HAWTHORN v WESTERN BULLDOGS
WHERE & WHEN: MCG, Sunday April 29, 1.15pm
MEDIA COVERAGE: Fox Sports 1 (Melbourne 1pm, Adelaide 12.30pm, Perth 11pm, New South Wales and ACT 1pm, Queensland 1pm), ABC Radio (Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, Darwin), SEN (Melbourne), afl.com.au (live audio and scoring)
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Hawthorn 71 wins, Western Bulldogs 71 wins, two draws
LAST TIME: Western Bulldogs 16.13 (109) d Hawthorn 13.10 (88), round 10, 2006, at Telstra Dome
TAB Sportsbet: Hawthorn $2.35, Western Bulldogs $1.55
MILESTONES: Bulldogs ruckman Peter Street is in line to play his 50th club game this week. Street started his career at Geelong in 2001, and played 17 games for the Cats before crossing to the Dogs at the end of 2003. In total, he has played 66 senior AFL games and has kicked 14 goals.
INJURIES: The Hawks will test Rick Ladson (bruised knee), Clinton Young (bruised shoulder), and Joel Smith (knee), while Trent Croad (foot) and Richie Vandenberg (hamstring) could both be back next week. Mitch Thorp (hip) will miss another three and Tim Clarke (achilles) will miss at least 10. The Bulldogs are a good chance to get back Jason Akermanis (hamstring), Sam Power (hamstring) and Daniel Cross (adductor) while Brett Montgomery (ribs) will also be tested. Damian McCormack (knee) and Chris Grant (groin) won't be back for another six weeks.
RECENT HEAD TO HEAD HISTORY: The Bulldogs have the wood over the Hawks, and have won three out of four of their last encounters. The most recent clashes haven't been decided by massive margins, and the last time the two sides were involved in a blow-out was back in 2003 when the Hawks triumphed by 71 points. At the MCG, the two sides have met four times since 2000 and are level on two wins apiece.
RECENT FORM: The Hawks have won three out of four of their home-and-away matches this season, and most recently travelled to Tasmania where they snared a come-from-behind win over Geelong. They were determined against the Cats and put numbers behind the ball in order to combat their opposition's tall forward line, and have not lost since round one.
The Bulldogs bounced back to the winners' list last weekend with their spirited win over the Tigers at the MCG on Friday night. The victory may have been without the flair of their first-round triumph over Geelong, but it got them back some much needed belief after falling to both Adelaide and St Kilda.
RED HOT PLAYERS: The combination of Scott West and Daniel Cross could see the Bulldogs bounce back to their dominating best in the middle. Without Cross last week, West picked up 35 possessions – by far the most in the team. Cross is his regular co-pilot through the midfield, and after the talented speedster was a late withdrawal last weekend, running defender Lindsay Gilbee was the next-best Bulldog as far as possessions were concerned. The two midfielders complement each other, and with Cross back in the side this week, can create a dangerous combination set to test the running power of the Hawks.
THE X-FACTOR: While Luke Hodge could be listed as the X-Factor for the Hawks after his dominating performance against the Cats last weekend and his versatility in in holding down a defensive position while still delivering plenty of the ball into the middle, the same could be said about new Bulldog Jason Akermanis. The former Lion will return this week after a short stint out with a hamstring complaint, and as has always been the way with the flamboyant forward, you never quite know what to expect. In his two home-and-away appearances this season Akermanis has kicked just the one goal and hasn't been as effective as he would have hoped, so there is certainly potential there for the creative goal-kicker to make his presence felt.
QUIRKY STAT: The two sides have faced off 144 times and are locked on 71 wins and two draws. Whoever wins this match will break the deadlock and claim ultimate bragging rights over the other – until the round 21 rematch, that is.
FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS: Tagger Darren Baxter played for both sides after starting his career as a Bulldog back in 1984. He played 129 games for the side before moving to the Hawks in 1993, where he played 27 games.
WHAT THE FAN SAYS: "We really need another win on the board with a bigger margin this time around. I also want to see the confidence levels of ‘Murph’ and ‘Darc’ continue to grow and have them back to form as quickly as possible." – Karen Quinn, Bulldogs supporter.
WHAT THE COACH SAYS: "The conditions weren't great for footy, but I think they've got a very hard-working footy team. They've got a lot of class around the ball as well, but they work hard both ways and they certainly run hard. They would be ahead of where even the best supporters think they are at the moment. They're on the right path and it will be a difficult game."It will be a tough and aggressive game, and it will be a fairly defensive game, and I think it will be tough and tight." – Rodney Eade, senior coach.
