The Western Bulldogs have played out a dramatic draw with Carlton at Marvel Stadium to improve their chances of securing a 'home' wildcard final.
In a see-sawing encounter, the Bulldogs led by seven points with six minutes left, but the Blues rallied to level the scores with less than three remaining and were happy to see out the stalemate given it secured their spot in finals.
Early on, the Bulldogs were hurt around stoppage, and warning bells were ringing with both Marcus Bontempelli and Tim English out of the side. But it was Ed Richards (31 disposals, six clearances, two goals) who donned the cape to wrench it back the Dogs' way, moving with power out of the contest and remaining involved in passages as they moved down the ground.
Tom Liberatore also came to the party with 12 clearances and 33 disposals, doing his usual grunt work to release the likes of Joel Freijah and Ryley Sanders on the outside.
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02:13
Arthur Jones | 'There were a couple of performances I was impressed with'
Arthur Jones discusses our draw with Carlton.
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00:29
AFL R23 | Blistering Richards sinks massive dagger as contest gets tight
Ed Richards slots his second major with a brilliant finish from distance to give the Bulldogs the advantage
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01:53
AFL R23 | All-in brawl erupts
Arthur Jones gets under Carlton’s skin with some superb pressure before the lively Bulldog finds himself at the centre of a heated melee on the siren
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00:33
AFL R23 | Quick Kennedy curls cracker as ripping Richards gets motoring
Luke Kennedy makes the most of a fast opportunity after a perfect centre clearance from Ed Richards
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00:48
AFL R23 | Fast starting Dogs bring early bite
Joel Freijah curls the opening major before Sam Davidson strikes it sweetly as the Bulldogs burst from the blocks
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08:39
Luke Beveridge | "In the pursuit of improvement"
Luke Beveridge speaks to the media ahead of the round 23 clash with Carlton at Marvel Stadium.
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01:22
Carmichael told of R23 Debut
Lachy Carmichael and the rest of the playing group are told that he will debut against Carlton in Round 23.
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The home side lived in its attack for large swathes of the game, and while in the second term it capitalised on that territory, recording four goals to Carlton's one, in the third it lacked some finishing.
It was quick, ground level players who were able to do the damage for the Bulldogs, positioning themselves well and applying a heap of pressure within goal scoring range.
In his first game captaining the club, Aaron Naughton had a tough day and his remarkable streak of kicking at least one goal in his past 21 games ended as he recorded three behinds for the afternoon.
The subplot of the match was the head-to-head battle between young Blues defender Billy Wilson and dynamic Dogs forward Arty Jones. The pair traded blows all afternoon – Jones with his clean gathers and ground speed, Wilson with his tackle pressure and rebounding ability.
The result means the Dogs will finish no lower than ninth if they can match Carlton's result next week, with the Blues playing Fremantle before the Dogs face Melbourne at the MCG. A win for the Dogs and a Collingwood loss would see them finish in eighth.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 3.2 7.4 9.8 12.10 (82)
CARLTON 5.3 6.5 10.7 12.10 (82)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Freijah 2, Richards 2, Davidson, Jones, Weightman, Croft, L.Kennedy, Dolan, Williams, West
Carlton: Hayward 3, McKay 2, McGovern, Lord, Pittonet, Acres, Kemp, Evans, Derksen
BEST
Western Bulldogs: Richards, Liberatore, Hynes, Sellwood, Freijah
Carlton: Cripps, Smith, Walsh, McKay, Pittonet, Haynes
INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Nil
Carlton: Hayward (right ankle)
Crowd: 44,106 at Marvel Stadium
