Player Ratings - Round 6

The Western Bulldogs continued on their winning ways, defeating the Greater Western Sydney Giants by 39 points at Manuka Oval on Friday, extending their record to 6-0 and remaining on top of the ladder.

The last quarter blitz proved key in the victory, with a nine-goal-to-three final term helping us to see off the Giants, and allowing several players to give their score a nice little bump as well.

1. Adam Treloar

Brilliant in the first half. Busy but fumbly in the third term. Brilliant in the last term. His 35 possessions was the second-most of any Bulldog, and capped off a lovely move in the last term with a trademark running goal. What an acquisition - 9

4. Marcus Bontempelli

The Giants wisely chose not to target him this time, but he still put in a strong performance. 26 disposals, six tackles and seven clearances represents a well-rounded game, and showed quick thinking to get himself a goal as well - 8

5. Josh Dunkley

Brought the smother count up to 11 within the opening seconds of the game, but it looks likely that the counter will be shelved for a while, with Dunkley suffering a dislocated shoulder midway during the last term. Bravely returned to the field, and while we don't yet know the full extent of the injury, he'll be out for a while. It placed a real dampener on another great game, but hopefully it won't be his last of the season - 8

6. Bailey Smith

Continued with his recent lull in form, with 20 disposals but no tackles. Is still tracking ok, but will need to stand up in the absence of Dunkley - 6

7. Lachie Hunter

Very important in a low-scoring first half, setting up two goals and scoring another on his own. Faded a little bit after half time and only finished the game with 19 disposals, but when goals were particularly hard to come by, Hunter was crucial - 7

With scoring at a premium in the first half, Lachie Hunter's contribution was key. Source: Getty Images

8. Stefan Martin

A good, all-round game. Led the way with 28 hitouts, but also picked up five clearances and had 10 score involvements. As ever, did his job - 7

9. Hayden Crozier

Didn't win much of the ball (14 disposals), but made it count when he did have the ball. Led the way with nine marks, three of them intercepts, and four spoils. His mark over Toby Greene was also a highlight - 7

10. Easton Wood Didn't really dominate on the stats and spent the night on various opponents, but no forward really caused many problems aside from Greene, and it was the Giants second-lowest score of the season, so there are definitely positives to take away from the contest. Copped a heavy hit late but should be ok - 6

11. Jackson Macrae

The guy did it all. 40 disposals was a game-high, and backed it up with six tackles and six clearances as well, and gained 854, which was comfortably the most of anyone else on the ground, and capped off the performance with a rare goal late on. He's closed to within 300 possessions of that top-10 ranking, and will once again feature in the Brownlow votes. He couldn't, could he? - 10

12. Zaine Cordy

Brought in for his first game of the season, after being frozen out of the side for the opening month. Was his usual combative self, and while he didn't win a lot of the ball, the key forwards Himmelberg and Finlayson combined for just one goal on the night - 7

15. Taylor Duryea

Found himself playing on Toby Greene at various stages throughout the game, and while Greene did kick four goals, it's hard to lay the blame on Duryea for most of them. Having said that, I felt his impact on the game was slightly down on previous weeks - 6

17. Josh Bruce

Was absolutely monstered by Lachie Keefe, being outpointed and outmarked at every contest. Last year, that theme would've carried through the game, but the Josh Bruce of 2021 is different gravy. Bruce responded with two first half goals when scoring was at it's hardest, but also took six marks, with four of them contested and two of them inside-50. Involved himself in eight scores, as well - 7

21. Tom Liberatore

When there's a rivalry game afoot, this is the man you want in the middle. Liberatore delivered easily his best game of the season, notching 27 disposals, 10 tackles, seven clearances, 31 pressure acts (game-high), and two goals. An immense performance - 9

23. Laitham Vandermeer

Brought back in aftter being a late out last week, but didn't have a big influence on the game. Recorded just 10 disposals and two tackles, although he did have a moment where he set up a Johannisen goal in the last term - 3

28. Anthony Scott

Was handy throughout, and might be starting to find a bit more consistency at the level. 15 disposals and three tackles was his return, and he's starting to look less like a rookie playing his first few games - 6

30. Lachlan McNeil

Initially dropped, but earned a reprieve after being activated as a Medical Sub in the opening term. Made the most of his opportunity with two goals and a goal assist from his nine disposals. It's not a lot of the ball in the grand scheme of things, but it's a fantastic output - 7

Starting as the Medical Sub, Lachie McNeil went on to have his best game for the club. Source: Getty Images

31. Bailey Dale

Worked hard and defended reasonably well throughout the night, and was rewarded with two last-quarter goals to go with his 22 disposals. Only went at 68% disposals efficiency, with is quite low by his standards, but it's hardly an outing that you could consider to be a bad game - 7

33. Aaron Naughton

Once again, he brought plenty to the table, and did just about everything that you could ask of a key forward. He took four contested marks, and seven inside-50, but for the second week running, finished the night with 2.3. It takes him to a season tally of 13.15, and is something that absolutely needs to be improved. Two very gettable misses in the second and third terms could have proved costly on another night - 8

35. Caleb Daniel

Back from suspension, and was ok, but didn't provide the big injection of drive that we were hoping for. Managed just 10 kicks from his 19 disposals, turning the ball over four times in the game - 5

39. Jason Johannisen

We might have to accept these low-possession numbers on a regular basis from now on. This time he found the ball on just 11 occasions, but did contribute to six scores, and got the last-term blitz rolling with the opening goal - 5

42. Alex Keath

Immense. Eight marks, with three of them contested and five of them intercepts. Finished the game with nine intercepts overall, as he thwarted countless Giants attacks. His game has gone to another level from last season - 9

44. Tim English

A quiet night overall, which was a shame given that the intent and aggression he showed (particularly at the stoppages) deserved more. Ended the night with a heavy knee to the jaw in the last quarter. Fortunately, it's likely that he's escaped a broken jaw, although he will certainly miss next week's game due to concussion - 4

46. Lin Jong

Of all the injuries that were suffered, this was the most difficult one to take. Started the game brightly, with four possessions in the opening minutes, until he suffered a hamstring injury in an tackle attempt. The early signs are that it will result in a significant spell on the sidelines for the popular midfielder. Having played just four games since the start of 2019, no one deserves a break more than Jong - 2