The Roos’ coach felt his team had been fortunate, in some ways, to get the Dogs at the right time last year, and expected a very different contest to unfold against this year’s unbeaten outfit.
“They’re up and running. All their very best players have got good form and their fitness is very good, so it’s completely different to probably the last two maybe three times we’ve played them,” Laidley said from Arden St on Thursday.
“They’re more mature now, they’ve played more games of football, they’re a little bit more seasoned and the stars are certainly aligning for them.
“They’re gelling well, their senior players are still playing good footy, but some players who have been there for three, four, five and six years now are really taking over the mantle and they’ve got a real look about them.”
The Kangaroos’ hardness at the contest was a major factor in the side's close win over West Coast last week, and Laidley maintained his players will need to recapture that intensity to come away with a win.
"I thought particularly after half time our contested ball was terrific. I think we had 74 or 75 tackles, and we're going to need to do that on the weekend against the Bulldogs," he said.
"They're a very, very slick, very, very smart outfit that has played particularly well this year. They’ve really improved in a lot of areas, so we're going to have to be at our very best to beat them."
The match will be Brent Harvey's 250th and while the coach was glowing in his praise of the decorated Roo, he doesn't plan to use the milestone as motivation.
“I’ll probably downplay it a little bit and make sure that we focus on our actions because I think you can use it in the right way, which is terrific, but … it can become quite negative", he said.
"He's just been a wonderful player; I've had the privilege to coach him now for six years in his career.
"He's been a marvelous talent, and I think since I've been coaching him he's won three best and fairests. He’s been a super player and he’s really rounded off his game in the last 18 months or so.
“By the time he finishes playing he’s going to be one of the all-time greats, certainly of this football club, and of the League.
"It’s been a real pleasure to coach him.”
The length of the injury list continues to be cause for concern at Arden St, but Laidley did confirm that Daniel Pratt would be ready to resume after missing a week with a groin strain.
