Here are some of the key points following the Round 13 game. 

Winning Against Top-Eight Teams

Sitting at six wins and six losses following Thursday night's defeat to the Hawks, the Dogs find themselves with a point to prove in the second half of the season.

The Bulldogs have demonstrated their ability to win—and win big—throughout the 2025 season. However, questions remain about their capacity to beat the competition's best teams.

While scrutiny continues, the Dogs have shown resilience and an ability to compete strongly against top-eight sides, with narrow losses to Collingwood, Brisbane, and Geelong.

Despite this, Senior Coach Luke Beveridge was frank in his assessment of the state of play after the game, acknowledging that being close enough is not good enough for the Dogs in 2025.

“I always think that to make the leap into the top part of the competition, if you’re getting beaten by 15 or 20 points here and there, it’s more than that," Beveridge said.

“The margin on the scoreboard sometimes doesn’t tell the full story.

“What we’ve done in recent times against some of the better teams and in the pressure of the game—we turn the ball over too often and too blatantly. 

“That’s put us on the back foot at different times, and it’s hard to get momentum in the game when you’re doing that too often.

“That’s skill, that’s game sense. Some of it’s a surprise, some of it isn’t, depending on who is doing it. We’ve just got to keep doing our best to improve it, train it, and keep focusing on what we can achieve.

“I’ve been talking to the players about making the leap. The growth and making the leap into that upper echelon means that, individually and across the lines of the team, we need to make more than just small increments of improvement—we need to make big ones.

“We’re doing our best to explore and discover it, but tonight, we didn’t.”

The Swinging Lobster

Once again, Rory Lobb was instrumental in keeping the Dogs in the contest during Round 13.

With Hawthorn’s Josh Weddle wreaking havoc for the Bulldogs, the coaches turned to the versatile 32-year-old to help curb Weddle’s impact.

Lobb moved forward, competed strongly, and hit the scoreboard with a crucial goal in the third quarter.

Ever the team player, Lobb was happy to do what was needed.

“I don’t like talking about my game when we lose," Lobb said after the match.

“At half-time, Bevo wanted me to go forward and just provide a contest. I was just trying to bring the ball to ground and bring our smalls into it.

“In that first half, they took a few intercept marks, so I was just trying to provide that contest.”

Echoing Senior Coach Luke Beveridge’s sentiments, Lobb acknowledged that the loss leaves the Dogs in an unenviable position and gave them a clear focus for the remainder of the season.

“You need to win close games these days. We’re six-and-six—it’s not really where we want to be," he said.

“The comp is so tight that you need to show up every single game, and we need to play our brand—get back to physicality, contest work, and a stronger front-half game.”

Small Forward Gets His Praise

In what was a challenging night for the Bulldogs' forwards, Laith Vandermeer worked tirelessly to provide a spark for the team.

Averaging a goal per game in 2025, Vandermeer added another two to his tally in a season where he has been one of the team’s most consistent small forwards.

Speaking exclusively to members post-match, Assistant Coach Matt Spangher praised the 26-year-old's work rate, believing his return was well-earned.\

“Pleasing to see Laith continue to influence the game, as he has this year," Spangher said. 

“He’s always been an important player for us, and this year, he’s certainly started hitting the scoreboard more.

“He gets on the end of those because of how hard he works and does it at speed. It’s no fluke that he kicked a couple of goals tonight when others struggled to do so. 

“To his credit, he’s gone to work—Laith.

“On a tough night for the Club, there were a couple of shining lights, and he was one of them.”