Western Bulldogs vice-captain Marcus Bontempelli has told Triple M that he’s optimistic that his side can find their best form after opening the 2018 season with two successive defeats.
The Dogs went down by 51-points on Easter Sunday at Eithad Stadium but despite the result, the 22-year-old said he saw positive signs at different times throughout yesterday’s match.
“We’re an optimistic bunch, he said on Monday, “we know we haven’t got the first two games of this year right, but we saw a little shift in yesterday’s game that when we applied source pressure and were able to get things right around the ball, we could get the game back on our terms.”
Six unanswered West Coast goals in the second quarter put the game out of reach, though as coach Luke Beveridge told media post-match, there were passages on either side of that period that where encouraging.
The Dogs return to Etihad next Saturday afternoon where they’ll take on the Bombers, who will be fresh off their own stumble, a 16-point loss to the Dockers in Perth.
Bontempelli said the group is ready for the challenge ahead.
“We’re as united and as strong as we have been, but we know we’ve got such a challenge ahead of us,'" he said.
“So, the continual effort from every single person at the club is required for us to get things back on track and continue to forge towards making an impact throughout this season.”
