The Hawks won this matchup in Round 5 by 40 points, but without Jack Gunston does this give the Bulldogs a sniff?
Hawthorn Hawks vs Western Bulldogs
The Hawks have won the last five against the Bulldogs, but with Jack Gunston out in this clash will this cause too many problems up forward?
The Bulldogs enter this winning their last two games, but it hasn't been easy. Their last five games have been decided by two goals or less.
Last time they met it was a big win by the Hawks, so can the Bulldogs peg it back this time around?
Leg 1 - Under 173.5 Total Points
These two teams have played in their fair share of low scoring contests dating back to 2020, which is surprising with the Bulldogs being a high-scoring team over that period.
Eight of their last ten matches have gone under the total points, averaging 152.4 points per game. The two teams met earlier in the season with the total points hitting 168, with the Bulldogs the second lowest total points coverage team in the AFL this season at just 33%.
MCG games are covering total points at 43.5% this season, and with the likely weather impacting this contest I can't see it going overs here.
Leg 2 - Josh Weddle 15+ Disposals
With Jack Gunston out, the flow-on effect is Blake Hardwick going forward, and therefore Josh Weddle will likely settle down back for the Hawks.
Weddle has hit 15+ disposals in seven of his last eight games, which includes collecting 15 disposals last time he played the Bulldogs.
Defenders have been winning a fair bit of ball against the Dogs lately. Last week we saw Howe, Maynard and Houston all have 20+ disposals, so Weddle is well placed to have 15.
Leg 3 - Will Lewis 1+ Goals
He's not Sam Darcy, but Will Lewis has been hitting the scoreboard for the Bulldogs lately in Darcy's absence.
In Lewis' last seven games, he's kicked a total of 10 goals, kicking at least one goal in six of those. Last week against Collingwood he finished with three goals.
Leg 4 - Cam Mackenzie 20+ Disposals
Confidence is growing for Cam Mackenzie who has been attending around 50% of centre bounces this season.
Mackenzie is averaging 21.1 disposals per game this season, but he's shown real growth over the last six weeks averaging 23.7 disposals, recording a season-high of 29 disposals against the Saints last week.
Hitting 20+ disposals in his last six games, we should see the highly touted midfielder do this from now on.
Same Game Multi
Under 173.5 Total Points / Lewis 1+ Goals / Mackenzie 20+ Disposals / Weddle 15+ Disposals = $5.80
