Opinion
What a great round of footy!
A round where Joel Selwood broke the captaincy record in the AFL, captaining his 227th AFL game.
Along with that, the Crows kicked a goal after the siren to win an enthralling Showdown!
At the other end of the spectrum Kangaroos coach David Noble summed their loss to the Lions up by 108 points perfectly: “We should be embarrassed.”
There was much more to Round 3 than that, though. Read on to find out what each club can look back on.
Adelaide Crows: Tenacity
The Crows could easily have given up in the last quarter, but kept fighting and displayed composure. It’s incredible that they trailed at the end of every quarter, except the only one that matters.
There’s no doubt that the highlight of the night came after the final siren. Jordan Dawson kicked a goal from a free kick, that Lachlan Murphy won, but was unable to take, due to suffering a knock. Somehow, Dawson kicked the goal from a fair way out and on a tough angle, and the Crows won by four points and claimed the four points.
Brisbane Lions: Ruthlessness
The Lions led by 39 points at half-time; in that half Lincoln McCarthy kicked four goals. It only got better for the Lions as they finished the game with six multiple goal kickers in total and 11 goal kickers overall, which meant that half their team kicked at least a goal.
There was a good synergy between them in their forward line and throughout the field. Their system worked to perfection, albeit against a mediocre opposition on the night.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Carlton Blues: Voss puts imprint on the team
The Blues played team-first footy; all six of their first six goals were kicked by different players. There’s no doubt that having a fit Charlie Curnow and Jack Slivagni has taken the pressure off Harry McKay. Curnow and Silvagni finished the game with three goals each, while McKay kicked two goals.
It helps that Patrick Cripps doesn’t have to do everything in the midfield and has some mates helping him out, with Matthew Kennedy and Sam Walsh having 32 and 30 disposals respectively. The recruiting of Adam Cerra and George Hewett was an astute move, as it makes the Blues midfield depth extremely deep.
The Blues’ defence was fantastic with Jacob Weitering taking a game-saving mark late in the game, while Zac Williams, Nic Newman and Sam Docherty all performed admirably. Last but not least the appointment of Michael Voss as senior coach appears to be the right fit.
Collingwood Magpies: Everything went right except at the end of the night
In what was Jack Crisp’s 166th game in a row, Nick Daicos kicked the first goal of his AFL career near midway through the first quarter. Unfortunately, Jordan de Goey kicked four behinds in the first half. It was 15 scoring shots for the Magpies in the first half to the Cats’ ten, but the Magpies trailed by five points.
Collingwood led by 30 points at three quarter time as they took the game on. Unfortunately, the Cats’ class shone through in the fourth quarter and the Magpies were too tired to win the game, as they were spent from the first three quarters. The score in the last quarter was 44 points to one point in favour of the Cats!
Essendon Bombers: Not there yet
The Bombers butchered their opportunities and gave away some cheap turnovers when the game was in the balance. There’s no doubt that their prospects of playing finals are slim, albeit early days and that they don’t have the depth to cover the loss of Zach Merrett, Kyle Langford and Harrison Jones.
Peter Wright provided a target for the Bombers as he finished the game with four goals. Dylan Shiel almost single-handedly brought the balance of play in the middle of the ground. At the end of the day not every Bombers player played their role, while the Demons players did play their part in a hard-fought win for Melbourne.
Fremantle Dockers: A confidence builder
The Dockers were far too strong for an understrength Eagles team. It was still a Western Derby, which means the Dockers should take some positives from the game, as they still had to deliver on the field in what is renowned as a big game.
They were without a couple of key players; Nat Fyfe and Sean Darcy, so they did a good job to negate the influence of Nic Naitanui.
(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
They had to play the game without their coach Justin Longmuir due to COVID protocols, but they still managed to get the job done. Good to see Matt Taberner getting back to his best as he finished the game with three goals.
Geelong Cats: Selwood’s immeasurable hunger and leadership steal the show
The Cats clearly played for their inspirational captain Joel Selwood. Tom Hawkins and Jeremy Cameron hit the scoreboard early from tough set shots that kept the Cats in the game in the first quarter. Despite the Cats not playing their best footy, they only trailed by ten points at quarter-time. They kept within striking distance throughout the game, even though they didn’t play as well as the Magpies.
The game looked over at three-quarter-time as the Magpies led by 30 points. The Cats kicked seven goals to none in the fourth quarter; they had too much polish for the Magpies and played well when the game was there to be won. Jeremy Cameron was the difference between the two teams with six goals, but ultimately it was Selwood’s leadership that shone through.
Gold Coast Suns: Same old story
The Suns’ only positive in the first three quarters was Levi Casboult, who kicked three goals. They were smashed by the Giants in general play and on the scoreboard. Sadly, for the Suns it wasn’t that the Giants were outstanding, it was that they were uncompetitive. Gold Coast kicked the last four goals of the game, which was inconsequential, but something to take from the game, that they fought it out instead of being obliterated on the scoreboard.
GWS Giants: A game they had to win
The Giants responded to a disappointing performance in Round 2 by kicking the first five goals of the game in the first quarter. There’s no doubt that Leon Cameron made players accountable for their loss to the Tigers in Round 2. He made the decision to tag Touk Miller, which meant that the Suns weren’t threatening, as the newly appointed co-captain was kept to 17 disposals.
They responded well, but should have won the game by more than 26 points as the Suns’ performance wasn’t up to standard.
Hawthorn Hawks: Fearless team claims everything but the points
The game looked over at quarter-time. The margin was 41 points in favour of the Blues at one stage. It didn’t stop Hawthorn, who took the game on and played with dare. They had one player who got them into the game, which was from Changkuoth Jiath. Hawthorn showed relentless desire to claim an unlikely comeback win; they played attacking footy and a draw would’ve been a fitting result in a finals-like game.
Melbourne Demons: Stood up when it counted
The Demons had too much class in the end for a gallant Bombers outfit. Despite winning the game by 29 points the Demons were challenged both on the scoreboard and in general play. They passed the test, as at one stage in the fourth quarter the gap was under two goals. They would be pleased with their depth as Sam Weideman, who was a late in for Ben Brown, kicked four goals.
North Melbourne Kangaroos: Deplorable and unfathomable
The Kangaroos only lost the second quarter by nine points. Unfortunately, they put the cue in the rack and gave up after half-time. The second half finished 84 points to 15 points in favour of the Lions. It was an utter obliteration; 24 scoring shots for the Lions to the Kangaroos’ five.
Port Adelaide Power: Stumble and crumble
The Power lost a game that they should’ve won based on the scoring shots for each team; they had 27 to the Crows’ 21 and the Power only have themselves to blame. A positive to take out of the game for Port was that Todd Marshall kicked five goals and their forward line looked potent.
Richmond Tigers: Faded away
The Tigers played for each other in the first half; each and every one of them played their role. The further the game got closer to the end, the worse the Tigers played. There appeared to be a lack of leadership from the Tigers, after Dylan Grimes was subbed out in the third quarter and they led the Saints by as much as 25 points, then everything went wrong. Their hunger didn’t appear to be up to the level that it should be.
(Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)
St Kilda Saints: A finals team?
It’s possible for the Saints to make the finals based on their performance in the second half in Round 3 against the Tigers. St Kilda used the ball inefficiently, but managed to stay in the contest in the first half. In the second half the Saints players implemented coach Brett Ratten’s game plan better.
Max King kicked four goals in the last quarter, and the Saints kicked ten goals in a row. It was a massive change in the second half; it was a ten goals to three second half, in favour of St Kilda.
Sydney Swans: Outworked
The Bulldogs had 11 more scoring shots than the Swans. Sydney were poor all night, but the Bulldogs’ inaccurate goal kicking kept them in the game. Nick Blakey was outstanding as he showed some run and dare to take the game on.
West Coast Eagles: The only way is up
There’s no disputing that the changes they were forced to make to their team made a difference. In what was a Western Derby the Eagles weren’t up for the game, which is understandable given the confusion with the team only being selected Saturday afternoon Perth time.
The Eagles players ran out gas, which was to be expected when taking into account the COVID protocols.
Western Bulldogs: Back on track
The Bulldogs put in a four-quarter effort. Unfortunately, their goal kicking clearly needs some work, but they will bank the four points that ultimately they needed to keep their top-four hopes alive. Their attack on the ball and will to win the contest never wavered.
Tim English proved he can be the best ruckman in the AFL and Cody Weightman was cool under pressure, slotting three goals, and Josh Dunkley was outstanding, finishing the game with 31 disposals and 11 tackles.
Marcus Bontempelli did what he does best: producing when the game was in the balance. He thumped the ball through for a behind, when it appeared as if Lance Franklin could take the mark. Along with that, he did a move on the wing that was unbelievable and followed it up with a kick to Weightman.
Jamara Ugle-Hagan took a step forward, proving to be a pivotal cog in the Bulldogs’ structure in what may have been a watershed game for him.
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