| 2021 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Coach | Luke Beveridge (7th season) | ||
| Captain(s) | Marcus Bontempelli (2nd season) | ||
| Home ground | Marvel Stadium | ||
| Leading goalkicker | Josh Bruce (15) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 46,051 vs. Collingwood (Round 1) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 7,287 vs. Brisbane Lions (Round 4) | ||
| |||
The Western Bulldogs are an Australian rules football team based in Melbourne, Victoria. Their 2021 season is their 96th season in the Australian Football League (AFL), their seventh season under premiership coach Luke Beveridge, and their second season with Marcus Bontempelli as captain. As of round 4, they have 4 wins and 0 losses, placing them at first place on the ladder.
Background edit
The Western Bulldogs are an Australian rules football team based in Melbourne, Victoria, that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). They ended the 2020 home-and-away season seventh on the ladder. Their season ended after St Kilda beat them in the first week of the finals.
In the off season, Marcus Bontempelli was named captain of the Western Bulldogs for the second year in a row. Mitch Wallis was named as the vice-captain, which formerly was held by Easton Wood. The leadership group was abolished, with players being asked to 'take on more responsibility to guide the team forward'.[1]
Luke Beveridge was head coach for a seventh season.
The Western Bulldogs continued with Mexican foods supplier company Mission Foods as their major sponsor for 2021.
Playing list edit
2020 off-season changes edit
At the end of their 2020 season, the Western Bulldogs delisted 2018 leading goalkicker Billy Gowers, and 2016 draftees Fergus Greene and Brad Lynch.[2] Veterans Jackson Trengove and Matthew Suckling, as well as 2017 draftee Callum Porter were delisted after the trade period.[3] The Western Bulldogs only traded one player, Lachie Young in the trade period, who went to North Melbourne in a three way trade that saw the Western Bulldogs receive Brisbane Lions ruckman Stefan Martin, Brisbane and North Melbourne trade picks 63 and 70 respectively, and Lachie Young be sent to North Melbourne.[4] They received out of favour Collingwood midfielder Adam Treloar and picks 26, 33 and 42 in exchange for a first round and future second round pick.[5] Finally, Mitch Hannan was also traded to the Bulldogs in exchange for a future third round pick.[6]
In the 2020 AFL draft, the Bulldogs drafted Next-Generation-Academy graduate Jamarra Ugle-Hagan with the 1st pick of the 2020 AFL draft,[7] as well as small forward Dominic Bedendo with pick 55.[8]
| Player | Reason | Games played | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billy Gowers | Delisted | 33 | [2] |
| Fergus Greene | Delisted | 5 | [2] |
| Brad Lynch | Delisted | 9 | [2] |
| Callum Porter | Delisted | 1 | [3] |
| Matt Suckling | Delisted | 178 (76 at the Western Bulldogs) | [3] |
| Jackson Trengove | Delisted | 185 (32 at the Western Bulldogs) | [3] |
| Lachie Young | Traded to North Melbourne | 8 | [4] |
| Tory Dickson | Retired | 114 | [9] |
| Sam Lloyd | Retired | 89 (32 at the Western Bulldogs) | [10] |
| Player | Acquired | Former club | Former league | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitch Hannan | Traded from Melbourne | Melbourne | AFL | [6] |
| Stefan Martin | Traded from Brisbane Lions | Brisbane Lions | AFL | [11] |
| Adam Treloar | Traded from Collingwood | Collingwood | AFL | [5] |
| Jamarra Ugle-Hagan | No. 1, 2020 national draft | Oakleigh Chargers | NAB League | [7] |
| Dominic Bedendo | No. 55, 2020 national draft | Murray Bushrangers | NAB League | [8] |
Statistics edit
| Player | No. | Games | Goals | Behinds | Kicks | Handballs | Disposals | Marks | Tackles | Notes/Milestone(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam Treloar | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 51 | 48 | 99 | 11 | 17 | Western Bulldogs debut (round 1)[13] |
| Lewis Young | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 5 | 1 | |
| Mitch Wallis | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 10 | 3 | |
| Marcus Bontempelli | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 55 | 42 | 97 | 19 | 13 | 150th game (round 5) |
| Josh Dunkley | 5 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 44 | 71 | 115 | 22 | 23 | |
| Bailey Smith | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 52 | 50 | 102 | 22 | 10 | |
| Lachie Hunter | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 49 | 36 | 85 | 24 | 13 | |
| Stefan Martin | 8 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 33 | 48 | 4 | 5 | Western Bulldogs debut (round 1)[13] |
| Hayden Crozier | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Easton Wood | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 14 | 33 | 12 | 5 | |
| Jack Macrae | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 65 | 76 | 141 | 14 | 17 | |
| Zaine Cordy | 12 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Josh Schache | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Rhylee West | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Taylor Duryea | 15 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 32 | 80 | 27 | 8 | |
| Toby McLean | 16 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Josh Bruce | 17 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 39 | 18 | 57 | 29 | 6 | |
| Louis Butler | 18 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Cody Weightman | 19 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Ed Richards | 20 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Tom Liberatore | 21 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 48 | 48 | 96 | 8 | 21 | 150th game (round 2)[14] |
| Jamarra Ugle-Hagan | 22 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Laitham Vandermeer | 23 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 17 | 22 | 39 | 7 | 10 | |
| Buku Khamis | 24 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Category-B Rookie |
| Ben Cavarra | 25 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Dominic Bedendo | 26 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Patrick Lipinski | 27 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 33 | 60 | 11 | 7 | |
| Anthony Scott | 28 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 22 | 45 | 7 | 6 | Rookie, AFL debut (round 1)[13] |
| Mitch Hannan | 29 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Lachlan McNeil | 30 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 22 | 15 | 37 | 6 | 5 | Rookie, AFL debut (round 1)[13] |
| Bailey Dale | 31 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 48 | 29 | 77 | 18 | 6 | |
| Will Hayes | 32 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Rookie |
| Aaron Naughton | 33 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 44 | 16 | 60 | 30 | 10 | |
| Bailey Williams | 34 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 27 | 81 | 19 | 10 | |
| Caleb Daniel | 35 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 53 | 39 | 92 | 14 | 8 | |
| Roarke Smith | 37 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Rookie |
| Riley Garcia | 38 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Jason Johannisen | 39 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 11 | 27 | 3 | 4 | |
| Jordon Sweet | 41 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Rookie |
| Alex Keath | 42 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 20 | 60 | 23 | 12 | 50th game (round 2)[14] |
| Ryan Gardner | 43 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 21 | 11 | 2 | Rookie |
| Tim English | 44 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 34 | 22 | 56 | 29 | 7 | 50th game (round 3)[15] |
| Lin Jong | 46 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Season summary edit
The fixture for the 2021 season was revealed in December 2020, with each team scheduled to play 22 matches and have a mid-season bye, as was normal prior to COVID-19. Only the first six rounds had times and dates set for the matches, with the remaining dates to be confirmed.[16] The Bulldogs are scheduled to play Gold Coast, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Port Adelaide and West Coast twice, and the other teams once each.[17]
The Western Bulldogs' first match of the season was against Collingwood at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The Bulldogs secured their first win of the season, a 16 point win, after leading the entire game. This saw former Collingwood player Adam Treloar play against his old club for the first time.[18] In round 2, the Bulldogs played West Coast at Marvel Stadium. The game was very even, with the lead switching 11 times throughout the game. Although the Eagles lead by by 2 goals at three quarter time, the Bulldogs kicked 5 goals to 2, with Bontempelli kicking the sealer, in order to secure the win, which was described as 'the best game of 2021 so far'.[19]
Round 3 saw the team make history as they brutally demolished North Melbourne in the Good Friday marquee match by 128 points, their biggest winning margin in the club's history.[20][21] Josh Bruce kicked 10 goals, the biggest amount kicked by an AFL player since Ben Brown in 2019.[22] The win propelled them to the top spo of the ladder, with a percentage of 181.6. Round 4 saw the club continue their undefeated streak, after they beat 2020 prelimnary finalists Brisbane Lions by 19 points on a windy day at Mars Stadium in Ballarat.[23] Ruckman turned forward Tim English, new recruit Adam Treloar and the ever-consistent Jack Macrae were named as the team's best on ground after they collected a combined 78 disposals and 4 goals.[24]
Results edit
| Game | Date | Result | Score | Opponent | Score | Ground | Attendance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | B | T | G | B | T | ||||||
| 1 | Sunday 8 March | Won | 15 | 16 | 106 | Melbourne | 10 | 7 | 67 | Marvel Stadium | 7,931 |
| H | Home game |
|---|---|
| A | Away game |
Ladder edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne (P) | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 1888 | 1443 | 130.8 | 70 | Finals series |
| 2 | Port Adelaide | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 1884 | 1492 | 126.3 | 68 | |
| 3 | Geelong | 22 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 1845 | 1456 | 126.7 | 64 | |
| 4 | Brisbane Lions | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 2131 | 1599 | 133.3 | 60 | |
| 5 | Western Bulldogs | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 1994 | 1501 | 132.8 | 60 | |
| 6 | Sydney | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 1986 | 1656 | 119.9 | 60 | |
| 7 | Greater Western Sydney | 22 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 1768 | 1773 | 99.7 | 46 | |
| 8 | Essendon | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 1953 | 1790 | 109.1 | 44 | |
| 9 | West Coast | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 1752 | 1880 | 93.2 | 40 | |
| 10 | St Kilda | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 1644 | 1796 | 91.5 | 40 | |
| 11 | Fremantle | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 1578 | 1825 | 86.5 | 40 | |
| 12 | Richmond | 22 | 9 | 12 | 1 | 1743 | 1780 | 97.9 | 38 | |
| 13 | Carlton | 22 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 1746 | 1972 | 88.5 | 32 | |
| 14 | Hawthorn | 22 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 1629 | 1912 | 85.2 | 32 | |
| 15 | Adelaide | 22 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 1616 | 1971 | 82.0 | 28 | |
| 16 | Gold Coast | 22 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 1430 | 1863 | 76.8 | 28 | |
| 17 | Collingwood | 22 | 6 | 16 | 0 | 1557 | 1818 | 85.6 | 24 | |
| 18 | North Melbourne | 22 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 1458 | 2075 | 70.3 | 18 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers
References edit
- ^ "Wallis appointed as Bont's deputy for 2021". Western Bulldogs Media. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Bulldogs confirm list changes". Western Bulldogs Media. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Dual premiership player among three Dogs delisted". AFL Media. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ a b "Trade: Young becomes a Roo". North Melbourne Kangaroos Media. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ a b Schmook, Nathan (12 November 2020). "Last-minute drama: Treloar becomes a Bulldog at the death". AFL Media. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ a b Schmook, Nathan (10 November 2020). "Crafty forward enters Kennel for future pick". AFL Media. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ a b "2020 Draft, Pick 1: Jamarra Ugle-Hagan". Western Bulldogs Media. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ a b "2020 Draft, Pick 55: Dominic Bedendo". Western Bulldogs Media. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Whiting, Michael (27 September 2020). "Dog's days are over: Premiership hero calls time". Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Noakes, Cameron (15 December 2020). "Retirement shock: Dogs forward, ex-Tiger quits despite contract". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Cleary, Mitch (10 November 2020). "Big Lion, young Dog find new homes in three-way trade". AFL Media. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "2021 Player Stats". AFLTables. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ a b c d Cotton, Ben (17 March 2021). "Bulldogs to unveil FOUR Round 1 debutants". ZeroHanger. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ a b "Western Bulldogs vs West Coast - Line Ups". afl.com.au. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "North Melbourne vs Wetsern Bulldogs - Line Ups". afl.com.au. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ Schmook, Nathan. "Full AFL fixture reveal: Six rounds locked in, floating schedule unveiled". AFL.com.au. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ "Fixture breakdown: Double-ups, byes, what your club says". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Cleary, Mitch (19 March 2021). "Treloar gets the last laugh as Dogs dominate disposals". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Twomey, Callum (28 March 2021). "What a game! Bont inspires Dogs in an instant classic". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Francis, Kieran (2 April 2021). "Western Bulldogs record biggest win in club history against pitiful North Melbourne, Josh Bruce kicks 10 goals". sportingnews.com.au. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Ryan, Peter (2 April 2021). "Josh Bruce kicks 10 in record-breaking Bulldogs win". The Age. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ Cleary, Mitch (2 April 2021). "Bruce boots massive bag in brutal demolition of dismal Roos". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ "Dogs master Lions in windy Ballarat to stay perfect". AFL Media. 11 April 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ "Western Bulldogs vs Brisbane Lions - Player Stats". AFL Media. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
- ^ "2021 Season Scores and Results". AFL Tables. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
External links edit
Category:Western Bulldogs seasons Category:2021 Australian Football League season