Bulldogs play musical chairs with board

Updated October 17, 2012 16:08:56

A less combative Peter Gordon will begin his second stint as president of the Western Bulldogs confident the AFL club is now fully supported and respected by the sport's ruling body.

It is not a claim the respected lawyer would have made during his first crack at the top job, which began with him being the catalyst behind the successful fight against the AFL's push to merge the Bulldogs with Fitzroy.

Gordon initially stepped down as Dogs president in 1996 after a seven-year term to be replaced by David Smorgon, who returned the favour this week after 16 years at the helm.

"I think the club has a fine future," Gordon said on Wednesday.

"It has risks and it has threats and it has challenges ahead of it as well. They have always been there.

"But it is in a much better position than when I left at the end of 1996.

"And of course it's in an exponentially better position than it was in 1989."

Gordon was encouraged by what he heard from AFL chairman Mike Fitzpatrick, chief executive Andrew Demetriou and chief operating officer Gillon McLachlan during a meeting on Monday.

"The irony of it was not lost on me that I was welcomed into the AFL headquarters by a management that not only values and recognises the Western Bulldogs football club franchise, but also its vital importance to the competition as a whole - in particular because of its roots and its work in the western suburbs of Melbourne," Gordon said.

"And that was not a philosophy, frankly, that seemed to be a priority 25 years ago.

"In a sense we are greater western Melbourne and greater western Melbourne is as important to the future of the competition as (new franchise) Greater Western Sydney."

Gordon said he wanted to play a central role in how the AFL dealt with the growing gap between rich and poor clubs.

The Bulldogs have also appointed Susan Alberti as vice-president.

Gordon will speak further with outspoken former player and now successful restaurateur Paul Dimattina in coming weeks about his bid for a seat on the board.

Dimattina had been an increasingly vocal critic of Smorgon in recent years, but Gordon said he came into the job with an open mind.

"All Bulldogs will be welcomed back to the kennel," Gordon said.

"And all Bulldogs will be asked, and in some ways expected, to contribute what they can."

Smorgon, 65, had initially planned to stay on as president for one more year before changing his mind when the club's sub-committee recommended the highly-experienced Gordon as his successor.

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, vic, australia

First posted October 17, 2012 16:05:55

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Power beat Bulldogs in London exhibition

Updated November 04, 2012 09:03:32

New coach Ken Hinkley has made a winning start to his time in charge of Port Adelaide with a one-point win in an AFL exhibition match against the Western Bulldogs in London.

Hinkley, who was only appointed to the top job last month, was at the helm as the Power edged out the Bulldogs 14.4 (88) to 13.9 (87) at The Oval cricket ground.

After trailing by six goals in the third quarter, the Power kicked nine majors on the trot before the 'Dogs reclaimed the lead in a see-sawing encounter.

To top off an entertaining evening in south London, Port Adelaide's Brad Ebert kicked the winning goal from the boundary line with only 40 seconds remaining.

Former Essendon forward Angus Monfries made an impact in his first outing for the Power by booting three goals although both teams were far from full strength.

Hinkley was happy for his young players to be on the right side of a scoreline following a forgettable season.

"I said to the players before hand 'you always want to win' it does not matter if it is an exhibition match or anything for us," he said.

"We are a club that needs to learn to win a bit."

Hinkley was an assistant coach at Geelong and the Gold Coast before finally being handed the reins at a club for the first time last month.

"I don't like losing and that is what most of us are about if we are in this game, we like to play to win and we were lucky enough to end up just in front tonight," he said.

"I am not sure whether we knew what we were doing, we have been together for three seconds but the coaching staff told me all along there was some talent here to work with and it is nice to see that."

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, england, port-adelaide-5015, sa, footscray-3011, vic

First posted November 04, 2012 08:45:24

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Bulldogs call on champion Cats

Updated November 15, 2012 11:23:00

The Western Bulldogs have brought Geelong premiership duo Matthew Scarlett and Cameron Mooney to the club as part-time specialist coaches for 2013.

Scarlett, who retired at the end of the 2012 campaign, will mentor and work closely with the Bulldogs' defenders, while Mooney - who ended his career in 2011 - will work with the club's forwards.

Brendan McCartney, who coached both players as a long-time Geelong assistant, says the champion players' experience will prove invaluable to his young side.

"Along with our current coaching staff, we are fortunate that people of this ilk want to come and help our club get better," McCartney said.

The players will work with the club for a day a week through the preseason and 2013 campaign and Mooney is excited to get to work with the young squad.

"We're lucky enough to have a great mate in Macca, so we were both pretty keen to get down here, and try to help him out as much as we can," Mooney said.

"The great thing about the Bulldogs is that they're such a young group."

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, geelong-3220, west-melbourne-3003

First posted November 15, 2012 11:23:00

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Laird signs with Bulldogs for another year

Updated September 28, 2012 14:53:03

Central District chief executive Kris Grant said he was sure Roy Laird could return the club to the top of the SANFL.

The seven-time premiership coach has agreed to a coaching deal for another year with the northern Adelaide club.

Grant says Laird is the right man to lead the Bulldogs' revival after the team missed the Grand Final for the first time since 1999.

"It's going to be a new ball game for us, the list is going to change quite a bit, we're going to freshen all that up," he said.

"Obviously footy has changed over the period and Roy as a tactician is very, very, very good in that area and he'll be looking at new sort of ways and maybe tweaking our game plan."

Tags: sanfl, adelaide-5000, sa

First posted September 28, 2012 14:34:29

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Double setback facing Bulldogs

Updated September 17, 2012 14:48:53

Central District has been dealt a double setback ahead of this weekend's sudden-death SANFL semi-final against North Adelaide.

Eddie Sansbury has been offered a one-match ban for an off-the-ball incident involving Adam Harlett in the weekend's qualifying final loss to West Adelaide.

Alan Obst is facing a two-game suspension for striking Bloods' defender Joel Tippett.

The Bulldogs must now decide whether to challenge the suspensions at the tribunal.

Tags: sanfl, sa, adelaide-5000

First posted September 17, 2012 14:48:53

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Tigers down Bulldogs in MCG shoot-out

Updated August 12, 2012 20:57:20

Richmond stormed away from the Western Bulldogs for a comfortable 70-point win at the MCG on Sunday afternoon.

Key forward Jack Riewoldt kicked five goals as the Tigers won an often scrappy battle, 22.18 (150) to 12.8 (80), keeping their mathematical chance of a finals appearance alive for another week.

The Tigers had not beaten the Bulldogs in seven years, the emphatic victory a sign of the overall improvement at the club in 2012.

Already fielding an inexperienced side, the Bulldogs were dealt a further blow when their best player Ryan Griffen suffered back spasms during the warm-up and withdrew from the game.

The more settled Tigers jumped out of the blocks quickly, kicking the first six goals for what looked like a match-winning advantage.

The scoreboard showed the difference in the quality of ball use from both teams and Richmond's more active forward line.

The Dogs could not hit a target by foot in the opening term, while the likes of Tigers Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin were finding space to create opportunities for their forwards.

Cotchin led all day, kicking three goals, winning 35 possessions and taking seven marks.

"He has had an outstanding year - there is no doubt about it," Tigers coach Damien Hardwick said after the match.

"Trent is one of those players - there is not another player quite like him. His ability to get inside, then outside is second to none.

"He is probably very similar to Chris Judd in that way, getting out of traffic while other players would just crumble in the tackle."

At quarter-time, the scoreboard was lopsided but the Bulldogs were grabbing back some momentum.

Defender Brian Lake played as a forward for much of the game and started to give the Dogs some presence in attack.

The Bulldogs kicked six of the next seven goals to cut the deficit to 17 points. It became the pattern of the day - bar a one-sided final term.

The Dogs would kick a burst of goals, with the experience of captain Matthew Boyd and Daniel Giansiracusa coming through, to get within striking distance of the Tigers, only for Richmond to steady and rip the game away from them.

After kicking the first five goals of the third quarter, the Dogs were trailing by just six points before best on ground Cotchin took his - and Richmond's - game to another level.

Cotchin tackled hard, won the ball and created scoring opportunities for the Tigers.

He kicked two of his three goals for the day late in the term, and steadied Richmond as it booted six of the last seven goals of the quarter to restore their comfortable lead.

The last term was a rout - the Tigers kicking five goals to none to enjoy a percentage-boosting win.

Well out of finals contention, the Bulldogs continue to blood new players and coach Brendan McCartney said he wants to continue to make use of the opportunity.

"There have been a lot of challenges this year but I know that we have unearthed some good young players," McCartney said.

"The scoreboard might not show it at the moment but - four young men brought in the last two weeks - there is a bit to like about that going forward."

AAP

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, melbourne-3000, vic, australia

First posted August 12, 2012 18:08:34

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Swans hammer game Bulldogs

Updated August 19, 2012 22:07:28

Adam Goodes hit form as a multi-faceted Sydney attack tuned up for some looming blockbusters with their biggest AFL score in more than six years against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday.

Even a three-goal deficit at the first change and a stunning 47-disposal game from Bulldogs star Ryan Griffen could not stop the top-placed Swans winning 26.11 (167) to 13.7 (85) at Docklands.

Goodes bounced back from a quiet performance against Collingwood last round, combining a season-high 22 disposals with 11 marks and three goals.

Ruck duo Shane Mumford and Mike Pyke, who sustained a minor ankle injury late in the game, chimed in for three majors each, as did Lewis Roberts-Thomson, while key target Sam Reid notched two in his return from a knee injury, among 14 Swans goal-scorers.

Coach John Longmire said there were signs that dual Brownlow Medallist Goodes was hitting his peak.

"He ended up kicking three but also importantly contributed a lot to other players' scores as well, which is what he's able to do when he's at his best," Longmire said.

Longmire said Reid's return and the spread of scorers helped.

"It allows probably Goodesy to play a bit more of a smaller (player's) role," he said.

"Even though he's (192cm) and 100kg he then becomes more of a roaming type forward ... that was the bonus of getting Reidy back today, just to get that structure right."

Midfielder Josh Kennedy continued his superb season with 33 disposals, eight clearances and a goal.

Longmire said the bullocking on-baller's form this year had fluctuated between incredible and very good, with Sunday's game in the former category.

But the Swans will face vastly superior opposition to the Bulldogs for the rest of this year.

They meet second-placed Hawthorn at the SCG on Saturday, when a win will virtually seal the minor premiership, before meeting reigning premiers Geelong at Kardinia Park in the last home and away round.

Veteran Jude Bolton might return from a knee injury against the Hawks, but more likely against the Cats.

Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney said his young team, whose losing streak stretched to nine games, battled harder than the scoreboard gave them credit for.

"The scoreboard was disappointing. The effort wasn't and the spirit wasn't," McCartney said.

"But we paid a heavy price whenever we didn't complete the basics of the game well."

Swans: 26.11 (167) - Pyke 3, Roberts-Thomson 3, Goodes 3, Mumford 3, McGlynn 2, Reid 2, O'Keeffe 2, Jack 2, Parker, Hannebery, Morton, McVeigh, Kennedy, Jetta

Bulldogs: 13.7 (85) - Addison 4, Dickson 3, Giansiracusa 2, Johannisen, Lake, Picken, Cordy

AAP

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, melbourne-3000, vic, sydney-2000, nsw, australia

First posted August 19, 2012 18:19:55

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Bulldogs suspend Minson for slur

Updated June 20, 2012 14:01:31

The Western Bulldogs have moved to suspend Will Minson for one match for insulting Danyle Pearce during Sunday's game against Port Adelaide.

The Power complained to the AFL about slurs directed at Pearce during their 38-point victory at Docklands and the Bulldogs have moved before any league-delivered censure.

"The club has the highest of expectations when it comes to players' behaviour both on and off the field," Bulldogs Chief Executive, Simon Garlick said.

"While Will is genuinely remorseful for his actions - the club will not tolerate the use of inappropriate and offensive comments, especially in regards to women."

Minson, who in 2008 made comments about Kane Cornes' ill son during a match, on this occasion is believed to have spoken about Pearce's mother.

The ruckman apologised for his actions and accepted the punishment handed down from his club.

"I sincerely apologise for my comments and regret they have caused hurt and offense to Danyle, his family and the Port Adelaide Football Club," Minson said.

"I realise there are no excuses for my behaviour and I accept the sanction given to me by the club."

Pearce accepted the Bulldogs' action but suggested Minson's future behaviour will judge whether his opponent's regret is genuine.

"I accept the course of action the Western Bulldogs have taken," Pearce said.

"The important thing for me is that Will understands that this is not a minor matter that can be brushed under the carpet.  It is a very big thing and insulting a player’s family is just not acceptable.

"He needs to know there is a line that you shouldn’t even contemplate crossing.

"Will has apologised, but I don’t need that to move on. His actions from here will mean far more than words."

The AFL also commended the Bulldogs for acting swiftly and backed their punishment of the player who will also undergo a compulsory education session around the game's Respect and Responsibility Policy with the Cultural Strategy and Education Manager Sue Clark.

"All players, coaches and officials across our competition are aware that there is no place within our game for comments that are offensive and demeaning towards women," AFL general manager of football operations, Adrian Anderson said.

Elsewhere, Port's Matt Thomas has accepted a two-match sanction for rough conduct against Tom Liberatore during the second quarter of the same game.

The AFL tribunal will sit tonight to consider Dane Swan's Level One tripping charge against Melbourne's Sam Blease.

St Kilda's Raphael Clarke and Taylor Hine of the Gold Coast have both accepted reprimands for offences at the weekend and Brisbane's Mitch Golby was fined $900 for negligent conduct with umpire Troy Pannell.

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, port-adelaide-5015, melbourne-3000

First posted June 19, 2012 11:41:25

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Bulldogs extend Dahlhaus deal

Updated June 07, 2012 10:01:43

The Western Bulldogs have re-signed forward Luke Dahlhaus to the end of 2015.

Already contracted for next year, the Bulldogs have rewarded the dynamic youngster with a revised deal and two years added on.

The dreadlocked 19-year-old says he is thrilled to be continuing his football career with the Bulldogs.

"It means a lot to me and I'm just really happy about it," Dahlhaus said.

"I am just enjoying playing my role at the moment and hopefully, I keep doing that, and we get a few more wins".

Dahlhaus was promoted from the rookie list in Round 12 last year after catching the eye with his speed and ball-winning skills, which earned him a Rising Star nod in the process.

He has played 21 matches for the Bulldogs so far, cementing himself in the senior line-up.

Bulldogs List Manager Jason McCartney said in a club statement he was thrilled to have secured the long term future of one of the team's rising talents.

"We are really excited to have secured Luke and we think it's a fantastic reflection on the future of our football club," he said.

"Although only in the early stages of his career, the talent and form we have seen from Luke, gives us every confidence in his future."

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, vic, australia

First posted June 07, 2012 10:01:43

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Swans flatten the Bulldogs at SCG

Updated June 03, 2012 18:40:17

Sydney's roller-coaster season took another upswing at the SCG on Sunday, as the Swans hammered the Western Bulldogs by 92 points.

The game was practically over as a contest after one quarter of play, as the Swans kicked nine goals straight to 1.1 to race to a 47-point lead before eventually winning 20.12 (132) to 5.10 (40).

Sydney had started to stall in recent weeks after its stellar 6-0 opening to the year, losing heavily to Richmond and St Kilda either side of a 101-point thumping of the Demons, raising questions about the team's true place on the ladder.

John Longmire's men had suffered in recent weeks from the absence of injured talls Adam Goodes and Shane Mumford.

Mumford returned for this game but was used in tandem with Mike Pyke in the ruck.

The Swans' forward line relied on some of its smaller players in sodden conditions.

Lewis Jetta kicked four goals, Trent Dennis-Lane and Ben McGlynn grabbed three each and there were doubles to Jude Bolton and Kieren Jack as well as talls Sam Reid and Lewis Roberts-Thomson.

For the Bulldogs there were few positives to take out of the game.

Liam Picken flew a lone flag in the forward line with two first quarter goals, but he had little support. Matthew Boyd had 28 disposals for the Bulldogs.

Sydney had 20 goals out of 63 forward entries, while the Bulldogs managed only five majors from 49 inside 50s.

The Swans have another injury problem, however, after Luke Parker was substituted in the third quarter with a suspected shoulder or collarbone injury, after he collided with Boyd.

The win will give the Swans' confidence ahead of next week's match of the round against Essendon at Docklands.

Swans: 20.12 (132) - Jetta 4, Dennis-Lane 3, McGlynn 3, Bolton 2, Jack 2, Reid 2, Roberts-Thomson 2, Kennedy, O'Keeffe.

Dogs: 5.10 (40) - Picken 2, Cordy, Vezpremi, Wallis.

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, australia, nsw, sydney-2000

First posted June 03, 2012 18:40:17

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Bulldogs eclipse Suns in Darwin

Updated May 19, 2012 22:22:01

Western Bulldogs shook off a slow start and powered to a predictable 38-point win over the winless Gold Coast Suns at Marrara Stadium in Darwin on Saturday night.

In a game of few highlights the Suns led by three points at half-time only to be mowed down as the Bulldogs dominated the second half in the 9.18 (72) to 3.4 (34) win.

The Dogs kicked four majors in the third quarter of a clash which failed to reach any great heights before pulling further away from the dispirited Suns in the final term.

The goal-kicking duties were shared around as nine Bulldogs players landed solo efforts in what was a comfortable win for coach Brendan McCartney's side.

More to follow.

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, darwin-0800, nt, melbourne-3000, carrara-4211, australia

First posted May 19, 2012 22:22:01

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Bulldogs bite back in win over Kangaroos

Updated May 13, 2012 17:34:34

The Western Bulldogs have caused a Sunday afternoon upset, beating a disappointing North Melbourne side by 18 points at Docklands.

A bad 15.11 (101) to 12.11 (83) result for the Kangaroos was made worse by an injury to ruckman Hamish McIntosh, who was carried off the field late in the third quarter after his knee collided with Western Bulldogs' defender Ryan Hargrave.

McIntosh was substituted and spent the final quarter with his knee wrapped in ice, amid fears he had dislocated his kneecap.

The Kangaroos went into the match as strong favourites, but never really imposed themselves on the Bulldogs, who were much more attacking from the opening bounce.

Brendan McCartney's men were wasteful in the first quarter, kicking just three goals from 15 inside 50s, but as the game went on the Bulldogs on-ballers cut the Kangaroos to ribbons, winning the clearances and far more of the contested possessions.

Captain Matthew Boyd was best on ground, picking up a stunning 44 possessions - 20 of them contested - seven marks, three tackles and two hit-outs.

A six-goal third quarter set up the win, as North Melbourne could never bridge the gap.

The Bulldogs' Robert Murphy told Grandstand his team had carried out its plan and given a four-quarter effort after fading last week against Collingwood.

"We put a good plan in place, we had a good week (in training) leading up, and we got over the line, it was great," Murphy said.

Newcomer Tory Dickson provided an excellent option up forward for the Bulldogs.

In his third AFL game, the 24-year-old Dickson - who played for the Bendigo Bombers before joining the Bulldogs - kicked four goals and laid seven tackles inside forward 50 in a brilliant display.

Murphy was full of praise for Dickson.

"That's a huge effort from Tory, we've known that he's got talent and he can play, it was worth its weight in gold to bob up and get four of them (goals) today,'' he said.

The Bulldogs' defence was expected to struggle with the height of the North Melbourne forward line, but Drew Petrie was kept relatively quiet with three goals.

Brian Lake had a big day for the Bulldogs, gathering 26 possessions and 12 key marks down back.

"As far as defending the high ball when it comes in, he'd have to be the best player I've ever seen in turning defence into attack,'' Murphy said.

Both sides now have three wins from seven matches, but the standard of North Melbourne's performance means the pressure will now mount on coach Brad Scott.

The Bulldogs will play Gold Coast next Saturday in Darwin, while the Kangaroos take on Port Adelaide at Football Park.

Bulldogs: 15.11 (101) - Dickson 4, Giansiracusa 3, Higgins 2, Sherman 2, Wallis, Cordy, Cross, Murphy.

Kangaroos: 12.11 (83) - Thomas 3, Petrie 3, Anthony 2, Cunnington, Harper, Adams, Edwards.

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, australia, vic, melbourne-3000

First posted May 13, 2012 16:17:46

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Pies battle to see off Bulldogs

Updated May 04, 2012 23:33:43

A brave Bulldogs challenge ran out of puff in the final term as Collingwood made it three consecutive wins with a 15.8 (98) to 11.11 (77) victory on Friday night.

The Dogs led by as many as 17 points halfway through the second quarter but ended up going into the main break three points behind after the Magpies booted three straight to end the half.

Brendan McCartney's men returned from the sheds with the same vigour they showed from the opening bounce to eventually trail by only one point at the last change.

But the Dogs ran out of legs in the final term and were guilty of bad mistakes, managing to kick just 1.1 to the Magpies' 4.3 as a chance of a shock upset slipped through their grasp.

"It's slowly, slowly coming together," Magpies star Scott Pendlebury told Grandstand.

"I thought it was a pretty flat performance.

"I don't think we pressured the Bulldogs as much as we would have liked."

Pendlebury admitted winning ugly is sometimes just as satisfying as a big win and said coach Nathan Buckley was pleased his side was able to tough it out after a scratchy first half.

"He was just happy we were able to hang in there even though we weren't playing our best footy," he said.

"We were able to stick around, find a way in the last quarter.

"More importantly for us I think that was our first last quarter that we have won. So that's a positive."

Two mistakes by the experienced Shaun Higgins at either end of the field and another by Dylan Addison gifted the Pies crucial, late goals to seal the much-need triumph and lift them temporarily into the eight.

Pendlebury (34 possessions, 9 tackles) and Dayne Beams (33 touches, 11 tackles) were central to the Collingwood fight back after a sluggish opening term which saw the Pies kick two goals from their only two scoring shots of the quarter.

Travis Cloke was limited to just 2.2 up forward while Heath Shaw made a influential return from a hamstring injury with 22 touches and two goals.

Ryan Griffen was again outstanding for the Bulldogs with 33 disposals and two goals and had reasonable support from veterans Daniel Cross and Matthew Boyd.

Pendlebury said all the Collingwood midfielders are being expected to contribute at stoppages more with the loss of Luke Ball.

"We have to find that 10-15 per cent around there," he said.

"Beamsy and Steel [Sidebottom] - we have asked them to come in now and fill a role, not just for 15-20 minutes, they are permanent midfielders now.

"We all have to lift in the absence of Bally. I think we are getting there."

Despite their fervent pressure on the ball and improved performance down back, the Dogs again struggled with a poor forward structure despite three goals to Daniel Giansiracusa.

Brian Lake's unexpected long bomb from the pocket late in the piece, to narrow the margin to seven points, folloing Griffen's behind straight after three-quarter time, were the Dogs' only scoring shots of the last term.

The Bulldogs recorded an inside 50 per goal percentage of 21.6, while Collingwood also struggled at 27.3 per cent but boasted 10 different goal-kickers.

Collingwood's Ben Johnson was substituted at half-time by Kirk Ugle after suffering a shoulder injury.

Ruckman Darren Jolly was also a late withdrawal for the Pies.

Magpies: 15.8 (98) - B Sinclair 2, T Cloke 2, T Goldsack 2, H Shaw 2, B Reid, D Swan, H O'Brien, S Wellingham, C Dawes, A Fasolo.

Bulldogs: 11.11 (77) - D Giansiracusa 3, R Griffen 2, S Higgins 2, E Wood, R Hargrave, B Lake, M Boyd.

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, collingwood-3066, vic, australia, footscray-3011

First posted May 04, 2012 22:37:40

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Bulldogs to set tough tone early

Updated February 17, 2012 18:04:27

New Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney wants his troops to take a hard-nosed attitude into Saturday night's AFL preseason clash with a largely second-string Collingwood and a youth-stacked Greater Western Sydney.

After an off-season spent implementing a new game-plan, with a heavy focus on tough, contested football, the Blacktown fixture will be the Bulldogs' first outing under their first-year coach.

The former Geelong and Essendon assistant said it was important that the team started their year the way they intended to continue.

"Good habits are best learnt from day one and practised and bad habits can sneak in pretty quickly too," McCartney told reporters on Friday.

"We want our older and more experienced players to develop our younger players and we want our younger players to see how the game is played from day one.

"Does that mean we'll be playing seriously when the ball bounces? I expect our boys to be hard at the ball and do what they're asked to do."

While missing a few big names, the Bulldogs' squad is closer to full-strength than the Magpies', who named only nine members of last year's grand final side, while for many of the Giants, it is their first game at this level.

But McCartney was more interested in honing his own side's game than worrying about how the opposition stacked up.

"We picked people who are ready to play, who we want to see perform for our footy club and practice what we've been working on for four or five months now," he said.

The new coach said he put his squad through a "revision test" on Friday morning, asking players to front the group and explain aspects of the team's playing style, to ensure they were clear on it.

Along with numerous experienced players, McCartney was looking forward to seeing how some emerging players fared, citing Ayce Cordy and Christian Howard as two who had taken steps in their development.

New draftees Clay Smith, Michael Talia and Tory Dickson will also play.

McCartney predicted tough midfielder Smith, the Dogs' top draft pick, would quickly become a fan favourite.

"He plays football the way you like to see it played - he sees the ball and attacks it," he said.

"I'm sure our supporters will get a real appreciation for Clay very early in his career."

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, vic, australia

First posted February 17, 2012 18:04:27

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Griffen commits to Bulldogs

Updated January 11, 2012 12:06:55

The Western Bulldogs have re-signed midfield star Ryan Griffen until 2015.

Griffen, who was out of contract at the end of last season, said he had no qualms about extending his stay at the kennel.

"I am over the moon, as soon as it came up I wanted to sign straight away," the 25-year-old said.

"I love this place and I love the boys and it is fantastic that the club wanted to sign me."

The classy ball-winner has played 143 games for the Bulldogs since being selected third overall in the 2004 AFL draft.

He averaged 24 disposals last season and polled third in the club's best and fairest.

AAP

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First posted January 11, 2012 12:04:40

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Lake back on track for Bulldogs

Updated November 30, 2011 22:56:01

Full-back Brian Lake is on target to regain the form that made him an All-Australian according to Western Bulldogs assistant coach Brett Montgomery.

The 29-year-old had a season to forget in 2011, hampered by injuries to his knee, groin and shoulder.

But at preseason training on Wednesday, Lake - who is still in the rehab group recovering from knee surgery - joined team-mates for part of their running session.

Montgomery liked what he saw.

"His improvement in his running gait is remarkable," he said.

"There was a massive limp there last year. He's improved on that."

Montgomery praised the way Lake had dedicated himself to his rehabilitation and said he was having "a real crack".

"The way he's thrown himself into his rehab, the way he's thrown himself into the education sessions ... he's trying to lead from the front, something he probably hasn't done for 12 months for a number of reasons," he said.

The Bulldogs' draftees Clay Smith, Michael Talia, Tory Dickson and Daniel Pearce were unveiled at the training session at Whitten Oval.

Montgomery said their first choice, midfielder Smith, was among a group of players who would fight to fill the vacancy left by Callan Ward's departure to Greater Western Sydney.

"We've got young (Mitch) Wallis, Libba (Tom Liberatore) - there's guys that are deserved of a crack," he said.

"They'll just go into the mix with Clay and fight it out for those spots."

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs announced they had delisted small defender Jayden Schofield.

The club said the 19-year-old, who had played seven senior games since his debut midway through the season, would return home to Perth to deal with "personal matters".

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, vic, australia

First posted November 30, 2011 22:56:01

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Bulldogs lose Williams to Carlton

Updated October 04, 2011 13:36:11

Assistant coaches Paul Williams and Peter Dean will leave the Western Bulldogs, with Williams switching clubs to join Carlton.

Williams was interim senior coach at the end of the season when the Bulldogs sacked Rodney Eade.

He applied for the full-time job, which went to Brendan McCartney.

Williams will join the Blues in the new position of midfield stoppage coach.

"Paul will bring to our club valuable coaching experience, particularly in relation to his stoppage knowledge in the midfield," Blues coach Brett Ratten said.

"He has had great success as a player and has been involved in successful programs, not only as a player but also a coach.

"So we are very much looking forward to having him join our coaching staff."

Williams, a 306-game player at Collingwood and Sydney, had been an assistant at the Dogs for three seasons.

Dean played 248 games for Carlton and was defensive coach at the Bulldogs for four years.

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, carlton-3053, vic, australia

First posted October 04, 2011 13:36:11

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Bulldogs, Roos don't want Fev

Updated October 14, 2011 16:22:15

Western Bulldogs and North Melbourne both say they have no interest in giving fallen two-time Coleman medallist Brendan Fevola a third AFL home.

Fevola's manager Rick Olarenshaw says the twice-sacked 30-year-old, whose history of gambling and alcohol problems has left most AFL clubs shying away from him, had attracted an inquiry from one Melbourne-based club.

"We got a call yesterday from a club asking questions about him, which is a good sign, about how his wellbeing is and his body is," Olarenshaw told Melbourne's Gold FM radio.

"It wasn't a coach, it was a list manager. I'm not going to name the club. It was surprising, the club that called.

"We gave a positive response about Brendan because he is in a good space at the moment, and they said they will take that back to the coach and the committee."

While the Bulldogs, who have lost Barry Hall to retirement, could benefit from another key forward, they were quick to rule out being the club in question.

The Kangaroos announced they were also not interested in Fevola.

Essendon senior assistant coach Mark Thompson also wished Fevola well, but dismissed any interest from the Bombers.

"It would be great for the game to give him that opportunity, but I don't think it will be at Essendon," Thompson said.

"He could kick lots of goals. Having a third chance at a club, he'd be a different type of person and really appreciate the opportunity."

Before Thursday's inquiry, Fevola's AFL career had seemed over.

He was sacked by Brisbane ahead of this year's season, having already been punted by Carlton a year earlier, both times due to off-field misbehaviour.

He spent this year playing in the VFL with Casey Scorpions and had until now attracted no AFL interest despite finishing the season with an avalanche of goals.

Fevola says he would be happy to be drafted as a mature-aged rookie and play for the minimum wage next year if it means a chance to add a brighter final chapter to his 204-match, 623-goal AFL career.

"I'd be jumping at the bit to take that opportunity and train as a rookie and earn your stripes and get paid minimum wage," Fevola told the AFL website.

"I'm quite happy to do that. I want to finish off my footy on an AFL arena.

"I went out in circumstances I don't like, which wasn't very good and I'd love to get back and try and prove myself."

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, melbourne-3000

First posted October 14, 2011 16:22:15

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McCartney takes Bulldogs back to school

Updated November 07, 2011 20:30:06

New Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney is committed to spending long periods in the classroom this summer in a bid to engineer a return to the top eight.

McCartney, an 11-year assistant at Geelong who crossed to Essendon a year ago, kicked off the Bulldogs' pre-season training with a warning that plenty of things needed to change.

Overcoming the club's star complex would be a good start, he said.

Brownlow Medallist Adam Cooney and former All-Australian full-back Brian Lake are among a group of players yet to resume full training.

And McCartney says even if Cooney and Lake have luck with injury next year, they can not carry the club on their own.

"I've spent a long time at one club," McCartney said at Whitten Oval on Monday.

"They (2011 premiers Geelong) are good in all areas of the game.

"We have things here that we do really well and when it's our day we do them brilliantly.

"There's other things in the game that we've got to get better at.

"We're going to work heavily in the classroom with them, showing them examples of it ... continually go back to it so they learn to see it for themselves out of the field."

McCartney says it is too hard to predict if Cooney can successfully battle a chronic knee injury to play a full season.

"I do know the more games the smarter more educated players play, the better your team generally looks," he said.

"We're no different to probably 13 other clubs. They're all managing really good players through different levels of rehab and conditioning.

"The quicker this football club gets its head around not relying on star players to get a result, the better we'll be.

"Do we need star players for us to function as a team? They help, but they're not the be-all and end-all.

"We need everyone on the list contributing to a team and that's how we'll coach them."

McCartney conceded the Bulldogs lacked polish at times in midfield in 2011.

"There's so many parts of this game that can be taught," he said.

"Players get labelled as an inside player or an outside player.

"My theory is that players who fit either box can learn the other parts of the games (like) to know how to make decisions based around how the ground looks.

"I'm a firm believer that can be taught and that's what we're going to set about doing."

McCartney said he is prepared to be patient with his new class.

"There's a tolerance level, there'll a patience level, but there'll be a strong demand on learning what we want pretty quickly too," he said.

The rehab group included Dale Morris, who did some boxing on Monday as part of his recovery from a broken leg suffered in round 21.

Daniel Cross and skipper Matthew Boyd led the way in Monday's beep-test run.

Luke Dahlhaus and Matthew Panos have been upgraded to the senior list and Liam Jones, Christian Howard, Dylan Addison and Lukas Markovic have re-signed.

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, footscray-3011, vic, australia

First posted November 07, 2011 20:30:06

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Crows prepare to face Bulldogs

Expires:Wednesday, September 14, 2011 8:10

The Adelaide Crows will be looking to break a run of poor form when they play the Western Bulldogs.

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Tags: australian-football-league, adelaide-5000

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