You know the drill by now – who were the heroes and zeros from Round Five?
Let’s go!
THE WINNERS
PATRICK DANGERFIELD
He was the spark that lit the inferno for the Cats, once again.
Playing up forward, Danger crashed packs and won the tough footy, as he powered his team past the hometown Crows.
His four goals were fantastic, but I loved his contested work – he threw himself at contest in a fashion that puts some of the key forwards in the competition to shame, and after five rounds, it would not surprise me at all if Danger was placed pretty highly in the Brownlow.
NICK DAICOS
Not many players get the better of James Jordon when he is allocated a tagging role, but the young star of the Collingwood Football Club managed it, and in doing so, dispelled any thought that he cannot shake a tag.
Daicos had 34 touches to lead all players, as the Pies despatched the Swans on Friday night. His nine clearances and nine tackles added to an excellent night for the young champ.
I’m already looking forward to the rematch – Jordon is not the sort to take a beating like that lightly.
JOHN NOBLE
Whilst the acquisition of Daniel Rioli probably grabbed the headlines, it has been the run and carry from John Noble that has been the standout for the Suns off half-back this season.
Noble flies under the radar. He did it at Collingwood, and he is doing it at the Suns, as well. At 24 touches per game, he is holding up his end of the bargain, and the Suns are much better off for having him as part of their best-22.
GEORGE HEWETT
Up until this week, the Bues have been woeful, but admit their horrible losses, George Hewett has been working his arse off.
A true two-way mid, he would be close to leading the Blues’ Best and Fairest at this point, and with a career-high 39 touches against West Coast, he made sure the Blues were not going to remain winless in 2025
ERIC HIPWOOD
Well, he made a real dick of me.
At halftime, I was chatting away with some people, and made the comment that Hipwood was just four centimetres smaller than Sam Darcy, but played like he was 40cm smaller.
And then, as though someone showed Eric the comment, he came out and went whack! He kicked five goals in the second half, after being restricted to just one touch for the first two quarters.
It was a stark reminder of what Hipwood can be, and with his team sitting at 5-0, he has a real chance to stamp his authority on the 2025 season.
THE NORWOOD OVAL FANS
Forget the weird-shaped ground and the chardonnay set of Norwood… they got an absolute treat as the the Lions and Dogs trotted out Sam Darcy versus Harris Andrews in a big one-on-one tussle for their enjoyment.
It is not often you get a matchup like this, anymore, but in the first half, we saw both of these guys trade wins, as the kid took it up to the Lions’ captain, and rock him back on his heels.
Sadly, the Dogs’ poor second half, combined with cramp for Darcy, reduced the clash to a sideshow after halftime, but that first half was something special. Absolutely loved it.
NATE CADDY
A strange choice?
Allow me to explain.
Sometimes, it is not about how well you play, or if you dominate – it is about the message you send. At just 19, Caddy got to send a message after Steven May decked him in a marking contest.
With the wind taken out of him, many would have stayed down in the same position.
Not Caddy.
He willed himself back into the fray and in the next contest, he was there to present again, and this time, he won it. We’re not talking Dermott Brereton in the 89 Grand Final stuff… not yet, but it was a great indication of what this young bloke is made of, and I loved seeing him contest, take the hit, get up, and go again.
That’s character. The Bombers have a gem, here.
JOSH TREACY
My favourite forward to watch, by a long way.
Why?
Because there is just no bullshit about Josh Treacy. He contests hard, he kicks well, he doesn’t mind the tough stuff at all… he plays footy the way it used to be played – a ball player who will crash packs and take no prisoners when his time comes.
He kicked a career-high six goals, easily out-pointing the Tiger defenders, in a ripping display of power forward play, and he now sits as equal leader in the race for the Coleman.
Now, he just needs his partner in crime to come to the party.
LACHIE ASH
If the left one don’t get ya, baby… the right one will!
The combination of Lachie x 2 at GWS is tearing games open. This week, it was Lachie Ash racking up the big numbers, picking up 33 touches and eight rebounds for the Giants, as they pulled away from the Saints.
Right now, he is possibly the best running half-back in the caper, with his teammate one of the contenders to that throne.
NASIAH WANGANEEN-MILERA
Ka-ching!
Every week I watch this guy play, and every week, I see St Kilda mentally revising their offer to him.
Running off half-back, The Big Wang kicked three goals and looked every bit the superstar many believe he’ll be. At just 22 (and he does not turn 23 until next year), the ceiling of this bloke is enormously high.
Ka-ching, indeed.
CONNOR IDUN
Second one of the Giants, and completely justified, given the way he handled business against Jack Higgins when the game was there to be won.
Higgins has been in All-Australian form, and loomed as a real danger for the Giants. Idun put paid to that danger, with another masterful defensive effort.
Higgins managed two last-quarter snags to take the shine off Idun’s blanket job, but when the game was there to be won, Higgins was nowhere to be seen. Idun kept him to just four touches through the first three quarters, killing any chance Jack had of having a say in this one.
CONNOR ROZEE
I’ve been harsh on Rozee, and I am well aware of it. So, when I see him adopt a new/old role, and make good on it, I have to be the first to put my hand up and say well done to him.
Running off half-back, Rozee dominated through the first three quarters, with his precise kicking combing with the completely lax accountability from the Hawthorn forwards, allowing him to run forward and slot two goals.
Does he even go back into the midfield? With Horne-Francis, Butters, Drew, and Wines in there, he probably doesn’t have to, and by playing Rozee at half-back, Port may have found their Dan Houston replacement. Which leads me to…
KEN HINKLEY
He embraced the occasion, used it to channel the anger of his charges, and in the first quarter, his boys delivered a knock-out blow to the Hawks.
Watching the Power using the emotion of the game to drive their play, I feel like Hinkley pushed the right buttons, whilst Sam Mitchell did the opposite, trying to treat this like just another game.
It wasn’t.
It was a different beast, entirely, and deserved to be treated as such.
Hinkley read the room. Mitchell did not.
He also played a great hand in sending Sam Powell-Pepper to James Sicily. The Hawthorn captain loves zoning off, but SPP hunts the footy, and if you sag off him, he will hurt you.
Sic sagged off. Powell-Pepper hurt the Hawks.
It all came together for Ken – a huge win on a huge occasion.
THE LOSERS
REILLY O’BRIEN
A horror night for the big fella.
Looked slower than usual, and that’s saying something. Fumbled, bumbled, and stumbled his way around Adelaide Oval, and struggled to do anything that was not hit-out related.
JOEL AMARTEY
Am I picking on the bloke that got injured and sat out the second half?
Yep… because his first half was complete balls!
Amartey is one of the building blocks for Sydney’s forward line, but he is far too easily beaten by a good defender, and he had a good one on him in the first half of this one – Darcy Moore gave him a nice old touch up before Amartey limped to the bench with a hamstring injury.
WEST COAST’S CONTESTED FOOTY
In one game, Ben Cunnington once had over 30 contested possessions.
For this entire contest, the whole West Coast team managed just 77.
The Blues feasted on their weakness in tight, extracting the footy with ease, and the Eagles just… watched.
In fairness, they were +11 in tackles on the game but that’s probably because they hardly had the footy, registering a 140 disposal deficit against the Blues. A pathetic showing.
LACHIE BRAMBLE
The Dogs were in it up to their eyeballs when Lachie Bramble looked for options from full back in the last quarter.
He decided on a short pass. A thirty metre stab to a stationary teammate
It was a poor decision
Zac Bailey saw it coming, swooped in to intercept, and then a chain of possession saw Cam Rayner slot the sealer. As a defender, there are times it takes one poor disposal to bring everything undone. This week, Lachie Bramble had that moment.
JACOB VAN ROOYEN
Someone show this bloke a tape of what Josh Treacy is doing at Freo.
Hell, someone show him a tape of what Logan Morris is doing for Brisbane.
I’ve seen what JvR is capable of, but it appears to be little more than a memory, as he struggles to impact games in 2025. As a key forward, he needs to do the basics – crash packs, follow up, and do NOT allow an opponent to intercept.
Right now, he is not doing much of any of them.
TOM LYNCH
As I watched the Tigers game, Mrs Mongrel walked past, paused as Tom Lynch was on the screen and uttered “he looks like a thumb”.
She’s vicious.
Anyway, Tom wasn’t so vicious, and before he was subbed out in the second half, struggled to have any influence on the game. He’s trying, I’ll give him that. However, against a solid back six like Freo possesses, he was up against it, and it showed.
MITCH OWENS
His stats don’t look terrible, do they?
12 touches for the game is fine for a mid-sized forward… however, Mitch picked up seven of those disposals in what was essentially garbage time.
He was a non-factor in a game where the Saints desperately needed someone to step up and provide Cooper Sharman with support. I know it is asking a lot of a young bloke, but the Saints needed one more reliable player in the forward half, with Jack Higgins blanketed, and Mitch was unable to be that player.
MABIOR CHOL, NICK WATSON, JACK GINNIVAN
The great celebrators had nothing to celebrate in this one, collectively trounced by the Port defence.
Chol, in particular, was monstered by Aliir Aliir, whilst Watson seemed to be more intent with falling to the turf than actually winning the footy.
As for Ginnivan, it might be just me, but he looks like a player who could do with a run in the VFL, at the moment. I am not sure what his mandate is at Hawthorn, but he is offering very little of anything of value to the best-22.
As always, massive thanks to those who support this work. You can see the amount of care that goes into it. I love footy, I love writing about it, and I hope you enjoy reading it. Without you, this whole thing falls over. Sincerely… thank you – HB
Like this content? You could buy me a coffee – I do like coffee, but there is no guarantee I won’t use it to buy a doughnut… I like them more. And I am not brought to you by Sportsbet or Ladbrokes… or Bet365, or any of them.
