IF THE Western Bulldogs are any chance of pulling off the upset of the decade against Geelong tonight they will have to make it a foot race. They've got to use their speed, move the ball quickly and run the Cats off their feet.

There, in fewer than 50 words, it's done. Easy.

Of course, it's nothing like as simple as that. But I promise you, if the ball is coming down slowly into the Bulldogs' forward line, they will have no chance. They will get smashed.

Rodney Eade and his troops must make the most of their primary assets — pace and running power.

It's going to take a superhuman performance but the Dogs need to remember they only need to beat the Cats once. Tonight. It's an even-money contest at preliminary-final time. The first "no tomorrow" situation for the top sides.

Geelong, the AFL's No. 1 attacking team, will get its 15 or 16 goals. There's no stopping that. So the challenge for the Bulldogs is to get one more than that while making sure the minor premiers don't get their season average of 18. Or more still.

They'll need someone to kick four or five goals. And they'll need seven or eight goalkickers.

The good news for Eade is that, while he doesn't have a traditional big, marking forward, he has plenty of goalkicking options. He has seven players who have kicked 20-plus goals for the year, including six at 30-plus. He's just got to find a way to give them a chance against the No. 1 defensive team, which concedes on average just 11 goals a game.

How? They must get some sort of parity in contested possession through the midfield and then get on their bike. Be bold enough to take a chance. Run at every opportunity and give their forwards a one-on-one chance. Don't give the Geelong back six time to get set and ready to help out.

Structurally, the Dogs must force Geelong wide on the kick-ins, even it if means overplaying the corridor. The man on the mark cannot let the player with the ball back inside. If they let the Cats run through the middle it's instant death. Also, they've got to open up the centre half-forward area. At every contest outside their defensive 50 metres zone, Adam Cooney, Nathan Eagleton and even Brad Johnson — when he pushes up the ground — have to be charging into the space.

Through the midfield each Dogs player must be responsible for his opponent and must match his output. If Cameron Ling kicks two goals, Cooney will have to kick two goals. Likewise with each pairing. And they must kick accurately. There will be no second chances against the class of the Cats.

The match-ups will be intriguing and critical, and Eade will try hard to get things his way.

I'd play Ryan Griffen on Jimmy Bartel because he's just as comfortable in defence as he is on the ball. He'll be able to go with Bartel when he pushes forward and can create, himself, from anywhere.

Matthew Boyd and Daniel Cross are strong-bodied and elite endurance runners. And they've got the ability to work off their opponent. They are the only two who can go with Gary Ablett and Joel Selwood. Boyd for Ablett; Cross for Selwood.

I'd also start Jason Akermanis in the midfield. If he's "on" he can elevate his side and that would get him into the game early. He can find space forward of the ball and they'll need someone to grab a couple of unlikely goals out of nothing.

There will be some lessons learned from the round-16 clash at Skilled Stadium, when the Cats beat the Dogs by 61 points after it was pretty close until about the 20-minute mark of the third quarter.

The first lesson is that Brian Lake must take Cam Mooney. Andrejs Everitt had him early in round 16 and Mooney destroyed him, and the visitors. There can be no experimenting this time. Lake is his side's No. 1 defender and must take Mooney.

Last time, Dale Morris played on Steve Johnson and had his pants pulled down. But Eade has no option but to go with Morris again. They call him "the glove" — now is his chance to show why.

What happens when Brad Ottens pushes forward will be a worry. Wouldn't Eade love to have a fit and firing Tom Williams as an extra tall defender?

At the other end of the ground the Dogs' forward line collectively has to keep Tom Harley honest. The Cats skipper sets up a mountain of play from the defensive 50 zone so whoever he picks up must make him accountable. Trying to out-read him is a mistake. He guards and plays that defensive 50 zone like no one else.

It'll be a cracking game, a battle of strength, power and speed. I can't go past the Cats but if they are slightly off and the Dogs have a blinder, you just never know.