What did your club get right and what did your club get wrong in Round 4?
We had a full book of nine matches in the second edition of Gather Round.
See our assessments below:
What they got right
Max Michalanney is a lockdown star
As it says above. Max Michalanney would have been fuming leaving Adelaide Oval on Thursday night and rightly so. He kept Melbourne star Bayley Fritsch completely in check for the entire game bar one contest where Fritsch got the better of him and goaled.
The father-son defender played a brilliant defensive game and shut Fritsch down, but the Dee took advantage of a different matchup and a 50m penalty to put together a three-goal third term that ultimately shut the gate on the match.
However, Michalanney can hold his head high knowing he did his job.
Jake Soligo as a primary on-baller
Jake Soligo must stay in the midfield rotation for Adelaide going forward.
He provides a different speed and burst to the usual trio, something the Crows desperately need.
They should move Jordan Dawson to the wing or half back, back Soligo in the middle and continue to get more pace around the ball.
He was clearly Adelaide’s most influential midfielder on Thursday night.
What they got wrong
The Crows still lack dare
In Gather Round last year, Adelaide put together a quarter of footy so attacking and deadly that it derailed Carlton’s season for two whole months.
12 months on and they seem completely devoid of speed on the ball. Brodie Smith, Jordan Dawson and Mitch Hinge seem to be the only three players willing to bite off difficult kicks, with the team sticking to long and slow plays down the line.
This will get them nowhere. It certainly wouldn’t stack up in a final. With 0-5 staring them in the face this week against the Blues, it’s time for them to play like there’s nothing to lose.
Nic Negrepontis
What they got right
Showed they are united
Brisbane’s playing group has been questioned in recent weeks due to the events of an off-season trip to the USA.
There has been speculation that the players are divided and that it has had an impact on-field.
They went a long way to putting that to rest with their performance in a 70-point win over North Melbourne in Gather Round.
Coach Chris Fagan was delighted that the Lions proved to the footy world they are still united as they kickstarted their campaign with a much-needed win.
Restricted North’s scoring
Fagan was also thrilled with Brisbane’s team defence.
They restricted the Kangaroos to just 12 scoring shots and a total score of 42.
Alastair Clarkson’s side had previously scored 82, 76 and 81 this year but it completely dried up against the Lions.
That element was a massive win for Brisbane who had copped 86, 93 and 92 in their trio of defeats.
Forward 50 connection
Joe Daniher and Eric Hipwood managed to find some form at Norwood Oval.
The Lions finished with 22 marks inside 50 thanks to nine from Daniher and three from Hipwood who also combined for eight goals and 16 marks total.
They had just six marks inside 50 against Collingwood the week prior, so in excess of 20 is a major improvement.
What they got wrong
Not much this week
This part of the column is fairly blank for the Lions this week.
The only thing Fagan bemoaned was the fact they had 71 inside 50s but didn’t score more heavily (they kicked 16.16.(112)).
They also lost centre clearances 11-10, but made up for that by winning overall clearances 43-33.
Andrew Slevison
What they got right
Defensive structures held up
Fremantle controlled the stoppages and clearances all afternoon, but while they had first use and the territory that came with that, they couldn’t put it on the scoreboard.
The Dockers had the game on their terms for the majority of the afternoon, with the game stuck in an uncontested, kick-mark style – something that goes against Carlton’s usual contest and pressure style.
Despite that, Freo only managed nine goals – five of which came directly from free kicks.
It’s a big win for the Blues and the structures they have put in place defensively. Jacob Weitering hasn’t missed a beat across two games also.
What they got wrong
Can Sam Walsh fix the clearance game?
Carlton is clearly trying to redesign their game style in 2024, moving away from a largely score-from-clearance team – and lucky they did because they have been battered out of the middle this year.
George Hewett won eight clearances for the Blues and had a great game, but no other Carlton player won more than three.
It’s a pretty good situation to be in when you’re 4-0 with clear upside. They have a lot to work on, especially coming up against a strong clearance team in Adelaide.
Sam Walsh’s likely return could help change their luck in the middle somewhat.
Injuries to general forwards
Carlton has been incredibly unlucky on the injury front so far in 2024, with forwards Jack Silvagni, Jesse Motlop, Jack Martin and David Cuningham unavailable. Add to that the injury suffered by Elijah Hollands against Fremantle and Lachie Fogarty’s one-game suspension and they are digging deep into their depth across the half forward line.
Ironically, Orazio Fantasia has played every game this season and been healthy, while Matthew Owies continues to get the job done and Corey Durdin is providing pressure and tackling.
Could they hand a debut to first-round pick Ashton Moir or 2023 VFL best and fairest winner Jaxon Binns against the Crows? They seem like they’re next in line for a shot.
Nic Negrepontis
What they got right
Pressure, pressure, pressure
Collingwood’s pressure was hot on Sunday.
The Magpies were down in that area in the opening three weeks but have been able to lean on that trademark across the last fortnight.
The Pies made 74 tackles to Hawthorn’s 58 despite winning and had 55 one percenters to their opposition’s 29 according to Champion Data.
The Magpies also had a pressure rating of 202. It was only the third time in 2024 that any team had crossed 200 in Champion Data’s pressure rating index.
Persisting with Lachie Schultz
Trade recruit Lachie Schultz hasn’t had the ideal start to life in black and white.
After kicking just three goals in his first four games, Schultz produced his best game for the club on Sunday against the Hawks with two early goals, 13 disposals, eight score involvements and two tackles inside 50.
While Schultz didn’t stuff the stat sheet, this is the kind of performance that Collingwood can continue to expect from the player that cost them a future first-round pick and pick No. 34.
The Pies clearly believe in the 26-year-old and he will begin repaying them if he can produce this level of consistency week-in-week-out.
What they got wrong
Trying to save the game late and not putting the Hawks away
The Pies were cruising at half-time, leading by 38 points after a blistering opening two terms.
The Pies continued to hold Hawthorn at bay in the third and even led by 26 points at three-quarter time.
Obviously, Craig McRae and his side felt that they had the game won, because they completely shut up shop in the last term to protect their lead.
That defensive mindset welcomed Hawthorn’s pressure and the Hawks almost won it at the death after kicking 4.1 to 0.5 in the last term.
A better team would have overran them. While they got the four points, the Magpies won’t want to go about their fourth quarters in that fashion too often in 2024.
Lachlan Geleit
What they got right
The first quarter
There’s not much to be excited about as an Essendon supporter after that game, except the fact that it can’t get much worse.
But at the very least, the Bombers were in the contest at quarter time. Brad Scott’s men booted three goals and were just three points down at the first break after having five more inside 50s.
Essendon has proven they can do it against the better sides, but not for an entire game.
What they got wrong
The last three quarters
Almost nothing good could be construed for Essendon from the final three terms.
In that time, they lost inside 50s by 25, centre clearances by 14, outworked, outmarked and outscored. Tackles was the only statistic of note Essendon came out on top in.
One percenters is starting to be a concern
How can Essendon sit sixth in the competition for tackles but a clear 18th for one percenters?
It’s a stat that makes little sense. On one hand, Essendon’s pressure appears to be there given another 65 tackles on the weekend. On the other, 34 one percenters is a staggering low.
The eye would suggest the latter is more indicative of effort given the way Port Adelaide tore Essendon to shreds late in the game. Would Brad Scott be concerned about it yet?
The injury list
Brad Scott himself acknowledged the Bombers have an issue when it comes to soft tissue injuries.
Essendon has suffered five soft tissue injuries in six weeks and the medical and training program is set to be reviewed internally.
Jordan Ridley is exactly what the Bombers need on-field right now, but he likely won’t be available until mid-season after the reoccurrence of a quad injury. Archie Perkins’ likely absence this weekend with a hamstring concern will also hurt.
Seb Mottram
What they got right
Clearance domination
The Dockers were dominant at the stoppage in Saturday’s tight loss to Carlton, winning the clearance count 44 to 27.
They also won the centre clearance count 11 to 7 which allowed them to hold sway throughout most of the clash.
That was primarily led by Caleb Serong (nine clearances), while all of Nat Fyfe, Luke Jackson and Hayden Young had at least five of their own to their names.
It’s an impressive victory given how historically strong Carlton have been in clearance with the big bodies of Patrick Cripps and George Hewett notoriously good stoppage ball-winners.
What they got wrong
Final 90-second meltdown
Fremantle led for almost all of the last quarter, but not when it mattered as the siren rang out.
The Michael Walters goal in the 23rd minute put them up by nine points, but they gave up the last three goals in a less than five-minute span.
Even with 90 seconds remaining the Dockers led by two, but that lead changed after Matt Cottrell marked and goaled to put the Blues up by four.
While the AFL admitted the ball was touched and Cottrell shouldn’t have been paid the mark, that doesn’t excuse the Jordan Clark meltdown which resulted in a dissent free and Matt Kennedy goal that put the final nail in the coffin.
Without even that dissent call, the Dockers may have won it from the middle and given themselves a chance to snatch the lead back.
Those few moments will be analysed closely at Fremantle ahead of their Round 5 clash against Port Adelaide.
Lachlan Geleit
What they got right
The Jeremy Cameron show
The definition of a prototype game from the three-time All-Australian.
Run up the ground harder than anyone else, run back harder than anyone else, hit the scoreboard, create and gain plenty of metres.
Cameron did all that and more. He only kicked two goals but could have easily had four or five. Cameron also gained 652 metres and finished with 27 disposals and eight marks, all club highs and ridiculous numbers for someone seen as a key forward.
It was a warning shot for the rest of the competition. Come with a plan for Jez or, as the Western Bulldogs did, pay the price.
Finals are all but locked in
Geelong plays North Melbourne this weekend and still has eight games to come at GMHBA Stadium.
Already 4-0, it’s now very hard to see Geelong not getting at least 12 wins, which should lock Chris Scott’s men in for a return to finals.
Given they’ve done it without Cam Guthrie all year and Patrick Dangerfield the last two weeks should only boost optimism that Geelong can cause some chaos in 2024.
Bowes finds himself a role
Saturday night was also Jack Bowes’ best game in the hoops.
After his first season at the Cattery in 2023, what the former Sun would be able do achieve at Geelong given his attributes and best position became a talking point.
But as a centre bounce midfielder against the Dogs Bowes more than held his own, booting two goals from 23 possessions while also contributing five goals.
There’s a definitive future there.
What they got wrong
Not yet blowing away clubs
If there’s one thing to nitpick about the Cats in 2024, it’s that they don’t yet boast a ruthless edge.
They let St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs back into games that were ultimately won by single figures but could have been more, didn’t smash an Adelaide outfit that is now seen to be toothless and were in cruise control against Hawthorn.
It’s far from a concern, but Geelong does have the worst percentage of the three undefeated teams.
Seb Mottram
What they got right
Sam Clohesy is a draft gem
The Suns have had their fair share of top draft picks to use over the years, but nailing a rookie draft pick is a different beast.
Clohesy was taken in the 2023 Rookie Draft and got his debut opportunity against GWS on the weekend, immediately looking at home at the top level.
Playing mostly across half back and the wing, he finished with 22 disposals, 489 metres gained, eight marks and a goal.
What a great way to announce yourself at the top level.
Sam Flanders to half back
One of the surprising moves of the week was Damien Hardwick moving Sam Flanders to half back.
Flanders has been used primarily on-ball and across half forward so far in his career, with this new position clearly something that was trained over summer.
He thrived in the role, finished with 29 disposals and eight rebound 50s. This likely will see him picked ahead of Alex Sexton in the position going forward.
What they got wrong
Witts’ dominance goes to waste
Do hit-outs mean anything? It’s hard to say they do when Jarrod Witts wins 38, Kieren Briggs wins 13 and the Giants still control the clearances.
GWS won 37 clearances to Gold Coast’s 32, with Briggs himself winning nine and Finn Callaghan and Stephen Coniglio combining for 10.
Touk Miller had a quiet afternoon by his standards and debutant Will Graham was asked to do a lot of work in the middle of the ground.
Nic Negrepontis
What they got right
Ground out a win
The Giants weren’t exactly at their best on Sunday but still ground out a win over Gold Coast.
They were made to work hard for the four points and were constantly challenged yet still came up clutch in the final quarter.
It takes a good side to come away with a victory despite not being at their very best, and Adam Kingsley has instilled a toughness and desire in the Giants that should take them a long way.
Forward line is working
Toby Greene (five goals), Jesse Hogan (four) and Callum Brown (three) combined for 12 goals.
Throw in Jake Riccardi and Aaron Cadman and there are plenty of avenues to goal.
The Giants have scored 100 or more points in all four games so far this season as the competition’s deadliest attack which averages 115 points per game.
What they got wrong
Beaten at stoppage for three quarters
The Giants had to change some things late in order get on top around stoppage and contest.
Kingsley admitted they were well beaten in that area for three quarters before arresting the Suns’ dominance around the ball.
They’ve been pretty good in this area in 2024, but would want to be conscience of similar lapses against the better teams.
Conceded their highest score of 2024
They still won but the Giants did concede a score of 13.11.(89).
That is the highest score they’ve let in so far this season after scores of 82, 82 and 43 prior.
It’s not a massive blight on their game but something worth pointing out. It doesn’t really matter when you can consistently punch out scores of over 100.
There are not many negatives surrounding GWS’ game right now.
Andrew Slevison
What they got right
Blake Hardwick you star
Moving forward after half-time when the Hawks were already 38 points down, Hardwick played like Leigh Matthews in booting three third term goals to get Hawthorn back into the game.
The utility finished with four goals in a game-breaking performance that very nearly delivered his side their first win in 2024.
Hardwick also finished with a team high seven score involvements. He was trialled forward in the pre-season but fans were yet to see it in the home and away season.
On Sunday’s evidence, we’ll see it a lot more in the coming weeks.
Newcombe back in form
Jai Newcombe picked up the winless Hawks, put them on his back and very nearly carried them over the line against the Pies.
Hawthorn’s star midfielder had struggled for continuity early in 2024 but got going big time after the main break. He collected 26 possessions, a stunning 18 of which were contested, and picked up a game-high 10 clearances.
It might just be the type of performance that gets him up and going in 2024.
What they got wrong
Why did no one go to De Goey?
Jordan De Goey has had a quiet start to the year, but he burst to life on Sunday evening.
Sam Mitchell dropped the tag on Nick Daicos after half-time and sent Finn Maginness to a wing, a decision he’d likely rue in the aftermath.
Jordan De Goey was the key factor in denying Hawthorn a come-from-behind win, finishing with game highs in inside 50s (eight) and score involvements (nine). Ross Lyon spoke after Round 2 about how much time the Saints had put into planning for De Goey and how that contributed to St Kilda’s win.
It would appear Mitchell didn’t heed the warning.
Seb Mottram
What they got right
Defensive structure
Coming up against an out of form Crows side which was desperate to gain their first win of the season, Melbourne knew they were in for a tough challenge on Thursday night.
Adelaide’s major strength from last season was their forward line. And with extra pressure being put into that area of the field to perform, the Demons did extremely well to withstand the heat and hold the Crows to only 63 points.
Drafting… again
It’s been said before and it needs to be said again, the drafting from the Melbourne Football Club has been superb over the past six years.
Picking players like Kade Chandler (Rookie draft pick 15), Trent Rivers (pick 32), Jacob van Rooyen (pick 19) and Blake Howes (pick 39) are prime examples of where Jason Taylor and his crew have absolutely nailed it.
But there might be none better than their only selection of the 2022 Rookie draft where they picked Judd McVee with the 18th pick, who shone as one of the brightest in the Demons' win on Thursday night.
The small defender was excellent in the first quarter, where he amassed 11 disposals at 100% efficiency in a quarter that was heavily dominated by the Crows.
Whilst also finishing the game with seven intercept possessions, McVee was a pivotal factor in ensuring the Demons got over the line and extended their winning streak to four.
What they got wrong
Final quarter fade-out
After getting out to as much as 28 points in the final quarter, the Demons nearly let Adelaide steal the four points at the death after dropping off significantly.
Their contest work and pressure up the ground seemed to have dropped away which would no doubt be a concern for Simon Goodwin and his team.
If they let this become a habit, the Demons could see themselves blowing spot in the top eight, top four or even worse, potentially fall out of the finals pre-maturely like they have in the past two seasons.
Zac Sharpe
What they got right
Charlie Comben!
Charlie Comben has been cruelled by all sorts of setbacks across his short career, so seeing him in full flight would have been exciting for Roos fans.
Coming in for Toby Pink to play a key defensive role, Comben found 25 disposals, took eight marks, had 13 intercept possessions, eight rebound 50s and nearly 400m gained.
After starting his career as a key forward, Comben worked hard to learn the key defensive role over summer and will now hopefully get an extended run at it.
He clearly has the talent to make it at either end of the ground.
What they got wrong
What is Jy Simpkin’s role?
He might be the captain of the club, but Jy Simpkin feels like an afterthought at the minute.
He’s playing a between the arcs bits-and-pieces role, filling gaps where the team needs him and struggling to have much of an influence.
This is likely because they want to get centre bounce attendances into Luke Davies-Uniacke and George Wardlaw, while Tom Powell continues to emerge.
Simpkin is 26. We’re not talking about a 31-year-old former star midfielder clinging on to a rebuilding side. His usage so far feels off.
Forward mix
They’re all dangerous players on paper, but the Roos may need to consider adjusting the forward mix.
Jaidyn Stephenson, Cam Zurhaar and Zane Duursma can all hit the scoreboard, but do they do the little things the team needs in terms of covering the ground and putting on defensive pressure.
Duursma, who is at the very start of his AFL journey, was the only one of the trio to hit the scoreboard against the Lions.
Quite a few contending teams have moved away from having multiple flashy goal kicking specialists in favour of workhorse, pressuring, role-player types.
Nic Negrepontis
What they got right
Midfield masterclass led by Rozee
Port Adelaide were dominant out of the midfield on Friday against Essendon.
The Dons came into the game having performed very well in the centre so far this year, but the Power gave them a bit of a lesson at the Adelaide Oval.
The Power won the clearance count 39 to 30, but most importantly they dominated when it really mattered at centre clearance, winning 19 to just six for the opposition.
That on-ball unit was led by Connor Rozee who filled up with three goals and 36 disposals, while Jason Horne-Francis (31 disposals, 10 clearances) and Zak Butters (26 disposals, five clearances) poured salt into the wound.
It’s a huge strength of Port Adelaide’s game and they’re getting full bang for their buck on-ball at the moment.
Georgiades’ new role
Mitch Georgiades was immense in his first game back on return from his ACL injury.
While he was often used as a deep forward previously, Georgiades was deployed as a high half-forward on Friday and he looked immediately at home in that role.
The young gun finished with eight marks, 15 disposals and two goals as he had nine of his touches outside of the forward 50.
It’s a great sign of things to come and he’ll hope to continue his upward trajectory from here.
What they got wrong
Tall forward return
Port Adelaide were awesome on Friday night, but one area that didn’t really click was their tall forward duo.
While Jeremy Finlayson kicked three, their two main men up front Charlie Dixon and Todd Marshall combined for just one goal and 19 touches.
I guess it’s a good sign that they can still kick a proper winning score without their two main targets having much of an impact.
Watch out if they can click while everyone else gets going as well inside 50.
Lachlan Geleit
What they got right
Effort, intent and attitude
What Richmond may be lacking in skill and polish, they are making up for with effort and attitude.
Apart from the first half in Opening Round against Gold Coast, the Tigers have acquitted themselves well under Adem Yze.
They may have a need for more composure and prowess with ball in hand, but at least the effort, intent and attitude is flowing through the players.
Defensively sound
To keep any side to one goal in a half is a fairly decent effort, especially considering there are some inexperienced players in defence.
The Tigers kept the likes of Max King and Tim Membrey under wraps inside 50 with players such as Tylar Young (23 games) and Ben Miller (28 games) playing pivotal roles.
Despite going under by seven points, they restricted the Saints to 67 points which was their best defensive result in five games this season.
Valuable minutes into kids
The Tigers are in somewhat of a rebuilding phase so it’s important to get games into the developing players.
Tom Brown was excellent across half-back, Seth Campbell again played well as a small forward in his fifth game, Tyler Sonsie got valuable minutes, while Rhyan Mansell, Tylar Young, Ben Miller, Maurice Rioli and Mykelti Lefau all contributed.
Kane McAuliffe also debuted, coming in for the injured Thomson Down in the third quarter.
It is this group that will need to come through if things are to continue improving under Yze.
What they got wrong
Attack around the contest dissipated
After a strong start, the Tigers were out-hunted in the second half, particularly in the third quarter.
Their attack around the contest dissipated which led to another lapse where the Saints kicked three goals in just over six minutes on their way to seven scoring shots in 14 minutes.
While we did praise their effort and intent earlier, it did fall away for a 15-minute patch in the third term which in the end cost them the game.
Execution and polish
The Tigers had as much ball forward as the Saints, only having one less inside 50 (56-55).
However, the Saints were able to conjure 22 scoring shots while the Tigers could only muster 15.
A lack of polish and execution, highlighted by their 69 per cent disposal efficiency, contributed greatly to Richmond’s eventual loss.
Forward line synergy
Despite Shai Bolton’s almost match-winning four-goal haul, not much else overly worked in attack for the Tigers.
The synergy of a brand new forward setup which includes Jacob Koschitzke, Mykelti Lefau, Tyler Sonsie, Rhyan Mansell, Seth Campbell and Maurice Rioli is going to take time.
Bolton was amazing and Dustin Martin was also very good (while spending time up the ground), but there might be some pain in and around forward 50 before it gets better.
The Tigers are already crying out for Noah Balta to return knowing that Tom Lynch is a long way off... again.
Andrew Slevison
What they got right
Found a way to win
St Kilda kicked just one goal in the first half but were able to find a way to get over the top of Richmond at Norwood.
Despite conceding the first four goals and finding themselves 22 points down at half-time, they did not panic and stayed in the game before eventually outlasting the Tigers.
Ross Lyon’s side could have capitulated given how subpar they were in the first two quarters yet showed plenty of steely resolve to dig in and fight back.
It sure wasn’t pretty but the Saints did what they needed to do.
Pressure after half-time
The Saints’ pressure lifted enormously after the main break.
They were maniacal around the ball and at the opposition in the third term which set up their comeback win.
St Kilda put up 40 tackles in the second half, after just 28 in the first half, and were a different team after resetting.
They also showed more composure in the big moments even though they did waste some chances win the third term.
Third-quarter dominance
That immense pressure truly kickstarted St Kilda’s game.
They were utterly dominant with 22 inside 50s to Richmond’s nine which resulted in 12 scoring shots.
St Kilda then held their own in the last term as the Tigers finished strongly to see out a much-needed win after last week’s disappointing loss to Essendon.
What they got wrong
Struggled to score for a half
St Kilda’s first half was well below what would fans would expect.
They struggled to create scoring chances and butchered them when they did.
They’ll want to kick more than one goal in a half against the better teams.
Slaughtered opportunities
Lyon said it himself: “We just slaughtered our opportunities”.
In the third term, the Saints dominated the game but could only register 6.6, when they really could have scored eight or nine goals to put the game to bed.
They created enough chances but were errant in their execution which could have cost them a bigger lead by the final break.
Andrew Slevison
What they got right
Taylor Adams' recruitment
After an early season injury setback, former Pie Taylor Adams made his club debut for the red and white and had a solid outing in what would please the Swans coaching staff and fans alike.
Adams amassed 17 touches including four tackles, three inside-50s, two clearances, a goal assist and 1.1 in front of goal. Another tick for the Swans’ recruitment team.
Swans forward trio are sharing the load
Life without Buddy Franklin doesn’t appear to be an issue for the Swans with their tall forward trio starting the 2024 season in strong fashion. Logan McDonald, Joel Amartey and Hayden McLean all kicked goals on the weekend and have combined for 24 goals in their opening five matches.
McDonald has kicked at least one goal in every match whilst McLean and Amartey have only been kept goalless in one game each this season.
With Sydney’s midfield humming and contributing regular goals as well, the Swans’ gamble on their tall forwards has paid off.
What they got wrong
Did the Eagles reveal the blueprint to defeat Sydney?
The West Coast Eagles did a fantastic job of limiting the corridor options for the Swans’ best ball users. The likes of Errol Gulden and Nick Blakey were unable to use their speed and elite field kicking to break the game open like they are accustomed to at the SCG.
The concern for Sydney is that they tried to force the kick in the middle of the ground and turned the ball over time and time again and Chad Warner was the worst culprit with 8. The Swans had 64 turnovers for the match and registered their worst disposal efficiency (70.8%) since their Opening Round clash against Melbourne.
The Opening Round game was also played during incredibly muggy and humid conditions which heavily impacted the skills of both teams. The Eagles were responsible for the Swans’ skill issues with ball in hand but fell off in the second half as fatigue began to set in.
Dirty day for Swans captain
With the injury of Dane Rampe, Tom Papley led the Swans as captain and had a poor afternoon for his lofty standards.
Papley ended the day with 10 disposals at 10% efficiency with 82% time on ground, two tackles, three free kicks against and 0.1. The Swans need better from one of their senior players.
Charles Goodsir
What they got right
The second quarter
Even if it ended up being a 26-point loss, there was plenty to like from West Coast’s display against Sydney.
However, that second term was easily the highlight of the Eagles’ season so far.
West Coast outscored the Swans by 16 points in the term, with their 36 points in that stretch allowing them to win their first quarter all season.
Most encouraging was the Eagles racking up five more scoring shots in the term than the Swans, with Adam Simpson’s men completely overwhelming Sydney.
They may have left the Adelaide Hills still searching for their first win, but the Eagles can take pride in the fact that they took the fight to a bona fide premiership contender.
Harley Reid
Now this is the Harley Reid that West Coast fans have been waiting to see.
The top prospect had his fingerprints all over the Eagles’ first half avalanche, bursting out of stoppage and breaking tackles in a fashion similar to his Under-18 championship showings.
His goal in the opening term was both an important milestone and a pivotal moment in the clash, halting Sydney’s opening flurry and swinging the momentum back to a level playing field.
He finished with 18 touches, a goal, seven tackles and six score involvements, providing a little bit of everything in what was his best display of the season.
What they got wrong
Pressure couldn’t last
While it was a feelgood display on many accounts, it was far from the complete performance that a club needs to put together to be competitive in this league.
The Eagles found themselves in the lead entering the major break courtesy of their relentless pressure, stifling the Swans entirely and scoring off the back of some tidy transition work.
Yet in the second half that pressure faded almost instantly and Sydney took advantage, booting nine goals to West Coast’s four as they ultimately cruised to a win without too much further trouble.
It was an encouraging showing from the Eagles, but they still have a long way to go.
Jack Makeham
What they got right
The midfield battle
The Bulldogs’ engine room couldn’t have done much more to will their side to victory in Saturday night.
The big three of Marcus Bontempelli, Tom Liberatore and Adam Treloar were all absolutely on fire, each recording at least 35 touches and booting a goal.
Even with such lofty standards, Liberatore was a step above the other two, racking up a monstrous 28 contested possessions and 19 clearances, with both of those stats sitting in the top five for the most ever recorded in an AFL game.
Making the most of attacking opportunities
There was concern heading into this clash that the Bulldogs would be stifled defensively, taking on a Cats side that is one of the league’s best at defending transition.
With the Dogs having their fair share of difficulties going inside 50 that date back to last season, it seemed like a recipe for disaster.
Yet things turned out in the exact opposite fashion, with the Dogs booting a more than respectable 14.7 despite having a below-average game when it came to inside 50 efficiency. With the young brigade of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, Sam Darcy, Rhylee West and Cody Weightman leading the way for the Dogs’ attack, it looks like it’s time for them to be truly given the keys.
What they got wrong
Defensive assignments
Luke Beveridge clearly came into this game with the plan of shutting down Tom Hawkins, and clearly he succeeded, throwing bodies at the big forward and keeping him goalless.
Unfortunately, that allowed the rest of Geelong’s threats to run wild on Adelaide Oval.
Jeremy Cameron wasn’t quite as damaging on the scoreboard as he could have been, booting 2.4, yet he was still more than capable of tearing the game apart, racking up 27 touches as he spent more time up the field and absolutely dominating.
Gryan Miers broke the game open early with 11 touches in the first term, finishing with 22 total and eight score involvements, while Tyson Stengle relished the lack of attention and booted four.
At the end of the day it was a game won in the coach’s box, and Chris Scott got the edge over Luke Beveridge this round.
Jack Makeham
