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Here’s a controversial statement: draws are fantastic.
They reflect the fact that in some cases there are no winners and losers. At Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon neither side deserved to win or lose. Why? Because at the end of the game neither team did win or lose. Inaccuracy on goal cost the Giants, inaccuracy into the forward 50 cost the Saints. In the end both ended up with the exact same score.
Overtime in the game would have cheapened the result and left one supporter base feeling cheated. The chance that a game may end in a draw is an essential part of the game.
It’s strange, actually – usually when a draw happens there are at least a few voices to be heard bemoaning the result, saying that it’s terrible, unfulfilling and a waste of everyone’s time. This time, however, there hasn’t really been any talk of getting rid of the draw, and that is very confusing.
Maybe after so many years of draws being unfashionable it’s finally been realised that draws are integral to the game and as old as the game itself. Maybe, because it was a draw involving St Kilda and GWS, the media didn’t not care as much as it would have for other teams. Or maybe one draw a year is acceptable to the ‘anti-draw’ crowd.
(Scott Barbour/Getty Images)
Extra time, in the regular season at least, also gives an unfair advantage to the teams that draw. Why should they get extra time to try to win a game that they failed to win when other teams do not? Four points awarded after extra time are four points gained by having a second chance at a victory that the team did not earn.
The match itself played out basically as you’d expect a match this season to play out. A team with a lot to prove met a team that may have slightly relaxed and did not fully realise that the closeness of this season means that any team can beat – or indeed draw with – any other team on any given day.
GWS probably should have won given their vastly greater number of scoring shots, but then again St Kilda should have won given their plus 20 inside 50s and general control of the midfield during the majority of the game.
At this stage of their season St Kilda will probably be happy with the draw, even if wondering what might have been if Jake Carlisle had not dropped his mark or had been awarded that 50/50 free kick. But now they must look to next week and must perform strongly against Hawthorn.
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Only 14,000 people turned up to watch on Saturday, which surprised me; I was expecting quite a few less. But with the good showing against GWS and more improvement against Hawthorn, the Saints should and indeed need to be aiming for at least 30,000 against Melbourne in two weeks: 35,000 if they’re particularly optimistic.
GWS should consider it to be a game that got away. But escaping with two premiership points should ease their frustrations somewhat.
St Kilda and GWS both ending on 73 was the correct result of Saturday’s game. Why can I say that? Because it was the result on the final siren. Sure, winning is nice, but sometimes being equal is okay. Sometimes being equal is very much a win for someone. So I say, ‘Long live the draw!’. Long may it be a part of the game.
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