The Buck Stops Here.
Nathan Buckley has gone through his five biggest takeaways from the weekend of footy.
He has touched on Charlie Curnow, Mark Blicavs, Charlie Dixon, Sydney and Brayden Maynard.
Blues star Curnow built for finals
“The Blues fans are going to love this … Charlie Curnow – built for finals – he’s made for September.
“I’m sure we’re all looking forward to seeing how he goes.
“Four games in two years. No one has any expectations of this kid when he comes in. He has a quiet game in Round 1. Then he builds and builds and builds. Leading the Coleman and has shown his mercurial nature. He’s either all up or off.
“He had a really quiet start to the game and then he just went bang. I reckon he felt the energy of the crowd and if he starts tapping into that atmosphere, the energy and his capacity to draw that … in five minutes he can take a game away from you.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing what happens.”
Garry Lyon added: “That is why they’re a sneaky, sneaky chance to do something a little bit silly this year.”
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Blicavs’ importance to Geelong
“I reckon he (Mark Blicavs) would be nearly Chris Scott’s favourite guy because with him in the side there’s plenty of other things that he can do, including Jeremy Cameron, who we saw go into the guts.
“I think Chris Scott treats his Geelong players more like men than most coaches.
“Blicavs, he’s come in as a long or middle-distance runner, he’s the best runner in the competition by a mile and now he’s proved that he can play as a key back, he plays off a wing, he plays in the ruck, he can play as a forward if need be.
“He gets up and down the ground. They start him on the wing, and they ruck him, and it means they can spit (Patrick) Dangerfield forward from there, someone rolls up and plays on the wing.
“Two weeks ago, against West Coast, Blicavs rucks off the wing, (Zach) Tuohy goes down and plays as a seventh and they just change the entire game. West Coast don’t know where the extra player is. Geelong takes 35 uncontested marks and just control the game and put it to sleep.”
Dixon’s presence vital to Power’s structure
“Charlie Dixon, since he’s been back, Port have gone 3-1 but I reckon he has unlocked most of what makes Port Adelaide great.
“In four games he’s taken 10 marks. He’s a key forward, second ruck … but he’s only taken 10 marks and he’s kicked six goals across four games.
“But the role that he plays has released (Jeremy) Finlayson and Todd Marshall, who’s come to the fore even further.
“Offensively for Port Adelaide, they looked bereft of any idea of where they were going and what they were doing in the first five weeks when they went 0-5, and they missed this bloke.
“The confidence that it gives the ball users off half-back that you know that if the sh-- hits the fan, you’ve got that long down the line target to go to and he just gives you confidence to build around.
“He doesn’t have to be best on ground, he doesn’t need to be in your best six, seven or eight players on the field, but he gives them the structure they’ve built off and that’s why we’re seeing Port Adelaide play better footy.”
Swans overcome COVID challenges
Buckley: “The COVID challenges of the Swans, great teams find a way to handle situations that are challenging and (John) Longmire mentioned that after the game.”
Longmire post-match: “Tonight, we had the footy manager as the runner, we had the CEO as the bench coach, Josh Kennedy sitting in the box as the stoppage coach.
“We had to improvise tonight. We’ve had to do that a fair bit over the last couple of years and tonight was another example of it.
“To everyone’s credit, they did it really well.”
Buckley: “They were sharp, and they were up and about.
“I wanted to run that one just to try and put it into perspective. If it was Richmond, you’ve got Brendon Gale as bench coach and Neil Balme’s doing the running.”
Maynard part of Collingwood’s DNA
“The last one is the biggest love of all for me.
“Brayden Maynard played his 150th game on the weekend and I reckon he always goes under the radar, but I love the bloke.
“That is exactly the way to reference him – part of the DNA – he is uncomplicated, he’s hungry, he’s team oriented, he’s honest and you’d love to build a team or a footballer in his image.
“He’s putting together a really solid career and the way he goes about it is brilliant to watch.”