Here’s a thought for you all regarding the Western Bulldogs finals campaign.
Sure the Doggies are a great team but it might have been that finishing seventh was close to the perfect finals draw for the Bulldogs.
I followed them through the finals and what they achieved was incredible. But did the draw help?
Let’s have a look…
First up they played West Coast on a Thursday after a 12-day break. 12 days could be close to an ideal break, 14 days might be too long. 12 days is a great break and if you are travelling it improves your chances of winning because the travel becomes less of a factor.
The AFL may not have realised it but by the Western Bulldogs playing on Thursday that meant that if they won then they got an eight-day break before facing the losers of Geelong and Hawthorn and it would be like a home game for the Dogs.
During the regular season the statistics of playing games with only a six-day break show that seven-day breaks are better. The inference is that an eight-day break during the finals would be fantastic.
After beating Hawthorn on a Friday night guess what? The Western Bulldogs then get another eight-day break before playing at Spotless Stadium where they play the Giants who may have had too much time out of football with back-to-back 14 day breaks.
Also the crowd was full of Western Bulldogs supporters so it was like another home game for the Doggies.
Next the Western Bulldogs had their first seven-day break to face the Swans in the GF who have had an eight-day break but the Swans also had to travel.
It could be that the best places to finish on the ladder for Melbourne-based teams are sixth or seventh.
What do you think Roarers?
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