50TH CHIMNEY UNVEILING
7/10/2003

The first chimney unveiling saw the colours of Port on top of the colours of West. 50 years later, West have got their colours on the chimney again - this time under the red, white and blue of CENTRALS! According to KG this was the largest turnout to a chimney unveiling he'd ever seen. What a crowd slut - he's used that line every year!

MORE GRAND FINAL PICS

CENTRALS ARE 2003 PREMIERS!
5/10/2003 - Centrals 17.9(111) def. West 11.11(77)

Centrals set a new benchmark for excellence by becoming the only club in SANFL history to win the League, Reserves and Under 19's Premierships in the same year. No other club in the history of the SANFL can boast such a successful and dominant season. We won the Under 15's too!

The Dynasty of the Dogs is here.

THE GREATEST DAY
6/10/2003

Due to the birth of my second daughter Ruby, on 6/10/2003 at 05:14hrs (a few hours after I got back from the Grand Final celebrations), there will be a delay in the updating of this website. I've got heaps of great photos from the day, but as you can imagine I'm a little busy right now. I'd just like to thank my wife Lynley for holding the baby in until just after the Grand Final. Thanks darling! CEEENTRAAALS!!

THURSDAY TRAINING
2/10/2003

DOGS MAKE 4TH GRAND FINAL IN A ROW
21/9/2003 - Centrals 13.9(87) def. West 10.9(69)

In the first ever final between the two teams, Centrals won by three goals to book a spot in the 2003 Grand Final. The game should have been over at half time, but some stuff ups in front of goal and a couple of defensive clangers kept West in the game. We gave West 2 goals by kicking directly to West players on the kick-out!

Centrals has won 7 of its last 8 finals matches - an amazing finals record which would be the envy of certain choking AFL teams!

AN HISTORIC OCCASION
20/9/2003

Centrals will play West Adelaide tomorrow in the first ever finals match between the two teams. Be there.

AND THEN THERE WERE 3...
14/9/2003 - Eagles 10.18(78) def. Sturt 8.5(53)

Sturt has choked at the hands of the Eagles in the 'sudden death' 1st Semi Final. The silence coming out of Unley is deafening.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A COWAN MAKES!
6/9/2003 - Centrals 17.14(116) def. South 12.8(80)

Centrals clinched the minor premiership ($10,000 in the bank thankyou very much) by defeating South for the 50th time. The game appeared to be nothing more than a training drill with Luke Cowan marking stongly up forward. Bring on the real footy.

AMAZING STUFF GENTLEMEN
30/8/2003 - Centrals 9.7(61) def. Eagles 6.7(43)

"That's just amazing stuff, gentlemen!" - Tim Ginnever commenting at the final siren after Central's great win over the Eagles.

Just like the 2001 Grand Final, Centrals kept the Eagles goal-less, and in fact score-less, for the entire second half. Centrals overcame a half-time deficit of 34 points and went on to win by 18 points. This game stands as the lowest ever scoring game at Woodville (involving Centrals) with an aggregate of only 104 points, beating the old record set against Woodville back in 1966! And the win extends Central's winning streak over the Eagles to 8 matches.

EX-POWERHOUSE WINS DEAD RUBBER
23/8/2003 - Centrals 4.4(28) Port 9.8(62)

Centrals paid the price for a slow start and went down by 34 points in atrocious conditions. This was Central's lowest score against Port since 1967 and one of the lowest ever aggregate scores for a Centrals game.

And those poor Port fans: they win a game at Elizabeth and still get laughed at by Doggies fans for missing the finals. Actually, Port have a slim mathematical chance of making the finals, but only if Sturt do an amazing choke and lose (by plenty) to both North and West. Bye bye Port!

"THAT'S NOT A CHEERSQUAD!"
16/8/2003 - Centrals 9.12(66) def. Norwood 8.12(60)

In the first Centrals v Norwood clash at Adelaide Oval since 1981, the Doggies overcame Norwood, woeful umpiring and a bye-induced form slump(?) to win by 6 points. Norwood has only ever managed 1 win at Adelaide Oval against Centrals. Good to see that statistic remain unchanged.

Comment of the day: The Norwood cheersquad (all five of them with one fat bloke carrying all the flags) decided to camp right in front of the Centrals cheersquad. One bloke shouted at the Norwood guys: "That's not a cheersquad! That's a couple of mates and a DVD!"

New DoggyBase Stats Pages
6/8/2003

Check out the all-new DoggyBase pages! Info about the change can be found also on the Forum.

"EPISODE III" 2/8/2003 Centrals 22.15(147) def. North 10.12(72).
In a carbon copy of Rounds 1 & 10, beleageured North copped their third walloping from Centrals this year. Centrals has extended its record winning streak against North to 16 games. Match Report available now. And for those who are sick of the KFC jokes, I'm sick of them too. This is the last one!

DOGS GRAB TOP SPOT
26/7/2003 Centrals 17.7(109) def. Sturt 9.7(61)

In recent weeks Sturt have enjoyed victories over sub-standard opposition, leading some of their supporters to believe Sturt were 'back'. Today, the Doggies belted Sturt 'back' into reality. And with Port knocking off a fragile-looking West, Centrals are 'back' on top.

Centrals continues its dominance over Sturt, having won 8 of the last 9 encounters. The head-to-head figure is getting close too: Centrals has played Sturt 92 times for 45 wins and 47 losses. An amazing comeback considering we lost the first 16 games against Sturt after joining the league in 1964.

DEPLETED DOGS EYE TOP SPOT
19/7/2003 Centrals 17.8(110) def. Glenelg 8.15(63)

An undermanned Centrals took the points against an ordinary Glenelg. With so many key players missing (Arnott, Aufderheide, Guerra, Haraida, Slade... ), some were concerned this would be a danger game - especially after Glenelg came so close against West last week. Bit of an anti-climax really.

Centrals extends its winning streak against Glenelg to 10 matches. Centrals has now won 24 of the last 26 encounters with Glenelg. Or put another way, Glenelg has managed only 2 wins over Centrals in the last 10 years.

And with West's embarrassing effort against Sturt, you'd have to consider the Doggies a real chance of grabbing the minor premiership by season's end. Has the Bloods' bubble finally burst?

WE'LL TAKE THE POINTS BUT...
12/7/2003 Centrals 10.18(78) def. Eagles 9.6(60)

Centrals dominated play all over the ground, but the Eagles were kept in the game by our dodgy kicking for goal. The game should have been over at quarter time, but some of the missed shots were unbelievable.

Centrals has now overtaken the Eagles in the head-to-head stats: 19 wins to 18 since the Eagles merger was formed. Centrals is now on a 7 game winning streak against the Eagles, equalling the record 7 game streak we had against the Eagles back in 1995-1997.

PANTHERS' PANTS PULLED DOWN
5/7/2003 Centrals 24.16(160) def. South 10.10(70)

After demolishing South @ Adelaide Oval, the Doggies sit comfortably in second spot - two games plus percentage clear of third spot. The double chance looks secure but there's still work to do.

WEST BY A WHISKER
28/6/2003 Centrals 10.8(68) West 11.6(72)

West came from 25 points down to win by 4 points at their home ground. Disappointing that Centrals could not finish West off after dominating the first half. But well played by West - could they actually be a contender? Bring on the finals.

And oh dear, I hear that West player Dion Myles was misbehaving after the game with obscene gestures and language to the crowd. Inciting the crowd and bringing the game into disrepute attracts a heavy fine in some leagues. Jeez, you'd think he was a Centrals supporter! A mate of mine is writing a letter of complaint to the WAFC, CDFC and SANFL.

DOGS WALLOP WA
21/6/2003 SA 17.16(118) def. WA 8.10.(58)

Centrals (and a few ring-ins from other clubs) had a convincing win over Western Australia. Now let's get back to the real footy!

U-DOGS.net FORUM
9/6/2003

Check out the all-new U-DOGS.net Forum.

DOGS SHAG 'LEGS
6/6/2003 Centrals 21.16(142) def. Norwood 8.4(52)

Centrals demonstrated why they're the REAL powerhouse of the SANFL, putting to bed the perennial bleatings of the Norwood faithful. Norwood was absolutely flogged in what was their worst defeat under their current coach. It's unbelievable that a side could be spanked by 90 points in a wet-weather night match! 90 points is Central's highest winning margin EVER against Norwood at the Parade. Congratulations to all who braved the weather to witness history in the making.

It's newspaper ads like these that come back to bite you on your redleg. But don't worry, move the cursor over the ad to see the correction (courtesy of the U-DOGS.net graphics department):

Glenelg Bends Over
24/5/2003 Centrals 21.8(134) def. Glenelg 7.6(48)

Despite a slow start Centrals belted a hopeless Glenelg @ NAP Oval. Some stats: Centrals extends its overall winning streak vs Glenelg to 9 matches and its winning streak vs Glenelg @ Elizabeth to 10 matches. Centrals has won 23 of 25 matches vs Glenelg since 1992! And that's 2 years in a row we've beaten Glenelg by 86 points @ Elizabeth.

Rare Win For Port
16/5/2003 Centrals 10.10(70) Port 15.13(103)

Unbelievably, Centrals managed to ebb so low in form as to actually lose a game to the Magpies! Port played well though: They came out to throw everything they had at the best team in the league. But they were helped along in a big way by free kicks (9 to 1 in the 2nd term) and SHOCKING kicking for goal by Centrals. And when Centrals took complete control of the game in the 3rd quarter we failed to kick straight from point blank range on too many occasions to remember. What about that miss by J. Gowans in the goal square! It wouldn't have mattered who we were playing - we would have been beaten by Glenelg with that performance.

Port's cheersquad, populated by the usual crusty-looking ferals (see picture below), were hopelessly outnumbered and out-voiced by the best ferals in the League! There were still more laughs to be had even after the final siren blew: The Port team came over to the boundary to acknowledge the Port cheersquad. What for? They did stuff all except for the odd "clap-clap-clap" when a goal was scored. Never before in the history of football has a more undeserving cheersquad received acknowledgment from their team.

Laidlaw's Match Report Returns
14/5/2003

Be aware that Laidlaw's Match Report will be posted at U-DOGS.net for the next 5 weeks while the official CDFC Webmaster is overseas.

Eagles Shot Down, Plucked, Filletted, Marinated and then Barbecued @ NAP
10/5/2003 Centrals 19.8(122) def. Eagles 9.10(64)

What a thumping! I thought the Eagles were a bit better than that, although they did show a couple of glimpses of competitiveness. It seems pretty clear, at this early stage, the Doggies are a class above the rest of the league. Centrals have now won the last 6 games againts the Eagles and 9 of the last 10. Centrals have now played the Woodville-West Torrens merger 36 times for 18 wins each. This is quite an amazing statistic considering we lost the first 11 encounters and didn't win a game against them until 1995!

Welcome to U-DOGS.net

As of 9/5/2003, this site has officially been renamed U-DOGS.net complete with a new registered domain name, email addresses and website logo. They say a change is as good as a holiday... pass me my Hawaiian shirt.

Centrals Spank South
3/5/2003 Centrals 14.24(108) def. South 4.9(33)

In accounting for South down at Noarlunga, Centrals maintained top spot. And due to some upsets in other matches, Sturt & Norwood have been replaced in 2nd & 3rd spots by West and the Eagles! South's score was their lowest ever score against Centrals at Noarlunga and 3 points away from the lowest ever score kicked by any team against Centrals. We have now won 9 of the last 10 matches against South.

Order Restored: Dogs Back On Top
25/4/2003 Centrals 11.12(78) def. Sturt 6.10(46)

It's not often you see a side win so convincingly after playing so poorly. The Dogs seemed to have the ball for most of the day but wasted numerous opportunities, overused the ball and missed plenty of shots on goal. Sturt should consider themselves very fortunate to have lost by only 32 points. If the Dogs had hit their 'sweet spot', as they did against North, we would have seen a 100 point blow-out. If Centrals can find their true form, it's hard to see which side in the competition could challenge. And thanks to a surprise win by South over Norwood, Centrals are back in their rightful ladder position!

Friday's win extends Central's winning streak @ Adelaide Oval to 10 games: our second best winning streak at an oval, behind by the 13 in a row @ Elizabeth Oval back in 1995/96. It also extends our domination over Sturt having won the last 7 out of 8 games against those wooden spoon lovers. Hmm... Pity about that one game they did beat us in.

BLOODBATH
19/4/2003 - Centrals 16.14(110) def. West 5.10(40)

Centrals despatched West Adelaide with great ease - the 70 point margin flattered the Bloods as numerous easy shots on goal were missed by the Dogs. Schell sprayed at least 3 in the final term but he was not the only one - McArdle and Coulter also missed at point blank range. The record books were being consulted in the last quarter as West threatened to kick their lowest EVER score against Centrals. However, they just managed to get their nose over the line by 5 points. For the record, 5 goals is West's equal lowest ever goal tally against Centrals and their third lowest ever score against Centrals.

DOGS CAUGHT NAPPING?
5/4/2003 - Centrals 14.13(97) Norwood 17.11(113)

An amazing free kick count of 21-8 in Norwood's favour, along with some bizarre umpiring saw the perennial finals chokers fluke yet another early season win over the mighty Dogs. A bit disappointing to see the Dogs take the foot off the pedal and throw away a 31 point lead.

Unfortunately I missed the game due to work (but saw it on tape!), so no Pics & Movies this week. But for those that really need a picture, here's a charming 'oil on canvas' by Matisse:

"Sea at Collioure"

29/3/2003 - Centrals 32.5(197) def. North 11.8(74)

Statisticians were diving for the record books as Centrals piled on a record 16 final quarter goals to thump the Roosters @ Prospect Oval. 32.5(197) is Central's highest EVER score vs North Adelaide beating the 27.21(183) we scored back on 6/5/2000. 123 points is Central's highest EVER winning margin at Prospect. Centrals has won the last 14 games against North. The last time North beat us was back in 1997 at Port Pirie! This is Central's longest winning streak against ANY team. Centrals kicked more goals this round than Port, Glenelg and North combined!

Could this be the year that Centrals are remembered for having a decent forward line? Schell, Walton and Graham all impressed. And with the Gowans twins chiming in with 9 goals between them, you've got 5 players in the team kicking 4 goals or more.

CENTRAL'S WORLD CUP!
24/3/2003

Centrals supporter Darren Lehmann has taken the winning catch in Australia's 2003 Cricket World Cup win. Lehmann was also responsible for the crucial direct-hit run out of Sehwag when he was on 82 off 81 balls. Now the Australian cricket team knows what BACK-TO-BACK feels like!

SAVE THE MAGPIES AGAIN!
19/3/2003

Centrals fans did so much during the "SAVE THE MAGPIES" $2 campaign in 2002. But the battle to save the team we love to hate isn't over: Despite heavy recruiting, Port's League and Reserves sides were thumped by a collective 188 points on the weekend by the mighty Bulldogs squad.

So to keep up the fight for the poor Magpies, Bulldog Central is proud to announce the release of a downloadable program which will make the process of donating $2 to the Magpies much easier. Click on the image above.

17/3/2003 - DOGGYBASE UPDATE

A new version of DoggyBase has been released which fixes a couple of bugs.

28/2/2003 - CDFC & SANFL LINKS

Check out the updated links page. Got any suggestions, corrections or omissions?

2003 MEMBERSHIP: Got Yours Yet?

A Standard Membership is fine, but here's
10 Reasons To Buy a Season Ticket:

1. It's much cheaper than paying $8 at the gate all season.
2. No lining up when there's a queue to get in.
3. Endless fun smiling at opposition supporters in the queue as you arrive at the last minute and walk straight in - night games @ Norwood Oval in particular.
4. Say goodbye to that last minute rush to the ATM to get cash before a game.
5. You can brag to your friends.
6. All your money goes to Centrals. If you pay at the gate, your money gets split between the two clubs playing.
7. You can ask loudmouth opposition supporters where their season tickets are.
8. It makes a nice addition to your memorabilia scrap book.
9. I'm really struggling to think of 10 reasons actually.
10. I'm hoping most people are bored by now and haven't read past No. 8.

OK, the first release of the new-generation DoggyBase is available for download. After downloading the file from the DoggyBase page, you'll need WinZip to unzip the file and Microsoft Access 2000 to run the database. Please email any suggestions.

A new season is upon us and some changes are happening here at Bulldog Central.

Regular visitors will notice the improved layout and text readability. Animations have been used more sparingly to reduce page loading time. In future, animations will only be used to draw attention to important or new items. Under the bonnet, some of the HTML code has been cleaned up which means faster loading web pages. A few sections of the site have been re-organised: Premiership and Grand Final pages have been lumped together under "Grand Finals" and "EyeCandy" is now referred to as "Pics & Movies". The EyeCandy animation has been scrapped - instead there's a link in the lefthand menu.

A new database called DoggyBase is nearing completion. I'm pretty impressed with it (if I do say so myself) so I hope fans out there get good use out of it. The only problem is that users need Microsoft Access 2000 to run it - an expensive piece of business software which I don't expect too many folks have at home. Best you download the database whilst at the office and run it there!

The domain name "centrals.info" is no longer in use due to its poor reliability - webhosting companies are notoriously unreliable and I reckon I had the worst: www.hostonce.com.au. In the long run, I'll get a proper domain name up-and-running again, but next time it won't be at the expense of website reliability. In the meantime, use the URL www.users.on.net/centrals.