1. 3-0 on the cards
Following a hard-fought win over Collingwood in their season opener, and a gutsy victory over West Coast in round two, the Bulldogs are now a chance to start their 2021 campaign with three straight wins.
The last time they went 3-0 to start a season? 2009.
Barack Obama had served just over three months as U.S. President.
Swine flu was the pandemic sweeping the world.
And Easton Wood was the only current player on the Dogs’ list – despite not making his AFL debut until round 19 that year.
That year, the Bulldogs went on to finish in third position on the ladder, making it as far as the preliminary finals before being knocked out by seven points against St Kilda.
Fast forward to now, and coming up against the Kangaroos in the ‘Kick for the Kids’ match, the Bulldogs will be out to continue their hot start to season 2021.
2. Déjà vu for Woody?
The return of Easton Wood against North Melbourne might ring a few bells among the Bulldogs’ camp.
Having overcome a hamstring injury sustained earlier this year, Wood had been regaining match fitness over the last fortnight via VFL practice games, but is now ready to return to AFL action.
In a weird coincidence, the now 31-year-old returned from a quad injury against North Melbourne last season too.
In that game – round five, 2020 - he registered 14 touches, nine marks and nine intercepts in the Bulldogs’ 49-point win.
His impact was so profound, he even received a Brownlow vote.
3. 50 for Timmy
Emerging ruck Tim English will reach a milestone of his own this weekend - notching up his 50th career game when he takes to the field on Good Friday afternoon.
Taken with pick 19 in the 2016 NAB AFL Draft, English had been called upon as the Bulldogs #1 ruck in recent seasons.
Having learned some lessons from the competition’s premier rucks, the 23-year-old earned rave reviews for his rapid development last year, which only looks set to continue with the off-season addition of veteran Stefan Martin.
With Martin now alternating ruck duties, English has been able to spend more time forward – making a contribution on the scoreboard with two goals from the opening two rounds to add to his strengths around the ground.
4. Playing for something more
While there’ll be four points up for grabs on Friday, there’ll also be a cause much bigger than the game to play for too.
The ‘Kick for the Kids’ match was first established by North Melbourne in 2017, in conjunction with Good Friday Appeal which aims to raise much-needed funds to support the work of the RCH.
The Bulldogs emerged three-point winners against the Kangaroos in the inaugural Good Friday game, before being replaced as North’s opponents by St Kilda (2018) and Essendon (2019).
They were due to return to the action last year, before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the season to be postponed.
You can donate to the Club’s Good Friday Appeal fundraising page here.
