SHAUN Higgins says the Western Bulldogs are excited by the prospect of breaking a hoodoo against fellow finals aspirant St Kilda in Saturday night's must-win encounter at Etihad Stadium.

Since 2009, the Bulldogs have lost their past six games against the Saints by an average of 22 points, including the preliminary finals of 2009 (seven points) and 2010 (24 points).

"We're excited about this Saturday night," Higgins said at Whitten Oval on Tuesday.

"They'll probably be feeling the same after coming off a good win, so it should be a good game.

"We'll be looking to get that first win on the board."

The teams will enter the clash following polar opposite preparations: the Dogs after a bruising encounter interstate with finals contender Adelaide, and the Saints after demolishing likely cellar-dweller Gold Coast at home. Higgins doesn’t expect it to be an issue for either club.

"You obviously want a game that's going to test you out (and) we had that," he said. "They had (it) slightly different, but I don't think that's going to impact on Saturday night.

"They've got some quality players and they've been around long enough to know not to get sucked in by that."

Higgins acknowledged the similarities between the two clubs, who have both appeared regularly in finals but now appear difficult to gauge under new coaches.

"They’re probably no different to us (in that) we're still building; Saturday night's another great opportunity to show that," he said.

The Bulldogs showed plenty in their gallant loss to the Crows, but that was cold comfort to Higgins and his teammates.

"Obviously (we're) bitterly disappointed that we couldn’t come away with the win after being in a winning position," he said.

"(But) it's good for young guys to get the experience and all guys to know that we've got the confidence in the game plan moving forward."

Higgins praised the efforts of skipper Matthew Boyd for lifting his side.

"In that third quarter when we needed someone to stand up, he played a fantastic role," Higgins said.

"He's been doing it for a number of years now, and I think that's made him the player he is."

Higgins said Boyd was finally receiving recognition for his leadership qualities.

"Around here he's been leading for a number of years now," he said.

"It's probably just last year that he's come into the public eye. He's been a fantastic leader and he'd be the first to admit that he's still learning."

A heartwarming sight for Dogs fans was the appearance of defender Dale Morris during ball-work on a wet Whitten Oval.

"It's probably the first time I've seen Dale move as good as that in a long time," Higgins said. "We're confident that he's not too far away."

In further good news, Lindsay Gilbee's knee injury suffered in the VFL doesn’t appear to be as serious as first thought.

Christian Howard hopes to be back in "three or four weeks" after straining a medial ligament in his left knee in round one against West Coast.