Marcus Bontempelli has produced a stunning individual performance to lead the Western Bulldogs to a gritty 18-point win over Collingwood in a battle between injury-ravaged rivals.
Bontempelli was outstanding as the Bulldogs overcame an early 22-point deficit and steamrolled their opponents with five unanswered goals in the final quarter of the 15.10 (100) to 12.10 (82) victory at Marvel Stadium on Friday night.
The inspirational captain racked up 38 disposals, 10 clearances and two goals as the Dogs squared their season ledger at 6-6 in pursuit of a finals berth.
But the win came at a cost, with James Harmes and Laitham Vandermeer added to a growing injury list when they were both struck down by hamstring trouble before halftime.
"Collingwood have got a lot of injuries and we've got some, but under the circumstances it feels like more than just a win for us tonight," Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said.
"We haven't really won games like this for a little while. We're all pretty satisfied tonight."
The Bulldogs have some concerns over Sam Darcy and Taylor Duryea, who face scrutiny from the match review officer.
Darcy was involved in a huge collision with Brayden Maynard early on, cannoning into his opponent's back after the Magpie defender claimed a mark, while Duryea made high contact with Nick Daicos off the ball.
Collingwood's Josh Daicos will also be looked at for an off-the-ball blow to Lachlan McNeil's stomach.
Darcy gave away two 50m penalties in the opening term but responded well, finishing with an equal game-high three goals.
In-form ball-winner Adam Treloar (37 disposals, 11 clearances, one goal), Bailey Dale (35 touches) and Jack Macrae (19 possessions, two goals) were also important for the Bulldogs, while McNeil and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan added two majors each.
After a week of speculation around his playing future, recalled ruck-forward Rory Lobb hit the post twice and finished with 1.2, including the crucial first goal of the last quarter from a free kick.
Brownlow Medal favourite Nick Daicos was outstanding for Collingwood with 32 disposals, two goals and a club-record 16 clearances, surpassing the previous mark of 15 set by Nathan Buckley in 1998.
Josh Daicos (23 touches, two goals) and Jack Crisp (24 disposals) were busy, while former Fremantle forward Lachie Schultz kicked three goals in his best return for the Magpies so far.
Collingwood were in control early and led by 22 points during the opening term but didn't make the most of their chances, leading 5.7 to 3.2 at quarter-time.
They led by 12 points at the final change but managed just 0.1 in the crucial last term as the Bulldogs dominated clearances (54-38) and territory (64-41 inside-50s).
Coach Craig McRae refused to blame the Magpies' league-worst injury list for their first defeat since round two.
"I feel like we're not quite there (in terms of hardness) to play 120 minutes, this group in particular," McRae said.
"There's a lot of good going on but we're not quite able to do it for four quarters at the minute for this group.
"We'll gain a lot out of this."
