The Western Bulldogs have suffered their fourth loss of the season, beaten convincingly by Richmond by 41 points on Wednesday night at Metricon Stadium.
The Tigers re-established their premiership credentials in a slick performance, particularly in the first half where they booted 10 goals to three to set up a match-winning lead.
They were cleaner, stronger with their intensity and more efficient when they swept the ball forward.
The Dogs were more competitive in the second half, but the damage had already been done.
The Bulldogs will now have five days to prepare for another tough assignment, against the Power on Monday night at Adelaide Oval.
The loss was further soured by a hamstring injury to Matt Suckling, who was ruled out during the first term.
Richmond midfielder Dustin Martin was best afield, kicking three goals to go with 26 possessions.
Jack Macrae could hold his head high in his 150th game, collecting a game-high 37 disposals, four clearances, four tackles and having a team-high seven score involvements.
Mitch Wallis continued his impressive 2020 form up forward, kicking three majors to take his tally to 13 for the season.
The Bulldogs’ other two milestone men also fought out the game strongly, with Caleb Daniel winning 22 touches, the same number as 50-gamer Bailey Williams.
MATCH DETAILS
Western Bulldogs 1.1 3.5 4.7 7.7 (49)
Richmond 4.3 10.4 11.10 13.12 (90)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Wallis 3, Vandermeer 2, Bruce 2
Richmond: Aarts 3, Martin 3, Castagna 2, Lynch 2, Riewoldt, Chol, Pickett
BEST
Western Bulldogs: Macrae, Daniel, Wallis, Smith, Williams
Richmond: Martin, Grimes, Balta, Short, Bolton, Cotchin
