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The following information
is provided by Tim Murphy
- [t.murphy@rmit.edu.au], distributed via news groups
and email and is updated here Monday evenings after the weekends
games. All credit for this information goes to Tim and is being
used with permission.
AFL Round 12
Rumours proved correct as Brisbane
coach John Northey was sacked on Wednesday. Chairman Noel Gordon,
a Northey supporter, was outvoted by his board who appointed
assistant coach Roger Merrett to the senior position 'til the
end of the year. He was second choice behind current Carlton
assistant Wayne Brittain, who has a long association with football
in Queensland. Unsurprisingly, Brittain refused an 11-week contract.
As is the norm these days the coach wasn't the only victim with
two Brisbane board members already having quit in the wake and
Gordon under pressure. 'Swooper' expressed little anger or disappointment
over his axing, appearing merely relieved. Looks like the end
of his AFL coaching career in which he became noted for getting
the most from modestly talented teams, reaching a Grand Final
with Melbourne and preliminary finals with Richmond and the more
highly-rated Brisbane. Criticisms that Northey lacked tactical
nous and his 'us against the world' message wore thin are fairly
petty. His teams played with passion and discipline which all
supporters enjoyed - until this year, anyway.
At the WACA:
West Coast 6.2 10.4 16.6 19.9.123
Hawthorn 5.2 9.4 16.6 17.6.108
Fifth consecutive win for the
Eagles in this highly entertaining game, although it's been an
unusual run - narrow wins over lower-ladder battlers, Footscray
excepted. It's hard to believe the Hawks have won only 2 from
12 as they were very good in this game, or they were for 3 quarters
which might be the trouble. They tend to go well in WA with their
platoon of former East Fremantle men. Two such, Kilmartin and
Treleven, came in at the expense of injured stopper Woods and
Rawlings. West Coast dropped Wooden and Lewis and later lost
Kemp, in came Worsfold, Turnbull and Phil Matera.
McKenna went off early with a
shoulder as Hawthorn sprang to a 3 goal lead in the first 10
minutes. Holland was heavily involved, nudging Turnbull under
the ball and sending Kappler away for the first goal. Holland
later missed a sitter but redeemed himself with a mark and goal.
Dunstall was closely attended by McIntosh but Krummel and Dixon
swept up their crumbs for majors. Gehrig kicked the Eagles' first
after stretching for a fingertip mark. He was opposed by Chick,
a courageous decision as they used to say on Yes, Minister. Gehrig
helped the Eagles come back late in the first term as they kicked
5 straight, shepherding through Ball's off-breaking snap, kicking
2 himself and having a hand in one for Braun. After Eagle Morrison
goaled from a free in the second term Holland ran 80m to take
a superb goalsquare grab and kick a point. He kicked truly a
minute later but the Weegs went 3 goals clear when defensive
mistakes by Hawks under pressure led to goals for Banfield and
Gehrig. Chick was moved off Gehrig and replaced by Mark Graham.
Dunstall majored, then the busy Holland appeared to have soccered
a goal but the goal umpire - them again - somehow managed to
back-heel the ball onto the post. Perhaps he could keep goal
for Spain. Chick narrowed the margin to 5 points and Holland
had a chance to put the Hawks ahead as he waltzed into an open
goal. But 'Dutchy' failed to spot McIntosh approaching from the
side, he smothered Holland's shot and the ball rebounded to the
other end where Braun majored. A great reply from Dixon kept
the Hawks close at half-time.
West Coast pulled clear in the
early third quarter, gaining a 20 point lead after Symmons slotted
from a tight angle and a Phil Matera handpass led to a goal for
Heady. But the Hawks came again, led by Shane Crawford's superb
work in the centre. He kicked a nice goal, after Gardiner responded
wih a huge kick Hawthorn kicked the next 5 goals. Lively Ben
Dixon, playing alongside Dunstall in a pocket, kicked 3 of them
including one from a lucky bounce which levelled the scores.
Chick put them in front and Dixon extended the lead to 12 points
but the Weegles stirred themselves to level the scores at the
last change through goals for White and Heady, the latter created
by an excellent Phil Matera tackle. It was all set up for a big
finish which didn't occur. Hawthorn attacked early in the last
term but came up with doughnut, not helped by some questionable
umpiring. Eventually the Eags improved and after consecutive
misses from Phil Matera, Worsfold and Banfield, Worsfold kicked
a goal 12 minutes in and the locals were 9 points up. Gehrig
took a big mark just 3m out and Worsfold arrived late to clatter
Graham but went unpunished. Gehrig converted as the Hawks stared
down the barrel of loss 10. Dixon kicked out on the full before
Taylor got one on target, but Heady saw the Weevils home following
a strong mark.
The Eegull McIntosh played superbly
at full back in holding Dunstall to one goal. Cousins ran powerfully
around the ground for 24 disposals and Waterman had 21 kicks
rebounding off half-back. Gehrig kicked 5 goals, only one after
Graham picked him up. Phil Matera had 20 touches and did well
in the second half, Heady's 3 goals were handy. White and Braun
kicked 2 each. Gardiner shaded Salmon in general play but he
was well beaten at the bounce, as were the Eagles in general.
Seven's Watson told us that West Coast were worst in the league
at centre clearances and after watching this, it's easy to believe.
Shane Crawford was a big part of that, with 26 hard-won possessions
and a goal. Treleven had 35 disposals although a fair proportion
of 'em weren't that effective. Dixon played excellently alongside
Dunstall to bag 6 goals from 10 kicks. Holland was busy at CHF
for three quarters with 21 touches, 8 marks and 2 goals. After
a vicious 3/4 time blast from Judge, he did very little in the
final term. Salmon contributed and Hay played well on White,
Kappler and Chick kicked 2 goals each. Hassall and Justin Crawford
were terrible. "I knew we'd give them a fight, we just couldn't
finish off and win it...I couldn't question our players' endeavour
and commitment...we need to make fewer decisional errors,"
said Judge. He praised Dunstall's efforts. Malthouse said "You
can't afford to lower your guard...we've had ours up for a long
time. I would pay credit to Hawthorn...they will win more than
they lose in the next 10 games. They are a very good side."
At Princes Park:
Carlton 3.3 6.7 10.11 14.16.100
Sydney 3.0 5.2 9.6 11.8.74
Carlton finally capitalised on
their hard-working midfield to score an excellent win. Sydney
fell to their third straight loss and their midfield is non-existent,
only Cresswell seems capable of getting the ball. The battling
Blues lost defender McKay with an ankle injury but regained forward
Pearce. Sydney had full back Dunkley return from suspension and
recalled Filandia, Arnott and McPherson were dumped.
The match began in familiar style
for the Blues as they dominated the opening minutes only for
the opposition to kick the first two goals, Lockett backpedalling
to outmark HGFB and Luff dobbing one. But the Blues got going
eventually, Pearce soccering a goal and then kicking a more conventional
one. Same pattern in the second term, Brown and Camporeale got
plenty of the ball and Whitnall bullocked away at CHF, seeing
off Roos with a knee injury. But they kicked poorly, with 2.4
and 2 out-on-the-fulls. Kelly booted a superb long goal from
a tight angle and Cresswell speared one to keep the Swans close
before Allan gave the Bluies some half-time breathing space.
Luff kicked the first goal of the third term, then Lockett missed
a couple of shots as Sydney threatened to take charge, Cook was
finally giving them some drive from the middle. The Blues rallied
when Pearce teased the crowd before kicking truly and Carlton
kicked the next 3 - Hamill pounced on Nicks's poor centering
kick, Whitnall got one and Pearce majored again - to grab a 5-goal
lead. But the Bloods boxed on with the last three goals of the
term to keep the match alive. O'Loughlin snaggled one and Lockett
converted a free after being scragged by HGFB, Luff kicked another.
The Blues still had work to do but they did it, Hamill sealing
the win with two excellent marks and goals.
Carlton's forward line showed
pleasing signs, although it's worth remembering the Swans had
conceded 48 goals in their previous two games. Nevertheless,
Pearce booted 5 goals from 15 kicks and 6 marks and Whitnall
was excellent with 22 possessions, 9 marks and a goal at CHF.
Hamill profitted as the third forward with 4 goals and a healthy
27 disposals, Manton was very good at CHB with an amazing 18
marks and Allan became the latest ruckman to beat Stafford. Franchina
tagged Schwass out of it, Ratten (28 touches), Bradley (25) and
Brown (24) were good midfield. Few contributors for the Swans,
Cresswell worked hard for 31 disposals and a goal, Nicks did
well running from defence. Luff did reasonably with 3 goals and
15 kicks up forward although 8 of those came in the last quarter.
Cook was good. Kelly wasn't effective despite 2 good goals and
confirmed he's carrying an injury, they fell down at CHF again
and Roos and Bayes are too old. Lockett kicked 3 goals but was
shaded by HGFB. Eade is at a loss to explain the slump. "We
expected a far better performance than that...we thought we could
bounce back and scrape a win, but it was a disappointing one.
We'll go back to the track and work hard." Parkin said "We've
worked hard for 3 weeks...and today we got our just rewards.
We did make plenty of mistakes, perhaps a team more in form and
confident might have hurt us more badly."
At the MCG:
Melboune 0.1 1.3 4.4 7.4.46
Geelong 7.2 15.3 18.7 22.9.141
Last Thursday, Melbourne coach
Neale Daniher called his teams' upcoming month "defining"
and this match said something fairly definite about the Demons,
but probably not what Neale had in mind. One change each from
last week, Melbourne's Jeff Farmer rightly copping a 3-week suspension
for belting Shane Crawford behind play. Demon skipper Todd Viney
returned from his hamstring injury. Geelong had Bizzell come
in to replace injured Hall.
Geelong kicked the first 15 goals.
Melbourne got a bit of the ball early but their defensive pressure
was non-existent, tackles were missed, illegally applied or not
attempted, some Demons appeared completely bewildered as to their
function. One of these was Jim Stynes, all at sea at CHB on Mensch
who kicked the first goal. Grgic snapped a behind for Melbourne.
Then more Cat goals came for Snell and Rahilly. Half backs Colbert,
Sanderson and Mansfield set them up, centremen Hocking and Riccardi
ran riot. The young Demons' confidence and disposal began to
fall apart. Busy forward Sholl kicked another goal and straight
from the following bounce Colbert raced clear to slot one, Sholl
snapped a good goal after mopping up a Spinks shot. Snell got
another to open the second term, Burns got in on the act. A terrible
Dee handpass set up a training goal for Hocking, Melbourne defenders
backing off Bhudda as he advanced. Spinks helped himself to a
goal and politely shepherded one through for Mensch. Demon Rigoni
slashed the margin to 72 points by kicking a long behind before
Burns zigzagged his way forward and tumbled a kick onto Spinks's
chest. Smoker kicked into the man on the mark and Schwarz missed
altogether before Sholl assisted Mensch in yet another Cat six-pointer.
Yze's poor clearing kick saw Riccardi snap truly. But the Dees
powered back into contention when Lyon bombed a sausage from
55m 40 seconds before half time. Daniher faced a Xenian task
in getting his mob up for the second half, but they did quite
well considering. Smoker kicked a couple of goals in the third
term and Rigoni and Johnstone did a bit. Burns kicked 3 for Geelong
in the same quarter. Lacklustre final term, frustrated Shanahan
was reported for belting Spinks. The match ended on a sour note
for Geelong when full back Ben Graham strained tendons in his
arm.
Geelong's skilled, running half
backs again dominated. Colbert had 23 disposals and a goal, Mick
Mansfield was very good and Sanderson had 25 touches. Mensch
was good, reverting to his traditional role as a CHF he had 9
marks and 3 goals. Hocking and Riccardi both had 25-odd possessions
and a couple of goals each, Rahilly impressed again. Sholl enjoys
being a forward, he had 20 handlings and 2 goals. Burns and Spinks
kicked 4 goals each and Snell finished with 3. Veteran Demon
Gary Lyon refused to lie down, having 8 marks and 2 goals, Rigoni
(25 disposals) and Johnstone weren't bad. Yze got lots of the
ball - as did a few Melbourne defenders. "Obviously a very
disappointing day for our club, we need to sit back and look
at why we were so poor early. The Geelong midfield just dominated
the game and we had no answers...," said Daniher. Ayres
said "We hadn't played like that since the Port Adelaide
game at Kardinia Park last year..." He said it wasn't the
best game the Cats had played in his charge, but it was "up
there".
At Football Park:
Adelaide 3.5 6.6 13.11 15.18.108
Essendon 4.4 7.6 12.10 15.16.106
Terrific win for the Camrys,
outrunning the equally impressive Bombers in a very good game.
Essendon learned that for all the forward marking power in the
world, you still need to get the ball down there. Crows Bond
and Connell missed with leg injuries. Rod Jameson was initially
axed along with Rintoul, but both ended up playing in place of
Sampson and Ellen. Smart returned from a tribunal-enforced holiday
together with Ricciuto, Ormond-Allen and Sudjai Cook. Michael
Long returned for the Bombers, his first game in over a year
after a torn patellar tendon. Also in were Cockatoo-Collins and
Solomon, out were Ukovic with 'flu and discarded Fraser and Bomford.
The Cows lined up with Ricciuto
at full forward and a defensive arrangement of Pittman on Alessio,
Hart on Lloyd, Mark Stevens opposing Lucas and Goodwin against
Hird. The Bombers kicked the first two goals, a Bewick snap and
Hird passing to Alessio. Early Adelaide thrusts were less successful,
Vardy kicking twice on the full. But they got going with good
goals for Robran and Ricciuto. Bomber winger Prior went down
with a knee injury, he's in trouble. Lloyd and Hird combined
to put Essendon ahead at the first break. The Crows got a lead
at the start of the second term when Robran went to ruck and
Rehn forward, Vardy kicking a great goal. But the Bombers fought
back to grab the lead, Caracella converted after a pass from
Olarenshaw, Lloyd majored and Long gladdened us all by racing
into an open goal.
Adelaide improved markedly after
the middle break, Stevens was moved forward and bagged a pair
of goals and Smart got one as the Camrys led by 9. Back came
the Dons again with Caracella setting up Long and a tap-through
for Alessio. Then three more Adelaide sausages put 'em back in
front including one for Rehn after a 50m penalty against ex-Crow
Wellman. Robran snapped a superb goal before Caracella assisted
Long again just before the final change. Crow Rintoul was stretchered
off after a heavy collision. Don Lucas opened the last quarter
with two misses before a running Bewick goal put his side ahead
by a point. Immediately after, a textbook centre clearance saw
Vardy kick a reply. Hird was curiously moved to CHB as the Bombers
came up with 3 poor misses and Crow Thiessen managed a comical
poster before Moorcroft blasted from close in to put the Dons
ahead by 2 points, extended to 8 by a running goal for Calthorpe.
It became 2 again when Camry defender Hart bobbed up for a mark
and goal, but there was no hero for Adelaide - they won with
four consecutive behinds for Jameson, a bad miss from Mark Stevens
which levelled the scores, Ricciuto and James.
Forwards Vardy (17 kicks, 3 goals)
and Robran (13 kicks, 3 goals) were very good for the Crows and
they got great midfield service from James (29 disposals), Thiessen
and Tregenza. Young Cook was handy and Smart played well, Goodwin
did a fair job on Jim Hird. Ricciuto attacked the ball up forward
with 13 kicks and 2 goals, Mark Stevens also bagged 2 goals.
For the Dons, Calthorpe's purple patch continued as he had 30
disposals and 2 goals in the centre, Olarenshaw also had 30 touches
off half-back and Misiti got it 30 times too. But the forwards
weren't nearly so damaging this time, only Hird got the ball
with some regularity - he had 15 handpasses. Long kicked 3 goals
and there were 2 each for Alessio and Bewick. Hardwick racked
up the stats again as a running defender, Caracella was good.
"Adelaide were terrific with regard to pressure and the
midfield. We know they've had a lot of injuries...it's our best
performance over here for some time and we've got four or five
blokes to come back in...the disappointing part was the middle
of the game..," spake Sheedy. Blight said "It was a
perserverance night for us, I didn't think we had a lot of good
players, just everyone chipped in and that's how you win.²
At the Gabba:
Brisbane 7.6 10.9 13.12 18.15.123
Port Adelaide 5.3 9.7 14.13 18.15.123
Same result as last year's fixture
- how 'bout that? New Lion coach Merrett was rapt but Port coach
Cahill was fuming after his side blew a 5-goal lead in the last
quarter. Merrett promised his side would "play with passion
and be hard at it". In his first selection meeting he axed
Northey favourite Tristan Lynch along with Power, Mick Voss's
season is over after breaking his tibia in 2 places last week.
In came Leppitsch and former Roys Bamford and Johnson. Port were
able to select key players Primus and Wanganeen, also in was
young Steinberner. Poole was suspended 2 weeks for punching Peter
Matera in the stomach last week, Evans and Heaver were dropped.
Primus's return allowed Port
to adopt a more attacking game plan but it was the Lions, unsurprisingly,
who began better with Northey's blood on the floor. Chris Scott
and Lawrence were busy early and Leppitsch took some strong grabs
in attack but let himself down with some poor kicking. Daryl
White excited the crowd huddled into half the ground - the rest
has been demolished for new stands - with some extraordinary
marks. Port improved in the second term as Dickie and Wanganeen
got going, Primus was moved from the forward pocket into the
ruck and quelled Clarke. Danny Morton's goals in the third term
helped them grab the lead and after Breuer, Primus and Lade goaled
early in the final quarter, the visitors led by 26 points with
10 minutes to go. But Shaun Hart manufactured a goal, Akermanis
stabbed one through from point blank, Johnson snared one to cut
the margin to 7 points. Akermanis missed a shot but Dew's short
kick-in went straight to Hart, who dobbed it.
White deserves some accolades
for his aerial display and game in general, he had 18 disposals,
6 marks and kicked 2 goals. Chris Scott had 24 touches and kicked
a goal from the wing, small forwards Lawrence, Akermanis (2 goals)
and Johnson (3 goals) were handy. Hart battled hard all day to
kick 3 goals from his 22 possessions, rover Lambert had his best
game since returning. Bartlett played well with 2 goals and also
took some nice marks. Primus led Port from the front despite
a month off with a knee injury, with 20 disposals, 7 marks and
10 'contested gathers'. Morton had 27 touches and kicked 4 goals
against a decent opponent in Lappin, Dickie (26 disposals, 9
marks) and Wanganeen were good midfield, so was Francou. Mead
played well at CHB and Dew was also a handy defender, until his
fatal mistake. Cummings kicked 3.4, Breuer and Wilson kicked
2 goals each. "We should have competed a lot harder in those
last 10 minutes," said a rather angry Cahill, "...when
it's time-on at the 30-minute mark, you kick long to the boundary.
They're the club rules and this draw is as good as a loss for
us." Merrett saw it as a win. "It was a huge step up
for us. If the side plays to that standard every week, the match
committee and supporters will be thrilled." He's got 6 more
home games, which might be useful.
At Waverley:
Collingwood 0.8 2.11 5.13 11.16.82
St. Kilda 4.6 7.10 13.13 17.15.117
Collingwood fans spent the week
bleating about their home game against St. Kilda being scheduled
at the Saints' home ground. And after the Pies were beaten by
a better side to continue their annual mid-season slump, no doubt
they'll go on bleating. Conspiracy theorists see the fixture
as punishment for the Pies signing a deal with the MCC rather
than moving to Docklands, like they were supposed to. The Pies
lost patience with Anthony Rocca on Thursday night, but he ended
up playing. However Monkhorst was dumped along with Chad Liddell.
In were Prestigiacomo plus rookies Mahoney and Raso. The Saints
got Loewe back and recalled Lappin, Hall was out with a shoulder
injury and Traianidis was axed.
The Pies' disadvantage was seen
early as they kicked horrendously for goal in the windy, blustery
conditions. St. Kilda did little better though and the first
goal arrived in time-on, a free and 50m penalty to Loewe. Collingwood
supporters are always ambivalent and philosophical when it comes
to umpiring, and they weren't in the slightest aggrieved as the
frees racked up against them. Buckley gave away 8 by himself,
according to the paper. Further goals for Heatley and Winmar
set the Saints going, early in the second Heatley swung a kick
through after judging the breeze nicely. Again, Everitt thrashed
his opponents in the ruck and set up Harvey, Burke et al. to
run free. Loewe kicked more goals from free kicks and Heatley
and young Elliott got some as the Saints cruised to a comfortable
lead. In the last quarter Sav Rocca, who'd managed 1.3 with the
wind, was moved into the ruck and the Pies got a bit of a run
going before Everitt returned to the centre bounce to snuff it
out. Magpie Mark Richardson fell awkwardly towards the end, jarring
a knee.
Everitt had 25 touches and 9
marks and once again controlled the game - it's hard to believe
when you see him, but he's very good. Hudghton played very well
at full back, Daryl Wakelin was also a solid defender. Young
and Winmar (29 disposals, a goal) powered from defence, Harvey
picked up his usual 30 possessions, Andy Thompson and Sziller
were also good. Loewe is flattered by a return of 5 goals, Heatley
continued his revival with 4 goals and Elliott managed 2. Pie
Nathan Buckley had 41 disposals and kicked 1.3, a great effort
although he tends to 'receive' the ball often. Shane Watson did
well to kick 5 goals and there were decent midfield efforts from
Russell and Williams, Wright played decently at the back as did
Godden and Schauble wasn't bad. Tony Rocca didn't play after
all. The Pies had too few contributors again. "We're just
not good enough," said Shaw. "I thought there were
some good efforts out there...but we've got some players making
the same mistakes week in, week out." Referring to the umpiring
(frees 21-11 to the Saints) he said "Someone who used to
be involved in the AFL has a son out there who should never be
on a footy field again." That'd be Gavin Deller. Alves enjoyed
the win. "It was trying conditions for both sides. It's
the first time in the history of the club that we've beaten Collingwood
five times in a row, I thought our application to the task was
admirable." Handy 2-game break on the rest now.
At the MCG:
Richmond 4.3 8.6 14.9 19.13.127
North Melbourne 2.3 4.5 9.6 14.8.92
Good win for the rugged Tiges
over the lethargic Roos, who copped a blast from their coach
afterwards. Richmond ruckman Brendon Gale missed with a cork
thigh and Tiger rover Chaffey will miss 6 weeks with a broken
jaw, Funcke and Bower were dropped. Tall trio McKee, James and
Ottens were selected as cover for Gale, plus Nichols. North lost
full back Martyn with a hamstring and Groom was dropped for the
second week in a row (eh?), Scott returned from injury and Mellington
was recalled.
Like Brisbane/Port, this fixture
bore some resemblance to the last one. It was played in a gusting,
swirling wind, Carey started at CHB before being embarrassed
by Powell and Archer outplayed Richardson - at least for the
first half. Powell kicked 2 early goals before Carey pushed forward
and was picked up by Gaspar. Richmond's midfield, especially
Daffy, Broderick and Rogers, outplayed the Roos who had only
Brent Harvey firing, he created their first goal for Longmire.
Campbell appeared to deliberately trip King, but the ump waved
play-on. One for video, maybe. Carey opened the second quarter
with a one-handed mark but he missed. Broderick weaved for an
easy goal but then North kicked the next two, a snap from Harvey
and another Abraham special. He soared for a screamer over Rogers,
then slotted the kick from 45m on the boundary line. Daffy replied
with an equally good kick, Holland marked and goaled from the
following centre bounce and Bowden sank a bomb. Richardson, who'd
been on and off the ground, took a strong grab and goaled to
start the second half and moments later Broderick took advantage
of North defensive confusion to goal. Brodders speared another
later and the Tiges led by 38 points. Playing North induces a
queasy feeling called Waiting For Carey. Even though he'd done
nothing to this point, everyone knows he can beat you in 5 minutes.
So when he assisted a long Mellington goal, kicked one himself
and handpassed for Grant to cut the margin to 20 points, the
guts were churning. But Richmond responded with a goal for Holland
from a lucky bounce, Richardson marked in the goalsquare and
majored and Powell converted after nice play by Mick Gale. Carey
got one just before the final break but the pain wasn't so bad
and early final term goals from Knights, set up by a beautiful
Bowden handpass, then two for Richardson proved a powerful analgesic.
The Tigers' very good midfield
carried the day, Daffy had 25 kicks and 2 goals, Powell (3 goals),
Knights and Prescott were also very good. Paul Broderick had
an interesting day, he played very well for 26 disposals and
3 goals but appeared to have an on-field row with Gieschen at
half-time - Gieschen said they were "discussing the wind
direction." Gaspar played very well on Carey, although the
North behemoth still kicked 3 goals. Gaspar was assisted by McKee,
who dropped back and also rucked very well, although it's worth
remembering the Roos were without McKernan or Capuano. Rogers
had 31 possessions running from defence and Richardson played
aggressively in the second half to finish with 4 goals. For North
Brent Harvey played a lone hand in the middle with 29 possessions
and a goal. Grant fired briefly in the middle part, he had 19
touches and 2 goals, Blakey played well on Bowden and Longmire
boxed on despite limping heavily with a knee, he kicked 2 goals.
Stevens and Richmond's Campbell played so tightly on each other
that Pete Donegan suggested they were handcuffed, neither got
much of the ball as a result. "The Tigers were far more
passionate and spirited and wanted it far more than we did. We
were flat and sluggish and it was a combination of Richmond's
pressure and our mediocrity and lacklustre approach," said
a non-mincing Pagan. Gieschen said "I don't know if it was
our best win...it was a strong win. We've been pretty consistent,
this was another example of an intense effort over four quarters.
We pride ourselves on being honest." And they are.
At Princes Park:
Footscray 6.1 10.6 15.11 18.14.122
Fremantle 5.3 7.4 9.5 15.6.96
Footcray moved 3 games clear
of third spot with this win, fighting off the feisty Dockers.
Wallace wasn't happy though, saying his side did "just enough"
and no more. Ease up Plough - there's another 10 games 'til the
finals. Bulldog CHB Ellis re-injured his ankle last week, he
was replaced by Cox. Fremantle dropped Koops and lost Harding
with 'flu, recalling Holland and Clem Michael.
Fremantle got some early goals
from big men Hunter, Clement and a rare one for O'Reilly, all
marking and kicking well in the tricky winds. But Footscray had
their usual hard-running, highly skilled midfield men working
well and Smith was dangerous at full forward kicking 2 first-quarter
goals. The Bulldogs got a break in the second quarter with 3
consecutive goals, Hudson splendidly split the big posts from
the boundary line after Callaghan kicked on the full, Martin
raced in for one and Smith snapped perfectly for his fourth goal.
The Dockeroonies wasted possession - again - and blew chances.
The Bulldogs took complete control in the third term, Grant fired
to get on top of Jones and boot a pair of goals, Wynd gained
ruck ascendency as Burton departed with a knee strain. In the
final term the Puppies' lead expanded to eight goals before they
eased off and allowed the Dockers to kick the last 4 goals of
the game - or the Dockers fought on bravely, whichever you prefer.
Footscray embarked on a high-handball
policy which also displeased Wallace (must've bet on Spain).
Romero had 23 amongst his 34 disposals and Wynd handballed 22
times, West had 18 amongst his 30 touches. Smith kicked 5 goals,
Grant kicked 2, had 8 marks and 21 possessions. Hudson bagged
3 goals and Croft got 2 from a good game in attack, Brown and
Wira played usefully. For Freo defender O'Reilly played classily,
hauling down 10 marks. Gale had 23 disposals and 2 goals as the
now ubiquitous defender-without-portfolio, Sinclair and Bond
battled away. Clement kicked 3 goals and there were 2 for each
of Hunter and Bandy. "We played the game out to the end.
This side has blown away sides in the last quarter, that's why
they're top of the table," said Neesham. Wallace saw it
differently. "I was bitterly disappointed with the job we
did in the last 15 minutes. If they'd blown the siren with 15
minutes to go, I'd have been satisfied with a performance which
was methodical, not sensational...it's disappointing for our
fans, they want to leave on a high note.² |
