Smashed by 1,000 points in four matches, these Dogs are refusing to lie down

Four light towers flicker to life as what's left of the Dennington Bulldogs make their way onto the oval.

It's Thursday night, a surprisingly warm winter's evening. The oval hasn't yet turned to mud. Its centre square, used for cricket in the summer, feels like grass-covered bitumen.

The blokes who turn up to training know what's coming this weekend, but they turn up anyway.

The Dennington Bulldogs have lost their opening three matches in the Warrnambool District League by an average of 266 points.

Another triple-figure loss looms on Saturday. But the drills begin with the same rhythm as any other team.

The hurt isn't confined to the oval. The senior netball side is facing a similar fate, forfeiting matches and conceding 100-goal margins.

As darkness descends, a few juniors stick around to watch the older men train, scoffing chips and gravy and doling out "advice" to injured captain Tom Noonan, who has been relegated to water-boy duties.

In the middle of it all stands Tim "Condo" Condon, the new coach who inherited a club that haemorrhaged roughly three-quarters of its total playing list in the off-season.

"C'mon, boys, give him the option. We've gotta start doing that at training," he bellows as aged and cracked Sherrins fly in all directions.

If anyone knows the reason for the exodus, they don't say it out loud; it feels like the result of everything and nothing colliding at once.

The local rumour mill has been sent into overdrive, tolling the Dogs' death knell on social media.

It's ever-present, but completely unhelpful.

"Look, everyone's probably a little on edge at the moment, but we're not about to lie down and just let it close," said club president Anthony "Sludge" Dowd.

Dollars and sense

There's no single culprit for Dennington's disastrous state. It's a mix of missed calls, better opportunities, and the quiet lure of other cashed-up clubs and leagues.

A series of "crisis meetings" has been held with the committee, the members and even the league itself.

Other clubs have called to offer a mix of condolences and advice.

Condon said Dennington has rectified the "internal issues", but at this point, the damage has been done.

He knows the side's problems are more than just financial. But the money of things still stings.

While AFL Victoria mandates salary caps, Condon argues that enforcement is the weak link.

It's not the reason for Dennington's plight, but it certainly doesn't help.

The club knows it's not the first, or even the only team getting handed significant beltings. It has gone as far as calling some that have folded to see what it can learn.

But there's light at the end of the tunnel. Junior numbers are strong in football and netball, and the town itself, on the outskirts of Warrnambool, is holding its own.

"The footy club is sort of a de facto community … that holds the place together," said Tony "Bear" Poehler, the club's assistant secretary.

He said the town needs its football club. It has already lost its pub and its general store.

They're not willing to lose the club, on or off the field. They're fighting.

"That's the biggest thing, no-one's throwing in the towel, which is impressive," said Tom Noonan, between drills.

Taking it one week at a time

In atypical Warrnambool fashion, the sun is shining as the siren blasts ahead of Dennington's round four match against Russells Creek in Warrnambool, three hours' west of Melbourne.

The first win for the Dogs was getting enough players to field a seniors side, something that up until Saturday morning seemed no guarantee.

They scrounged enough fit players to represent the seniors. The reserves forfeited, never having a real chance to play.

There's genuine energy as the team huddles tight before breaking for the opening bounce.

Previous results are mentioned, then dismissed. It's all about the moment in front of them.

"We'll have the wind in the last quarter," one player remarks.

But things quickly go downhill.

By quarter time, the scoreboard reads 79 to nil. The pace of the game and scoring slows by the halfway point, but the margin has extended to 132 to nothing.

Players are falling by the wayside as the game continues, something the Bulldogs can barely afford.

A blood nose here, hamstring there. Cramping everywhere. Then it starts to rain.

The third quarter is the club's most fortuitous. It scores a lone point, after some perilous scrapping in the goal square.

Car horns blast, reminding those who turned up to play that they're not alone.

A ragged, bloodied bunch of men come together for the three-quarter time huddle.

A call emerges from within the mass: "Scores reset to nil-all this quarter, boys.

"F**ck yeah, just win the quarter," says another.

"We've got the wind, now," another shouts.

Condon grins. His side is down, by any measure. But not out.

"I know it's been a tough day, but let's keep [the ball] to our advantage, turn it into a scrap … just keep battling away.

"Let's just make it f***ing hard for them to score."

A final charge

The start of the final term is spirited.

But it's really the final act of a play that was pre-written.

Dennington's tired. Russells Creek makes them pay.

They pile on an additional 85 points in the final term to register a 312-point victory.

When the final siren goes, heads don't drop. A few players drop to their haunches, but it's more with exhaustion than malaise.

Among them is Guy Hardiman, the assistant playing coach who drives about three hours from Geelong to help his cousin, Luke.

He came out of retirement to play for a struggling club rather than "get on the bandwagon" of a winner. Now, he's faced with the four biggest losses of his 196-game career.

He's grown quite attached to the club, despite the travel and the thumpings.

As the players walk off, a team of volunteers begins covering the oval's digital scoreboard with a metal sheet to protect it from the elements.

Before he leaves, Hardiman issues a last-minute plea.

"Any level of skill that you have, please, come give us a chop out. We'd love to have you."

This week, the lights were back on at Dennington. Those physically able trained again.

Late yesterday, news filtered through that Dennington wouldn't be fielding a senior side this weekend, due to a mix of injury, unavailability and player welfare.

Instead, those willing to pull on a jumper will do so in the reserves grade, which the club forfeited against Russells Creek.

There are 14 matches left this season, and these Dogs won't die wondering.

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