Having a stand-alone VFL side means the Western Bulldogs have not fretted about their tough run with injuries this season, says veteran Matthew Boyd.
The Bulldogs headed to their mid-season bye with nine wins and four losses despite having had an abundance of key players unavailable at various times. Captain Bob Murphy's year ended when he suffered a serious knee injury in round three, while fellow defenders Matt Suckling, Marcus Adams, Jason Johannisen and Easton Wood have all spent periods on the sidelines. Tom Boyd, Koby Stevens, Caleb Daniel, Tory Dickson and, most recently, Luke Dahlhaus are others whose campaigns have been halted.
But former skipper Boyd said having a reserves team at Footscray had kept disruptions to a minimum.
"We don't really think about the injuries too much to be honest," Boyd said.
"We sort of back the system, back the team structure. When one player goes out, we expect another player to be able to come in and fill that same role due to the fact that we've got a VFL side that plays the exact same way as we do.
"Clearly, we'd love to be able to field our best side every week, but that's just not the reality of AFL footy. You've got to roll with the punches and I think we've been able to do that pretty well for the first half of the year."
Boyd said the uniform game plans had made things easier for the youngsters who had come into the team this season, such as Josh Dunkley, Bailey Williams, Bailey Dale and Kieran Collins.
"Once they come into the side they have an impact straight away so we just just expect guys who are playing the VFL level to come in and have an impact."
In positive news for the club, Johannisen is due to return from his serious hamstring injury next week, with coach Luke Beveridge suggesting that the dashing backman would play in the VFL before returning to the senior side. Wood (hamstring) and Stevens (abdominal) are also closing in on returns, while Tom Boyd took a step forward in his comeback from a shoulder injury last week, kicking three goals against Frankston in the VFL.
The Dogs kicked just five goals against Geelong last round, but Beveridge said they would not rush the key forward back until he is ready.
Matthew Boyd said his team was let down by poor ball use in their 57-point loss to the Cats. "I think we were a bit off for the night and I think Geelong were really good. They're a quality side and you can't afford to be just 1 per cent off against quality sides like that or they punish you. And they certainly punished us.
"Certainly our execution wasn't great. We gave the ball back to them, especially early. I think they got three goals from direct turnovers. It's never nice to turn the ball over and watch it sail over your head for a goal, so certainly there was an execution component to it."
But the high-flying Cats' brilliance had much to do with the result as well, according to the reborn veteran.
"I thought Geelong were really good around the ball, and they were able to generate some forward momentum from their stoppage work, and clearance work. I thought [Joel] Selwood was probably the key catalyst down there, especially early."
Boyd said the Cats were the league's standard-bearers.
"On [that] effort I'd say yes. But there are some great sides out there and I think the competition is just so even you've got to be on your mettle every game.
"We didn't have our best effort, but take nothing away from the Cats they were super and they're going to be a hard side going forward in the next few months."
Boyd turns 34 in August but is enjoying a strong season in defence. Uncontracted beyond this year, he said his mindset was positive.
"I feel pretty good. I feel pretty energised. I'm really passionate about the game and about this footy club. I think when that passion's there and the love for the club and the game is still as strong as ever, I think sometimes your performance follows from that. So I'm reasonably happy with how I've been playing and happy with how the body's feeling at the moment. There's always room for improvement.."
The challenges keep coming for the Dogs, who face premiership fancies Sydney at the SCG on Saturday.
