In a disappointing season to date from an on-field perspective, the Club has uncovered some exciting building blocks for the future, according to CEO Ameet Bains.

The Dogs lost captain Easton Wood and stay playmaker Jack Macrae in the first half of last Thursday’s loss to Port Adelaide, while Tom Boyd, Toby McLean and Lukas Webb were worse for wear by the final siren in a night that Luke Beveridge described as ‘nightmarish’ on the injury front.

However, with adversity comes opportunity and Dogs fans should be bullish about the development of the likes of Ed Richards, and a host of other younger players who’ve had an early impact Bains told SEN on Tuesday.

“I suppose that is where a lot of the excitement has been generated in a year where we have had only four wins,” he said.

“Ed Richards’ second quarter on the weekend is a prime example of that.

“Obviously he played the majority of the season half back, a little bit on the wing – I think he had two or three flying shots at goal, but he certainly hadn’t kicked a goal, so (we were) pleasantly surprised he was able to kick three in the quarter.”

The Dogs take on North Melbourne on Saturday night in the AFL’s inaugural Harmony Game, where the two sides will come together to celebrate Australia’s cultural diversity.

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