AFL top 100: Are the Tigers vulnerable?

In a tight game of football on Friday night Geelong stormed home to lose by a small margin, and the talk began that Richmond were ‘getable’.

That flies in the face of the facts. Geelong could have scored an upset if Gary Ablett’s shot in the dying stages had gone through, but it would have been a ‘lucky’ win and a win unlikely to be repeated in the cauldron of a final.

Geelong only ever led the contest for a small period of time in the first quarter and managed to get back to level at the start of the third, but as discussed by commentators Brad Sewell and Luke Ball, Richmond could always find an extra gear when challenged. The closeness of the game was due more to the late timing of Geelong’s surge rather than any dominance of the Tigers.

Around the ground Patrick Dangerfield was dominant but Dustin Martin did well, Jack Riewoldt outshone Tom Hawkins and some of the lesser names at Richmond nullified the influence of Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett. Geelong’s Tim Kelly proved that he is star material, and it is a pity that his late entry into the AFL may stop him from ever becoming a top 100 champion.

Speaking of the top 100s, two of Richmond’s elite, Jack Riewoldt and Trent Cotchin, and two of Geelong’s elite, Tom Hawkins and Daniel Menzel, were among the goal scorers, but neither Riewoldt nor Hawkins improved their standing in the AFL’s top-100 goal-scorers lists or those of their respective clubs.

Daniel Menzel (three goals) advanced above his former teammate, now Collingwood player, Travis Varcoe and now sits in 58th position on the Cats’ top-100 goal-kickers list.

(Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

Two non-top 100 goal-scorers had reason to celebrate the game: Jason Castagna (Richmond) scored two goals – the first on which was his 50th in AFL football – and Geelong debutante Ryan Abbott scored a goal with his first kick in AFL football and followed it up later with a second one.

In terms of top 100 games played, at Richmond Jack Riewoldt drew level with club CEO Brendan Gale; Dustin Martin matched the games-played efforts of the original ‘Hungry’ (well before Kevin Bartlett), Richard Harris, who appears on the AFL top-100 goal-scorers list in the top 50; and Shaun Grigg equalled the tally of games of Nick Daffey.

For Geelong, movement was made up the games-played table by Gary Ablett, who equalled Andrew Bews and Tom Lonergan; Mitch Duncan, who equalled Rod Blake and Tim Darcy; and Cameron Guthrie, who equalled Stan Thomas and Tom Arklay.

Gary Ablett’s game was his 317th AFL game overall, and he now sits only one game behind former Brisbane star Marcus Ashcroft in 46th position

The left-footed Arklay, whose career was interrupted by the war, receives few plaudits despite being a two-time best and fairest, a premiership player, a club captain and a club coach for part of 1944. Described as a man of ‘ox-like’ strength, Arklay was originally recruited from North Geelong.