Bits And Bobs: Gold Coast vs. St Kilda
I don’t think the phrase ‘intriguing matchup’ has traditionally been very closely associated with clashes played by these two teams, but in relation to this Round 18 clash, the label was extremely apt. The factors of interest were numerous in… well, number. Both teams are very much in contention for finals. St Kilda are desperately trying to hang on to a top-six spot that frankly belies the quality of their play of late. For a Gold Coast team fresh off the sacking of Stuart Dew, interim coach Steven King was no doubt hoping to conjure up some supernatural horrors to spook the religiously-inclined Saints, and thus help his side maintain the ladder pressure on the teams above them.
As it turned out, it was the Gold Coast song playing over the speakers at game’s end. To be honest, this one was all about them. They well and truly ensured the continuation of the logjam of teams vying for September footy, and might’ve gotten a sizeable monkey off their backs in doing so; a point into which I’ll delve a bit later on.
For the Saints, the result did nothing to dispel increasing concern over their late-season fadeouts, and their fans, (with various emotional support vices of their choosing at hand, no doubt) will be feeling a sinking sense of dread, dejection, and a host of other unpleasant emotions familiar to anyone who’s even held a passing interest in the club.
Here’s what stood out to me.
What happens when you can mark, but you can’t kick?
Dougal Howard and Mac Andrew are both quality readers of the ball as it comes into their respective defensive 50s, and as such they’ll often rack up the intercept marks. But the issue that both of them have is their kicking. Howard had racked up two absolute howlers by the ten-minute mark of the first quarter, and whilst neither led to a Gold Coast goal, he wouldn’t have exactly filled his teammates with confidence in his ability.
Andrew also had his heart-in-mouth moments, with one clearly telegraphed kick being chopped off in the back pocket, and a couple of other questionable examples of skill execution to boot. I reckon it’d be a prudent move for the coaches of both clubs to instruct a running defender to sprint past and receive the handball whenever these two blokes have the ball close to their defensive goal. If that’s not possible, then maybe someone from behind the goals can run past for the handball. Anything to avoid an outcome that involves them kicking it, themselves.
Transition:
Both Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera and Wil Powell had their way throughout the game, splitting their opponents’ defensive zones with pinpoint passes and generally running around without a direct opponent as if they were carrying an exotic disease. Wanganeen-Milera, in particular, had some absolutely superb delivery; low, fast and into space for his teammate to run onto. He’d have to be up there amongst the best field kicks in the league. Powell doesn’t quite have the same kicking capability, but he’s still got pretty handy skills, and also possesses a toughness that would make him a joy for the Suns’ coaching staff. I’m still not exactly sure what a ‘modern footballer’ is, but I feel like these two would be up there on the list of examples.
Add in the prolific run of Sam Flanders, who remains without a deal beyond this season, and Rory Atkins, who went some way to justifying his contract with the Suns in this game by ramming home a couple of goals, and you have a trio of runners in Gold Coast colours that can make a difference. The Saints, sadly, lack a couple willing to put the hard yards in.
One-man forward line. It’s a bold strategy, Cotton:
I can only guess that St Kilda are financially strapped and were only able to pay for one forward to board the flight up to Coolangatta, because Cooper Sharman was the only player in their attacking 50 that looked like he knew what he was supposed to be doing. He was the only one who held his marks and at one stage, he had three of his team’s five goals. It was the definition of a lone hand, and to watch Dan Butler, who laid four tackles but in offensive terms did three-fifths of bugger all, try and steal a goal off Sharman, who’d been paid a free kick about ten seconds earlier, was embarrassing. Ross and co. have a big problem up forward to address, with Max King sidelined until the end of the H&A season, and the fears that they won’t progress far enough to even be able to enjoy King’s return are becoming very real.
The other King: Fraudulent or fluctuating?
Ben King’s talent is obvious to anyone with sensory apparatus, but he has struggled to shake a reputation of underperforming when matched up against the top defenders, and the magnitude of that doubt will not have shrunk in the least after his performance in this game. Callum Wilkie and Josh Battle handled him with alarming ease in the first three quarters, and whilst he had a better last quarter, pulling down a good contested mark and being cheated out of a goal by the arbitrary wrath of the footy gods on an unfavourable bounce, he was an absolute non-presence as the teammates around him flourished. He’s become something of a spiritual leader for his club’s forward line, and whilst it didn’t matter today, if his team is going to play finals, this season or next, he needs to improve the consistency of his performances.
The Suns cannot rely only on Jack Lukosius to find the big sticks, but he was once again the main avenue to goal for the Suns, notching four or more goals for the fourth time this season.
Handball:
The Suns’ ability to direct the ball by hand to a target whilst being tackled, sometimes by two or more players, was genuinely something to behold. There were several moments where I thought that an effective disposal was an impossibility, and then voila, the ball appeared in the hands of a loose Gold Coast player and off he went. Rowell, Holman, Flanders and Miller were particularly apt in this, and it went a long way to helping their team to victory, ensuring the Saints could never settle in expectation of a stoppage. There’s one club, in particular, that rhymes with Fourth Shellbourne, that could learn from Gold Coast on this issue.
Lacklustre:
Right from the opening bounce the endeavour of the Saints was inferior to that of their opponents. A couple of moments, in particular, stood out to me. One incident saw Jack Steele, in his own defensive 50, completely fail to pick up his direct opponent, who then marked in the clear 35m out straight in front. This wasn’t a transition play or any other kind of open situation that would justify such loose man marking.
In another instance, a St Kilda player on the mark at half-back failed to respond to the umpire’s play-on call, allowing Nick Holman to wheel around onto his left and, under no pressure at all, pick out a free man inside 50. Mickey Mouse could’ve been in Ross Lyon’s place in the coaches’ box, spouting unintelligible gibberish down the phone, and I don’t think the team’s defensive tightness would’ve been any worse. It was just a day where they didn’t give 100% and faltered in several areas, and Gold Coast gleefully capitalised.
Long belongs:
Ben Long would be a serious contender for the most desperate player in the competition. One smother off an admittedly stupid Jack Sinclair kick resulted in a Joe the Goose special for Jack Lukosius. But take nothing away from Long’s effort, who had to both disregard his own safety by rushing towards the oncoming kicker, and catch the ball at speed from less than a metre away. Another smother off debutant Jack Peris (only three Jacks on the field for the Saints in this one. Poor effort by their standards) prevented an ever-dangerous squaring ball from reaching its target area. Multiple knock-ons whilst on all fours inside his defensive 50 ensured the ball was directed away from danger towards the pocket, where reinforcements were able to ensure a stoppage. No one would ever accuse him of having Bontempelli’s silk, but his fierce desire not to be beaten makes him a pretty handy addition to a club that’s been accused of skirting the hard stuff at times.
Shadows of the past, begone:
The Suns have historically struggled to a colossal degree in the second half of seasons, with regular collapses plaguing the club and hurting its ladder position considerably. I wasn’t at this game, but when Mason Wood converted for St Kilda on the three-quarter time siren to bring the margin back to 28, I can only speculate that the very faint sound of jungle drums suddenly became audible deep in the bowels of Metricon, or whatever they call it now. Heritage Bank Stadium, is it? Could the Suns somehow choke this one?
Nope, not this time.
To their credit, they controlled their destiny in the final quarter from the outset. A goal by Darcy McPherson at the eighteen-minute mark putting the cherry on top of a nice team play, finally and definitively banished their weary opponents back to the cloisters of Moorabbin. They may not make finals, but to win a cut-throat match this late in the season marks uncharted territory for the club. From here, who knows?
And that’s a wrap on the bits and bobs for this one. Suns 11.11.77 – Saints 8.3.51. If you’ve got something to add, feel free to add it. I was watching with a rather dodgy Wi-Fi connection so could’ve easily missed something vital, like a streaker or a tackle. I hear the AFL strongly disapproves of both. Till next time.
