The Western Bulldogs showed in patches that their form line is heading in the right direction during Friday night’s narrow loss to Port Adelaide at Marvel Stadium.

But they’ll be searching to go to another level in the post-season, with the home and away campaign now complete and a finals series starting in just a week’s time.

The Bulldogs qualified for their third successive finals campaign in different circumstances to the last two attempts – they marched to 15 wins from their first 19 games, before a run of three straight losses.

“We worked hard to get ourselves into a strong position up until just over a month ago,” coach Luke Beveridge told media after the game.

“It’s quite obvious to all that we haven’t been at our best in recent times.

“We’ve been able to stay positive, and we absolutely will.  There’s still a lot to play for.”

Immediately following the match against the Power, the Bulldogs were anticipating they would slip to fifth on the ladder and into an Elimination Final, given the Brisbane Lions were expected to defeat West Coast on Saturday.

Beveridge and the coaches were straight on the front foot with their internal message, turning the attention of their disappointed playing group to the opportunity that still exists before them.

“I spoke to the boys about how we’re all in their corner,” Beveridge said.

“Yes, we’ll be absolutely flat and disappointed with the defeat, but all we can do is believe that we can stay the course and continue on and win as many games as we can from here on in.

“We’ll do our best to stay positive.  That unified approach to the next week is absolutely crucial to how we front up.”