Greetings fellow Mongrels!
I’m sitting down to write this intro a couple of hours before the game. You see tonight I have plans to head into the city and meet up with a bunch of members of “Toffees Victoria” – the Melbourne based Everton supporters group.
Yes I follow Everton in the English Premier League, and yes there are atleast 40 of us in Victoria who also do. Wild, right!
You might wonder why I am telling you this – “Timbo, why are you writing about EPL, leading into a game against two former AFL heavyweights” – fear not friends, all will be revealed!
Firsly, I need to give some credit to an American named Ty who is part of our Everton group. I had to let the lads know I might be a bit later meeting them in the city today, depending on how long it would take me to review this game, and he offered his help. So here is Ty’s review of today’s game, which he wrote days in advance:
“A bunch of lumbering top-heavy Australians ran around aimlessly for two hours, jumping on each other’s shoulders and whatnot. They pretended to punch each other for a bit, but really just pushed each other’s faces while holding their shirts. The refs didn’t know what holding the ball looks like, and neither did anyone else. Probably ended in a 75-point blowout. End of review”.
Thanks Ty.
Not sure I could have submitted that alone today, but I tell you what the holding the ball line got me! In a year where the umpiring has “never been better” or so the AFL is trying to make us believe, even an expat American with a passing interest in AFL knows that nobody knows what the hell is going on when it comes to holding the ball!
I also asked a Richmond mate, Craig, which Richmond players I should look out for. Who has taken his eye? He replied “Seth Campbell, Trainor and probably Brown” – to be honest I don’t know if he would have included Brown before his rundown tackle last weekend, but thanks Craig for these inspiring choices!
Needless to say neither lad has been much help when it comes to writing this review in a timely fashion so I could get into the city to watch Everton play their last ever home game at Goodison Park before moving into a new stadium next season.
However, thinking about Everton and today’s game at the same time, got me comparing Everton to North Melbourne.
See Everton have one of the richest histories in the Premier League – but the problem is, it is just that. History. The phrase “Everton that” is well used amongst us fans to describe just totally cocking up something.
As an example, tonight Everton plays bottom of the table Southampton infront of a no doubt raucous home crowd at “The Grand Old Lady” Goodison Park. It would be very “Everton that” to lose this match. And I wonder if it would be very “North Melbourne that” to lose today?
The more I think about it, the more the similarities are there between being an Everton fan and being a North Melbourne fan.
My next words are not intended to alienate North supporters, but rather to sympathise with them – neither club has been really relevant this century – but every season the supporters of both clubs go in with hope, only to be disappointed.
I really rated North’s off-field moves this year, but while having my morning coffee my brain connected North of 2025 to Everton of 2020. You see Everton had just signed one of the best managers/coaches in world football in Carlo Ancelotti (Alistair Clarkson).
Ancelotti immediately went to work moulding the squad starting with James Rodriguez, a massive name in world football, an attacking player that was perhaps past his prime, but a player that Everton would never dream of having in their team, particularly at his peak (Jack Darling anyone?). They signed Abodulaye Doucoure, a combative midifielder with a history of pushing forward and scoring goals (Luke Parker). They signed Allan, a defensive midfielder who would be responsible for playing the ball out from the defence (Caleb Daniel). The similarities are all there!
For all of these signings, North still have players getting regular games like Luke McDonald, Dylan Stephens and Toby Pink. No disrespect to those players, but I don’t think any of them will be the difference in today’s game, well maybe the difference to Richmond winning the game! Much like Michael Keane, Theo Walcott and Cenk Tosun were still part of an Everton squad that had yet to find it’s real identity.
Richmond have just started their rebuild, and have a nice mix of youth and experience. Guys like Campbell, Trainor and Brown are the youth (thanks again Craig), but they still have guys like Vlastuin, Broad, Nank and Lynch around; and these veterans were not signed from other clubs. They also have a not bad core of guys that should still be around when the kids hit their straps in Taranto, Hopper & Balta.
North have been rebuilding for 10 years or more, or so it feels. Was the signing of Clarkson, and this season’s signatures of Parker, Darling and Daniel just another false dawn?
Everton finished 11th in 2020/21 and Carlo Ancelotti left at the end of the season. Everton then went on to battle relegation from the league basically every season since. North might be lucky there is no relegation system in AFL because at the moment, I would have Richmond ahead of them in terms of moving up the table. Heck they have already won more games this season than North and I would expect them to win here today.
If Richmond don’t win then I might have to change that last part of my intro – nah only kidding! You live by the sword you die by the sword!
Now, onto the game:
The first 5-10 minutes of this one were an arm wrestle before Zurhaar slotted a goal for North, followed quickly by LDU. After Sims got one back for Richmond a few minutes later the next 5-7 minutes was end to end, with neither team really able to execute the final kick inside 50. North began to get on top in clearances and through better ball use kicked the next three before Campbell got one back for Richmond. McKercher scored the last goal of the quarter and North went into quarter time 23 points up on the back of dominating clearances, inside 50’s and using the ball much better than Richmond. This was North’s first first quarter win in 2025 and I was already nervous about my hours-old intro!
The second quarter began as another arm wrestle before Corr got Lalor high in a tackle and Richmond drew first blood. Hugo Ralphsmith, who was playing on McKercher on the wing, got one back on him with a brilliant goal to cut North’s lead to 11 points. It was a poor effort in the tackle by McKercher who was well on top in the wing battle to that point. Richmond’s forward pressure was coming to the fore with 12-3 inside 50 tackles to this point of the game, but they were not making the most of some of the repeat inside 50’s they were generating with their pressure.
When Lalor marked in amongst Corr, Darling and Pink one metre out from goal and slotted it the Tigers were looking well on top – to this point North had been inside 50 just the once. A couple of minutes later, Pink coughed up the ball under pressure, straight to Campbell who snapped a great goal from a tough angle. For all their territory dominance though, Richmond would go into halftime five points down with Zurhaar goaling late with North’s third inside 50 for the quarter. It felt harsh on Richmond after all their effort throughout the quarter, but the one thing they perhaps failed to do was apply scoreboard pressure.
The third quarter saw three goals apiece, and saw a clear trend emerge in the game. If North could dominate clearance, they could get ahead. There were times where they were able to get clean use and use the corridor to get forward, and they looked dangerous. North also had stages in this quarter where they dominated the territory but were unable to get it on the scoreboard. Richmond were beaten out the back in forward 50 three times for three goals via missed spoils, but they were also able to add three goals of their own, so we headed into the fourth quarter with North still five points infront.
I was wondering at this point if Richmond had thrown all they had at North, and North would run away it in the last – and they threatened to early!
The last quarter was really engaging, so much so that at time I forgot I was reviewing this game and became a pure spectator accidentally! I had to remind myself to take some notes! Goals to Larkey and Darling increased North’s lead as they again dominated clearances early and I thought maybe it was game over. But Richmond weren’t going away! After Lynch goaled from a ruck contest there were six points in the game. At this point, in a game like this, the game can come down to moments – moments that can win you a game or lose you a game.
So I started furiously noted the moments that I thought could have an impact on the result.
The first one I noted was a great contest between LDU and Lalor on the wing. With the ball on the ground both players went in hard and fair, shoulder to shoulder, to win the ball. LDU, with the benefit of multiple pre-seasons behind him, won the contest and the ball, and Lalor was a little worse for wear. LDU is a bull and it was a great contest from both players – I don’t think there have been too many times in his brief career that Lalor has been overpowered so far, but it was great to see him not take a backwards step.
Seth Campbell made a great tackle on Zurhaar on the wing, winning the ball back for Richmond which felt pivotal at the time. Mansell brilliantly shepherding and instructing Tom Lynch to run onto the ball inside the forward 50 was really intelligent. McKercher with a really smart kick to Duursma inside North’s 50. Comben with a brilliant intercept on a wing to halt Richmond’s forward play. And lastly Toby Pink’s intercept mark against Tom Lynch that largely put the game to bed.
There were a few poor moments as well in the final few minutes, but none of them cost goals so I’ve chosen not to highlight them.
Of course it wouldn’t be a game without another umpiring blunder, and when LDU took possession in Richmond’s forward pocket with about a minute and a half to go, and while barely being tackled just handballed it over the boundary, I have no idea how that was not “insufficient intent”. Earlier in the game a kick was smothered and went out of bounds and it was called insufficient intent. I know umpires can’t always get it right, but all we want as fans is some consistency.
In the end North held on for a four-point win over Richmond. It was a great game after some of the blowouts we saw last night, and while North get a win they desperately needed, I don’t think Richmond have lost any fans after this game.
A few other things:
Seth Campbell:
Alright Craig, he’s pretty bloody good!
Champion Data says that Seth Campbell is the 19th best player in the AFL this season and while I don’t rate him quite that highly, he was very good. If not for some wayward kicking he could have had five goals today! He led the Tigers (and the game) for score involvements with eight, and there were a couple of times where he may not have a stuck a tackle, but he interrupted/slowed down a North player enough for a teammate to get him and earn the holding the ball free kick.
Even if he is not directly affecting the play though, he is lightning quick and opposition defenders would be nervous knowing he could be coming at you any time when you have possession. Between him and Mansell (game leading 5 tackles inside 50’s today), Richmond have a couple of really good small forwards that should be apart of their next finals side!
The Ruck Battle:
This was a true heavyweight bout – two goliaths going at it! I love the way both these blokes go about their footy and while there is no question Max Gawn is currently the best ruckman in the competition, these blokes are right behind him in that conversation along with probably Lloyd Meek and Darcy Cameron currently.
Xerri and Nank are very similar in that they offer a bit once the ball hits the ground as well – they might not offer you a huge amount of linkup play, or big marks, but they are absolute warriors who relish the hard stuff.
At halftime Xerri had eight tackles and six clearances, while Nank had ten tackles and one clearance, and while you could say this was a by-product of a high stoppage game they would both finish the match as the highest tacklers for each of their teams.
Nank was able to drop back in the last quarter and take couple of important intercept marks to keep Richmond in the game, but Xerri with 11 clearances was a huge reason that North dominated the stoppage game today, and given North got the 4 points, the chocolates have to go to Xerri today.
Most of you know I am a Pies supporter, and I love watching the way McCreery tackles opposition players, it is just this side of legal, and it looks like it hurts. Reckon Nank loves it the same way, only his hurt more as he is brute of a man!
Colby McKercher:
This is probably the best game I have seen him play for North, and maybe he is starting to own that wing position! He had 22 touches to go with his first quarter goal, but it was the quality of his touches that stuck out today.
He is not the biggest bloke in the world, so I think playing the outside role on the wing suits him better than inside mid, and if he is given time and space he will hit targets with ease.
Between McKercher and Wardlaw, North have a couple of really good midfielders that offer a great balance of inside/outside play.
The North Defence:
My first ever review at the Mongrel Punt was an early season game last year between North and GWS. Toby Pink, Aidan Corr and Kallan Dawson were the key backs for North that day, and their directed opponents kicked 11 goals between them.
I noted at the time that while they may not come against Hogan/Cadman/Riccardi and Brown every week, and while they would not be the only defence to struggle against that Giants forward line, that if North want to move up the ladder and play finals then these guys are not the answer!
So fast forward to halfway through this year and we have Toby Pink, Aidan Corr and Comben as the key backs. Comben has been very good since slotting into the back line last year, but it is criminal that North have not addressed this issue! Griffin Logue will probably help if he can ever get on the park, but this area is perhaps the biggest one preventing North from progressing.
Their midfield has some good players, the forward line looks okay with Larkey, Zurhaar and Darling as the talls – actually they could probably do with a small forward or two as well – but their tall defender stocks are very underwhelming. No disrespect is intended towards the players named here, but they are simply not AFL standard.
Credit goes to Toby Pink for his late intercept mark, but as Dermott Brereton said in the commentary “that’s probably the best moment of his football career”. By my count Pink and Corr between them had been responsible for about four of Richmond goals throughout the game and they only kicked 11!
North really need to find one or two reliable key defenders if they want to make it back into finals contention.
AND:
Really like Sam Banks off halfback for Richmond, 25 disposals and 614 metres gained is good reading and he seems to be relishing playing the Jaden Short role while he is out injured. I liked him on a wing for Richmond last year, like him even more running out of defence!
That was probably Jack Darling’s best game for North – with Larkey pretty well held he really stood up and was able to manhandle his younger opponents on a couple of occasions.
Noah Balta copped a few boos early on in this one, and I had to agree with Derm who said “Move on will you people”!
So in the end, North nearly did an “Everton that” but managed to hold on for a win both the club and their fans desperately needed. Richmond play Essendon in the annual dreamtime match next week, and I tell you what they could give that a decent nudge! North meanwhile will play my boys the Pies at Marvel on Saturday night. North gave us a bit of a scare last year and should be fired up for this one, but I’ll back the Pies by 30+ after what I saw today.
This win was underwhelming, and based on today’s evidence I’m calling it now that Richmond will play Finals again before North do – sorry North fans!
Finally, thoughts are with the Selwood family and it’s a good reminder for everyone to check in with your friends and family, but not just today but every day.
Particularly if they go for Essendon.
