Western Bulldogs Assistant Coach Steven King casts the coaches eye over Sunday's match-up against Fremantle. Watch King's analysis on the media player above in this week's BulldogsTV Weekly Wrap or read below for further details.
What Worked
While the Western Bulldogs did not come away with the four points, Assistant Coach Steven King was buoyed by the fact that the Dogs were largely competitive despite having 12 players with less than 30 games under their belt. King found it encouraging that the boys played to the game structures and styles for a large part of the game, even though they couldn’t hold on for the whole four quarters.
Room for Improvement
Fremantle’s ability to score successive goals, particularly in the third quarter was an area that King flagged as an area for improvement. The small lapses in the Bulldogs defence allowed Freo to take control of the game and gain momentum. It also allowed the margin to blow out and take the game out of reach.
Stat That Mattered
Last weekend’s stat that mattered was the inside 50m count (Freo 54, WB 36). King believes the Dogs did not generate enough ball in their forward line to kick a winning score. Conversely Freo had much higher numbers in this area and took advantage of their opportunities becoming a lot more damaging on the scoreboard.
Player of the Week
Ruthless tagger Liam Picken won the confidence of King this week as player of the week for his job shutting down Stephen Hill. Picken held Hill to eight possessions, three tackles and one goal for the game while breaking free to play his own game. Picken himself found 19 possessions, seven marks, three rebound 50s and six tackles.
Dream Team Analysis
Thirty-five disposals, nine marks, six clearances and four tackles amounted to Matthew Boyd producing a very reasonable 133 point score this round in Dream Team
Big man Will Minson was next in line with 122 points this week with his 34 hitouts, seven marks, five tackles and goal
Veteran Daniel Cross ($411,700) found his second highest score for the 2012 season with 119 points from 26 possessions, nine marks, four clearances and six tackles
Liam Picken not only nullified his opponent but found his own ball in the process, resulting in 91 Dream Team points - he had 19 possessions, seven marks and six tackles.
Brian Lake ($363,000) and Mitch Wallis ($359,700) rounded out the top contenders both scoring 89 points this round.
