Western Bulldogs spearhead Aaron Naughton is hopeful the team can continue notching up the wins in the run home.

Led by Marcus Bontempelli and Tom Liberatore, the Bulldogs defeated Essendon by 41 points on Friday night to remain in the top eight with just five games remaining.

“We had a real focus – obviously the ladder at this time of the year is pretty tight. There’s a lot of teams there fighting for the last couple of spots in the top eight,” Naughton told SEN Crunch Time on Saturday.

“It was a super important win for us. Hopefully we can keep rolling.

“It still sort of is (one week at a time), because if we had lost we probably would’ve been out of the eight, but we’ve just got to keep winning.

“That’s the exciting thing about the back end of the year - with so many teams tight on the ladder it makes it good footy. Every game is super important for the final finish.”

Naughton was particularly impressed by his skipper’s efforts, and also fellow forward Cody Weightman.

“You just marvel at how good (Bontempelli) is. There’s so many moments in the game that he has an impact,” he said.

“It’s awesome playing with him – sometimes you just have to sit back and appreciate what he can do on the field.

“Cody’s a ball of energy and has a freakish goal sense. He doesn’t have to be facing the goals – he just knows where they are, and is someone who’s pretty accurate no matter what angle he’s from.

“He’s a super talent and is just so much fun to play with, with all the energy that he brings.”

Naughton is one of just two players remaining across the competition to have kicked at least one goal in all possible games of the season.

Having kicked the most goals of his career against the Giants – 15 from eight matches – he looks likely to continue his streak when the Bulldogs host them in Ballarat on Saturday afternoon.