Player Ratings - Round 1

The footy is back, and that can only mean one thing: so are the player ratings!

The Western Bulldogs started Season 2021 in perfect fashion last night, accounting for Collingwood by 16 points at the MCG.

It was an important victory for the club, especially given how comprehensively they were outplayed when the two sides met in Round 1 last year. But let's look at who stood out to secure the victory this time around:

1. Adam Treloar

His run along the wing and pinpoint pass onto Aaron Naughton's chest may well have been one of the best moments of the night. It wasn't the best game he's ever played, but with all the external factors that were in play in the build-up, including an injury-interrupted pre-season, and the highly publicised return against his former club, he would've been happy to just get through with the win. 18 disposals and five clearances - 6

Adam Treloar got fans off their seats in the opening minutes of the game. Source: Getty Images

3. Mitch Wallis

13 disposals, but wasn't heavily involved in proceedings. Missed an opportunity in the second term that you really would've expected him to put away - 3

4. Marcus Bontempelli

It looked a pretty big night for The Bont on paper, with 28 disposals and nine marks, but went at just 60% disposals efficiency and recorded six clangers, and those set shots reared their ugly head once more in the final term - 7

5. Josh Dunkley

A great performance. Back in a more familiar role as an inside midfielder, he thrived, being one of four Bulldogs to amass 30+ disposals, he also took seven marks and had six score involvements. Crucially though, his pressure was on top form, affecting several smothers throughout the match. Has often spoken about having to win back the trust of his teammates; he went a long way to doing that - 8

6. Bailey Smith

Best on ground. Winner of the Bob Rose-Charles Sutton Medal, he was a constant force of dominance throughout the game. Used more on the wing to maximise his pace and power, he recoreded an equal career-high 36 possessions, eight marks, 526 metres gained, and even chipped in with two goals. I don't want to set a precedent by awarding perfect scores this early in the season, but believe me, he was mighty close - 9

7. Lachie Hunter

A lot like Smith in that he was never too far away from the action. Had no problems finding the ball (31 disposals) and managed a team-high 11 marks and assisted two goals. Continues to be an important part of the side - 8

8. Stefan Martin

Won't feature highly in the stats, but his partnership with Tim English is already looking the goods early., combining to great effect to take down Brodie Grundy, so often the scourge of the Bulldogs over the past two years. 15 disposals and hitouts were importance, as were his six cleareances and goal in the last quarter. FIts the Beveridge mould very well - 8

11. Jackson Macrae

Remember when the addition of Treloar was supposed to negatively impact the rest of the Bulldogs midfield? Because it seems that Macrae didn't get the memo. 35 disposals at 77% efficient looks quite impressive alongside his seven marks and seven tackles, and will be stiff to miss out on Brownlow votes. His disposal numbers are one to keep an eye on this season; he needs 482 more of them to break into the top-10 all time leading possession getters for the Bulldogs - 8

14. Rhylee West

Well, it does count towards his career games tally by the new AFL rulings, so technically we need to rate his performance, right? West's eighth career game will not go down as one of his most productive, being the unused Medical Sub, and subsequently going statless for the night. These could get very boring in the future given that there's nothing at all to talk about, so we'll set a precedent from now on of not rating the Medical Sub unless they are used - 0

15. Taylor Duryea

Strong form in the reserves won him his place in the Round 1 side, and he made good on it, with 22 disposals and nine marks. Not quite the case of leather poisoning he had against Casey, but provides great solidity to the defence - 7

17. Josh Bruce

Jamarra Ugle-Hagan is certainly breathing down his neck, but he was good against Collingwood. He led

well, marked well, and looked far more dangerous than he did for most of last year. 11 marks (including three inside-50) demonstrated how dangerous he was, and only inaccurate kicking for goal prevented him from having a night out, with 1.0 from four shots - 7

21. Tom Liberatore

Somehow, he flew under the radar, despite amassing 28 disposals, seven tackles, seven clearances, and six score involvements. He may not have made the headlines, but past evidence will tell us that the Bulldogs don't win this match if Liberatore doesn't play - 8

23. Laitham Vandermeer

The Dutchman continued in his role as a small forward, having the honour of kicking the Bulldogs first goal of the season, before adding another to his tally before half time with a clever volley. He's got all the qualities to be a dangerous small forward option, and a fan favourite - 7

27. Patrick Lipinski

Impressed in his pre-season showings, and continued that form into Round 1, with 26 disposals to his name. Not the biggest name in the midfield group, but a handy contributor when he's on form - 7

28. Anthony Scott

One of two AFL debutants, had 16 disposals for the night, going at 81% efficiency. Had a flying shot for goal in the first term which was just offline, but overall was solid enough - 6

30. Lachlan McNeil

And how convenient that we slide straight to the second debutant. McNeil struggled slightly more, with eight clangers from nine disposals, but the fact that he even made a Round 1 debut is testament to how hard he was worked over the summer, given he would have been well down the pecking order when he first arrived at the club. Also managed his first career goal in the second term - 3

31. Bailey Dale

Persisting in his new role across half back. Will take a bit of time to get used to the positional change, but the early signs are promising. His delivery out of defence was pretty good, hitting a target 14 times out of 16, and also managed six intercept possessions, and two intercept marks. A good base to work on - 6

33. Aaron Naughton

Not sure what to make of his performance. 15 disposals, seven marks and two goals is a performance you'll take most weeks from the main key forward, but he dropped a few marks inside-50 that you would have expected him to swallow. I've seen people criticize him for being too selfish, whereas I thought he was trying too hard to bring teammates into the game, so that's one to keep an eye at on in coming weeks. His goalkicking continues to improve, with his effort in the third term a real standout - 7

Aaron Naughton (R) and Marcus Bontempelli both had some good moments against Collingwood. Source: Getty Images

34. Bailey Williams

A fine player on the night. 27 disposals at 81% efficiency. Only Smith (23) had more kicks thatn Williams (20), and his 550 metres gained was a team-high. Nine intercept possessions as well. In 12 months he's gone from a fringe player to a Best 22 lock - 8

35. Caleb Daniel

Started slowly, but worked himself into a groove to finish with 28 possessions at 89% efficiency, as he swept across half back and did as he pleased. Not that of that was truly surprising, although his contested intercept mark will go down as a collector's item - 8

42. Alex Keath

An important player as ever, with three of his nine marks being intercepted from opposition kicks. 18 disposals is a nice number to have against his name as well, although his credit comes from quelling the opposition key forwards in Cox and Mihocek, who did kick four goals between them, but were largely ineffective for most of the match - 7

43. Ryan Gardner

See above. Has come of the long way from when he played Collingwood last year, where picking him was akin to chucking a grenade into the defence. His defensive game was fantastic, with his nine one-percenters and six spoils both being team-highs. Still has a limited repertoire beyond that, but is getting better at knowing where those limits lay, and keeps things relatively uncomplicated when on the ball - 7

44. Tim English

Aside from the win, would've been absolutely thrilled to get one over Grundy, albeit with the assistance on his new partner in crime in Stefan Martin. Finished the night with eight marks (four contesteed - a team-high) to go with 14 disposals and a goal. Just four hitouts, but is looking like spending the majority of the season as the secondary ruck option - 7