Geelong d Melbourne
Geelong coach Chris Scott sang the praises of his young core after several of them stood up in the win over Melbourne on Thursday night. Scott said Tanner Bruhn was “fantastic”, Jack Bowes showed he was a loss while out injured and Ollie Henry stood up. “Our expectation was never, they’re going to come in and improve us straight away,” Scott said. “But we’re not asking them to be patient, we want them to let themselves go and show the world what they can do.” One player Scott doesn’t count in his young core is premiership big man Sam De Koning, 22, who has battled several injuries since pre-season. “I regard him as an All-Australian level player, he’s not building, his best is there and tonight was a good step for him.” Demons coach Simon Goodwin admitted his side again didn’t take its chances, kicking 10 behinds including some gettable shots from open play. Christian Petracca was Melbourne’s best player but missed a couple of his shots and so did Kysaiah Pickett, who was also among the best. “We’re leaving a few chances out there, that’s been a bit of a trend in the last three, four weeks,” Goodwin said. “We’re getting enough supply at times. It’s an area we need to get better at and continue to get better at.” – Roy Ward
Zach Guthrie and Ollie Henry enjoy a goal during the Cats’ win over Melbourne.Credit: AFL Photos
Brisbane Lions d St Kilda
Harris Andrews was brilliant down back. Eric Hipwood was lively with four goals. Lachie Neale won nine clearances. And yet, the Lions would have been only 10 points up on the Saints early in the final term, if not for Oscar McInerney’s fingernails. They still have Daniel Rich, who has struggled with a calf issue this season, Jack Gunston and Dayne Zorko out from their best side, but Brisbane need to find another level if they want to win the flag. Ultimately, we won’t know whether the Lions have it in them until the finals arrive, which they will undoubtedly be part of again. The same cannot be said – at least with any certainty – about Ross Lyon’s Saints. St Kilda’s coach got a bit shirty when it was pointed out the Saints were treading a similar path to last year, when they started strongly, then slumped. They have lost four of their past five matches, and were lucky to outlast the wayward Swans in that period. St Kilda have West Coast next, and the Eagles are the perfect remedy for a slump. – Marc McGowan
Sydney d West Coast
It was a bloodbath to rival all bloodbaths. This narrative was supposed to be about Sydney needing to beat a bottom-placed team with only a single win to its name. What they delivered was a 171-point disembowelment that equalled the Swans’ biggest winning margin in club history and the equal-fourth biggest in the VFL/AFL. In the process, West Coast conceded 205 points in their heaviest loss to date by some deficit. That last point means the pitchforks are coming for Eagles coach Adam Simpson, who insisted post-game he remains the man for the job but admitted he was “pretty embarrassed”, adding that the sheer number of injuries had left him with no depth to speak of (they also lost Jack Williams on the night over a rolled ankle and Tom Barrass was off for concussion tests almost half the match). For John Longmire’s charges it was a walk in the park, though Errol Gulden did quite a lot of running while the returning Isaac Heeney scored five of his team’s 35 majors. The Swans, who have climbed to 12th, will rightfully feel more confident after this but sterner tests await, most immediately a clash with ninth-placed Geelong, their conquerors in the 2022 grand final, on Friday. – Emma Kemp
The Eagles were embarrassed again on Saturday.Credit: AFL Photos
Fremantle d Essendon
Fremantle know Liam Henry has unlimited potential and the wingman showed how good he could be with a 32-possession breakout game against Essendon. Henry, 20, was always a talented player but said post-game he had to develop the running power and work ethic to play in the midfield and that has come from working with development coach Joel Corey, a three-time premiership hero at Geelong. The thought of Corey’s footy nous and Henry’s talent is a scary proposition, especially when combined with Caleb Serong, Andrew Brayshaw, Sean Darcy and others in the midfield. If Henry stays consistent, the Dockers will be a side to watch in the run to the finals. While Darcy Parish returned from a calf injury with a strong performance, Bombers coach Brad Scott said he would refuse to let star big man Sam Draper return from a nagging hip injury until he had properly recovered. Scott revealed Draper had played through the injury and it was getting worse. “The medical staff said we could push him to play, but we’re not doing that,” Scott said. “We just want to get him right. If that takes one week, fantastic. If it takes longer than that, we will assess it week by week.” – Roy Ward
Collingwood d Adelaide
Nick Daicos is firming to win this year’s Brownlow Medal, especially with early season contenders Jordan De Goey and Clayton Oliver missing so many games. Zak Butters, Tim Taranto, Marcus Bontempelli and possibly Christian Petracca loom as the star Pie’s biggest dangers, but his consistently great games for the AFL’s first-placed team means he is a deserved favourite. More impressively, the incomparable 20-year-old racked up his 37 disposals against the Crows as a midfielder, silencing anyone questioning his ability to win his own ball. Daicos, in his coach’s words, is simply remarkable, and we are witnessing someone who might end up as an all-time great. As for the Crows, they are for real. We suspected as much, but their effort to rock up to the MCG and throw everything at Collingwood was a sight to behold. Adelaide’s seven-goal third quarter was devastating, with Taylor Walker wreaking havoc in attack. And what about Jordan Dawson?! Dawson might sneak into that Brownlow discussion, too, if he keeps this up. – Marc McGowan
Nick Daicos has starred for the Pies.Credit: AFL Photos
Gold Coast d Hawthorn
After last week’s disaster against Carlton, the Suns needed this win badly. It didn’t matter especially how they got it, but they ended up doing it in style: this was one of their best performances of the year, regardless of opposition. You could argue that once again, the gap between this side’s best and worst has been exposed, and that’s fair – with matches against Collingwood and Port Adelaide ahead of them, they have an opportunity to prove they’re for real about making their first finals campaign. Hawthorn were stopped in their tracks after a month full of promise. With Sam Mitchell’s boys winning three of their last four games, this performance showed how far they still have to go. – Andrew Stafford
