The GIANTS are looking to create history to give themselves a chance at a top two finish in a mouth-watering clash with the Western Bulldogs in Ballarat.

Western Bulldogs v GIANTS 
Sunday, August 25 at 12:30pm  
Mars Stadium | Wadawurrung  and Dja Dja Wurrung Country 

What it Means for the GIANTS

The Orange Tsunami continues to surge and will enter Sunday’s clash with the Bulldogs riding a club-record seven-match winning streak and looking to register eight straight wins for the first time in GIANTS history.

Last week the GIANTS not only secured a finals spot with a crucial nine-point win over the Dockers, they also a guaranteed top four spot regardless of the results in the final round of the home and away season this weekend.

The GIANTS still have a lot to play for on Sunday however, with a likely
home qualifying final at ENGIE Stadium in the first week of finals up for grabs if they beat the ‘Dogs and Port Adelaide loses to Fremantle at Optus Stadium in the final game of the round.

A GIANTS win and Power loss would secure second spot on the ladder for the GIANTS as long as the Cats don't make up the four percent gap on the GIANTS in their clash with the Eagles at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday.

Currently in third, the GIANTS face a variety of week one finals fixtures pending the round 24 results, with a home qualifying final or an away qualifying final against the Swans, Cats or Power all possibilities.

The Opposition      

The Bulldogs sit firmly alongside the GIANTS as two of the form teams of the competition but still need a win on Sunday to guarantee a spot in September.

Sitting sixth on the AFL table, the Bulldogs will miss finals if they lose to the GIANTS – and all of Hawthorn (v North Melbourne), Carlton (v St Kilda) and Fremantle (v Port Adelaide) win their final games of the season.

Winners of four of their last five games, the Dogs will enter Sunday’s clash fresh off a clinical 96-point win over the Kangaroos at Marvel Stadium as young gun Sam Darcy kicked a career-best seven goals.

While firing on all cylinders leading into the crucial round 24 clash, the Bulldogs announced they will be without star ruckman Tim English (ankle) for a second straight week on Sunday, with utility Rory Lobb set to be tasked with ruck duties against GIANTS star Kieren Briggs.

Recent History

The Bulldogs have had the wood over the GIANTS in recent times, winning four of the last five clashes between the sides.

In the most recent meeting, in round 10 earlier this year, the Bulldogs beat the GIANTS by 27 points in wet and wild conditions at ENGIE Stadium.

Jesse Hogan (14 disposals, three goals), Toby Greene (17 disposals, three goals) and Tom Green (29 disposals, seven clearances) were strong for the GIANTS, while Adam Treloar (35 disposals) and Ed Richards (27 disposals, 10 clearances) were two of the Bulldogs’ best.

Key Match-Up: Three-headed Monster v Defiant Defence

The Bulldogs possess one of the most potent young forward lines in the competition and on Sunday their battle with the GIANTS’ defiant backline will be worth the price of admission alone.

Spearheaded by three extremely dangerous young key forwards in Aaron Naughton, Sam Darcy and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, the Bulldogs’ tall trio is emerging as one of the AFL’s most lethal attacking weapons.

Last week the trio of Darcy (seven), Ugle-Hagan (three), and Naughton (two) combined for 12 goals against North Melbourne in a dominant display, with dangerous small forward Cody Weightman chiming in with 13 touches and 2.2 of his own.

Led by arguably the competition’s best key defensive duo Sam Taylor and Jack Buckley, and aided by the likes of the versatile Connor Idun and Harry Himmelberg, the GIANTS’ backline - and particularly their key defenders - will need to be at their stingy best on Sunday to restrict the star-studded Dogs forward line as the GIANTS strive for a top two finish.

GIANTS Player to Watch: Brilliant Binga   

One of the competition’s most underrated stars, Brent Daniels is slowly getting the league-wide recognition he deserves after another brilliant display in last week’s crucial win over the Dockers.

Vying with spearhead Jesse Hogan (six goals) for best on ground honours, Daniels starred against Fremantle to finish with a crazy stat line of 29 touches, three goals, seven clearances and 13 tackles.

The zippy forward was everywhere in a starring all-round game to help the GIANTS secure a spot in September.

With a potential top two spot up for grabs, Daniels will again be vital to the GIANTS’ winning chances on Sunday as the Orange Tsunami looks to wash away the Bulldogs.

In the Mix 

The GIANTS will have to make at least one change for Sunday’s clash, with dashing defender Lachie Ash suspended for one week for rough conduct in the win over the Dockers last week.

Young gun Harvey Thomas will come into consideration after being managed last round, while several GIANTS were strong in the VFL’s final game of the season last week.

Team Selection      

The GIANTS will name their squad for round 24 on Thursday at 6:20pm and the final team on Friday at 5pm at gwsgiants.com.au.

Rehab Report     

Get a full injury update ahead of Sunday’s match here.  

Where to Watch     

Sunday’s match will be shown live and free on Channel Seven from 12:30pm in NSW and the ACT, as well as nationally on Fox Footy and Kayo.

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The Western Bulldogs have hosted home games at Mars Stadium since 2017, but none of the club’s previous 11 trips meant anywhere near as much as Sunday’s visit to Ballarat.

Luke Beveridge’s men travelled up the national highway and got the job done against the GIANTS to clinch a finals spot on the final day of the 2024 home and away season.

It wasn’t easy, but it never is for the Western Bulldogs. They arrived needing four premiership points to ensure they didn’t have to rely on other results. And they left with another scalp ahead of September, closing out a 14.14 (98) to 9.7 (61) win. 

The Bulldogs will feature in the finals for the seventh time in 10 seasons under Beveridge, on a day where the 2016 premiership coach eclipsed iconic figure Ted Whitten’s long-standing coaching record.

After defending the breeze impressively in the first and third quarters, the Dogs put the foot down in the fourth quarter, kicking five goals to one to make the most of the wind at their back to reward a full house, packed with red, white and blue scarves and beanies, who braved the elements.

The wind was a factor from the outset. It was always going to be. The GIANTS landed the first blow via Aaron Cadman, after Liam Jones was penalised for a dangerous tackle. Cody Weightman responded after being taken high. Then Jesse Hogan juggled a contested mark to kick his first. Despite the advantage of the breeze, the GIANTS struggled to penetrate the Dogs, who had plenty of chances into the wind but didn’t take them. It took a moment of brilliance from Cadman after the siren from deep in the pocket to give the GIANTS a two-goal buffer at the first break.

The Dogs relished their first chance with the breeze. Sam Darcy and Bailey Dale both kicked goals inside the first five minutes. Alarm bells started ringing in Adam Kingsley’s box when Ed Richards swept through to add his first moments later and were blaring when Bailey Williams got on the board in his 150th game.

The pressure was the difference. Sunday meant much more for the Western Bulldogs. But just when they had complete control, the GIANTS took regained the ascendancy in the middle and kicked two goals in 63 seconds to flip the momentum. They were never going to fold.

With rain fast approaching from afar after half-time, five-time All-Australian Marcus Bontempelli glided inside 50 and slotted a crucial goal into a stiff wind to maintain the momentum. The Dogs defended the wind well in both quarters, but the GIANTS are a premiership contender for a reason. They kept coming, benefiting from the wind ensuring Cody Weightman’s shot on target from 40m didn’t go over the line.

Tom Liberatore was the difference in the third quarter. The inside bull set the tone at the coal face, accumulating nine disposals and six clearances in a brilliant term that limited the GIANTS’ advantage. Although the GIANTS went to the final change on the back of special moment from Toby Greene outside 50m after the three-quarter time siren.

Ed Richards mastered the wind with a moment of mastery to start the last quarter, but Greene responded again, this time hitting a long range goal into the wind to reduce the margin to under two kicks as darkness swept over Ballarat. It took a moment of brilliance from Bontempelli in the middle of the ground that resulted in Aaron Naughton strolling in for a crucial late goal, just before the rain finally arrived.

The Western Bulldogs have played 12 finals under Beveridge. Now they will play at least one more. And don’t rule them out of another deeper September run from outside the four.

WESTERN BULLDOGS                  1.2      7.7     9.10     14.14 (98)
GIANTS                                              3.1     5.2     8.5       9.7 (61)

GOALS

Western Bulldogs: Darcy 2, Richards 2, Naughton 2, Williams, Weightman, Gallagher, Dale, Bontempelli, Jones, Liberatore, Daniel
GIANTS: Hogan 2, Cadman 2, Greene 2, McMullin, Kelly, Green 

INJURIES

Western Bulldogs: Vandermeer (hamstring tightness), Treloar (calf)
GIANTS: Nil

LATE CHANGES

Western Bulldogs: Nil
GIANTS: Conor Stone (illness), Toby Bedford (calf) and Brent Daniels (lower back) replaced in selected side by Nick Haynes, Xavier O’Halloran and Callum Brown

SUBSTITUTES

Western Bulldogs: Arty Jones replaced Laitham Vandermeer in the first quarter 
GIANTS: Callum Brown replaced Harvey Thomas in the fourth quarter