Adelaide know how to beat the big guns
You can talk about structure and gameplans all you want but generally a game of football boils down to this: the team that wins usually has most of its better players playing somewhere near their best. A case in point was Adelaide’s important win over Richmond on Friday night. Both of these teams boast players so well-known they’re identified by nickname only – like Tex, Danger, Cotch and Dusty – but neither side bats as deeply as Hawthorn or Sydney. With the Crows’ finals hopes on the line, they comfortably won the battle of the big guns. Patrick Dangerfield (29 possessions, eight clearances and a goal) and Rory Sloane (27 possessions, 15 contested) were industrious in the middle, spoon-fed the ball for four quarters by Sam Jacobs (38 hitouts, 14 possessions). Taylor Walker’s wayward 2.5 was one of the reasons behind the Crows’ lopsided total of 11.22 but the captain looked threatening all night.
As for the Tigers’ big names, with Brett Deledio on the sidelines, only Dustin Martin played anywhere near his capability. Trent Cotchin had 17 touches but was barely sighted, Jack Riewoldt couldn’t manage a single mark and Alex Rance had a stinker marred by giving away free kicks and dropping marks.
For all their monumental steps forward this season, Richmond still haven’t learned how to win when their stars don’t fire a shot, while the Crows look capable of beating most teams when their A-graders fire simultaneously. On a night where one side was up for the fight and the other wasn’t, the match was more fizzer than blockbuster.
Blitzkrieg Dogs
How good was the Western Bulldogs’ second quarter on Saturday afternoon? After a shaky start in which they conceded the first three goals of the game to a last-chance-saloon Port Adelaide, the Dogs lit up the second term in one of the most compelling quarters seen all season. Consider this: in just half an hour of football the Dogs kicked 7.5 to 0.2 in the process of racking up 101 effective possessions to 36. It was spectacular football with equal measures of skill and grit, and the standing ovation from the home crowd at the main break was entirely deserved.
The Bulldogs did to Port Adelaide what Port Adelaide had specialised in doing to teams for the past two years, putting them to the sword with a ruthlessness that the Power has only shown in glimpses this season. When they’re in the type of irresistible form they discovered in that quarter, the Bulldogs are almost impossible to quell. There’s no great secret to what new coach Luke Beveridge has brought to the club – he has simply instilled some confidence and some freedom. At least a handful of Bulldogs – such as Easton Wood, Liam Picken, Jake Stringer, Luke Dahlhaus and Mitch Wallis – are having career-best years and their versatile forward line has a dangerous mix of talls and smalls without overreliance on one player.
With reigning best and fairest Tom Liberatore set to rejoin the midfield in 2016, it’s fair to assume the Bulldogs may be even better next year.
Port Adelaide fell four goals short of a prelim appearance in their breakout 2013 season, and on form the Bulldogs could easily play just as deep into September. But more importantly, this doesn’t feel like a flash in a pan season in which they’ve caught the competition off-guard. What the Bulldogs are building is exciting, but it also feels sustainable.
200 of the best for Joel Selwood
Chris Scott couldn’t have scripted Saturday night any better if he tried. The Cats turned a 13-point half-time deficit into a comfortable 32-point victory over the Swans to win their fourth on the trot and sneak back into the top eight, the hometown fans set the standard by treating Adam Goodes with respect and Joel Selwood was chaired off after a best-on-ground performance in his 200th game. The skipper has only recently turned 27 but has a CV the envy of any footballer, highlighted by three flags, five All-Australian selections (two as captain) and three best and fairests. Cats fans thank their lucky stars every day that he slid to No7 in the 2006 draft.
Selwood’s stats on Saturday night were impressive (35 touches, 20 contested, eight clearances) but they don’t do justice to just how much influence he had. When the Swans had the ascendency before half time, it was Selwood who was burrowing in at stoppages as if his life depended on it to stop the margin blowing out. And when the Cats broke the game open in the last, it was the captain who delivered two spearing passes onto the chest of Tom Hawkins who converted both shots to give Geelong a match-winning lead. The only thing missing was the sight of Selwood bloodied and bandaged, as he has finished so many of his 200 games.
With excellent support provided by the likes of Josh Caddy, Steven Motlop, Mitch Duncan and Mark Blicavs, Selwood was far from the one-man midfield he was labeled early in the season. The Cats are coming good at the right time, and if they make the finals they’ll fancy their chances in a likely match-up with the Bulldogs or Tigers.
A Hawthorn v West Coast qualifying final will be a cracker
Hawthorn deservedly took the premiership points in the end, but there were plenty of positives for both sides in Saturday night’s top-four encounter between the Hawks and Eagles. There are short odds that these two teams will meet in a qualifying final in a month’s time, and if this weekend was a preview what we can expect, we’re in for a cracker. Structurally, there are some similarities. The Hawks and Eagles have arguably the two deepest forward lines in the competition (Jarryd Roughead, Jack Gunston, Luke Breust and Cyril Rioli v Josh Kennedy, Jack Darling, Mark LeCras and Jamie Cripps), excellent midfields and strong key position players at both ends.
Predictably, the game was close all night, the Eagles holding a two to three goal lead for long periods but the Hawks (led by the silky Shaun Burgoyne late) were just that little bit better in crunch time.
Both teams would have left Subiaco believing they can beat the other when the stakes are even higher.
Missing personnel, too, may play a role in a September rematch. Hawthorn will regain Brian Lake, a late out on Saturday night, who would have stood one of Kennedy or Darling (who kicked a combined six goals). West Coast withdrew Nic Naitanui on Friday following the tragic passing of his mother, and lost Callum Sinclair pre-match. The first-choice ruck combination will be welcomed back with open arms.
With their come-from-behind win, the Hawks edged closer to a top two finish which would force a trip east for the Eagles first up. If Saturday night was any indication, it will be a compelling encounter regardless of where it’s played.
Fremantle is flying under the radar
By moving 10 premiership points clear of West Coast with just four games to play, Fremantle all but guaranteed their first minor premiership with a comfortable win over the Saints on Sunday evening. Is it possible that a team two-and-a-half games clear of the pack at this point of the season is flying under the radar? With all the hype around the Hawks’ potential three-peat, West Coast’s emergence and the Tigers and Bulldogs’ late charge for top four, it’s easy to forget that the Dockers have set the pace all season.
Fremantle had spluttered for a while but seemed to remain their mojo with that last-gasp win over Richmond a couple of weeks ago, and the first half against St Kilda saw the Dockers at their best. It was 12 goals to two at the main break, with Fremantle’s midfield dominant and their forwards appearing rejuvenated. Rookie Alex Pearce is keeping Matt Taberner out of the team at the moment, and his sure hands and turn of speed add a new element to the forward line. Alex Silvagni and Zac Dawson (the latter suspended this week) have returned to bolster the already-stingy backline, and Aaron Sandilands put on a clinic in the middle. The Dockers finished with six multiple goalkickers (remarkably, Michael Walters was held goalless) and now have the luxury of being able to rest key players in the run to September. There’s a pretty handy type named Nat Fyfe waiting to return to the side, too.
The Dockers have put themselves in a fantastic position to challenge, and will be extremely hard to beat at home. Can they beat the best at the MCG on grand final day? Who knows, but based on the 19 rounds to date, they certainly deserve a chance to find out.
