Around the grounds - Weekly Wrapup

AFL Round 22

Although the regular season's over the finals proper mightn't start for another fortnight after the sides placed fifth to eighth turned in absolute shockers on the weekend, arguably their worst performances of the season. We farewelled "suburban football" in the top league.

On Monday Richmond coach Jeff Gieschen resigned, but it was fairly clear he was pushed. Gieschen announced at his press conference that "I reviewed my position when I heard the club had contacted Kevin Sheedy", causing club manager Jim Malone to wrestle the mic away from Giesch and deny it. Later in the week Sheedy himself confirmed the Richmond offer, believed to be $3 million over 5 years. Gieschen's 2-and-a-bit-year record was almost identical to that of his predecessor Robert Walls, missing the finals on percentage in his first season before a poorer second season. He leaves with a winning record (25-24).

The long-running inquiry into Melbourne's salary cap rorts concluded with the Demons fined $600 K - 250 of which has been suspended pending future compliance - and losing four draft picks, two this year and two in 2000. The AFL used the situation to prop up Fremantle, giving them a compensation pick for the loss of Jeff White to the Dees which, they argue, wouldn't have occurred had Melbourne not broken the rules. That's rubbish. The Dockers will now have three of the first five picks in November, enabling them to get lots more skinny teenage flankers.

Rumours about coaches continue to fly, now it's an alleged certainty that Gary Ayres will leave Geelong to coach Adelaide next year. The Malthouse-to-Collingwood story is accepted as gospel around Melbourne, but Judge-to-West Coast is suddenly less certain with Hawthorn's late season burst of form and Judgey himself is keen to stay put. One fact is known, Rodney Eade signed a 2-year contract extension with Sydney during the week.

At the MCG:

Richmond  4.7    7.9   10.12   13.12.90
Carlton   1.2    3.5    5.6    11.13.79

Blue supporters direct a tiresome volley of sledging towards the Tiges. They're guilty of what shrinks call "projection" - accusing others of faults clear in one's self. For while Richmond 99 have been vin ordinaire, it's been obvious for some time that the corresponding Carlton vintage is scarcely better. In this game Richmond did what they've done the past couple of weeks - tried hard, made lots of mistakes. Yet they were victorious because the opposition was barely half as good as the previous fortnight. In selection the Tiges lost Sampson with a shoulder injury and dropped Funcke and Hilton. In came Torney, Plapp and debutant Ray Hall, a ruckman the Tiges have used as a key defender in the twos. He's from Newcastle Central Coast originally. Carlton were weakened, they lost Camporeale with an ankle injury and Brown was a late withdrawal with a hamstring, De Iulio, Pearce and Vance were axed. Oldies Christou and Matthew Hogg were recalled, Hoggy for his last game as he's retiring. Franchina returned after a long spell with a broken foot, Backwell and White were picked too. Andrew McKay played his 150th game for the Blues and David Parkin participated in a big league game for the 700th time as a player or coach. Not a bad effort.

The start was delayed half an hour as the main MCG scoreboard caught fire. No wispy smoke, this was a full-on, flames leaping into the night sky jobby. Chunks of flaming screen drifted down onto (thankfully) almost empty top deck of the Ponsford Stand and acrid smoke filled the lower levels. Some lads around us had installed the fire equipment. USE THE EFFING HOSE IN B23, they yelled and stabbed at their mobiles. It was put out and the Ponsford Stand patrons transferred to the AFL Members, although the Blue cheer squad was allowed back later. Once the game started, Carlton looked remarkably disinterested. Richmond bored in, Knights and Tivendale doing well in the middle and Daffy running from a back pocket. Bowden kicked the first goal, a freakish rebound from Bradley's soccered kick, then Tivendale walloped a lovely kick from 50m after Evans passed backwards to him. Holland and Gale majored courtesy free kicks and a 50m penalty too in Gale's case. The only Tiger blemishes were some poor misses, from Ottens, Rogers and Bowden. The only Blue doing anything was ruckman Allan, he booted their first goal after a ruck free at a throw-in. Indeed, he took the only marks in their forward line in the first half. Second quarter was much the same, a dull game with the Tiges working harder. Carlton sent Silvagni to full-forward but Tiger Evans snapped the first goal. Later the Blues managed a bit of a spurt, Hamill booted a nice goal and a long Whitnall pot-shot was shepherded through by Scragvagni. But Richmond answered, Daffy's wobbly kick flopped into the arms of Andy Kellaway of all people, he goaled for the first time in his career. From the next bounce the Tiges went forward, Plapp clutched a good mark and converted.

The third quarter was much the same, scrappy, pack-bound footy with lots of errors from both sides. Tivendale speared a nice goal to open the quarter, much struggle before the classy Allan marked strongly and booted his third goal. Moments later Whitnall and Silvagni almost messed things up before Whitnall's hurried snap bounced through. But the Tiges managed to respond again, Moore with a goal and Duncan Kellaway soccered a sausage. When Ottens hit the post after a very soft free just 10m out, the Tigers were exactly double Carlton's score. Early in the final stanza Bradley was run down clearing Carlton's backline, Ratten dropped his pass and Knights pounced to create a goal for Harrison. That put the Tiges a seemingly unassailable 41 points up. Now the Blues, so very poor all night, suddenly awoke. Bradley, Ratten and Murphy began to chase the ball and do something with it. Backwell snapped a bouncing left-foot goal from a tight angle and Ratten found space to blast one through, Nelson roved a pack perfectly to slot on the run and the Bloos were 21 points behind. Richmond's second attack of the quarter saw a goalmouth scramble where Holland's soccer dribbled through. But on came the Bluies, Bradley kicked nicely for Whitnall to lead, mark and goal. Silvagni snapped accurately from the pocket as Turner slipped. Hogg picked out Whitnall with a pass, his goal cut the margin to 6 points. We'd baited the Blue fans all night, but we weren't so cocky now. Beaumont's hurried shot slewed through for a point, 5 points the diff. Turner's kick-in went to Campbell, his long kick to the wing was well-marked by Holland. Carlton's Justin Murphy did a Jim Stynes and jogged blithely between Holland and the man-on-the-mark. An automatic 50m penalty. Blue fans were out of their tiny minds with rage as Holland stuttered in and punted truly. It was enough. The umpires were met with a barrage of missiles and Blue abuse as they departed, Murphy was reported for his verbal assault while we got to sing the Tiger song after a five-week lean spell.

Tiger captain Knights worked very hard, made a few mistakes but still played well for 24 disposals. Rombotis, a man of limited ability, threw himself at Ratten and the ball for 21 touches and young Tivendale continues to show promise, he had 18 disposals and 2 goals. The defence did well, Turner held Silvagni and the brothers Kellaway both played strongly and kicked a goal each, Duncan had 22 disposals. Daffy had 25 disposals, starting in the back pocket and later moving into the centre. Holland kicked 3 goals from 11 kicks. For the Blues Allan stood tall, despite tiring towards the finish he had 22 disposals, 6 marks and 2 goals. Bradley had 13 touches in the last quarter to finish with 30, but his missed shots on goal proved costly. Murphy had 29 disposals, half in the last term and Ratten shook off Rombo for 11 final-quarter touches, 22 altogether. Franchina tagged Campbell out of it and Sexton played well at CHB with 7 marks. Whitnall kicked 4 goals from 5 marks, 13 kicks although Gaspar played alright. Parkin was so upset with the Bloos' very ordinary effort that he refused to speak to the meedya. The departing Gieschen said "That was typical of Richmond's season, to be able to show that type of form but it was disappointing not being able to put them away...but it was a relief to have a win like that in your last game. I've only been here three years but you grow attached to the place." Another hefty helping of mediocrity from the Tigers this year, despite vintage seasons from Richardson and Campbell, no injuries to speak of and a dream fixture with 17 at the 'G. Dragicevic emerged as good youngster, Holland, Ottens and Tivendale improved. Giesch's tactics and selection were a bit strange, Torney played well in this game but spent nearly all year in the twos as did David Bourke while modest talents like Funcke had extended runs in the firsts. But Giesch is the symptom of deeper problems.

At Victoria Park:

Collingwood  1.1    3.3    3.3      8.4.52
Brisbane     6.4    8.6   10.11   13.16.94

Absolutely, positively the very last game for points at Victoria Park, or McHale Stadium as it's been re-named in honour of the loveable sitcom character created by Ernest Borgnine. Nah, it's Jock McHale who played 261 games for the Pies from 1903-1920 and coached 'em from 1912-1949, a massive 38 years encompassing 8 premierships. Also the final appearance for Tony Shaw as the Collingwood coach, he's a pretty ordinary record and rounded off by winning the Pies' second wooden spoon in their history. However this was not their worst season in history as I said last week, at least in terms of wins. That came in 1942 when the Maggies won just two of the 14 games in the season, but they didn't get the spoon - Hawthorn won just the once. Some of Shawry's record is not his fault though, a stagnant board letting the team slide. This game emphasised the task his successor faces as there was vast gulf in class between the teams, although the young Pies were overwhelmed by the occasion. Pies made just one change, axing Jamie Tape for Scott Crow. Brisbane had two decent players return in Brad Scott and Craig Lambert, Brett Voss and Mark Robbins made way.

The Magpies turned it into a huge day of celebration, a pre-game function saw impassioned speeches from President Eddie and past Pie legends. Later, former players gathered on the ground to re-enact famous moments in Pie history, my favourite was Denis Banks climbing a ladder for his famous mark against the Dogs, then punching the bejeezus out of a David Rhys-Jones effigy. They later did a lap of the ground on the back of golf carts, eschewing the normal convertible cars. Participants included 92-year-old Roy Allen, the oldest surviving Pie player. They coulda used him on a flank. Shaw's emotive pre-game speech was shown live on TV within and without the ground. It was all too much for the Pies once the game itself finally started. With the aid of a breeze the Lions attacked constantly for the first 15 minutes to the Yarra Falls end, against an very nervous Collingwood. McRae kicked the first two goals, roving close to the sticks and Black's clever hooked left-footer found Lynch in the goalsquare. Keating, Voss and Black gave the visitors complete control across the centre and the Pies made mistakes, notably a terrible kick from Schauble which went straight to Lappin. Another scrappy kick from defence was thumped back with interest by Notting, Lions led 4.4 to nought. The Pies finally managed to cross their attacking 50m and Rocca fired the crowd with some heavy bumps, scrambling a point. Moments later Tarrant marked strongly on the flank and punted long for Rocca to take a huge grab over Akermanis and boot the goal. But it was a singular event, Lynch led, marked and booted another goal with an excellent kick. He'd probably played more games at Vic Park than anyone else out there, besides Browny and Crosisca. Molloy crashed into a pack as he raced out to meet a high kick, scooped up the ball, shrugged a couple of weak Pie tackles and speared a brilliant goal to put Brisbane firmly in charge at the first break.

Tighter second term as the Magpies knuckled down and Brisbane found it harder to score against the breeze. Rocca missed an early chance before McRae bobbed up to sneak his third goal. Gav Brown marked strongly on the flank and drifted a very good shot through - local knowledge. Brisbane lost Black with a groin strain. Molloy and Lynch missed easy shots before Tarrant was held on the 50m line and received a free and very friendly 50m penalty when Akermanis kicked the ball away. He goaled, but Michael missed a shot a minute later and Brisbane kicked the last goal of the half, Lynch from Molloy's handpass. Dull third term during which I dozed off. Voss didn't re-appear for the Brians, a knee strain. McRae roved perfectly again to a throw-in for an early goal and a bit later Brisbane executed a lovely end-to-end move, started by Leppitsch's good mark and switch of play and ending with Akermanis's pass to Lynch. Apart from those two goals nothing else happened. More action in the final term as the Lions took the foot off, Crow passed to Rocca for an early goal before McRae pounced again near the goals and passed for a Hart sausage. Chris Scott punched a Pie kick-in 20m where Molloy was waiting to kick a major which put the Brians 10 goals up. Collingwood then booted 4 consecutive goals, Crow passed to Rocca for the first, helped by a 50m given away by Heuskes. Burns booted consecutive goals, good kicks and then he gave one away for Crow as the Pie fans at last had something to cheer. The final goal at Vicky Park was scored by Brisbane's Luke Power, the Lions rebounding after Prestigiacomo dithered and had his kick smothered. After the siren the Pies conducted a pretentious Olympic-style flag-lowering ceremony amid tears and genuine emotion from the Pie hordes, the song being belted out many times as all the past and present players lined up in the centre. There was no mass destruction of the ground as some had stupidly predicted, but plenty of folks sampled some Vic Park soil.

Sorry to interrupt by talking about Brisbane, but they're quite good. Keating began it all from the ruck, he's taken Clarke's no. 1 position there, only 8 touches with 4 marks but his 31 hitouts fed rovers Ashcroft (24 disposals), Voss and Black who were both busy before injured. The backline was very good again, led by Chris Scott (18 touches) who tagged Buckley effectively in the second half. Leppitsch and Heuskes were good in support. Lawrence was his usual tough, hard self and had 17 touches. Up front McRae and Lynch kicked 4 goals each, together with Molloy (2 goals) they were too cluey for their raw Pie opponents. Collingwood's best player on their final home ground appearance was a matter of debate. I'd agree with Mick McGuane who nominated Scott Burns, he worked hard around packs all day for 24 disposals and deserved his 2 final-quarter goals. As usual Buckley covered ground and gathered 23 disposals, but he had a quiet second half with Scott on him. Olarenshaw gathered plenty of touches (24) on a wing and Rocca wasn't disgraced with his 3 goals and 7 marks. Williams (24 disposals) and Lane (20) were alright although Lane's ball use was ordinary, Tarrant did OK with 17 touches and a goal. Shaw's final comments were."It was a disappointing day. I haven't seen them play like that for the last three months...I just think the whole occasion got to them. Brisbane were pretty pro-active. I think they're the best side by a mile that we've played. Hopefully the younger blokes will enjoy the experience and learn from it." Shaw's off to a career in the meedya and his side finished pretty much where people expected them to this season, but may at last move forward in 2000. For a change they actually got some decent players in, Betheras, Davis, Lane, Licuria and Lockyer, while previous draft picks like Tarrant began to develop. Matthews said "The win means we can't finish any lower than third and that was the objective of our day. To play in an unusual atmosphere - our guys were able to cope with all of that and start the game with an intensity that has taken them where they are and can take them a long way."

At the MCG:

Essendon   3.2    8.5   12.13   17.14.116
Melbourne  7.2   12.5   13.6    15.9.99

The Dees gave it a big effort but were unable to roll the top Dons who, despite having little to play for, still pulled out a big second half to assert their authority. Places in the side maybe with Misiti and Lucas due back. A nice contrast with the lower half of the eight. The Bombers were without Mercuri ('flu, officially) while Jason Johnson and Lalich were dropped to make way for Alessio and Young returning from suspension, plus youngster Bolton was given a run. Captain James Hird was ruled out of the finals after his foot injury flared again at training during the week. Melbourne dropped Walsh, Bishop and Smoker for Chisholm, Grgic and James McDonald.

The Dees were fired by the fact of captain Todd Viney's last game, but perhaps also by the knowledge that they'd beaten the Bommers in the high-scoring round 7 game. Uncomfortable reminders for the Dons early as Neitz and Schwarz ran rampant, Neitz kicked 3 goals in the first quarter, two from strong marks and Schwarz had a hand in majors for Ward and Simmonds. Don fans must've been happy Farmer was in the twos. There was a collective intake of breath when Schwarz collapsed clutching his thrice-reconstructed knee, but he was alright. In the second term Lloyd lifted to help the Dons get going, he'd set up two of the Dons' first-term goals and now booted three himself despite an early thumping from Grgic, who was reported for charging for the second time. He'd gone into the book for crunching Rioli in the first stanza. Alessio, pushing forward from the ruck, got some goals too and Fletcher, relieved of Neitz, snapped a lovely goal from the pocket. But the Dees matched them, Neitz kicked another after doing his own roving, Rigoni and Collins also dobbed sausages as Grgic, Anthony McDonald and Matt Febey sent the ball down. The Dons' strength and experience started to tell after half time though, Wallis bobbed up in attack to kick a couple of goals, Rioli got one and Demon Seecamp gave away a goal when reported for head-butting Barnard. The Dees weren't going quietly. Alessio had gone into defence to help out while Bewick and new captain Long lifted. The Dees continued to battle away, Viney missed a shot when they were just 5 points down late in the final term before Bewick's high snap sealed it.

The Same Olds have finished on top and the other four times that's happened under Sheedy they've made the Grand Final, losing just once in 1990. Still, that was Peter Sumich's fault. There wasn't a final eight those other times either. In this game Alessio (19 disposals, 10 hitouts, 4 goals) was very good in attack, ruck and defence. Bewick (24 touches, a goal), Fraser (27) and Long (26, a goal) were excellent across the middle. Lloyd led the forward line with 3 goals, 8 marks and 19 possies altogether, giving a few majors away. Blumfield's burst of form continued with 17 touches and a goal. Wallis kicked 2 goals. Demons received good service from "the future" in centreman Woewodin (20 disposals), half-forward Grgic (18 touches, 6 marks) and spearhead Neitz (4 goals). Older heads Steven Febey (23 disposals) and Schwarz (6 marks, 3 goals) played well too. Viney didn't have a great last game but was impressed the team lifted for him and lifted him literally, off the ground at the end. Rigoni kicked 3 goals and Collins bagged 2. A haggard Neale Daniher greeted the end of a forgettable season. Prelim final to fourteenth is a fair drop. "Probably our second halfs for the past 12 weeks are an indication that we have too many skinny kids, too many older blokes not fit enough. I thought our first half was great. We were very disappointed for Todd that we couldn't win the game." Indeed the elements so good last year had poor years this year (Farmer, White, Rigoni, Yze), got hurt (Tingay most notably) or were exposed a bit, especially the key defenders. Sheedy said "We've come from fourteenth (er, that was two years ago) and built ourselves up into a very good, strong, solid unit. We need to make sure we keep our feet on the ground. All we've done really is make the finals. The finals are a different sort of ball game."

At Princes Park:

Footscray      2.2    7.5   15.7    22.13.145
Port Adelaide  0.3    4.6    8.10   11.12.78

Port coach Mark Williams fumed as his team's close-checking, hard and tight game plan fell apart in the second half of this game. Willams flagged the returns of Tredrea, Burgoyne and late withdrawal French next week, but they're gonna have to play a lot better to trouble the Roos and avoid an early exit. Wallace declared the Pups to be as ready as possible. Scott West was back for the Bulldogs at Dent's expense, but Wynd and Garlick were late withdrawals with "soreness" and a corky respectively, Contessa and Mark Alvey replaced them. Nicky Winmar played his 250th game. Port lost Cornes with a hammy, dropped Steinberner and had French pull out with "soreness". In came centreman Francis, ruckman Chalmers and forward Lockwood.

A tight first term typical of Power games. Bulldog winger Johnson hammered Wanganeen as the latter sat under a hospital kick, Johnson entered the book for charging. Wanganeen seemed unaffected, playing very well early as his backline and the Bulldogs' were on top. Smith kicked the Bullies' first goal after Liberatore's handpass sent him away, Smith had a hand in the next major, kicked by Kolyniuk. For the second term Chalmers came off the bench to play at full forward and kicked the Flowers' first goal after strong grab. Winmar then had a violet patch, booting three goals in five minutes with cool, classy snaps and a good lead and mark. Eagleton and Chalmers responded for the visitors before Brown snapped a long goal for the Pups and Alvey found Hudson on the lead. However it was a different story after half time, the Bulldogs rebounded from defence far too easily for Williams's liking and streamed from the centre. Darcy bested Lade in the ruck and Smith, Johnson and the in-form Libber thumped the ball down for Hudson to get more goals. Alvey booted two excellent running goals, one with each foot and Brown got another after marking Smith's long punt right on the goal-line. Port weren't hopeless, kicking four goals of their own with Lockwood prominent but they couldn't rein in the Bullies. It's rare for them to allow a blow-out but the Dogs romped away in the final term, two goals came direct from centre bounces to Kolyniuk and Romero (set up by Kolyniuk's great handpass) and Hudson banana-snapped for his 400th career goal.

All systems go as the Dogs head into September, Smith ran aggressively off half-back for 24 kicks and a goal amongst his 33 disposals altogether and fellow flankers Montgomery (29 touches, 10 marks) and Johnson (29) were also handy. Darcy rucked well in Wynd's absence for 26 disposals, 9 marks and a goal. Hudson bagged 5 goals from 19 possessions and Winmar enjoyed his milestone with 4 goals from 14 kicks. After a slow start rover West ended up with 26 touches and a goal, Kolyniuk, Brown and Alvey all kicked 2 goals. One to write off for the Power, midfielders Francou (23 disposals, a goal), Schofield (19) and Stevens (21) battled away, Eagleton was efficient with 3 goals from 7 kicks and Lockwood made a good return with 3 goals, Chalmers also snaggled 3 goals. Williams promised an improvement. "That will be nowhere near how we play next week...we'll change our side significantly next week...We'll just wipe it off and get on with the next game, fortunately we've got another game when a lot of sides haven't." Wallace reckoned "We're ready. We're as ready as we could possibly be. We've just got to put our foot on the pedal and do the right thing over the next four weeks...it's virtually another season when you hit the finals, (but) we go in with a relative degree of confidence." Kretiuk injured a hip in this game but Wynd and Garlick should be back

At the WACA:

West Coast  3.5    5.6    7.7    12.8.80
St. Kilda   4.3   13.7   15.9   18.13.121

West Coast followed the examples set by Carlton and Port with a miserable effort on finals eve. Getting the odds up maybe. Or perhaps they can blame the WACA. Whatever, there's no obvious reason for this incredibly inept display against a team who'd won two of their previous eleven, although West Coast went in with one win from nine themselves. It was all a case of what coodabeen for the Saints. No Loewe or Hall but they kicked their highest score for weeks. The Eegs made just one alteration after successive 2-point losses, ruckman/forward Ball returning for Fewster. The Saints had Rob Harvey back but lost Loewe with a groin strain and Hall was a late pullout, Tony Brown was axed after an error-riddled effort last week. Peckett and Cranage were recalled. Luke Beveridge played his final game, he's hangin' 'em up. Common wisdom also holds that it was Malthouse's last home game in charge of the Weegs.

The early going gave no sign of what was coming. Everitt and Mitchell kicked the first two goals for the Saints, both from marks, before the locals rattled on four consecutive behinds, all gettable shots. Matera and Cummings missed, Rintoul kicked too low and had it touched. Walton snapped a great goal for the Saints but the from the bounce the Eagles went forward, Cummings flattened Hudghton, gathered and handpassed for Phil Matera to score a sausage. Hudghton was stretchered off, hit perfectly legally I should point out. The Saint midfield was showing often and Heatley marked three times in as many minutes, but only his third shot gained maximum points. Diminutive Mitchell marked overhead and handpassed for another Heatley goal, Saints by 17 points. Now the Eags hit back late, Williams tidied his poor kick with a good snap and some neat passing set up a goal for Gehrig.

Cousins goaled early in the second quarter, a free after Young tripped him, and West Coast led by 2 points. They promptly fell apart as the Saints kicked 9 majors to 1 'til half-time. The first of this run was typical, Rintoul's badly telegraphed handpass intercepted by Thompson who raced forward and speared it through. Everitt marked a McIntosh kick-in and handpassed to McLaren, goal. Beveridge slotted wonderfully from a tight angle. Eagle Banfield spilled an uncontested mark. Heatley and Mitchell, a good double act, added a goal each to their tallies as Thompson and Harvey ran riot in the middle and the Wakelin sisters smothered the Eag forwards. Everitt snapped 'em 35 points clear before an Eagle goal. Never mind, Beveridge kicked another and from the restart McLaren kicked long where Mitchell marked and converted from the goalsquare. Read dropped a mark, Peckett roved it and gold, Mitchell White kicked on the full under no pressure but luckily for him Heatley missed. Good as over at the long break.

West Coast tried to unsettle the Saints early in the third quarter when Eagle captain McKenna demanded a head-count. As Commetti commented "If you're an Eagle it must seem as though there's thirty Saints out there." The game stopped as the players lined up in the centre. No problem. Immediately Harvey handpassed for Beveridge to kick his third goal and the Saints led by 55 points. Coleman medallist Cummings was dragged, mainly because he hadn't seen the ball for forty minutes. Heatley kicked another Saint six-pointer before the Eagles knuckled down and at least stemmed the bleeding, Phil Matera kicked a great goal after weaving away from Burke and they got another before the final change. I'd lost interest and switched to the hilarious Mick Molloy Show. Turned back in the final term to see the Weevils kick three consecutive goals, Matera, Morrison and Cummings got his first. Later Gehrig scored with a great left-foot snap before Saint Aussi Jones finally kicked a goal after four misses including two posters. Beveridge was chaired off after the siren.

Very good midfield for the Saints, Andrew Thompson was great in the centre with 36 disposals, 22 kicks and 14 handpasses plus a goal. Could be a club champion award coming his way. Harvey played as a forward flanker and got the agget 32 times, McLaren had 28 touches and kicked a goal. Draftee Hayes completed a very promising season with 19 touches and Beveridge completed his career with 21 possessions and 3 goals. Daryl Wakelin was very good on Cummings and brother Shane did excellently on White, although the Eagle pair suffered service even a Pom might would complain about. Heatley kicked 4.5 from 9 marks and Mitchell kicked 3 goals, Everitt and Walton kicked 2 goals each. Everitt, rumoured to be moving to Collingwood, announced his intention to stay with the Saints. For the Eagles Cousins worked hard as usual for 25 disposals and 2 goals, Matera was lively for 3 goals against Burke and Wirrpunda battled in the besieged backline. Young Crabb (18 touches), Rintoul (23) and Kemp (15) weren't the worst. Gehrig kicked 3 goals. They also picked up a couple of injuries, McIntosh hobbled off with a knee after Heatley exposed him early on, Wirrpunda and Braun ended up limping. Malthouse said "Blind Freddy could see our injury problems - of course we are concerned. We have to assess the players during the week and see how they come up." It was left to Jakovich to blast his teammates. "The players have got to grow up and be men and not little boys...the guys believe in themselves, there's no divisions in the club. But unfortunately, we're happy to finish fifth, sixth or seventh - every individual has to take good, long, hard, look at himself. We can get up (next week) because from rounds 1 to 10 we were a very, very good side. From round 11 to 22 we were an inadequate, ordinary football side." Watson isn't quoted directly but is reported as wondering why his team waited until there was nothing to play for to show their best form. After a poor start to the year, not helped by a tough fixture, the Saints looked great by mid-season, third on the ladder with wins over Essendon and the Eagles and a narrow loss to North. But the wheels promptly fell off when they blew an 11-goal lead against Hawthorn in round 12 and they never recovered. First-time coach Watson will have learned a lot, hopefully.

At Football Park:

Adelaide         0.5    3.12   4.16    8.18.66
North Melbourne  8.4   13.5   17.7   22.10.142

The decimated Crows couldn't rouse themselves for Malcolm Blight's last game in charge, copping a hiding from the finals-bound Roos. Their big win secured second place and automatic entry into a preliminary final should (when?) they beat Port next weekend. For Blighty's final selection at Camryville injuries afflicted the team again, Burton (broken ribs), Koster (knee), Ellen and Robran (hamstrings) were all out from last week, replacements were Gallagher, Golding, Herbert and Matthew Liptak, Liptak playing his last game for the Crows as was Rod Jameson. Liptak was club champion in 1996. North regained ruckman McKernan and called up Daniel Stevens, Anderson and Scott were dropped.

All decided very quickly, McKernan snapped the opening goal and as Capuano won the rucks and Bell and Grant ran wild in the middle the goals racked up. Welsh, Carey and Grant bombarded the sticks, the Camrys kicked points. The Roos were 9.4 when Bickley kicked Adelaide's first goal, Ricciuto went on to kick two more for 'em in the quarter. But it hardly mattered. Pickett was playing terrifically well in the Roos’ back half and Sholl posing the question why he was ever dropped. Crow full back Bassett broke his leg in awkward fall in the opening minutes of the third quarter and had to be stretchered off. The pace of the game slackened, Carey took to taunting the crowd each time he goaled. They might have reminded him of a miss he had in the final quarter of last year's GF. I tuned in for the last term to see Nigel Smart kick two good goals (he got three for the quarter apparently), one after he was clobbered by Archer following a mark. A 50m penalty and possible video scrutiny for Arch. Carey dribbled a great goal from a very tight angle and laughed at the crowd, Bell and Harvey kicked classical rovers' goals. Jameson drop-kicked a 45m pass to Vardy, winning 15 grand from a local radio station. Moments later Jameson's last kick in the AFL was a drop-punted goal. Upon the final siren the result was ignored, the Crows assembled in the centre and Blight, Liptak and Jameson did a lap of honour saluting the crowd and teammates for the last time.

North go nicely into the finals. Byron Pickett played very well for 22 kicks off half-back, using his speed to advantage. Grant had 27 possessions and kicked 3 goals, Sholl kicked 3 goals from 13 kicks and rover Bell picked up 25 touches and bagged 2 goals. King had 19 kicks and a goal from the wing, ruckman Capuano had the better of the raw Corolla duo. Carey kicked 4 goals and took 6 marks against Mark Stevens. Welsh continued his good form with 3 goals and Allison booted 2 sausage rolls. Adelaide captain Mark Bickley worked overtime for 33 disposals, 10 marks and a goal. Smart did well for 25 touches and 3 last-quarter goals, fellow winger Connell had 23 touches. Hart was good in defence again, he had a decent year and Ormond-Allen and Thiessen tried hard. Ricciuto kicked 2 goals. From the moment ruckman Shaun Rehn wrecked his knee in an Ansett Cup game the Crows looked to be struggling this year. Further injuries and a notable premiership hangover are the explanations for their equal-worst season with just 8 wins. They did unearth a couple of good players though in Brett Burton and David Gallagher, young big man McGregor looks a handy type too. Blight said "It is a bit empty, a disappointing finish. But I don't think the history books should show that the performance this year is indicative of the club. And I hope the next year or two with a new coach will show that. The club has been dealt a severe blow this year. Maybe the luck we've had in the last couple of years deserted us. But as someone in the paper said, 'Two out of three ain't bad'." Mal went on to praise North’s professionalism, calling them "a terrific team". Pagan's comments could have been lifted from a dozen North games. "I just thought our attack on the ball was terrific when it needed to be won. We never thought it was going to easy, I assure you. We were primed and ready."

At Kardinia Park

Geelong    4.7    7.11   15.12   21.13.139
Fremantle  4.2   10.2    13.7    13.10.88

Questions over Gary Ayres's future - "I'm considering my options" was all he'd say after the game - were the main interest of this clash of also-rans. Collingwood's loss the previous day removed the shadow of the spoon from the Dockers, while Geelong's aspirations were ruined by an inexplicable run of nine straight losses mid-season. The Cats dropped Finocchiaro for Scott Bamford. Fremantle lost Modra (hamstring), Kickett (knee) and Bond (achilles), while Burton was dropped. Replacements were Koops, Wira, Dodd and debutant Justin Longmuir, an 18-year-old ruckman who was the no. 2 draft pick last year. He's from West Perth.

Cats were away quickly with the first three goals before Fremantle got moving, Waterhouse was strangled off the ball but Holland roved and converted, Koops handballed for Shipp and Callaghan got one. The visitors went on to boot six unanswered goals in the second quatrain and grab the lead, Koops, Holland, Taylor and Shipp forming an effective mosquito-fleet forward line while McManus burned in the middle. A great bit of play from Koops set up Longmuir's first AFL goal. For the second half Cat Steinfort went onto Fletcher in the middle, Steinfort snapped goal straight from the opening bounce before Fletcher replied from a mark. But the Catters began to improve, kids Rahilly and Harley got involved, Sholl pushed forward to bolster the midfield and the erratic Snell started kicking goals. Unfortunately for Freo they suffered an all-too-frequent final-quarter fade, Geelong romped away as Graham pushed forward to kick a couple of goals and other Cats queued up to have a go. They had the cheek to perform a lap of honour after the siren although the supporters are kind down there. Freo fans could ponder the 11-27 free kick count against them.

Best aspect for the Cats was the performance of some fringey and younger players whom Ayres seemed to ignore for much of the season. Steinfort had 23 disposals and a goal from the centre, Rahilly 21 touches and 3 goals from a forward flank, Harley and Hamish Simpson were solid in defence and Houlihan was handy with 19 possessions and a goal. Sholl was busy with 23 touches and Kilpatrick got amongst 'em for 17 disposals and a goal. Snell had 21 disposals, took 8 marks and kicked 3 goals, Graham, Burns, Arnott and Milburn booted 2 goals each. The Dockers' best were Brodie Holland (25 disposals, 3 goals), ruckman Bandy who's had his best year (10 marks and 35 hitouts in this game), McManus (18 touches), Matt Clucas who had 20 disposals as he played for his career, Fletcher with 17 disposals and a goal and Black with 21 handlings. Taylor, Waterhouse and Shipp kicked 2 goals each. Fremantle ended up pretty much where folks expected, some would even say avoiding the spoon was a minor victory. There were inaugural wins at the MCG and over the Eagles. They picked up a good draftees in Modra (71 goals) and Shipp, there were improvements from Bandy and Waterhouse. But they've still a way to go. "It's been a very disappointing year," said Drum. "Losing six games up front took a huge momentum out of our season. I now have a very accurate path to follow. Eight or nine games, we've been well-placed at three-quarter time but for one reason or another we've just run out of gas." He then stirred the possum a bit. "The three draft picks we get is small consolation for the year we've had, but it does give us cause for optimism and the hope that we can build a strong club." Ayres said "I probably thought we were playing their game a bit. With their straight kicking they caused us a bit of angst. To end up with 13 goal scorers and over 20 goals is a good way to finish off the season." Ayres rued the two two-point losses to Hawthorn, the first precipitating the run of nine straight defeats after the five wins which started the season, plus the one-point loss against the Dogs. "They stopped us playing in the finals and that's very disappointing to me as a coach." Ayres is very disappointing to me as a coach and if he leaves it mightn't be a loss.

At Waverley:

Hawthorn  6.6   10.11   17.13   23.15.153
Sydney    2.0    3.1     7.2     11.2.68

A full house of 72,103 turned out for the last game at Waverley. It's been eulogised in recent weeks as "the people's stadium" to contrast with the corporate Docklands and indeed, like many public facilities it was badly designed, left half-built when the money ran out, poorly maintained and in a hopeless spot. Many might argue with that last proposition and it's true that there should be a stadium in the south-east, but the lack of public transport and terrible traffic snarls made Waverley a pain to attend, even if you lived nearby. The last week saw a wave of nostalgia for Waverley moments; the sprinklers coming on during a night game featuring WA's Claremont; Tiger Peter Laughlin ruining his knee on an exposed sprinkler head (OK, obscure but it sticks out for me); Kerry Good's goal well after the inaudible final siren to deprive Collingwood of a night flag; Fitzroy man Mick Conlan's goal to halt a rampaging Essendon in the elimination final of 1981; Jim Stynes's 15m penalty, enabling Gary Buckenara to kick the winning goal after the siren in the 1987 prelim; the look on Eagle Murray Wrensted's face post-siren after he'd missed a match-deciding shot seconds before in the 1988 elimination final; the Batmobile Grand Final in 1991; the lights failing during an Essendon/St. Kilda game in 1996 and subsequent ground invasion. Before this game Sam Newman parachuted in to the ground, he'd played in the first game at Waverley, Geelong v Fitzroy in 1970.

Ah, the game. Sydney knew going in that a win would've pushed them up to fifth and almost definitely a double chance, but unlike Collingwood the previous day the Hawks responded positively to the emotional burden and fairly whupped the Swans. Eade dismissed the Swans' finals chances afterwards, saying the were just "making up the numbers." Hawthorn emulated last year's feat of winning the last five and also improved on last year's record by two wins. In selection the Hawks lost Tallis with illness, Barker was dropped and for the third consecutive week Graham was selected but didn't play. Hassall came in along with a first-gamer, Glen Bowyer from Wodonga via the rookie list. Sydney had Goodes return from his fractured arm, Feast was dropped to make room. From the moment Nick Holland speared a great running goal from the pocket to open the scoring and elicit a massive roar from the pro-Hawk crowd, the Swans were in trouble. Thompson and Holland formed an unstoppable forward combination while Rock, Taylor, and Barlow got leather poisoning in the middle, later on Crawford got involved. Sydney answered the first two Hawthorn goals with majors from Kelly and Maxfield, but the Hawks went on to boot eight in a row before O'Loughlin kicked their third goal. Thompson marked everything that came near him and booted a couple of banana-goals, Holland ran the clearly unsuited O'Connor ragged and slotted a superb third-quarter goal from Crawford's look-away handpass. Goals continued to arrive right to the end, when Lockett got a few late consolations. Upon the siren thousands of fans flooded onto the ground and tore out hunks of turf, either for a souvenir or to throw at media types reporting "live".

Nathan Thompson was described by Judge: "Two years ago he was overweight, had a huge bum on him and couldn't run out of sight on a dark night." In this game Thompson slaughtered Stafford and Dunkley with 7 marks, 13 kicks and 6 goals. Holland took 13 marks and booted 5 goals from his 21 possessions. If only he'd done it all year. Rock had 22 touches and kicked 2 goals, Taylor 29 with 2 goals and they won the ball repeatedly around packs. Croad was a marvellously attacking backman 17 touches and Hay held Lockett well for 3 quarters although Plug got poor service. Crawford had a relatively quiet day but still picked up 23 possessions, Harford got 22 touches and had 3 goals and Vermont’s own Kris Barlow booted a goal amongst his 25 handlings. Dixon also kicked 2 goals. Few Bloods worth mentioning, O'Loughlin stood out with 3 goals and Schwass battled away for 33 disposals, Filandia had a dip. Cresswell had one of those games where you look at the stats and exclaim "29 disposals - when?" Lockett kicked 4 goals, three in the last quarter. Eade didn't mince words. "That is probably the worst performance I have been involved with since I have been here at the club...I would like to able to make excuses, but I just don't know. Obviously we were flat and they out-ran us, I don't know why..." Judge said "One thing I did say when we lost two games by less than a kick early in the year, it could come back to hurt us and it probably has, our form in the last five weeks has been probably as good as any team in the competition. It is one of the frustrations that you have got to live with." The Hawks also copped some fair hidings during the year but their young team is making steady progress and Judgey would be mad to leave, you'd think.