Geelong confirm their greatness in an epic struggle

Columnist

By Adrian Musolino, 27 Sep 2009 Adrian Musolino is a Roar Expert

Tagged:: AFL, AFL grand final, controversial umpiring decisions, Darren Milburn, demonstrative behaviour, Gary Ablett, Geelong Cats, harry taylor, Mark Thompson, MCG, Nick Riewoldt, Paul Chapman, Ross Lyon, St Kilda Saints, umpiring

Related coverage

Geelong players celebrate their win after the 2009 Toyota AFL Grand Final between the St Kilda Saints and the Geelong Cats at the MCG.

The AFL dominates the Australian sporting landscape because it delivers entertainment like that. Geelong and St Kilda ensured the greatest day on our sporting calendar lived up to the occasion with the Cats confirming their greatness in a thrilling Grand Final.

With the grey weather relenting in the dying moments of the final quarter with scores tied and mutterings of a draw growing louder, the likes of Gary Ablett and Paul Chapman stood tall and ensured the Cats sealed their second premiership in three years.

Chapman’s performance highlighted their iron will, playing out the match after tearing his hamstring early in the second quarter, winning the Norm Smith medal and scoring the match-winner.

Little separated the two teams all day as the weather had a huge impact on how the game was played.

It was an error-laden affair, one that didn’t reflect the skill set and capability of the two teams.

St Kilda’s early domination wasn’t reflected on the scoreboard as nerves cost them dearly.

The conditions didn’t suit their tall forwards and Nick Riewoldt was subdued for most of the day, effectively kept quiet by the brilliant Harry Taylor.

St Kilda’s small forwards had plenty of opportunities to make a break on the Cats but they kicked inaccurately in the first half. Just as it cost the Cats last year, the Saints would be severely punished for their woeful kicking.

With so little separating the teams on the scoreboard, the Cats proved to be hungrier when it counted.

Luck may have played a part, as coach Mark Thompson confirmed, but their ability to stay in contention despite rarely hitting top gear confirmed their strength.

Perhaps the hurt from last season was the motivating factor in the end.

Had they failed for a second consecutive year, doubts would have been cast on their stature.

There were plenty of talking points to emerge from the contest.

It may have been somewhat overshadowed by the Geelong victory but the demonstrative behaviour call on Darren Milburn at the conclusion of the first half could have been the definitive moment of the contest.

Should such a decision, which does follow the letter of the law, be made in such a scenario?

It was a brave call that swung the momentum of the game on the brink of halftime and could have cost the Cats the premiership.

There was plenty of focus on the umpiring with numerous questionable decisions. In such a close, arm-wrestle of a contest each decision was always going to be magnified.

And what if Paul Chapman hadn’t been able to snap the winning goal in that crucial play and scores remained level at the siren?

How would the AFL, the fans and teams have coped with returning to the MCG next week?

It would have been a fascinating scenario to see unfold.

The skills may have been lacking in the tricky conditions, but the closeness of the competition made for a thrilling contest, proving why Australian Rules football is the most popular code in the country.

It was edge of your seat stuff for all four quarters.

With their second premiership in three years the Cats have confirmed themselves as one of the greatest AFL teams ever. At times they were written off this season but they proved their mental strength when it counted.

It’ll be fascinating to see how they motivate themselves for next season.

Just as last season’s defeat motivated the Cats in this Grand Final, you sense St Kilda will find that extra level of hunger and determination for next season following this narrow defeat.

It sets up next season very nicely.

Enjoy sports? Enjoy a bargain? All Sports Online has your favourite sporting brands at up to 70% off. Online only, premium quality sporting goods and merchandise at discounted prices. Get a deal now.

The Crowd Says (43) | Page 1 of Comments

Kurt said | September 27th 2009 @ 6:14am | Report comment

Good win by the cats, they took their chances while St Kilda squandered many of theirs. However as much as the tight score-line made it an engrossing contest, I do think it lacked the defining performance that is required for a GF to truly be considered a classic. Sure Chapman’s performance was good but hardly the stuff of legend, Ablett was ok,Lenny Hayes was decent in bursts but apart from that is there anything from the game that really sticks in the memory? The two most notable moments were umpiring decisions – Hawkins goal being allowed when it hit the post and the ‘double goal’ near half time. So in summary a good, tight game but not one for the ages.

Reply
- hazey.the.bear said | September 27th 2009 @ 6:36am | Report comment
  
  To an extent, I’d have to agree, but I think it’s fair to say that the weather was the main culprit behind it all…Towards the end, I was actually hoping for a draw, so that we could have the game again, but under better conditions. The things that really stuck in my memory was the defensive jobs of Taylor and Mackie – Taylor especially.
  
  As for those two defining moments:
  I think the umpire was in a bad position to make the call in regards to Hawkins goal, and he needed help from the other umpires (surely one of them saw it?). But in his defence, from the angle he was in, and because the kick was a mongrel off the boot, he wouldn’t have seen any deviation off the post. And he’s certainly not going to take the word of the St. Kilda fans and/or players.
  
  Secondly, I think Milburn went a bit stupid. Surely players know by now they can’t change decisions by arguing. Yeah, by all means, try to convince the umpire that you touched it before he makes a decision, but don’t go on about it. I have never seen an umpire say, “Oh you touched it? Well, that changes everything doesn’t it? Let’s make it a point then.” What makes this even more stupid by Milburn was that he most definitely did NOT touch it – he was nowhere near it, so I don’t know why he made such a fuss about it.
  
  Reply
  - Kurt said | September 27th 2009 @ 7:39am | Report comment
    
    Agree Taylor did a good defensive job but let’s be honest – when people think back about the great grand finals they don’t really focus on a bloke whose sole objective all day was to stop someone else getting the ball.
    
    You’re right about the weather though, players these days struggle in the wet as teams are so focused on a clean high-possession game.
    
    Reply
    - Michael C said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:04am | Report comment
      
      hmmm, Rhys-Jones on Brereton and his Norm Smith medal sticks in peoples memories.
      
      And Glen Archer got a NS for his defensive work, so too did Hodge. As well as their rebound work and general courage and inspirational value.
      
      Reply
Tifosi said | September 27th 2009 @ 6:23am | Report comment

Kurt is right.

The conditions would never allow the game to reach any great heights, players slipping over etc, but it was the tight scoreline that made it worth watching till the end. Like any sport the closer the game is the more exciting it is.

Geelong have shown over three years that they have become a great side and credit to them

Reply
BigAl said | September 27th 2009 @ 6:41am | Report comment

I’d forgotten just how much bad weather can ruin a game of footy – what with Docklands Stadium having a roof – and the long running drought – the same could be said about last weeks game against the Doggies.
Sure they were close but I wouldn’t want to watch games like that again for a long long time.

It would only be worth putting up with if it was a Grand Final and the Saints won.

Reply
Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 7:39am | Report comment

Agree with all posts – many skill errors in the first half – but the last quarter was pretty tight and tough and Geelong finally found that little bit of space they hadn’t been able to find in the first three quarters (and all credit to St Kilda for closing them up most of the game).

I agree with Kurt not really the stuff of legends.

My three defining moments:
1. Taylor’s diving smother to deny Riewoldt an easy goal;
2. The goal umpiring error that allowed a goal that shouldn’t have been – I saw it clearly when it happened in real time, and found it hard to believe that a goal had been called.
3. Rooke’s bullocking work in the final term cleared the path for a couple of goals when they were very hard to come by.

Reply
- hazey.the.bear said | September 27th 2009 @ 8:25am | Report comment
  
  With that “goal” Pip,
  
  What were the other umpires looking at? Admittedly, it all happened quickly – Hawkins moved like a cat (pardon the pun) – but surely one of the field umpires saw what happened?!?
  
  Reply
- Michael C said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:08am | Report comment
  
  I liked Ablett’s ability to keep his feet in that last quarter, and draw a crowd too.
  
  Taylor’s smother and then his late mark from the kick in,
  
  The hit the post, the Goal Umpire wasn’t really in a position to be held accountable, but, one of the field umpires should’ve picked it up.
  
  Key moment early on was R.Clarke playing on and was it Fisher ran his opponent (Rooke) right around his back and allowed Rooke to be there to tackle him as he played on. That was a goal against the trend of play. StKilda, despite nerves etc – were on top and gifted Geelong that goal.
  
  btw – the Saints really showed that they were a tad over hyped (not by design, just nervous). They over warmed up and had less to draw on in the last quarter.
  
  Good game though, and a great contest. I was also hoping for a draw towards the end, if not a Saints victory…..there was every chance at one point that StKilda could’ve gone 10.14.74 again.
  
  Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:20am | Report comment
  
  Hazey
  In real time, we saw it unfold from behind Hawkins, and that was probably the best view of it – I immediately thought it had hit the post because there was a clear deviation in the flight of the ball.
  
  In fairness to the goal ump, it was probably the sort of deviation that would have been hard to pick up from his angle, especially since it was a one of those mongrel kicks that move about in flight.
  
  As for the field umps, it’s probably one of those situations where one of them may have though: geez, did that brush the post? not really sure, leave it to the goal ump.
  
  Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:39am | Report comment
  
  MC
  you’re right about Ablett keeping his feet – his balance and ability to work his way out of congestion are unparallelled – he made a big difference in that last quarter.
  
  I too had that 10.14 scoreline in my head.
  
  I was happy for Geelong to win – someone has to keep the bullies company at the bottom of the premiership table.
  
  Reply
Spiro Zavos said | September 27th 2009 @ 10:48am | Report comment

I’m always suspicious of the notion that the losing side of a big finals or Test match lacked ‘the hunger’ to win. This is rarely the case, although the Wallabies against the All Blacks may have been an exception. It seemed to me that St Kilda had the hunger right up to the last second of play with some remarkable defensive plays. But they did not have a player who was able to lift himself even beyond greatness and courage (like Ablett) to dominate those last few red minutes when Geelong seemed to have all the runners and more men on the field.

Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 12:46pm | Report comment
  
  That’s a fair enough observation Spiro.
  
  In part, it is perhaps a consequence of St Kilda’s game plan – set up the wall, restrict the space, and hope you can convert from the turnovers utilising Riewoldt and Kozzie, with Milne doing the crumbing. Riewoldt was often up against 3 defenders – he’s good – but he’s not that good.
  
  It’s true that neither big man was able to make an impact when it mattered most.
  
  As you say, when the game was there to be won, there appeared to be more hooped jumpers on the park – a sure sign that one team had finally broken the shackles.
  
  Reply
bever fever said | September 27th 2009 @ 11:07am | Report comment

Agree with most of the posts, i wonder if their is any chance to use a wet weather ball in the future ?.

Also i wonder how many games these players would have actually played in the wet this year.

Tight contest but if i was a casual watcher or it was my first game and you followed rugby you could see where some of the rules came (game evolved) from, plenty of rugby type scrums, mauls, gang tackles, stacks on the mill, some people may like it but it can become repetitive and boring.

Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 12:49pm | Report comment
  
  beaver
  
  It’s a bit like the Swans v Eagles grand finals – it’s not my preferred style of game either – but when it’s the last quarter of a grand final, and either team can win it, and clean possession is at an absolute premium – it’s pretty gripping.
  
  Reply
- Westcoast929406 said | September 27th 2009 @ 1:29pm | Report comment
  
  The Sherrin football itself is normally straight out leather but is treated with another process on its surface for wet weather to stop it getting too waterlogged. The balls would have been changed for each quarter.
  However they all get slippery when wet even the Rugby Synthetic type.
  It is doubtful that Aussie Rules footy will ever have the Synthetic type and the NFL in the States have the same policy after flirting with Synthetic types.
  
  Reply
megatron said | September 27th 2009 @ 12:14pm | Report comment

I thought Chapman’s goal was the culminating moment of the game that you guys say it missed.

Question – did anyone see Rooke’s after the siren goal? The cameras were focusing on the celebrations and only caught the tail end with the ball bouncing through. Did he just dribble it through?

Reply
David V. said | September 27th 2009 @ 1:13pm | Report comment

St Kilda perhaps need to heed the lessons learned by Spain in winning Euro 2008.

That, or maybe they’ll win a Premiership when England win a World Cup

Reply
bever fever said | September 27th 2009 @ 3:25pm | Report comment

I wonder if the bookies were watching Rookes last goal go through after the siren – cheering.

I have seen a number of ads for betting on the AFL finals with a get out clause – if you team loses by a goal or less you get your money back, not sure about the points difference but think it was a goal (maybe 7 points) , that goal by Rooke may have made many punters unhappy.

BTW footy betting certainly has become big business, could not even get a bet on the gg,s yesterday in Perth as the lines of footy punters were overflowing out of the TAB.

Reply
amused said | September 27th 2009 @ 4:24pm | Report comment

yawn…….with introductory paragraphs like this “The AFL dominates the Australian sporting landscape because it delivers entertainment like that. Geelong and St Kilda ensured the greatest day on our sporting calendar lived up to the occasion with the Cats confirming their greatness in a thrilling Grand Final.” it’s hard to get past all the hyperbole from various writers when you have to sit through this sort of toff.

i thought the melbourne cup was the greatest ( insert your sport here ). apparently is was a great game but greatest sport in Australia? hardly. just the southern half of the country. hoohum. i and quite a few people elsewhere apart from Victoria, didn’t even know which teams were in the final. same next week for most south australians, victorians for NRL. at least NRL doesn’t continually have to say its “the” sport of australia ( surely that is cricket ).

Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 4:44pm | Report comment
  
  I agree that Adrian has probably gone a bit over the top, especially when in some respects, it wasn’t actually the very best demonstration of the game.
  
  On many indicators, the AFL does dominate the sporting landscape – but that would be the last thing on the mind of the average AFL fan watching the game yesterday.
  
  You don’t like the Great Australian game – is that the main point you are wishing to make?
  
  Reply
  - The Link said | September 27th 2009 @ 5:09pm | Report comment
    
    Gripping GF, well done to both teams, I enjoyed the contest even if the skill level wasn’t the greatest at times.
    
    I agree that the Melbourne Cup is bigger, but not by much.
    
    Reply
- James said | September 27th 2009 @ 5:11pm | Report comment
  
  Amusing ‘amused’ that you think it is cricket. Who did Australia play last night and in what competition? Look how many posts that story has.
  
  As a neutral I thought it was a very entertaining match and the skill errors were easily explained by the weather.
  
  As for the Melbourne Cup…..please. It’s just an excuse for a bet and half a day off……If no one in NSW and Qld could name the two teams in the AFL GF, no one will be able to name three horses in the Melbourne Cup.
  
  Reply
  - Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 8:21pm | Report comment
    
    In fairness, we can’t make judgements on anything on the Roar in terms of the amount of posts, for instance, this one of mine is sitting on 691 posts:
    http://www.theroar.com.au/2009/08/24/fos-concludes-that-the-afl-is-weak/
    
    I’d be mighty pleased if anyone wants to assist in bumping it up to 700!!
    
    Reply
    - Art Sapphire said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:16pm | Report comment
      
      You are absolutely correct there, Pip.
      Especially when about 175 of those 691 comments are yours.
      That’s 25% of all comments
      
      It takes some people a whole month to post that many tmes but you did it on one thread .
      
      They should bring in the Pip Clause on the Roar where you are only allowed to comment 10 times on a thread.Its my initiative to stop global warming by limiting the hot air released by massive carbon emitters like yourself, Pip.
      
      In regards to the GF – I have put out missings persons notices for 2 of my StKilda friends. They were last seen walking aimlessly out of the MCG.
      
      26 wooden spoons and only 1 premiership. I told them to stick to winning wooden spoons.
      It does not hurt as much.
      
      Reply
    - Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:38pm | Report comment
      
      Hey – at least I’m not using paper!!
      
      Reply
- mick h said | September 27th 2009 @ 7:40pm | Report comment
  
  Amused,
  that’s because rugby league is not even considered as the “the” sport of Australia. Even though their pundits claim it as “the greatest game of all.”
  
  I’m a Rugby fan first, I like Rugby league, but am beginning to see that Australian Rules is a very very good game and a game that all Aussies can be proud of. A game that is the only true Australian game and one that is almost un Australian to dismiss as “that funny southern game.” I don’t understand all of the rules but I was enthralled by yesterdays game.
  
  I am a St Kilda fan beacause one of my mates is mad for them and I love his passion. He told me that if I chose to follow them they will break my heart over and over but I will be in for life. As of yesterday they have broken my heart for the first time and I am hooked. Go Saints!!
  
  Reply
  - macavity said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:07pm | Report comment
    
    good post.
    
    I am a RL fan first and I agree that AFL cannot be dismissed – it is a very good game. What frustrates me, and most leaguies, is that respect is certainly not reciprocated. When you get kicked enough you tend to lash back, or at least fall prey to concrete thinking. And RL has certainly copped it from all angles – from the heavily RL-negative media and arrogant AFL/Rugby fans alike. This also explains the combatitive attitute of many futbol fans.
    
    I follow the Cats as they have links to my RL club (Newcastle) – yesterday’s game was enthralling, although that ball must be hard to kick/grab when wet as the skills seemed down on what one would expect. As an aside, my wife was most amused by the cheesy show tunes – mrs macavity watching her first game of AFL: “thats not a sport, thats rogers & hammerstein with balls”
    
    Reply
  - Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 9:38pm | Report comment
    
    Ms Macavity is an intelligent woman – some clubs have ripped off old show tunes as their club songs.
    
    By the way – the links you’re talking about, are you referring to the Newcastle Knights? What are the links exactly?
    
    Regarding poor treatment from fans of other codes – reading the Roar, I would have thought aussie rules copped more than its fair share.
    
    Reply
    - macavity said | September 28th 2009 @ 8:50am | Report comment
      
      pip – apparently we do some coaching cross-over in the off-season. our outside backs have worked with Geelong’s kick catch coach and there is talk that our tackling staff might be teaching them how to tackle in the near future.
      
      Also, we share a sponsor – NIB – which is a Newcastle based company. There is a bit of synergy there, both “country” teams outside the major metropolis.
      
      as far as the fan treatment goes, I guess it depends on your perspective. It is the overwhelming arrogance of a hell of a lot of AFL fans and the non-stop fawning treatment of the game in the media – witness the admitted Fevola coverup by Fairfax – that puts a lot of people off-side. RL cops it from all sides, whereas AFL only gets a bit back from RL fans, which is largely laughed off.
      
      Reply
    - Pippinu said | September 28th 2009 @ 9:02am | Report comment
      
      Macavity
      thanks – that’s an interesting relationship, makes a bit of sense on a few levels.
      
      Reply
  - Redb said | September 28th 2009 @ 9:25am | Report comment
    
    Saints fans have every reason to be proud of their efforts. I suspect a dry day would have seen Reiwoldt hold the Cup aloft.
    
    cheers
    Redb
    
    Reply
- Pippinu said | September 27th 2009 @ 8:16pm | Report comment
  
  Anytime you follow a club – you have to be prepared for some heartache.
  
  Unfortunately, some clubs provide more heartache than others.
  
  Reply