As the end of the 2016 home-and-away season drew near, the Western Bulldogs were keen to take strong form into the finals. After setback losses against Geelong and St Kilda, in which the Dogs lost Mitch Wallis, Tom Liberatore and Jack Macrae to injury, Luke Beveridge’s men had corrected course with hard-fought home wins over North Melbourne and Collingwood.

Now, in the season’s penultimate round, the Dogs were at Marvel Stadium (then known as Etihad Stadium) for a third week in a row, looking for a hat-trick of wins. Their opponents, co-tenants Essendon, had endured a tough season, with many players unavailable as a result of ASADA suspensions, but were not to be taken lightly.

The Bombers were coming off a win against Gold Coast and looking to claim another scalp. Second year coach Beveridge wanted his Bulldogs primed for their Sunday twilight encounter, and hammered home the importance of a strong start against the Dons.

‘Bevo’ might have briefly wondered if his plea had fallen on deaf ears when Essendon controlled the early moments of that match and opened the scoring with a goal to Joe Daniher at the two-minute mark. Any nerves were quickly calmed, however, when Tory Dickson kicked the Bulldogs’ first major a couple of minutes later, and he soon followed up with his second.

It was midway through the term that the Bulldog machine really clicked into gear, as the Dogs unleashed the slick football that had become a Beveridge trademark under the Marvel ‘lid’. Against Essendon, that high-octane brand of footy produced four goals in a 10-minute burst of brilliance, with one each to Caleb Daniel, Lin Jong, Tom Boyd and Easton Wood.

By the time the quarter-time siren had sounded, the Bulldogs had piled on six goals to one, with five different players sharing the majors. Given the Dogs’ leading goalkicker for the season Jake Stringer was missing through injury, this was a clear and important demonstration that the Bulldogs had many avenues to goal.

Essendon fought back in the second quarter, cutting the Bulldogs’ lead to 22 points at half time, but the Dogs regained control in the third term, during which they showed that their defensive game was also strong. Although the Dogs added only three goals of their own in the quarter, they denied the Bombers any, taking a 40-point buffer into the last break.

That third quarter was not without its hiccups, though. Stand-in skipper Easton Wood added to the Bulldogs’ growing injury list when he rolled his ankle after landing awkwardly in a marking contest.

Wood’s loss was certainly not an ideal scenario, and his teammates may have been temporarily distracted, with the Bombers kicking the first two majors of the final quarter. But the Dogs demonstrated a maturity beyond their years as a group from that point. Essendon did not goal again, and with majors to Clay Smith and Dickson, the Dogs closed out a 40-point win.

For a team containing only five players with more than 100 games’ experience (Essendon had seven), it was an impressive display – and it was one of the Bulldogs’ 100-gamers who was a shining light in the match. In game 171, Liam Picken collected 33 disposals and kicked an important second-quarter goal. Picken’s defensive game was as strong as his offensive on the night, too. He laid an equal-game high (with Josh Dunkley) eight tackles.

Meanwhile Jason Johannisen launched countless Bulldog attacks, gathering 31 possessions running off the half back line, while Lachie Hunter also dominated, kicking a goal to go with his 30 touches.

Although the Bulldogs’ big win kept them in the hunt for a top four finish, history shows that they missed out on that opportunity with an unexpected loss against Fremantle in Perth the following week. But history also shows that the Dogs would overcome that setback with a magical month of footy that would take them to a drought-breaking flag.

The Dogs were boosted at the beginning of that month, with Wood, Liberatore, Macrae and Stringer all returning from their injuries. Along with that quartet, the players who helped propel the Bulldogs to victory over Essendon in their last game at Marvel Stadium for the season – Johannisen, Picken, Dickson and Hunter – would again feature prominently when that premiership drought was broken on Grand Final day in 2016.

Round 22, 2016
Western Bulldogs 14.9.93 d Essendon 7.11.53
Goals: Dickson 3, Daniel 2, Boyd, Cordy, Hunter, Jong, McLean, Picken, Roughead, Smith, Wood
Brownlow Medal votes: Liam Picken 3, Jason Johannisen 2, Lachlan Hunter 1