Pendlebury qualified for the finals after playing his fourth game in the record 116-point win over Lavington.

He had a blinder too and was the top possession-winner with 32.

“If we make finals here and we don’t back in Melbourne, I’ll definitely come and play,” he said in a jubilant dressing room.

Collingwood has just the three wins and sits 11^th, still two wins out of the top eight.

Naturally, Collingwood would have to release Pendlebury for O and M finals.

Wodonga’s percentage-boosting win has elevated the unfashionable outfit three places into third spot and it’s now within sight of a first finals appearance since 2010.

Pendlebury responded to a challenge from Bulldogs’ coach Dean Harding to lift his play and the 191-centimetre defender racked up marks at will.

“He was a little disappointed he didn’t get a gig at Collingwood this week, but I reckon he put his front foot forward and he’ll be in there next week (against Footscray),” Harding said.

He was hardly touched by the Panthers as he, seemingly, had an age to distribute the ball to the best option.

“Maybe it’s just a bit of a different tempo between local and VFL, it’s a bit slower,” Pendlebury said.

The only negative for the Bulldogs was a knee injury to the gritty Reed Jackson late in the third term.

In an eerie coincidence, he collapsed to the ground just metres from where Tom Johnson dislocated his ankle and fractured his leg against Yarrawonga on May 27.

“He’s a terrific kid, we feel for Reed, we’re hoping it might be a meniscus and not the ACL (anterior cruciate ligament),” Harding said.

“The meniscus is still not great, but we’re just hoping for a good report on that.”

Jackson is the son of the Bulldogs’ president Chris.