Joel Freijah's ice-cool set shot with four minutes left has given the Western Bulldogs a tense three-point win over Melbourne in a rollicking end to Sir Doug Nicholls Indigenous Round.
Ed Richards and Marcus Bontempelli starred in the midfield as the Bulldogs burst clear before halftime and resisted a fightback in their 14.9 (93) to 13.12 (90) victory at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.
The Bulldogs threw away a 33-point second-quarter lead and trailed twice in the final quarter, before Freijah kicked the go-ahead goal in time-on.
Demons young gun Harvey Langford had the chance to win the game but dropped a mark under huge pressure from Lachie Jacques close to goal.
The Dees had another chance with a kick back into full-forward but Lachie Bramble took what proved a match-saving mark for the Dogs, who steadied in the dying seconds.
