Round Two of this year was the last time both the West Coast Eagles and North Melbourne recorded wins – for the Eagles, it was their only win of the season, whereas North made it two wins from two starts in life under Alastair Clarkson.
So much has changed since then. But the most significant change is that West Coast is back on the winners’ list for the first time since March – 18 miserable weeks between drinks.
The Eagles have had a repeat year where players have dropped quicker than flies, key injuries to the key players have meant that Adam Simpson has had to deal with what was left and what was left were players that weren’t yet capable of breaking through the mould of the AFL environment.
As for North Melbourne, as soon as the losses piled up, Alastair Clarkson took a leave of absence to focus on his well-being amidst off-field issues, which saw Brett Ratten take over.
For a game between the 17th and 18th placed teams, it might have been one of the better renditions of ‘Spoonbowl’ we’ve seen for quite some time. West Coast rallied out to a three-goal lead at quarter time, led by as many as 31 points early in the second term, before North rallied back to bring it to single digits, before letting blow out to a five-goal margin early in the last quarter, before making a late rally.
Although it was just too little, too late. The Roos, for as admirable in games as they have been, have made a habit of botching the winnable opportunities. A foolish interchange error lost the match against Sydney. Games against St Kilda and Essendon have also come up short by single-figure margins.
The Eagles have been through hell and then some this season, with everyone associated with the club, from the coach to the CEO to the players to (probably) the folks running the food stand at some being called for the axe.
Maybe we’ll still see that come the end of the season, but for a week at least, they can be relieved that no blowtorch or microscope will be coming the way of the Eagles this week.
THE EAGLE KIDS
A few of the younger brigade stood up and gave the Eagles faithful reasons to be optimistic about what lies ahead.
If it wasn’t for a couple of misfires in front of goal, I reckon Jack Williams would’ve been close to a best-on-ground performance; yet it must be said his influence across the ground for a young key position player was magnificent.
Much has been said about Bailey Williams taking the lead ruck this year at the Eagles but less about who fills in when he’s resting. And whilst Williams had only five hitouts from 25 ruck contests, he showed throughout the game that the Eagles can work with his aerial and ground-level work over time.
I was also impressed with the efforts on the ground level with Ryan Maric, who has yet to miss a game since his debut against the Crows nearly two months ago. His ability to cover the ground has been widely discussed since his drafting, but I don’t think much has been said about the contested work, which I believe is a steady improvement from his first game. He finished with seven contested possessions, six ground ball gets, and 11 pressure acts for three tackles – which are acceptable numbers for someone who will take some time to develop.
But Elijah Hewett showed in this game that he belongs at the top level. It wasn’t a complete performance, but many instances showed what it was precisely that had draft experts and recruiters salivating. His goal in the third quarter, which saw him power away from a boundary throw-in stoppage in the forward pocket and then curl it through, is the sort of talent that isn’t developed overnight.
His third quarter was huge. He also got into a couple of good positions to set up scores or have shots for himself – nine disposals and three clearances for him in the third term. Ultimately, his finishing was perhaps the only blip in his performance; he finished with 1.2 but was also involved in another three scores from his 21 disposals.
Nonetheless, with the success of players like Reuben Ginbey and Noah Long this year and the slow burn of developing the likes of Rhett Bazzo, Campbell Chesser and Brady Hough, the Eagles have got some bright spots to think about for the long run. Potentially picking up Harley Reid won’t sound so bad, either.
THE WISE MAN
Is it even possible for rival clubs to dislike Shannon Hurn?
I’ve been a long admiring fan of his over here on the eastern seaboard, and even in the twilight of his career, he continues to churn out some brilliant performances.
I saw him line up with Nick Larkey ahead of the first bounce, and the immediate reaction was: ‘What the hell, Simpson?’ You see, Larkey stands at 198 centimetres and has more than 10 centimetres to Hurn. Get him on the lead, and he was in trouble.
But in a game with more chaos than organisation, Hurn’s role on Larkey was outstanding. Of course, Larkey would eventually break through and kick a couple of goals in the last quarter to help bridge the gap for North Melbourne, but for three quarters, Hurn had the measure, and the margin was not even close.
By three-quarter time, Larkey had four disposals and no influence on the contest. In contrast, Hurn had 17 in the same time frame.
The most pleasing thing about this match-up is that Hurn was engaged in six one-on-one contests overall and lost out in one. I’d wager most, if not all, of them, were on Larkey. He also recorded three intercept marks, nine overall and seven intercept possessions in a classy performance.
Where do we see Hurn next year? I know I’ve been vocal about some of the senior heads in this side making way, but if this bloke wants to play on next year, I say bloody let him if he feels his body can go one more. He is still impacting games, and his experience will be invaluable to the youth.
THE CURIOUS CASE OF PAUL CURTIS
There are a few of the younger fellows at North Melbourne that I’ve enjoyed watching come through the system, and Paul Curtis is near the top of the heap.
After being taken by the Roos with pick 35 in the 2021 AFL Draft, Curtis played 15 games for North Melbourne in 2022, backed up by 17 games so far this year.
Perhaps one criticism from Curtis this season is that his scoreboard impact hasn’t improved from his debut season, with only 9.9 this year from 16 games as opposed to the 12.8 he managed in his 15 games last year.
But we saw in that second quarter precisely what he is capable of. Five scoring shots for a return of four goals should’ve been five, had he kicked a drop punt properly in the goal square instead of the sort of ball drop you expect when going for the banana kick.
We may talk about that kick that hit the post in the coming days as a primary reason why North lost, but let’s face it, North lost it in various other spots in this game. Where were they in the first and third quarters?
What I thought mattered was that he responded to what was such a poor miss with great forward craft, and for a man of his size at 185 centimetres, he possesses such an elite aerial presence; he’s strong through the body and doesn’t mind flying for a grab if he thinks it’s his for the taking. He can be exciting to watch at times.
But like most mid-sized forwards, he can also be frustrating. He missed a shot from about 40 metres out that many people expected him to score when it failed even to register.
Nonetheless, when you kick four goals in a term, that should be celebrated and let’s not forget Curtis is only in his second season, so these games will be few and far between for now. He had eight score involvements all up.
What should also be noted is that his 13 contested possessions was second of all North players on the day – more than Luke Davies-Uniacke, Harry Sheezel, Will Phillips, Jy Simpkin, and Darcy Tucker – the only man who had more than Curtis was Todd Goldstein with 14.
That’s something to hang your hat on.
HOW GOOD IS IT TO SEE LUKE DAVIES-UNIACKE PLAYING FOOTY?
Compared to the early days of the season when he was struggling and not doing anything for my Supercoach side, it’s bloody good!
All things aside, when LDU plays well, the North side is better for it – it sounds a bit of a boring take that, but some players genuinely walk taller around certain players, and I get the feeling this man is one of them.
Since his return to the senior side in round 16, Davies Uniacke has averaged 27.2 disposals, 9.5 clearances, 4.7 inside 50s, 4.2 marks and six tackles per game – which on face value, are numbers we come to expect from a quality on-baller.
It was a strange game looking at the clearance numbers, for West Coast was dominated in the clearances for all but the third term, when they were +8 for the quarter. For the entire game, North were +13 in all clearances, and +4 in the centre bounces, and many of their scores were generated on the back of their clearance work.
It’s probably worth mentioning, but besides Larkey and Curtis, what does North offer forward of the ball? They miss Zurhaar, sure, but even then, he can be incredibly hot and cold in front of the big sticks. I know they moved Harry Sheezel forward late in the game to spark something, which nearly worked… nearly.
But maybe that’s an aside.
Davies-Uniacke is a prime beast in nearly every stoppage possible; if North can make three or four copies of him, I’m sure they would; they’d probably need an extra couple to cover the injuries.
All poor jokes aside, this was a performance from the top-shelf in the young career of the man. By half time, he accumulated 17 disposals and five clearances – he finished with 30 and eight. He also recorded 12 contested possessions, seven ground-ball gets, six tackles, 25 pressure acts, six marks and six score involvements (including a goal assist).
ON TOP OF THE CONTESTED BALL
We talk about how the contested ball is critical in football these days. While the Eagles conceded in the clearances, they were harder at the ball for longer; +15 in contested ball, which translated into their run off the defensive half: +71 in the uncontested ball – one doesn’t happen without the other.
Here are the top three names for the Eagles in contested ball this game: Tim Kelly, Bailey Williams and Jack Darling.
Unlikely trio? Maybe, but the Eagles fans have praised Tim Kelly and Williams for most of the year. The pair combined for 37 contested possessions in this one (Kelly 18 and Williams 17) and were solid in the coalface when the whips got cracking.
I think it’s clear that Kelly will likely win the best and fairest, given how consistent he’s been in the midfield this year, and this was another performance that will see him poll strongly in the best and fairest.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Williams gets a placing in the top five – dare I say, the top three, such has been his consistency this year. It was a good battle with Todd Goldstein and Tristan Xerri in this game, and he more than held his own (24 hitouts, seven to advantage from 67 ruck contests), recording six clearances and four intercept marks.
Jack Darling is the interesting one. I’ve had more than my share of sticking the boots into him over his career. His first quarter was something I hadn’t seen in a long while. He was bursting down the line to lead, sticking grabs, and his game had a confident aura that I don’t think has been sighted since the pandemic.
He finished with ten disposals and five marks by quarter time, and whilst he only touched the ball eight more times after quarter time, I thought when he got involved in the play, there was a sense of purpose with how he attacked the ball when called upon.
Positives Eagles fans, am I right?
OTHER OBSERVATIONS
Jamie Cripps was so close to getting a segment to himself in this one – though his work in the forward half is so instrumental, he knows exactly when to space out when the ball is in general play, and his stoppage work across the high half-forward area has been something of a big focus for mine in recent weeks – 30 pressure acts and 11 tackles in this one – backing up the 14 he had against the Saints about a month ago – underrated player.
Harry Sheezel topped the disposals in this one with 31 disposals; honestly, it didn’t feel like a big game, but his composure in the pocket to centre the ball to Luke Davies-Uniacke in the last quarter was one of the best passes we’ve seen this season.
Dom Sheed was matched up with Davies-Uniacke for a fair bit of the game, and it was an enthralling match-up to watch. Whilst LDU was better impact wise, Sheed had 28 pressure acts and 26 disposals and featured in a few clearances too.
I could watch Bailey Scott run with the ball all day. He had 24 disposals in this one, and every time just felt like he was off to the races trying to make things work.
Oscar Allen has been sensational this year. He had to battle the two-on-one on over half a dozen occasions but barely lost out. He took a brilliant mark in the third term and kicked a couple of goals – there’s an ongoing discussion on whether he’ll be a better player than Aaron Naughton – well, based on this year, I’d say he’s the better player.
Why is Lachie Young still here? Why is Kayne Turner also here?
I’ve admired Jayden Hunt’s season with the Eagles since coming across from Melbourne – he provides dash and an extreme sense of urgency to move the ball. I think he’s been a key contributor in setting up the drive off the defensive half 25 disposals, five rebound 50s, nine score involvements, one goal, and seven marks is a great return.
There were some excellent bits from Tom Cole in this one; he positioned himself well behind the ball and took four intercept marks.
Saw Jackson Archer first-hand against the Hawks, and there are elements to his old man in the way he’s fearless coming back against the flight, putting himself in danger of getting hurt a few times in this one, which is fine in terms of commitment to the cause. Still, he’s got to start thinking about when to go and when to stay down and help mop up.
Ben McKay is working his way towards a fat paycheck with Essendon: he took five intercept marks and nine intercept possessions all up and could do without the shank kick in defence in the third term, though that will cost about $50,000
And another thing, if the AFL is serious about ‘parity’ and ‘fairness’, they will not give North the rights to Ryley Sanders, a part of the North Melbourne academy. They shouldn’t be gifted their players because of their incompetence. They put themselves in this position; we’ve seen teams in the past work their way out of it, over to you, North Melbourne.
And on that, that’s me for this game. A big win by the West Coast Eagles, snapping a 16-game losing streak at home for their fans – can I just say, I may not see eye-to-eye with them, considering I’m a big evil Victorian, I’ve got to tip my hat to them for sticking fat through what’s been some callous times.
The win still has them at the bottom of the ladder on percentage with four games to go; time is running out if they wish to avoid the wooden spoon.
They have Essendon at Marvel Stadium next Saturday afternoon, followed by games against Fremantle, the Western Bulldogs and Adelaide.
But where the Eagles deserve their flowers, North Melbourne deserves the opposite. I’m sure the fans are sick of seeing the ‘honourable losses’ tag, and frankly, so am I. It feels like this team has nearly done everything they possibly can to lose games this year, and this is just the cream on top of what is a very shit cake.
They play Melbourne next week, followed by Essendon, Richmond (Not at Marvel) and Gold Coast in Tassie – might be a minute chance there. But the way I see it, they’ll be ending the year with 21 straight losses, and that’s just not good enough, considering they have been rebuilding for three years now.
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