EIGHT THINGS WE LEARNT AFTER ROUND 3
1. Are Port Adelaide going to become the new Gold Coast?
I had the unfortunate displeasure of attending the Round One clash between Collingwood and Port Adelaide, and what I saw was as insipid a performance as you could see from the visitors who went down by an embarrassing 91 point margin. Maybe some pride was restored when they demolished the young Richmond team in Round Two, and some may have put their first effort down as just a bad night. Essendon were coming off a ten goal belting against their cross-town rivals and weren’t looking much like a finals contender at all. The Power led for much of the match before the Bombers sealed the deal with the last three goals of the game.
Port Adelaide look like two different teams at the moment. They seem very hard to beat at home while they have started this year looking like a win away from home will be rare. Even though it was only a 12-point loss, their last quarter was difficult to watch. It’s an early call I know, but with Gold Coast already chalking up two convincing wins on the road this season, Port’s indifferent form on the road may just make them the same as the Suns of previous years. Maybe a couple weeks in a row at home against the Saints and Hawks might make that disparity between home and away form more clear. It’s good to see Ollie Wines at the top of his game. He finished with 31 touches and was clearly Port’s best on the night. At the moment it’s hard to get a read on this group. I don’t see them playing finals at this stage, at least not until they can start winning away from home.
The Bombers can breathe a little easier for now. It was a solid win that probably wasn’t aided by their wayward kicking for goal, but it will give them some confidence moving forward. Nate Caddy is slowly working his way into the AFL level. He finished with two majors including a very important goal in the final quarter. That breakout game might not be too far away. Zach Merrett did his usual, topping the possession count with 34. Duursma seemed to relish playing against his former team with 29 touches.
The Bombers have the week off next week before Gather Round where they’ll be taking on the winless Demons. Despite this win, Essendon still don’t look like they will have much of a say in September, but a win against Melbourne might trigger some belief. I daresay the Demons aren’t exactly flying either after two consecutive ten goal maulings. A lot can happen between now and the finals, but I am beginning to see who I believe will find a place in the eight, and I’m fairly confident in saying neither of them look likely.
2. Carlton should petition the AFL to reduce games to two quarters
Carlton certainly don’t have problems starting games. As for finishing games, well that’s another story. In every game so far this season, they have lead at half time. In Round One, midway through the second quarter, they were 41 points ahead before they let the Tigers back in conceding the last three goals of the term. And we all know what happened after that. It would also appear that the wounds from that shemozzle have not healed as they seem to find new and wonderful ways to cough up the football and surrender the four points weekly.
If we ran a ladder based on first half performances, Carlton would be undefeated with a percentage of 153.4, putting them in the Top 4. With their bottom 4 status now confirmed, their second half performances would have them sitting last with a winless percentage of just 42.9.
It’s fair to say that Voss’s half time addresses aren’t having the desired result. All the talk in the media is about their bad kicking while “lack of composure” seems to be the phrase of the week. It would’ve been interesting what would’ve been said if the result went the other way. Brodie Kemp booting a career-high five goals was one bright light for the Blues, while Charlie’s three first half goals would’ve excited fans. Sadly, Charlie’s game reflected his team’s as he was barely sighted in the second half.
The Blues take on their arch-rivals in Collingwood this coming Thursday night. It could end up being one of those games where the ladder positions never seem to matter and anything becomes possible like the Carlton-Collingwood epics in the past. Well, if you’re a betting man, you’d have Carlton leading at the main break.
The Bulldogs were a little slow out of the blocks and are a little lucky they didn’t pay the ultimate price. However, despite not kicking their first goal until well into the second quarter, it was clear that by half time they had settled into the game and were getting on top in many areas. The duel between Darcy and Weitering was pivotal, with the Carlton defender dominating the young star forward up to half time. The pivotal moment came at the four minute mark of the third term when the umpire picked out a dubious free kick to Darcy for a hold well off the ball that de Koning had marked which resulted in his first goal and dragged the margin back to within two goals. The Blues fought hard to hold on from there.
After leading for 101 minutes, the Bulldogs took the lead after Sam Darcy got his second 12 minutes into the term. A short time later, Kemp booted his fifth to give the Blues back the lead, but after seven minutes of no scoring, Aaron Naughton marked and goaled to give the Dogs the lead, and just two minutes later James O’Donnell broke the hearts of the Carlton faithful with the sealer.
It was a good win by a side that clearly had more run than their opponents after half time regardless of what Michael Voss might say, and even though everybody knows how good Tom Liberatore is, at 32 years of age, he is still super quick by hand and foot and destroyed Carlton’s midfield after half time. He finished with 30 touches and a goal in a best on ground performance, and Sam Davidson finished with 31 touches in an impressive display. The Doggies head to Perth to take on the Dockers next round. It’ll be tough, but a win there will really be a dream start especially considering their skipper is still out with injury.
3. It looks like Dimma will break the drought
It was only last year that the Suns were beating all comers at home, but could not buy a win against even the bottom teams away from home. Their opening game against the Eagles in Perth was emphatic, but to then wipe the Demons off the MCG with a 58 point belting suggests this team may have finally clicked and the talent on their list is now finally producing something that aligns with their capabilities.
Ben King has kicked ten goals from their two games and may soon have a stranglehold on the Coleman if this form continues. Rowell and Anderson amassed 73 disposals between them. These two best buddies are the engine room of this team and if they stay fit and keep up this form, they will terrorise most midfields. I also believe Dimma’s call to appoint Noah Anderson as captain was a stroke of genius. It’s taken just over a year, but I think you’ll soon start to realise what a truly great coach Damien Hardwick is.
Most of us knew this list was loaded with talent, and most of us were confused by their inability to play to their potential. \The coach seems to have found the formula for success while at Richmond, and now set with a new challenge, it is beginning to look like the Suns will be in the mix to finally play beyond August. There’s a long way to go of course, but they are in red hot form. The Crows are also in top form and looking finals bound as well, so it sets up next week’s clash at People First Stadium on Sunday as a must watch. WOW! Who would’ve thought a Suns v Crows game would ever be deemed as a must watch game?
Crazy right?
It’s a tale of lament for the Demons so far this year. Three losses to open up the season wouldn’t have been on their radar considering they had North Melbourne and the Suns away from Queensland, yet here we are. The Suns served them up with an eerily similar scoreline to their big defeat against North Melbourne a week ago. Their forward line woes continue with avenues to goal seeming to be like swimming across a crocodile infested river in the Northern Territory. The backline is being overrun as well and Jake Lever is out with injury which isn’t helping their cause.
Melbourne’s season is slipping away and Simon Goodwin might feel as though he’s on borrowed time for now. The Demons simply have to turn this around, but with next week’s game against the Cats in Geelong, a 0-4 start looks likely. There’s a lot of heat on Carlton right now, but perhaps they should be looking at Melbourne, who are arguably in worse shape than the Blues. I guess at least Melbourne won the flag just 4 years ago. Maybe that’s why?
4. The Tigers could only look on after half time
We knew Richmond were going to do it tough this year. It’s a full rebuild after all. The unexpected win in Round One merely painted over some enormous cracks in their list. Since then, however, we’ve now seen where they’re truly at, and while we can see the young talent on their list will almost certainly develop into a formidable outfit, for now we have to witness a year of pain where wins will be few and far between.
Midway through the second term, the Tigers were going with their opponents and actually had the lead, but from that point on it was a 16 goal to three goal annihilation. Seth Campbell continued his bright start to the year finishing with three goals, while Short battled hard for his 26 touches and Hopper had 25. Early on, Taranto looked like he was in for a big game with his work in the middle being a feature, but like his teammates he faded as the game wore on. Tom Lynch managed just the one goal from just seven touches. He’s playing like a guy who has missed a lot of football and is getting the ball delivered to him with the finesse of a three year old throwing a tantrum at the supermarket. They play the Lions at home next week. The best they can hope for will be an improvement on their last two games.
The Saints had a little trouble shaking off those pesky Tigers in the first half, but once they got their game going, things came very easily. They’ll be pleased to be 2-1, especially after their poor showing against Adelaide back in Round One, although it looks like most sides might be on the wrong end of a hiding against the Crows in Adelaide.
Jack Sinclair had 40 possessions and would be shortening his odds for the Brownlow after a game like this. In his third game as a Saint, Jack Macrae looks like he’s loving life in the red white and black. He collected over 30 possessions for the third straight week and is proving to be a handy pickup. The Saints are now 2-1 which is a better position that many thought they’d be in. Next week they head over to Adelaide to take on the Power. We’ll find out a bit more about both teams after that game. You’d expect Port Adelaide to utilise the home ground advantage for the win, but if St Kilda can somehow take the points, suddenly the horror season some predicted might be proven wrong. The Saints are certainly not to be taken lightly.
5. It’s even harder to beat the Hawks in Tassie now
It was always fairly tricky to head down to Tasmania for a game against the Hawks and come home with the four points. Now Hawthorn is actually a strong team, so it might be even harder than ever.
The Giants took advantage of the breeze in the first term and kicked the opening five goals of the match. In the second term they could only look on as the Hawks, aided by the gale blowing their way, piled on six unanswered goals to take the lead by half time. The game was probably won in the third term when the Hawks kicked four goals into the breeze to just two goals, but it’s fair to say the wind had died down by this stage, because in the final term the Giants scored the only two goals of the term to eventually go down by two goals. Cam McKenzie continues to impress finishing with 30 possessions while Maginness had 25. Jack Gunston’s extended career looks to be adding value to the Hawks. He finished with 2.3 in tricky conditions and has clearly lost none of his craft at 33 years of age.
Hawthorn get a week off to rejuvenate and enjoy their 4-0 start to the year. I’m pretty sure that they’ll be more than comfortable with what they’ve managed to do so far in 2025.
The Giants had their chances but probably were more outplayed by the location than the Hawks. This is one of just a few true home ground advantages left in the AFL, so if you get within two goals, you’re not far off. The Giants have started pretty well this season, and they also have a distinct advantage when playing at Engie Stadium.
Jesse Hogan finished with four goals in a solid performance and Lachie Whitfield was the top possession getter yet again with 34. Tom Green is in red hot form as well with 30 touches. There’s a lot to like about the Giants and they have every chance of atoning for their straight sets exit in last year’s disappointing finals series. To think they were seven goals up against the Lions during the third term in last year’s semi final blows the mind, If they won that and made it to the big dance against the hapless Swans, there’s every chance they would now have their maiden premiership. I’m sure that has been on their minds throughout the summer. The Giants host West Coast at Engie Stadium next week in what should be their third win for the year.
6. Brisbane might need to address their slow starts
For the second week in a row, and also at home, the Lions were slow out of the blocks and found themselves five goals down just before half time before finally settling into the game and eventually reeling the Cats in with a meritorious nine point win. The Brisbane Lions are sitting pretty, being undefeated in their title defence year, but all three games could’ve easily gone the other way. Superstar youngster Will Ashcroft had the most possessions on the ground finishing with 33 touches as well as a goal. Hugh McCluggage had 30 and Lachie Neale was held to just 20.
The Lions had ten individual goal scorers in the win, but I’m sure they’ll want to work on their tardy starts in games. They face the Tigers at the MCG next round and will be hot favourites going into that one. Hopefully they show up at the first bounce.
The Cats will be reeling after that loss. The lead got out to as much as 32 points before the Lions scored a vital goal before the half time break to go in a more manageable 26 points in arrears. By three quarter time, the Lions had their noses in front piling on four goals against the Cats, who didn’t trouble the scorers at all. Geelong now finds themselves 1-2 after their disappointing loss to the Saints in Round Two, and will be hoping that their game against the Demons next week at GMHBA Stadium goes as expected.
The only multiple goal-scorer on the ground was Paddy Dangerfield, who finished with two. Jeremy Cameron has had a quiet fortnight with just the two goals from his last two outings. He’ll be wanting to improve on that this week. Max Holmes is well on his way to becoming their best midfielder. He finished with 29 touches in a very strong performance. Based on form, though, the Demons look to be in a world of pain and the Cats should be 2-2 this time next week.
7. Adelaide have so many scoring options
Adelaide’s forward line looks about as scary as any at this early stage of the year. They are number one in scoring by a long way this year averaging 137 points per match. Their three talls up forward all hit the scoreboard with Tex leading the way in a welcome return to form kicking four. Thilthorpe booted three and Fogarty slotted two.
And if these guys don’t fire, then Ben Keays will pop up and kick a few. He finished with 2 as well.
They are providing the forwards great supply, with Laird (33 touches running off half-back) and Rankine (30 touches) leading the way. Izak Rankine seems to be relishing his role on the ball and is repaying the club’s faith in him with aplomb. Things are pretty rosy at the Crows. North Melbourne played well but still went down by 36 points against a team who were just too good on the day. And I have a feeling we might be saying that a few times this season. As I said earlier, their biggest challenge is coming this Sunday when they head off to Queensland to take on the rampant Suns who are boasting an average score of 128 themselves in their two games this year. It could be a high scoring affair based on what we’ve seen. The winner of that game will really be making a statement, and if Adelaide could pull off a win up there, the rest of the competition will be on alert when it’s their turn to face the Crows.
North are playing at a level that is a vast improvement on recent seasons, and it’s been a really tough period for the club. Nick Larkey booted four goals and is playing consistent footy every week. Caleb Daniel topped the possession count for the second week in a row and has settled into his new home very quickly. Jy Simpkin was also outstanding with 31.
Their list boasts a number of players now coming into their mid-20s that are maturing and finding their best form. This team will trouble a few sides this year and are no longer the easybeats they once were. Adding a little bit of experience with Parker and Daniel seems to have worked well, so kudos to list management for identifying a need and getting players that could do the job. And coming off a huge game against Max Gawn, Tristan Xerri had a tough opponent in Riley O’Brien but honours were fairly even in that contest. Xerri has come of age and will be an important cog in the Kangaroos machine for years to come one suspects.
North Melbourne hosts the Swans at Marvel Stadium in a game that might be a little more interesting than many would’ve thought coming into the season. The Swans will do well to not assume a victory, and I’m sure that Luke Parker would love nothing more than a win against his old club.
8. The Derby didn’t rate well outside of Western Australia
I can tell all my W.A. buddies that I tried to watch this game and stay interested, but I just couldn’t. Not only were they 17th and 18th coming into the game, but most of us knew the result long before the first bounce, and it went the way we thought, and by around midway through the third quarter, the result was already decided.
The Dockers have finally opened their account for season 2025 while the Eagles have been relegated to last place yet again. Jye Amiss finished with four and Josh Tracey booted three. This pairing could be the mainstays of their forward setup for a decade if all goes well. Serong and Brayshaw are also another pairing now in their fourth or fifth year together and they dominated the midfield battle with 35 & 29 touches respectively.
Freo have a huge clash against the Bulldogs at home next week. A win there will kick start their 2025 campaign while a loss could see them out of the race. There were high hopes going into this season. The narrow loss to the Swans really hurt. This coming week is huge.
West Coast are showing some signs of improvement, but they’re still a fair way off the pace. And while Harley Reid looks like a star in the making, he seems to have come out this year with an overdose of angry pills before each game. That would work well if he was getting 30 touches a week, but his last two outings have produced just 15 touches each so it may serve the kid to try some humility and just get the ball and deal with his anger that way. That’s just my two cents worth. I’m sure others will disagree.
Ryan Maric has started the year well. He had 28 touches in a solid performance and is enjoying AFL after being plucked from obscurity in the mid-season draft. The Eagles didn’t have too many winners on the ground with only a handful of players getting 20 or more touches.
The 38 point loss was about where they’re at, and we’re all wondering where their first win will come from. It’s highly unlikely that the Giants will let that happen this week. But in Gather Round, they have the opportunity against the struggling Carlton who are ripe for the picking. And the ramifications of a win there in terms of Michael Voss’ future at Carlton would be enormous.
