With 10 minutes to go until the opening bounce of the Bulldogs’ game against Melbourne, Luke Beveridge stalked the MCG boundary line, a man careful not to slip on a banana peel. He was more clenched and coiled than usual. He looked as if he’d spent the last six months deadlifting trucks and moving magnets. He knew better than anyone how dangerous this game was. He’d seen Brisbane slip up the previous day. He’d seen Fremantle nearly throw away their season. He knew his own team’s history of self-sabotaging in games like this.
When Aaron Naughton kicked his fourth goal and his second in as many minutes in the third term, his coach was entitled to loosen up a little. The first half had been a dozy affair, with both sides just trundling along. But now Naughton was marking everything, Bailey Dale and Marcus Bontempelli had about a thousand touches between them and the Dogs had their foot on the throat.
