The AFL does not do ‘Rivalry Round’ anymore, or at least not at the moment. When they did do them, typically we would see the interstate clubs would each play their local rival, Carlton Vs Collingwood (obviously), Essendon Vs Richmond (mostly because of the Kevin Sheedy link, but possibly because of that infamous melee in 1974), Hawthorn Vs North Melbourne (because of the three grand finals in the 1970s they played against each other in), Melbourne Vs Geelong (just because…) and Western Bulldogs Vs St Kilda (because we both were bottom of the ladder teams with a distinct lack of success).
The supposed rivalry between my team, the Bulldogs, and St Kilda, does not really have too much bite to it. Failing to win a plurality of premierships (pre 2016 at least) does not really make for a satisfying rivalry. True, St Kilda did beat us in a couple of preliminary finals circa 2010 (or thereabouts), but their failure to then go onto glory erases any real sting.
At best, a rivalry with St Kilda is like drinking zero-alcohol wine – what is the point?
We do have a few teams where the Bulldogs have a better claim to a rivalry. We are now 1-1 in VFL/AFL Grand Finals with Melbourne, as well as being socio-economically different supporter bases. We are 1-0 in Grand Finals with Sydney, and have tended to beat them most times we meet them in recent years. We are 0-1 in Grand Finals with Hawthorn, as well as having been defeated by them in countless lesser finals in my lifetime (such as the 1985 Prelim).
Looking at other teams which I consider hoo-doo teams for us come September, Adelaide seems to have the wood on us every time we play them in a final – not just in the 1997-8 Prelims where they robbed us of Grand Final appearances, but more recently in the 2015 finals series, where a disgruntled second string player allegedly leaked the game plan to his brother in the Adelaide squad. Geelong has also beaten us in more finals than I care to remember, starting with the 1976 elimination final, and most emphatically in the 1992 Prelim (I left that game at three quarter time feeling quite depressed).
And then we have Greater Western Sydney, the newest of our rivals.
In the year of our Premiership Miracle, 2016, the Western Bulldogs slogan was BE MORE BULLDOG. That features on my membership scarf from that year (the one time I opted for a scarf rather than a membership cap).
In a gesture which could be described as either mischievous or mean spirited (I tend to think the latter), GWS choose to create a website that year entitled BE LESS BULLDOG, where they listed all the members of their coaching staff and playing list who had formerly been connected to the Bulldogs.
Obviously, with former local boy Callum Ward and former captain Ryan Griffin both playing for GWS then, it was a very sore spot for me and other Bulldogs supporters.
Possibly that also has to do with the realisation that the AFL probably gave serious consideration to the viability of giving the Western Bulldogs incentives to relocate to Western Sydney at the time that the two expansion clubs were being considered, similar to what was offered to North Melbourne if they were to base themselves permanently in the Gold Coast.
Happily we got the last laugh. Our team went to their obscurely located home ground somewhere in darkest Western Sydney, beat them in that closely fought Preliminary Final to rob them of a place in the Grand Final, and then the following week won the AFL Premiership in what concluded a month long fairy tale.
Even sweeter, former GWS player Tom Boyd kicked three goals for the Bulldogs in that Grand Final, all in the final quarter at a time when we needed to pull away and win the game.
Three years later, when GWS did make a grand final, memes reminded AFL fans that both GWS and Tom Boyd had kicked three goals in a Grand Final. Ha!
Since that time, we have had a rather intense rivalry with GWS. We win some, they win some. We do not give quarter.
It is safe to say that GWS can be considered the New Enemy of the Western Bulldogs.
Of all the other teams that I have listed above, I think that Hawthorn has the most claim to being our Ancient Enemy. This goes back to when they beat us in the 1961 Grand Final, a defeat which has not been avenged yet. Since then, aside from the 1985 Preliminary Final, they have beaten us in a long list of finals in my lifetime.
And yet there is one game which sticks out in my mind – the 2016 Semi Final. That was when we, against all expectations, defeated Hawthorn when they were the reigning premiers. I fondly remember at the 11 minute mark of the final quarter, when we goaled and went 42 points up, all the Hawthorn supporters started leaving. We started singing ‘Good night Hawthorn good night!’ at them as they walked out, the game now beyond doubt.
Hawthorn have bounced back from that – they beat us in that elimination final last September, reminding us that our Ancient Enemy remains a potent one, a truly existential threat for our success and survival.
These rivalries add some flavour to every sporting competition. There is greater satisfaction when a much hated rival club is defeated, and greater angst when they win. This is what truly makes people passionate rather than apathetic about supporting their teams.
I for one would love to see the Bulldogs triumph in an AFL finals series where they eliminate (in the following order) Adelaide, GWS, Geelong, and then Hawthorn.
That would be extremely satisfying.
Lost For Words! 