First came our collective celebration of Sydney for signing overlooked fringe players such as Josh Kennedy, Ben McGlynn, Shane Mumford and Ted Richards - all of whom flourished in their new northern home.

Richmond were lauded next for their success with Ivan Maric, Bachar Houli, Shaun Grigg and Anthony Miles (but were also accused of going too far and "overdosing" on the Michael Lewis mantra, by bringing a host of lesser lights).

Yet in truth the mature talent recruitment strategies of the Swans and Tigers were not pure Moneyball. Not at all.

Unearthing talented players who have not had a chance to shine is stock standard stuff in recruiting. Filling the holes on your list by identifying useful opposition players susceptible to poaching is as old as trading itself.

No, the actual Moneyball method is a two-step process. First, identify a measurable facet of individual performance that is likely to bring team success. Second, assemble a playing group that excels in that one metric.

In Major League Baseball the prized statistic was the ability to get on base. The cash-strapped Oakland Athletics identified this as crucial to winning, then bought, traded and drafted undervalued players who had that exact skill.

And in this respect the newest and truest - perhaps one and only - local version of the Moneyball methodology has recently arrived on our doorstep, in the renewal of the Western Bulldogs.

The key to their strategy? Players who amass high tackle numbers, and high possession numbers. Let's call them the ball magnet mutts from the west. The leather-poisoned pups from the kennel.

They are the bargain basement Bulldogs.

Seemingly everyone's second favourite club, they are a young and exciting team that is headed for finals. Their rise has been well charted over the past few years, but let's revisit a few of the central reasons.

They certainly deserve praise for nailing A-grade talent with X-factor appeal in Marcus Bontempelli, Jack Macrae and Jake Stringer. (But it will always be easier to nail picks four, five and six than to miss.)

Similarly, when people praise recent Bulldog picks, they lump the likes of Mitch Wallis, Tom Liberatore and Lachie Hunter into the "astute choices" mix. (Yet picking up three father-son bargains is hardly a strategic masterstroke.)

No, the recurring theme and great success of the new Doggies seems in part based on bringing into the club players who possess two somewhat innate traits: a propensity for tackling, and an ability to find the football.

While the rest of the league is obsessed with unearthing the next 190-centimetre midfielder, the Bulldogs seemingly care little about height. While those same clubs grapple with the need for line-breaking speed demons, the Bulldogs care more about how well a player positions himself in the scrum.

With everyone else out looking for the next Nat Fyfe, the Bulldogs have largely been able to pursue the objects of their affection without real risk - landing more than a handful of ball-winning terriers with lowly latter draft picks.

The first was kennel favourite Luke Dahlhaus. The ball followed Dahlhaus all over the field at TAC Cup level, where he was named in the team of the year and, importantly, averaged six tackles per game - more than any player in the competition. He has now brought that same intensity to the AFL, and is a bona fide star.

Dahlhaus dropped in the Dogs' lap at pick 22 in the 2011 rookie draft. Bargain.

Exhibit B could be Caleb Daniel. Champion Data ranked Daniel as the 16th best player in his draft pool last year, ahead of Caleb Marchbank (pick six), Nakia Cockatoo (pick 10) and Liam Duggan (pick 11). He was the best performed player at the National Championships and yet his height (167 centimetres) scared clubs off.

Daniel fell to the Bulldogs with pick 46. Bargain.

Exhibit C might be Shane Biggs, a 23-year-old ball magnet virtually unknown outside of Bulldogs supporters and fantasy football fanatics, both of whom were rewarded on the weekend when he debuted against Collingwood on a back flank … and quietly amassed a lazy 28 disposals.

Biggs was bought for the difference between pick 37 and 39. Bargain.

And there are many more like them.

Mitch Honeychurch is one who we have yet to see the best of at senior level, but was ranked 15th in his draft class by Champion Data (ahead of Bontempelli). Minor concerns over stature and skill saw him fall to pick 60.

Nathan Hrovat was selected by the Dogs a few years ago with pick 21 - the selection they received in exchange for Brian Lake. Hrovat is only 174 centimetres but a well known junior clearance specialist.

The injured Toby Mclean is another ball magnet, and although he is not classically short at 180 centimetres, he was also not tall enough for some clubs, given he counts his high marking as a strength.

Lukas Webb (pick 27), Bailey Dale (pick 45) and Lin Jong (rookie draft) are all high-possession hard-tackling players. Stop for a moment to consider how useful such players will be, given the current state of the game.

In a football landscape threatened by the scourge of rolling mauls and 30-man packs, who do you think will be best placed to handle that pressure - the big bloke, speedy guy, or kid whose specialty is finding and farming the football in heavy traffic?

The rest of the league appears to be clamouring for players with prodigious kicking ability, exceptional endurance, or the perfect physique and frame - hoping that those attributes will produce great football at the top level.

The Bulldogs have gone another way. Instead of hoping a gifted specimen will become the perfect package, they have decided to trust the numbers, and recruit those who know how to play footy.

This is a team that has spent little and bought well by valuing the most fundamental skill in footy. They Dogs are finding their way by finding the ball.