Western Bulldogs v St Kilda at Telstra Dome, Friday April 4, 7.40pm
FORECAST
Clearing shower or two; min 9, max 19
BETTING
Western Bulldogs $2.80
St Kilda $1.40
LAST TIME THEY MET
Western Bulldogs 12.13 (85) drew with St Kilda 12.13 (85); round 18, 2007, at Telstra Dome
FORM GUIDE
The Bulldogs are one of four teams to remain undefeated after two rounds and are sitting third on the ladder. In the opening week, they beat pre-season grand finalists
The Saints are another club to have started the year with a clean sheet and, after claiming the NAB Cup, have won six straight matches. Last week they beat
MEDICAL ROOM
The Bulldogs are likely to get back Nathan Eagleton this week, with coaching staff rating the wingman a good chance to play. However, they will miss young gun Shaun Higgins, who chipped a bone and damaged ligaments in his ankle against the Demons. The 2007 NAB AFL Rising Star nominee could miss up to two months. Defenders Tom Williams (thigh) and Andrejs Everitt (knee) are both three weeks away, as is rebounder Farren Ray (foot), while Malcolm Lynch (hamstring) could be available in a fortnight.
The Saints got through their encounter with
RANDOM FACTS
* The Saints have won four of the last five matches between the two clubs, with the last encounter ending in a draw – the third between the two clubs. Overall, the Bulldogs have a slight edge with 71 wins to the St Kilda's 68.
* There are likely to be three 300-game players involved in this game, with Brad Johnson, Scott West and Robert Harvey all set to play.
KEY MATCH-UPS
As usual, a focus of this game will be whether the Bulldogs' generally short defence can stop the tall timber of the Saints.
These two loom as certainties to face off as
Cameron Wight v Justin Koschitzke
The lanky ruckman/defender played on
Ryan Hargrave v Nick Riewoldt
Riewoldt was held to two goals by Jarrad Waite and with Hargrave only three centimetres shorter than the St Kilda skipper, and of similar agility, he could be the best possible option to start alongside him.
WHAT THE CLUBS SAY
Western Bulldogs
"To get off to two wins is obviously a good start but St Kilda, counting their NAB Cup, they've won six in a row so it's a great test for us.
"We've watched them the last couple of weeks. The
"I don't think they're far off their best. They're a very good side, we've struggled with them in the past, and I know we had that draw last year with them. But in the previous couple of years they've given us some good beltings.
"We're up and running, we've had a good pre-season and we're looking forward to taking them on this Friday night.
"Three big monsters in [Justin] Koschitzke, [Nick] Riewoldt and [Fraser] Gehrig are obviously hard to stop.
"We've got Harris (Brian Lake) and Cam Wight, so no doubt we're going to have to call in another tall in [Andrew] McDougall maybe or look to a [Ryan] Hargrave or a [Dale] Morris to play above their height.
"It's always a concern playing their talls but again, hopefully our midfield can get on top and prevent them from going in there with ease." – Leon Cameron, assistant coach.
"They're a really strong team. They played in the finals the year before. They were 9-6 until they were really decimated by injury.
"They've got all their run and skill back. They're really up and firing and I think everyone respects the way they play and they're a really difficult challenge.
"They run hard, they kick it well. They are a really strong team at what they do. They've got some elite running players, [Adam] Cooney, [Nathan] Eagleton, [Ryan] Griffen, [Daniel] Giansiracusa. There's a number of them.
"We want to bring our work boots and make sure we're in the contest because they [the Bulldogs] can blow you away quicker than any other team in the AFL." – Ross Lyon, senior coach.
