IF THE Western Bulldogs keep up their strong recent form, there's no reason why they can't make a late charge towards finals, coach Luke Beveridge believes.

The Bulldogs followed up an impressive interstate win against Port Adelaide with a 16-point win over the top-of-the-table Cats on Saturday night.

The Dogs are now 3-1 since the bye and only a game outside the top eight, giving themselves a sniff of making their first finals appearance since their premiership year of 2016.

The Bulldogs are starting to get momentum and belief at the right time of year. Picture: AFL Photos

Beveridge said his side had learnt from disappointing losses to Carlton and Gold Coast earlier in the year and now showed they could match it with any side in the competition.

He said the Dogs were capable of winning a majority of their remaining games, which would put them in serious finals contention.

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"I think we've learnt a bit, there's no doubt. You've got to be right on edge against everyone," Beveridge said.

"But in recent times, everyone's asking questions of the teams that we're beating like they aren't fronting up. We're not a bad side.

"If we keep driving like we have been, there's no reason why we can't win most of them." 

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Beveridge praised the performance of young forward Aaron Naughton, who kicked 4.1 and took nine marks against a quality Geelong defensive unit.

He said the 19-year-old has stepped up since making the switch from defence to attack at the start of the season.

"Obviously with (Tom Boyd) retiring and we haven't had a great deal of depth (up forward) in recent times," Beveridge said.

"We're really grateful for the fact that he's accepted that responsibility. He's enjoyed the role and has helped others play well.

"When you think that he's still only 19, he's obviously a promising player."

The Dogs coach also said he was impressed with the performance of midfielder Toby McLean, who made his return to the senior side on Saturday after he was surprisingly dropped in round 14.

After Beveridge demanded more influence from him during the week, McLean collected 23 disposals and laid an important tackle late in the final quarter when the game was on the line.

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"I felt like he made a really solid contribution," Beveridge said.

"He had an enormous last quarter. As I've made glaringly obvious through (my) commentary, I've asked him to come up with what he's capable of and influence results.

"And I felt like tonight he really influenced the result with what he was able to do."