CENTRAL District has spent most of the past decade building a reputation that has largely been untouchable.

Roy Laird and his men have been surrounded by an aura that says to opposition sides ``take us on at your own cost''.

The Bulldogs have been feared and revered for their tough, no-nonsense, win-at-all-costs style of footy.

Six flags in eight years and they're still a very good side.

Great teams don't disintegrate overnight.

But have the Doggies lost their killer instinct? This season certainly suggests cracks might just be starting to show in their dynasty.

Laird will freely admit his side is not playing anywhere near its best. Injuries, and suspension have taken their toll.

The Dogs were without suspended on-baller James Gowans for the first three weeks of the season and in that time they were convincingly beaten by Sturt.

Not long after James returned they lost his twin brother Chris to a knee injury. Add goalsneak Ian Callinan to the sidelines and
Central District had lost two of its most influential players.

Gowans and Callinan are game-breakers. One leads by example, wins the contested footy and the other makes you pay every time he's within 70 metres of goal.

Both were missing on Saturday when the Bulldogs lost to Glenelg at home. It was the second time the Tigers had beaten the reigning premier this season and the first time they'd won at Hamra Homes Oval for 16 years.

Only six goals in the last quarter saved the Dogs from embarrassment.

Roy Laird was quoted as saying his team was ``comprehensively beaten'' in all aspects and was unable to stand up under pressure.

Laird has admitted Gowans and Callinan are ``enormous losses'', but it gave others an opportunity.

Problem is you just can't replace experience at this level.

The Bulldogs are now in third spot  two games off Sturt and Glenelg.

One interesting stat is their winning margin against the bottom three sides this season.

They beat Port by 20 points in round one, (then 70 in round nine) West by 33 and South by 31.

Aside from the 70-point win, none of the other three games were hidings.

It's not the Central District we've come to expect. Maybe we're expecting too much because of recent achievements?

Yes there's a long way to go, you don't win premierships in June, and all the rest.

But the Dogs have some work to do.

When they're winning, they're just winning.

It's better than losing, but Laird won't accept that. And be sure, they'll bite back at some stage.

I might be questioning their killer instinct but then again, I don't have to face them on the field every week.

You can bet every last dollar the other eight teams in the comp won't be questioning them. They know Central District better than that.

Form comes and goes but that winning aura doesn't. That's what the Bulldogs will be riding into the finals.

BY the way, Glenelg boss Darren Chandler has tipped 10,000 people will pack the Bay for this weekend's blockbuster against Sturt. 10,000 -- not quite the glory days but we're getting close!