The Bulldogs have had a couple of very close encounters on May 18 in the AFL era, each culminating in heart-stopping wins for the Dogs.
The first of those thrillers came on this day in 1991 when Footscray hosted Brisbane at Western Oval. The Dogs were looking to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Melbourne at the MCG a week earlier, while the Bears were sitting last on the ladder without a win.
Surely this would be the Dogs' chance to get back on the winners' list? Not without a fight! Led by David Bain and ex-Bulldog Michael McLean, the Bears played a brand of football that belied their place on the ladder, and stuck with the Dogs throughout the afternoon.
Brisbane led by two points at quarter time, but Footscray looked to have shaken the Bears off by half time, taking a 12-point buffer into the long break. Try as they might, though, the Bulldogs could not break away to a big lead. The margin at three-quarter time was still just 11 points and the Bears fought tooth and nail throughout the last term before the Dogs held on for a five-point win.
In his 87th AFL match, Greg Eppelstun played perhaps the best game of his career for the Bulldogs, his 26 touches earning him the only Brownlow vote awarded to Footscray that day. Bain and McLean, who each had 40 possessions for the Bears, were awarded the three and two votes.
Other stars for the Bulldogs on the day were Ben Sexton, who kicked five goals, Tony Liberatore (34 disposals), Simon Atkins (29), Steve Wallis (29) and Steve MacPherson (27).
Eighteen years later, the Dogs had another close May 18 encounter on the other side of the country. In Round 8, 2008, the Bulldogs travelled to Perth to take on Fremantle at Subiaco. The Dockers were third-last on the ladder with just one win, while the Dogs were undefeated and looking to grab top place.
Like the match against Brisbane in 1991, this game, on paper at least, should have been a bit of a ‘walk in the park’ for the Western Bulldogs. But it wasn't.
The game opened up at breakneck speed and the first quarter produced 12 goals, six to each side with the Dogs ahead by just a point at quarter time. Each side added another three majors in the second term, and the margin at the long break was again one point, with Fremantle holding the advantage this time.
In the third quarter it was Fremantle, rather than the Bulldogs, who broke clear. The Dockers took a three-goal buffer into the final quarter, and they were still 18 points ahead of the Dogs after Matthew Pavlich kicked his fourth goal halfway through the term.
But a goal to Adam Cooney sparked a late Bulldog revival. The Dockers failed to score again. Cooney backed up his goal with another one less than two minutes later and, after Brian Lake added a behind, Scott Welsh marked and goaled at the 22-minute mark to give the Dogs the lead for the first time since late in the first half.
Brad Johnson added a couple of behinds and the Bulldogs held on to win by three points in a thriller.
Echoing the game at Footscray 18 years earlier, the umpires awarded the three and two Brownlow votes to players from the losing side, Peter Bell and Brett Peake the recipients. The one Bulldog vote went to Mitch Hahn for his bullocking work and first-quarter goal.
While they didn't receive votes, Robert Murphy and Jason Akermanis (three goals each), along with Adam Cooney (24 possessions and two goals) and Daniel Cross (26 disposals and six tackles) all played vital roles in the win.
The Dogs remained undefeated after this win (having drawn with Richmond in Round 5) leaving them half a game behind top two Hawthorn and Geelong. In effect, that made the Dogs thrilling win over Fremantle a close encounter of the third-place kind!
