Top of the Hill
Josh Hill says the narrow loss to Geelong may have been a turning point for the Bulldogs
Just a fortnight ago the Bulldogs went within a whisker of toppling the Cats, with Rodney Eade's side taking ground off the competition pacesetter throughout the second half and having the chance to snatch the match after the final siren.
While his side just fell short against Geelong, Hill, speaking after the Bulldogs thrashed Richmond to make it consecutive wins since that round nine clash, said the match might have been a significant moment in his club's season.
"It was a tough game that Geelong game … and everyone was feeling it after that," he said.
"But we took it into Sydney [last week] and showed them that we're not going to drop off with our intensity and tackling, and we were really good again tonight.
"We sort of dropped off a bit in the first half but we got it back in the second and we ran over them in the last quarter, so it was good."
The Bulldogs' 24.13 (157) to 14.5 (89) win over the Tigers came on the back of a 40-point demolition of the Sydney Swans in Canberra last week.
The Dogs also consolidated third position on the ladder with the win.
Hill was just one of several young Bulldogs to put their hands up and be counted during the trouncing of the Tigers.
He booted four goals, the exciting youngster capping his game with three in the final term as his side put some icing on the cake.
"It took a while to get into the game, but I just worked hard to get into space and the ball ended up coming to me," Hill said of his own contribution.
Perhaps most pleasingly for the Bulldogs was the fact that Hill was just one of a number of young pups to influence the match.
"It [tonight] was the same as last week," Hill said.
"The big names didn't get that involved in the game but we were able to show that there's 22 of us out there and all of us can put in our bit.
"I think that's the good thing for Rocket; to know that he's got younger players that are coming through and can fill that role and who'll be able to take the pressure and the intensity at AFL level."