To celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the famous Footscray Fightback campaign of 1989, Bulldogs fans have voted on the most significant moments for the Club over the last 30 years.
Today, westernbulldogs.com.au reveals moment 10.
The Bulldogs will take on Melbourne in Round 17 on a day dedicated to the Fightback – a time which saw an extraordinary fan uprising save the Club from a merger with Fitzroy.
On July 14, Footscray will take on Casey in the VFL, followed by the AFL game at Marvel Stadium.
VIEW THE ORIGINAL LIST OF 30 MOMENTS
10. AFLW Premiership
Having been pioneers (along with Melbourne) in taking women's footy to an elite level and been awarded with one of the eight inaugural AFL Women's licences, the Western Bulldogs went into the first AFLW season as one of the favourites to win the premiership.
The Dogs started off well with a great home win against Fremantle, but injuries and other factors conspired against them from there, and they were only able to win one further match, eventually finishing sixth of eight sides.
2018 was a different story for the Daughters of the West. Under the guidance of coach Paul Groves, with Ellie Blackburn, Katie Brennan and Emma Kearney starring, the Bulldogs again kicked off the season with an emphatic win over Fremantle at Whitten Oval. The Dogs had a hiccup the following week, losing to Brisbane and also losing star recruit Isabel Huntington to a season-ending knee injury.
From there, though, the Bulldogs really hit their straps, losing only one further game for the season. In Round 4, the Dogs created history, smashing Carlton by 73 points, kicking an AFLW record score of 12.14.86, with Brooke Lochland snaring seven majors. The score, margin and Lochland's goal total are all records that stand to this day.
After guaranteeing themselves a place in the Grand Final with a thrilling final round win over Melbourne, the Dogs came up against Brisbane on a wet Saturday at Ikon Park, with skipper Katie Brennan unavailable to lead her side as the result of a controversial suspension.
The Lions had lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Crows in the 2017 premiership decider, and the 2018 Grand Final was another thriller. Brisbane made better use of the slippery conditions early to take a one-goal lead into the long break but an outstanding third term, in which they kicked 3.1 to nil, gave the Dogs a 13-point buffer at the last change of ends. The Lions came hard in the final term, but the Bulldogs held on to win by six points, Brennan joining Ellie Blackburn on stage to raise the premiership cup with coach Groves.
Monique Conti capped off a great debut season by winning the best-on-ground medal, while Blackburn, Kearney, Kirsty Lamb, Angelica Gogos and Jenna Bruton also played important roles in the premiership triumph.
The win was a magnificent reward for the players and the Club, which had been heavily promoting the women's game since the original exhibition match in 2013.
THE FIGHTBACK 30 SO FAR
MOMENTS 11-15
MOMENTS 16-20
MOMENTS 21-25
MOMENTS 26-30
