder.”
DOGS ACCEPT RYAN GIFT
Dockers backman Ryan had a moment he would rather forget late in the first half when his horrendous kick-in, intended for Jordan Clark, missed his teammate, allowing Ryley Sanders to pounce on the loose ball and combine with Anthony Scott to get it to Adam Treloar who sent the ball back over Ryan’s head from 45m out to give the Dogs a 28-point lead.
WASTEFUL TREACY
The Dockers mightn’t have been so far behind at that stage of the game had Josh Treacy not burnt a pair of absolute sitters in front of goal. Early in the second term, he butchered a set shot from just 15m out on a slight angle which would’ve cut the deficit to three points. But 15 minutes later he outdid himself when, from 25m out directly in front, he inexplicably almost missed the ball as it snuck in for a point at head height. His confidence completely deserted him as he could only manage 1.3 from his first four shots after heading into the match with an incredibly accurate 24.6.
DOGS BACK IN TOWN
The Bulldogs’ strong response to their poor showing against the Brisbane Lions last week has seen them provisionally re-enter the top eight, and, after starting the year 3-5, they have now won four of their last six matches to ensure they are well and truly in finals contention. Meanwhile, the Dockers could’ve returned to the top four for the first time since Round 3 had they won, but they are now in danger of dropping to eighth by the end of the weekend.
Scoreboard
W.BULLDOGS 4.5, 9.8, 15.11, 23.11 (149)
FREMANTLE 4.1, 5.4, 9.5, 12.10 (82)
RONNY LERNER’S BEST
Bulldogs: Bontempelli, Liberatore, Dale, Bramble, Treloar, West, O’Donnell.
Dockers: Jackson, Pearce, Clark, Banfield, Switkowski.
GOALS
Bulldogs: West 4, Weightman 3, Ugle-Hagan 3, Bontempelli 3, Lobb 3, Gallagher 2, English 2, Richards, Treloar, Bramble.
Dockers: Sturt 3, Banfield 3, Treacy 2, Jackson 2, Frederick, Amiss.
LATE CHANGE Heath Chapman (hamstring) replaced in Fremantle’s selected side by Karl Worner.
INJURIES Bulldogs: Nil. Dockers: Walters (hamstring).
UMPIRES Rosebury, Williamson, Bailes, Rodger
21,796 at Marvel Stadium
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
RONNY LERNER’S VOTES
3 Marcus Bontempelli (WB)
2 Tom Liberatore (WB)
1 Bailey Dale (WB)
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