Saturday afternoon looms as a very Intriguing match up for the Western Bulldogs as they look to go for back-to-back wins for the first time this season, as the host the Gold Coast Suns in their home away from home that is Ballarat's Mars Stadium. It's the first of two matches in Ballarat this year, and given that the Dogs failed to get the four points last time they were here, they would want to make amends with a win over a Suns team that has shown vast improvement from last year.
Many predicted that the Gold Coast Suns would struggle mightily this year, but so far, they've shown to be competitive in most of their games, winning three of their six games in 2018 and two of their three losses have come from beltings from established sides. Under Stuart Dew, the Suns have improved their tackling game tenfold, leading all AFL teams in tackles this year, averaging 72.5 tackles per game.
Last week's loss to Adelaide wasn't a huge thrashing, but then again, they struggled to get even close for most of the match – the Crows were simply cruising, but coming against a Bulldogs side that is struggling in every contested aspect of the game – last in tackles and last in contested possessions, which will have the Suns up and about and you can sense that coach Dew has got them up and about for this game.
However, the brief history between the two clubs has been in the Bulldogs' favour, with the red, white and blues winning seven of their nine games against the Suns in the history of the league, including a four-game winning streak which dates back to round 17, 2014, the Gold Coast's last win over the Dogs coming seven weeks earlier in round 10 of the 2014 season.
The Dogs weren't very convincing in their win over the Blues last week, but given the state of the roster, you'd feel more inclined to take whatever wins come your way. Not only have injuries decimated this entire team, but this team is actually lacking the fundamental errors that are required in the game of AFL. So many times last week, they turned over easy possessions both by foot and by hand.
However, the Dogs are in a good spot to make it two wins in a row here. Gold Coast will be missing both co-captains Steven May and Tom Lynch – who are arguably the Suns' two most important players on the roster. However Bulldogs' captain Easton Wood won't be playing either as he misses the next three weeks with a hamstring injury, but nonetheless, the bookies have the Bulldogs in as the favourites to take this game.
Will they be able to withstand the challenge of the young Suns' outfit come Saturday?
The Teams
Western Bulldogs
IN: Lewis Young OUT: Easton Wood (Hamstring)
B: Matthew Suckling, Aaron Naughton, Zaine Cordy
HB: Jason Johannisen, Lewis Young, Hayden Crozier
C: Bailey Williams, Lachie Hunter, Ed Richards
HF: Josh Dunkley, Marcus Bontempelli, Mitch Wallis
F: Luke Dahlhaus, Tom Boyd, Billy Gowers
FOL: Tim English, Toby McLean, Jack Macrae
INT: Patrick Lipinski, Bailey Dale, Caleb Daniel, Lin Jong EMG: Jackson Trengove, Lukas Webb, Mitch Honeychurch, Roarke Smith
The Western Bulldogs have made one change to the side that defeated Carlton by 21 points last Friday night at Etihad Stadium, with Easton Wood, as mentioned above, set to spend at least three weeks on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, sustained during the Dogs' win last Friday night. Jack Redpath is also expected to miss the next three months as he undergoes knee surgery.
Coming in for Wood this weekend is young key defender Lewis Young who is in for his first game of 2018 and also for his first game in Robert Murphy's old number two after he made the switch from number 22 in 2017 to wearing the number two this year. His form at VFL level has been good enough to warrant selection, it'll be fascinating to see whether or not he has improved on his form last year.
Gold Coast Suns
IN: Callum Ah Chee, Charlie Ballard, Michael Rischitelli, Brayden Crossley, Brad Scheer OUT: Tom Lynch (Knee), Steven May (Finger), Brayden Fiorini (Leg), Jesse Lonergan (Knee), Michael Barlow (Omitted)
B: Jarrod Harbrow, Rory Thompson, Jesse Joyce HB: Lachie Weller, Max Spencer, Jack Bowes C: Matt Rosa, Jarryd Lyons, Alex Sexton
HF: Callum Ah Chee, Sam Day, Aaron Young F: Ben Ainsworth, Jack Martin, Charlie Ballard
FOL: Jarrod Witts, Touk Miller, David Swallow
INT: Michael Rischitelli, Brayden Crossley, Nick Holman, Brad Scheer
EMG: Aaron Hall, Jack Leslie, Will Brodie, Mackenzie Wills
The Suns have made five changes to the side that lost to Adelaide last weekend, with five of those being forced changes. Tom Lynch will miss the next few weeks with knee soreness, with the club expecting him to return after the bye. Steven May will be a huge blow to the Suns' defences as he misses with a finger, whilst Brayden Fiorini (Leg) and Jesse Lonergan (Knee) will also miss after suffering injuries this past week. Former Docker Michael Barlow is the only one who has been dropped.
Coming into the side include two debutants, with Gold Coast academy product Brayden Crossley and draftee Charlie Ballard making their debuts with the Suns this weekend. The Suns potentially see Ballard, who was taken 42 overall in last year's draft, as a utility, with his height and skill able to play a variety of positions on the ground. It's expected Crossley, who was taken 52 overall in last year's draft, will play forward and second ruck, he's a big boy so I expect he will be throwing his weight around.
Also into the team this week include veteran Michael Rischitelli, who will be needed to steady the Gold Coast ship after the injuries to the co-captains, whilst youngsters Callum Ah Chee and Brad Scheer will both play their first games of the 2018 AFL Season this weekend.
Recent History (Last 9 Meetings)
Round 18, 2017 – Cazaly's Stadium: Western Bulldogs 16.14.110 def Gold Coast 8.8.56
Round 17, 2016 – Cazaly's Stadium: Western Bulldogs 15.17.107 def Gold Coast 8.11.59
Round 15, 2015 – Cazaly's Stadium: Western Bulldogs 14.11.95 def Gold Coast 11.7.73
Round 17, 2014 – Cazaly's Stadium: Western Bulldogs 13.16.94 def Gold Coast 9.12.66
Round 10, 2014 – Metricon Stadium: Gold Coast 18.11.119 def Western Bulldogs 10.14.74
Round 8, 2013 – Metricon Stadium: Gold Coast 13.15.93 def Western Bulldogs 8.13.61
Round 8, 2012 – TIO Stadium: Western Bulldogs 9.18.72 def Gold Coast 4.10.34
Round 14, 2011 – Metricon Stadium: Gold Coast 13.10.88 def by Western Bulldogs 17.8.110
Round 3, 2011 – Etihad Stadium: Western Bulldogs 18.14.122 def Gold Coast 7.9.51
Players To Watch
Western Bulldogs
Marcus Bontempelli
Last Friday night, we saw the Bont return to his best form, with a 30 disposal game and perhaps getting the better of young Patrick Cripps in a battle of some of the game's best young midfielders. Despite a poor performance in front of goal, he still looked very damaging in front of goal, and it will be interesting to see who goes to him if he does start in the middle. Personally I think they should have him more midfield than forward, as it's in the square he does his best work.
Patrick Lipinski It was somewhat of a breakout performance last Friday night for third-gamer Patrick Lipinski. Growing up as a Bulldogs supporter, he stood up when the club needed someone to last week, kicking a clutch fourth-quarter goal against Carlton and finished with a game-high three goals. The Suns will have to take some form of notice with him this weekend, as he has shown in just three games that he will become a very handy commodity up forward when he fully develops.
Gold Coast Suns
Jarryd Lyons
The former Crow is enjoying himself out on the Gold Coast since his arrival. In 2017, he enjoyed a breakout season, and this year, he's averaging career-highs in disposals (26.6 per game), clearances (7.3 per game), tackles (6.5 per game) and inside 50s (4.8 per game). With Gary Ablett now gone from the Gold Coast, it looks safe to say that Lyons could very well be the Suns number one midfielder. The Dogs have to find someone that can shut him out of the game for good.
Sam Day
After missing all of 2017 with a disastrous hip injury, which have left many describing it as a 'car crash', it's good to see Sam Day back out onto the park. However, with Tom Lynch now out of the side momentarily, Day must stand up and be somewhat of a presence up forward. The Dogs' defensive line isn't the best at the moment, so it gives him a perfect opportunity for a bag of goals. Kicked three against Fremantle back in round three, but has only managed one major since.
Final Verdict
Whilst the Gold Coast Suns cannot be underestimated here, I think the losses of Tom Lynch and Steven May will hurt them at both ends of the ground and hurt significantly. Whilst the Dogs' inability to effectively hit the scoreboard will soften the blow on the defensive end, I think the repeated inside 50 entries could hurt them in the end. The Dogs have taken the most marks inside 50 of any team this year, averaging 14.3 per game
It is interesting to note that the Gold Coast Suns have won their three games at different venues this year – that being Cairns, Gabba and at Etihad Stadium. Of course the Suns won't play at Metricon until later this year because of the Commonwealth games and then converting it back to a football ground, but the Suns look as if they are slowly adapting to playing in various venues across the nation.
After last week's win over Carlton, I'm not overly convinced that the Dogs have got what it takes to knock off the Suns for a fifth-straight time, but I'm not so sure about the Suns right now either. They've shown promise at various stages so far this season, and if they can bring their tackling game to Mars Stadium, then they'll be in a good position, but for now, I'm going to have to side with the Bulldogs here – I think they'll have enough to get over the line.
Western Bulldogs By 15 Points