The Western Bulldogs have been defeated by Essendon by 19 points in Saturday's pre-season match simulation at Mission Whitten Oval.
The Dogs started strongly, despite the wet and windy conditions, before Essendon clicked into gear with an 11.11 (77) to 8.10 (58) win in four 30-minute quarters.
With former Sun Brayden Crossley auditioning for an SSP spot, Tim English spent plenty of time in attack to allow his potential new ruck teammate as many minutes on the ball as possible.
Usually matched up against Essendon's Nick Bryan, Crossley was a strong body in ruck battles, but was out-played by the more agile Bomber around the ground. The Dogs' other SSP candidate, midfielder Dom Brew, had a few nice moments in the second half.
The rain came in at quarter-time, with the "feels like" temperature hovering at nine degrees, providing perfect preparation for footy (in July, rather than March).
Rory Lobb – firmly ensconced in a key back role – was one of the Bulldogs' best in the first half, and was well supported by young defender Joel Freijah, who marked well and was a strong source of rebound.
Arty Jones was inserted after half-time and provided some pressure across half-forward for the Dogs, while Essendon key forward Peter Wright also appeared after the main break.
The Dogs rotated heavily, with most players only featuring for a half as they juggled their healthy list, while sharing the majors with eight individual goal-kickers.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 3.2 4.5 6.8 8.10 (58)
ESSENDON 1.1 6.5 8.7 11.11 (77)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: West, Darcy, Richards, Naughton, A. Jones, Poulter, O'Donnell, Vandermeer
Essendon: Edwards 4, Perkins 2, Draper 2, Menzie, Kako, Caddy
WESTERN BULLDOGS
3. Cody Weightman, 5. Jedd Busslinger, 6. Cooper Hynes, 7. Rory Lobb, 8. Matthew Kennedy, 9. Ryley Sanders, 10. Sam Darcy, 12. Harvey Gallagher, 13. Oskar Baker, 14. Rhylee West, 15. Taylor Duryea, 16. Jordan Croft, 18. James O'Donnell, 20. Ed Richards, 22. James Harmes, 23. Laitham Vandermeer, 24. Buku Khamis, 25. Caleb Poulter, 26. Josh Dolan, 27. Joel Freijah, 29. Lachlan Bramble, 30. Lachlan McNeil, 32. Arthur Jones, 33. Aaron Naughton, 34. Bailey Williams, 35. Luke Kennedy, 36. Luke Cleary, 37. Dom Brew, 38. Riley Garcia, 41. Brayden Crossley, 42. Sam Davidson, 43. Ryan Gardner, 44. Tim English
Notable absentees: Adam Treloar, Marcus Bontempelli, Tom Liberatore, Bailey Dale, Liam Jones, Jason Johannisen, Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, Nick Coffield
ESSENDON
1. Andrew McGrath, 2. Sam Draper, 4. Kyle Langford, 5. Elijah Tsatas, 6. Jye Caldwell, 7. Zach Merrett, 8. Ben Hobbs, 9. Dylan Shiel, 10. Isaac Kako, 12. Will Setterfield, 14. Tom Edwards, 16. Archie Perkins, 18. Lewis Hayes, 20. Peter Wright, 21. Archie Roberts, 23. Harrison Jones, 24. Nick Bryan, 25. Jaxon Prior, 26. Kaine Baldwin, 27. Mason Redman, 28. Xavier Duursma, 29. Jye Menzie, 30. Nate Caddy, 31. Zach Reid, 36. Angus Clarke, 37. Nic Martin, 38. Rhys Unwin, 41. Saad El-Hawli
Notable absentees: Darcy Parish, Ben McKay, Jordan Ridley, Sam Durham, Jade Gresham, Matt Guelfi, Nik Cox, Jayden Laverde, Todd Goldstein
