Following Saturday's narrow loss to the Swans, westernbulldogs.com.au have pulled out the five key takeaways from Luke Beveridge's post-game press conference.
1. What went wrong
Beveridge said there were some positive signs despite the result, but the young Dogs lacked some polish when it mattered.
"We had our chances to make it a bit closer or come over the top but we just lacked a little bit of polish in the end.
"We just didn't have enough composure a couple of times, whether it was a decision or a skill error that disallowed a scoring opportunity, it's all on us.
"The Swans are a great pressure team, they make you fight right to the end and if you give them a little opening they'll get you, and they got us."
2. Easton Wood played a classic captain's game
Despite talk during the week that young defender Aaron Naughton might take Swans star Lance Franklin, it was the Dogs' skipper who stepped in and did an admirable job.
"He did a terrific job for a loss, for a big portion of the night.
"He got some good assistance from Aaron Naughton and Bailey Williams at times, I thought those two were quite outstanding as young defenders coming across and helping when they could.
"He fought the good fight one on one, he halved some and he won some and he got rolled on a few others, but Lance is such a colossus that I think you take three goals, four on any given day."
3. The final play
In the final frantic winner the ball popped out the back to a waiting Oliver Florent who took off and kicked the sealer for the Swans with Tim English in hot pursuit. Rather than a structural failure, Beveridge said in a situation like that, you can become vulnerable.
"When you're pressing to win you've got some vulnerabilities and that's where they'll be.
"Sydney were in save-the-game mode, numbers behind the ball, emptied out their forward line, and we're up trying to score.
"But we shouldn't have let Florent out like that, that being said, but that vulnerability will be a bit more out the back when you're pressing to win the game like that, and that's where it was, and he got us."
4. Tim English's versatility was a feature
The young ruckman not only competed well at the centre bounce, but took some marks around the ground, too, highlighting his versatility.
"(There are) some good signs. We were able to use him in transition and he competed well in the ruck, and was also able to get out and take a couple of marks and think through his possession.
"He's obviously our tallest player, and he can get his hand on it a little bit easier in the ruck because he is so tall and our mids haven't had a lot of that over the journey.
"We've got a handful of 200cm players who can play that role, but he can be good forward too over time if we want to use him there."
5. Tom Boyd's five-goal haul in the VFL
The young big man kicked five second-half goals in Footscray's 81-point win over Coburg earlier in the day.
"There was a ten minute patch in that third quarter where he took a couple of marks inside 50 and kicked three goals in that period.
"He was having an influence over the game which is tremendous, and he's been searching for that, he's probably been a bit frustrated in that he's been a little bit off.
"(There were) some good signs for him today."
