WESTERN BULLDOGS Â 6.2 Â Â Â Â 9.5Â Â Â Â 12.8 Â Â Â Â 14.9 Â Â Â (93)
ESSENDON Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 1.2 Â Â Â Â 5.7 Â Â Â Â 5.9 Â Â Â Â 7.11Â Â Â (53)
GOALS - Western Bulldogs: Dickson 3, Daniel 2, Smith, Wood, Roughead, Hunter, Jong, Picken, Boyd, McLean, Cordy. Essendon: Daniher 2, Cooney, Merrett, Leuenberger, Fantasia, Merrett.
BEST - Western Bulldogs: Hunter, Bontempelli, Picken, Johannissen, M Boyd, Daniel, Dickson.
Essendon: Z Merrett, Daniher, Zaharakis, Stokes, Kelly, Brown, Hartley.Â
UMPIRES: Chamberlain, Stephens, Fisher.
CROWD: 25,308 at Etihad Stadium.
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It took the Western Bulldogs 20 minutes to put themselves in a position where they were almost certainly going to win this match against Essendon. Maybe 25.
Essendon were getting their bearings: warming up, winding up, getting ready to do some pretty good things. It was only the first quarter, after all.
The Bulldogs were the swifter, cleaner, more competent side. They were already warm.
Tory Dickson kicked one goal, then another. Caleb Daniel snapped one, Tom Boyd slotted a set shot and Easton Wood scored on the run.
Marcus Bontempelli was spotting teammates out of the corner of his eyes. Lachie Hunter was sharp; Matthew Boyd was thwarting many of the Bombers' plans.
By the end of the term the Dogs had kicked five goals to Essendon's one. They had taken an easy, confident control of the game, and were as clear as they ended up needing to be.
Essendon persisted, and did what they could to make this game worth watching. The Bombers' spirit seems to have increased as the season has dragged on and on, rather than dissipated.
They hung in there during the second quarter. They played with some verve: Jayden Laverde and Kyle Langford did smart things with the ball, and Jake Long swerved through traffic.
David Zaharakis picked up where he left off against Gold Coast, Â Adam Cooney snapped a left-footer that even the Bulldogs' cheer squad applauded, and then there was Joe Daniher.
His round-the-body set shots are generating more discussion than what he does to set them up. Particularly when they don't come off.
But it was impossible not to look immediately for the replay when he came from behind, shot up through the middle of a pack in front of goal and landed back on the ground having added another entry to the Mark of the Year competition.
Essendon's energy got them right into the game, but nowhere near enough. That they were able to generate 17 inside-50s to seven but kick just four goals for the quarter didn't help them much.
That the Bulldogs were able to maintain a quiet calm – and create three goals from their more limited opportunities – was the other major thorn in their side. All that effort, and they gained just eight points. The Dogs played as if they knew they needed to manage Essendon's momentum; that if they limited the damage, the Bombers' intensity would ease and they would be able to take over with little fuss again.
That's what happened. The Bulldogs took the initiative back almost as soon as the second half started. They ran a lot harder, created more space, got the ball into it and were able to create easy shots.
With Jake Stringer dropped to the VFL they kicked 14 goals, via 11 players. Only Daniel and Dickson kicked more than one goal.
They had plenty of good players. If he wasn't making decisions on the move in tight spots, Lachie Hunter was getting a lot of space. Daniel needed only a second to do some special things.
Easton Wood hobbled off injured during the third term, but Jason Johannisen got into positions to attack the goals. Picken and Matthew Boyd kept them steady. Lin Jong bounced around and confident moments were provided by less experienced others: Josh Dunkley, Tom Boyd, Zaine Cordy.
Marcus Bontempelli did the exact same things whether Essendon was eating into his team's momentum or whether his team was in charge. He stayed in the game, and brought others into it.
The Bulldogs didn't do everything they could have done. But they did what they needed to, against a team that stuck at it and insisted they play right to the end.
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