Luke Dahlhaus, Liam Jones, Tom Liberatore and many more quality youngsters will take the Bulldogs into their next era, however the quartet of Matthew Boyd, Adam Cooney, Daniel Cross and Ryan Griffen is crucial to the side and all still possess the ability to win games single-handedly.
Matthew Boyd
The Bulldogs captain is seemingly incapable of a bad game. Consistent as they come, he leads his team in kicks, disposals, contested possessions, uncontested possessions and clearances.
Despite his opposition's best efforts, Boyd will inevitably collect enough possessions to feature heavily at the top of the statistical leaderboard. Therefore the focus must be to restrict him when he does have the ball. His disposal efficiency could be better at 64 percent and opens a window for North Melbourne to attack him with relentless pressure. If this can be done, it could force turnovers. Otherwise the captain will be free to cut swathes through the Kangaroos' midfield all afternoon.
Adam Cooney
Since his Brownlow Medal victory in 2008, Cooney has struggled with a persistent knee injury which has robbed him of much of his trademark explosiveness. Nevertheless, in a sign of his class, he is still averaging 23 possessions a game this year. Clearly his ability to find the ball hasn't waned.
He has the capability to become a dangerous half forward if his condition is too restrictive to play heavy minutes in the midfield. If this happens, he becomes a nightmare matchup. Cooney can play both tall with his marking ability or small when the ball is at ground level. Few defenders would be able to stick with him.
Daniel Cross
Leading the Bulldogs in handballs, Cross is often the player who begins attacks. He is the most efficient user of the ball at the club and his tackling is second only to tagger Liam Picken at the club.
In last year's clash, Cross was second in disposals for his team and was instrumental in the Bulldogs storming back into the contest in the third quarter. North Melbourne, who is second in clearances in 2012, will attempt to quell his influence in this area.
Ryan Griffen
Griffen is the most explosive player at the Bulldogs and possesses game-changing skills that few others in the AFL have. As mentioned in the (link)definitive preview(/link), Griffen's quiet game last season against North Melbourne was a significant factor to the result.
In a sign of how he is used by the Dogs, Griffen leads the team in average kicks per game. With the ability to hit targets consistently over 50 metres away, it's no wonder he has the ball in his hands at every possible opportunity.
Finding a player who can go with Griffen is extremely tough. His strength through the lower body makes him hard to tackle. He also has a defensive side to his game which means opponents can't simply attempt to make him accountable and hope that will work.
The battle between Griffen, his opponent and both sets of midfields will be fascinating viewing.
