IF TIM Membrey's shot didn't travel right last Friday night, this would be a different story. 

But despite the fact the Western Bulldogs lost the two-minute drill at the end of the wildcard final, they won through to an elimination final by winning another game by a single digit margin.

No team has won more games by under 10 points in 2026 than the Bulldogs. 

Collingwood used to be lauded for its ability to handle the heat late, but this year, Luke Beveridge's men have managed the closing moments better than the opposition. 

The Dogs are now 8-0 this year with twice as many wins as Sydney, Adelaide, Melbourne and Carlton. They also drew against the Blues in round 23. Collingwood finishes the season 3-5 to go with two draws against Hawthorn. 

The coach lamented the decisions late in the game on Friday night that led to Dan McStay marking on the wing and then Membrey taking a contested grab inside 50, although the Dogs were the better team on the night, winning clearance by 19, centre clearance by 10 and territory by 19. 

"I don't think we played the last minute and a half, two minutes too well. As much as we won the game, I don't think we executed it too well. There will be a bit to learn again. We just couldn't ice the clock, we didn't manage it too well," Beveridge after the narrow win. 

The Dogs have spent time on that facet of the game this week, knowing they need to be better managing the clock, especially in a hostile environment on the road in front of 52,000 mainly Crows supporters. 

They have already travelled across to South Australia three times in 2026, beating both local teams either side of the poor showing against Hawthorn in Gather Round. 

Back in round two, they led the Crows for 89.7 per cent of the game and won by six points. Then in round nine, they led for 96 per cent of the night and beat the Power by just two points. 

Now Beveridge and his boys are heading back across the border, ready to embrace the atmosphere of a cutthroat final on the road, while knowing previous close finishes count for nothing this weekend.

"Two out of three ain't bad? Who sung that? Meatloaf… Bat Out Of Hell album. Can you sing it for us?" Beveridge riffed with journalists at his press conference at Whitten Oval on Wednesday.  

"The boys enjoy playing there, it is a great arena, Adelaide Oval. You can't go past a heaving MCG with a lot of Collingwood supporters, but I imagine the Adelaide Oval will be heaving. The boys will really enjoy it."

The Bulldogs won their first final in five years last Friday night – and the club's first in Melbourne since the 2016 Grand Final – and have proven they can take the long way home in the past. 

While they have lost their past two finals on the road – both were in Perth: 2022 elimination final, 2021 Grand Final – they beat Port Adelaide in the 2021 preliminary final at the Adelaide Oval after beating Brisbane at the Gabba and Essendon in Launceston.

And before Beveridge guided the Dogs to its first flag in 62 years a decade ago, they beat West Coast at Subiaco and Greater Western Sydney at Engie Stadium. If it goes down to the wire in Adelaide, will last week's finish heighten their focus at the death?