GAME analysis and education coordinator Craig Jennings says the Western Bulldogs will go “close to winning the premiership” in 2016, but he believes Melbourne can push the Dogs all the way at the MCG on Sunday.

Jennings, who spent 10 years at Essendon and last year at the Bulldogs, before joining Melbourne last September, said this round’s clash was a great challenge for the red and blue.

“I really respect all of the people I worked with at the Bulldogs. I think they’ll go close to winning the premiership [this year] and I hope they do really well, but not so well this week,” he told Melbourne TV.

“The reality is that the jobs we have in footy, you’re so focused on your own team and planning that you don’t think too much about the opposition. We go into the game knowing their strengths and the areas we want to exploit against them, but it’s really a lot about how we play, and the tactics and strategies we want to take into the game.

“I know all of the [Bulldogs] guys pretty intimately and know their game plan pretty intimately and acknowledge they’ve made some changes from last year. They’re all great coaches there. Luke Beveridge was the coach of the year last year and they’ve got great line coaches, assistant coaches.

“They’re a really strong playing team and it’s going to be a tough week for us, but we’re pretty confident in our planning and we’ll give a good show on the weekend.”

Jennings said the Bulldogs had made some slight adjustments to their game plan this year, but added it was not out of the norm.

“They’re still a power scoring team. North Melbourne kept them to a lower score and they’re on record that they’re a little bit more aggressive or bold with their ball movement,” he said.

“There is not a lot of changes in terms of their strengths, but after the [second elimination] final [loss against Adelaide] last year, I know they reviewed that game really intently. So there have been some minor little tinkerings with their stoppages, forward set ups and defensively, but no different to how every team responds from one season to the next.

“The stuff they’re really good at – they’re still really good at – and they have a really good team defence. They’re probably the most powerful scoring team in the competition and they’re great at the contest.”

In terms of how he compared Melbourne now to this time last year, Jennings said it was difficult to assess.

“I didn’t know too much about the team from the outside – only the two times we played them in the season,” he said.

“I know from being here, it’s a very positive environment. We’re really focused on educating the players. It’s a very young list and it hasn’t worked perfectly on weekends, but we’re four [wins] and two [losses] for the year, and we had a really good NAB Challenge series.

“We’re still really good at the contest and still really focused on that, but we’ve made some adjustments with our stoppages and the way we move the footy and the way we defend.

“We’ve got a really big difference in our scoring power this year – we’re up six goals a week on last year and defensively we’re pretty similar to what we were last year. All of our games are based on the contest and that won’t change any year that we play.”

Jennings said there were similar traits, when comparing Melbourne and the Bulldogs.

“Both teams really pride themselves on the contested footy. I think the Bulldogs are about plus-28 in contested footy every single week, which is an amazing statistic – some weeks they’re winning it by 40,” he said.

“Teams that win by that much are going to be pretty hard to beat, so we need to be good in that area. What the Bulldogs are great at is the way they defend and the way they combine defence into attack, and their forward pressure. They don’t have too many deficiencies, so even though they’re a young team, I know from being there, they don’t set any limits on themselves.

“There are definitely some similarities in us, in terms of expectation and the way we attack the footy and the adjustments we’ve made this year. Every club has a different culture and a different message – or the way the coaches deliver a message, which is different.

“We’re at a footy club at the moment that is focusing on education and the players are getting a lot of that. Most weeks, the results are speaking for themselves.”

Reflecting on last round’s 73-point win over the Gold Coast Suns at Metricon Stadium, Jennings said the club was “really happy with the result”.  

“It’s good to travel with such a young team – I think we were the youngest team [in the AFL] on the weekend – so to win the way we did was really pleasing,” he said.

“Again though, we were a few goals behind, but we’re backing our structure and system, and the way we want to move the footy and the way we want to defend.

“It’s taken a little bit of time, but we’re getting the results we want, and anytime you travel and get a win – you take it.”