It was a case of third time lucky for the Western Bulldogs at Metricon Stadium on Thursday night. The Bulldogs' come-from-behind win against the Gold Coast Suns saw the club record its first ever win on March 9, having come up short in two previous attempts.

The Bulldogs met Melbourne on March 9, 1998, in a quarter final of the Ansett Cup, having beaten Geelong by 63 points in the first round, but came up four goals short - 13.10 (88) to 9.10 (64) against the Demons.

15 years later - March 9, 2013 - a very young Western Bulldogs side travelled to Mandurah, south of Perth, and was put to the sword by a dominant Fremantle outfit, the Dockers winning 23.8 (146) to 5.7 (37).

The Bulldogs finally found March 9 success on Thursday at Metricon Stadium, giving up a 49-point lead to the Suns before storming home to win by 21 points. 

When the 2017 premiership season kicks off against Collingwood on March 24, the Bulldogs will be hoping for another breakthrough. The Dogs' only other match to be played on that date came in 1991, coincidentally also against the Magpies. 

While the result that day wasn't a good one for the Bulldogs - Collingwood won by 70 points - there is perhaps a good omen to be taken from that game. With the Pies having broken their own premiership drought in 1990, the match was won by the reigning premiers!