| * |
On the eve of their first
appearance in the finals since 2000, the Western Bulldogs had to work hard to hold off
Essendon under the closed roof at Docklands Stadium on Friday night in front of 42,956.
Len Johnson reported in The Age: Three times
the battle-weary Bulldogs looked to have the game safe: when they led by 46 points in the
second quarter, when they repelled an Essendon comeback to lead by 19 at three-quarter
time and again when they led by 22 midway through the last.
While the Bulldogs produced an eight-goal opening term, they did not play with the
brilliance or excitement which has been the trademark of their game, Andrew Wu noted
for Sportal. Instead, their first-quarter dominance was more a
reflection to the Bombers' inability to provide worthwhile competition.
By the 17-minute mark of the second quarter, the Dogs were up by 46 points, after Will
Minson booted his side's 12th. At that stage, the Dons had just four majors and
the signs looked as if it would continue to get ugly. But Essendon staged a remarkable
comeback to cut the deficit to just 13 points close to half-time.
Two majors in three minutes to James Hird and a clever snap by Scott
Lucas for his fifth gave the Bombers the lead for the first time eight minutes
into the third term but it was short lived, Brad Johnson's fourth
returning the advantage to the Dogs. Consecutive goals to Daniel Giansiracusa,
Rohan Smith and Matthew Robbins and the Dogs were out to
a 20-point break in time-on.
Lucas's sixth a minute into the final term gave the Bombers hope, but goals to Brett
Montgomery (his third) and Giansiracusa saw the Dogs stretch their lead to 27
points. Again the Bombers fought back with Lucas booting the next three goals to narrow it
down to seven points with just three minutes remaining. However, the Dogs maintained
possession to stem the flow and hold on to win by 22 points in a less-than-convincing
victory. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 1 |
| Western Bulldogs v
Essendon |
Friday (n), September 1,
2006
Docklands, 7.40pm AEST, Roof: closed, crowd: 42,956
Conditions: Good
Weather: 18C, mainly fine; shower activity nearby |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| WB |
8.2-50 (35) |
13.5-83 (14) |
18.9-117 (19) |
22.15-147 (22) |
| ESS |
2.3-15 |
10.9-69 |
14.14-98 |
18.17-125 |
Goals: West.B'dogs:
Brad Johnson 5.5, Daniel Giansiracusa 4, Brett Montgomery 3, Matthew Robbins 3, Rohan
Smith 2, Adam Cooney, Jordan McMahon, Will Minson, Sam Power, Cameron Wight. Essendon:
Scott Lucas 8.2, Jason Johnson 5.1, James Hird 2, Chris Heffernan, Courtney Johns, Dean
Solomon.
Best: West.B'dogs: Brad Johnson, Scott West, Adam Cooney, Daniel Giansiracusa,
Lindsay Gilbee, Matthew Boyd, Brett Montgomery. Essendon: Scott Lucas, Damien
Peverill, Jason Johnson, Ricky Dyson, Brent Stanton, Nathan Lovett-Murray.
Umpires: Stephen McBurney, Ray Chamberlain, Martin Ellis. |
West Coast
finished the home-and-away series in style on Saturday afternoon at the MCG with an
emphatic 88-point victory over Richmond. The win on a warm (25C) grey day gained the third
minor premiership for the Eagles (the others were in 1991 and 1994).
By the absence of several regulars the focus turned to West Coast's inclusions
when Mark LeCras, Matt Rosa and Steven Armstrong
all starred. LeCras was best-on-ground in just his fifth AFL match, after booting
five goals; Rosa finished with 27 disposals and 14 marks – while Armstrong booted
four goals, including three in the second quarter.
Lyall Johnson reviewed the match for The Age: The
Eagles were simply brilliant, which in itself made the Tigers look worse than they are.
The Eagles set the game up by smashing the Tigers in the midfield.
Chad Fletcher was at his brilliant best, Ben
Cousins was not outstanding, but he was damn good, Chris Judd
was being tailed by Richmond skipper Kane Johnson, and while Johnson got
the points in negating him in the first half, Judd hit the afterburners in the second. Add
to the mix the at times overlooked and underrated Tyson Stenglein, who
gathered 29 touches for the day, and the old firm didn't need Andrew Embley
(not selected because of shoulder trouble) or Michael Braun, who was just
having a quiet day. And it would be remiss not to at least mention young Rosa, who showed
he is likely to be a class player.
Of course a midfield can't do it alone and the Eagles had
clear winners at both ends as well. Darren Glass and Jaymie
Graham did a tag team on Matthew Richardson. In his defence,
Richardson worked hard and covered vast distances with his strong long leads. At the other
end, Quinten Lynch, Sam Butler and LeCras kicked 12
goals between them. With Richmond's undersized defence, Lynch was always going to be a
massive problem, and his strong marking made him a menacing target. But LeCras was perhaps
the surprise packet – he hadn't kicked a goal this season but time and again it was
as if he was the invisible man as far as Richmond was concerned.
Granted Richmond has been hit by injury this year (and
certainly Mark Coughlan and Nathan Brown were two
midfield types sorely missed) but the fact was stark against the slick Eagles that the
Tigers have serious skill deficiencies under pressure. Greg Tivendale's
shocking effort in the third quarter of grubbing a kick 15 metres was a classic example. Daniel
Chick found LeCras with the turnover and the goal was a formality.
The match showed up clear structural deficiencies. With
Richmond undermanned and undersized in defence with Andrew Kellaway, Darren
Gaspar and Ray Hall missing, surely Terry Wallace
must look at what can happen without them before swinging the axe. With the exception of
Richardson, key positions at the other end of the ground are also a worry.
One of the Tigers' few winners was Andrew Raines.
Forget the Rising Star award, Raines again showed why he is a strong chance of winning his
club's best and fairest. But when he starts the match at centre half-forward you know
things aren't looking great. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 2 |
| Richmond v West Coast |
Saturday, September 2,
2006
MCG, 2.10pm AEST, crowd: 35,016
Conditions: Good
Weather: 25C, overcast, mostly grey |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| RCH |
1.1-7 |
2.6-18 |
7.8-50 |
12.13-85 |
| WCE |
5.8-38 (31) |
10.12-72 (54) |
21.13-139 (89) |
26.17-173 (88) |
Goals: West
Coast: Mark LeCras 5.4, Steven Armstrong 4, Quinten Lynch 4, Sam Butler 3, Chris Judd
3, Drew Banfield, Ben Cousins, Dean Cox, Chad Fletcher, Adam Hunter, Matt Rosa, Mark
Seaby. Richmond: Greg Stafford 3, Joel Bowden 2, Matthew Richardson 2, Cameron
Howat, Chris Hyde, Kane Johnson, Kayne Pettifer, Richard Tambling.
Best: West Coast: Mark LeCras, Matt Rosa, Tyson Stenglein, Chris Judd, Ben Cousins,
Chad Fletcher, Quinten Lynch, Steven Armstrong, Sam Butler. Richmond: Joel Bowden,
Brett Deledio, Andrew Raines, Thomas Roach, Greg Stafford.
Umpires: Adam Davis, Brett Allen, Simon Meredith. |
Adelaide made a timely return to
form to show it is still a premiership contender with an impressive 58-point victory over
Melbourne in hot 27C and mostly sunny conditions on Saturday afternoon at Football Park.
The Demons tumbled from the top four and will now face a first-week elimination final.
Alan Shiell reported the match for Sportal: The
Demons were hurt by the early loss of defender Clint Bartram, who injured his right ankle
10 minutes into the first quarter and left the field on a stretcher. The delay and the
scoring of 11 goals caused the first quarter to last 37 minutes and seven seconds – a
stern test of stamina for the players under a hot sun.
And the second term went for almost 34 minutes, with Adelaide adding 5.5 to Melbourne's
5.0. The Crows led by 32 points, 10.5 to 5.3, nearly 10 minutes into the second quarter
before the Demons fought back with a six-goals-to-two surge to cut the margin to just 11
points nearly four minutes into the third quarter.
Melbourne's captain-forward David Neitz joined in the Demons' recovery by
kicking the first two goals of the third term and another one late in the same quarter,
after he had booted two in the opening quarter. But Adelaide responded superbly and halted
the Demons' charge by adding 5.2 to 2.3 for the remainder of the third quarter, with Matthew
Clarke's long, accurate snap for the fourth of those five goals – after Matthew
Bode's strong tackle on Cameron Bruce had forced a turnover
– suggesting it was the Crows' day after all.
Colin Sylvia revived Melbourne's hopes with his second goal to start the final
quarter, but Bock and Scott Welsh booted their third goals and Tyson
Edwards got his first soon after, and, with a 40-point lead Adelaide looked a
certain winner at the 11-minute mark. Bock and Ian Perrie (two goals in
his 100th game) switched between full-forward and centre half-forward, with the elusive
Welsh, who finished with five goals, in a pocket.
Over four quarters, Adelaide thrived on the midfield run and disposal of Simon
Goodwin, Scott Thompson, Edwards and Jason Porplyzia,
while Nathan Bassett, Graham Johncock and Martin
Mattner shone in a desperate defence – and centre half-back Scott
Stevens ran forward for two goals.
Bruce, Brad Green, Travis Johnstone and Daniel
Bell were the pick of the Melbourne runners, and Jeff White
battled hard in the ruck and field play, although, overall, Clarke might have been the
game's most influential ruckman at the bounces. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 3 |
| Adelaide v Melbourne |
Saturday, September 2,
2006
Football Park, 3.10pm AEST, crowd: 41,364
Conditions: Good
Weather: 27C, hot and mostly sunny |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| ADE |
7.3-45 (18) |
12.8-80 (23) |
17.10-112 (28) |
23.14-152 (58) |
| MEL |
4.3-27 |
9.3-57 |
13.6-84 |
14.10-94 |
Goals: Adelaide:
Scott Welsh 5.1, Scott Thompson 3, Nathan Bock 3, Ian Perrie 2, Scott Stevens 2, Matthew
Bode, Nathan Van Berlo, Jason Porplyzia, Brent Reilly, Michael Doughty, Matthew Clarke,
Richard Douglas, Tyson Edwards. Melbourne: David Neitz 5.0, Aaron Davey 2, Colin
Sylvia 2, Russell Robertson, Brock McLean, Mark Jamar, Jeff White, James McDonald.
Best: Adelaide: Scott Thompson, Simon Goodwin, Tyson Edwards, Nathan Bassett, Scott
Welsh, Graham Johncock, Jason Porplyzia, Nathan Bock.
Melbourne: Cameron Bruce, Travis Johnstone, David Neitz, Brad Green, Daniel Bell,
Brock McLean, Daniel Ward.
Umpires: Hayden Kennedy, Justin Schmitt, Darren Goldspink.
Report:
Brock McLean (Mel) charged with a Level Two rough conduct offence against Scott
Stevens (Ade) during the fourth quarter. The MRP with an early plea offered
McLean a reprimand and 93.75 towards his future record. The player admitted guilt and
accepted the penalty. |
St Kilda gained a boost in
confidence when it outclassed Brisbane on Saturday night to win by 51 points and wipe
clean the long-standing hoodoo to win at the Gabba for the first time since 1991.
Martin Blake reviewed proceedings for The Age: St
Kilda's established stars came out to play but it was the performance of 23-year-old Barry
Brooks that took the eye. Talented but unfulfilled, Brooks had not won a place in
a St Kilda senior team for more than a year, since his infamous non-contest in a game
against Fremantle in Launceston left the St Kilda coaching staff — not to mention
supporters – nonplussed. Brooks, one of four ruckmen picked in the team by Grant
Thomas, stood at full-forward and broke the game open with three second-quarter
goals. Two of his goals came from 50-metre range and one from a role reversal, where the
198-centimetre ruckman crumbed a loose ball and snapped truly.His outstanding game means Thomas must think long and hard over the next few
days, for he already has Cain Ackland, Justin Koschitzke
and Michael Rix in his 22, not to mention last night's late inclusion Jason
Blake, who has also spent time playing in the ruck in the past two seasons.
Initially it looked to be a strange tactic by Thomas, who
is not known for his high opinion of ruckmen. But last night his tactic of employing
Brooks, Fraser Gehrig, Nick Riewoldt and Koschitzke all
inside the forward 50-metre zone actually worked quite well. Thomas has been seeking a
different look for some weeks now, with Luke Ball and Nick Dal
Santo starting in the back half as virtual quarterbacks, and Stephen
Milne playing away from the goals. Even Gehrig worked out to half-forward, taking
Mal Michael away from his comfort zone.
Dal Santo looked out of place for a time, conceding three
first-quarter goals to the Lions' cult figure, Justin Sherman, who
ignited the parochial crowd with his maverick ways. But when Dal Santo moved into the
midfield after half-time he had an enormous influence.
For the 31-year-old MIchael Voss, it was a
disappointing night. The triple premiership skipper and all-time great turned back the
clock with his 13-disposal first quarter, yet his slow climb to his feet after a heavy hit
from Blake late in the term told a tale as well.
He cannot be fully fit, yet he drove himself to a
magnificent game and was his team's best player on the night. The champion onballer is
contemplating his future and said after the match he was "50-50" about playing
on next year. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 4 |
| Brisbane Lions v St Kilda |
Saturday (n), September 2,
2006
BCG (Gabba), 7.10pm AEST, crowd: 27,101
Conditions: Very good
Weather: 19C, fine |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| BRI |
3.4-22 |
4.7-31 |
7.14-56 |
7.15-57 |
| STK |
4.1-25 (3) |
10.5-65 (34) |
13.6-84 (28) |
16.12-108 (51) |
Goals: St
Kilda: Barry Brooks 3, Robert Harvey 3, Fraser Gehrig 3, Stephen Milne 2, Nick
Riewoldt, Brendon Goddard, Justin Koschitzke, Jason Gram, Leigh Fisher. Brisbane:
Justin Sherman 4, Chris Johnson, Jed Adcock, Daniel Bradshaw.
Best: St Kilda: Luke Ball, Nick Dal Santo, Steven Baker, Robert Harvey, Barry
Brooks, Brendon Goddard, Jason Gram. Brisbane: Michael Voss, Jed Adcock, Justin
Sherman, Simon Black, Daniel Merrett, Scott Harding.
Umpires: Scott McLaren, Stefan Grun, Jason Quigley. |
Fremantle secured third place
with a mammoth 79-point victory over Port Adelaide before a large attendance of 41,121 at
Subiaco Oval on Saturday night. The win took Fremantle to a club record ninth straight win
and their 15th for the season, also a record.
Digby Beacham recorded in the Sunday Times: It
was another power-house aggressive performance by Fremantle, which conceded the game's
opening two goals and then went on a rampage. Jeff Farmer (6.1) and Matthew
Pavlich (5.3) not only tuned up for the qualifying final against Adelaide, but
enhanced their chances of All-Australian selection.
Ruckman Aaron Sandilands was again a star, while Ryan Crowley,
seemingly intent in rivalling Josh Carr as Fremantle's biggest
antagonist, also dominated, with 35 disposals and two goals.
Brett Peake, son of WAFL legend Brian, ran hard from the outset despite
some close attention, and could be well pleased with his 29 possessions and two goals, a
showing which was the best of his 26 appearances for the Dockers.
Mark Duffield in The Age noted: The Dockers
were dominant but hardly clinical. In the middle of the second quarter over-confidence in
trying to move the ball through the corridor created a series of turnovers, but Port was
just as frequently unable to take advantage of the blunders.Crowley and Shaun Burgoyne were having the tussle of the match
midfield with 33 touches between them to half-time. Josh Carr and Kane Cornes
were also prolific with 16 and 18 touches respectively but it was the sparkling run of Roger
Hayden and Heath Black from defence, the finish of Pavlich and
Farmer and the fierce attack on the ball of Troy Cook in attack that put
a gap between the teams on the scoreboard.
The damage was 44 points at half-time and the worry for
Port was that the floodgates hadn't fully opened yet. They did in the third quarter. By ¾-time
Port was 75 points down and Fremantle supporters were celebrating while there was still a
quarter and a half to go in the match. Farmer kicked one of the goals of the season,
soccering the ball to himself, then turning two Port defenders inside out before snapping
the goal off his left foot.
The last quarter was academic. Port was trying not to be
embarrassed, Fremantle trying not to get injured or reported. Farmer kicked his sixth goal
– his 50th for the season – but developed a hobble on landing and was taken off.
Pavlich and Peter Bell had joined him on the pine by the end of the term
as coach Chris Connolly made sure he had a full list to pick from next
week. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 5 |
| Fremantle v Port Adelaide |
Saturday (n), September 2,
2006
Subiaco Oval, 7.40pm AEST, crowd: 41,121
Conditions: Still firm, after rain during week
Weather: 15C, fine |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| FRE |
6.6-42 (23) |
11.9-75 (44) |
18.11-119 |
23.13-151 (79) |
| PA |
3.1-19 |
4.7-31 |
5.14-44 |
9.18-72 |
Goals: Fremantle:
Jeff Farmer 6.1, Matthew Pavlich 5.3, Brett Peake 2, Des Headland 2, Justin Longmuir 2,
Ryan Crowley 2, Shaun McManus, Byron Schammer, Peter Bell, Roger Hayden. Port: Toby
Thurstans 2, Danyle Pearce, Matt Thomas, Steven Salopek, Greg Bentley, Brett Ebert, Josh
Mahoney, Ryan Willits.
Best: Fremantle: Matthew Pavlich, Jeff Farmer, Ryan Crowley, Brett Peake, Roger
Hayden, Troy Cook, Peter Bell. Port: Kane Cornes, Domenic Cassisi, Steven Salopek,
Shaun Burgoyne, Brendon Lade.
Umpires: Matt Stevic, Stuart Wenn, Scott Jeffery. |
The Sydney Swans signalled its
premiership intentions by cementing its place in the top four and comprehensively
thrashing wooden-spooner Carlton by 92 points on a warm Sunday afternoon at the Sydney
Cricket Ground. It was the ninth-straight win by the Swans over Carlton.
Michael Crowley noted in The Age: As legendary
US baseball player Yogi Berra once famously said: "This is like deja
vu all over again" – just as they did 12 months ago, the Swans this week will
travel to Perth to begin their finals campaign against West Coast. The only difference
this time around is that West Coast finished on top of the ladder instead of second and
the Swans were fourth instead of third, but if history is any gauge, Saturday's qualifying
final will be a tight, tense, and probably slightly controversial clash.
Ben Broad observed for Sportal: Paul
Roos' men warmed up for their heavyweight bout by clinically disposing of
lightweights Carlton, as one would expect. It was a miserable day for the Blues, who
kicked their second goal at the 21-minute mark of the opening term but failed to kick
another until 19 minutes into the final quarter.
Adam Goodes was superb yet again, kicking four goals and gathering 27
possessions to clearly be the most influential player on the ground. Amon Buchanan,
Barry Hall, Michael O'Loughlin and Tadhg
Kennelly also enjoyed days out although it must be said the Swans had
contributors on every line.
Carlton on the other hand had little to cheer about. Heath Scotland
racked up plenty of the ball while Matthew Lappin and Trent Sporn
did likewise, and Setanta O'hAilpin's dash from defence was perhaps a
bright sign for next year and beyond. Barnaby French also booted a goal
with just a minute left in the game in what was his final AFL match, and teammates rushed
to the ruckman's side to acknowledge his efforts during his 71 games with the club.
Roos was able to rest some of his stars in the last term, but Sydney still added six more
goals, to record its biggest win against Carlton in the 209 matches between the clubs
dating back to 1897, surpassing the 78-point margin in 2002. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 6 |
| Sydney v Carlton |
Sunday, September 3, 2006
SCG, 1.10pm AEST, crowd: 33,943
Conditions: Firm centre
Weather: 25C, warm; cloudy, gusty wind |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| SYD |
5.1-31 (16) |
9.3-57 (39) |
15.9-99 (80) |
21.10-136 (92) |
| CAR |
2.3-15 |
2.6-18 |
2.7-19 |
6.8-44 |
Goals: Sydney:
Adam Goodes 4, Barry Hall 3, Ryan O'Keefe 3, Amon Buchanan 2, Michael O'Loughlin 2, Nick
Malceski, Nick Davis, Jarrad McVeigh, Nic Fosdike, Ted Richards, Ben Mathews, Adam
Schneider. Carlton: Lance Whitnall, Brad Fisher, Brendan Fevola, Jarrad Waite, Luke
Blackwell, Barnaby French.
Best: Sydney: Adam Goodes, Amon Buchanan, Craig Bolton, Michael O'Loughlin, Tadhg
Kennelly, Leo Barry. Carlton: Heath Scotland, Matthew Lappin.
Umpires: Chris Donlon, Michael Avon, Shane McInerney. |
Collingwood booted 10.6 in the
last quarter to seal fifth place on percentage as they romped away to a 68-point win over
the Kangaroos on Sunday afternoon at the MCG. The late goal blitz contrasted greatly with
most of the game, when the Magpies dominated possession but failed to capitalise on the
scoreboard.
Sportal noted it wasn't pretty but the Magpies did what was
required to get the four points and will take a three-match winning streak into the
finals. A four-goal burst early in the fourth quarter put the task beyond the Roos, who
struggled to penetrate their own forward 50 all afternoon.
Magpies Paul Licuria (26 disposals) and Scott Burns (28)
were solid while Chris Egan took over the role of resident forward when
the side's two big targets failed to make an impact. Egan finished with three goals while
spearhead Chris Tarrant (three goals) – a late inclusion –
waited until the last quarter to make his presence known.
For the Roos, standouts were few and far between but Brent Harvey coped
admirably with Brodie Holland shadowing him while Corey Jones
handled the responsibility of acting captain well.
Similar to last week's performance, the Roos didn't get a constant supply to their
forwards, although retiring former Magpie Saverio Rocca found the big
sticks on three occasions.
The Pies had trouble finding their own targets but a flurry of final term goals from the
likes of Tarkyn Lockyer, Dane Swan and Licuria blew the
game apart after the Roos trailed by 22 points at the final change.
Stephen Rielly pertinently noted in The Age: The
Kangaroos put a team on the ground that was an eight-year-old short of a little league
side. No fewer than nine of the Roos chosen to finish off the season were 22 or younger.
Dean Laidley's centre-square combination at the opening bounce included Hamish
McIntosh, 22-year-old ruckman, Andrew Swallow, a 19-year-old
first-year player, Daniel Wells, a star but still only 21, and Daniel
Harris, the grey beard of the group at 24. This was a call to 2007, perhaps 2008. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 7 |
| Collingwood v Kangaroos |
Sunday, September 3, 2006
MCG, 2.10pm AEST, crowd: 49,040
Conditions: Good
Weather: 15C, cloudy, sunny patches |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| COL |
3.3-21 |
6.7-43 (8) |
10.13-73 (22) |
20.19-139 (68) |
| KAN |
3.4-22 (1) |
5.5-35 |
7.9-51 |
10.11-71 |
Goals: Collingwood:
Paul Licuria 4, Chris Egan 3, Chris Tarrant 3, Tarkyn Lockyer 2, Ben Johnson, Ryan Lonie,
Nathan Buckley, Rhyce Shaw, Alan Didak, Dane Swan, Brodie Holland, Anthony Rocca. Kangaroos:
Saverio Rocca 3, Corey Jones 3, Shannon Watt, Kasey Green, Brady Rawlings, Brent Harvey.
Best: Collingwood: Paul Licuria, Scott Burns, Ben Johnson, James Clement, Shane
O'Bree, Tarkyn Lockyer, Rhyce Shaw, Dane Swan, Josh Fraser. Kangaroos: Daniel
Harris, Jess Sinclair, Brent Harvey, Daniel McConnell, Brady Rawlings.
Umpires: Mathew James, Matthew Head, Shaun Ryan.
Report:
Glenn Archer (Kan) reported on match day for striking Tarkyn
Locker (Col) during the fourth quarter. The MRP assessed Archer's action against
Lockyer did not constitute a strike. No further action was taken. |
Hawthorn finished on a high note
with a thumping 61-point victory over Geelong on Sunday afternoon under the open roof at
Docklands Stadium. It was the fourth-straight by the Hawks, a first for coach ALASTAIR
CLARKSON and the game produced Hawthorn's best score of the year.
Mark Williams' was outstanding up forward, booting eight goals, including
six in the second half, to produce a best-on ground display. The Hawks jumped to an early
advantage, leading by 47 points seven minutes into the second term and were never
seriously threatened by a disappointing and disjointed Geelong.
Matt Burgan reported for Sportal: Hawthorn's
usual suspects – Sam Mitchell (33 disposals), Luke Hodge
(30) and Shane Crawford (28 and three goals) – were also
outstanding, while it was one of its young guns that also played a blinder.
Recent NAB AFL Rising Star nominee Grant Birchall was great with 36
disposals and 11 marks. Entering this match, he had won 24, 23 and 27 disposals in his
past three matches. It was a stunning finish to 2006.
Hawthorn began the game brilliantly, responding to Geelong's early goal with five of its
own in succession, including two to Lance Franklin. The Hawks, with Chance
Bateman, Birchall and Crawford running rampant through the middle, dominated the
quarter, kicking 7.1 to 2.2 and jumping to a 29-point quarter-time lead.
The Hawks then booted the first three of the second quarter, including two from Crawford,
to race to a 47-point lead. Geelong looked rattled, having already lost Tom Harley
to a hamstring injury and Jarad Rooke to concussion. But to its credit,
it battled back well late in the half, kicking the last three goals to close the gap to 28
at the main break.
Three Williams goals as well as a clever snap from Ben McGlynn put the
Hawks into a comfortable position again by three-quarter time, 44 points clear. The Cats
seemed intent to blaze away, converting just one of their five scoring chances for the
term. John Barker's mark and goal in his farewell game early in the final
term brought the biggest roar of the day, but Williams wasn't finished, dobbing another
three as the Hawks powered away with the game, kicking 6.3 to 3.4 to punctuate the win.
Geelong finished the season in 10th spot, while Hawthorn has much to look forward to after
a late-season surge saw it reach 11th. |
| 2006
— ROUND 22 — GAME 8 |
| Hawthorn v Geelong |
Sunday, September 3, 2006
Docklands, 2.10pm AEST, Roof: open, crowd: 28,188
Conditions: Fair to good
Weather: 15C, cloudy, sunny patches |
| |
1/4
time |
1/2
time |
3/4
time |
Final |
| HAW |
7.1-43 (29) |
11.2-68 (28) |
15.4-94 (44) |
21.7-133 (61) |
| GEE |
2.2-14 |
6.4-40 |
7.8-50 |
10.12-72 |
Goals: Hawthorn:
Mark Williams 8.0, Shane Crawford 3, Brad Sewell 2, Lance Franklin 2, Jarryd Roughead
2, Brent Guerra, Ben McGlynn, Ben Dixon, John Barker. Geelong: Corey Enright 2,
Paul Chapman 2, Steve Johnson 2, Nathan Ablett, Brent Prismall, Matthew Scarlett, Gary
Ablett.
Best: Hawthorn: Mark Williams, Sam Mitchell, Grant Birchall, Shane Crawford, Chance
Bateman, Joel Smith, Luke Hodge, Brad Sewell. Geelong: Paul Chapman, Gary
Ablett, Corey Enright, Brent Prismall, Joel Corey.
Umpires: Michael Vozzo, Brett Rosebury, Derek Woodcock.
Report:
Shane Crawford (Haw) charged with a first offence for abusive language
toward boundary umpire Chris Steinman during the first quarter. The MRP
with an early plea offered Crawford a $900 fine. The player admitted guilt and accepted
the penalty. |
|
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