Dogs get the gold in Ballarat
THE Western Bulldogs have come out on top in a closely-contested tussle with Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Suns by nine points. Despite losing gun midfielder Marcus Bontemepelli to hip soreness in the lead-up to the game, the men in red, white and blue proved to be too good for the Suns in a see-sawing affair, prevailing 11.15 (81) to 10.12 (72) at Mars Stadium in Ballarat. The result sees Luke Beveridge's troops improve to 3-4 on the season after suffering heavy losses to Greater Western Sydney and West Coast in the opening two rounds. Suns ruckman Jarrod Witts continued his strong start to 2018 with a 21-possession, 58-hit-out performance, but the Bulldogs won the clearances 52 to 32. Dogs young gun Jack Macrae was the chief destroyer with 40 possessions (24 contested), including 12 clearances, 10 score involvements and one goal.
JACK Macrae was an unstoppable force in the Western Bulldogs' hard-fought nine-point win over Gold Coast at Mars Stadium in Ballarat on Saturday afternoon. He was ably-supported by stand-in captain Lachie Hunter who racked up 34 disposals (14 contested), while Luke Dahlhaus and Toby McLean were also prolific with 31 and 30 possessions respectively. Matthew Suckling provided plenty of bounce off half-back with 24 disposals, including six rebound 50's, while Billy Gowers and Patrick Lipinski kicked two goals each. For Gold Coast, Touk Miller put in a strong shift, finishing with 26 possessions, one goal and eight tackles, but he will be lamenting the fact that he let Macrae get off the chain. David Swallow led the way at the contest for the Suns, with 17 of his 26 touches coming in contested situations, while Ben Ainsworth showed he is a star of the future with 25 possessions, including eight score involvements. Jack Martin demonstrated his class with 23 touches and two goals, while Brayden Crossley was a solid contributor on debut, tallying 13 disposals, one goal and seven hit-outs. The Western Bulldogs got off to a dream start with Josh Dunkley kicking the first major of the game in the opening minute. But, it was Gold Coast who had the better of the opening stanza, Stuart Dew's charges harder at the contest than their opponents, the visitors winning the tackle count 22 to nine and the contested possession count 45 to 35. The Dogs could count themselves lucky to be trailing by just 10 points at the first change, the Suns booting a wayward 2.6 for the term as they struggled to adapt to the windy conditions. Martin put through the first major of the second quarter before the Bulldogs stamped their authority on the contest. The Dogs lifted their intensity in the clinches and as a result were able to get their running game going, four straight goals, including two from Lipinski, their ward as they regained the ascendancy on the scoreboard. In a sign of their new-found maturity, Gold Coast controlled the tempo in the closing stages of the first half after the Bulldogs threatened to establish a handy buffer, Charlie Ballard's first goal in AFL football followed by Sam Day's second major on the stroke of half-time giving the Suns a four-point advantage. Crossley showed some great composure for a 198cm, 101kg player, goaling on the run to get Gold Coast off to a bright start in the third quarter, but with Macrae wielding his influence, the Bulldogs were able to find plenty of open space and hit back with majors from Lin Jong and Mitch Honeychurch. But, for all their dominance in general play the Dogs found themselves trailing heading into the final change with Gold Coast making the most of their forays forward, goals from Alex Sexton and Miller setting up a grandstand finish. The ball was camped in the Bulldogs' half for the first half of the last quarter and, finally, after 13 entries inside 50 they got some reward for effort, with promising youngster Tim English putting one through the big sticks. Aaron Young's second squared the ledger, but finally weight of numbers started to take its toll, with a Gowers major quickly followed by a Bailey Williams conversion, giving the Bulldogs a 12-edge, huge in the context of the game, and sending the pro-Bulldogs crowd into raptures. However a never-say-die attitude is a hallmark of this Gold Coast side and the Suns responded through Martin to ensure a tense finish. But, their Bulldogs held their nerve in the dying stages to win their first game at their home away from home. Next on the agenda for the Western Bulldogs is a meeting with lowly Brisbane at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night, while Gold Coast will host Melbourne at the Gabba on Saturday afternoon. WESTERN BULLDOGS: 1.2 5.5 8.7 11.15 (81) GOLD COAST: 2.6 5.9 8.10 10.12 (72) GOALS WESTERN BULLDOGS: Lipinski 2, Gowers 2, Dunkley, Johannisen, Jong, Honeychurch, Macrae, English, Williams GOLD COAST: Day 2, Young 2, Ballard, Crossley, Sexton, Miller BEST WESTERN BULLDOGS: Macrae, Hunter, Dahlhaus, McLean, Suckling GOLD COAST: Witts, Ainsworth, Martin, Miller INJURIES WESTERN BULLDOGS: Marcus Bontempelli (hip) replaced in the selected side by Mitch Honeychurch GOLD COAST: Nil REPORTS: Nil ATTENDANCE: 6,833 at Mars Stadium Read the full article
