Western Bulldogs vs West Coast Eagles
Sunday May 5 2013, 2.40pm
Venue: Patersons Stadium

Head-to-head:

Round 1, 2012: West Coast Eagles 21. 10. (136) defeated Western Bulldogs 12. 15. (87), Etihad Stadium
Round 19, 2011: Western Bulldogs 15. 5. (95) defeated by West Coast Eagles 15. 13. (103), Etihad Stadium
Round 9, 2011: West Coast Eagles 26. 19. (175) defeated Western Bulldogs 8. 4. (52), Patersons Stadium
Round 13, 2010: Western Bulldogs 17. 17. (119) defeated West Coast Eagles 9. 5. (59), Patersons Stadium

Last time they met:

  • The Western Bulldogs had 32 more disposals than West Coast Eagles
  • Josh Kennedy scored a game-high seven goals for West Coast, while Clay Smith led the Western Bulldogs goal kicking tally, scoring four majors on debut.
  • The Bulldogs fielded 10 players with less than 50 games under their belt, as opposed to West Coast who had 4 players
  • West Coast registered just two more marks inside 50 than the Bulldogs, yet kicked 11 goals from marks – as opposed to the Dogs who scored just four majors from marks in their forward line
  • The Brownlow votes were distributed as follows: J Kennedy 3, L Shuey 2, S Selwood 1.

Recent form:

Western Bulldogs

A spirited performance against Geelong in round five should instil confidence in the young Bulldogs’ side, despite falling to the Cats by 21 points on Saturday. The Bulldogs launched a late attack in the fourth term, with three quick goals, reducing the margin from 37 points to 19 and put them in striking range. The home side continued to hold Geelong goalless in the last term, but could not make up the margin. A number of young pups stood up in the absence of Club veterans, giving members and fans a glimpse of the future. The focus for the Bulldogs this week will be to continue to build on last week’s performance. 

West Coast Eagles

The West Coast Eagles may have lost four of their past five games this season but are always a better side at home. Despite leading by 41 points midway through the third term, the Eagles went down to an undefeated Power outfit on the weekend. Defeated by five points, West Coast’s loss came down to their inaccuracy in front of goal. While the Eagles have not had their desired start to the season, accounting for only Melbourne in round three, last year’s finalists have made it clear they are still aiming for a top four finish.

Key matchups and gamebreakers:

  • The battle of the ruckmen will be fiercer than ever when Will Minson faces Dean Cox on Sunday. While the Bulldogs currently rank first in total hitouts and on average finish with 13 more hitouts than their opposition, Cox has a reputation as a premier ruckman and will pose a major challenge.
  • Ranked first in tackles per game, West Coast have a number of hard tackling players on their team, including the competition’s leading Scott Selwood who has laid 43 in the first five rounds. The Bulldogs Tom Liberatore is winning the stat at Whitten Oval, ranked euqal third in the competition with 34.
  • Joshua Kennedy currently ranks fourth in the race for the Coleman medal, sitting on 16 goals, including two five goal hauls.
  • Opposing midfielders Matthew Boyd (WB) and Chris Masten (WCE) have provided similar overall averages so far this season, although Boyd has played only two matches to Masten’s five games this season.