Kane Cornes has shared his eight observations from the first round of the 2023 AFL season.
The Port Adelaide great dissected the opening nine games on SEN’s Sportsday, see his thoughts below.
If you sign the richest deal in club history, Izak Rankine, you can’t be kicking 2.5
“Some would say that’s harsh… it’s not harsh. He should have buried that game by half-time, Adelaide dominated that game of football, they coughed up a gold-clad opportunity to get a really significant win on the road,” Cornes began.
“That’s the pressure that comes with it for Izak Rankine… if you put your hand up for the richest deal the Adelaide Crows have ever signed.”
We wrote Steven Coniglio off too soon
“I’m included in this as well, by the way… a new coach comes in and it's not dissimilar to what Chris Scott did last year, he says, 'I’m going to focus on what my players can do, not what they can't do'.
“Some of his numbers, he’s had 32 touches, 810 metres gained, 14 score involvements, eight clearances, nine inside 50s and a goal. Where did that come from?”
Cam Rayner is wasted at half-back
“Everyone looks for that Dustin Martin, Jordan De Goey, Jake Stringer when he’s going, Tom Papley moved in there (type of player). Everyone wants that powerful centre-forward player.
“Brisbane has got one. He kicked four (goals) at Marvel Stadium in Round 20 last year and exploded and you say, ‘okay, off the back of the knee injury, fourth or fifth year, 24 years of age, he can be that for us’.
“So what does Chris Fagan do? He puts him to half-back. He’s wasted there.”
We’ve made the advantage rule the most difficult to adjudicate
“I don’t get the confusion here. If a free kick is paid and your team elects to take the advantage, that’s it, that is done. But I’m seeing the umpire call it back far too often.
“There was one on Sunday, there’s a free kick, (Nat) Fyfe picks the ball up and runs into the open goal, he’s taken the advantage.
“So why is the ball coming back?
“The advantage rule is now on the umpires, not on the players. It should be the reverse of that. If you take it, you take it.”
Fremantle are the New York Jets
“What do I mean? Well, the New York Jets have got a great defence, they’ve got no quarterback.
“Look at Fremantle’s back six. (Alex) Pearce, (Luke) Ryan, (Brennan) Cox, all three extraordinary key position players. They’ve got everything these three.
“(Hayden) Young, (Heath) Chapman and (Nathan) Wilson… it’s the best back six in the game, maybe (barring) Melbourne, but for depth I can’t find a better back six in the game.
“Yet they’ve got no quarterback, they cannot move the ball, their forward line is a mess…”
Toby Greene is already the second best captain in the AFL
“They laid two tackles in the first quarter, the Giants. Two tackles in Adam Kingsley’s first game. There’s a moment in the second quarter where Toby Greene says, 'stuff this, I’ve had enough'. It’s what Luke Hodge would have done, he inserted himself, came up to the stoppage, nailed Rory Sloane in a really aggressive tackle, then he won a contested ground ball… and inserted himself on the game.
“He had eight shots on goal… 4.4, I just think he’s a terrific leader.”
Eric Hipwood’s seven-year deal is in the contract hall of 'shame'
“Seven years for Hipwood who could manage four touches, seven years they gave him.
“On what evidence? Four years wouldn’t have been enough? I'm not critical of the player, I’m critical of the club. Hipwood and his management, congratulations, hats off, you’ve pulled the wool over their eyes.
“I’m critical of the club.”
If Luke Jackson isn’t careful, he’ll be inducted into the contract hall of shame
“Zero marks. You can say he’s taken less all you like… I’m believing the journalists that it is a seven-year (deal) for an average of $900,000 per season.
“He didn’t take a mark under a roof against an opposition that had all its best key position players out.
“He did have a couple of opportunities but he did have the cement hands where the ball just bounces off.”