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Shane Crawford
From:Sunday Herald Sun August 28, 2010
THE Western Bulldogs cannot win the flag this year and the premiership window for this group of players may have closed for the next three or four years.
It hurts me to say that, because I tipped the Doggies to break their 56-year flag drought in the pre-season.
I'm not sorry I picked them. They looked the goods in March, adding Barry Hall to the list and 90 per cent of the team had enjoyed full pre-seasons. I'm just sorry I raised the hopes of long-suffering Bulldogs fans.
So much can change in the space of a season and as we have seen with Rodney Eade's team, so much can change in just a few weeks.
A 101-point loss to Geelong a fortnight ago, combined with a virus that swept through the club, season-ending injuries to Adam Cooney and Dale Morris and a cloud over Brad Johnson, have all but killed their year.
I cannot see the Dogs making that elusive Grand Final. The long injury list even leaves them vulnerable to going out in straight sets.
What worries me more is where the Bulldogs are headed.
Sure, we have seen the emergence of a few young players who look to have bright futures.
But the playing list is essentially an ageing one. Jason Akermanis is gone and Johnson and Nathan Eagleton could retire at the end of the season.
Barry Hall will go on -- as he should -- because he has probably exceeded expectations this season.
But there are plenty of other 28-year-old-plus players at the club. The Dogs will be competitive next year but I fear their window is rapidly closing.
It made me think about the teams in the finals this year and who looms as their most important players. For the Dogs, it is 31-year-old Ben Hudson.
We saw how important he is when the Bulldogs were monstered in the ruck without him against the Cats.
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From:Sunday Herald Sun August 28, 2010
THE Western Bulldogs cannot win the flag this year and the premiership window for this group of players may have closed for the next three or four years.
It hurts me to say that, because I tipped the Doggies to break their 56-year flag drought in the pre-season.
I'm not sorry I picked them. They looked the goods in March, adding Barry Hall to the list and 90 per cent of the team had enjoyed full pre-seasons. I'm just sorry I raised the hopes of long-suffering Bulldogs fans.
So much can change in the space of a season and as we have seen with Rodney Eade's team, so much can change in just a few weeks.
A 101-point loss to Geelong a fortnight ago, combined with a virus that swept through the club, season-ending injuries to Adam Cooney and Dale Morris and a cloud over Brad Johnson, have all but killed their year.
I cannot see the Dogs making that elusive Grand Final. The long injury list even leaves them vulnerable to going out in straight sets.
What worries me more is where the Bulldogs are headed.
Sure, we have seen the emergence of a few young players who look to have bright futures.
But the playing list is essentially an ageing one. Jason Akermanis is gone and Johnson and Nathan Eagleton could retire at the end of the season.
Barry Hall will go on -- as he should -- because he has probably exceeded expectations this season.
But there are plenty of other 28-year-old-plus players at the club. The Dogs will be competitive next year but I fear their window is rapidly closing.
It made me think about the teams in the finals this year and who looms as their most important players. For the Dogs, it is 31-year-old Ben Hudson.
We saw how important he is when the Bulldogs were monstered in the ruck without him against the Cats.
Link
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