Today marks the anniversary of two thrilling wins for the Western Bulldogs, played at the same venue 11 years apart.  The dramatic matches were also milestone matches for two beloved Bulldogs. 

The first thriller came on this day 14 years ago when the top-of-the-ladder Bulldogs hosted third-placed Geelong at what was then known as Telstra Dome.

Running out for his 50th AFL match on that Saturday afternoon was 23-year-old Daniel Cross, who by then had established himself as a reliable fan favourite, endearing himself to Doggies supporters with his in-and-under courage and ability to rack up important touches. 

Cross came to the fore in that match, which was on a knife's edge from start to finish, the margin at every break no more than four points.  Throughout the afternoon, when one side looked like getting on top the other would hit back. 

Finally, in the last quarter, the Bulldogs looked to have secured the win when they produced three consecutive goals for the only time in the match, through skipper Brad Johnson, Nathan Eagleton and Adam Cooney. 

That hat-trick of goals opened up a 13-point margin, the biggest of the match, but just as Bulldog fans thought they could relax, Geelong's Corey Enright and Gary Ablett kicked two goals in two minutes and the margin was back to one point. 

Three more nerve-wracking minutes followed before the final siren sounded with the Dogs one-point winners, Daniel Cross's milestone match ending in euphoria for him and his teammates. (The game had a dramatic sequel 12 weeks later when the two sides met again at the same venue, and once more finished only one point apart, with the Bulldogs unfortunately on the wrong side of the ledger that day.) 

The ever-reliable Cross gathered 20 important possessions in the win, with Scott West the only Bulldogs to collect more.  West's 31 touches were rewarded with three Brownlow votes, while Bob Murphy picked up one on the back of his three important goals.

That match was Murphy's 105th AFL game.  Eleven years to the day later, Bob ran onto the same ground, wearing a jumper which included a retro red collar (at his request) and "BOB 300" written on the front. 

Looking to establish a 4-1 win-loss record in 2017, and to celebrate Bob's 300th match in style against Brisbane, the Bulldogs got off to a slow and inaccurate start, and trailed 3.7 to 5.0 at the first break. 

Most of the 31,822 fans at Etihad Stadium expected the Western Bulldogs to get on top of the lowly Lions in the second term, but they were in for a rude shock.  When Claye Beams kicked Brisbane's seventh goal of the quarter at the 25-minute mark, the Bulldogs were 37 points behind, and Murphy's milestone match was heading for disaster. 

Still trailing by 32 points at the long break, the Bulldogs would have drawn on the knowledge that they had twice already turned hefty deficits into wins in 2017, against Sydney and North Melbourne, and they would be hoping to do it again.

Not wanting to let skipper Bob down, the Dogs once again mounted a brave rear-guard action, kicking four goals to nil in the third quarter to cut the margin to just five points.  Had the Bulldogs not also missed several easy shots, they would have headed into the last term in front.

When Brisbane opened up the final quarter with two of the first three goals, the Dogs slipped back to 11 points behind.  But a mark and goal to Marcus Bontempelli at the 10-minute mark kicked off a seven-goal Bulldog avalanche.  A piece of Bont magic while lying on his back helped Clay Smith secure the last of those seven goals, and the Bulldogs had turned a potential disaster into a 32-point win. 

While Toby McLean, Jason Johannisen, Jack Macrae and Liam Picken starred for the Dogs, the man of the moment — Bob Murphy — played a big part in the revival, with 20 possessions and a crucial goal midway through the third term. 

Murphy played a further 12 games in 2017 before drawing the curtain on a magnificent career, one in which he enjoyed the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.  In Bob's own words, they both came on October 1, 2016, when the Bulldogs took home the premiership as he watched from the sidelines. 

As much as he would have loved to have been out on the ground when the final siren sounded that day, there's little doubt that the Bulldogs second premiership would not have been possible without the man we all know simply as 'Bob'.