Western Bulldogs midfielder Jess Fitzgerald says it was rewarding to come away with the win on Thursday night.

After registering three behinds against Essendon the week prior, the Bulldogs came out firing with a nine-goal effort against Carlton at IKON Park, resulting in a 33-point win.

Fitzgerald said the team had a clear focus heading into the match.

“Our theme for the week has been ‘team-first’. We set out a few little goals on the whiteboard pre-game of what (team-first) looks like,” she said post-match.

“There was probably five or six things on the board, and we went out there and just ticked those things off which ended up in a win.

“We’ve wanted to pressure our opposition. There’s been a couple of games where we’ve lapsed a bit, so that’s definitely a focus every week for us but to actually see it through today (is great).

“An even contribution from each line is pretty impressive too. It’s something that we’re really proud of.”

Fitzgerald finished with 22 disposals, eight tackles and eight clearances, in what ended up being the Dogs’ largest score of the season so far.

They will now have a 10-day break before their next outing against St Kilda at Mars Stadium.

“I love playing in Ballarat. Being a new group I think there’d be a lot who haven’t played there before,” Fitzgerald said.

“We did our camp down there earlier in the season so got a feel for it, but it’s super exciting down there. We love the community that comes out (to our games).”