Carlton d Collingwood
There is genuine momentum, and possibly even a fear factor, about this Blues stampede towards September. Written off following a prolonged slump, and with coach Michael Voss’ future being questioned, they roared to life with a nine-goal second quarter against Gold Coast in round 14 – and have not stopped winning since. They beat the Pies up around the ball, and Darcy Moore struggled so much to contain six-goal hero Charlie Curnow that he gave away repeated free kicks (all of which were correct). Jacob Weitering is also back to his best down back, and Carlton have soldiers to return, too. Collingwood were a long way off their best but that owed plenty to the Blues’ dominant display. In reality, they have dipped from their early season form, but are so good they have kept winning most weeks, anyway. The Magpies still have a bit to figure out in the next month before finals, but off-season recruit Daniel McStay looks like he could be a valuable piece. It can’t always be the Daicos brothers, Jordan De Goey and Moore doing the heavy lifting. – Marc McGowan
Matthew Owies was pretty pumped after kicking a goal.Credit: Channel Seven
Fremantle d Geelong
This was a disturbing loss for the Cats, who had wanted to rebound after a stinging loss to the Brisbane Lions. Instead, it became a horror show, for the Dockers exposed the Cats’ weakness when their half-back line is forced high up the ground, and then beaten on the rebound, while major hamstring injuries to Mark Blicavs and Tom Hawkins have derailed their finals bid. The versatile Blicavs, as coach Chris Scott said post match, is “irreplaceable”, while Hawkins is much the same. The goal-kicking great has been as durable a player as any over the past decade. Hawkins’ injury opens the door for Esava Ratugolea to return, while Gary Rohan is likely to again have the back-up ruck role against Port Adelaide on Saturday night. The Cats will need to win at least three of their final four games to be alive come September, and potentially all four. It’s been some decline for the premiers, leaving Scott needing to perform one of his greatest magic tricks. Is there a rabbit in the hat? For the bottom-four Dockers, this has to be base camp for a 2024 surge. Tactically, they were astute against the Cats, attacking when they had use of the breeze, and holding up play when they didn’t. Caleb Serong was elite, Andrew Brayshaw was superb, while Luke Jackson was robust when it came to tap work and following up. The Dockers need to find a way to re-sign Liam Henry.– Jon Pierik
GWS Giants d Western Bulldogs
The Bulldogs have a short turnaround before facing Richmond on Friday night and coach Luke Beveridge admits they have some issues to sort out after conceding a 35-point lead to lose to GWS Giants in Ballarat. Key defender Liam Jones might be fit to return, but Beveridge wasn’t certain of that on Saturday, while they will have to replace Josh Bruce who seriously injured his knee. “We’ve got to work out whether or not that happens,” Beveridge said about Jones’ status. “James O’Donnell was an emergency today, and he can play key back. We’re going to need at least one or two to come in and fill those roles.” The Giants have won seven in a row and have moved up to sixth place, and wins in Ballarat and Alice Springs show they aren’t afraid of a distant road game. Toby Greene was a match-winner once again, while star defenders Sam Taylor and Jack Buckley stood tall. They face a desperate Sydney this Saturday night. “Like every derby in every city, they are a coin flip; form is irrelevant,” Giants coach Adam Kingsley said. “It comes down to opportunities and moments, we will have to reproduce what we did today against the Swans.” – Roy Ward
Bulldog Adam Treloar is gang-tackled by Giants Josh Kelly and Brent Daniels at Ballarat on Saturday.Credit: AFL Photos
Gold Coast d Brisbane Lions
A shock loss to the Suns looks like a lost opportunity for the Lions: a victory would have seen them move into second, and within sight of a home qualifying final at the Gabba. Lions coach Chris Fagan reasoned after the game that teams have to be able to win anywhere, any time in September. He’s right, but given his side hasn’t lost all year at the Gabba, the more home finals they can secure they better their chances will be of making it to the final Saturday at the MCG. The Suns were excellent, and the talk after the game was that the players were sick of honourable losses and had drawn a line in the sand. It’s a pity they didn’t do it sooner. With their finals hopes all but extinguished, they’ll want to reproduce that level of intensity throughout August to build a foundation for season 2024. – Andrew Stafford
Sydney d Essendon
Ben Rutten’s inability to implement a sound team defence to restrict opposition ball movement was one of the main reasons he is no longer at the helm. As much as the Bombers have improved under Brad Scott, the leaky old Dons have returned. Since the bye, Scott’s men have given up scores of 90 or more in five of their six games – a period in which they have won just once. Their average score conceded of 96.8 is worse than the 94.9 they gave up last year. An undersized defence, weakened further by Jordan Ridley’s absence, needs more pressure on the ball up the field. The Bombers had the unwanted double of fewer possessions and fewer tackles, which explains how the Swans were able to freely move the ball to an open forward line for the first two thirds of the game. Essendon’s capacity to run and gun is well known, but perhaps they need to give up some of that flair in favour of defensive stability. When it comes to marketability in Sydney, Isaac Heeney sits second only to Lance Franklin. With Franklin likely to miss at least part of the Swans’ run to September – he may even have played his last game – Heeney should take it upon himself to become the alpha male of the Swans’ forward line. And it must happen immediately for Sydney Derby XXVI, which has an added edge with both clubs chasing finals berths. There is no reason why Heeney cannot be the Swans’ version of Toby Greene, who was drafted two years before him. He has all the athletic gifts and skill a player could hope for, but despite an All-Australian blazer last year, there remains a sense he still has much more to give. If Heeney, 27, can answer the call, it will ease the burden on Logan McDonald and Joel Amartey, who become the Swans’ primary forward targets in Franklin’s absence. – Andrew Wu
Adelaide d Port Adelaide
Adelaide completed an emphatic season sweep of Port Adelaide but their bid to pinch a last-ditch finals berth will have to be manufactured with a patched-up backline. Full-back Jordon Butts was substituted out of the Crows’ 48-point Showdown win in the second quarter with a suspected foot fracture. Butts’ blow continued a run of wretched luck for Adelaide’s key defensive stocks, with Nick Murray rupturing his ACL a week earlier in the narrow loss to Melbourne and Tom Doedee suffering the same fate last month against Gold Coast in Darwin. Josh Worrell stepped up to play his finest AFL game, lowering Todd Marshall’s colours, while Irishman Mark Keane, making his club debut, performed admirably on Power spearhead Charlie Dixon. Plenty now rests on Worrell and Keane’s inexperienced shoulders. At the other end, Taylor Walker had a night out, celebrating his recent contract extension by bagging seven goals and a maiden Showdown Medal. Walker comfortably eclipsed Aliir Aliir, who was involved in a sickening head collision with teammate Lachie Jones in the second term. After a handful of minutes on the bench, Aliir was allowed to come back on after club medico Dr Mark Fisher examined the vision and was satisfied no head impact assessment (HIA) would be required. Jones passed a HIA test but was subbed out with a migraine, making him eligible for selection this Saturday night against Geelong, when Port will be seeking to avoid a fourth straight defeat. – Steve Barrett
St Kilda d Hawthorn
The Saints’ first-quarter fireworks, which started with clearance dominance, was a pleasant surprise for Ross Lyon and his fellow coaches. That brilliant start gave them the buffer they needed as the Hawks surged back into the game in the next two quarters, before St Kilda put the foot down again in the last term. They are still a bit unconvincing and have a brutal run home, but the cavalry is on the way, with Max King, Bradley Hill, Tim Membrey and Nick Coffield back this week or very soon. The Saints will need them fit and firing if they are to hold on to their top-eight spot. It was a disappointing result for Hawthorn, who actually started OK with the first two goals before being “demolished” at the stoppages, in coach Sam Mitchell’s words. The Hawks play exciting football at times, but there is still too much inconsistency from Mitchell’s young troops, which is mostly understandable. On the veterans’ side, Chad Wingard was really good again and has proven in recent weeks he still has plenty to offer this club beyond 2023. – Marc McGowan
Harrison Petty emerged as a focal point for Melbourne against Richmond.Credit: AFL Photos
Melbourne d Richmond
The Tigers forced Melbourne to respond several times to earn their win, with Max Gawn and Jack Viney inspirational in the second half. Gawn has been back to his best rucking solo and can take the team to their second flag in three seasons now that they appear to have a forward structure to compete. Harrison Petty won’t kick six goals every week, but he is a strong mark, and moves well when the ball hits the ground. He looks to work well with Jacob van Rooyen, who kicked four goals, while Jake Melksham is the experienced hand inside 50. Their emergence is a relief for the Demons, who still have Bayley Fritsch and Clayton Oliver to return. Richmond battled hard, but Tom Lynch’s absence is proving hard to cover, despite the brave efforts of Jack Riewoldt in what could be his final season. They had 11 goalkickers, but they conceded too many goals from centre clearances as they gambled on winning them rather than maintaining a balance around the contest. To be fair, it was that sort of game, with 21 of the 35 goals coming from stoppages. Melbourne are capable of going all the way this season; their game is coming to hand at the right time. – Peter Ryan
West Coast d North Melbourne
Interim Kangaroos coach Brett Ratten joked that he was stranded on 198 games as a coach now that Alastair Clarkson is ready to resume the senior role this week. Ratten thanked the Roos players for their commitment during his games as interim coach. “Jonny Bairstow has whipped the bails off and I’m just short,” Ratten joked. He pointed to small wins, such as Paul Curtis kicking four goals after some lean weeks, as what his club is looking for in the final weeks of the season. “He had an up-and-down day, but the pleasing aspect was that he got some reward. He hasn’t hit the scoreboard as much as we would have liked [at other times this year], so to kick four is a step in the right direction for him. That is what we are getting; we are getting little wins from our players.” Ratten praised Jack Ziebell and Todd Goldstein for, while “leading from the front and showing the way”. Eagles coach Adam Simpson was relieved to notch an overdue win, but was aware his team faced a tough assignment next, coming up against Essendon on a six-day turnaround. Elliot Yeo returned on a 60-minute limit, so he came on as the sub for the second half, taking a vital late mark to stop a late Roos attack.“That’s what you have to do in modern footy; you have to be really good at your craft, competitive, and you have to be able to run – he’s still got plenty of games left,” Simpson said of Yeo. – Roy Ward
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