Samantha Lane - The Age - 13 September

* Just for Mantis!


WHERE the decision to sack one 30-plus midfielder backfired on the Western Bulldogs this year, the retention of another has proved far better placed.

The blond-haired version, Jason Akermanis, might have continued to make headlines after his premature departure from Whitten Oval, but it is the lesser-profile, bald-headed veteran Nathan Eagleton who has continued to win a guernsey and a kick.

Going around for a 13th AFL season has been worth every missed cent for Eagleton who, like Akermanis, was granted that opportunity only after a handful of senior Bulldog teammates also agreed to pay cuts over the off-season to help keep a couple of old-timers on the list. The idea was that it was for the greater good.

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