Marcus Bontempelli and Noah Anderson: Have we got the Bulldogs and Suns the wrong way around? Image: ESPN/GETTY IMAGES

Perception can frequently lag behind reality, in AFL football particularly. And regional Victoria might be the scene of a classic example come Sunday afternoon.

Ballarat’s Mars Stadium is the scene of the round two clash between the Western Bulldogs and Gold Coast, which immediately brings to mind some popular recent AFL cliches.

One is of the slick, skillful Doggies, chock full of big names midfield, armed with plenty of goalscoring potential up forward. Then there’s the eternally under-performing Suns, some journeymen and a handful of talented kids who’ll no doubt soon enough be poached by better, “sexier” big-name rivals.

Topping it off is the venue itself, the cold, often windswept “second home” of the Bulldogs, about as far from the concept of the Gold Coast area itself as is possible.

All those caricatures should add up to one result – a comfortable victory to the Western Bulldogs. Except in late March 2024, there’s a strong possibility none of them are actually any longer the case.

Let’s quickly deal with the last example, the forecast for Ballarat on Sunday a mainly sunny and comparatively calm 20 degrees. And the other cliches? Well, it’s certainly a great opportunity for Gold Coast to frank its credibility as a genuine contender under new coach Damien Hardwick.

The Suns were super-impressive against Richmond in their first game, ditto for all but the final 10 minutes or so against Adelaide. Another victory here would give them a 3-0 start for just the third time in their 14 seasons in the AFL.

But symbolically, it would also be a huge statement that this is a team which is not only talented, but has the mental fibre to be able to win anywhere (like this off-Broadway AFL venue) and against anyone.

And the “anyone” in this case? Well, if last week’s poor effort against Melbourne is any guide, the Western Bulldogs of 2024 are a pale imitation of the team which made a grand final only two-and-a-half years ago, and is still routinely tipped for top four and even premiership honours.

The Dogs leak like a sieve defensively, their much-vaunted forest of talls up forward of only a year ago seems already a distant memory, and their strongest suit, a deep midfield deck, has been eroded considerably by the departures of the likes of Josh Dunkley and Lachie Hunter, and now the loss through injury of Bailey Smith.

Indeed, since their appearance against Melbourne in the 2021 grand final, the Bulldogs have been the essence of mid-table mediocrity in most respects. Most obviously on the ladder, where they’ve finished eighth and ninth with 12 wins from 23 games both seasons, also in their scoring profile, ranked ninth for points scored and fewest points conceded both years.

PLEASE HELP US CONTINUE TO THRIVE BY BECOMING AN OFFICIAL FOOTYOLOGY PATRON. JUST CLICK THIS LINK.

Gold Coast, meanwhile, continues to be the subject of much scepticism even after this latest bright start. After all, we’ve seen the Suns do this plenty of times before, winning their share of games in the first half of a season before collapsing in the second.

Yet, even after two games, there’s mounting evidence there really is more substance to this version of the Suns, beyond the obvious talent of midfield stars like Noah Anderson, Matt Rowell and Touk Miller.

Gold Coast was already a pretty decent stoppage team, but Hardwick might already have instilled more balance into the Suns. Their ball movement looks a little slicker, they’ve occupied more time in possession and territory than previously, and forced more turnovers and scored from them more efficiently.

There’s also a more even look about the contributions offered by the red-and-gold team. Alex Sexton’s shift from forward to half-back has seen his kicking skills harnessed to more effect. Brayden Fiorini is an underrated influence on a wing, ditto the likes of Nick Holman and Tom Berry.

And Malcolm Rosas, while unfortunately suspended this week, is clearly going to be a very skillful point of difference up forward alongside key position goalkickers like Ben King and Jack Lukosius.

They are the sort of options we’ve ritually rattled off about the Bulldogs. And ones you’d think still existed for coach Luke Beveridge given he didn’t see fit to play Jack Macrae last week and started Caleb Daniel as the substitute.

Beveridge has always been prone to selection hijinks, but increasingly frustrated Bulldog fans are beginning to ask a lot more whether it’s still 2021 in the coach’s mind as well as that of many pundits.

And the latter contention is clearly still the case ahead of this game. Take Melbourne’s two major daily newspapers, for example, where from a total of 40 tipsters, 32 have tipped the Dogs and just eight the Suns. Or the bookies, where at the time of writing, the Bulldogs were paying $1.64 and Gold Coast $2.26.

Look, I’m no different. After some agonising, I’ve tipped the Doggies, too. But at some point, one has to concede that previously held perceptions are no longer the case and the landscape has changed significantly.

And if this Bulldogs-Suns clash runs the way the current state of play suggests it actually should, it would look very much like one of those occasions.

This article first appeared at ESPN.