Shocking footage has emerged of Western Bulldogs players having vile abuse hurled at them after their embarrassing AFL loss to West Coast on Sunday.
The Bulldogs became just the third team to lower their colours to the decimated and struggling Eagles, who have broken all kinds of unwanted records during the worst season in the club’s history.
The Eagles have hit rock bottom as a club and, with five 100-point losses for the season, looked all but certain to limp towards the wooden spoon and rights to the No.1 draft pick.
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But their seven-point win over finals hopefuls the Bulldogs lifted them off the bottom of the ladder in a result that no one saw coming.
It has also taken the Bulldogs’ finals destiny out of their own their own hands; they must now beat Geelong next week and rely on GWS losing to Carlton in the final game of the home and away season.
Bulldogs supporters were understandably shattered at the loss and furious with the team, but a select few at Marvel Stadium took it too far.
Coming off the ground, the players were subject to abhorrent abuse, which is too foul to publish, from supporters hanging over the railing above the race.
“I’m just as disappointed as anyone about today but this is just awful. The boys don’t deserve this s***,” one fan wrote of the video.
The shocking loss has called coach Luke Beveridge’s position into question, with many believing he has overseen a premiership list fall well short of its potential.
But the 2016 premiership coach has declared he is “comfortable” with his coaching tenure after his side crumbled on Sunday.
With their season on the line, the Bulldogs turned in a listless performance at Marvel Stadium and were ambushed by a team that had won just four of their previous 47 games.
Trailing by nine points at three-quarter-time, West Coast finished stronger than their more talented opposition with the first four goals of the last term to score a famous 14.8 (92) to 12.13 (85) triumph.
Beveridge is contracted until the end of 2025, but the heat will come onto Beveridge if the Bulldogs fail to make finals this year with a star-studded list headlined by Brownlow Medal favourite Marcus Bontempelli.
“Absolutely,” Beveridge responded when asked if he was the man to continue leading the Bulldogs.
“Sometimes you need to evolve and, at the moment, we’re in this sort of static area of a performance point of view, we’ll work out why it is.
“But from a leadership perspective and coaching the team and the club, I’m really comfortable with my tenure.”
Beveridge said the challenge of beating the Cats in Geelong, where the Bulldogs last won in 2003, was one of the biggest of his nine-season coaching career.
“It’s all about sticking together,” he said.
“Any time in this game when you face adversity, which we are, it’s about making sure that you’re glued together looking towards the week trying to find optimism.”
“It’s been 20 years since we’ve won down there (in Geelong), and as much as we haven’t won in my time, we all inherit the previous 10 or 11 (losses).”
The result drags the Eagles off the bottom of the ladder for the first time since May 21, meaning they will avoid claiming the club’s second wooden spoon if North Melbourne don’t beat Gold Coast next week.
West Coast had been in the box-seat to snare Harley Reid, this year’s nominal No.1 draft pick, for most of the season as they occupied the bottom of the table.
It comes just days after West Coast’s board began contemplating the future of 2018 premiership coach Adam Simpson following last week’s record derby loss to Fremantle.
The Bulldogs lacked the spark that Eagles stars Tim Kelly (32 possessions), Jamie Cripps (five goals, including three in the last quarter) and Oscar Allen (three goals) had in spades.
“It’s been a pretty heavy last few weeks. Really proud of them,” Eagles coach Adam Simpson said.
“Obviously galvanised throughout the week after bad game against Fremantle, and our younger players followed our leaders.”
The only downside for the Eagles was a hamstring injury to Eagles premiership hero Elliot Yeo, who will miss the farewell game for club legends Shannon Hurn and Luke Shuey against Adelaide on Saturday night.
– With AAP
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