The Western Bulldogs' bid to secure a home elimination final remains on track after they had a comfortable 40-point win over Essendon at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, but their win could come at a high cost with acting captain Easton Wood suffering an ankle injury.
Playing the Bombers for the first and only time this year, the Bulldogs flew out of the blocks with a six-goal-to-one first quarter and, despite dogged resistance from the undermanned Dons, rode their clear-cut edge in class to a 14.9 (93) to 7.11 (53) victory.
Wood was forced from the ground late in the third term, after landing awkwardly on his left ankle following a marking attempt. The defender did not return to the ground and had ice strapped to his ankle as he watched the rest of the game from the interchange bench.
With captain Bob Murphy (knee) and Mitch Wallis (leg) already ruled out for the rest of the season, and key midfielders Tom Liberatore (ankle) and Jack Macrae (hamstring) engaged in races against time to be fit for the finals, the Bulldogs will be sweating on the scan results of Wood's injury early next week.
Dogs coach Luke Beveridge said initial assessments of Wood's ankle were not promising.
"I don't think it's too flash. I can't give you a diagnosis, he's gone off to hospital for some scans so we'll know a bit more tomorrow," a flat Beveridge said post-match.
"The forecast isn't great unfortunately, but who knows he might be all right, we'll see."
"Whether Easton is done for the year, I don't know."
Geelong's win over the Brisbane Lions earlier on Sunday slammed the door on the Bulldogs' top-four hopes, but they can secure a home elimination final if they defeat Fremantle at Domain Stadium next Sunday and either fifth-placed Greater Western Sydney or sixth-placed West Coast loses. GWS takes on North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium next Saturday night while the Eagles travel to play Adelaide at Adelaide Oval on Friday night.
Jason Johannisen (32 possessions) was outstanding for the Bulldogs in defence, pumping them inside their forward 50 eight times, while Lachie Hunter (30), Liam Picken (33) and Marcus Bontempelli (27) were prolific ball-winners through the middle of the ground.
Matthew Boyd was also typically resolute for the Bulldogs in their defensive 50 and Caleb Daniel (23 possessions and two goals) was lively in attack.
It was hard to question Essendon's fight. With little to play for other than pride, the Bombers dusted themselves off after the lop-sided first term and ground the game out, even briefly threatening to challenge the Dogs when they cut the margin to 29 points with the opening two goals of the final term.
Essendon coach John Worsfold was pleased with the way his team fought out the game after the first quarter.
"It was a disappointing first quarter but a big response in the second quarter. We still didn't get the reward that maybe we would have liked in that second quarter, but the response was great," Worsfold said after the game.
"And then we really got towelled up in the third quarter again and fought back in the last quarter.
"We were pleased that players were having a go at what we were asking them to do. They weren't executing it perfectly but they were certainly having a go at it.
"In the end we outscored them by a point in the last quarter and we outscored them in the second quarter, so where we're at we would take it. It was just the big gap in that first quarter when they just scored too easily."
Zach Merrett continued his strong season, finishing with a game-high 35 possessions, eight tackles and one goal, while David Zaharakis (31 possessions) worked hard in the midfield and Mitch Brown took a game-high 13 marks in defence.
Mathew Stokes (31 possessions) had one of his best games for the season in his 200th and final AFL match, while fellow milestone man Adam Cooney (22) tried hard in his 250th game and provided one of the game's highlights when he goaled with a classy left-foot snap late in the second quarter.
Joe Daniher (two goals) gave the Dons a strong aerial target in attack in the first half, clunking four contested marks, including a soaring pack grab over a sea of Bulldogs late in the second term that should earn him mark of the week.
But the spearhead faded from the game after half-time and his confidence in front of goal appeared low as he avoided taking set shots on several occasions, preferring to play on and kick around his body instead.
After Daniher kicked the game's opening goal, the Bulldogs piled on six consecutive goals – two of them to Tory Dickson – to go into quarter-time 30 points up.
The Bulldogs' dominance in the first term was reflected in the inside count, 18-7 in their favour, with their delivery to their forwards generally precise.
John Worsfold's men breathed some life back into the contest in the second term, seizing control of general play to pump the ball inside their forward 50 16 times for the term while restricting the Bulldogs to just seven inside 50s.
The Dons' wasted some chances in front of goal but kicked 4.5 for the quarter to the Bulldogs' 3.3 to cut their deficit to 22 points at the main break.
But the Bulldogs regained control of the contest in the third term, kicking three goals and holding Essendon goalless to go into three-quarter time with a comfortable 41-point buffer.
MEDICAL ROOM
Essendon: Key defender Michael Hartley came from the ground in the second quarter after getting a knock on his broken nose, but returned after the Dons medicos managed to stem the bleeding.
Western Bulldogs: Acting captain Easton Wood is the biggest concern for the Bulldogs after his evening ended late in the third term with a left ankle injury. Dogs coach Luke Beveridge said initial assessments suggested Wood's ankle wasn't "too flash", but he could not say whether the defender's season was over. Ruckman Jordan Roughead went down into the Bulldogs' rooms midway through the first quarter to have an apparent ankle injury assessed, but returned to the ground soon after and played out the game despite moving gingerly at times.
NEXT UP
The Bombers face traditional rivals Carlton at the MCG next Saturday, knowing a win could help them avoid the wooden spoon by lifting them past the Brisbane Lions. The Bulldogs will travel to Perth to take on Fremantle at Domain Stadium next Sunday hoping to secure a home elimination final. To do so, the Dogs will have to defeat the Dockers and then rely on Greater Western Sydney (North Melbourne at Etihad) or West Coast (Adelaide at Adelaide Oval) losing.
ESSENDON 1.2 5.7 5.9 7.11 (53)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 6.2 9.5 12.8 14.9 (93)
GOALS
Essendon: Daniher 2, Leuenberger, J. Merrett, Cooney, Fantasia, Z. Merrett
Western Bulldogs: Dickson 3, Daniel 2, Jong, T. Boyd, Wood, Picken, Cordy, McLean, Roughead, Hunter, C. Smith
BEST
Essendon: Z .Merrett, Stokes, Daniher, Kelly, Zaharakis, Leuenberger
Western Bulldogs: Johannisen, Daniel, Bontempelli, Picken, Jong, Hunter, M. Boyd
INJURIES
Essendon: Hartley (nose)
Western Bulldogs: Wood (ankle)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Fisher, Stephens, Chamberlain
Official crowd: TBC at Etihad Stadium
