The Lessons We Learned - Round 1

It doesn't matter what time of year it is, nor does it matter what the result of the weekend was: there are always lessons to be learned and discoveries to be made.

This case is no different for the Western Bulldogs, who managed to hold off a determined Collingwood outfit and get off to the perfect start in their Premiership defence. Whilst emerging victorious has its obvious positives, not everything went according to plan for the Bulldogs on Friday night, and there was plenty to take out of the game:

1. Tom Boyd Is Not A Genuine, No.1 Ruckman

We saw on many occasions last year the desire of Luke Beveridge to transform Tom Boyd into a multi-dimensional player. For a young, developing key-forward on a million dollars a year, it can be a tough, lonely place standing around in the goal square whilst your direct opponent - smelling blood - is playing a blinder and refusing to give you an inch. This is why Beveridge's intentions to give Boyd his spells in the ruck made lots of sense. It would allow him to run around and get involved in the action and try to impact games, whilst simultaneously giving No.1 ruckman Jordan Roughead a well-deserved spell.

But a bad stretch of luck forced Boyd to lead the line in the ruck on Friday. Roughead's hamstring injury has been well documented, but he's not our only ruckman, and a lot of people have been asking why we didn't pick a genuine ruckman to help Boyd out. Tom Campbell had only just returned from an ankle injury, so match fitness was clearly a concern, hence being listed as only an emergency for the game, whilst prized recruit Tim English suffered shin soreness in a VFL practice match, ruling him out, although a fully fit English wouldn't have been a guarantee to debut on Friday night anyway.

Going at it alone, Boyd battled hard, but he was overwhelmed by the tag-team ruck combination of Brodie Grundy and Mason Cox, and having only Travis Cloke to lean on as occasional support, we clearly need an out-and-out ruckman to take the reigns next week, which I believe will be Campbell. If we want Boyd to continue to build on the form he showed during last year's Finals series, we need him to continue playing that same role and spend more time up forward.

2. Zaine Cordy Is In Our Best 22

Initially drafted as a defender, Zaine Cordy made a name for himself in the finals playing up forward and kicked our first Grand Final goal in 55 years, but a move into the backline has seen a more assured and confident Cordy. After Jack Redpath went down late in the season, Cordy was forced to assume the full-forward role out of necessity, but the recruitment of Travis Cloke and the return of Stewart Crameri means he's taken up a new yet for familiar role as a floating defender, patrolling the half-back region, and not only has he looked a lot more comfortable, but his contribution to the team has been more significant. During the finals series, he played the role of a defensive forward, and did a respectable job, but was only able to register three goals in four games at an average of 10 disposals a game.

His last two games in defence, though, have produced much stronger performances. In the last JLT Series games against the Suns, he recorded 12 disposals at 100% efficiency, with nine one-percenters, whilst against the Pies, he had 14 disposals at 78%, and seven one-percenters. His height and mobility makes him a very versatile player and adds another dimension to what was one the league's most miserly defences last season.

3. The Multi-faceted Bulldogs Midfield Is Spreading Its Wings

One of the Bulldogs biggest strengths since the arrival of Luke Beveridge has been the wealth of players who can run through the midfield, and it was a feature again on Friday night. On the face of it, 14 of the 22 are more than capable of running through the midfield, but we started to see a breakthrough across other lines in the side, which Beveridge eluded to in his post-match press conference. Most notably, we saw the likes of Bob Murphy and Jason Johanissen spend considerable time across both half-forward and half-back, which brought with it instant results.

Johanissen's last two performances at the MCG have been sublime. The last time he went home with a Premiership medallion and a Norm Smith, this time he could leave with 3 Brownlow votes. Certainly, the new hairstyle catches the eye, but he had 30 disposals floating in between half-back and half-forward, and also nailed two important second-quarter goals as the Pies started to gain the ascendancy.

Murphy meanwhile changed the game in the third term, and his impact up forward in particular shouldn't come as much of a surprise to us. Across the 2008-09 seasons, Murphy was one of the most unorthodox, but best centre-half forwards in the competition. His lead-up ability is underrated and often forgotten considering its lack of necessity across half-back, but his decision-making and kicking skills are well documented, and his ability to use it to great effect was pivotal in the third term as the Bulldogs made their move on the scoreboard.

Bob Murphy's craft at both ends of the ground played a huge role in the Bulldogs win. Source: Getty Images

4. Jake Stringer Needs To Watch The Last JLT Series Game

He had 24 disposals and kicked four goals against the Gold Coast Suns in that last pre-season game, but it was more than that for Jake Stringer. In that game, he crashed packs, he charged through opponents, and he took the game on. Instead of waiting for others to get the ball to him, he took matters into his own hands and tried to make things happen at every opportunity, and by doing that it had become frighteningly obvious that it was something he hadn't been doing last year. But on Friday, he reverted back to the outside-only player that had suffered such a massive drop off in form and confidence last season. Granted, it won't work out every time, and he will occasionally be pinged by the umpire and it will cost us. But Stringer is an explosive impact player who is tailor-made for having that knack of bursting out of the congestion, and more often than not, it worked against the Suns, and it will continue to work more often than not if he reverts back to that style of play. The potential is definitely there, and once he gains the belief, he will become a very dangerous footballer for us.

5. Travis Cloke Defined His Role Perfectly

On another day, we could've fallen at the Preliminary Final hurdle yet again last year, and on another different day, we could've been beaten in the Grand Final, and it was due to our inability to bring the ball to ground in our forward line. Once the ball hit the deck in the Preliminary Final, we were such a dangerous team, with Clay Smith epitomising the opportunistic nature of our attack, but time and time again, our thrusts forward were thwarted by the intercepting abilities of Nick Haynes, and then again on Grand Final day by Heath Grundy and Dane Rampe. The more we bring the ball to ground, the more often players such as Smith, Jake Stringer, Stewart Crameri and Tory Dickson can get involved, and Travis Cloke is central to that concept.

On countless occasions on Friday, the ball was kicked long in the direction of Cloke. He seldom took the big pack grab, but when he competed in the air, as many as five Magpie defenders went with him, leaving several dangerous Bulldogs forwards unattended at ground level. It would be fantastic to see Cloke kick 60-70 goals this season, but his competitiveness in the air is capable of creating countless opportunities for several other Bulldogs forwards, which makes him an even more valuable asset to the Bulldogs forward structure. Competing in the air is his job, and if he continues to do that, he has a gig in the Bulldogs best 22.

6. We Didn't Play Well, Which Proves We're A Great Team

Statistically speaking, we were beating in just about every key facet of the game on Friday night. Disposals, contested possessions, inside-50's, clearances and even scoring shots all finished in favour of the Magpies, but the Bulldogs led the most important statistic of all - the scoreboard.

We're often told that the very best teams always find a way to win even when they're not playing well, and that saying could not be more appropriate for the Western Bulldogs on Friday. Collingwood fought hard all night long and on paper probably finished the better of the two sides, but the Bulldogs made the most of their opportunities and that was what got them over the line. Ironically, it was our kicking for goal that kept us in the game. At half time Collingwood had registered 16 scorings shots to 12, yet we led 9.3 to 7.9, and the taking of our chances proved the difference in the end, which is a really positive sign that our conversion has improved. To top the 100-point mark was also a really positive sign.

Jason Johanissen (L) and Marcus Bontemepelli were both accurate up forward for the Bulldogs, combining for 4.0. Source: Getty Images.

7. Lin Jong's Versatility Can't Be Ignored

He only had the 11 disposals, but every time he got the ball something good happened, and he demonstrated his aerial prowess with a terrific overhead mark. But it was his pressure that stood out. 14 tackles was a fantastic effort, and it highlighted his capacity to play a multitude of different roles. In past years, we've seen Jong play as a tagger and a ball-winner, but under Beveridge, he's evolved into a midfield enforcer with his tackling pressure. Because we've seen him play a variety of different roles, we know that he has all the strings required to become the complete midfielder, and his athletic frame and height is another bonus. If he can put it all together we'll have ourselves a unique footballer.

8. The Bulldogs Haven't Gone Into Their Shell

Risk-taking is still an essential aspect of the Bulldogs style of player and it was evident once again on Friday night. On several occasions, we saw daring kicks from the likes of Matt Suckling, Jack Macrae and even Zaine Cordy travelling into the middle of the ground. They were each fraught with danger, but they found their targets, opened the game up, and resulted in scoring opportunities. Much like Stringer taking the game on more, it won't always pay off, but it was a hallmark of our finals series last year, and it was one of the main reasons why we achieved the success that we did, and it's a positive sign that we haven't gone away from what has made us such a god side simply because it's unorthodox. What do they say about fortune favouring the brave?

9. Fletcher Roberts Deserves A Massive Pat On The Back

Darcy Moore has been a thorn in our fortunes over the last couple of seasons, having booted 10 goals in his previous three games against us, and with such a tall forward line, he was expected to stretch us yet again and provide more headaches. But, on this occasion, Fletcher Roberts was more than up to the task, and kept Moore well and truly out of the equation, restricting Collingwood's marquee forward to just 10 disposals and one behind. Roberts has often maligned, but proved his worth in the last two finals, and has continued on with that good form in the first game of the season either. With the injury to Dale Morris, Roberts will be required to carry on the strong form, starting with Lance Franklin on Friday night.

10. The Depth Deepens At The Western Oval

As was mentioned last week, the Bulldogs made five changes from the team that toppled the Swans in the Grand Final. Three of them were forced, but Josh Dunkley and Clay Smith were effectively dropped from the team for Round 1, and both can consider themselves very unlucky to miss out. Smith had the Midas Touch during September, whilst Dunkley was very impressive in the last month of the year, yet both missed out in the Round 1 encounter. Taking their place was Lin Jong and Stewart Crameri, both of whom also have a strong case for selection in the Bulldogs best 22. The decisions to leave Dunkley and Smith out remain consistent with Beveridge's mantra to reward players who perform well - Jong in particular thoroughly deserved his opportunity with a very strong JLT Series. But instead of sulking around kicking water bottles in the VFL, both Smith and Dunkley knuckled down and finished the match amongst the best players. Tom Campbell also played well, which suggests that as many as three changes could be made this week based on form, plus another change will have to be made following the prolonged absence of Dale Morris, and with adequate replacements in Marcus Adams and Kieran Collins waiting in the wings, means that as many as four changes could be made this week, and to drop four players after last Friday's win will be very difficult indeed, which just goes to prove how fortunate we are to have such depth at the club.