Bulldogs team of your era

[Rocco Jones]

This thread is more about hearing from some of the most experienced posters on this site than posting my side.

Basically, I want posters to nominate their best Bulldogs 22 from their time watching. Mentioning the period of time which the team is based on would be nice too.

I started going to watch the Dogs play a few games at the Western Oval in 88 and 89. I started going to pretty much every game in Victoria from 1990 when I was 9. So basically my team is based on the period from 1990 to present day. In effect, anything pre-1990 counts for nothing.

B: Kretiuk, Lake, Morris
HB: Gilbee, Croft, Hargrave
C: Cameron, West, Boyd
HF: Johnson, Grant, Murphy
F: Brown, Darcy, Smith
R: Wynd, Cooney, Liberatore
I/C: Cross, Giansiracusa, Wallis, Hahn

Coach: Rodney Eade
Captain: Scott Wynd

Just a few things:
- Hawk misses out due to me missing his great years
- Wallis only gets a spot on the bench because I missed a lot of his career as well
- Gian and Hahn get in due to longevity, a massive advantage in a relatively short period of time to base a greatest team on.

[Mantis]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

Not a bad effort RJ.

A couple of things:

* Smith - FP - Nah, he either plays on the HBF or doesn't play.
* Boyd on a wing - I know there isn't much difference these days with the on-ball roles, but Boyd isn't your atypical wingman. Surely Eagleton should fill this role due to your longevity rule (yeah it hurts to say that)

I will give it a go tomorrow so you can pick the bones out of my efforts.

[mighty_west]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

My side, started going to games in the late 70's as a young fella, my first real hero was KT, so pretty much from that time onwards.....

B: Lake - Kennedy - Gilbee
HB: Hardie - Foster - Wallis
C: Hawkins - West - Cameron
HF: Grant - Templeton - Johnson
FF: Royal - Beasley - Brown

R: Wynd - McGuiness - Cooney

INT: Smith, Jennings, Liberatore, Dempsey
Coach: Eade

Emer: Dunstan - McLean - Murphy

Lake & Grant obviously out of position, but both imo can move around somewhat, obviously Grant to CHB, Lake around the backline, where's the likes of Kennedy, Fossie, Templeton & Beasley are really only one position players.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

B: Egan, Lake, Foster
HB: Wallis, Grant, Gilbee
C: Hawkins, West, Cameron
HF: McGuinness, Templeton, Johnson
F: Edmond, Beasley, Royal
R: Dempsey, Cooney, Liberatore
I: Smith, Darcy, Brown, Dunstan.

Apologies to MacPherson, McLean, Morris, Murphy, Kretiuk, Wynd, Whitten, Abbey and of course Ian Salmon

[Mantis]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

B: Morris, Lake, Hardie
HB: Gilbee, Foster, Wallis
C: Hawkins, West, Cameron
HF: Murphy, Grant, Johnson
F: McGuinness, Beasley, Darcy
R: Wynd, Cooney, Royal

Int: Liberatore, Croft, Smith, Cross

[Ozza]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

I began going to the footy in 88....every Melbourne game by 89 when I was six...so this is mine (very much off the top of my head, first crack:

B: Morris; Lake; Gilbee
HB: Wallis; Foster; Smith
C: Hawkins; Wallace; Cameron
HF: Murphy; Grant; Johnson
F: Royal; Beasley; Darcy
R: Wynd; Cooney; West
Int: Liberatore, Boyd, N.Brown; Akermanis
Emerg: Paul Hudson; Cross; Croft

[LostDoggy]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

B: Donald; Lake; Schultz
HB: Bryant; Whitten; Gilbee
C: Hawkins; West; Gardiner
HF: Grant; Templeton; Duffy
F: Johnson; Beasley; Sutton
R: Dempsey; Cooney; Libba
Int: Bryden, Smith, Hardie; Wynd

Emerg. Box

[chef]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

FB Morris Lake Hardie
HB Smith Foster Cameron
C Hawkins West McGuinness
HF Johnson Grant Brown
FF Darcy Beasley Royal
R Wynd Cooney Liberatore
IN Kretiuk Kolynuik Wallis MacPherson

[The Pie Man]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

B: Morris, Lake, Hardie
HB: Gilbee, Grant, Wallis
C: Hawkins, West, Cameron
HF: Murphy, Foster, P.Hudson
F: Johnson, Beasley, Akermanis
R: Wynd, Cooney, Royal
Int: Higgins, Darcy, Smith, Boyd
Emerg: Croft, MacPherson, Kennedy

This is from 85 BTW

Will be interesting to revisit this down the track - if Griffen can maintain his late season form, he gets amongst my list (glad he showed me up) I think Higgins earns his spot

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

Been with the 'Dogs since 1959, and reckon you would struggle to beat this team.

B. Bryant Lake Dempsey
HB. Wallis Grant Jillard
C. Hawkins West Johnson
HF. G.Ion Templeton Murphy
F. Quinlan Beasley Royal
R. Schultz Whitten Liberatore
Int. Wynd Cross Morris Boyd
Coach. Rodney Eade
Capt. Ted Whitten

[Mantis]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

B: Morris, Lake, Hardie
HB: Gilbee, Grant, Wallis
C: Hawkins, West, Cameron
HF: Murphy, Foster, P.Hudson
F: Johnson, Beasley, Akermanis
R: Wynd, Cooney, Royal
Int: Higgins, Darcy, Smith, Boyd
Emerg: Croft, MacPherson, Kennedy

This is from 85 BTW

Will be interesting to revisit this down the track - if Griffen can maintain his late season form, he gets amongst my list (glad he showed me up) I think Higgins earns his spot

Higgins in yet no McGuinness who was an absolute star between 86 & 90.

I would have thought that Foster and Grant should be changed, no doubt Grant was an excellent CHB, but he played in that position for just 10 to 15% of his career. Foster was also much more effective in the back half.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

I would have thought that Foster and Grant should be changed, no doubt Grant was an excellent CHB, but he played in that position for just 10 to 15% of his career. Foster was also much more effective in the back half.

I agree that in this instance Grant and Foster should swap (Fossie was a very average CHF) but Grant was the best CHB I've seen in the last 35 years. Knights, Glendenning, Jakovich, Turtle had them all covered.

The only reason he won't be recognised as such is because he was too important at CHF to allow him to play there much. Grant's 96 was as good a year from a CHB as you will see.

[The Pie Man]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

Higgins in yet no McGuinness who was an absolute star between 86 & 90.

I would have thought that Foster and Grant should be changed, no doubt Grant was an excellent CHB, but he played in that position for just 10 to 15% of his career. Foster was also much more effective in the back half.

Fair - granted McGuinness was fantastic for us, Higgins is probably a more speculative pick in that I think he'll surpass someone like McGuinness with the next 12-36 months. He's better overhead/more versatile as well.

Grant was at CHB probably a bit more than 10-15% of his career (maybe not much more though - 96, most of the noughties when he was on the park) and it's like Lake getting picked at BP for the AA team this year, how much did he play there?

Happy to swap Foster/Grant given the consensus is Foster was better in the back half - I was a little kid in the 80's, my memory can fail me (enduring memory was Foster running from 50 out to shake the goal umps hand after incorrectly awarding him a goal at WO)

[Mantis]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

Fair - granted McGuinness was fantastic for us, Higgins is probably a more speculative pick in that I think he'll surpass someone like McGuinness with the next 12-36 months. He's better overhead/more versatile as well.

I don't think that reasoning should come into it. On that basis I would make up to 3 or 4 (maybe more) changes to include players like Harbrow, Higgins, Ward, Griffen, etc.. who I believe will surpass some of their predecessors over their careers.

[The Coon Dog]

Re: Bulldogs team of your era

Very tough exercise indeed. Lots of quality players missed out.

B - Brad Hardie - Rick Kennedy - Brian Lake

HB - Steve Wallis - Peter Foster - Rohan Smith

C - Doug Hawkins - Scott West - Leon Cameron

HF - Jim Edmond - Kelvin Templeton - Chris Grant

F - Brad Johnson - Simon Beasley - Nathan Brown

R - Gary Dempsey - Tony McGiunness - Brian Royal

INT - Scott Wynd - Stephen MacPherson - Tony Liberatore - Ian Dunstan

I would pay good money to watch this & all of the other teams picked play!