In the spirit of that great Australian tradition of sitting on the couch, watching the Boxing Day test while scrolling through your iPad, westernbulldogs.com.au have put together its own Bulldogs themed XI to help you whittle away those long summer days.

Visit the Official Western Bulldogs Facebook Page and give us your team.

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Openers

1. Luke Beveridge

It was too obvious to make Bevo coach so we’ve gone in a slightly different direction in our choice as to who faces the new ball.   Anyone who has laid eyes on the 2015 AFLCA Coach of the Year lately will note that he is sporting a moustache that is impressive in its thickness, it’s shape and it’s boldness.  And when you think of elite moustaches that wielded the willow, there was none better than that of David Clarence Boon. The stocky Tasmanian averaged 43.65 over his 12 year career while rocking one of the most iconic displays of facial hair in Australian history.  Taking all things into account, it’s only fitting Beveridge lead the Bulldogs’ batting line-up.

2. Tom Liberatore

If we were to play a quick game of word association and began with Boon, many would say Marsh.  The rest of you might say beer, but this is a family list and we’re going with Marsh.  Geoff Marsh partnered Boon at the top of the order for almost a decade.  He was an honest toiler, someone who could be relied upon to play the steady, unglamorous role of the staid opener.  Tom Liberatore finished season 2014 first in the league for tackles and clearances, and eighth for contested possessions, so we think he fits the Marsh, Chris Rogers, Mark Taylor kind role of the no-nonsense partner alongside Bevo.  Marsh also has a famous family name, something Libba knows a bit about. Marsh’s sons, Shaun and Mitch have donned the Baggy Green for Australia.

3. Robert Murphy

There’s a theory that the side’s best batsmen should come in at first drop.  Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting made the number three spot his own over many years, and current skipper Steve Smith, who has made a mountain of runs in that spot, recently elevated himself back up the order to cover for the loss of Usman Khawaja to injury.   Our number three, then, has to be our captain, Bob Murphy.   Murphy finished the 2015 season sitting fourth in the AFL at season’s end for bounces; his ability to burst out of the backline to set up a forward thrust is exactly the kind of make-up that we want our number three batsmen to possess.  Oh, and he was named All-Australian captain in 2015.  Is there a better player to lead a team of men?  We think not.   

4. Brett Montgomery

Senior Assistant Coach Brett Montgomery is probably only rivalled by Easton Wood as the best actual cricketer on this list.  Monty captained the under-19s Victorian team and in 1992 played club cricket in the Durham League in England, followed by a spell in 1993 playing in the Middlesex League in England.  Monty specialised in wielding the willow so will be leant upon if the top order fails to fire.  He also bowled a touch of spin, which our side is clearly lacking.  Ideally, we won’t play too many games on the Sydney Cricket Ground or any other spin-friendly wickets.

5. Jake Stringer

Like our football team, the Bulldog XI plays daring, exciting cricket.  It’s the sort of side that would find a place for ‘The Big Show’ himself, Glenn Maxwell.  Maxy’s wild array of unorthodox shots and obvious X-Factor fills the stands wherever he plays, just like Stringer.  Jake finished the 2015 season with an All-Australian nomination to his name and a fifth placing in the Coleman Medal, but this isn’t about trophies, this is about the ability to  bringing the punters to their feet, this is about nicknames made for billboards, and therefore we can think of no better candidate to fill the number five spot than ‘The Package.’

Wicket Keeper

6. Easton Wood

According to his Wikipedia page, Easton Wood attended Geelong Grammar on a cricket scholarship, but Woody says that this isn’t true, rather it was a general excellence scholarship. What is true is that the 2015 Sutton Medallist can seriously play – he only just missed the Victorian junior squad.  So where do we place him in the Bulldogs XI?  Wood emerged in 2015 to lead the AFL in intercept marks across half-back.  Translation? Nothing gets by him, so we’re sticking him behind the stumps as our wicketkeeper.  Woody can bat a bit too, which is perfect, because ever since Adam Gilchrist revolutionised the role of the wicketkeeper/batsmen, every team is looking for a gloveman who can strike the ball.  Our side is no different. 

Bowlers

The West Indies are here this summer so in the tradition of the great Windies teams of the 80s who would roll out a constant stream of fearsome fast bowlers like Malcolm Marshall, Joel Garner and Curtly Ambrose,  the Bulldog XI will also be forgoing the slower bowlers for a pace battery, starting with…

7. Mat Inness

Inness, the Club’s Physical Performance Manager, requires little introduction in cricketing circles with a first class career spanning over a decade to his credit. With the Bulldogs' gunning for the win in this Boxing Day encounter, we've gone to our coaching ranks to secure our frontline bowling weapon.  A left-arm quick with 81 first class appearances, Inness collected a career haul of 281 wickets for Victoria, Western Australia and Northamptonshire. With a career-bowling average of 25.77, and a first class hat-trick to his name, you’d expect Inness to be handed the new ball and lead the Bulldog bowling attack his his sharp, left-arm seamers.

8. & 9. Tom Campbell & Will Minson

At 106kgs each, Campbell and Minson are the two biggest boys on the list and therefore would form the ultimate fast bowling duo in the tradition of West Indian greats like Joel Garner and Curtly Ambrose.   With Monty as the only spinner in our team, and a part timer at that, the Bulldogs XI have embraced pace as a weapon, a strategy made for the bouncy Whitten Oval summer deck.   The thought of Campbell and Minson running in with the shine of the new bowl firmly in their oversized hands would strike fear into any batsmen.

10. Marcus Adams

Draftee Marcus Adams was very quickly labelled The Specimen by his new coach (and now opening batsmen), Luke Beveridge, when he arrived at the kennel.  The West Australian reminded us of another chiselled sandgroper with an aggressive streak – Mitchell Johnson.  Adams has entered the AFL system at of 22, significantly older than most players who find themselves on an AFL list for the first time.  Johnson was also a late bloomer, experiencing a late career resurgence, culminating in winning the Alan Border medal at the 32 years of age.  On the back of this, Marcus gets the nod as our fourth paceman.

11.  Fletcher Roberts

Fletcher Roberts is the fourth and final player on this list who we’ve been able to confirm is a genuinely good cricketer, a handy quick in his schoolboy days. At 196cm and 90kg, Roberts’ vital stats are almost a direct match to Australian bowling great Glenn McGrath.  A young McGrath was once described by teammate Mike Whitney as "thin - but Curtly Ambrose-thin, not Bruce Reid-thin".  Roberts held down a key defence post throughout 2015  despite regularly giving up a few kilos to his opponent.  For this, he earns the traditional Glen McGrath spot at number 11.

12^th man.  Caleb Daniel

This may have been the toughest selection of the lot, but we’ve gone for Caleb Daniel over Bailey Dale and Lachie Hunter.   The three of them each wore the green substitute vest four times over the course of the season but Caleb gets the nod for being the man in the vest for the elimination final against the Adelaide Crows. 

The 12^th man role is traditionally the man who carries the drinks and relays the messages to the starting XI where required or take the field to cover an injury.  Or, if you go down the road of the English cricket team, you might controversially bring on a substitute specialist fielder while resting your fast bowlers.

Gary Pratt came on and ran out Ricky Ponting in the decisive fourth test at Trent Bridge during the 2005 Ashes Series, only to provoke an angry response from the Aussie captain who saw the move as particularly ungentlemanly.   Caleb’s game changing performance against the Blues in round 14 suggests he would be perfect for a Pratt like role.