Two instant classics, a 17-game winning streak ended, and more than a dollop of controversy – Round 11 was an absolute ripper!
It seems a shame to now have to deal with there being only six games per week after that – but no doubt the players will be keenly awaiting their respective byes, and a chance to rest up and prepare for a long, tough winter ahead.
West Coast and North Melbourne were awful again – no surprises there. Gold Coast and Collingwood proved the top eight is far from settled with big (of very different kinds) wins. But of course, the story of the weekend was probably Fremantle, who at last brought to an end Melbourne’s reign of tyranny over the AFL, and ensured this season is no longer just a one-horse race.
Let’s dive straight in!
1. It’s time for the Eagles – and Adam Simpson – to move on
Watching West Coast’s latest embarrassing performance on Saturday night, what struck you was just how lifeless this team now looks.
It wasn’t as if the skill level was particularly bad – there were no catastrophic kicking howlers, fresh-air spoils or much truly meme-worthy beyond Josh Kennedy giving away a late double-50 metre penalty. Several youngsters showed promise, while Jack Darling, the most maligned of all Eagles, even kicked four goals.
But the game still always felt on track for a 100-point massacre, which the Western Bulldogs perfectly timed to arrive at in the final 20 seconds. Slowly but surely the margin crept up, with any majors for the Eagles the equivalent of taking one step forward for every two steps back.
It was actually worse than if they’d been horrific: once the Bulldogs got the ball, the Eagles had no plan, no ability, and no desire to get the ball back. I’d argue even a VFL side would have at least gone harder for the ball and been more desperate, even if the margin would have been the same – indeed, the Eagles’ WAFL top-up players this year, from Jake Florenca to Aaron Black, have frequently been among the more desperate players afield in their matches.
Their loss to Richmond was uglier, to be sure; but it’s only after watching them now that I’m convinced it’s time for both the Eagles and Adam Simpson to part ways.
Yes, the Eagles have the longest injury list in the game. Yes, the club has been ravaged by COVID, and the internal strife it has brought about. Yes, they’re struggling to put a moderately competent 22 out on the park, and some weeks, even 22 has been a stretch.
But this isn’t any regular old bad side: the Eagles are now clearly one of the worst teams in AFL history. Their percentage this week dropped below 50 per cent, the first team to fall that low this late in a season since early-days GWS. In the last seven weeks, it’s 39.3 per cent.
It’s one thing to suck: every team goes through rough patches, and the Eagles have more excuses than most. But there’s a difference between losing with dignity and the sort of weekly humiliation this club is now forcing on its members, who at this point would have to be footy masochists to head along to Optus Stadium and see them play.
Simpson has been dealt a rough hand this year, but it’s his ninth season in charge, and as we’ve seen repeatedly over the journey, that’s a long time to be hearing the same voice. When confronted with a situation as daunting as the Eagles have in 2022, and will again moving forward with the ugliest list in the competition and a serious lack of developing youngsters, it’s adding to the malaise among the playing group.
As for his contract lasting until the end of 2024: surely we’ve all learned by now that those are worth less than the paper they’re printed on if your team starts to get thrashed.
The Eagles are at rock bottom: indeed, they passed rock bottom on the way down a few weeks back. Unless change is made, at the end of the season if not right here and right now, it’s hard to see them moving back up again anytime soon.
Not even Norm Smith could coach this West Coast team into winning many games, but with a hungry group of players out to prove themselves under a new man in charge, from junior players like Brady Hough and Callum Jamieson to stalwarts like Andrew Gaff or Darling keen to not be moved on in the name of youth, those losses can at least be moved into the ‘honourable’ category.
Strategically, too, the Eagles could do with a fresh structure. The backline has fallen apart all year, especially when Jeremy McGovern either misses or goes down injured, as he did against the Dogs. We’ve seen with Sam Mitchell and Hawthorn this year that even the most unassuming defence can have a surprising amount of steel with the right game plan (not to pump up a former Bulldog too much, but there’s a certain assistant coach named M. Boyd currently a few miles down the road at Fremantle who has some experience in this caper).
This isn’t a knock on Simpson at all, either: he’ll forever be a premiership coach, and the clout that brings would keep him in the frame for future jobs if he’s interested. Heck, there’s a club he played 306 games at that might be in the market for someone new at season’s end. With a new group and set-up around him, no doubt he’d be capable of coaching at the elite level still.
But every week further he remains at West Coast is a dagger into not just the club, but his own coaching pedigree. For both parties’ sake, the relationship can’t continue into 2023.
(Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Media/Getty Images)
2. Give gun backs Rising Star noms before it becomes a mini-Brownlow
The Rising Star has always been a refreshing departure from the majority of AFL awards: it’s the only one that doesn’t instantly gravitate towards the elite midfielders of the game.
Luke Jackson, a ruck-forward, won last year; in 2015, Jesse Hogan pipped Patrick Cripps for the top gong; in 2012, Crow Daniel Talia was recognised for an outstanding season as a key defender. The diversity of winners has been great to see, especially with the Brownlow Medal having all but officially become the midfielder’s medal.
That’s why it’s been disappointing to see that by this point of the year, two of the competition’s most outstanding developing key defenders in Sam De Koning and Josh Gibcus are yet to be recognised with a nomination. Yes, the criteria is as loosey-goosey as it gets, sometimes rewarding players for a body of work and other times for one outstanding performance; but it seems odd that by midway through the season, two leading contenders to win the whole thing are so far not even eligible.
De Koning is now probably only behind Tom Stewart in terms of importance to the Cats’ defensive structure. His reading of the play and intercept marking is elite, he’s deceptively strong for his lean frame, and he’s shown he’s capable of standing some of the best key forwards in the game, including Max King a few weeks ago.
Surely, after 19 touches, 11 intercept possessions and nine marks against Adelaide, his time is now. It should have been two weeks ago.
As for Gibcus, his tussle with Lance Franklin on Friday night was truly captivating: while Buddy’s second half saw him take the points in a knockout, the first-year Tiger resoundingly won the battle in the first. He even kicked a goal for good measure late in the game, showing nerves of steel to keep Richmond in the hunt.
At 19 years old, last year’s pick nine has completely outshone veteran Robbie Tarrant in the Tigers’ back six, to the point that fans are fine with him being dropped and giving Gibcus more responsibility. Thus far, he’s proved more than up to it, with outstanding games against Melbourne (12 marks, 18 disposals and seven rebound 50s) and Collingwood already under his belt before taking on Franklin.
Both will undoubtedly get Rising Star nominations in the coming weeks, if not this very week. Fingers crossed they’re both in serious contention to challenge Jai Newcombe and Nick Daicos to win the whole thing come September.
3. Weitering injury wasn’t why the Blues lost
If you didn’t watch the game, or maybe even if you did, you’d look at Carlton’s eventual four-point losing margin to Collingwood, then look at Jacob Weitering going down with a shoulder injury in the opening minutes, and put two and two together.
No doubt the loss of Weitering didn’t help the Blues, but it was the Magpies’ desperation in midfield, and the organisation of their back six, that earned them a victory that keeps them in touch with the top eight.
The Blues have been utterly dominant in the centre all season, regularly smashing teams in close and spreading superbly on the outside. That, more than anything else, is why they started the year 8-2.
The Pies, though, refused to allow the Blues any easy ball, with a whopping 308 pressure acts for the match – more than 50 more than Carlton. 31 of those belonged to Scott Pendlebury, moved onto the ball for the match, whose calm presence in the Magpie midfield has been a crucial circuit-breaker already this year for Craig McRae.
Really, it was Harry McKay’s absence which was more keenly felt by the Blues; against an undersized Magpie defence, you felt he could certainly have taken advantage of the many high balls the Pies’ pressure forced the Blues into. Instead, it was the Pies’ defence, marshalled by Jeremy Howe, that kept them at bay, and helped hold Charlie Curnow, despite an eventual tally of four goals, largely in check.
The silver lining for the Blues is that they showed they can remain competitive without Weitering, who is likely to miss some weeks with that injury. The much-maligned Lachie Plowman did an excellent job on Brody Mihocek, while the Magpie smalls were largely taken care of. Many of the Pies’ goals instead came from midfielders pushing harder downfield than their Blues counterparts, particularly Patrick Lipinski and Steele Sidebottom (two apiece).
The Blues have Essendon, Richmond, Fremantle (home) and St Kilda in their next month. Even without Weitering and McKay, they’re every chance to win all four of those games. But everyone watching now has their blueprint for how to hunt the Blues: pressure, pressure, pressure.
Jacob Weitering of the Blues kicks. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
4. Buddy is now top five of all time… and still rising
The debate around which players are the greatest of all time will never be fully defined – everyone’s going to have a different opinion.
Nevertheless, it’s important to understand that Lance Franklin isn’t just the most impactful player of his generation – he’s among the best to have ever played the game.
Aged 35, Franklin is still working miracles and shifting games through sheer force of will. His physical attributes, while fallen from his best, are still good enough to beat just about any key defender going around. And his footy intelligence has improved over the years to the point where you’ll struggle to find a smarter forward going around.
As for his kicking – has he ever kicked for goal better than in 2022?
Gary Ablett Jr, his most immediate modern peer, wasn’t having this sort of impact at 35. Wayne Carey, the undisputed key forward titan, was two years retired by now. Yet on Franklin marches, and at this point, it’s hard to put another year or two past him.
In the most difficult era for scoring in 50 years, Franklin has passed 1000 goals, and is absolutely still going strong. By the end of his career, if he can finish with a bang, Leigh Matthews might just have a challenger as the pundits’ choice for the GOAT.
It’s just a shame he won’t be out there this weekend, after receiving a one-match ban for his hit on Trent Cotchin. Some things never change, Buddy.
5. Giants’ Rich rewards prove hard tags on half-backs should be the norm
A big reason GWS came so close to a monumental upset over Brisbane at the Gabba was a move few others have tried in recent years: an almighty shutdown job on Daniel Rich.
With tagger Matt de Boer barely allowing him room to pick his nose, Rich would have just 13 disposals for the game – his second-lowest in a completed game in the last three and a half years, including 2020’s shortened-quarters matches.
The results were apparent – the Lions were unable to rebound with their usual dash and zip for much of the match, and as a result, were able to effectively lock the ball into their attacking 50 for large portions of the match. Indeed, it was only once the Lions cut out the middle man and began dominating out of the centre that the match shifted.
At the same time a long way south, Adelaide seemed content to sit back and watch Tom Stewart do as he pleased at the Cattery. The Cats will always look to Stewart as their outlet option for his smart ball use and composed decision-making, and the Crows allowed them to give it to him all day.
Stewart finished with a ridiculous 40 disposals – 34 of them kicks – and 16 marks as he single-handedly quashed the Crows’ chances of capitalising on wins in the clearance and contested possession count.
Then, on Sunday, North Melbourne were sliced up all day by Bradley Hill and Jack Sinclair roaming from defensive 50 to half-forward. Both are elite ball users, and when allowed time and space as they were by the Roos, set up wave after wave of forward forays. They had 50 kicks for the match between them, at an almost Stewart-like conversion rate.
Tagging gun midfielders has become all the rage, but it’s difficult to do – the Giants tried tagging Lachie Neale, for instance, with zero success. In contrast, a dedicated man sticking to Stewart or Sinclair like glue, preventing them overlap handball receives or switch kicks, feels far easier to accomplish.
Indeed, St Kilda tried something similar against the Cats, with Cooper Sharman set to quell Stewart’s influence in the air. Stewart still had 27 disposals, but his influence in the air was quelled, and as a result, the Saints stormed home for a stirring victory.
Both Stewart and Sinclair, and perhaps Hill too, are locks in the All Australian team at the halfway mark. It’s time future opponents realised their importance to their sides, and set out to stop them as the Giants did Rich.
(Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
6. Time for we the fans to decide what we want the game to be
The AFL and the umpiring department have long been key staples of criticism from fans and the media – and not without cause.
But after Friday night’s fantastic Richmond-Sydney match, as well as last week’s almost as wonderful Hawthorn-Brisbane thriller, were drowned out by debate over controversial calls, the new rules and umpiring interpretations, I think it’s time to ask ourselves as a collective some hard questions.
Do we want a high-scoring, free-flowing game with highlights aplenty and edge-of-your-seat finishes? Or do we want hard, ferocious competitiveness with the whistle put away and both teams battering each other into submission?
As it stands, fans and the media as a whole seem to want to cherry-pick the best bits of both, with no idea how to achieve that. As an example, talking heads in the media have been banging on for years about trying to produce higher-scoring football, following years of rolling mauls, repeat stoppages and unattractive play.
I’d argue many of the AFL’s attempts to do this over the years have been counter-productive at best and a blight on the game at worst, but it’s worth noting that they still cop a grilling from those same talking heads when the matches are everything they’ve been crying out for for years… for the number of free kicks given.
The truth is that if we don’t want to see ‘tiggy touchwood’ frees given for off-the-ball contact, or 50 metre penalties handed out like Tic-Tacs, we’re probably going to have to accept that scores won’t be great.
Those calling for footy to return back to the ’80s and ’90s should also note that the free kick counts we saw last Sunday and on Friday night were a weekly occurrence back then – you couldn’t touch Gary Ablett Sr inside 50 without giving away a free, as the legend goes. 50 frees were handed out in the 1989 grand final, regarded by many as the greatest game of all – such a number would be slammed today.
Footy media feeds on controversy – outrage leads to content, clicks, weekly talking points and fuels the business. But it’s only allowed to do so because we fans have a desire for controversy, that in modern times is beginning to outweigh what actually happens on the field. If that non-50m penalty on Friday night, or the odd prohibited contact free kick, is what gets most of the attention from one of the best games of recent years, that’s a problem.
It’s time we all, from the media to every one of us fans, accepted the game for what it is rather than a glorified imagining of what it once was. Maybe then we’ll finally be able to enjoy the game as much as we did in the ‘good old days’.
Random thoughts
– Beating the reigning premiers then watching West Coast lose by 100. There’s going to be some smug Freo fans at work on Monday!
– Genuinely starting to feel like Darcy Cameron is at least as good a ruckman as Brodie Grundy.
– Still can’t understand why the Hawks aren’t putting Chad Wingard on the ball more often.
– Low key this is probably the best goal so far this year from Alex Keath.
– It’s Round 11 and I’m still trying to work out how 18 teams passed on Nic Martin in the first place.
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