THE WESTERN Bulldogs smashed Melbourne by 95 points at the MCG on Saturday, handing the Demons their second massive defeat in as many rounds.
The Bulldogs won 24.17 (161) to 9.12 (66), kicking 15.6 to 4.4 after half time to completely rout the demoralised Demons and give Melbourne midfield stalwart James McDonald a 200th game to forget.
While the Bulldogs have started the season with two wins, Melbourne’s defeat followed an equally dismal 104-point loss to Hawthorn in the opening round.
It was party time in the Dogs' forward line late in the game, with Robert Murphy (four goals) and Daniel Cross, Brad Johnson, Josh Hill, Jason Akermanis and Scott Welsh, with three each, all among the goals.
With rain falling before the match started, it was a scrappy affair in the first term, the Bulldogs edging ahead by one point at the first change.
But they piled on the first four goals of the second quarter to open up a substantial lead, and never looked back, with Melbourne's effort tailing off as the game wore on.
Cross, Matthew Boyd, Adam Cooney and Scott West all racked up touches through the midfield for the Bulldogs, the Dogs' midfield brigade running rampant in the second half.
The beautiful kicking of half-back Lindsay Gilbee was a standout feature of the match, particularly early in the game when most players struggled in the conditions, while Ryan Griffen was another to give plenty of run out of defence.
Full-back Brian Lake outperformed Melbourne skipper David Neitz, although his job was not too difficult after half time, given his side's dominance.
In attack, livewire half-forward Hill, who had just one senior game to his name before this season, continued his shining start to the year with some good marking, strong tackling and classy use of the ball.
Adelaide recruits Welsh, at full-forward, and ruckman Ben Hudson continued to show they are extremely useful additions.
Welsh provided some of the match highlights with a lightning-quick snap from the goal square in the second quarter and a clever one-handed mark to set himself up for another goal in the third.
Versatile forward Murphy also showed plenty of class.
For Melbourne, young midfielder Nathan Jones stood out with his determined effort around the packs, but there was not much else to like about their performance.
Adding to their pain, speedster Aaron Davey left the ground injured in the third term, while Bulldog Shaun Higgins was injured in the final quarter. Davey has a strained foot, while Higgins has an ankle injury.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 2.5 9.9 18.13 24.17 (161)
MELBOURNE 2.4 5.8 7.9 9.12 (66)
Goals: Western Bulldogs: R Murphy 4 B Johnson 3 J Hill 3 J Akerrmanis 3 S Welsh 3 D Cross 3 M Hahn L Gilbee D Giansiracusa R Griffen C Wight. Melbourne: D Neitz 2 R Robertson 2 J White 2 N Jones B Green A Davey.
Best: Western Bulldogs: L Gilbee D Cross M Boyd R Murphy J Hill B Hudson. Melbourne: N Jones P Wheatley J White N Carroll J McDonald C Bartram.
Umpires: L Farmer C Kamolins S Ryan
Crowd: 27,821 at the MCG
