Two teams with similar fortunes go head to head tonight when West Coast host the Bulldogs at Domain Stadium in Perth.
They played out an entertaining elimination final here last year that ended in an upset win the visiting team. Of course, that was just the first in a series of four big upset wins by the Bulldogs on their route to the 2016 premiership.
This year both sides again look like solid teams, and both can boast a 5-2 ledger to start the year, which has them both in the mix for a top four spot. They’re also the only teams in the AFL’s top seven who got a win last week in what was largely a round of upsets.
West Coast had a fast start against Port Adelaide on the road and though the Power clawed their way back into the game, the Eagles held on to win by ten.
The Western Bulldogs again showed their ability to come from behind and take a win, escaping with a five-point victory over Richmond.
The Dogs have had to come back from being a decent amount down in four of five games this year, and two of them have been wins by less than a goal. That does suggest that they’re only scraping by in some respects.
The Eagles on the other hand have had only two losses, both of them at the MCG where they’ve been suspect under pressure for a long time now. They’ve brought in Fraser McInnes and Liam Duggan this week as Mark Hutchings and Jonathan Giles both dropped.
The Bulldogs will miss Jake Stringer (knee), Josh Dunkley (shoulder) and Bob Murphy (soreness), with Jack Redpath, Lukas Webb and Bailey Dale coming in.
With the Dogs having some notable outs and the Eagles boasting the home ground advantage, the odds are definitely in West Coast’s favour. $2.10 for the home win by 1-39 points looks like decent enough value as we don’t expect them to blow the Bulldogs away.