THE WESTERN Bulldogs ensured captain Marcus Bontempelli celebrated his 200-game milestone in positive fashion, grinding out a 29-point win over Hawthorn on Saturday.

The Bulldogs (4-3) were well beaten in clearances and contested possession before half-time but gradually tilted the match in their favour to secure the 14.10 (94) to 9.11 (65) victory at Marvel Stadium.

BULLDOGS v HAWKS Full match coverage and stats

It was the Hawks' (1-5) fourth straight loss, leaving them anchored to the bottom of the ladder.

Bontempelli (20 disposals) was below his scintillating best, drifting in and out of the contest as Hawthorn threatened a boilover in front of 40,119 fans.

But the Brownlow Medal fancy finished with a game-high four goal assists to make his presence felt as the Bulldogs kicked seven goals to two after half-time.

Aaron Naughton (four goals), Caleb Daniel (27 disposals, six clearances) and Jack Macrae (26, six) were all influential in the victory, which put the Dogs ahead on the win-loss ledger for the first time this season.

Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and Rory Lobb kicked two goals each.

Bailey Smith (24 disposals, six clearances) made a successful return after two weeks out with a calf injury but the Bulldogs missed concussed midfielder Tom Liberatore's grunt around the ball.

Will Day (30 touches, six clearances, one goal), James Worpel (25, eight, one) and Jai Newcombe (24, 10, two) took up the fight with the Dogs' engine room and veteran forward Luke Breust (three goals) was a handful in attack before half-time.

Hawks spearhead Mitch Lewis impressed in his first game of the season on return from a knee injury but was wayward in front of goal, kicking 1.4 from 16 disposals and 11 marks.

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Lewis set up a Worpel goal and kicked one himself after taking a strong grab to help give the Hawks a one-point lead at quarter-time.

They kept their noses in front until a few minutes before half-time when Jason Johannisen's running goal from outside 50m put the Dogs ahead.

The home side owned the scoreboard for most of the second half but struggled to shake off the gallant Hawks.

Popular young livewire Arthur Jones kicked the sealer - his first AFL goal - to spark celebrations in the final few minutes.

The 22 get the job done
The Western Bulldogs became the first side not to use their tactical sub this season, with Toby McLean left on the bench for the duration of the game. There were no injuries from the match, but the Hawks still unleashed their sub in the third term with Seamus Mitchell subbed out and Jack Scrimshaw taking his place on the field. 

Lewis gives Hawks' forward line a facelift
Mitch Lewis made his long-awaited return from a knee injury this week. The prolific Hawks forward hadn’t played since round 20 last year, but it didn’t take him long to find his groove. Lewis took a big mark in the goalsquare in the opening term to boot his first goal of the day, and followed that up with a towering grab on the wing which led to another Hawks goal on the quarter-time siren. He misfired a little in front of goal with a return of 1.4 for the day, but he was strong in the air, taking 11 marks (three contested) to more than make up for his wayward kicking.

Bont notches up game 200
There's been few greater for the Western Bulldogs than their inspirational skipper Marcus Bontempelli. 'The Bont' became just the 23rd player in the club's history to play 200 games, and while his milestone match was quiet by his standards with Conor Nash doing a sensational shutdown job on him, he was still a key player in the Dogs' hard-fought win. He finished with 20 disposals (10 contested), six clearances and five marks. Remarkably, Bontempelli has only missed eight games since making his debut in round four, 2014, and is the first player from his draft class (2013) to reach the 200-game milestone.

WESTERN BULLDOGS      3.2     7.3     10.6   14.10 (94)
HAWTHORN                     3.3     7.6     7.9     9.11 (65)

GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Naughton 4, Lobb 2, Ugle-Hagan 2, Daniel, English, Johannisen, Jones, Scott, Williams
Hawthorn: Breust 3, Newcombe 2, Day, Lewis, Sicily, Worpel

BEST
Western Bulldogs: Naughton, Daniel, English, Baker, Williams, Macrae
Hawthorn: Newcombe, Hardwick, Day, Sicily, Lewis, Breust

INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Nil
Hawthorn: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Western Bulldogs: Toby McLean (unused)
Hawthorn: Jack Scrimshaw (replaced Seamus Mitchell in the third quarter)

Crowd: 40,119 at Marvel Stadium