After finals 1st (Premiers) Founded 1877 (entered 1925) | Home-and-away season 7th | |
Full name Western Bulldogs (official name) Nickname(s) Bulldogs, Doggies, Dogs, Bullies, Pups, The Scray, Scraggers Motto Cede Nullis ("Yield To None") | ||
In the 2016 season the Australian football club Western Bulldogs finished in seventh position in the Australian Football League, and went on to win the 2016 AFL Grand Final.
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Second elimination final (West Coast v Western Bulldogs)
The opening match of the 2016 finals series saw the first final played on a Thursday night as opposed to the traditional Friday night start to a finals series with the sixth placed West Coast hosting the seventh placed Western Bulldogs at Domain Stadium. The Eagles had finished the season with a 16-6 win-loss record and searched for consistency throughout the year after finishing runners up to Hawthorn in the 2015 AFL Grand Final, where they lost by 46 points. They headed into the finals in strong form, however, banking two interstate wins over Greater Western Sydney and Adelaide as well as beating the Hawks at home to finish with a home final. The Western Bulldogs had qualified for their second consecutive finals series for the first time since 2010 and battled with injuries throughout the year, finishing with a 15-7 win-loss record. Despite this, they managed to beat the Eagles, Crows and Sydney during the home and away season.
This was the first final between the two sides in ten years, with the Eagles defeating the Bulldogs comfortably in the 2006 First Semi Final, also at Subiaco Oval, by 74 points en route to securing the 2006 premiership. They also met in the 1998 Qualifying Final at the MCG, with the Western Bulldogs winning by 70 points.
The only meeting between the two clubs in the regular season saw the Western Bulldogs win a close-fought contest by eight points at Etihad Stadium in round 11.