After Richmond led at quarter-time, the Bulldogs eventually ran out 16.14 (110) to 8.15 (63) winners in front of a strong Docklands crowd of 46,261 on Easter Monday.
The loss was Richmond's third loss in as many matches this season, and it hasn't beaten the Bulldogs in their last six meetings. Although the Tigers drew with the Bulldogs in round five last year, they have not overcome the Dogs since round three in 2005.
Although the Tigers were still within reach at three quarter-time, Akermanis nailed three goals in the opening five minutes of the final term, ensuring the red, white and blue were home.
It was a disappointing result for the Tigers, considering they led for a quarter and a half.
The Bulldogs landed seven behinds before Daniel Giansiracusa kicked their first goal of the day at the three-minute mark of the second term.
But the Dogs soon got a run on, and after Dale Morris put them in front for the first time at the 14-minute mark of the second term, the Tigers never regained the lead.
Shane Tuck won a game-high 33 touches, while Nathan Foley (28) and Nathan Brown (28) were next best. Superstar Matthew Richardson worked tirelessly for 22 touches and 12 marks, four of them contested.
Defenders Luke McGuane and Joel Bowden also battled hard.
Akermanis was the game's leading goalkicker with four majors, while Lindsay Gilbee was his side's top ball-winner with 28 touches. Daniel Cross also had 27 disposals.
The Tigers started promisingly, with Jack Riewoldt kicking the first goal of the match.
By quarter-time, Richmond had three on the board and a 16-point lead as the Doggies were held goalless.
The Bulldogs got their act together in the second term, booting six unanswered goals to hit the front.
Richmond effectively went goalless for a quarter – it didn't score a major from the 22-minute mark of the first term until the 26-minute mark of the second quarter.
Matt White broke the drought when he pumped the ball into the Coventry End stands after receiving a pass on the run from Jay Schulz. White became Richmond's first multiple goalscorer and helped peg the margin back to 15 points at half time.
The second term was also noteworthy for several moments, with Brett Deledio leaving the field under the blood rule after an incident with Bulldog Liam Picken. Soon after, defender McGuane provided one of the highlights of the day with a 'speccy' over Akermanis. Moments later, 'Aker' was again in the thick of play when he hit the post from just metres out after receiving a handball under pressure from teammate Josh Hill.
Richmond opened the second half well, with a Brown goal bringing the margin back to 10 points, but it was another 20 minutes before the Tigers added another. In between, the Dogs added four in succession, breaking away to a 33-point lead. Goals from Tuck and Mitch Morton in red-time gave the Tigers some hope heading into the final stanza.
The 21-point lead was quickly blown out to 38 after Akermanis' hat-trick of goals early in the final term, and the Tigers could only manage one goal, to Richardson, in the last quarter.
Western Bulldogs 0.6 6.11 10.13 16.14 (110)
Richmond 3.4 4.8 7.10 8.15 (63)
GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Akermanis 4, Higgins 2, Johnson 2, Giansiracusa 2, Gilbee, Hill, Hahn, Minson, Morris, Cooney
Richmond: White 2, Foley, Riewoldt, Richardson, Brown, Morton, Tuck
BEST
Western Bulldogs: Gilbee, Akermanis, Higgins, Cross, Lake, Picken, Giansiracusa
Richmond: Foley, Tuck, McGuane, White, Richardson
INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Harbrow replaced in selected side by Tiller
Richmond: None
Reports: Picken (Western Bulldogs) reported for striking Deledio (Richmond) in the second quarter
Umpires: Nicholls, Schmitt, Chamberlain
Official crowd: 46,261 at Docklands
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
