Ten Things I Learnt After Round 24
1. The Daicos brothers really like playing together
I know there’d be some statistician out there who could answer this, but when was the last time siblings on an AFL field had 40 possessions each? My contention is it probably has never happened.
Josh entered the competition with much less fanfare than brother Nick, yet he is arguably just as good, although Nick does seemingly have one or two more tricks. Whatever the case, as brilliant as their father Peter was, most of us are still surprised that his sons are as good as they are, and that Nick will most likely go down in history with more accolades. The father-son rule has really served the Collingwood Football Club well.
The game between Melbourne and Collingwood on Friday night was played as you’d expect it would when there are two teams who were playing for nothing. The tackle count was just 42 to 41 in favour of the Pies in what was pretty much a bruise free affair, although Darcy Moore might dispute this after being concussed in another careless incident involving Kysaiah Pickett. Pickett finished with two goals for the Dees, as did Tholstrup. Salem battled hard for 26 touches but Melbourne could only muster eight majors for the match. The Demons need to fix their forward line if they want to contend in 2025.
Collingwood will be disappointed about missing finals, although they’re unlucky when you consider they won the equivalent of 13 games which will usually be enough to get you into September action. Along with his 40 touches, Nick Daicos also booted two majors and has done his Brownlow chances no harm. By any metric, the Pies missing finals after winning a flag is a failure, but they weren’t terrible this year other than those first three weeks. Like Melbourne, a key forward or two should be their priority over the summer.
2. The Kangaroos are lucky it was raining
The Hawks have proven in these last few weeks just how merciless they are. They’ve won their last three games of the season by an average of 87 points and are entering the finals in white hot form. In slippery conditions they still managed to boot 26.14 to North Melbourne’s paltry return of 7.4. On a firmer surface, who knows what damage the Hawks could’ve done, although the way they handled the ball looked no different to a dry day. They had 12 individual goal scorers with Dylan Moore topping the list with 4, so they’re not reliant on a few for scoring. It’ll be interesting to see how far they go, but the road ahead is very tough.
How they wish they could have those first five games over.
North Melbourne looked as though they made progress at times this year, but have they really? Last year they won three games, and that’s all they could muster in season 2024. Xerri had a breakout year, Davies-Uniacke showed up every week and battled manfully, and Harry Sheezel is a star in the making. Larkey had another solid year but it’s fair to say he doesn’t get the same opportunities as many other forwards n the camp. They were powerless to stop the Hawthorn onslaught. Jy Simpkin was North’s best kicking three majors from 25 touches. But it was a dark day and not the way you want to finish a season. Having said that, a lot of us thought that the Kangaroos wouldn’t win a game this year, so maybe those three wins mean something after all.
3. Cats invoke the mercy rule after half time
The half time score at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday afternoon was embarrassing, to put it mildly. Jeremy Cameron had helped himself to seven goals by the long break and the Cats had a 100-point lead. Many started scrambling for the record books wondering if the Cats were going to threaten the highest all time score, but with finals looming and Top 4 certain, why would they go all out? On paper it looked as though the Eagles came out a vastly improved unit after the break, but we know better. Geelong put their cue in the rack and players went into self-preservation mode. Cameron finished with a lazy nine, and Dangerfield is looking primed for another finals campaign.
Here we go, again Cats fans. Do they even get excited any more?
I imagine it may still be a fair while before we see the Eagles play finals again. Last week’s loss to Carlton was a huge disappointment, and the first half this week was pitiful. This year saw the emergence of Jake Waterman as a premier forward. Harley Reid came into the competition in a blaze of glory, but perhaps some people need to take a chill pill and give the kid a break. He seems to like the pressure, but he’s not the chosen one and should not be seen as the Eagles’ saviour. Five wins is a small step forward on previous years, but they have a lot of work to do in order to break free from that bottom four.
4. Suns win two in a row in Melbourne
The Gold Coast Suns had another one of those years that promised a lot and delivered so little. They were winning every game at home but couldn’t crack it for a win away. They finally had a breakthrough against the Bombers and now they’ve backed it up by beating the Tigers. It’s slightly amusing that, at the same time, they’ve lost two in a row at home. Thats just how they roll I guess. The fact that they won 11 games this year is their highest ever return, so there’s that is something to hang their hat on, but with Dimma at the helm, the expectations will grow.
It was always a dangerous proposition for the Tigers to get a win and surpass North Melbourne for the wooden spoon. The draft looks good and they have so much to gain from getting first crack at the draft. I’m sure, secretly, they are happy with the loss and Adem and his team can bring in some of the best kids to really fast-track the rebuild. So many greats moving on so it’s definitely the end of an era, but you have to wonder what we’ll be saying about them in a few years. Daniel Rioli finished his time at Richmond with two goals and 30 touches. He will be missed.
Looking towards 2025 for the Suns, they seem to have a settled midfield with Anderson, Rowell, Flanders, Miller and Witts all having solid years. Their forward line isn’t terrible, and neither is their defence. The ingredients are there, but it’s almost as though they still don’t fully believe in what they’re capable of. It might be time to look at their list and perhaps make some tougher decisions for certain players who may have stagnated.
One of the names being thrown around as possible trade bait is Jack Lukosius. He’s a very talented player, but he’s only ever really teased us with the odd good game here and there. It all depends where he wants to play his footy moving forward. I’ll make no predictions regarding the Suns as you just don’t know if they’ll ever click as a side, but with next year being their 15th year in the competition without a finals appearance, they’ll be hoping to finally break through next year.
5. Brisbane still fading out in games
The Lions smashed the Bombers for the first three quarters leading by 46 points at the final break despite poor conversion for goal. However, as has happened all too often this season, the Bombers scored five unanswered goals in the final term while Brisbane could only manage four behinds. The end result was a 20 point win, and perhaps this fade-out had no bearing on their ladder position, but their fade-out last week against Collingwood did major damage. Lohmann and Cameron kicked three goals each. Lachie Neale had 40 touches and you should hear his name called out a fair bit in a few Mondays from now. A home final awaits, but the road from 5th is tough.
The Bombers had a very disappointing season winning just three games out of their last eleven. They’ve missed finals and will probably get to working on their list. Langford booted three goals and Stringer booted two. Stringer’s future is still up in the air for the time being. Essendon have had a bleak twenty years. Another September missed. The natives are getting restless. This is also another club that will need to make some tough decisions. I imagine there’ll be some heated discussion at the AGM. The pressure of another failed year is looming.
6. Swans’ season looks back on track
It was just four weeks ago when Sydney took on Port Adelaide and were thumped to the tune of 112 points. It was their fifth loss in six weeks, and all of a sudden their previously firm grip on the minor premiership was under serious threat. They were trailing at three quarter time against Collingwood and that could’ve made it their sixth loss in seven weeks were it not for a Heeney-inspired comeback win. Now they’ve closed out the home and away season with three wins and they head into the finals choc- full of confidence.
The win against the Crows wasn’t without a bit of a fight, especially early in the game where the Crows were matching it goal for goal. In the end, the Swans cruised to a five-goal win, with a healthy spread of goal kickers. Nick Blakey played one of his best kicking two goals from his 32 disposals while Roberts had 31. Sydney will be abuzz first week of the finals with the qualifying final between the two cross-town rivals in the Swans and the GWS Giants. The win will be so important as the winner gets a home preliminary final. Should be the pick of the games in a couple weeks.
Adelaide’s season would have the review well and truly in motion by now. So many questions to be answered with the future of some listed players under the spotlight. Izak Rankine’s season showed plenty of promise when he wasn’t injured, and the club will be hoping Fogarty can take another step forward in 2025 as the signs are that Walker probably won’t go on beyond next year. Jake Soligo was another positive this year. The club was hoping to be much higher than 15th on the ladder. Matthew Nicks will be under the pump and may not see out next season if it follows a similar pattern to this year.
7. At Mars Stadium, when the wind blows, it really blows
It’s great to see a big town in Victoria like Ballarat, hosting an AFL match, but if you’ve never been to Mars Stadium, you’d have no idea just how strong the wind blows. It often results in scrappy affairs that end up having the play in mostly one area of the ground. In this game, the Giants hung on grimly until the final term where the Dogs went nuts booting five goals to one to win by a comfortable 37 points.
Ed Richards was one of the best for the Bulldogs after gathering 29 possessions and kicking two majors.
The Giants may rue the loss of a home final, and the idea of taking on ladder in Sydney. Toby Greene booted two goals, as did Jesse Hogan in what was a stellar year for him that included taking out the Coleman Medal with 69 goals. Aaron Cadman also booted two goals and is starting to have an impact in games. This loss ended a seven game winning streak that has now resulted in the Giants finishing in the Top 4, and with as good a chance at glory as anyone. And if Lachie Whitfield keeps getting 42 possessions like he did in this game, as well as teammate Tom Green who had 37, they might just go all the way.
8. Carlton supporters experience all the highs and lows of football in one night
Being a Carlton supporter in this modern era can definitely be detrimental to your mental health. After decades in the wilderness, Blues fans can now wear the jumper again knowing their club is no longer a laughingstock. That said, this season has ended rather poorly losing six of their final eight games and tumbling from second place all the way to ninth before narrowly scraping into eighth place to be part of September action.
The last five minutes had it all. The Blues hit the lead after trailing all day followed by a horrible miss by Brodie Kemp that would’ve iced the game. Then Mattaes Phillipou missed a similarly easy shot to take the lead to the great relief of the Blues faithful. And if that wasn’t enough to drive you round the twist, Carlton fans could only look on in horror as Jack Higgins was inexplicably left in space at a stoppage and was able to snap a typical Higgins-style goal for a two point lead with just 12 seconds remaining. Blues fans leaving the ground were apoplectic. What the hell had they just witnessed?
Then it was over to Perth to see if Freo could beat the Power to take Carlton’s place in the eight. Blues fans looked on powerlessly with the fate of their team in the hands of a Port during game being played on the other side of the country. And, in keeping with the tension of the entire day, it was a tight contest with Port Adelaide narrowly leading midway through the final term. Two goals in that term to Willie Rioli sealed the fate of the Dockers, and for season 20/4 at least, Carlton fans have a new patron saint in Saint William of Rioli to worship – unless the Blues have to play against Port during the finals of course.
Whatever the case, after Sunday night, most Carlton fans are all three years older and severely lacking in fingernails. What a ride! During the week some footy scribes who profess to have some sort of idea as to where the umpires votes would go had suggested that Patrick Cripps should have been leading coming into the final round. If that’s the case, the engraver may as well go to work, because it’s very difficult to believe that somebody else in this game could be deemed best on ground in this game despite being the skipper of the losing team. As has often been the case, his heroics in the middle almost single-handedly got them the win. It wasn’t to be, but his 30 touches and clearance work were amazing as always, and it might just be that he’ll be a dual Brownlow medallist soon. The Blues somehow survived and will be sweating on the return of key injured players to take on Brisbane. They could be cooked, but we’ve seen their best this year and it’s pretty good, but can they find it again?
The Saints were able to finish off the season extraordinarily well winning six of their last eight. Rowan Marshall was magnificent all year, and Jack Sinclair is playing good footy with a decent haircut for a change. Maybe the Saints might be hoping for a huge pre-season for Max King so that he can possibly play a big role in elevating the side into finals contention in 2025. They definitely showed late in the season they could match it with any side on any given day. They might just be a little bit more than nuisance value next year if they get off to a better start. I’m sure Ross is already in planning mode.
9. Fremantle fall six places in three weeks to miss finals
In what was one of the tightest seasons in memory, with very little separating finals contenders for a huge part of the year, every loss saw huge shifts on the AFL table. Just four short weeks ago, the Dockers were celebrating a good win against their cross-town rivals and sitting pretty in 3rd position on the ladder. Four games later, they’re out of the finals all the way down to tenth place. The sad thing is, they didn’t play terribly either. Three of their opponents are sitting in the Top 4 as we speak, and the average margin they lost by is just ten points.
When you look at it that way, it reveals just how unlucky they were. And they’re a young group on the rise, so I suspect they might be thereabouts this time next year. That remains to be seen.
The stage was set for an exciting end to the home and away season by a late Jack Higgins goal which paved the way for the Dockers to displace Carlton in the finals race. A win or even a draw against Port Adelaide would’ve got them into this year’s final series. When Patrick Voss slammed home his second goal in the eighth minute of the final term, the Dockers were just three points behind with their adoring fans doing their best to cheer them into September. Caleb Serong’s third behind for the game in the 11th minute trimmed it back to just two points. Willie Rioli silenced the parochial home fans in the 15th minute with his second goal, and then he kicked the sealer in the 23rd. From that point the Dockers were unable to trouble the scorers, and in the 30th minute, Jordan Sweet goaled and the final margin was 20 points.
Ollie Wines finished with 31 touches while Butters had 28. Horne-Francis is making a habit of kicking two goals from 20-odd possessions. Port Adelaide enter this finals campaign with a home final and the double-chance, having won their last six games. It was only six weeks ago after their loss to the Suns where they had slipped to ninth in the ladder with Ken Hinkley’s papers all but stamped. It’s been a great turnaround, but one that could all be undone with a failed finals campaign.
The Dockers can lick their wounds and take some comfort in the fact they able to take some scalps and challenge all comers. Brayshaw had 33 touches, but interestingly the Power chose Caleb Serong who they managed to keep to a season-low 19 touches. Voss was the only multiple goal scorer. At the heart of it, scoring was sometimes an issue for Fremantle. Losing Josh Treacy didn’t help, but if he can come back in next year and stay healthy, it could be just what they need with that two-pronged attack. It was a tough run home, and one that might be saying they’re not quite there yet.
10. Why do lopsided free kick counts at half time always seem to end up close to even at the end?
If this was something that just happened on occasion, I wouldn’t raise it. But it’s something I’m seeing time and again. The two instances that come to mind for my Blues are back in Round 11, when they played against the Suns and two minutes before 3/4 time, the free kick count was 15-2 the Suns’ way. By the end of the game, the count was 16-11 with Carlton being awarded seven free kicks in the final term after receiving just two for almost three quarters.
At Marvel on Sunday, the free kick count approaching half time was 12-1 in favour of the Saints. And yes, I may be a Blues fan, but I try to watch these games with both eyes, and my two eyes had occasion to question what they were seeing in terms of some of the decisions and non-decision, as well. I recall an instance early in the game when Blake Acres’ head had momentarily been separated from his body while attempting to mark. Play on was the call. Moments later a Saint was the beneficiary of a free kick that resulted in a goal for high contact which was a 50/50 call. And, of course, after half time the free kicks seemingly favoured Carlton, and by the end of the game, it had gone from 12-1 to 17-15.
Now look, I know what some of the readers are thinking. He’s a Carlton supporter. There’s bias in his views. I will accept that it is far more difficult to analyse umpiring when the team you follow is involved. But I’ll end this section by saying this: Having four umpires on the field has not improved the manner in which decisions are reached. In fact, sometimes it seems you’ve got four blokes out there that seem to have four different opinions on the same incident. And if the half-time numbers on free kicks favour one side heavily, you have to wonder if this affects how they approach the second half, because I’ve been witness to this phenomena of evening up the free kick numbers for well over forty years. Pretty soon somebody is going to tell me that the umpires are completely unaffected by the crowd noise as well…
