1. The Tigers just won’t throw in the towel
It’s been a very topsy-turvy season for the Richmond Football Club. After an impressive win in Round Two against the Crows in Adelaide, they then went on to lose five games in a row with the low point of their season coming in Round Seven with a loss at the MCG to the Suns. At that point, Richmond were languishing in 16th place on the ladder on just 6 points and a percentage of 87.3. It was fair and reasonable to suggest that finals were a pipedream, and it was also becoming obvious that outgoing coach Damien Hardwick didn’t have the fire in the belly.
Fast forward to Round 17 and the Tigers are now just a game outside the 8 with a likely win coming up against the Eagles next week. They’ve won six of their last nine clashes and during those nine weeks, their percentage would be 104.3 with the only real hiccup coming against a rampant Lions in Round 16 where they were thrashed by 81 points. Many were wondering if that would halt their momentum, and with the Swans leading for the vast majority of their Thursday night encounter, it almost looked like their resurgence was coming to an end and that their valiant attempts to play finals were finally being put to rest. But, for those of us who keep a close eye on this team, their come-from-behind win was not a shock.
The Swans lead by as much as 26 points during the second quarter. The Tigers pulled the margin back to 13 points before Heeney scored a goal not long before half time and the Swans went into the break 18 points ahead. When the rain came in the second half, it seemed to suit the Tigers who handled the conditions better than the visitors. The Swans fought hard to hang and the Tigers had to wait until the 11-minute mark of the final term to finally take the lead. For almost 20 minutes the margin remained at one or two points before two late goals to Graham and Martin iced the game to keep the Tigers’ season alive and relegate the Swans to being all but done and dusted for 2023. It’s no coincidence that the heavy loss to Brisbane last week was with the absence of Dion Prestia and Dustin Martin. Both were back in this week and their presence was damaging as always with Martin icing the game with a great goal. It has to be said that Dusty is almost back to his best. He finished with 29 possessions and is looking like he’s enjoying his footy a bit more than he did earlier in the year. Shai Bolton also had a cracker finishing with 31 touches. If the Tigers can maintain their form, they should win their next two against the Eagles and Hawks and find themselves in the eight after Round 19. I imagine once they’re in it will take a major effort to get them out.
As for the Swans, this loss will make it awfully difficult now. With seven matches remaining, they’ll probably need to win six of those games. Their campaign starts this Thursday against what will be a desperate Bulldogs side. In Round 19 they have to travel to Perth to take on the Dockers. A loss in either game will surely end their chances of playing finals in what has been a disappointing year after playing off in the Grand Final last year. Errol Gulden had another great game finishing with 31 touches and a goal in what has been a very consistent season for the young star who will be turning 21 on July 18. It’s pleasing to see Isaac Heeney has strung a few good games together as well. He finished with 3 goals and has turned around his form after an indifferent start to his season. It’s a long way back from here for the Swans.
2. The Pies were just too professional for the Dogs
The Bulldogs really wanted this one. They came out breathing fire and lead by as much as 22 points midway through the second term. But, as always, there was no panic in the Magpies camp. They knew they’d come good eventually, and by halftime the margin was back to just five points. Jordan De Goey’s goal early in the third quarter put Collingwood in front for the first time in the game and the Bulldogs were never able to regain the lead. They often refer to the third term as the premiership quarter, and Collingwood’s six goals to two put them in control. The lead went beyond five goals after the Pies kicked the first two in the last quarter. The Bulldogs fought the game out kicking the last four goals but the damage was done and they went down by 12 points in the end.
Some might say that Collingwood dropped their intensity a little, but this team is so well-drilled and so clinical in their approach that this all could be part of their strategy of not peaking too early. They seem to be so good that anything would be possible.
The Bulldogs would’ve been coming into this game eyeing off a spot in the Top 4. From what I’ve seen this year, whilst they’ve shown glimpses of some pretty impressive form, I don’t see them in that top echelon. They have an interesting fortnight coming up with games against the Swans and Bombers. They’ll need to win both of those games to have any chance of entering the finals with a double-chance. They could even lose both and all of a sudden find themselves sitting outside the eight. That’s how tight this season is right now. All losses really hurt. Cody Weightman and Aaron Naughton had big games kicking four apiece. Caleb Daniel is loving his time in the middle with 32 touches and Bontempelli was also one of the Bulldogs’ best yet again. It’s a little hard to gauge their season. They’ll probably play finals, but they’ve struggled against the top eight teams so far this season.
3. Go on, give Jack Gunston one more year!
Jack Gunston is in the twilight of his career, and he came back into the side after having kicked a modest 11 goals in the 11 games he has played with his third club. After departing from the Hawthorn Football Club, his old mate Fagan probably thought he’d give Jack a year at the club with a view to maybe going on to be a forward coach, but after smashing out six goals from 20 touches, it might be worth considering another year for the 31 year old. He looked bruised and battered during the last term sporting a bandage for a cut head that seemed to be applied with the dexterity of an octopus swinging a golf club in a telephone booth. Whatever the case, it’s always fun to see veterans bob up and have a day out, and it will be interesting to see if Jack can hit the scoreboard next week in their huge clash against the Dees at the MCG.
The Lions did beat the Demons there in last year’s finals series, but another poor showing at the home of football will get tongues wagging once more. After this round, maybe Lions fans at the G will be saying ‘Kick it to Jack!!”
Adam Simpson will be disappointed with this week’s result after what was a vastly improved effort against St Kilda last round. Whilst the prospect of beating the Lions at the GABBA is a tall order, kicking just five goals from a paltry 29 forward 50 entries is well below where the coach would like them to be. The club would’ve been buoyed by the return of Jeremey McGovern after his long absence. He didn’t disappoint finishing with 20 touches and an impressive nine marks in his usual style. Jayden Hunt was one of the Eagles’ best with 27 touches and an incredible 15 marks and a goal. Tim Kelly came back in and finished with 26 and a goal. My tip for the Eagles B & F this year might be Liam Duggan. He’s been one of the Eagles’ most consistent players and regularly gets over 30 touches a game. He might be one of the few that’s played most games as well. We saw the best of the Eagles in a while in their 8-point loss to St Kilda. Will they be able to find that again and win a second game?
4. Stephen Coniglio is back to his best
He’s been a bit of a forgotten man has the former Giants captain in Stephen Coniglio. We’ve all probably forgotten just how good a player he is, but since 2019, in which the Giants played off in the Grand Final, GWS have taken a bit of a fall down the ladder, and Coniglio has found it hard to get through a season without injury and some lapses in form. However, this season has seen him return to some of his best levels and this game was the best by far. He had 30 disposals and kicked three goals. In fact, the 29-year-old has not missed a game in 2023, and his lowest possession count for the year is 23.
It’s very easy for Giants games to go under the radar so you may not have noticed how good this guy is going, but once you see it you’ll begin to realise he could be a good smoky for the Brownlow. In fact, his good form and the fact that GWS have won five of their last six games is no coincidence. The Giants under new coach Adam Kingsley have rediscovered their mojo and will go awfully close to playing finals if they can maintain the rage. We’ll learn a bit more about them when they take on the Crows at Adelaide Oval next week. The Giants have been able to win on the road this year and it will take a big effort to leave Adelaide with 4 points, but with Coniglio firing, Josh Kelly doing what he does, and Toby Greene wreaking havoc every week, they’ll be a worthy finalist if they can get there.
Sam Mitchell would’ve been pleased with the way his boys played after a poor effort against Carlton in the previous round. For portions of that game, the Hawks were uncompetitive and looked all at sea. When the Giants kicked the first two goals of the game it looked as though the Hawks might’ve put their cue in the rack for this season, but to their credit, they remained in touch with the Giants right until the very end where the game was finally decided by 13 points courtesy of Jesse Hogan’s 4th goal at the 26 minute mark of the last quarter. No doubt Mitchell will still be ruing the loss, but he will be comforted by their spirited effort. We saw enough there to suggest the Hawks may pinch a couple wins for the remainder of the year if all goes well. And let’s not forget that they will be back with skipper James Sicily when they take on North Melbourne next week. They will no doubt go into that game as favourites, and rightly so. And as long as the likes of Newcombe, Nash, Day, Hardwick and co keep getting plenty of the ball they will provide plenty of nuisance value in the run home.
5. Christian Petracca does know where the goals are after all
In his last four outings, Petracca has managed a total of 2.8 including just four behinds in the loss last week to the Giants where bad kicking resulted in a 2-point loss despite entering their forward 50 a staggering 27 more times than their opponents. It was a vastly different story on Saturday night with St Kilda actually ahead on forward entries with the Demons scoring their 12 goals from a modest sum of 46 inside 50’s. It’s the first time since Round 10 that Melbourne has scored more goals than points and it’s their highest score since Round Nine. We are only talking 12.7 here by the way. Scoring has been a problem this year for Melbourne, and it has been threatening to cost them a Top 4 spot. But as long as the likes of Petracca can come out and kick four-straight from his 20 touches, it may be enough to get them over the line. Still, losing Bayley Fritsch will hurt, and Ben Brown is trying to find his feet again at the top level kicking just one goal since returning last week.
For now, the Dees are a game clear in 4th position. They’ve got a huge game at the MCG against an in-form Lions. Memories of their defeat at the hands of this coming week’s opponent in last year’s finals will no doubt burn brightly in the minds of players and coaches. A win there will go a long way towards securing a double-chance. A loss puts them back in the pack fighting for a Top 4 spot.
St Kilda came out strong in the first quarter but failed to make the most of their opportunities kicking 3.5 against the accurate Demons who scored 5.0 in the opening term from limited chances. They lost Max King in the first minute of the contest who appears to have re-injured the shoulder that kept him out of action until Round 10. The club has confirmed he will miss the rest of the season. To make matters worse, two more players went down before halftime, leaving the Saints with just two fit players on the bench for the entire second half. It was a good effort to only lose by 21 points, but it does leave them in a vulnerable position just one game clear of the 9th placed team on the ladder. And when you consider that they’ve managed just 5 wins in their last 12 games, the chances of them missing the finals after a great start again loom large. Jack Steele was huge for St Kilda finishing with 31 touches and a whopping 12 tackles would you believe! He’s the sort of player you love having at your club. He has no regard for personal safety and just does the team thing every single time. We saw a bit of a breakout game by Wanganeen-Milera who finished with 33 touches off half-back. The Saints head to the Gold Coast for a must win clash against the Suns on Saturday afternoon.
6. Good sides like Port Adelaide always find an extra gear
Make no mistake, the Suns were pretty good against the Power on Saturday night. They lead by a goal at halftime against a side that had already won 12 straight in they were hostile territory ad Adelaide Oval. But just like the Pies did against the Bulldogs, after the half-time interval, the Power turned on the afterburners leaving the poor unsuspecting Gold Coast Suns in their wake. And just like that, the game was over.
Nine goals to one left Stuart Dew and his men scratching their heads. It’s been a tough fortnight for Gold Coast, having played the top two teams while being in the mix for a possible first-time-ever spot in a finals series, and their big loss to Collingwood had many thinking they were way off the pace. This effort was a better one and may instil some much-needed confidence heading into their game against St Kilda. However, looking at their draw for the remainder of the season, the likelihood of securing five wins from seven seems a minor miracle. And that would be the bare minimum one would think. Casboult finished with four goals for the match and seemed more comfortable than usual lining up for goal.
Port Adelaide were challenged early but we all knew what would happen and they didn’t disappoint. Connor Rozee was brilliant once again kicking two goals from his 28 touches. Finlayson enjoyed his 100th game finishing with three goals. It all seems to be going along rather beautifully for the Power after now notching up their 13th straight win, but as we all know, every win just brings them closer to a loss, and this Carlton supporter would love that to be next week. No doubt the effort by the Bombers a week ago where they were so painfully close to victory shows the Power are not invincible, but so far they’ve managed to win the close ones and have done as well as you can expect. You also have to ask the question as to what Hinkley needs to do in order for the club to ink him a new deal. If they don’t do so, I can think of quite a few clubs that would take him in an instant…
7. Geelong are still no certainties for a finals spot
The Cats have finally made their way back inside the top eight with a cruisy win against the struggling Kangaroos. The Roos started well kicking two goals with just six minutes of game time played, but their next major didn’t come until the nie-minute mark of the third quarter, and by that stage of proceedings, Geelong had 12 goals on the board. That ten-goal differential turned out to be the final margin.
North Melbourne played a better second half but could only look on for two quarters as the Cats piled on 11 unanswered goals with relative ease. Tyson Stengle led the way kicking five, while Ollie Henry surprised with four. Gryan Miers topped the possession count with 32 and is fast becoming a player that opposition coaches might have to put some thought into when planning for Geelong games. It’s interesting to note that Jeremy Cameron is still not back after being concussed two weeks ago. He is likely to return next week in the crucial clash against the Bombers at GMHBA. The Cats really need to win that game because three of their last six games for the home and away season are against the Top 3 teams. Next week they’ll be at home against Essendon which will no doubt annoy the Bombers faithful as the chance of getting a ticket to an incomplete GMHBA stadium will be next to zero while the Pies host Fremantle at the G earlier that day. I imagine the person responsible for fixturing next week’s round was on work experience.
North Melbourne’s season has been mediocre at best. They’ve now lost 14 straight and their last two weeks were fairly heavy losses. They’ll be playing against the Hawks next week so it will be their best chance to secure a third win in a while, although the Hawks seem to be a level above the Kangaroos for the most part. Notably, Todd Goldstein was omitted for this match and Tristan Xerri was brought in. Xerri finished the game with 19 possessions and 45 hitouts in what was a solid effort. At 35 years of age, have we seen the last of Goldstein at AFL level? Surely a farewell game would be on the cards. Davies-Uniacke was North’s best with 28 touches and two goals. Nick Larkey finished with two goals from limited opportunities and is now just four goals shy of Curnow and Walker at the top of the Coleman race. One wonders how many he might’ve had if he was playing in a side higher up the ladder.
There are seven weeks remaining for North Melbourne to provide some hope for their supporters going into next season. They need a win. And has anybody seen Clarko?
8. The Crows remain winless in Victoria
The disparity between Adelaide’s home form and away form is the greatest in the AFL. The Crows have scored seven of their eight wins when playing at Adelaide Oval and have suffered just two losses there. They’ve played away on seven occasions and their Round 6 game against Hawthorn in Tasmania is their sole victory on the road this season. They’ve played four times in Victoria for no success but did come awfully close against the Magpies a fortnight ago.
On Sunday they faced Essendon at Marvel. Both teams were on eight wins and clinging to a spot in the Top 8. Essendon played a blistering first half and had opened up a six-goal lead at the main break. The Crows threatened to get back in the game after half time but the Bombers stood firm, eventually winning by 18 points in what was a shootout in the end. With the tightness of the ladder being what it is, the winner of this game now finds themselves sitting 5th on the ladder while the loser is outside the eight.
Next week Adelaide take on the Giants in Adelaide. Both sides are on 8 wins with the Crows ahead due to a superior percentage. The fact that it’s a home game should get them across the line. Their form at home is at least 5 goals better than it is when travelling.
The Bombers were switched on very early in this game. Skipper Zach Merrett is in career-best form and must be a genuine threat to this year’s top individual honour. He had another day out finishing with 39 possessions and a goal. Darcy Parish was also back to his best, finishing with 39 touches. Peter Wright found the goals again kicking three after being goalless in the previous two games, as did Kyle Langford who has been a bit of a surprise packet as Essendon’s leading scorer with 32 goals for the year. The trip to Geelong for the Bombers will be season-defining. Very few teams walk away from GMHBA with the four points, and a loss will see them once again teetering on the edge of falling outside the eight, and it doesn’t get a lot easier after that when they take on the Bulldogs at Marvel.
The Bombers look very good at the moment, and they would be looking even better were it not for a gem of a kick by Dan Houston last week. We know they’re good enough to play finals, but the next fortnight will reveal all we need to know about this team. Will they break that drought?
9. Blues fans put their September plans on hold for a week
After their sixth straight loss in Round 13 against the Bombers, the Blues found themselves back in the familiar territory of recent times in the bottom four on the ladder. Most pundits and supporters alike declared the Blues out of finals contention once and for all. There was turmoil at the club, and many called for the sacking of Voss. The Blues’ onfield performances were laughable at times exhibiting poor skills and glacial ball movement. They looked gone for all money. Now, just four weeks later, the Blues have strung three impressive wins in a row, albeit against teams who look unlikely to make finals. Carlton are also just a game behind Geelong who currently occupy the 8th spot on the ladder.
The turnaround in form is nothing short of stunning. The Blues scored a total of just 44 goals from Round 8 through to Round 13. In their past three games, the Blues have surpassed that figure kicking a total of 49 goals. If you think Blues fans are getting a little excited now, wait and see what happens if they can somehow conjure up a way to end the Power’s 13-game winning streak at Marvel this Saturday. But on the other side of the coin, that’s exactly what Carlton need to do for us to really know they’ve turned the corner. Playing well against teams in the bottom half of the ladder is well and good, but until you can beat sides that are contenders, you’re just a middle-rung team and nothing more.
Harry McKay finished with three goals which included two delightful drop punts. His one little snap around the corner from 15m out came within inches of the left goal post. We’d still be talking about that one had he missed. Charlie also kicked three and now sits atop the Coleman Medal ladder equal with Taylor Walker on 48. Sam Walsh had a very impressive first half picking up 23 touches to halftime and finishing with 32. The good news for Carlton is they are getting a better spread of goalkickers without the reliance of their two big forwards to carry the load for scoring. And despite entering the game without a specialist ruckman against one of the league’s best in Sean Darcy, the Blues still won the clearance count despite hitouts being 70-18 in favour of the Dockers. The Blues have a sniff, but a loss to the Power could snuff that out and put the season back on life support. That said, the Power is due for a loss.
A little was said during the game about the young list at Fremantle, and for periods of this game, it did look like men playing boys. That said, the Dockers did play finals last season, so they’ve definitely slipped back a few notches which would no doubt concern the club. They’ve lost a number of games at home which suggests it might not be much of an advantage. Their better players today were Brayshaw and Serong as always, along with Jordan Clark who worked hard in defence. Sean Darcy did as he pleased finishing with a career-high number of hitouts with 58, but the Blues were ready for that and still managed to gain the ascendancy in the midfield. That does beg the question as to just how important ruckmen really are. Many tipped the Dockers on Sunday knowing the Blues would be without Pittonet and De Koning. As it turns out, they were way off.
10. Are hitouts the most overrated stat in footy?
I pose this question on the back of the Fremantle v Carlton game which saw a hit out count in favour of Freo of 70-18. That is as dominant a count as you’ll ever see, however, the impact on the result was completely insignificant. The Blues lead for the entire match and ran out comfortable winners by 53 points despite having no recognised ruckmen in their team. Lewis Young and Jack Silvagni shared the duties and were soundly beaten, yet the Blues mids won the clearance count and the hitout dominance had no bearing on the game whatsoever. Sean Darcy also had 20 or so hitouts to advantage but his influence on the game was certainly not as damaging as one would think. Even the Power lost the hitout count to the Suns 49-32, and yet their midfield were still on top for good portions of that contest as well.
I think the modern ruckman has to be a lot more than just a good exponent of the ruck contest. The better ruckmen can cover the ground as well as take a good contested mark. The Blues would’ve gone into this game knowing that Sean Darcy was going to get first hands on the ball so they roved to him. When a ruckman is dominating the ball-ups, that’s what a good midfield will do. I’ve always believed sides could survive without a specialist ruckman in the side provided they have competent midfielders who can adapt. I’m sure ruckmen reading this won’t like it, but my mind goes back to the Tigers in 2017 when they won the premiership with a guy standing at 191cm sharing the ruck duties in Shaun Grigg. Jack Silvagni plays a similar role for Carlton standing at 194cms. Whatever the case, watching the Freo v Carlton game just got me thinking about it, and even though Sean Darcy was dominating as much as any ruckman ever has, I hardly noticed it. And it looks like the scoreboard had no idea as well.
