WHERE & WHEN: MCG, Sunday 8 April, 5.10pm
MEDIA COVERAGE: Fox Sports (Melbourne 5pm, Adelaide 4.30pm, Perth 3pm, NSW and ACT 5pm, Queensland 5pm), ABC Radio (Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, Darwin), SEN 1116 (Melbourne), Triple M (Adelaide), 5AA (Adelaide), 6PR (Perth), afl.com.au (live audio and scoring)
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Played: 27, Western Bulldogs: 15, Adelaide: 12
LAST TIME: Western Bulldogs 16.9 (105) d Adelaide 14.14 (98), round 20, 2006, at the MCG
TAB Sportsbet: Western Bulldogs: $1.40, Adelaide: $2.80
MILESTONES: It's a big weekend for the Bulldogs so far as milestones are concerned. New recruit Jason Akermanis will play his 250th AFL game, while Rodney Eade is set to coach his 200th match, which will make him the 12th person in the history of the game to have both played and then coached 200 games. Eade played 259 games for Hawthorn and the Brisbane Bears, and will join Jock McHale, Dick Reynolds, Jack Dyer, Phonse Kyne, Ted Whitten, Ron Barassi, David Parkin, Kevin Sheedy, Robert Walls, Leigh Matthews and Gary Ayres as former players/coaches to achieve the feat. When veteran Chris Grant returns from injury, he will move into outright 11th spot as far as the most games in history is concerned. He will play his 337th official game on return, which will take him clear of John Rantall and put him 10 positions behind the league's most capped player, Michael Tuck (426 games). The Crows have no impending milestones heading into this match.
INJURIES: The Dogs received a big blow this week when it was revealed Grant will be out for eight-to-10 weeks following surgery to remove bone spurs and fragments from his pubic bone. They do have a chance to regain Wayde Skipper, who faces a test on his hamstring, while Brett Montgomery (bruised ribs) will be tested, but Robert Murphy (corked hip) is available. Mitch Hahn's return from a knee reconstruction is still unknown and he continues to undergo assessment. The Crows will test Simon Goodwin (corked thigh), Kris Massie (wrist), and Luke Jericho (back), while it is unknown when Mark Ricciuto (back) and Nick Gill (hamstring) will be available. Bryce Campbell (ankle) and Ivan Maric (hip) are both three weeks away, while Ken McGregor (achilles) is three-to-four weeks away from resuming full training. Darren Pfeiffer (cheekbone) will play in a month, while John Meesen (knee) has to wait at least seven weeks. Trent Hentschel and Rhett Biglands (both knee reconstructions) won't play this season.
RECENT HEAD TO HEAD HISTORY: While the Crows hold a comprehensive winning record against the Dogs in Adelaide, it's the latter who, not surprisingly, possess the better record on Victorian soil. Last year, the Dogs ran out seven-point winners at the MCG in round 20, which made some amends for the 77-point belting the Crows handed them at AAMI Stadium in round five. In 2005, the two sides met twice – the Dogs drawing first blood in round five at Telstra Dome and the Crows retaliating in round 16 across the border. In total, the two sides have met at the MCG just four times since 1991, and are level on two wins apiece.
RECENT FORM: In round one the Bulldogs took control of the midfield and blew the Cats off the Telstra Dome surface with their pace, accuracy and impressive work ethic. The 20-point margin at the end of the match wasn't a reflection on how much the Dogs dictated play, and Rodney Eade had three players who amassed more than 30 touches each and seven who registered disposals in the 20s. Brad Johnson, Daniel Cross, Lindsay Gilbee and Adam Cooney were among the Dogs' best, while Luke Darcy and Murphy survived their first serious hit-outs since undergoing knee reconstructions. It was a different story for the Crows however, who were stunned by last year's 15th-placed side Essendon at AAMI Stadium. The Bombers considered the win, which was highlighted by seven goals from Scott Lucas, as retribution for the 138-point pasting it was given by the Crows last year in round 10. Andrew McLeod, Graham Johncock and Scott Thompson were among the Crows' best performers.
RED HOT PLAYERS: For the Dogs, it's hard to go past Johnson's commanding eight-goal, 24-possesion game as evidence of a red hot player. The small but sturdy forward out-marked, out-ran, and generally out-played the two defenders, Tom Harley and Matthew Scarlett, the Cats threw at him. Also in top form are Cross (37 disposals), Gilbee (31) and Jordan McMahon (30), while Cooney (29 disposals, two goals) showed supporters his season has not been derailed by his pre-season battle with osteitis pubis. Darcy was good in his first game back and celebrated his one goal (the first kicked in the second half) with gusto, claiming after the match the moment signalled his return to senior footy after nearly two years out of the game. The Crows had a few shining lights in McLeod (20 possessions) and Thompson (27 and two goals), while Tyson Edwards and Nathan Bock both tried hard. The performance of some of the Crows' younger players in Jonathon Griffin and Chris Knights also provided the coaching staff with some positives.
THE X-FACTOR: If Johnson can replicate his performance last Sunday, the Crows are in for a tough evening. Geelong's Harley and Scarlett, despite towering over the Bulldogs skipper, were unable to halt his avalanche of goals last week, and his versatility and strength as a small marking forward makes him difficult to match up on. The Dogs' runners found plenty of the ball last week, and similar performances from the likes of Cross, Gilbee, Cooney and Scott West will make life difficult for the Crows, who were handball happy and error-prone against the Bombers. The last time the sides met, Cooney kicked five goals while West racked up 45 disposals, which gives the Crows' coaching staff something to think about. Scott Welsh has been important in two of his side's wins over the Dogs in recent years, and has kicked bags of three and seven in 2005 and 2004 respectively.
QUIRKY STAT: The Bulldogs could be forgiven for holding a grudge against the Crows, and not only for the way they were smashed in round five last year. In 1997 and 1998, it was the Crows who ended the finals aspirations of the Dogs, pipping them in back-to-back preliminary finals. In both years, the Crows would end up premiers, but not before breaking the hearts of long-suffering Dogs supporters by two points (1997) and 68 points (1998). As was the case last season when they put the 77-point hiding behind them to win in round 20, the Dogs rebounded from the second preliminary final defeat to win the next five head-to-head clashes.
FOOT IN BOTH CAMPS: In the late 80s and early 90s, the Bulldogs and Crows both housed South Australian midfielder Tony McGuinness. The 1982 Magarey Medal winner began his career with Glenelg before being recruited by Footscray, where he started in 1986. He played 109 games for the Bulldogs and kicked 108 goals before returning to his native South Australia in 1991 to play for the newly-formed Crows. He played 113 games and kicked 79 goals for Adelaide before being delisted in 1996. He was set to become a Swan following the end of his Crows career, but the club was eventually unable to draft him due to salary cap constraints.
WHAT THE FAN SAYS: "After the low point this week for all Doggies fans with Grant missing half a season, I'm hoping we come out fighting, doing it for Chris.
"One thing I'm hoping I won't see is the defensive play in the last quarter and that our injuries don't cause a lack of interchange.
"Hopefully, 'Johnno' will be in his consistent form to kick a few goals, our young leadership group stands tall to play four consistent quarters, and we're able to see 'Aker' continue doing his end-of-game victory handstand!" – Melissa Bedggood, Bulldogs supporter.
WHAT THE COACH SAYS: "I think they are very dangerous, to be honest. It's the worst time to get teams who people, perception wise, are saying they're on a bit of a downer.
"I've watched their last two games against Fremantle and against Essendon last week, and if they'd kicked accurately, they would have been right in the game, if not in front, at vital stages.
"Last week's team was only two or three out from the preliminary final team that played West Coast. So they've still got a very good side, and you would think with the very good team and club that they are, they'd bounce back from the loss last week." – Rodney Eade, senior coach.
