The Western Bulldogs have pulled off one of the bravest wins of the AFL season to date, fighting back from 29 points down then hanging on against a wayward Hawthorn to claim a six-point win, 12.5 (77) to 9.17 (71), in a thrilling, fiery clash.<\/p>\n
The Hawks owned the first half, but the Dogs flipped the script in the second half as the wasteful Hawks kicked themselves out of a win.<\/p>\n
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Goals to Tim English, Marcus Bontempelli and Aaron Naughton were enough in the last quarter to get the Dogs over the line as the Hawks could only manage five behinds in the final quarter. <\/p>\n
You can sense a rivalry brewing between these two sides. Spotfires sparked all night \u2013 none bigger than an old fashioned quarter time melee which saw Rory Lobb and Blake Hardwick having a wrestle right against the fence. Michael Sellwood was involved all night with Nick Watson and Sellwood and Mabior Chol had a little melee at three quarter time. Will Lewis and James Sicily also butted heads all night \u2013 at one point wrestling for a solid minute, while the game continued around them. <\/p>\n
But it was the Dogs who had the last laugh as they ran out six-point winners.<\/p>\n
\u201cTooth and nail, that\u2019s the Bulldogs way. One of the great wins!\u201d Fox Footy\u2019s Anthony Hudson said.<\/p>\n
Hawks and Dogs in HUGE brawl | 00:56<\/p>\n
Nick Coffield was the unlikely late-game hero, nailing a spoil in the middle of the MCG in the dying seconds to stop a Hawks forward foray and seal a memorable win.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know how he (Nick Coffield) found the speed to get there (to spoil) but he did,\u201d Bulldog Ed Richards said on Fox Footy post-game.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, that\u2019s the stuff that wins the close ones, f***ing unbelievable. Sorry about the swearing, but just raw emotion. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat (win) meant so much to this group. I mean, they\u2019ve had the wood over us for ages.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey probably helped us out with some bad kicking, but that\u2019s footy. We were able to take our chances and they weren\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
THE 3-2-1 \u2026<\/p>\n
3. \u2018TURNED THIS GAME ON ITS HEAD\u2019: DOGS REMARKABLY RECTIFY \u2018SMASHING\u2019 IN BRAVE FIGHTBACK, STAR\u2019S 637-DAY RELIEF<\/p>\n
The Bulldogs remain the close-game kings this year, and their latest heist came most improbably after trailing Hawthorn by as many as 27 points. <\/p>\n
The Hawks built their ascendancy from dominance at the coalface, \u201csmashing\u201d the Bulldogs in one of the strongest areas of their game. <\/p>\n
The Dogs entered Friday night in second in the competition for clearances, but Hawthorn won the first nine centre clearances of the game, in a stark tale of its early midfield dominance. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a smashing,\u201d Lyon said, with Jai Newcombe and Will Day doing the damage in the guts. <\/p>\n
The Bulldogs also looked vulnerable defending transition in a second quarter that saw the Hawks kick six goals to two. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey couldn\u2019t win a centre bounce \u2026 it just shows how important this territory battle (has been),\u201d Lewis said at half-time. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been an area where Hawthorn has been proficient.\u201d<\/p>\n
On what the Bulldogs had to do to get back into the contest, Hawkins said: \u201cThey need to win around the footy. Their one-wood is their stoppage game, so that\u2019s what they need to get back to. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey need to get the ball going forward, have a little bit of ascendancy in the forward half. And when the ball goes in there, either score or hold it in there, and try to put the Hawks under pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n
And Luke Beveridge got the response he desired from his charges, kicking five goals to one to get within eight points at the final change. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is an admirable comeback from the Dogs; they didn\u2019t look like it at half-time,\u201d Lyon said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve just amped it up a bit, the pressure\u2019s come on, mixed up the way they\u2019ve used the footy \u2013 haven\u2019t been as predictable.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the Dogs\u2019 fifth goal of the quarter, which brought them to within six points, they\u2019d notched 10 of the last 11 clearances in the game to well and truly snatch the stoppage momentum. <\/p>\n
After nailing Jai Newcombe in a tackle in the pocket, Marcus Bontempelli put the Bulldogs in front with a snap at the seven-minute mark of the final term \u2013 perhaps just reminding him who the king of the coalface still is. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe clearance domination continues \u2013 (it\u2019s) turned this game on its head; 9-3 for the quarter, 4-0 out of the middle to the Dogs,\u201d Lyon said halfway through the last quarter. <\/p>\n
The Bulldogs made it six wins from six in tight games this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were pretty poor in that first half and then they started to get on top, and a few of their smalls were starting to get chirpy, a bit niggly, and then we were just like \u2018well, we can\u2019t just sit here and take it once again, so let\u2019s just go out there, put our bodies on the line, and see what happens,\u201d Richards said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did in the end, and as I said before they helped us out with some bad kicking, but a win\u2019s a win.\u201d<\/p>\n
And in a massive boost to the Bulldogs\u2019 attack, Cody Weightman was back for his first AFL match in 637 days. <\/p>\n
Straight back into the seniors instead of a run in the VFL, his immediate return was a telling sign of his worth in Luke Beveridge\u2019s eyes. <\/p>\n
A supreme livewire when up and running, Weightman had been struck down by a rare congenital knee condition called bipartite patella, where his kneecap bone failed to fuse together into a single piece. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe challenge will be the mental fatigue,\u201d Jordan Lewis said pre-game. <\/p>\n
Starting on the wing before settling forward, Weightman was involved early, drawing a free kick for holding the man in one of a few early possessions. <\/p>\n
He popped up for brief moments through the night \u2013 not able to kick what would\u2019ve been a crowd-lifting goal \u2013 but the fact he got through unscathed would be of enough solace. <\/p>\n
2. \u2018HE\u2019S GIVING ME A BIT\u2019: \u2018UNSTOPPABLE\u2019 WATSON FIRES UP IN HOT CLASH \u2026 BUT GALLANT DOG FIGHTS<\/p>\n
Nick Watson remains simply uncontainable at forward-50 stoppages, and he was described as \u201cthe difference\u201d early on Friday night. <\/p>\n
But it was a stark tale of two halves for the Hawks, who kicked just one second-half goal and surrendered a 27-point half-time lead to lose in agonising fashion. <\/p>\n
Mesmerising livewire Watson was pitted against the Bulldogs\u2019 Michael Sellwood in a fiery one-on-one sideshow, and he had his way with the emerging Dog in the first half. <\/p>\n
Again exhibiting his roving wizardry, Watson booted three first-half goals with seven score involvements from just nine disposals. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s unstoppable, once he\u2019s on the move,\u201d an in-awe Garry Lyon said on Fox Footy in the second quarter. <\/p>\n
\u201cSellwood\u2019s got his hands full \u2013 I just wonder how long Luke Beveridge is going to persist with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fox Footy caller Anthony Hudson added: \u201cHe\u2019s the difference, now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Watson, who was entangled with Sellwood in a quarter-time brouhaha that involved several players from both sides, said he was all for the drama. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s giving me a bit \u2013 I don\u2019t care if he talks, as long as he walks the walk. I\u2019d love to see it in the second half,\u201d Watson told Fox Footy\u2019s Ben Dixon at half-time. <\/p>\n
Four-time Hawthorn premiership star Jordan Lewis explained what he believed was the glaring flaw in the Watson-Sellwood matchup \u2013 a slightly curious one, given Connor Budarick had done the job well in the past. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the wrong matchup, I think that\u2019s obvious for everyone here to see,\u201d he said during Fox Footy\u2019s half-time coverage. <\/p>\n
\u201cSellwood, unfortunately, is just too slow for Watson \u2026 I\u2019d be really surprised if this didn\u2019t change at half-time. <\/p>\n
\u201cSellwood\u2019s a ball-watcher \u2013 he hasn\u2019t played on a Nick Watson (type) before, you can\u2019t go ball-watching \u2026 this will need to change. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs he said at half-time, if you want to talk, you have to walk the walk \u2013 and unfortunately right now, Sellwood hasn\u2019t walked the walk.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Sellwood lined up against Watson to start the second half, and he certainly walked the walk. <\/p>\n
The 22-year-old, who was the last-minute hero against Collingwood last Saturday, kept Watson goalless with two touches in an admirable third-quarter resurgence. <\/p>\n
And despite getting caught holding-the-ball deep in defence early in the last \u2013 which prompted Jack Ginnivan and other Hawks to get into him \u2013 he kept fighting as Watson\u2019s impact waned. <\/p>\n
Watson was stat-less, bar one tackle, in the last quarter. <\/p>\n
Hawthorn entered Friday night first for intercept to score and first for half-back-to-score, and its punish was on full display in the first half \u2013 before going missing in the second. <\/p>\n
The Hawks initially looked threatening every single time they won it back off the Dogs, particularly in the forward half, as they erupted for a 6.4 (40) second quarter built off a punitive forward-half game. <\/p>\n
\u201cTraces of the Hawks from a couple of years ago, when they really started going,\u201d Hudson said. <\/p>\n
And they were led by Jai Newcombe, who had 23 disposals \u2013 11 contested \u2013 four score involvements, four clearances and six intercepts by half-time. <\/p>\n
\u201cHis intercept game has been strong, but in terms of the way he\u2019s been using the ball, the way that he\u2019s organised the stoppages and around the centre bounce has been a real leader-type game,\u201d Lewis said at half-time. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s had a huge influence with ball in hand, but what he\u2019s done without the ball has been equally as important.\u201d<\/p>\n
Geelong champion Tom Hawkins added: \u201cThe way that he can just hold the ball and draw and get the Bulldogs players to commit \u2026 it then frees up teammates, and then he connects with ball in hand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Starkly, Newcombe became the eighth Hawk ever to record 20+ disposals, 10+ contested possessions and 4+ clearances in an opening half. <\/p>\n
And he stepped up in a third term that the Dogs owned, stabilising in the midfield with nine more disposals, four inside-50s and three clearances. <\/p>\n
The Hawks were without Jack Gunston, who\u2019s leading the Coleman Medal, opening the door for Mabior Chol to fill the void with three goals \u2013 though he couldn\u2019t quite snag a goal late when his side desperately needed one.<\/p>\n
1. DOG CONCUSSED AS STAR NARROWLY AVOIDS SAME FATE<\/p>\n
Already faced with an uphill battle against Hawthorn, the Bulldogs found themselves down one rotation by quarter-time. <\/p>\n
At the start of the second quarter, Bulldogs forward Lachie McNeil was ruled out of the game with concussion. <\/p>\n
It came after he attempted to lay a hit on Will Day, instead copping a face full of the Hawk\u2019s shoulder before crumpling to the turf. <\/p>\n
The small forward underwent an on-field head injury assessment before being taken downstairs at the first change for a SCAT5 concussion test. <\/p>\n
McNeil\u2019s issue came before Tim English worryingly copped a head knock on the eve of quarter-time. <\/p>\n
In a case of friendly fire, skipper Marcus Bontempelli went straight through his ruckman at a contest to cause bleeding from his nose. <\/p>\n
English made a cross-armed gesture to the interchange as he quickly made his way to the bench, with immediate concerns over the man who recently overcame a concussion. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou could hear the smack, couldn\u2019t you? He\u2019s gone straight into the rooms. At this stage, it looks like a broken nose,\u201d Jon Ralph reported on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n
English entered Friday night with six career concussions. <\/p>\n
Jason Dunstall added: \u201cIt would be tragic if Tim English has got himself another concussion \u2013 let\u2019s hope it is just a broken nose.\u201d<\/p>\n
But with bandaging around his nose, English gallantly returned to the ruck in the second quarter. <\/p>\n
On the Hawthorn side of things, Mitch Lewis was hampered by a right ankle injury after it was twisted in a first-quarter contest. <\/p>\n
He played out the remainder of the game, albeit looking bothered by the issue throughout.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Western Bulldogs have pulled off one of the bravest wins of the AFL season to date, fighting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":717060,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,14406,64,63,689,55,639,3423,303608,347904,3499,347905,2105,7492,12102,3231,347903,6462,248975,142568,347906,647,677,347901,59818,85,347902,660,698],"class_list":["post-717059","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-anthony-scott","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-ben-waterworth","tag-cody-weightman","tag-congenital-knee-condition","tag-daniel-pockett","tag-follow-hawthorn","tag-getty-images-inc","tag-hawthorn-hawks","tag-jack-gunston","tag-jack-jovanovski","tag-kneecap-bone","tag-live-updates","tag-luckless-star","tag-match-details","tag-mega-boost","tag-melbourne","tag-oceania","tag-rare-congenital-knee","tag-southport-sharks","tag-sports","tag-supreme-livewire","tag-victoria","tag-western-bulldogs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/717059","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=717059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/717059\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/717060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=717059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=717059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=717059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}