Coach Neale Daniher reviews Melbourne’s 6 point loss to the Bulldogs, exclusively on melbournefc.com.auPre Match:
- Big focus this week on continuing to stick tight as a group, and working for each other. We felt it was important that the players didn’t get caught up in the hysteria surrounding repetitive losses, along with injuries, and a very close loss to Port Adelaide. Instead, we needed to concentrate on working with each other and putting a strong performance together against the Bulldogs.

- Wanted to get off to a solid start, as the Bulldogs have a great record at The Dome in recent times. They are a hard running team that moves the ball very quickly from one end of the ground to the other and can kick goals if you drop your defensive pressure.

- Brought in Ben Holland to strengthen us in height, as Jared Rivers didn’t get up from the Port Adelaide game. Daniel Ward was brought into the team after having good form with Sandringham, and we had a specific role for him.

- Along with Ward, Simon Godfrey and Cameron Bruce also had specific roles on the day.

- Needed a strong effort over four quarters against the Bulldogs. We were very close to that last week but needed to improve in this area. Focus areas were – winning the stoppages, tackling fiercely to create defensive pressure, hard running, and switching the play and hurting the Bulldogs during counter attack.

During the Match:
- We started the game with Ward playing on Eagleton, Bruce playing in the back line on Brad Johnson, and Godfrey tagging Scott West.

- We got the start we required, kicking six goals to four in the first quarter. Davey was fantastic early, kicking a couple of goals, while Johnstone (nine possessions), Yze (nine possessions), and Bruce (seven possessions) allowed us to use the ball effectively to kick goals. Unfortunately, we allowed the Bulldogs to kick some easy goals early in the game.

- We let ourselves down in the second quarter for a period of about 15 minutes, resulting in the Bulldogs kicking six goals to our one.

- At half time, we released Bruce from the backline to try and win the game. We pushed him into the midfield, which made an immediate impact. We kicked three goals to two during the third quarter, and were within two goals at the final break.

- Our boys battled bravely during the final term, hitting the front on a couple of occasions. It was very disappointing for our guys to be beaten in a hard fought game, which saw us kick six goals to four in the last quarter and be beaten in the final minutes of the match.

Post Match:
- We lost the game because we had a lapse in the second quarter when the Bulldogs kicked six goals to our one. We won the other three quarters and fought back well in the final half, kicking nine goals to six.

- Ward did a solid job on Eagleton, restricting him to 16 possessions, and Godfrey was again very effective against West, restricting him to 20 possessions – well below his usual possessions and impact on a game. West had averaged 32 possessions per game over the first six rounds of the season.

- We did well around the stoppages at centre bounces, winning 19 to 14 in the centre clearances. Were beaten around the boundary throw ins and ball-ups.

- It is important for our players to continue to focus on West Coast this week, and not be too disappointed with the results of the last two weeks. A win isn’t too far away if we continue with the same level of intensity, and the form shown over the last two weeks. We are showing some gradual improvements.