Four-time premiership player Jordan Lewis has encouraged Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge to make a bold positional change in the short-term, as his club deals with a worsening injury crisis.
Inside the last fortnight, Beveridge has lost all of Sam Darcy, Tim English, Tom Liberatore, Connor Budarick, James O’Donnell and Artie Jones through injury — while a question mark remains over the availability of veteran utility Rory Lobb for this Thursday night.
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Additionally, superstar captain Marcus Bontempelli landed awkwardly on his knee during last weeks’ 75-point thumping at the hands of Geelong, but managed to play out the match as he simultaneously dealt with a hard tag from Oisin Mullin.
Speaking to Fox Footy’s On The Couch on Monday night, Lewis put the Dogs’ defence in the spotlight, accompanied by match vision, having conceded 235 points across the last two weeks.
“The thing I want to put under the microscope is their defence. It was prior to this game as well, so it’s not jut because of the Lobb and O’Donnell injuries, but it’s quite stark,” Lewis began.
“Should Rory Lobb really be handing over Shannon Neale to Buku Khamis? I don’t think so … should Bailey Dale be taking front position on Jack Martin, who mind you, had a really good game?
“For me, their defence lacks leadership and fight at the moment … I think they’ve got too many ball-watchers, and not enough ball users or leadership.
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While Lobb’s availability is yet to be determined for Round 7, Lewis flagged a shock magnet move the Bulldogs coach could make involving Bontempelli, who is widely viewed as the AFL’s best midfielder in the game right now.
“The conversation now will come: how do they fill those positions? Lobb might play, O’Donnell might be out for a couple of weeks … I think Bontempelli (is the answer),” Lewis said.
“A lot of the conversation will be: ‘Well, why don’t you put Bontempelli forward now that Darcy’s out?’
“We’ve all played with great defenders and great communicators. Alex Rance, Nick Vlastuin, Luke Hodge, Tom Stewart — these types are hard to measure, but their stuff behind the ball can compensate for errors that happen further up the field.
“They’re leaking at the moment. I think Bontempelli, a great communicator and leader, will command respect in that defensive end — but also a good ball user. You look at their ball users in their back end, and they’ve dropped away.
BAILEY DALE — AFL RATING LAST THREE YEARS
2024: #9
2025: #6
2026: #105
“Bailey Dale was a top 10 player in the league these last couple of years, he’s dropped down to 105. You’re not getting much out of his ball use, and you’re not getting much out of his defensive work as well.
“I think it’s a glaring issue. They’re stacked in the midfield, they’ve got depth in that midfield. Bontempelli for me at half-back would change their fortunes going forward.”
In place of O’Donnell and potentially Lobb, defenders Jedd Busslinger and Ryan Gardner were flagged by Beveridge in his post-game press conference against Geelong as the likely inclusions.
The Bulldogs will host Sydney at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night, having won 17 of their last 20 games at the venue.
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