Western Bulldogs vs St Kilda Saints: Saints take second JLT win

Match result:

The Saints have put in some hard work to come away with a 14 point win over the Western Bulldogs 93 to 79.

The Saints shot out of the blocks early to take a 20-point lead, however as the contest wore on, the Bulldogs came into their own and while taking the lead at one point, pushed the Saints all the way to the end.

Paddy McCartin, who again suffered a head knock during the match, was strong on the ball early, and managed a couple more preseason goals in time for a confidence boost for round 1.

No doubt, though, his condition will be monitored after his history of concussions to date.

What will delight Alan Richardson the most, more so than the result, will be his defence holding strong, showing great composure at times to move the ball smoothly out of trouble.

Jack Billings took control in the midfield for the Saints racking up 25 disposals, and he was more than ably supported by Jack Steele and Dylan Robertson.

For the Dogs, Marcus Bontempelli was once again involved in most of the Bulldogs’ flowing movement, however he had great assistance from the likes of Jack Macrae, Josh Dunkley, and Mitch Wallis, who managed to grab a goal for his efforts.

What will have pleased Luke Beveridge the most going into Round 1 was the silky ball movement through the hands.

However, the over-reliance on that tactic, at times, got the Dogs into trouble, and a disciplined defensive unit should be able to swamp the Dogs into trouble with good pressure if the Bulldogs aren’t moving the ball as precisely as they need to.

These two teams will be looking for big improvements in 2019, and for the Dogs in particular, the addition of Sam Lloyd from the Tigers appears to have added a new attacking element to their forward line.

Josh Schache, it appears, remains a work in progress.

The Saints will be happier with the output of Tim Membrey, who grabbed three goals, while Jack Sinclair also looks like a solid option up front.

The Saints will meet up with the Suns at home in Round 1, while the Bulldogs have the much tougher assignment against the Swans.

But both teams going into the season will like their respective chances for a first-up win to kick off season 2019.

Final score
Western Bulldogs 12.7.79
St Kilda Saints 14.9.93

Match preview:

As we hit the final day for of preseason clashes before the season proper commences, the Western Bulldogs and St Kilda Saints lock horns at Mars Stadium. Join The Roar from 4:10pm (AEDT) for live scores and a blog of the game.

This is something of a curious preseason clash for these two sides, given that neither is expected to compete for a premiership.

Given the Western Bulldogs have largely underperformed over the last two seasons (or depending on who you ask, over performed in 2016), Luke Beveridge will be looking for major improvement from his side this season, to unleash the talent again that led them to the promised land.

A lot continues to rest on the shoulder of the still young Marcus Bontempelli, although the young starlet appears to want the attention, so this really is his year to deliver.

When you add in the improvement of Josh Schache, and the premiership calibre of Taylor Duryea (along with that other premiership former hawk, Matthew Suckling), if the Bulldogs can focus on clean ball use, then there is no reason why the Bulldogs can’t hope to feature come September.

As for the Saints, well, given how poorly they performed last season, it really is all about finding that improvement to keep the position of both the players and their coach safe for another season.

How much improvement is expected, nobody can really say.

However, for long-suffering Saints fans, while they won’t be expecting the world, winning a few more games in 2019 would help.

Alan Richardson will be looking to the likes of Jade Gresham, Jack Billings, and Jack Steele to carry the team through, and it might also be the time for some of the younger and lesser lights to step up and start earning their keep.

An uninjured Paddy McCartin would also help St Kilda’s woes no end as well.

The career of Richardson may depend upon it.

Prediction
Hard to tell with this one. As long as each team stays injury free, then both sides will be happy you would imagine.

Richardson will be hoping that his side can deliver solid ball use and intense defensive pressure, while Bevo will be looking to his side to put into place the type of structures that will make them a premiership force again.

Bulldogs by 10.

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Western Bulldogs
1 Matthew Suckling, 3 Mitch Wallis, 4 Marcus Bontempelli, 5 Josh Dunkley, 6 Bailey Smith, 7 Lachie Hunter, 8 Jackson Trengove, 9 Hayden Crozier, 10 Easton Wood, 11 Jack Macrae, 12 Zaine Cordy, 13 Josh Schache, 14 Rhylee West (EMG), 15 Taylor Duryea, 16 Toby McLean, 20 Ed Richards, 21 Tom Liberatore, 22 Sam Lloyd, 25 Ben Cavarra (EMG), 26 Billy Gowers, 27 Patrick Lipinski (EMG), 29 Tory Dickson (EMG), 30 Fergus Greene, 32 Will Hayes, 33 Aaron Naughton, 34 Bailey Williams, 35 Caleb Daniel, 38 Dale Morris, 40 Lachlan Young, 44 Tim English.

St Kilda Saints
1 Nick Coffield (EMG), 4 Jade Gresham, 5 Shane Savage, 6 Sebastian Ross, 7 Luke Dunstan, 9 Jack Steele, 11 Hunter Clark, 13 Jack Lonie, 14 Jarryn Geary, 15 Jack Billings, 16 Jack Newnes, 17 Dylan Roberton, 19 Rowan Marshall, 20 David Armitage (EMG), 21 Ben Long, 22 Nathan Brown, 25 Dean Kent, 26 Josh Battle, 27 Josh Bruce, 28 Tim Membrey, 29 Jimmy Webster, 30 Ed Phillips, 32 Paddy McCartin, 33 Ben Paton (EMG), 34 Matthew Parker, 35 Jack Sinclair, 39 Darragh Joyce, 40 Nick Hind, 42 Lewis Pierce (EMG), 44 Callum Wilkie