by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago
The Saints regained Max Hudghton, Raphael and Xavier Clarke,Jason Gram, Leigh Montagna, and Andrew Thompson this week.
Brisbane lost Ashley McGrath this week with a knee injury. Chris Scott (foot) returned to the side and Rhan Hooper, who briefly walked out on the club during the preseason, played his first game of the year.
Mark Ricciuto (back) finally returned for the Crows this week
Essendon's Andrew Welsh (hamstring) returned from injury this week.
Sydney regained Tadhg Kennelly and Nick Davis, late withdrawals last week, to replace Jared Crouch (hamstring) and Heath Grundy.
COL 3.5 7.7 12.12 15.13 (103)
FRE 5.3 8.6 10.11 13.16 (94)
GOALS: COL - Rocca 5, Davis 4, Swan 2, Cloke, Didak, Johnson, Maxwell; FRE - Pavlich 4, Crowley 2, Mundy 2, Bell, J. Carr, Headland, McManus, Sandilands
BEST: COL - Swan, O'Bree, Davis, Johnson, Holland;
FRE - Pavlich, Hasleby, Bell, Solomon, Tarrant, Sandilands
REPORTS: FRE - Crowley for allegedly making forceful contact with Prestigiacomo while his head was over the ball
INJURY: COL- H. Shaw (leg)
UMPIRES: McBurney, James, Avon
CROWD: 44,480 at MCG
The Dockers dominated the opening 10 minutes of the match and had three goals on the board. The first came from a free kick to Josh Carr at the opening bounce. He passed to Headland who passed to Pavlich and the Dockers were away. Pavlich missed his next on goal but Mundy won the ball to give the Dockers a 13 point lead. Rocca goaled from a free kick to get the Pies on the board. Tarrant, being minded by Prestigiacomo, had to roam far from goal to gain the ball. He set up Mundy for another goal after marking (catching) the ball for the first time, a catch which was met by some hearty boos from Magpie fans. Pavlich was looking dangerous opposed to Maxwell. After just 10 minutes, Maxwell was shifted and O'Brien took over on Pavlich. While the Pies kicked two more for the term, so did the Dockers to lead by 10 points at 1/4 time.
With giant Fremantle ruckman Sandilands winning most of the taps out of the center and around the ground. and Hasleby racking up ball possessions at ground level, the Dockers kept control in the second term but let themselves down with poor finishing in front of goal. With Swan leading the midfield charge for the Pies and Rocca and Davis firing up forward, the Pies were able to chip away at the Dockers' lead. However, they missed several shots themselves. Young Thomas missed two which would have given Collingwood the lead. Despite kicking four goals to Freo's three for the term, Collingwood still trailed by five points at 1/2 time.
Collingwood lifted in the third term and began to get on top of the Dockers. Medhurst, another former Docker, dived for the ball and got it off to Didak for a goal, then minutes later got the ball to Rocca for another goal to give Collingwood the lead after the Dockers hit back with a goal of their own. The Magpies booted three of the last four goals for the term. The last came after Davis soared high over Docker defender Johnson, twisted in the air, and took a spectacular one-handed grab. He goaled to give the Magpies a 13 point lead at 3/4 time.
The Dockers got the first goal of the final term but Rocca added two goals to give the Pies a three goal lead midway through the term. Both sides added one more goal to their scores as the Pies hung on for the win.
The difference in this game was the accuracy of the respective forward lines. Rocca and Davis did most of the damage for the Magpies while at the other end Pavlich kicked a dismal 4.7, managing just three points in the third term.
MELB 2.3 10.5 12.10 13.11 (89)
ADE 3.1 4.5 5.8 10.12 (72)
GOALS: MELB - Neitz 3, Bate 2, Jones 2, Robertson 2, Bruce, Davey, Petterd, Wheatley; ADE - Porplyzia 2, Ricciuto 2, Stevens 2, Doughty, Perrie, Torney, Welsh
BEST: MELB - Green, Bruce, Bell, Neitz, Wheatley, Carroll, Jones; ADE - Goodwin, Edwards, Johncock, Doughty, Porplyzia
INJURY: MELB - Davey (ankle); ADE - Perrie (shoulder), Reilly (ankle)
UMPIRES: Margetts, Hendrie, Goldspink
CROWD: 23,657 at the MCG
The Demons looked more like finals contenders than the side wallowing at the bottom in this game. They played more like the Crows of seasons past with a strong defense, fierce tackling, and direct ball movement. The Crows had the better of the first term with three goals to two for a four point lead at 1/4 time.
Melbourne simply overpowered the Crows from there on as Bruce and Green led the way in the midfield. They found the ball seemingly at will to drive the Demons into attack where Neitz and Robertson provided targets. The Demons had seven unanswered goals on the board before the Crows got their only one for the term. Melbourne kicked the last of the term lead by 36 points at 1/2 time.
Melbourne continued on its merry way in the third term, again restricting Adelaide to a solitary goal. Only inaccuracy from the Demons kept them from having a bigger lead in the term. Their two goals was enough to give them an unassailable 44 point lead at 3/4 time.
The Crows rallied in the final term, kicking four goals to cut Melbourne's lead, but Neitz kicked one late in the term to steady the Demon ship as the Crows managed just one more for the term, giving the Dees their first win of the season.
WCE 5.4 8.8 10.9 18.13 (121)
KANG 3.1 3.7 7.9 7.13 (55)
GOALS: WCE - Lynch 3, Morton 2, Judd 2, LeCras 2, Cox 2, Wirrpanda, Priddis, R. Jones, Chick, Seaby, Rosa, Brown;
KANG - Grant 3, Swallow, Thomas, Edwards, Jones
BEST: WCE - Priddis, Braun, Cox, Selwood, Chick; KANG - Swallow, Rawlings, Grant, Simpson, Sinclair
UMPIRES: Rosebury, Allen, M. Nicholls
CROWD: 40,751 at Subiaco Oval
The Eagles have ended the Kangaroos' six game winning streak and they did it in typical Eagle style. Cox dominated the ruck to feed the ball out to midfielders Judd, Priddis, and Braun. Lynch had the better of Roo defender Firrito from the outset with a couple of goals. Judd was relatively quiet for the first 10 minutes but bobbed up with freakish kick for goal that set the Eagles on their way. They could have led by more at the first break, but five goals to three still gave them a 15 point lead at 1/4 time.
The Kangaroos couldn't take a trick in the second term. They were completely outgunned by the Eagles in the second term. Not only did they not kick a goal, they couldn't get their hands on the ball enough to do any damage. Thomas had a chance to get the Roos back in the game but muffed the kick. From the kick-in, the Eagles raced the ball the other way where Morton finished off with West Coast's third goal for the term, giving the Eagles a 31 point lead at 1/2 time.
The Kangaroos came out firing in the third term and started to man up better against their opponents. They worked hard to deny the Eagles space to run the ball into attack and started to have an impact of their own. Edwards and Jones kicked successive goals for the Kangaroos for the first time in the game to give their side some hope. However, the Eagles got two of their own to keep the Kangaroos at bay. Grant kicked another pair in succession for the Kangaroos, including one after the siren to have the Kangaroos within three goals at 3/4 time.
Judd, well held for much of the game by Rawlings, sparked the Eagles at the start of the final term. A bit of brilliance in the midfield set the Eagles on an eight goal ton none rampage to run out easy winners.
RICH 2.4 4.7 8.9 10.13 (73)
BRIS 1.5 5.8 10.10 10.13 (73)
GOALS: RICH - Richardson 2, Tambling 2, Schulz, Kingsley, Jackson, Edwards, Deledio, Pettifer; BRIS - Patfull 3, Brown 2, Lappin 2, Adcock, Begley, Clark;
BEST: RICH - Foley, Jackson, Johnson, King, J. Bowden, White; BRIS - Notting, Lappin, Hooper, Drummond, Patfull, Adcock
INJURY: BRIS - Power (corked thigh) replaced in selected side by Harding, Johnson (foot)
UMPIRES: Grun, McInerney, Sully
CROWD: 28,093 at Telstra Dome
The game had the potential to be an eye-catcher, especially with Richardson at one end and Brisbane Goliath Brown at the other. It started with a bang when Richardson ran back with the flight of the ball for a great grab and goal inside the first three minutes. It got the Tiger fans rolling with a "Richo, Richo" chant but Brisbane and Brown responded with Brown taking a fine grab of his own while sandwiched between two Tiger defenders Joel Bowden and Pattison. He, like Richardson, booted the goal and it was game on for the moment. Put it down to the inexperience of youth or long injury lists, or a combination, but the game deteriorated after that with errors from both sides. The inaccuracy was shocking to say the least with just three goals kicked from 12 scoring shots between the two teams. Richmond could consider themselves lucky to be five points ahead at 1/4 time.
Time and again, players from both sides would blow any chance they might have had with misdirected handballs or kicks under no pressure from the opposition. Sherman was keeping Deledio in check, Black was being kept quiet by Jackson, and Brown was kept under wraps by Bowden. It took until midway through the second term for a goal, that going Kingsley's way to give the Tigers a 10 point lead. Brisbane at least finally got their act together to play some cohesive footy and threaten to blow the Tigers away with two goals. The Tigers got one back but the Lions came back hard again. It started with Brown hauling in a ripper of a contested mark (catch of the ball). He dished it off to Lappin for a goal, then Begley found space to kick the next. Patfull took a pass from Notting and, suddenly in the space of five minutes, Brisbane had snatched a seven point lead at 1/2 time.
The Lions kicked two goals early in the third term, taking their lead out to 18 points but the Tigers rallied to boot the next four. Brisbane came again with the next three goals, the last coming from Lappin just as the siren sounded, giving Brisbane a 13 point lead at 3/4 time.
The scoring dried up in the final term, with neither side able to gain a clear advantage. The Tigers did manage to slash Brisbane's lead with a goal to Tambling as the Tigers held Brisbane to just three points for the term. From there until the last few minutes of the game, neither side to break through. With just two minutes remaining, Pettifer goaled to level the scores. Both sides played some frenetic football but neither could break the deadlock although the Tigers got agonizingly close several times. Tivendale gained possession of the ball with about a minute remaining, but he was tackled by Selwood before he could get his kick away. Then with just seconds remaining, Tiger captain Kane Johnson took a great diving mark (catch of the ball) the ball), but he was too far out to score. His kick to Richardson was marked by Drummond just seconds before the siren, leaving the scores deadlocked.
At his post-match press conference, Tiger Coach Terry Wallace said the AFL should allow extra time to break tied games. Wallace suggested giving both sides five extra minutes would provide a more satisfying result for players and fans.
Preseason games and finals go into extra time if scores are tied. The only exception is the Grand Final, which is replayed the following week should it end with scores level.
This was the first time a game between Richmond and the Lions ended in a tie.
ESS 5.1 7.2 7.7 11.8 (74)
SYD 3.2 7.4 8.4 11.7 (73)
GOALS: ESS - Lloyd 3, Bolton 2, McVeigh 2, Welsh, J. Johnson, Watson, Stanton; SYD - Davis 3, Fosdike, Dempster, Bevan, Schneider, O'Loughlin, Goodes, Hall, C. Bolton
BEST: ESS - Fletcher, McVeigh, M. Johnson, Michael, Hird, Stanton; SYD - Schneider, Kirk, Richards, Kennelly, J. Bolton, Buchanan
INJURY: ESS - Peverill (general soreness) replaced in selected side by Nash
UMPIRES: Donlon, McLaren, Chamberlain
CROWD: 26,647 at the SCG
Bomber Coach Kevin Sheedy does not like the flooding tactic, but is certainly not adverse to using it when it suits his needs. He employed it against Brisbane and did so again this week against Sydney. Every time Sydney had the ball and went forward looking for Hall, all they could see were Essendon players blocking their forward zone. Michael stood Hall with assistance from Fletcher to keep him out of the game.
Essendon blitzed the Swans with four goals inside the first 10 minutes of the first term. They also had their match-ups right with Mark Bolton running with Goodes to limit his influence and Mark McVeigh decoyed across half-forward to stop Malceski from running the ball out of defense to set up Sydney attacks. The Swans managed three of the next four goals to be within 11 points at 1/4 time.
All that flooding, with Essendon players running from one end of the ground to the other, took its toll and the Swans battled their way back into the game. Although Hall was ell covered, the Swans found other avenues for scoring. They kicked four goals to Essendon's two for a two point lead at 1/2 time.
The third term was a low-scoring one, with the Swans holding a tiring Essendon to just four points. However, the Swans weren't much better with just one goal for the term. Late in the term, Buchanan's kick for goal hit the post when a goal would have given the Swans a comfortable lead. A touch of controversy occurred at the end of the term. Lucas kicked long for goal and Everitt managed to punch it through for a point but Everitt's action came after the siren. The point, which made the difference in the end, stood as the ball was deemed to still be in play. It left the Swans just three points in front at 3/4 time.
Essendon came back to life in the final term. Ablett's pass to Hall was picked off by the Essendon defense and resulted in a goal to Lloyd. Stanton kicked one from long range, and Mark Bolton chimed in with a third and Essendon looked to have the game in their keeping. More controversy erupted late in the term when McPhee, clearly out of bounds, kicked to Mark McVeigh. His goal gave Essendon a 14 point lead. Two late goals from Hall and Craig Bolton closed the gap to just two points. The Swans had one final chance just seconds before the end but Buchanan's kick for goal hit the post, leaving the Swans one point short.
Coach Paul Roos risked a fine afterward with some veiled criticism at the umpiring. He quipped that the crowd, who constantly booed the umpires, would help him pay his fine. He said he had never seen an SCG crowd turn that nasty as they booed and jeered the umpires and Matthew Lloyd when he collected the Marn Grook trophy after the game.
HAW 2.2 10.3 13.5 17.7 (109)
PA 5.5 8.6 9.12 10.15 (75)
GOALS: HAW - Boyle 5, Franklin 3, McGlynn 3, Hodge 2, Lewis, Osborne, Sewell, Guerra; PA - Westhoff 3, White 2, Salopek, Lade, S. Burgoyne, Ebert C. Cornes
BEST: HAW - Mitchell, Crawford, Boyle, McGlynn, Hodge, Guerra, Lewis; PA - C. Cornes S. Burgoyne, Surjan, K. Cornes, Salopek
UMPIRES: Vozzo, Wenn, K. Nicholls
CROWD: 23,945 at AAMI Stadium
Coming off two bad losses to Sydney and Geelong, Port was determined to make amends. There was also the death of Coach Mark Williams' mother Von and Port did not want to disappoint. They started well enough with everyone playing well and jumped out to an early four goal lead. The Hawks fought back with two in the first term, leaving Port with a 19 point lead at 1/4 time.
During the term, Salopek collided with an airborne Joel Smith. Play was stopped for about five minutes as Salopek was stretchered off the ground with blood pouring from a head gash.
Aided by the breeze, the Hawks slowly took control in the second term, kicking five of the next eight goals to slash Port's lead. They kept up the barrage with three late goals to lead by seven points at 1/2 time.
Port slowed in the third term as the Hawks forced them into uncharacteristic turnovers and the Campbell-Taylor combination in the ruck wore down Lade. Port had chances to take back the lead, but missed numerous chances for goals. The Hawks had no such trouble, nailing three in five minutes to take a 17 point lead at 3/4 time.
A bandaged Salopek returned to the action in the final term to help spark the midfield and set up scoring opportunities. It was all for naught as Tredrea and others again squandered their chances to overtake Hawthorn. Port managed just one goal while further goals to Hawks Franklin, Hodge, and Boyle settled matters.
GEEL 7.2 10.5 15.8 19.11 (125)
STK 4.1 7.6 9.8 9.11 (65)
GOALS: GEEL - Ling 3, Mooney 3, Ottens 2, S. Johnson 2, Wojcinski 2, Rooke, Corey, G. Ablett, Stokes, Bartel, N. Ablett, Varcoe; STK - Riewoldt 2, Gehrig 2, Blake, Montagna, Milne, Ball, Gram
BEST: GEEL - Bartel, Ling, S. Johnson, Chapman, G. Ablett, Milburn, Wojcinski; STK - Gram, Riewoldt, Ball, Montagna, S. Fisher, Koschitzke
UMPIRES: Ellis, Pannell, Ryan
CROWD: 42,188 at Telstra Dome
This game was over when the Cats pounded the Saints with seven goals to four in the first term.They had just too much run and scoring power for the Saints to withstand.
The Saints put up a modicum of resistance in the second term, kicking three goals to one to get within six points. That resistance came to an end with goals to Ottens and Mooney, giving the Cats a 17 point lead at 1/2 time.
Geelong really turned it on in the third term, kicking five goals to two. Several were enough to break the spirit of the Saints. First it was Gary Ablett who weaved his way through several would-be tacklers to kick his goal. Bartel then chipped the ball to an unmanned Steve Johnson for another. Mooney provided the highlight with a high-flying grab over Saint defender Gwilt, came down on his feet and ran in for the goal. Gary's brother Nathan slotted one from a difficult angle. The Saints found something to kick two goals, but Geelong held a massive seven goal lead at 3/4 time.
The finished off a demoralized St. Kilda with a three goal to nil final term.
The margin of this game means the Cats have now won their past five games by a combined total of 337 points.
CARL 7.2 10.5 18.8 21.12 (138)
WB 7.3 12.8 14.13 19.14 (128)
GOALS: CARL - Lappin 5, Fisher 3, Waite 3, Murphy 2, Walker, Bentick, Whitnall, Blackwell, O'hAilpin, Fevola, Scotland, Bannister; WB - Johnson 3, Eagleton 2, Giansiracusa 2, Cooney 2, Higgins 2, Hahn, Gilbee, Power, Griffen, Akermanis, Hargrave, Robbins, Street
BEST: CARL - Carrazzo, Bannister, Lappin, Waite, Murphy, Fisher, Thornton, Gibbs; WB - Cooney, Harris, West, Cross, Morris, Giansiracusa
INJURY: CARL - Anderson (hamstring)
UMPIRES: Kennedy, Stevic, Woodcock
CROWD: 37,535 at the MCG
The first term was a crowd pleasing shootout between the two sides with seven goals each. The Bulldogs were the ones who had the edge as they took a narrow two point lead at 1/4 time. One who was not pleased was Bulldog Coach Rodney Eade, who had some stern words with his defenders at the break.
The Bulldogs looked in control as they stopped Carlton's free scoring in the second term while kicking five goals themselves. Carlton grabbed three for the term, but trailed the Dogs by 15 points at 1/2 time.
The Dogs extended that lead to 22 points early in the third term, but Carlton exploded after that They broke the game open with eight goals for the term. Lappin starred kicking three of those goals within four minutes while the Dogs kicked just one more, giving Carlton a 19 point lead at 3/4 time.
That extended to 25 points early in the final term. This time, it was the Bulldogs' turn for a late surge as they slammed on the five of the next six goals. Street's late goal had the Bulldogs within two points, but Gibbs kicked the matchwinner from a free kick as Carlton grimly defended their lead to the end.
The game equaled an AFL record of 25 goalkickers. It is only the fourth time in history a game has had 25 individual goalkickers. Ironically two of those games featured both the Bulldogs and Carlton. They were:
WB vs. GEEL, Round 2, 1999 - the Bulldogs won 24.11 (155) to 20.14 (134)
STK vs. HAW, Round 14, 2000 - Hawthorn won 27.9 (173) to 13.8 (86)
STK vs CARL, Round 20, 2001 - Carlton won 22.16 (148) to 16.8 (104)
STANDINGS
W L D FOR AGST % PTS
WCE 8 2 0 930 718 129.53 32
GEEL 7 3 0 1204 777 154.95 28
HAW 7 3 0 911 790 115.32 28
COL 7 3 0 963 892 107.96 28
ADE 6 4 0 827 762 108.53 24
ESS 6 4 0 1011 942 107.32 24
PA 6 4 0 899 894 100.56 24
KANG 6 4 0 967 979 98.77 24
SYD 5 5 0 867 762 113.78 20
WB 5 5 0 987 1035 95.36 20
BRIS 4 5 1 851 896 94.98 18
FRE 4 6 0 917 945 97.04 16
STK 4 6 0 756 876 86.30 16
CARL 3 7 0 1018 1242 81.96 12
MELB 1 9 0 769 1040 73.94 4
RICH 0 9 1 823 1150 71.57 2
GOALS
Fevola (CARL) 33
Pavlich (FRE) 31
Franklin (HAW) 29
Lucas (ESS) 28
Lloyd (ESS) 27
Johnson (WB) 27
Welsh (ADE) 24
Mooney (GEEL) 24
Grant (KANG) 24
Richardson (RICH) 24
Source: Melbourne Age, Herald Sun, AFL Record Season Guide 2007 (goals record)
Brisbane's Mitchell Clark is the Round Nine Rising Star nominee.
The tall, young forward/ruckman kicked five goals last week against Collingwood in his first game of the year. Clark, 19, had three different opponents over the course of the game: Nick Maxwell, Harry O’Brien, and Simon Prestigiacomo.
Mitchell debuted in Round One, 2006 against Geelong and scored a goal with his first AFL kick. After playing consistently for both the Lions and the Suncoast Lions in the QAFL, his 2006 season ended in Round 10 due to a bout of osteitis pubis. Shortly before the 2005 draft, he also was hospitalized with a bout of meningococcal disease, which struck while he was on vacation with friends.
Standing at 198 cm (6'5"), Mitchell was a champion junior volleyball player and was offered an AIS volleyball scholarship, but turned it down to focus on football. He represented Western Australia in the 2003 Under 16 tournament, sharing that year's Sheehan Medal with current Tiger Brett Deledio as best and fairest in Division One. He also played in the 2005 Under 18 tournament and was a member of the 2003 AIS-AFL squad.
Mitchell is the Brisbane's second nomination this season following ruckman Cameron Wood in Round Two.
Source: Michelle Clyne, AFL Media Release
The Saints regained Max Hudghton, Raphael and Xavier Clarke,Jason Gram, Leigh Montagna, and Andrew Thompson this week.
Brisbane lost Ashley McGrath this week with a knee injury. Chris Scott (foot) returned to the side and Rhan Hooper, who briefly walked out on the club during the preseason, played his first game of the year.
Mark Ricciuto (back) finally returned for the Crows this week
Essendon's Andrew Welsh (hamstring) returned from injury this week.
Sydney regained Tadhg Kennelly and Nick Davis, late withdrawals last week, to replace Jared Crouch (hamstring) and Heath Grundy.
COL 3.5 7.7 12.12 15.13 (103)
FRE 5.3 8.6 10.11 13.16 (94)
GOALS: COL - Rocca 5, Davis 4, Swan 2, Cloke, Didak, Johnson, Maxwell; FRE - Pavlich 4, Crowley 2, Mundy 2, Bell, J. Carr, Headland, McManus, Sandilands
BEST: COL - Swan, O'Bree, Davis, Johnson, Holland;
FRE - Pavlich, Hasleby, Bell, Solomon, Tarrant, Sandilands
REPORTS: FRE - Crowley for allegedly making forceful contact with Prestigiacomo while his head was over the ball
INJURY: COL- H. Shaw (leg)
UMPIRES: McBurney, James, Avon
CROWD: 44,480 at MCG
The Dockers dominated the opening 10 minutes of the match and had three goals on the board. The first came from a free kick to Josh Carr at the opening bounce. He passed to Headland who passed to Pavlich and the Dockers were away. Pavlich missed his next on goal but Mundy won the ball to give the Dockers a 13 point lead. Rocca goaled from a free kick to get the Pies on the board. Tarrant, being minded by Prestigiacomo, had to roam far from goal to gain the ball. He set up Mundy for another goal after marking (catching) the ball for the first time, a catch which was met by some hearty boos from Magpie fans. Pavlich was looking dangerous opposed to Maxwell. After just 10 minutes, Maxwell was shifted and O'Brien took over on Pavlich. While the Pies kicked two more for the term, so did the Dockers to lead by 10 points at 1/4 time.
With giant Fremantle ruckman Sandilands winning most of the taps out of the center and around the ground. and Hasleby racking up ball possessions at ground level, the Dockers kept control in the second term but let themselves down with poor finishing in front of goal. With Swan leading the midfield charge for the Pies and Rocca and Davis firing up forward, the Pies were able to chip away at the Dockers' lead. However, they missed several shots themselves. Young Thomas missed two which would have given Collingwood the lead. Despite kicking four goals to Freo's three for the term, Collingwood still trailed by five points at 1/2 time.
Collingwood lifted in the third term and began to get on top of the Dockers. Medhurst, another former Docker, dived for the ball and got it off to Didak for a goal, then minutes later got the ball to Rocca for another goal to give Collingwood the lead after the Dockers hit back with a goal of their own. The Magpies booted three of the last four goals for the term. The last came after Davis soared high over Docker defender Johnson, twisted in the air, and took a spectacular one-handed grab. He goaled to give the Magpies a 13 point lead at 3/4 time.
The Dockers got the first goal of the final term but Rocca added two goals to give the Pies a three goal lead midway through the term. Both sides added one more goal to their scores as the Pies hung on for the win.
The difference in this game was the accuracy of the respective forward lines. Rocca and Davis did most of the damage for the Magpies while at the other end Pavlich kicked a dismal 4.7, managing just three points in the third term.
MELB 2.3 10.5 12.10 13.11 (89)
ADE 3.1 4.5 5.8 10.12 (72)
GOALS: MELB - Neitz 3, Bate 2, Jones 2, Robertson 2, Bruce, Davey, Petterd, Wheatley; ADE - Porplyzia 2, Ricciuto 2, Stevens 2, Doughty, Perrie, Torney, Welsh
BEST: MELB - Green, Bruce, Bell, Neitz, Wheatley, Carroll, Jones; ADE - Goodwin, Edwards, Johncock, Doughty, Porplyzia
INJURY: MELB - Davey (ankle); ADE - Perrie (shoulder), Reilly (ankle)
UMPIRES: Margetts, Hendrie, Goldspink
CROWD: 23,657 at the MCG
The Demons looked more like finals contenders than the side wallowing at the bottom in this game. They played more like the Crows of seasons past with a strong defense, fierce tackling, and direct ball movement. The Crows had the better of the first term with three goals to two for a four point lead at 1/4 time.
Melbourne simply overpowered the Crows from there on as Bruce and Green led the way in the midfield. They found the ball seemingly at will to drive the Demons into attack where Neitz and Robertson provided targets. The Demons had seven unanswered goals on the board before the Crows got their only one for the term. Melbourne kicked the last of the term lead by 36 points at 1/2 time.
Melbourne continued on its merry way in the third term, again restricting Adelaide to a solitary goal. Only inaccuracy from the Demons kept them from having a bigger lead in the term. Their two goals was enough to give them an unassailable 44 point lead at 3/4 time.
The Crows rallied in the final term, kicking four goals to cut Melbourne's lead, but Neitz kicked one late in the term to steady the Demon ship as the Crows managed just one more for the term, giving the Dees their first win of the season.
WCE 5.4 8.8 10.9 18.13 (121)
KANG 3.1 3.7 7.9 7.13 (55)
GOALS: WCE - Lynch 3, Morton 2, Judd 2, LeCras 2, Cox 2, Wirrpanda, Priddis, R. Jones, Chick, Seaby, Rosa, Brown;
KANG - Grant 3, Swallow, Thomas, Edwards, Jones
BEST: WCE - Priddis, Braun, Cox, Selwood, Chick; KANG - Swallow, Rawlings, Grant, Simpson, Sinclair
UMPIRES: Rosebury, Allen, M. Nicholls
CROWD: 40,751 at Subiaco Oval
The Eagles have ended the Kangaroos' six game winning streak and they did it in typical Eagle style. Cox dominated the ruck to feed the ball out to midfielders Judd, Priddis, and Braun. Lynch had the better of Roo defender Firrito from the outset with a couple of goals. Judd was relatively quiet for the first 10 minutes but bobbed up with freakish kick for goal that set the Eagles on their way. They could have led by more at the first break, but five goals to three still gave them a 15 point lead at 1/4 time.
The Kangaroos couldn't take a trick in the second term. They were completely outgunned by the Eagles in the second term. Not only did they not kick a goal, they couldn't get their hands on the ball enough to do any damage. Thomas had a chance to get the Roos back in the game but muffed the kick. From the kick-in, the Eagles raced the ball the other way where Morton finished off with West Coast's third goal for the term, giving the Eagles a 31 point lead at 1/2 time.
The Kangaroos came out firing in the third term and started to man up better against their opponents. They worked hard to deny the Eagles space to run the ball into attack and started to have an impact of their own. Edwards and Jones kicked successive goals for the Kangaroos for the first time in the game to give their side some hope. However, the Eagles got two of their own to keep the Kangaroos at bay. Grant kicked another pair in succession for the Kangaroos, including one after the siren to have the Kangaroos within three goals at 3/4 time.
Judd, well held for much of the game by Rawlings, sparked the Eagles at the start of the final term. A bit of brilliance in the midfield set the Eagles on an eight goal ton none rampage to run out easy winners.
RICH 2.4 4.7 8.9 10.13 (73)
BRIS 1.5 5.8 10.10 10.13 (73)
GOALS: RICH - Richardson 2, Tambling 2, Schulz, Kingsley, Jackson, Edwards, Deledio, Pettifer; BRIS - Patfull 3, Brown 2, Lappin 2, Adcock, Begley, Clark;
BEST: RICH - Foley, Jackson, Johnson, King, J. Bowden, White; BRIS - Notting, Lappin, Hooper, Drummond, Patfull, Adcock
INJURY: BRIS - Power (corked thigh) replaced in selected side by Harding, Johnson (foot)
UMPIRES: Grun, McInerney, Sully
CROWD: 28,093 at Telstra Dome
The game had the potential to be an eye-catcher, especially with Richardson at one end and Brisbane Goliath Brown at the other. It started with a bang when Richardson ran back with the flight of the ball for a great grab and goal inside the first three minutes. It got the Tiger fans rolling with a "Richo, Richo" chant but Brisbane and Brown responded with Brown taking a fine grab of his own while sandwiched between two Tiger defenders Joel Bowden and Pattison. He, like Richardson, booted the goal and it was game on for the moment. Put it down to the inexperience of youth or long injury lists, or a combination, but the game deteriorated after that with errors from both sides. The inaccuracy was shocking to say the least with just three goals kicked from 12 scoring shots between the two teams. Richmond could consider themselves lucky to be five points ahead at 1/4 time.
Time and again, players from both sides would blow any chance they might have had with misdirected handballs or kicks under no pressure from the opposition. Sherman was keeping Deledio in check, Black was being kept quiet by Jackson, and Brown was kept under wraps by Bowden. It took until midway through the second term for a goal, that going Kingsley's way to give the Tigers a 10 point lead. Brisbane at least finally got their act together to play some cohesive footy and threaten to blow the Tigers away with two goals. The Tigers got one back but the Lions came back hard again. It started with Brown hauling in a ripper of a contested mark (catch of the ball). He dished it off to Lappin for a goal, then Begley found space to kick the next. Patfull took a pass from Notting and, suddenly in the space of five minutes, Brisbane had snatched a seven point lead at 1/2 time.
The Lions kicked two goals early in the third term, taking their lead out to 18 points but the Tigers rallied to boot the next four. Brisbane came again with the next three goals, the last coming from Lappin just as the siren sounded, giving Brisbane a 13 point lead at 3/4 time.
The scoring dried up in the final term, with neither side able to gain a clear advantage. The Tigers did manage to slash Brisbane's lead with a goal to Tambling as the Tigers held Brisbane to just three points for the term. From there until the last few minutes of the game, neither side to break through. With just two minutes remaining, Pettifer goaled to level the scores. Both sides played some frenetic football but neither could break the deadlock although the Tigers got agonizingly close several times. Tivendale gained possession of the ball with about a minute remaining, but he was tackled by Selwood before he could get his kick away. Then with just seconds remaining, Tiger captain Kane Johnson took a great diving mark (catch of the ball) the ball), but he was too far out to score. His kick to Richardson was marked by Drummond just seconds before the siren, leaving the scores deadlocked.
At his post-match press conference, Tiger Coach Terry Wallace said the AFL should allow extra time to break tied games. Wallace suggested giving both sides five extra minutes would provide a more satisfying result for players and fans.
Preseason games and finals go into extra time if scores are tied. The only exception is the Grand Final, which is replayed the following week should it end with scores level.
This was the first time a game between Richmond and the Lions ended in a tie.
ESS 5.1 7.2 7.7 11.8 (74)
SYD 3.2 7.4 8.4 11.7 (73)
GOALS: ESS - Lloyd 3, Bolton 2, McVeigh 2, Welsh, J. Johnson, Watson, Stanton; SYD - Davis 3, Fosdike, Dempster, Bevan, Schneider, O'Loughlin, Goodes, Hall, C. Bolton
BEST: ESS - Fletcher, McVeigh, M. Johnson, Michael, Hird, Stanton; SYD - Schneider, Kirk, Richards, Kennelly, J. Bolton, Buchanan
INJURY: ESS - Peverill (general soreness) replaced in selected side by Nash
UMPIRES: Donlon, McLaren, Chamberlain
CROWD: 26,647 at the SCG
Bomber Coach Kevin Sheedy does not like the flooding tactic, but is certainly not adverse to using it when it suits his needs. He employed it against Brisbane and did so again this week against Sydney. Every time Sydney had the ball and went forward looking for Hall, all they could see were Essendon players blocking their forward zone. Michael stood Hall with assistance from Fletcher to keep him out of the game.
Essendon blitzed the Swans with four goals inside the first 10 minutes of the first term. They also had their match-ups right with Mark Bolton running with Goodes to limit his influence and Mark McVeigh decoyed across half-forward to stop Malceski from running the ball out of defense to set up Sydney attacks. The Swans managed three of the next four goals to be within 11 points at 1/4 time.
All that flooding, with Essendon players running from one end of the ground to the other, took its toll and the Swans battled their way back into the game. Although Hall was ell covered, the Swans found other avenues for scoring. They kicked four goals to Essendon's two for a two point lead at 1/2 time.
The third term was a low-scoring one, with the Swans holding a tiring Essendon to just four points. However, the Swans weren't much better with just one goal for the term. Late in the term, Buchanan's kick for goal hit the post when a goal would have given the Swans a comfortable lead. A touch of controversy occurred at the end of the term. Lucas kicked long for goal and Everitt managed to punch it through for a point but Everitt's action came after the siren. The point, which made the difference in the end, stood as the ball was deemed to still be in play. It left the Swans just three points in front at 3/4 time.
Essendon came back to life in the final term. Ablett's pass to Hall was picked off by the Essendon defense and resulted in a goal to Lloyd. Stanton kicked one from long range, and Mark Bolton chimed in with a third and Essendon looked to have the game in their keeping. More controversy erupted late in the term when McPhee, clearly out of bounds, kicked to Mark McVeigh. His goal gave Essendon a 14 point lead. Two late goals from Hall and Craig Bolton closed the gap to just two points. The Swans had one final chance just seconds before the end but Buchanan's kick for goal hit the post, leaving the Swans one point short.
Coach Paul Roos risked a fine afterward with some veiled criticism at the umpiring. He quipped that the crowd, who constantly booed the umpires, would help him pay his fine. He said he had never seen an SCG crowd turn that nasty as they booed and jeered the umpires and Matthew Lloyd when he collected the Marn Grook trophy after the game.
HAW 2.2 10.3 13.5 17.7 (109)
PA 5.5 8.6 9.12 10.15 (75)
GOALS: HAW - Boyle 5, Franklin 3, McGlynn 3, Hodge 2, Lewis, Osborne, Sewell, Guerra; PA - Westhoff 3, White 2, Salopek, Lade, S. Burgoyne, Ebert C. Cornes
BEST: HAW - Mitchell, Crawford, Boyle, McGlynn, Hodge, Guerra, Lewis; PA - C. Cornes S. Burgoyne, Surjan, K. Cornes, Salopek
UMPIRES: Vozzo, Wenn, K. Nicholls
CROWD: 23,945 at AAMI Stadium
Coming off two bad losses to Sydney and Geelong, Port was determined to make amends. There was also the death of Coach Mark Williams' mother Von and Port did not want to disappoint. They started well enough with everyone playing well and jumped out to an early four goal lead. The Hawks fought back with two in the first term, leaving Port with a 19 point lead at 1/4 time.
During the term, Salopek collided with an airborne Joel Smith. Play was stopped for about five minutes as Salopek was stretchered off the ground with blood pouring from a head gash.
Aided by the breeze, the Hawks slowly took control in the second term, kicking five of the next eight goals to slash Port's lead. They kept up the barrage with three late goals to lead by seven points at 1/2 time.
Port slowed in the third term as the Hawks forced them into uncharacteristic turnovers and the Campbell-Taylor combination in the ruck wore down Lade. Port had chances to take back the lead, but missed numerous chances for goals. The Hawks had no such trouble, nailing three in five minutes to take a 17 point lead at 3/4 time.
A bandaged Salopek returned to the action in the final term to help spark the midfield and set up scoring opportunities. It was all for naught as Tredrea and others again squandered their chances to overtake Hawthorn. Port managed just one goal while further goals to Hawks Franklin, Hodge, and Boyle settled matters.
GEEL 7.2 10.5 15.8 19.11 (125)
STK 4.1 7.6 9.8 9.11 (65)
GOALS: GEEL - Ling 3, Mooney 3, Ottens 2, S. Johnson 2, Wojcinski 2, Rooke, Corey, G. Ablett, Stokes, Bartel, N. Ablett, Varcoe; STK - Riewoldt 2, Gehrig 2, Blake, Montagna, Milne, Ball, Gram
BEST: GEEL - Bartel, Ling, S. Johnson, Chapman, G. Ablett, Milburn, Wojcinski; STK - Gram, Riewoldt, Ball, Montagna, S. Fisher, Koschitzke
UMPIRES: Ellis, Pannell, Ryan
CROWD: 42,188 at Telstra Dome
This game was over when the Cats pounded the Saints with seven goals to four in the first term.They had just too much run and scoring power for the Saints to withstand.
The Saints put up a modicum of resistance in the second term, kicking three goals to one to get within six points. That resistance came to an end with goals to Ottens and Mooney, giving the Cats a 17 point lead at 1/2 time.
Geelong really turned it on in the third term, kicking five goals to two. Several were enough to break the spirit of the Saints. First it was Gary Ablett who weaved his way through several would-be tacklers to kick his goal. Bartel then chipped the ball to an unmanned Steve Johnson for another. Mooney provided the highlight with a high-flying grab over Saint defender Gwilt, came down on his feet and ran in for the goal. Gary's brother Nathan slotted one from a difficult angle. The Saints found something to kick two goals, but Geelong held a massive seven goal lead at 3/4 time.
The finished off a demoralized St. Kilda with a three goal to nil final term.
The margin of this game means the Cats have now won their past five games by a combined total of 337 points.
CARL 7.2 10.5 18.8 21.12 (138)
WB 7.3 12.8 14.13 19.14 (128)
GOALS: CARL - Lappin 5, Fisher 3, Waite 3, Murphy 2, Walker, Bentick, Whitnall, Blackwell, O'hAilpin, Fevola, Scotland, Bannister; WB - Johnson 3, Eagleton 2, Giansiracusa 2, Cooney 2, Higgins 2, Hahn, Gilbee, Power, Griffen, Akermanis, Hargrave, Robbins, Street
BEST: CARL - Carrazzo, Bannister, Lappin, Waite, Murphy, Fisher, Thornton, Gibbs; WB - Cooney, Harris, West, Cross, Morris, Giansiracusa
INJURY: CARL - Anderson (hamstring)
UMPIRES: Kennedy, Stevic, Woodcock
CROWD: 37,535 at the MCG
The first term was a crowd pleasing shootout between the two sides with seven goals each. The Bulldogs were the ones who had the edge as they took a narrow two point lead at 1/4 time. One who was not pleased was Bulldog Coach Rodney Eade, who had some stern words with his defenders at the break.
The Bulldogs looked in control as they stopped Carlton's free scoring in the second term while kicking five goals themselves. Carlton grabbed three for the term, but trailed the Dogs by 15 points at 1/2 time.
The Dogs extended that lead to 22 points early in the third term, but Carlton exploded after that They broke the game open with eight goals for the term. Lappin starred kicking three of those goals within four minutes while the Dogs kicked just one more, giving Carlton a 19 point lead at 3/4 time.
That extended to 25 points early in the final term. This time, it was the Bulldogs' turn for a late surge as they slammed on the five of the next six goals. Street's late goal had the Bulldogs within two points, but Gibbs kicked the matchwinner from a free kick as Carlton grimly defended their lead to the end.
The game equaled an AFL record of 25 goalkickers. It is only the fourth time in history a game has had 25 individual goalkickers. Ironically two of those games featured both the Bulldogs and Carlton. They were:
WB vs. GEEL, Round 2, 1999 - the Bulldogs won 24.11 (155) to 20.14 (134)
STK vs. HAW, Round 14, 2000 - Hawthorn won 27.9 (173) to 13.8 (86)
STK vs CARL, Round 20, 2001 - Carlton won 22.16 (148) to 16.8 (104)
STANDINGS
W L D FOR AGST % PTS
WCE 8 2 0 930 718 129.53 32
GEEL 7 3 0 1204 777 154.95 28
HAW 7 3 0 911 790 115.32 28
COL 7 3 0 963 892 107.96 28
ADE 6 4 0 827 762 108.53 24
ESS 6 4 0 1011 942 107.32 24
PA 6 4 0 899 894 100.56 24
KANG 6 4 0 967 979 98.77 24
SYD 5 5 0 867 762 113.78 20
WB 5 5 0 987 1035 95.36 20
BRIS 4 5 1 851 896 94.98 18
FRE 4 6 0 917 945 97.04 16
STK 4 6 0 756 876 86.30 16
CARL 3 7 0 1018 1242 81.96 12
MELB 1 9 0 769 1040 73.94 4
RICH 0 9 1 823 1150 71.57 2
GOALS
Fevola (CARL) 33
Pavlich (FRE) 31
Franklin (HAW) 29
Lucas (ESS) 28
Lloyd (ESS) 27
Johnson (WB) 27
Welsh (ADE) 24
Mooney (GEEL) 24
Grant (KANG) 24
Richardson (RICH) 24
Source: Melbourne Age, Herald Sun, AFL Record Season Guide 2007 (goals record)
Brisbane's Mitchell Clark is the Round Nine Rising Star nominee.
The tall, young forward/ruckman kicked five goals last week against Collingwood in his first game of the year. Clark, 19, had three different opponents over the course of the game: Nick Maxwell, Harry O’Brien, and Simon Prestigiacomo.
Mitchell debuted in Round One, 2006 against Geelong and scored a goal with his first AFL kick. After playing consistently for both the Lions and the Suncoast Lions in the QAFL, his 2006 season ended in Round 10 due to a bout of osteitis pubis. Shortly before the 2005 draft, he also was hospitalized with a bout of meningococcal disease, which struck while he was on vacation with friends.
Standing at 198 cm (6'5"), Mitchell was a champion junior volleyball player and was offered an AIS volleyball scholarship, but turned it down to focus on football. He represented Western Australia in the 2003 Under 16 tournament, sharing that year's Sheehan Medal with current Tiger Brett Deledio as best and fairest in Division One. He also played in the 2005 Under 18 tournament and was a member of the 2003 AIS-AFL squad.
Mitchell is the Brisbane's second nomination this season following ruckman Cameron Wood in Round Two.
Source: Michelle Clyne, AFL Media Release
Article last changed on Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 2:33 PM EDT
