The Sydney Swans have suffered a 39-point loss against a dominant Western Bulldogs outfit at the SCG on Sunday afternoon.
It was the Bulldogs third straight win over a top-four contenderr and the 12.15 (87) to 7.6 (48) victory came off the back of pure workrate, handing the Swans their biggest loss since round six last year.
Ugle-Hagan's four goals headlined a big day for the Dogs' tall forwards, with Aaron Naughton (18 disposals, 10 marks) and Sam Darcy (10 disposals, one goal) also wreaking havoc on an undersized Sydney defence.
While the Dogs' height seemed, on paper, to be the biggest challenge for Sydney, particularly with key defender Lewis Melican subbed out with injury in the second term, it was in fact on the deck where it was soundly beaten.
Adam Treloar (40 disposals, seven score involvements), Marcus Bontempelli (22 disposals, one goal), and Tom Liberatore (22 disposals, eight clearances) took charge at the contest, setting the Bulldogs up beautifully right across the ground.
The Western Bulldogs brought the pressure and energy at the ground ball, worrying the Swans into panicked, rushed disposal and capitalising on the turnover.
A desire to hunt the ground ball was reflected in the contested possession count, which the Dogs won 162-135.
When the Swans did find control, regular scoring wasn't forthcoming, meaning the Dogs' dominant opening term kept the home side at an arm's length for the duration.
Their forward line was impotent in the face of a disciplined Bulldogs defence, further impacted by Logan McDonald's shift down back in the second term. It also wasn't helped by poor forward 50 entries, all too often kicked to the advantage of the Dogs' defenders, giving the likes of Joel Amartey, Hayden McLean, and Will Hayward little chance to compete.
Despite the loss, young Sydney defender Matt Roberts (36 disposals, one goal) had a strong outing under immense pressure all day, and Errol Gulden (27 disposals, one goal) never stopped trying to lift his side.
Success built on hard work
While talent and class are certainly hallmarks of the Bulldogs' game, their recent success is beautifully set up by pure effort. A willingness to gut-run, do the hard stuff, defend, and set up teammates was clear against the Swans, and importantly, the Dogs maintained the rage for the full four quarters. Even when up by nine goals in the dying minutes, the Dogs were simply relentless in their attempts to suffocate every Sydney possession, and it is off the back of this effort that a genuine finals tilt can be established.
The height problem
Coming into the game, the height of the Bulldogs was certainly a concern for the Swans. The visitors boasted six players standing 196cm or taller, while Sydney came in with only three. The Western Bulldogs acknowledged that aerial advantage and used it to great effect, recording 12 marks inside 50 to Sydney's seven, and 11 contested marks to seven. Their defensive positioning when not in possession would often force the Swans into a long, high kick down the line or going inside 50, which the Dogs would inevitably intercept and propel into attack themselves. That inability to reliably win possession in the air prevented any sort of consistent control for Sydney, and the Bulldogs excelled.
A thinning defence
Already without Dane Rampe down back, and not directly replaced in team selection, a hamstring injury to key back Lewis Melican in the second quarter was the worst-case scenario. The Swans had been exposed by the Bulldogs' tall forwards to that point, unable to shut out the likes of Aaron Naughton, Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, and Sam Darcy, so with Melican out of the game further re-shuffling was necessary. Nick Blakey was anchored closer to goal to play as a contested key defender, rather than his rebounding, running game, and Logan McDonald was pulled out of attack into the defensive 50. Looking ahead, John Longmire will no doubt be sweating on the availability of Rampe and Melican, with Aaron Francis, defender-turned-forward Joel Hamling, and untried Will Edwards waiting in the wings.
SYDNEY 0.1 2.1 4.4 7.6 (48)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 5.5 7.7 10.12 12.15 (87)
GOALS
Sydney: McLean 2, Roberts, Mills, McDonald, Hayward, Gulden
Western Bulldogs: Ugle-Hagan 4, West 2, McNeil 2, Richards, Poulter, Darcy, Bontempelli
BEST
Sydney: Roberts, Grundy, Gulden, Heeney
Western Bulldogs: Treloar, Bontempelli, Liberatore, Jones, Ugle-Hagan, Naughton
INJURIES
Sydney: Melican (right hamstring)
Western Bulldogs: Nil
SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Luke Parker (replaced Lewis Melican in the second quarter)
Western Bulldogs: Caleb Daniel (replaced Nick Coffield in the final quarter)
Crowd: 36,028 at the SCG
