1. Wallis walks the walk
It's fair to say Mitch Wallis lit a fire under this one at the start of the week when he told Crocmedia he had "pencilled in" the clash with the Giants. There was plenty of hurt at the Kennel last season when then-captain Ryan Griffen walked out and headed north to don to the orange and charcoal, despite the fact the move netted the club boom young forward Tom Boyd. Wallis was able to back up his fighting words with a terrific 36-disposal, eight-clearance performance in the Dogs' 45-point win.
2. Big boys bounce back
Former Giant Boyd had plenty to prove after collecting just one handball last week against Melbourne, as did ruckman Will Minson following a chaotic week. Boyd, matched up on Aidan Corr, had eight disposals and took five marks for one goal. And Minson, who was recalled after five weeks after successfully appealing his four-match VFL ban for umpire contact, was one of his side's best. He beat Shane Mumford and was influential around the ground with two goals, which was what prompted his lengthy VFL stint in the first place.
MATCH RECAP: Read the full match report and watch highlights from the Bulldogs win over the Giants.
3. Firepower found
The loss of Jake Stringer to illness before the game and Stewart Crameri to an adductor during the week looked like it had the potential to cause havoc for the Bulldogs' forward structure, with the former leading their goal-kicking and score assists, and the latter in the top four in both categories. But an inside 50s (63 to 41) domination gave the Dogs' forwards plenty of supply despite some wastefulness in the second term, with Tory Dickson, Luke Dahlhaus, Liam Picken and Minson the ones to stand up.
4. Relishing Ryan's return
After a week of "the boo" making headlines, there were plenty of instances where it infiltrated Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon. With Tom Boyd, Callan Ward and Griffen lining up against their former clubs, supporters of both had ample opportunities to throw out a hearty cry of disapproval as their ex-players gathered the ball. The heaviest jeers were reserved for Griffen – who was playing against the Dogs for the first time – but he didn't give the home crowd too many chances to express their feelings with just 10 possessions and one late goal when the result was well and truly beyond doubt.
5. Lost Giants
When the game was up for grabs in the first term, the Giants' big guns went missing. Devon Smith and Cam McCarthy had one touch each for the quarter, Adam Treloar and Tom Scully two, and Griffen – who appeared rattled from the outset – also touched the ball just twice. Smith worked his way into things while Treloar raised his involvement at the clearances but there were just too many absent when Wallis, Jack Macrae and Lin Jong got things going to open up the Dogs' quarter-time lead of 37 points.
FROM THE COACH: Watch Senior Coach Luke Beveridge's match review and full post match press conference.
