Western Bulldogs v GWS GIANTS
Saturday 14 March | 1:15pm AEDT
Marvel Stadium, Melbourne • Wurundjeri
Broadcast: Kayo/Fox Footy (check your local broadcast guide)

LAST MEETING

Round 21, 2025
Western Bulldogs 19.18 (132) def. GWS 6.8 (44)

The Western Bulldogs delivered a statement 88-point win over GWS late last season, making it nine wins from the past 10 meetings between the two sides. 

Sam Darcy and Aaron Naughton dominated, kicking five goals each, while Tim English was impressive, even pushing forward to finish with 2.3 from 20 disposals, 11 marks and 22 hit-outs. The usual suspects – Marcus Bontempelli, Tom Liberatore and Ed Richards – were busy but this was no one-man show. 

THE LINE-UP

Check back here at 6:20pm AEDT Thursday night for teams!

WHAT IT MEANS

The Western Bulldogs were forced to spend the summer pondering what might have been after a failure to beat the top sides regularly enough ultimately cost them a finals place last year. The Dogs took a huge step with a stirring come-from-behind victory over the reigning premier Lions and can further prove their credentials this week against their old foes the Giants.

GAME SHAPER

Ed Richards is now into his third season of helping to spark the Western Bulldogs' midfield and was at his electrifying best as his side chased down the reigning premiers to open its campaign with a win. The 26-year-old was especially important early and finished with 30 disposals, seven clearances, 16 score involvements and two goals as he shows there is more to come as he reaches 150 games.

The Western Bulldogs have backed up their first-up win against the two-time reigning premiers with another impressive performance, this time a 81-point thumping of Greater Western Sydney at Marvel Stadium.

Marcus Bontempelli conducted his Dogs with aplomb, leading the way to the 21.8 (134) to 7.11 (53) result that firmly cements them as one of the teams to beat in 2026.

Bontempelli's spread from contest, delivery forward, and then attacking power himself made him the Dogs' north star on what was a very good day for the club. The captain finished with 33 disposals, six clearances, and three goals in a display that surely caught the umpires attention come Brownlow vote submission.

Bontempelli's heroics were just one part of the headache for the Giants, as Matthew Kennedy's grunt work bore 27 disposals and eight clearances, and Tom Liberatore (29 disposals, six clearances) proved to be as tough as ever.

Forward stoppages were particularly potent, as the Giants were often drawn into the contest, while the Dogs maintained diligent layers to have a reliable release option close to goal.

The ruck battle further compounded the Bulldogs' stoppage dominance. Tim English's deft tap-work gave his teammates first use as he athletically outworked the more physical style of Kieren Briggs and was simply too crafty for back-up option Jake Riccardi.

There was a sense of desperation about the Bulldogs' defence, forcing poor decision making and execution from the Giants, while effortlessly restructuring to rebuff the next attack. Buku Khamis' star continues to rise, with his capacity to read the play and make smart decisions resulting in nine marks and five intercepts for the game, as he and Rory Lobb (12 disposals, seven marks) worked beautifully in tandem.

They made life hard for the powerful Giants attack, limiting opportunities for the likes of Jesse Hogan, Jake Stringer and Max Gruzewski.

The Bulldogs' discipline to maintain length repeatedly caught the Giants out, both on turnover and from kick in. With a layered attacking structure and the deft field kicks of talls Darcy (16 disposals, four goals) and Naughton (15 disposals, six goals), the home side was able to link up neatly down the field with little disruption from the trailing Giants.

Given the quality of supply coming into the Dogs' forward line, there was little the Giants' key defenders could do as they competed one-on-one with Darcy and Naughton.

The hard-fought win over Brisbane at the Gabba last week and this thumping victory on Saturday sees the Bulldogs take top spot on the ladder, at least for now.

WESTERN BULLDOGS          5.1    11.1    16.6      21.8 (134)
GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY    2.3     4.5     6.8     7.11 (53)

GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Naughton 6, Darcy 4, Bontempelli 3, Baker 2, Davidson 2, Hynes, Liberatore, Kennedy, Bramble
Greater Western Sydney: Callaghan 2, Greene, Rowston, Riccardi, O'Halloran, Coniglio

BEST 
Western Bulldogs: Bontempelli, Khamis, Naughton, English, Kennedy, Jaques
Greater Western Sydney: Greene, Fonti, Ash, Himmelberg

INJURIES 
Western Bulldogs: Lewis (head)
Greater Western Sydney: Himmelberg (chin)

Crowd: 28,318 at Marvel Stadium