Western Bulldogs ready to rediscover midfield fire in elimination final against Essendon

The Western Bulldogs have lost three straight, but midfielder Lachie Hunter is confident his side can fire when it matters most.

Midfielder Lachie Hunter says the Dogs are ready to regain their bite. Picture: Steve Bell/AFL Photos/via Getty Images

Question marks surround the Western Bulldogs’ premiership aspirations after three straight losses heading into Sunday’s elimination final against Essendon, but midfielder Lachie Hunter insists the Dogs are trending in the “right direction”.

The Bulldogs have produced more of a bark than a bite in recent weeks, especially in the midfield, as they’ve struggled to rediscover cohesion following the returns of star mids Josh Dunkley and Adam Treloar.

According to Hunter, though, the Bulldogs are feeling positive about producing a strong finals performance against the Bombers following a tense 66-64 loss to title heavyweights Port Adelaide.

“When you lose by two points you are also doing a fair few things right as well, so we definitely took some confidence out of the game,” Hunter said as the Dogs prepare to make amends for their 13-point loss to Essendon three weeks ago.

“In our reviews during the week there were still things we could have done better, but it was a step in the right direction.

“It is easy to focus on the last three weeks without looking at the whole year and accumulating 15 wins, so we are just trying to focus on the positives.”

Lachie Hunter is confident his side can lift against Essendon. Picture: Steve Bell/AFL Photos/via Getty Images

Hunter is happy to admit that the Bulldogs’ midfield has been clunky but has vowed to raise his standards against Essendon on Sunday.

He believes the team’s biggest issue is finding the right balance again following Dunkley’s return from injury and a Covid scare.

“The midfield has been a strength of our team and we saw at the start of the year how well it worked together,” he said.

“So, we are just looking to find that form and find that mix with those midfielders in there ... who is in the centre bounce and who is in the stoppages and who is forward at those particular times.

“With Ads and Dunks coming back in, it is just about learning how to play with us all again, and I’m sure that cohesion will be more focused on this week.”

Essendon forward Jake Stringer is primed for a big performance against his former club. Picture: Michael Klein

For Hunter, Sunday’s clash against Essendon will also have a personal connection.

He is the godfather to the son of Bombers forward and former Bulldogs star Jake Stringer, and the pair have already exchanged banter ahead of Sunday’s elimination final.

“I messaged Jake and told him I was going to check him into a tier 1 (Covid) site so he might be out for this week, and we had a laugh about that,” he said.

“But look, he is obviously a pretty damaging player, and he is probably in the form of his career like what he was doing here in the peak of his powers.

“We’ve seen how damaging he can be out of centre bounce, and he is always able to hit the scoreboard, so he is one we’ll have to watch.”

Originally published as Western Bulldogs ready to rediscover midfield fire in elimination final against Essendon