DREAMTIME REVIEW: ADDRESSING THE COMMENTS
Well, suffice to say, the reaction to my review was swift and condemning!
Hi there, Richmond and Essendon fans, it’s me again. Your favourite game reviewer!
Ok, ok. I was being facetious. I’ve come here today to address my piece on the Dreamtime match on Friday night.
Because I saw all of your comments on socials and under the article itself, and while the words themselves don’t really faze me, having seen the consensus, I figured it was appropriate to pen a follow-up.
I know, having read my review back, that if the same words had been written about my Hawks, I’d have the same reaction.
So with all that said, let’s address those reactions, go over some (more) positives about both the Tigers and the Bombers, and clarify my sentiments about the marquee fixtures the AFL promotes.
THE COMMENTS
Certainly, while a select few saw my review as brutally honest in the best way, the conventional wisdom of the readership was that of overwhelming negativity. And that is absolutely fair.
Comments from Kade, who said my review was as unskilled and disjointed as the 20 minutes of the game they endured. That’s fair. I had many thoughts on Friday night, and there’s a strong potential that my thoughts turned into word vomit in real time.
From Lee, who spoke about Richmond’s fair share of Sunday games, arguing that it’s rich to complain about this one marquee game they benefit from. Again, that’s fair, Lee. In response to that, I would argue that the Round One season “opener” (if you don’t count the stupid round zero) should also be classified as a marquee game, and in recent seasons, both Richmond and Carlton haven’t been playing to a standard that I would argue befits opening the AFL season.
From Jane, who called it miserable interstate griping. Hi Jane. Thank you for the feedback. But me being a South Australian has nothing to do with my opinions. Well, it does, and it doesn’t. It’s a feeling I have that no team should have the monopoly on the biggest occasions on the football calendar. I’d feel the same way if it was always Sydney vs. West Coast on ANZAC Day, or the Western Bulldogs vs. GWS for the Dreamtime game. It just so happens that the “big” Victorian clubs dominate all the big occasions, and I don’t think that’s right.
From John, who called it sookfest. Or Paul, asking why I bothered if all I was going to do was complain. Or Colin, who called me a miserable bloke. All are fair sentiments. While I respectfully disagree, I will take on board that there was a time and place for my opinion, and perhaps discussing it in a game review was neither the time nor the place.
Pointing out these comments isn’t meant to target anyone for the opinions they shared. I welcome the feedback, and thank you all for it.
I will address more comments later, but for now, I’ll take some advice from Shane, who said that supporters were looking for the reasons why they’re no good, and maybe some positivity is needed, not the endless pile-on. So let’s do that now.
A SPRINKLE OF POSITIVITY
The following is from my original review…
Look, it’s not the worst game I’ve ever seen in my life. Far from it, in fact. And there were some eye-catching moments. Mykelti Lefau’s big effort soccer goal in the second quarter. Zach Merrett, having done all he could to keep his team in the game, scored a pretty nice goal from outside 50, also in the second quarter. You don’t expect that from him. There were exquisite run-down tackles, that Darcy Parish centre clearance was a sight to behold, and certainly Nate Caddy threw his body everywhere, in some impressive displays of toughness.
Wait. They’re announcing the winner of the Yiooken Medal. Stand by.
I’m mad now. Not because Darcy Parish was awarded the medal. He was booed as his name was announced. Pull your heads in.
Back to Parish. He was excellent. 40 disposals, 32 effective, seven marks and four tackles. He and Merrett battled valiantly and almost dragged their team to victory. Sure, Parish didn’t help with that very silly 50-metre penalty late in the game, but you can forgive that given his previous 120 minutes. Mason Redman was excellent behind the ball with 25 touches and nine marks. I liked his composure, as well as his experience after McGrath went down, to marshal the defensive troops in that third term.
I’ll spend a bit more time on the Tigers, since they actually won tonight. Jayden Short and Tim Taranto had 30 touches each, and both used their experience to inspire their young teammates. It was good to see Short using his potent boot for good instead of evil on several occasions. It is something that has been missing at times this season. Jack Ross, who has surprisingly been Richmond’s best player this season, was a beast in the middle with 25 disposals, and Patrick Retschko was excellent running up and down the wing with 27 disposals, nine score involvements and eight marks. He has a handful of games under his belt and is now looking like the Tigers may have found something.
Ben Miller was a pillar of strength in the backline, and no matter who he was matched up on, he won the battle and ended the night with 17 touches (16 kicks) and nine marks. He is very much a formulaic defender, but he is as honest as the day is long and is rarely beaten. In a more experienced team, he would be a tough matchup for even the best forwards in the game.
I also really liked some of the kids, in particular Tyler Sonsie and Steely Green. They’ve found a good little nugget in Green, and he reminds me a little bit of Jack Higgins. I can see him being a cult figure for a long time. And with Sonsie, he spent more time around the ball tonight, and it really paid off. He is worth persisting with as a full-time midfielder, as he drifts into the contest from the wing.
I can carry on; there are a few more players who had good, maybe even great games, if you look at the stats sheet. Seth Campbell’s role as a high half-forward works, and his speed at ground level is a problem for the opposition. Sam x 2 (Grlj and Cumming) both had moments where you can see the players they’ll develop into.
Now, let’s add some more. First, Essendon.
Archie Roberts. Where has this come from! It’s actually incredible how excellent and important Roberts has become to Essendon’s setup. 33 disposals, eight score involvements and seven marks. And he’s still just 20 years old. If he keeps this up, he will be a superstar half-back for the next decade plus, and he may even have the capacity to push himself into the midfield at some stage.
I also loved Jye Caldwell’s commitment. Given that he injured himself halfway through the second quarter, Caldwell remained on the field for a significant amount of time (74% game time to be exact), and while he was barely sighted, with just five touches, what he did was give the Bombers another interchange rotation when they desperately needed it.
Nate Caddy really needs to fix his set-shot goal kicking, but if he can sort that out, he’ll be a superstar. He shows tremendous commitment to the aerial contest, and he never gives up on the ball.
But if Caddy needs a partner in crime, the Bombers may have found one in Archie May. May was exactly what was needed, with 15 disposals, six marks, five tackles (three of which were inside forward 50), and a game-high three goals.
And it’s good that Kyle Langford was moved out of the forward line to allow Caddy and May to develop their craft and chemistry. Langford himself was superb playing across the middle and defensive parts of the ground, with 27 disposals (75% of which came in the back half), nine marks, six intercepts and five score involvements.
Now, a bit more on the winners.
I like Mykelti Lefau. Sure, he’ll never be a superstar, but he doesn’t need to be. Think Mabior Chol. A player who can be a very decent second or third banana, who can pinch hit in the ruck on occasion. I get that he’s already 27 years old, and may only have six years at the top level, but if he can combine with Tom Lynch for the short term, while Liam Fawcett, Jonty Faull and co. develop their craft, he’ll have enjoyed a career he can be proud of.
Speaking of Tom Lynch, right now it’s him or bust. But that’s ok. And it’s going to need to be, since the Tigers lost Jonty Faull to injury in the second quarter. Lynch is inching ever closer to the magical 500 goal milestone, and when he gets there, it’ll be an achievement well deserved.
I’m not sure how to feel about Ollie Hayes-Brown. He just doesn’t look ready for AFL footy yet. It’s a great story, coming from the Perth Wildcats to make it to the top of a second professional sport. Richmond’s midfield is having to battle extra hard without skipper Toby Nankervis. I do like Hayes-Brown and Noah Balta’s competitiveness in the middle, and with Balta, you’ll also get that whether he’s forward or in defence.
Two more players I wanted to talk about are James Trezise and Jasper Alger. While he is primarily playing in the backline at this point, it’ll be important to get midfield time into Trezise, given Taranto and Jacob Hopper should be on their way out sooner rather than later. Trezise did some nice things in defence, gathering 19 disposals, seven marks and five intercepts. While Alger didn’t do as much as his teammates, I loved his attack on the ball when he had the chance, and in time, he’ll develop into a handy small forward.
Now, the game itself.
Was it the worst game of football ever played?
No.
Was it the absolute best, a real showcase of incredible talent?
Also no.
In truth, it was never going to be, and in even more honesty, it didn’t need to be.
For both sides, we just wanted a contest. A good, honest, hard-as-nails effort from the 46 players that took the field. And as you just read, that’s what we got. Sure, there were some poor efforts by foot, some moments of laziness that will for sure be brought up in the coaches’ review.
But you’ll get that from the inexperienced line-ups.
More often than not, we can overlook these things if the overall skills were ok, and those lazy efforts were rectified. And sure enough, they were. Well, enough that you can at least see some glimpses of future hope.
It won’t happen overnight. And in Essendon’s case, I still firmly believe that Andrew Welsh isn’t helping matters by declaring Brad Scott as their next premiership coach. I also believe that it might’ve benefitted the Bombers to score a draft haul for Zach Merrett, as good as he has been this season.
It’s chaos and disorganisation now. And that is an issue that will need to be fixed. We can’t walk past that. But there’s also Nate Caddy. Isaac Kako. Dyson Sharp. Archie Roberts. Elijah Tsatas. Sullivan Robey. Archie May. Zach Reid. Jacob Farrow. Tom Edwards. Archer Day-Wicks. Nick Bryan. Saad El-Hawli. 13 players who have the ability to carry this club back to the Promised Land. In this group, there’s potential Brownlow medallists, Coleman medallists, club captains, some that can dazzle with an incredible highlight, others that will be as honest as the day is young.
Patience isn’t something the average Bombers fan has much of anymore, given the lack of success over the last two decades. And we’re still not 100% sure if Welsh, Scott and McGrath are absolutely the right people to take this club forward. But the process of finding out, is a long road that needs to be seen through. Just give it time.
As for the Tigers, right now it’s an injury riddled hellscape that is showing no signs of slowing down. From Jonty just now, to Tom Sims in the VFL, the Tigers simply can’t take a trick, and are being forced to play kids that absolutely aren’t ready for the big time yet.
Yet, if I asked the average Richmond fan, they’d probably say all of this was tolerable.
Why?
Because they got the success. The Tigers did what they should’ve done, which was bring in those three premierships in four seasons. I know that as a Hawthorn fan. We got the three peat, then the inevitable cliff came, and all the premiership heroes left the building, plummeting us down the ladder. But even though we had a few seasons of mediocrity, it was ok. We got the flags, now it was our turn to be the punching bag.
And this Tigers team is arguably ahead of schedule! Nobody could’ve foreseen this team winning as many as five games last season. Sure, they’ve only won two of nine to start this season, but remember, had Tom Lynch brought his kicking boots, Richmond would’ve beaten Carlton, and three wins in the first nine rounds is completely fine for a rebuilding team like this.
Just like with Essendon, there’s so much young talent here. Lalor, Trainor, Grlj, Cumming, Armstrong, Faull, Fawcett, Brown, Campbell, Hotton, McAuliffe, Retschko, Rioli, Ross, Smillie, Sonsie, Sims. Sure, there are still holes that need filling, I’m worried about the long term ruck prospects. But it should still be ok in the long run. Adem Yze looks like he can coach, the club is well run off the field, and the path is clear. Everyone is on the same page. Like most things, time is the most valuable thing here.
A FINAL WORD ON THE MARQUEE GAMES
I don’t back down from my opinions at all.
And I would also like to debate those who commented that these games will always attract the big crowds, and as such, the big Victorian clubs that bring in those crowds should therefore be entitled to retain the fixtures.
With respect, I call bulldust on that.
Because why exactly? Why should those clubs have the monopoly? Does North Melbourne play every single Friday night game? They should; they had the idea for it, and it should be theirs forever!
See how silly that sounds.
And I understand that many of these games are played at the MCG, a stadium that can accommodate 100,000 spectators. But it’s not all about the live patronage. There is a television audience to consider as well. And it’s the age-old question. Which audience is more important, the live spectators, or those watching at home? Stadium management will argue that those coming through the turnstiles are more important, while television executives will champion the audience at home.
To me, it’s a bit of everything. And whether you like it or not, if these marquee games were earned instead of gifted, I believe the television audience would be bigger, rather than smaller, and the games being played would be of a much higher standard.
Take ANZAC Day, for example. Here in SA, the right to play in the showpiece match is earned. The two Grand Final teams battle it out on April 25, with the premiers hosting the occasion.
If we were to apply the same principle to the AFL, Brisbane would’ve hosted Geelong at the Gabba. Now, I get it. The Gabba only holds around 40,000 spectators, less than half that of the MCG. But would these two teams have provided a better, more compelling contest than Collingwood and Essendon did this season?
Yes.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand the argument for traditionalism. And I understand taking away something that has been embedded in the AFL calendar for over 30 years. It would suck.
But some events are bigger than the game. Bigger than the two teams involved. But times have changed. The AFL is, now more than ever, a national competition. Interstate clubs occupy the top two spots on the ladder. Extrapolate that out, and it’s five of the top ten clubs on the ladder being from interstate.
That success deserves to be rewarded, not punished. And that’s all I have to say about that, mostly because I said my piece in the original review, and I don’t think going over old ground is necessary here.
MEA CULPA
To finish this piece, I would like to offer my apologies. To Richmond fans, to Essendon fans, and to the Mongrel fans.
I didn’t read the room. I came into this with an agenda, and using a game review to push that agenda wasn’t the right thing to do. It is not your fault that your respective teams aren’t performing up to the standard we will hopefully come to expect in the future.
To that end, I apologise. Next time I review your teams, or indeed any teams for that matter, I will do better.
Having said that, I will not apologise for my opinion on the monopoly of the marquee fixtures, but I hope you can at least see things from my perspective, whether you agree with that sentiment or not.
Because at my core, I still love footy. Just like all of you. And I want to see it thrive, all over the country. Not just for those within walking distance of the MCG.
