Senior coach Luke Beveridge says the position his side finds themselves in at this point of the season is a credit to the group’s maturity.

The Bulldogs currently sit a game clear in second spot on the ladder, with losses to reigning premiers Richmond, ladder-leaders Melbourne and most recently Geelong with a kick after the siren. 

Beveridge said the team’s form this season is a result of their commitment and maturity. 

“Your environment and your scope to become a powerful club and outfit depends on the willingness of your players to take a bit more control and exert themselves from a leadership point of view, and we’ve seen some good signs there,” Beveridge told media on Thursday morning.

“(As coaches) we don’t step off - we continue to prod and try and motivate where we can, but I think we’re really making some inroads with the maturity of the group now.

“There’s some incentive every year to finish as high as you can – in my time at our footy club we’ve never been in this spot.

“We just have to keep driving every week to make sure we keep our noses in front.”

Coming off a commanding 55-point win over the Eagles after a week of quarantine in Perth, the Bulldogs’ next challenge will come against North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium this Sunday afternoon.

The two sides last met on Good Friday in round three, with the Bulldogs recording a 128-point triumph - their biggest winning margin in Club history.

“(The lockdown conditions) build up a different level of emotion, and I think our players probably used that a little bit – so now we need to bottle that and see what we can do against the Kangaroos, who will obviously be after some kind of retribution after our first outing,” Beveridge said.

“Their team has changed quite a bit – with some of their boys coming in and providing some more maturity and security in their team, it’s going to be a hell of a battle.”

The Bulldogs will announce an extended squad tonight, with the team to be finalised tomorrow evening at 5pm.