![Marcus Bontempelli was skipper for the day.](/web/20160723165001im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/o/8/4/2/z/image.related.landscape.460x307.gpc3g0.png/1465165976191.jpg)
Bulldogs beat Eagles in a thriller
The Western Bulldogs moved into the top four at the halfway point of the season with a hard fought eight point win over the West Coast Eagles at Etihad Stadium.
Michael Lynch, The Age's expert on soccer, has had extensive experience of high level journalism in the UK and Australia. Michael has covered the Socceroos through Asia, Europe and South America in their past three World Cup campaigns. He has also reported on Grands Prix and top class motor sport from Asia and Europe. He has won several national media awards for both sports and industry journalism.
The Western Bulldogs moved into the top four at the halfway point of the season with a hard fought eight point win over the West Coast Eagles at Etihad Stadium.
Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge made no attempt to sugarcoat his side's 21-point win over an injury ravaged Collingwood, conceding the fact that the Pies had no interchange bench in the final quarter was the key element in the Bulldogs' victory.
Series of injuries empties Collingwood interchange bench, allowing the Bulldogs to claim a 21 point win.
As a Fairfax soccer writer, I don't get to the MCG all that often – only for very rare Socceroo appearances.
There are few sports in the world that change the rules as rarely as soccer.
Gaelic football is also going through a period of soul searching about the style, structure and ethos of the sport after a raft of tactical changes have changed it dramatically in the past few decades.
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