the sponsor's logo in small blue capital letters. The clash jumper is primarily white, with a red and blue hoop around the chest area. The player's number is blue, and located high upon the back. Banners In 2014, the Bulldogs accepted an offer from comedian and supporter Danny McGinlay to write the messages that appear on the club's banners. While AFL clubs traditionally use banners to celebrate milestones or to write motivational messages, McGinlay's "amusing pieces of throwaway banter" at the expense of opposing clubs have acquired cult status in the game, and occasionally proved controversial. In popular culture William Ellis Green ("WEG"), cartoonist for The Herald, began a VFL/AFL Grand Final tradition in 1954 after drawing a full-page caricature of the Western Bulldogs mascot. It is the most valuable and sought-after of WEG's Grand Final posters. Martin Flanagan's 1994 book Southern Sky, Western Oval reflects on the Western Bulldogs' fight for survival when it faced a merger with Fitzroy in the late 1980s. The award-winning documentary Year of the Dogs gives an inside look at the Western Bulldogs over the course of the 1996 AFL season. Footscray Bulldogs merchandise is seen to be worn in 1992 film Romper Stomper by the main character 'Hando'. The film revolves around the exploits and downfall of a violent skinhead gang based in Footscray. In season 1 Degrassi Junior High episode 'It's Late!' character 'Wheels' is seen wearing a 1980s Footscray Bulldogs VFL long-sleeve jumper. Membership and attendance Compared to other Victorian AFL clubs, the Western Bulldogs have had historically low membership numbers. However, the club broke its membership record in 2006 and continued to sustain these figures before another significant increase in 2010. In 2015, the club reached 35,000 members for the first time, and ended the season with an official tally of 36,213. In 2016, the Bulldogs equalled the club's previous year's tally by mid-May, and again reached record-breaking membership numbers by July, with 39,459 fans having signed up. It was also the second successive year in which the club had recorded double-digit percentage growth in membership. Playing lists Current squad Corporate Administrative positions President: Kylie Watson-Wheeler Chief executive: Ameet Bains Football operations: Board members: Luke Darcy Belinda Duarte Mark Evans Lisa Fitzpatrick Fiona McGauchie Chris Nolan Jerril Rechter AM Levent Shevki Sponsors Current major sponsors Mission Foods (major) CoinSpot (principal) Premier Partners ASICS City of Ballarat Victoria State Government Pedigree