AFL Media share their five key talking points to emerge from Friday night's clash.
1. Redpath's return a success
The football word was left shaken during the Bulldogs' round 18 clash with St Kilda last year when Mitch Wallis badly broke his lower left leg. In the same game, Doggies key forward Jack Redpath tore the ACL in his right knee – having sustained the same injury to his left knee twice before – and spent the next 10 months on the sidelines. While Wallis was listed as an emergency, Bulldogs fans would've been buoyed to see the return of Redpath to senior action after kicking six goals in his lone VFL appearance last week. The key forward started well, claiming the first goal of the match before adding two more strokes to his tally in the second quarter – both majors from the goal-square. Redpath contested well in the second half but was understandably down on his output as the match wore on. The fact he made it through unscathed, however, will please Luke Beveridge
2. Eagles get one back
After last year's elimination final boilover, the Eagles would've circled Friday's fixture with a large red marker and their intent was clear from the outset. The Bulldogs were first on the board but West Coast – seemingly bracing for its opposition's famed pressure – absorbed the Dogs' 22 first-quarter tackles to open a 16-point lead heading into the second term. The trend continued in the second and third quarters with Adam Simpson's men more methodical through the midfield while limiting the Bulldogs' quick hands in close. The Bulldogs threatened another unlikely win in the final term when they kicked two goals in quick succession to open the stanza, but West Coast fought tooth and nail to clinch the victory. They'll likely have a lot more to achieve before using the word 'redemption' but the Eagles will be feeling a bit more optimistic about their prospects this season.
3. Mid-tier Eagles midfielders have an impact
The consistency and impact of West Coast's A-grade midfield brigade – Sam Mitchell, Andrew Gaff, Luke Shuey and Matt Priddis – has been a constant in 2017 and the quartet all played their roles well. But what would've pleased Adam Simpson was the imprint left by the Eagles' second-tier midfielders. In stints through the centre square and forward-line, Dom Sheed made his presence felt with 23 possessions, seven marks and two goals. Jack Redden (18 disposals, eight marks) showed the grunt and work rate he was recruited for in limiting the impact of Dogs playmaker Jason Johannisen after quarter-time while the much-maligned Chris Masten was also effective with 27 touches – 11 of which were contested. Now the benchmark has been set, Simpson will expect a similar output for the remainder of the year.
4. Goalkicking woes
The Bulldogs entered round eight scoring at just 41.3 percent accuracy (17th in the League), having tallied the equal-most behinds (15.3 per game) of any club this season. The trend continued against West Coast as the Dogs continually spurned gettable chances in perfect conditions and failed to capitalise on a favourable inside-50 count, kicking another 13 behinds from 21 scoring shots. With eight of their best 22 missing through injury, the Dogs can ill-afford to be wasteful in front of goal for much longer.
5. Another milestone for Sam Mitchell
When Mitchell gathered his 30th possession just before three-quarter time, he equalled St Kilda legend Robert Harvey's record for the most games with 30 disposals or more in AFL/VFL history. Both Harvey and Mitchell reached the milestone 118 times, the latter having played in 69 fewer matches. Mitchell finished the game as one of his team's best players with 33 disposals and six marks and – fitness permitting – has the rest of the year to claim the record for himself.
