The Western Bulldogs' Adam Treloar celebrates a goal during the preliminary final against Port Adelaide on September 11, 2021. Picture: AFL Photos

WESTERN Bulldogs midfielder Adam Treloar says the external criticism he copped last week served as motivation during Saturday night's preliminary final win over Port Adelaide.

Treloar copped a public battering for his 10-disposal effort in the Bulldogs' one-point semi-final win over Brisbane at the Gabba earlier this month.

Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes went as far as saying Treloar had "spat the dummy" at having his midfield time reduced in the latter part of the season.

Cornes pointed out several moments in the game against Brisbane when Treloar's efforts were substandard.

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Treloar responded strongly in the 71-point win over the Power, tallying 23 disposals, five clearances, nine tackles, and one goal to silence the doubters.

The 28-year-old said he used the "challenging" week leading up to the preliminary final as motivation.

"Yeah, you always hold that with you. You'd be lying to say that as an athlete you wouldn't be extra motivated," Treloar told westernbulldogs.com.au.

"It was a really challenging week for me personally.

"But the one thing I do love about the footy club is the backing you get not just from the coaches, but also the players and supporters, and the love and care I got from so many people in my circle.

"Those people know who they are. I'm truly grateful for that. It really put me in a good head space going into the game."

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Treloar looms as a key figure in the September 25 Toyota AFL Grand Final against Melbourne at Optus Stadium.

The Demons will enter the match as favourites following their 83-point demolition of Geelong in the preliminary final.

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The Bulldogs' fifth-placed finish on the ladder means they've travelled from Melbourne, to Launceston, to Brisbane, to Perth, to Adelaide, and back to Perth in recent weeks.

"It's not the fact that we're away, because all teams in Victoria have been away," Treloar said.

"The challenging bit is the constant going here, going there. The day before the game flying in, and not really being able to train on the ground or go for a walk.

"None of the other teams have had to travel like we've had to.

"We pride ourselves on being able to travel and perform really well when we're playing away. The belief ... there's no limit on what we feel we can achieve."