With both clubs more or less in step with each other on the PDFNL leaderboard so far this year, little could separate the two sides early, with the Swans narrowly pulling ahead in a tense first half.
“They had the better of the contest early,” Bulldogs coach Tim Bramich said.
“Inside 50s were pretty tight for the day and they had the better of it early. They beat us around the footy which we aren’t used to, so it took us a bit to adjust to that.”
The Bulldogs’ experienced operators started to come to the fore in the second half, with Simon Russell having a field day in front of the big sticks with four goals to his name.
“Adrian Crestani and Ryan Butler were really good early. Simon Russell played a bit of a different role in the second half and managed to hit the scoreboard too,” Bramich said.
After a rocky start to the campaign, the Bulldogs mentor said his side was starting to hit its stride as more and more key-position players gradually returned from injury.
“It’s a good win, we’re starting to get some good momentum,” Bramich said.
“We’re still a little bit patchy, but we’re starting to play how we want to be playing which is really good.”
Around the grounds, Tungamah continued its unbeaten run, the Bears comfortably accounting for Picola United 15.12 (111) to 2.5 (17), while Katamatite returned to the winners’ list with an 11.13 (79) to 3.8 (26) win over Rennie.
Waaia flexed its muscle to remain unbeaten with a 181-point win over Blighty, but Jerilderie takes the cake for biggest winning margin of the round with a 187-point demolition of Mathoura.
Finally, Katandra stays within the top four after a 21.4 (130) to 5.10 (40) dismantling of Deni Rovers.
