A ruthless Footscray Bulldogs held Bendigo Gold to their lowest score of the season on Sunday, leading to a comprehensive 131 point victory at Victoria University Whitten Oval.
Moving up to second place on the VFL ladder, Footscray ran out 22. 15 (147) victors to Bendigo Gold 1. 10 (16), in an even team performance.
Footscray never lost the lead, with Bendigo’s sole major coming at the 11 minute mark of the second term, by which stage the Bulldogs already had five on the board.
Tory Dickson opened the scoring for the game with a major early in the piece, while Daniel Giansiracusa imposed himself early with two shots on goal but was unable to convert.
Through the centre Ayce Cordy set the tone early in the ruck, finding support from Alex Greenwood and Lin Jong who worked their way into the game, providing plenty on the inside.
The Bulldogs carried a 51-point buffer into the main change, with Liam Jones leading on the scoreboard with four first half goals, a result of his strong workrate and overhead marking.
A nine goal third term allowed the home side to continue to extend the lead, while Bendigo could only produce three behinds in the same timeframe.
The Bulldogs continued to dominate across all areas of the field in the final quarter, however inaccuracy in front of goals prevented Footscray going further ahead.
The tall timber in Footscray’s attack continued to dominate on the scoreboard with three goals to Jarrad Grant and two to Jack Redpath who was solid on return after a stint in the seniors.
Ayce Cordy also doubled his first half goal tally, finishing with four, as well as having a dominant influence over the ruck contest across four quarters.
Development Manager Chris Maple said he was pleased with the side’s effort but believes the team still needs to shore up their defensive pressure across four quarters.
“We need to get better [defensively], it’s an area for improvement for our whole footy Club,” Maple said.
“I thought a couple of older heads like Daniel Giansiracusa and Jordan Russell were excellent today, while in the backline Tom Young, Michael Talia and Easton Wood rebounded the ball fantastically.
“It’s good to have Darcy Fort, Nick Jamieson and Jase Perkins all come back into the side and make an impact and it was good to have 23 solid contributors for the day – everyone playing their role and doing their job.”
The Bulldogs now travel to Avalon Airport Oval on Sunday 10 August 2014 to face the fourth placed Werribee Tigers in round 18.
Footscray Bulldogs 22. 15 (147) defeat Bendigo Gold 1. 10 (16)
GOALS: Jones 4, Cordy 4, Grant 3, Jong 2, Redpath 2, Giansiracusa 1, Greenwood 1, Honeychurch 1, Howard 1, Dickson 1, Perkins 1
BEST: Young, Giansiracusa, Jong, Cordy, Greenwood, Wood
