Locked in a three way tussle with Wollondilly and Holroyd for fourth and fifth spot, the Division Four Bulldogs had a great opportunity to put some pressure on their rivals coming up against last place Moorebank (1 win, 7 losses) at the Village Green on Saturday.
Despite a sluggish start against the plucky visitors, the dogs were able to kick away with a 7 goal to none third term that proved decisive in the 18.8 (116) to 9.11 (65) victory which now has them entrenched in fourth position, only one win shy of an all important top three berth at the half way mark of the season.
The win was soured with injuries to two key veterans. In form forward Stephen Ball who had kicked three on the day and 12 in four games this season tore his AC joint, while Ben Mostafa tore his quad in his second game back at the club after a few years absence. The club wishes both a speedy recovery.
The first half was a quality encounter with Moorebank showing they can be better than their ladder position indicates with some quality ball use around the ground given the slippery conditions. The Bulldogs were below their best and if not for some quality rebounding off half back from Joe Byrnes and accuracy in front of goals the Magpies may have led at the main break. As it was the dogs would head to the sheds in front (46) to 5.7 (37).
Sensing danger, and what well could have proven a season defining defeat, the Bulldogs came out firing in the third quarter. With the midfield starting to take control the home team dominated possession and territory and were reward on the scoreboard. The forwards played their part booting home seven majors with Fidel Tukel kicking a fantastic over the shoulder snap as well as two good opportunistic soccering goals. He would finish the mach with five to his name.
With the scoreline blown out to 91-37, the game over as a contest and the heavy ground starting to take it's toll on the players the defences opened up fractionally in the final quarter. Both teams put on four goals a piece in the final term with the Magpies outscoring the Bulldogs by 3 points – a just reward after being fractionally outpointed in the opening two quarters - but the damage had been done and the dogs would take home the points with a very solid 51 point win.
Although the final 8 goal margin reflected a fairly convincing win, the dogs can't lose sight of the fact they will come up against many more opponents higher up on the ladder than Moorebank and can ill afford to start as slow as they did last Saturday. As the competition hots up the boys will have to find another gear especially as the final four rounds will be against three teams currently in the top five.
Aside from Tukel's five goals, veteran Dave Backler also booted home four majors to move to 17 for the season and third place on the competition goal kicking ladder. Luke Hedge and Tim Vrachnas were exellent on the day, while Mark Macdonald – playing his second game on the day after an eight week injury lay off – showed a calm head when the Magpies were banging down the door early on.
The Bulldogs move to 5 wins and 3 losses and fourth place on the table and will play Campbelltown (3-5) in a rescheduled game this Saturday at the Village Green. A win will move them equal to third place with Sydney University (6-3) and continue to pile the pressure on second placed North Shore who have lost their last two games after winning their first six in what is shaping up as a very even competition.
Last Modified on 05/06/2014 12:18