MATCH SUMMARY
The Western Bulldogs’ finals hopes have taken a hit after their three-game winning streak was halted by St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
A six-goal-to-one first quarter was ultimately the difference between the two sides, with the Saints winning their first game since Round 14, by 27 points.
St Kilda’s 11-goal first half set up a 43-point lead, and despite a 10-goal second half from the Dogs, the damage had already been done.
Bailey Dale kicked five goals for the first time in his career and Tory Dickson booted four, while Josh Dunkley finished with 38 disposals in a losing outfit.
THE DEFINING MOMENTS
The Saints’ early blitz: The Dogs got on the board early with a goal to Tory Dickson, but the Saints responded with a stunning six-goal burst. They preyed on the Bulldogs’ turnovers and finished with 11 scoring shots for the opening term.
Dogs lift, Saints steady: Just when the game was back on the Bulldogs’ terms early in the second, St Kilda stretched further away with three straight goals heading into half time. Incredibly, they booted five goals from just seven inside 50s in the quarter. By the main break, it was a long way back for the Dogs.
SHINING LIGHTS
The Bulldogs’ tall forwards were kept quiet by the Saints, but mid-sized half forwards Bailey Dale and Tory Dickson had no trouble hitting the scoreboard. Three of Dale’s five goals came in the final term, and he also collected 14 disposals.
Captain Easton Wood had a season-high 23 possessions, and took a game-high 10 marks, in his best performance of the season.
STATS SHEET
The Bulldogs won the inside 50 count by eight, but scored from only 35% of their entries, as opposed to 67% from St Kilda. It had a huge bearing on the outcome of the game.
The Saints also managed seven more marks inside 50, and won the clearances (by five) and contested possessions (by five).
Dunkley (38) and Jack Macrae (34) were the only players on the field to accumulate more than 30 disposals, and they also combined for 35 contested possessions.
MATCH DETAILS
ST KILDA 6.5 11.6 13.9 17.14 (116)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 1.0 4.5 10.5 14.5 (89)
GOALS
St Kilda: Lonie 4, Membrey 4, Clark 2, Billings 2, Parker, Gresham, Langlands, Newnes, Bruce
Western Bulldogs: Dale 5, Dickson 4, Lloyd 2, English, Schache, R. Smith
BEST
St Kilda: Billings, Clark, Marshall, Dunstan, Lonie, Paton, Gresham
Western Bulldogs: Dunkley, Macrae, Dale, English, Wood, Dickson
Official crowd: 21,705 at Marvel Stadium
NEXT WEEK
Round 19, Western Bulldogs v Fremantle, Sunday July 28, Marvel Stadium, 1.10pm.
