THEY didn't start the way they wanted to in Saturday's Blowes Cup game but Bathurst Bulldogs certainly finished with a bang as they recorded a big win over Forbes Platypi at Ashwood Park.
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Bulldogs had returned to their home ground on the weekend looking to put their first loss of the season behind them but started in poor fashion as they found themselves down 12-5.
The home side were eventually able to right things and fly home in a dominant second half to win 73-19.
The 11-try romp wasn't without its share of concerning moments for the competition-leading Bulldogs but the big haul of points showed that the team still have no trouble piling on points when they're get things right.
Bulldogs captain Peter Fitzsimmons said that after the loss to Orange Emus there was determination among the team to get things on track.
"We were definitely up for getting back to the winner's circle but we started pretty poorly. The end of the game probably had a bit more fire to it compared to if we had started well," he said.
"To let them score 19 points when we've had defence as a goal is disappointing. When we find ourselves down 12-5 that creates a bit of fire.
"I think that lately we've been allowing teams to beat us in areas where that wasn't happening at the start of the year. Those are all areas that don't require a lot of skill but help put you in front - getting off the ground, getting into position and talking in defence.
"I think at times we're expecting things to happen, whereas at the start of the year we were working hard to create those things."
The relentless attacks at the Forbes line towards the end of the game showed that there's still plenty of spirit within the Bulldogs to pile on the points - even when the result has already been well and truly assured.
"You look across our team and we've got scoring opportunities right from one to 15," Fitzsimmons said.
"You've got someone like Trappy [Matt Trapp] in our front row that can score tries from long range, and there's not many props in the game that can do that.
"Attack-wise we're good. It's about not relaxing in defence and just thinking it's all going to happen for us."
BATHURST BULLDOGS 73 (Daniel Woods 3, Zach Taylor 2, Hunter Davis 2, Matt Trapp, Peter Fitzsimmons, Adam Plummer, Ryan Harper tries; Kurt Weekes 9 goals) defeated FORBES PLATYPI 12
