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The Western Bulldogs may need Adam Treloar at his ball-winning best if they are to topple Port Adelaide in Saturday night's AFL preliminary final.
Jack Macrae has backed out-of-sorts teammate Adam Treloar to rekindle his best form as the Western Bulldogs consider a possible midfield shake-up for their AFL preliminary final against Port Adelaide.
Treloar has come under fire from prominent past players in the media over his perceived poor body language in last week's semi-final win over the Brisbane Lions, when he tallied just 10 disposals.
It was the usually prolific ball-winner's lowest return in 15 matches in Bulldogs colours after a high-profile move from Collingwood at the end of last year.
But Treloar could be required to have a much bigger impact if the Dogs are to upset the Power at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night, with captain Marcus Bontempelli still in doubt with a knee injury.
Treloar is one of several players in a deep on-ball division who would be required to play more midfield minutes if Bontempelli is ruled out.
"The form that (Treloar) was in in the first 10 weeks of the season before he hurt his ankle was some of the best footy that he's ever played and he was just amazing for our team, so I'm backing him to get back into that form," Macrae said.
"He's been a class player his whole career and you don't just lose that overnight.
"We're all going to back him in to get back to his best and hopefully that comes Saturday night."
Former St Kilda champion Nick Riewoldt was particularly critical of Treloar's body language during the Bulldogs' one-point win over Brisbane.
"We're all massive fans of Adam Treloar and the way he goes about it, but there were countless times on the weekend where he almost seemed not quite there," Riewoldt said on Fox Footy on Monday night.
"When he didn't quite get there, you could just see the disappointment written all over his face and in his body language with the way he was going about the contest."
Brownlow Medal fancy Bontempelli hurt his right knee in the final few minutes against Brisbane but is considered a chance to play against Port.
The second-year captain will be given every chance to prove his fitness.
"He's pulled up pretty well," Macrae said.
"We've got training today and Thursday so we'll see how the week pans out and we're still quite a long way away from the game on Saturday night.
"It's a great result initially that there's no structural damage or anything like that."
The Bulldogs are temporarily based in Perth and will travel to Adelaide on Friday to prepare for their first preliminary final since their famous 2016 victory over GWS.
