EVERYTHING the Western Bulldogs did up until half-time on Saturday had to be taken with a grain of salt.
There was still caution when a Patrick Lipinski goal steered them in front of Melbourne early in the third term, even though they were trampling the Demons in most of the key indicators.
Only Essendon won fewer third quarters in the first 16 rounds and the Dogs had lost seven straight, with no side having a worse points differential (-197) in the so-called premiership term.
Add the Demons' unmatched knack of going into offensive-beast mode at a moment's notice and it was a cocktail that was unlikely to end well for Luke Beveridge's men.
Melbourne didn't disappoint – but did break Bulldog hearts – with seven unanswered goals in an extraordinary 12-minute stretch that transformed a dour struggle into a Demon march.
The recurrence of Jack Viney's toe injury cost Melbourne its co-captain on game eve and may have finals repercussions, but the 18.11 (119) to 10.9 (69) victory keeps the club in the September mix.
In doing so, Simon Goodwin's side won for just the third time in nine MCG outings.
"I was really pleased, especially after half-time," Goodwin told reporters.
"I thought early our tackle pressure and work around the contest clearly wasn't to the level we expect of ourselves – and the Bulldogs threw the ball around with a lot of handball, but that gave us a lot of opportunity as well.
"We really ramped that up after half-time and got the game the way we wanted it.
"The guys' ability just to enjoy the battle and enjoy the grind at half-time and stay calm and get back to playing the way we knew was outstanding."
Leading All Australian contender Max Gawn delivered a ruck masterclass in the third quarter, racking up seven hit-outs to advantage and instigating three goal chains from centre bounces.
It could have been four if not for McDonald failing to make the distance from a 40m set shot, after Gawn (41 hit-outs) and Clayton Oliver (34, six tackles, eight inside 50s) combined superbly.
The Demons big man – also a towering presence down back – climbed all over Jordan Roughead, who had held up admirably in the opening half in the absence of Tom Boyd and Tim English.
Oliver put to bed any suspicion that his appetite for handball owes to kicking limitations, sticking the ball inside 50 four times in the term, setting up two goals and kicking one of his own.
Angus Brayshaw (39, six clearances, five inside 50s), a strong performer all afternoon, and 2014 draft peer Christian Petracca joined in the centre-square party, too.
But the trio and their midfield mates were initially unable to thwart their Jack Macrae-inspired opponents.
Usual clearance warriors Oliver and Nathan Jones had one between them in the first half, with Macrae (four) and Mitch Wallis and Roughead (both three) leading the Dogs to a 20-12 edge.
The Bulldogs also boasted advantages in disposals (247-195), contested possessions (81-73), tackles (36-27) and inside 50s (35-25) at the main break.
Those statistics are typically Melbourne's domain and queries have repeatedly been raised when it botched that dominance, so Goodwin will welcome his players' ability to hang in.
Key forwards Jesse Hogan (four) and Tom McDonald (three) warmed to the task and combined for seven majors.
Macrae (33, nine tackles, six inside 50s) and Wallis (29, three goals) fought on valiantly for the Dogs, as did Lachie Hunter and Josh Dunkley, who won 35 and 30 touches, respectively.
But James Harmes limited Macrae to only 10 second-half possessions in one of the key midfield match-ups.
Josh Schache's influence waned after half-time, but he plucked seven of his eight marks in the opening two terms and finished with 2.2, in another step in the right direction.
"They got hold of us in the centre bounce," Beveridge said of the third-quarter avalanche that cost the Bulldogs the win.
"We steadied better at the end of the quarter than we did last week, but then they had too much run and finish for us in the last quarter."
MEDICAL ROOM
Melbourne: The Demons suffered a blow on Friday when a scan showed signs of stress in Jack Viney's troublesome toe on his right foot and the co-captain was a late withdrawal. The same injury forced him onto the sidelines late last year and kept him out of the senior side until round nine this season. Viney may not return until the latter stages of 2018, if at all, in a significant blow to Melbourne's finals hopes.
Western Bulldogs: Josh Schache looked in serious trouble when he grabbed his left knee after a goal-line scramble with Demon Sam Frost early in the second term. He limped from the field with trainers either side of him, but was back on the ground soon after and resuming his impressive aerial performance. Billy Gowers landed awkwardly in a last-quarter marking contest and hurt his right ankle.
NEXT UP
The Demons' season goes on the line when they travel to Geelong on Saturday night to face one of their chief rivals for an elusive top-eight spot. The Bulldogs have an extra day's recovery, but have to travel west to take on the Eagles at Optus Stadium
MELBOURNE 3.4 6.9 14.9 18.11 (119)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.1 6.6 9.9 10.9 (69)
GOALS
Melbourne: Hogan 4, McDonald 3, Garlett 2, Neal-Bullen 2, Spargo 2, Petracca, Melksham, Oliver, Hannan, Lewis
Western Bulldogs: Wallis 3, Schache 2, Johannisen 2, Hunter, Lipinski, McLean
BEST
Melbourne: Gawn, Brayshaw, Oliver, Hogan, Melksham, Salem
Western Bulldogs: Macrae, Wallis, Hunter, Dunkley, Gowers
INJURIES
Melbourne: Mitch Hannan (Melb) replaced Jack Viney (toe) in the selected side.
Western Bulldogs: Nil
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Brown, Chamberlain, Jeffery
Official crowd: 30,305 at the MCG
