Taylor Duryea has made a strong case for a senior recall, with a best afield performance at VFL level on Saturday afternoon.

Playing his first game in more than two months after recovering from a hip injury, Duryea was dominant across half-back.

The 28-year-old collected 24 disposals and kicked a goal in an impressive team performance, as Footscray claimed a 54-point win against Northern Blues at Ikon Park.

“I was just excited to get out there really,” Duryea said post-game.

“I know I’ve put in enough work over the nine weeks, so it was just a matter of whether I was rusty or not.

“I managed to get a few kicks early which settled the nerves, and then just got into the flow of the game. I’m really happy to get through and be part of a good win.

“My teammates were great around me, they put me in good positions and kept me in attacking positions, which obviously allowed me to get the ball.

“I’m just stoked with how we went.”

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It was Duryea’s first match since the round four AFL loss to Collingwood.

The first-year Bulldog is still getting accustomed to his new teammates on-field, and had plenty of praise for his fellow defenders after the win.

“We’ve got Fletcher Roberts there, we know what we’re going to get from him… and I thought Lewy Young played a fantastic game,” Duryea said.

“Guys at different stages had to play above their height, like Buku (Khamis) and Lachie Young.

“I thought we were really strong down back and quite settled, so we could sort of control the game really.”