THE WESTERN Bulldogs' 17-point loss to Melbourne on Saturday night was made worse by a knee injury to star midfielder Isabelle Pritchard.
Pritchard left the match just prior to three-quarter time and played no further part in the game, with Bulldogs coach Tam Hyett saying the club was being conservative with its marquee player.
BULLDOGS v DEMONS Full match coverage and stats
"We were pretty cautious. We've secured a finals berth, so I think the physio just made the decision, 'OK, let's sit her out and then we'll reassess'," Hyett said post-match.
The Dogs coach confirmed she had spoken with Prichard following the game, and that the co-captain had been optimistic about the severity of the injury.
"She said she's all good, as she would. But no, she was still a great member of the team on the bench, not playing that last quarter. But yeah, she said she's fine," Hyett said.
The Demons also suffered injuries of their own with defender Sinead Goldrick (hamstring) and Shelley Health-Barker (concussion) also ruled out of the match in the third quarter.
On a wet and slippery night at Mission Whitten Oval, the class of Alyssa Bannan stood out, the speedy winger pushing hard forward to kick two goals in the low scoring affair as Melbourne outscored the Dogs 5.7 (37) to 2.8 (20).
The loss moves the Bulldogs out of the top four and ends the club's five game winning streak, while the win all but seals the Demons' top-four spot.
Melbourne sits in third spot, a game and significant percentage ahead of Gold Coast (fourth spot) and the Bulldogs (fifth) with one round remaining.
The Bulldogs came out with their signature pressure, their energy around the contest putting the Demons under pressure early.
But like Tyla Hanks did the previous week, the classy Melbourne midfielder pushed forward to open the scoring, getting a handball on the run to kick the game's first.
The Bulldogs couldn't make the most of their entries initially, but the dam wall finally broke when the pressure of their small forwards eventually caused a turnover with Elaine Grigg capitalising, slamming the ball through from the goal line.
As the grey skies continued to get darker and the rain drizzled down, the Bulldogs looked to gain territory by getting the ball forward, kicking the ball off the immaculate Whitten Oval deck.
Melbourne continued to play its uncontested game style despite the conditions, but both sides had difficulty scoring, and neither were able to convert in the second term.
Bannan broke the deadlock midway through the third quarter, converting from a set shot 20m out and almost straight in front before kicking her second shortly after, providing the Demons with breathing space heading into the final term.
With the game on the line, the Bulldogs lifted in the final quarter but a missed shot on goal by Ellie Blackburn turned into an end-to-end goal to Kate Hore, who was playing her first game since round seven after returning from a neck injury.
Sarah Hartwig scored the Dogs' first goal since the first quarter when she flew for a mark, bringing the ball to ground before snapping on her left.
But it was too little, too late, with a long-range goal by Irishwoman Aoife Horisk sealing the win for the Demons.
Radar watch
The gloomy Melbourne weather played its own part in the drama of Saturday night. The darkening grey clouds, rain and lightning in the distance kept everyone on edge wondering whether the game would be delayed. Thankfully the weather gods shone down on Whitten Oval and the game was completed without issue.
Pioneering clubs celebrate a century of games
Pioneer clubs Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs both tonight celebrated their 100th home-and-away game on Saturday night. The two clubs were heavily involved in women's football prior to the introduction of the AFLW competition, with the Demons and the Dogs playing exhibition matches from 2013 through until 2016. Some players from those pre-AFLW matches are still playing and on Saturday night there were four - Paxy Paxman, Tayla Harris, Ellie Blackburn and Lauren Pearce.
Up next
It's Cats v Dogs next week, with the Western Bulldogs heading down the highway on Friday night to play Geelong in the final round of the home and away season. Melbourne has an eight-day break before it plays Adelaide at Unley Oval on Sunday afternoon at 2.35pm ACDT.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 1.1 1.2 1.6 2.8 (20)
MELBOURNE 1.3 1.6 3.7 5.7 (37)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Grigg, Hartwig
Melbourne: Bannan 2, Hanks, Hore, Horisk
BEST
Western Bulldogs: Pritchard, Grigg, Woodley, Laloifi, Hartwig
Melbourne: Chaplin, Hanks, Bannan, Purcell, Allen
INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Pritchard (knee)
Melbourne: Goldrick (hamstring), Heath-Barker (concussion)
Reports: Nil
Crowd: 2,247 at Mission Whitten Oval
