Well, that was certainly a game.
I think it’s fair to say that both of these clubs aren’t where they want to be, which isn’t the only thing they have in common. Essendon would have desperately wanted to break a 14 (now 15) game winning streak, and Josh Carr and Port were looking to bank an early win to build confidence after a nasty loss to North Melbourne last week. Only one team could come away with the points, and today it was Port at home running away pretty comfortably in the end.
Essendon’s Young Core
Let’s talk some positives for Essendon first. Their young brigade held up reasonably well when they had the opportunity. Jayden Nguyen didn’t get a whole lot of the ball, but I think his work in positioning himself off the ball was very impressive for a young player. So, if you’re ever watching Essendon in person watch him set up behind a contest- I bet you won’t be disappointed.
Now for a couple of forwards; Kako and Caddy. Now, Nate Caddy’s best work may have come when the game was already well and truly slipping through the hands of the Bombers but don’t let that dissuade you, Bomber fans! In fact, I’m assuming if you’re still tuning in week after week to watch the boys play you probably can’t be, but that’s okay. I’m going to talk about Caddy anyway.
He ended with 4.3, and honestly whichever way you slice it, that’s a pretty decent day out for a forward who’s not exactly getting Uber One delivery from his midfield. He was the only multiple goal kicker for the Bombers, which is certainly something I’d hope he can hang his hat on. The one thing I think we’d all like to have seen from him today was for him to get up the ground and do some work up there with only three of his 11 disposals coming any distance outside forward 50. He’s got a good deal of natural athleticism, and Peter Wright’s probably a better marking threat inside 50 anyway.
As for Kako, he certainly would like a few of his shots at goal back, but I don’t think that he had a bad game for a small forward considering the final scoreline. Creating five genuine goal opportunities for yourself and lending a hand elsewhere for a sixth is a pretty good day out for a small forward. It could have been great if he’d converted one or two more of those opportunities, but rest assured there will be days when he does.
While I’m speaking on some of these young players of the future I want to take a tangent: Zach Merrett. I know, it’s a tired conversation at this point, but I haven’t been involved in it publicly, so I’m going to take my chance to get on a soapbox.
Zach Merrett will absolutely not play in a grand final win for Essendon, that’s absolutely a non-starter. If I was a gambling man I’d put my house down on him not breaking their finals drought either, based on where this team is at. Those two first rounders and future first that Hawthorn were offering almost certainly would have been playing to win Essendon games of finals football.
Do I have a point other than lambasting Essendon’s list management? Absolutely not. Am I right in saying that Essendon should have let him go? I’d say so. Though I suppose I wouldn’t be writing the thought down if I believed I was wrong.
What Went Right For Port?
Or is it what went wrong for Essendon? Probably a bit of both.
Port Adelaide started strong at the source, eventually winning the clearance battle 42-26, with centre clearance taking up 19 and 12 of those, with Port Adelaide also comfortably coming out the victor there.
Now, I don’t want to go out on too much of a limb here, but I think Zak Butters might be quite good at football. With the caveat that his highest numbers of disposals came in the last term, he ended up with 36 disposals, six tackles, and 13 score involvements. And one karate kick straight to Blakiston’s liver. I’m not a coach, but if one were to ask what to do about Butters I’d paraphrase the great Christopher Wallace – you’ve got to play Butters close like butter plays toast. Lock him down at every opportunity, because the second you give him space he’ll send a ball inside 50 that’ll cut through your defence like a hot knife through, well, butter.
I suppose the headache comes for opposition coaches though when you have Jason Horne-Francis running around both his 50 and the midfield gathering an easy 26 and kicking 3.2. A very impressive game for the injury-troubled young man, and he looks a lot more mature than I’ve seen him in previous years which is a massive positive for Port Adelaide fans.
Port Adelaide stood well at both ends too, with Georgiades presenting well early and Aliir Aliir racking up a casual five intercept possessions and an even more casual 19 marks out of his 21 total touches. Jack Lukosius presented well on his return, though once again he reaped most of his rewards in the final term which was, to be charitable, not the highest intensity football we’ve seen this season.
I was also quietly impressed with the inexperienced Ewan Mackinley who had a very good first half, taking bulk territory for Port when he got his hands on the ball. He hit his targets well, disposing of the Sherrin at 88% as well as playing just about 90% game time which makes him a prime candidate to make that wing position his own while Port are dealing with their not inconsiderable injury list.
In more general play Port Adelaide took 165 marks to Essendon’s 58. This is bad if you’re an Essendon fan considering they let through 157 against Hawthorn last week, which makes this dangerously close to a trend. If they can’t pick up in this area, any team with half decent kickers will chop them up at will moving forward. I’d also say that this is a pretty good indication that Port Adelaide fans shouldn’t look too much into this particular number, but it does make for pretty reading. As well as this, Port Adelaide managed 12 different goal kickers for the game. Again, I’d stress that while this is an exciting number, I fear it is much more indicative of a deeply flawed defensive structure from Essendon than it is of a Port Adelaide team with a dozen genuine scoring weapons week on week.
And another thing that I thought went well for Port almost entirely outside the context of this game specifically: a great first goal for Jack Watkins in the AFL after winning three Best and Fairest awards between the VFL and the SANFL. I think it’s universally loved when a player comes through the system a bit differently and manages to make something happen.
The Walking Wounded
I think if you had asked Port Adelaide fans this morning if they’d prefer a dominant win or for Connor Rozee to make it comfortably through the game they’d probably pick the latter. Unfortunately, we don’t really get a say in these things.
Port Adelaide tried to downplay it at the ground, citing “nerve damage” but I think it’s pretty likely we’ve seen another hamstring go early in the season (which isn’t because of any new rules by the way). I don’t need to tell our astute readers (or our less astute readers even) that if Rozee is out for four or more weeks things are going to be even harder for Port as the season truly swings to life. I’d also keep an eye on Miles Bergman who went off the ground after clutching his ankle following a marking contest in the fourth, especially given he’s just recovered from a foot injury.
As bad as that news could be for Port, things are looking worse at The Hangar. Redman went down early with a knee issue, thankfully it seems to not be an ACL, but most knee issues take a lot of time to come good. Dyson Sharp, the exciting pick 13 playing just his second game, came off with a rolled ankle and couldn’t come back on afterwards. A disappointing debut, but he’s sure to come back and do some damage in the future.
On Comms
I just wanted to shout out one thing here really: Dwayne Russell pronouncing “Nguyen” correctly. Not “Nooyen”, not “Nugooyen”, but “Nwen”. A commentator doing his due diligence probably shouldn’t be worth shouting out, but it’s a very important thing to get right in our game.
To Conclude
Honestly, there wasn’t a whole lot to talk about from this game. Both of these teams will be aiming to have strong moment sthis season but won’t be expecting too much more than that. There’s plenty to be excited about for both teams if you’re willing to look for it. Both sides are looking at winnable fixtures next week with Essendon playing a reasonably in form (I’m writing this as North play West Coast so if I’m wrong about this it’s simply due to my unfortunate inability to see the future result of that game) North Melbourne, and Port Adelaide playing West Coast at Adelaide Oval, so supporters of both should look to tune in to those clashes.
All things told, Port brought some pressure, Essendon played one of the more lacklustre first quarters you’re ever likely to see, but managed to pick themselves up to a more respectable effort moving forward. If these teams can hit the draft well, they’ll be in contention before too long.
Hopefully.
