If Terry Wallace is still coaching Richmond at the end of this week, he should give all his players a DVD of the Fremantle-Western Bulldogs and tell them to have a good look at it on Friday night.
The Tigers, who let Wallace down dreadfully last Thursday night to turn a showpiece game into a shambles, could learn a lot from watching how the Dogs used precision kicking to hit teammates who were moving to the right places and, equally importantly, holding what came their way.
You couldn’t imagine a bigger contrast with Richmond’s woeful efforts: badly directed kicks, some forwards standing still and letting their opponents slip in front of them to intercept passes, and others spilling lollies of marks on the rare occasions they managed to get in the right position.
The proper way to play the game was on display in abundance at Subiaco on Sunday night, with the Dockers playing their part early through quick goals from rookies Stephen Hill and Rhys Palmer.
But after that the Bulldogs settled down, looked inevitable winners at quarter-time and eventually scored by 63 points in what I rate the most impressive performance of the weekend.
It was enough to make me even more convinced than I was last week that they’ll be credible threats to Geelong and Hawthorn in September.
Fremantle’s capitulation after such a bright start raises the serious possibility that they’ll give Essendon and Melbourne some competition for the wooden spoon.
The Dees, at least, showed that they could have some chance of getting off the bottom rung of the ladder by keeping the losing margin down to a fairly respectable 34 points against North Melbourne, but will face a stiffer test this week against the wounded Magpies.
Collingwood’s conquerors, Adelaide, showed they’ll be in serious contention for a top-four spot, and were among a number of teams, also including Carlton, whose policy of giving youngsters a chance to show their wares paid off.
Another was the until-now virtually friendless Port Adelaide, whose demolition of the Bombers showed last year’s performance was probably an aberration and better things can be expected.
But the biggest talking point after the full round of games was still the abysmal effort by Richmond against the resurgent Carlton way back on Thursday night.
Things aren’t going to get any easier for the Tigers, either, with another couple of probable demolitions looming away to Geelong and then against the Bulldogs at Docklands.
Sacking a coach on or before April Fool’s Day isn’t without precedent.
But if Wallace does go in what remains of this month or over the course of the next, he won’t be the record-holder for a quick departure. Wayne Schimmelbusch was asked to resign before the season even started after shocking performances by North Melbourne in 1993 pre-season games.
It was refreshing to see that Ben Cousins refused to blame the Richmond medical staff for his last-quarter breakdown, saying that contrary to the belief of most observers (me included), the problem he had at three-quarter-time was niggling tightness behind the knee, rather than the precursor to the torn hamstring he suffered six minutes after the break.
Cousins’ defence of the medicos was in keeping with the way he has handled himself so far in his comeback, which hopefully will continue to be judged by what he does on the field.
On Thursday night that was a respectable, if unspectacular, start before he broke down. Pretty much what could be reasonably expected, really, given his age and the length of his absence from the game.
And for those wondering what Tasmanian football has to do to convince the intransigent AFL that its expansionary future lies south of Bass Strait rather than west of Port Jackson, the state’s new-look competition structure looks like a positive move.
This season there is a 10-team State League, with five teams from the south of the island, three from the north and two from the north-west.
This will be supported by second-tier competitions in the south (12 teams – that might be a bit excessive), the north (eight teams) and north-west (six), with an under-23 team chosen from those three leagues to compete in the Australian amateur championships in Adelaide in July.
That, surprise, surprise, will perpetuate Tasmania’s status as a fertile breeding ground for the present AFL clubs.
It would be far better if it was channelled into a Tasmanian team to compete at the elite level, which could go some way to preventing what otherwise appears to be an inevitable drift away by youngsters to soccer, particularly if Tasmania gets an A League team, as is looking more and more likely.
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While there wasn't much in the fight, commentator Garry Lyon believes the players will be writing out cheques to the AFL as fines over…
The umpire must have thought the ball didn't travel the required 15 metres.
They're not happy at the 'G!
Last, year in the second showdown, Adelaide destroyed Port by 47 points with a staggering 20 marks inside 50 with Tex Walker the main star.
There’s no disputing that Cam Guthrie will be important against Melbourne, given Patrick Dangerfield is set to miss due to injury.
Collingwood led by a point with minutes to go, Kyle Langford had the chance to be the hero with a set shot, however, he missed, and we saw the first draw of the season.
