Three things you've learned. Round five 2021 v Gold Coast

[Twodogs]

Tell us three things you know now that you didn't know before the game.

[GVGjr]

Bump

[bulldogtragic]

1. We are 6-0 and 178.6%
2. Our mid-late trading is sublime: Duryea, Crozier, Keath, Bruce, (technically) Treloar, Martin, plus Schache and more
3. Libba is still the best one step goal kicker in the entire comp

[Twodogs]

1. We are 6-0 and 178.6%
2. Our mid-late trading is sublime: Duryea, Crozier, Keath, Bruce, (technically) Treloar, Martin, plus Schache and more
3. Libba is still the best one step goal kicker in the entire comp

5-0 but give it a week.

[bulldogtragic]

5-0 but give it a week.

Or 5 weeks and then we’re 10-0

[Twodogs]

Or 5 weeks and then we’re 10-0

Or 5 months and we will be 25-0 with a cup to wave around

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

1. Bailey Dale has really gone to another level since moving to the back half.
2. Macrae's footskills have also gone to another level. Some of his passes tonight were surgical precision.
3. Sweet has some very good tap work skills. I can't wait to see how he goes later in the year against genuine ruck opposition, when he next gets a chance.

[bornadog]

1. We do have the best midfield in the comp
2. We have options in the forward line to kick goals
3. our defense is miserly.

[jeemak]

1. We seem to know what it is to be "on" and not behind the eight ball against both good and bad teams in the first 45 minutes of a game

2. A poor and undermanned side can jolt us back into gear and it's important to us to restore the dominance we claimed. Let's face it GCS were terrible in the first half and allowed us to do what we wanted, so it was good that we took the hit and re-balanced the half time ledger by the time the final siren blew

3. Haven't quite learned it or understood it yet because it's so foreign and discombobulating, but having three very very capable talls in our forward line is something that is achievable and reachable for us, albeit strange since aspiring to having one for so long seemed a luxury we couldn't afford

To the last point, we are five wins and no losses, and having our best start to the season since a very long time ago having eclipsed a start in a year we were a bit stiff to miss out on a grand final birth (2009).......when we didn't have a big tall forward to kick to. A lot of water needs to go under the bridge, but at least if we keep winning games the old "Bulldogs can't win without a key forward" line won't be trotted out.

[AshMac]

1. Was a very frustrating win, never got out of second gear, but still nice to put a team w classy players to the sword by coasting through

2. I’ll need to watch the replay to understand how on earth Jack Macrae got that suns player high in the 3rd quarter

3. 5-0 feels good. Never happened in my lifetime. I want more.

[angelopetraglia]

1. Dew summed it up in his presser when referring to our midfield group. "They are going to be hard to stop. They are going to be hard to stop." The contribution is shared across so many talented players. We don't need any one player to completely dominate ... but inevitably one of them get off the chain and have a big day. Treloar is just some nice cream on top of the cake and is getting better every week too.

2. Naughton is a scary proposition. His ferocity at the contest in both the air and ground is something that I have rarely seen. Combine ferocity and his athleticism and he is going to be hard to stop. I don't think we have seen the best of him yet. He is a freak and worth going to the footy each week alone to watch. Love him.

3. If we are not 100% on our game defensively we can still be picked off easily with short fast kicks that penetrate our zone. Gold Coast made us look silly three times in that third quarter with goals launched from their defensive end which cut through us like a hot knife through butter. Hopefully that was a good reminder.

[comrade]

1. Wood's lack of foot skills really slowed us down at times. He had a few tricky options that a better kick would have bitten off but he couldn't pull the trigger and had to go down the line instead. Must get the ball in Dale's hands as many times as possible, his leg is a weapon.

2. Kicking 16 points is effectively turning the ball over 16 times with the new kick out rules. GC didn't score a single goal from a stoppage, it was all from turn overs or kick outs. We all know our goal kicking conversion has been woeful for years but it's not going to magically improve overnight, so we really need to tweak our defensive set up for kick outs. Especially in that 3rd quarter, GC carved us up at times.

3. Keath is probably the most underrated key defender going around right now.

[bornadog]

3. Keath is probably the most underrated key defender going around right now.

I thought Keath was fantastic yesterday, 20 disposals, 9 marks

[GVGjr]

I thought Keath was fantastic yesterday, 20 disposals, 9 marks

It's also what he does with the disposals. He's normally a very composed and accurate kick and he was on the ground the whole playing time.

He's been a great addition for us.

[bulldogsthru&thru]

It's also what he does with the disposals. He's normally a very composed and accurate kick and he was on the ground the whole playing time.

He's been a great addition for us.

Absolute stalwart for us. Honestly he would be one of our most important players, mostly because we have no backup if he gets injured. Losing Naughton would be a massive blow but we at least have Schache who can come in as a serviceable forward. And we know we’re stacked for mids and half backs. But if Keath goes down, who comes in? Cordy. In an already weak backline that’s a scary thought.

In our weakest area of the ground we’re unfortunately having the worst luck with injuries there. Losing Williams will hurt. Just shows how much luck with injuries you need to win it all.