Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge has lauded his side for the way they approached Saturday’s Sir Doug Nicholls Round clash against Adelaide.
The win marked the Bulldogs’ fifth straight, moving them two games clear in sixth spot on the ladder.
Beveridge said while there are still improvements to their game, he was pleased with the team’s effort.
“I felt like our contest in open space was as good as it’s been,” he told reporters post-match.
“Our commitment to loose balls and our willingness to put bodies on the line if needed within the rules was obviously outstanding.
“It’s unusual for us to lower our colours with centre bounce clearances and clearances everywhere, so to have such an important win – maybe even with the margin that it was in the end, it’s a good sign for us.
“We got beaten quite badly especially at centre bounce – but I think the good thing with that is that our mids put enough pressure on for them to not go deep inside their 50 too much from those clearances.
“Outside of the stoppage, I thought our contest work was very, very good. It was a pretty solid contribution right across the board from our boys.
“Obviously the negatives being JJ with his injury and the fact we probably left a bit of score out there. We hit the post four times but we’ll march on.”
Beveridge called out the work of his defenders in particular, while also praising the defensive efforts of the midfielders and forwards.
“Jonesy is having a terrific year for us – Bailey Dale and Ed Richards are having outstanding years too,” he said.
“Today you might not have noticed, but Taylor Duryea for the most part went to Izak Rankine, and I thought he did a terrific job in that role.
“As a team defensively, I thought our forwards and our mids combined with what our backs have been able to do. It’s been a collective but we’re still looking to improve every week - today it shone through.”
Beveridge’s Bulldogs will next travel to Darwin to take on Gold Coast at TIO Stadium on Saturday night.
He said while the conditions will be much more humid, the slipperiness shouldn’t be too dissimilar to the dampness of Ballarat.
“It presents a huge challenge. (The Suns) have been playing some impressive football – they almost got Melbourne and had a really good outing last week,” Beveridge said.
“In a sense, playing in damp conditions is a bit of a precursor to going up there. The heat and humidity should be a level playing field - both clubs are going up on the Thursday.
“We won’t have a chance to train up there so we have been preparing a little bit over the last week and a half.
“We’ll train again during the week early, with a bit of heat attached indoors.”
