A thrilling road-trip victory over the Swans proved a watershed moment in the Bulldogs' 2015 season, however it has scarcely rated a mention internally as the Club prepares to tackle Sydney at the SCG on Saturday.

The Dogs recorded a stirring four-point win over the Swans at the ground last year, and speaking with AFL.com.au, Marcus Bontempelli indicated that whilst the triumph was a memorable one, it hasn't been used as motivation for the rematch.

"We haven't touched on it too much," he said.

"From an emotional cue you can certainly lean on it, and I think each player will do that, but from a team perspective we're looking to bring a mean style of footy that can hopefully test them out."

That uncompromising approach by the League's best contested ball outfit will definitely be required against a hardened Swans' midfield unit.

With both the Bulldogs (first) and the Swans (fourth) high possession teams, Bontempelli is anticipating another brutal battle against an on-ball division led by Josh Kennedy and Dan Hannebery.

And the Swans will be wary of him, with Bontempelli holding his own against the premiership-winning duo by racking up 23 possessions, nine clearances, six tackles and two goals in round five last year.

"It's the modern day battle these days with midfields going head-to-head and they’ve certainly (got) an experienced and strong one we're really going to work hard to combat," Bontempelli said.

"We're both really good contested ball teams and in any game that's important.

"We'll back our troops to go punch for punch with a strong team that's been strong in that area for quite a number of years."

While finding the footy isn't a problem for Luke Beveridge's men, hitting the scoreboard is, and it's stymieing the Bulldogs' efforts give its lone 1954 premiership cup some long overdue company.

Despite it's No.1 ranking for disposals this year with an average of 429 per game, the Bulldogs are only 10th for scoring by averaging just 88 points per game.

Another telling stat is the Bulldogs are third-last (71 per cent) for scoring once they retain the ball from an inside forward 50 entry, compared to fellow premiership contender Adelaide's competition best 85 per cent.

While he concedes inefficiency is hindering the side, Bontempelli believes composure and better decision-making is the key to kicking bigger scores.
"It's one of the things we really tried to work on in the pre-season and early parts of the season," he said.

"It is knowing when to hold the ball up or choose a wider option than just kicking the ball in long.

"The positive is we're getting the ball in there, but we need to use the ball a bit better when it's in there."