Brutal Bulldogs demolish sorry Saints… but win soured as young star’s family left distraught

The Western Bulldogs’ big win over St Kilda has been soured by a likely season-ending injury to young star Sam Darcy on Sunday night.

Darcy went down in the opening term and immediately clutched at his left knee before taking no further part in his side’s 71-point win.

FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every match of every round in the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE in 4K, with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer.

While Darcy’s injury became the biggest story of the match, Marcus Bontempelli’s return inspired a brilliant 18.19 (127) to 8.8 (56) demolition of the sorry Saints.

The Dogs dominated every aspect of the game to blow out the margin by full time as the Saints struggled outside of a hot 10-minute start.

Late goals ensured the Dogs claimed their biggest win over St Kilda since 2021.

THE 3-2-1…

3. GUESS WHO? BONTEMPELLI’S ‘SUPERSTAR’ RETURN DOWNS DOUR SAINTS

It could hardly be a shock to even the most casual of football observers, but Marcus Bontempelli’s return to the top level was as good — and on-brand — as anyone could have expected.

The Western Bulldogs skipper’s first match for 2025 saw him set Marvel Stadium alight on the night of Easter Sunday, amassing 30 disposals, eight clearances, 442 metres gained and two goals in a performance that promptly reminded everyone of just how good a player he is.

A potential ACL injury to Sam Darcy sent shockwaves through the Western Bulldogs camp early on in the clash, but their captain put the bad new behind him to leave it all out on the park amid the 71-point win.

“He’s probably best on ground at half time along with Aaron Naughton, who’s looked really dangerous,” three-time premiership Lion Jonathan Brown said to Fox Footy at half time.

322-game modern-day great Nick Dal Santo: “You can only imagine he was sitting back for the last five weeks saying: ‘Please let me get back involved!’”

“They’ve held up really well without him, and then you get that friendly reminder of: ‘No, no, he is the absolute superstar that we remember from late last year.

A calf injury sustained in the opening minutes of a pre-season game against Hawthorn in Tasmania put the 29-year-old on the sidelines for the opening five rounds of the season, in a blow felt even greater by the club’s already-long injury list.

The likes of Adam Treloar and Cody Weightman are still yet to feature this season, while defenders Liam Jones and Jason Johannisen have only returned to the senior side in recent weeks.

But for any spectator going into tonight blind to the news of Bontempelli’s interrupted start to 2025, you simply would not have guessed it.

“Playing his first game for the year, he’s had 20 possessions in the first half, he’s kicked two goals and had six score involvements, if you don’t mind! It’s good to have him back,” Melbourne great Garry Lyon said during the main break.

Among several other key Bulldogs, key forward Aaron Naughton stepped up massively in the early absence of Darcy in the forward half to register three goals and nine score involvements of his own — a crucial performance aptly supported by medium forward Rhylee West.

“He (Naughton) has really stepped up, his positioning today’s been really good and his footwork’s has been fantastic,” Brown highlighted at half time.

“I love when he’s starting to feel dangerous, he put himself in the most dangerous spot 25 metres out in front of goal.

“We’ve talked about Darcy, (but) no Jamarra there as well — so this is Aaron Naughton’s forward line going forward.”

Rhylee Sanders and Tom Liberatore were also everywhere throughout the night, as both young and old stood up to fight the Bulldogs up to a 3-3 win-loss record.

2. SAINTS’ ‘HARD TO MAINTAIN’ STYLE WAVERS QUICKLY AFTER FAST START

After three goals in the first four minutes on Sunday night, there was a serious wave of energy around St Kilda with a 4-2 start to their season on the line, and in their favour early.

A pair of majors to Mitchito Owens and a dashing Jack Sinclair looked to stun the Bulldogs, as Ross Lyon’s side looked to avoid the intercepting beast that is Rory Lobb inside their forward 50.

“There is a clear plan (from St Kilda), and that is: ‘We’re going to bypass Rory Lobb,” Garry Lyon flagged as St Kilda jumped the gun.

“Long down the line (doesn’t work) there, they’re short. Cooper Sharman’s their tallest at the moment, and Mason Wood’s the next tallest — so Lobb down the line doesn’t work for the Saints.

“They don’t want Lobb intercepting, they don’t want O’Donnell intercepting; and they sure as hell don’t want Jones (intercepting).

“Ground ball game (has) suited St Kilda well over the years, they’ve been top six for three years at grounds ball footy.”

From there though, the red, white and black looked to get cold feet across all stat lines, getting absolutely thumped at clearance, in the inside 50 count and marks inside 50; despite Sam Darcy’s early exit from the game.

It left the likes of Owens and livelier Jack Higgins dry on supply inside their own attacking arc, after looking so threatening early.

“They had so much pace on the footy the first six or seven minutes you thought: ‘Gee, that’s exciting, but it’s going to be hard to maintain’,” Lyon added at the start of the final quarter.

“The response from the Dogs has been so professional, they just closed them down.”

Luke Beveridge’s side kept the Saints goalless in the second term, and to just four goals after quarter time in an ultra-strong display at both ends of the ground.

1. ‘MORE THAN THE GAME’: DARCY FAMILY DISTRAUGHT AS FOOTY WORLD ‘FEARS WORST’

In the second quarter, the Fox Footy broadcast showed vision of the Bulldogs rooms, where Darcy’s family members, including father Luke, appeared distraught.

While the severity of the Dogs prodigy’s ailment isn’t yet confirmed, it appears a significant setback that could see him sidelined for the rest of 2025.

“These are (the) scenes down in the rooms, his father … and Bec, his mum … it’s a really emotional family, there,” Garry Lyon noted in the second quarter.

“That’s footy. That’s more than just the game, here. This is a family that’s been affected by what seems to be a really serious injury … That’s pretty telling.”

In a case of cruel irony, Luke, who played 226 games for the Bulldogs, is no stranger to serious knee injuries, having undergone back-to-back knee reconstructions in 2005 and 2006.

With five minutes left in the first half, Darcy was back on the Bulldogs bench wearing a club polo.

“It was just a regular (launch) at the football … but it was when he stood up and tried to make his way from the ground and (everyone) saw the replay — that’s when the ‘oohs’ and the ‘ahs’ (started) and the worst fears were felt,” Nick Dal Santo said at half-time.

“And we’re still waiting for confirmation, but we are fearing that it might be the worst case scenario.”

Jonathan Brown added: “The family reaction was telling, wasn’t it? Very emotional scenes down there, of course, as you would be with your siblings there and of course your parents, so that’s really concerning.

“One of the stars of our game. You don’t want to see that happen to anyone, but this, obviously, is going to get a hell of a lot of news and publicity.”

Lyon concurred: “It is, and that’s the game we play; there are highs and lows, and he was just about to take the footy world be storm — and he will again, whatever is the outcome.

“So, let’s not preempt it, hope for the best … he’s got a good family around him, he’s got a great family, so the Western Bulldogs will wrap their arms around him as well.”

A minor silver lining to come from the situation was the enhanced performance of fellow Dogs key forward Aaron Naughton, who sensed the urge to lift in Darcy’s absence, booting 2.2 from four marks by half-time.

Follow our live digital coverage of Western Bulldogs vs. St Kilda in our live blog below! Can’t see the blog? Click here

Bontempelli is the sole inclusion for the Bulldogs, who will be without James Harmes after he was subbed out with a footy injury in the opening quarter last Saturday against the Lions.

Ross Lyon has made two unforced changes for the clash, with gun kick Arie Schoenmaker and Liam Henry back into the fold to replace the omitted Tobie Travaglia and Angus Hastie. Intriguingly, Zak Jones was at first dropped instead of Hastie, but the 19-year-old junior lined up for Sandringham on Saturday afternoon in their victory over Footscray in the VFL. It means Jones holds his spot in the senior side for another week.

Hastie finished his afternoon at Whitten Oval with 25 disposals, five rebound 50s and three tackles.

Fascinatingly, both sides have won eight of their last nine matches at Marvel Stadium — including the last seven for the Western Bulldogs. Beveridge’s side have also won three of their last four over the Saints.

The first bounce hit the turf at Marvel Stadium at 7:20pm, with second-gamer Cooper Hynes (Bulldogs) and Zak Jones (Saints) the respective substitutes.