Kildonan
15 May 2006, 05:19
St Kilda Geelong
Q1 1.4 1.4 2.4 2.4 Q1
Q2 2.4 3.8 4.1 6.5 Q2
Q3 3.0 6.8 4.2 10.7 Q3
Q4 3.2 9.10 2.3 12.10 Q4
Total (64) (82) Total
Kicks 210 219 Kicks
Long Kicks 70 72 Long Kicks
Handballs 121 151 Handballs
Disposals 331 370 Disposals
Marks 124 122 Marks
(Contested) 12 8 (Contested)
Possessions 342 381 Possessions
(Contested) 35 38 (Contested)
Hit Outs 10 33 Hit Outs
(to advantage) 1 17 (to advantage)
1st possession 13 44 1st possession
Clearances 14 37 Clearances
Tackles 56 39 Tackles
Frees For 8 14 Frees For
Frees Against 14 8 Frees Against
Rushed Behinds 0 1 Rushed Behinds
Goals:
St Kilda: N Riewoldt 3 C Ackland F Gehrig B Goddard J Gram M Maguire T Schwarze.
Geelong: P Chapman 3 S Johnson 3 D Johnson J Kelly C Ling H Playfair J Rooke K Tenace.
Best:
St Kilda: M Hudghton, L Hayes, B Goddard, S Baker, L Ball, N Dal Santo, J Gram.
Geelong: D Milburn, P Chapman, M Scarlett, B Ottens, S Johnson, J Kelly, C Ling.
Umpires: R Chamberlain S Ryan D Goldspink.
Official Crowd: 48,313 at Telstra Dome.
This was an extremely disappointing match for St Kilda fans.
This is not to denegrate our opposition here, which, I might add is of very high standard, but most Saints fans believed that St Kilda was capable of beating Geelong. And with the added incentive to honour Robert Harvey, were always going to provide their very best efforts.
Geelong adopted a "flooding style" defensive gameplan. They were diciplined and patient and took their opportunities when they presented. When St Kilda gained possession, they shut out almost every avenue forward.
We lost Hamill early, which freed an extra defender to shut out Riewoldt. Scarlett shut out Gehrig, and our other forwards were ineffective.
We continually lost in the ruck contest, and failed at gaining anywhere near enough first possessions to move the ball quickly and effectively to defeat the flood. We were ferocious at the man and tied their attack up repeatedly but when we gained possession they were too quick and disciplined and tied up our forward targets.
St Kilda were forced to play their (Geelong's) game. This led to a slow, boring, battle of defences. It was a likely tactic, but one that Thompson has rarely resorted to. After four consecutive losses, it was a desperate but effective tactic. St Kilda are vulnerable to the flood. Thomas made some changes to combat it, knowing that Riewoldt and Gehrig were shut down, bringing Ackland forward in a few thrusts, doing similarly with Maguire.
Hudghton was superb in defence. Baker shut Gary Ablett out of the match. Goddard got a lot of the ball but was unable to press forward enough to be dangerous. Gram was servicable. Voss played a reasonable game, as did Fisher.
Milburn put himself in the hole near CHF and shut out the fast lead forward from Gehrig or Riewoldt. He was superb for them, gathering plenty of possessions as well. Scarlett shut out Gehrig. Cameron Ling shouldered plenty of the defensive workload as did Rooke and Joel Corey. Murray didn't do enough, Schwarze did a few valuable things. Gehrig did little, Riewoldt couldn't get free.
Lenny was solid, he tackled hard, got a fair bit of possession but faded late. Dal Santo played a fair game. Luke Ball hasn't seemed to be at 75% yet, but was committed and gathered a fair few possessions. He isn't as damaging as he has been, but is definitely improving. Harvey had an uncharacteristic poor match. Montagna and especially Fiora were ordinary. Blake and Ackland were ineffective. I'm not sure who Andrew Thompson was tagging and McQualter was nothing to write home about. Chapman killed us on the ground, he was the driving force for Geelong.
The sad thing is that we did not win for Harvey.
Cats too tough for St Kilda (http://www.theage.com.au/realfooty/news/match-reports/cats-too-tough-for-st-kilda/2006/05/12/1146940738368.html)
By Lyall Johnson
May 13, 2006
After four straight losses, Geelong last night shrugged the monkey off its back and saw off fellow premiership contender St Kilda by 18 points at Telstra Dome.
But not without doing all it could to lose a match that it led by 23 points at three-quarter-time as the Saints surged and threatened to pinch a win they really didn't deserve.
A running goal to Kane Tenace at the 16-minute mark gave the Cats back a 19-point lead and plugged what looked frighteningly like a sinking ship. Tenace was one of Geelong's best in the final term as others around him tired.
Only a minute earlier, Nick Riewoldt would have given St Kilda a real chance but somehow hit the post from 15 metres out, ruining his great effort in juggling a tough, contested mark.
After some tense passages of play in which the ball rebounded from one end of the ground to the other, it found its way into the hands of Steve Johnson, who showed he was getting back to the type of form that makes him one of the Cats' best. It was the 23-minute mark and Johnson crumbed the ball and snapped truly to seal the game.
The Cats' win rained on the 324-game celebrations of St Kilda veteran Robert Harvey, who bettered the club's games record held by Nathan Burke. Sadly for Harvey, it was not a game he would want to remember. He was creditable, but had little impact on the match.
The match also brought with it another injury blow to a key St Kilda forward, with Aaron Hamill limping off at the seven-minute mark with a knee injury. He had come off second best in a clash of bodies.
The match began at a ferocious pace, with both sides running hard and putting bodies on the line, and looked like it was going to be a battle worthy of the occasion. St Kilda applied plenty of pressure to the Cats early but Geelong simply soaked it up and ran back at the Saints, working hard at the stoppages and moved the ball with slick handpasses.
Jarad Rooke opened things up with a running shot but Troy Schwarze countered with a goal of his own to have the sides level pegging.
The Cats would have gotten away to a good lead but for misses by Kent Kingsley and Henry Playfair, while Riewoldt found the post.
Geelong led at the first break by eight points. But after all the promise of the first, the second quarter could not have posed a greater contrast, with both sides inexplicably coming out intent on flooding back into defence.
What was a spectacle turned into the sort of static game fans hate. St Kilda invented new ways to kick the ball laterally and while Geelong was not much better, probably had the better of the quarter.
Geelong at least used the ball better to open space in its forward line, the best being when Matthew Scarlett found himself in possession just outside 50 metres and located Johnson with a beautifully weighted pass.
Coach Mark Thompson's message at the long break to work and run harder was received well and the Cats dominated the midfield where barely a Saints' player was sighted.
Cameron Ling shouldered plenty of the workload as did Rooke and Joel Corey.
But the star of the quarter was Paul Chapman. He collected two goals and was instrumental in Ling's when he gathered a loose ball on the behind line and brilliantly floated a banana kick to Ling 25 metres out.
In the final quarter, the Saints threw caution to the wind, running harder than they had all night, and although the margin was 18 points, it could very nearly have been closer as Geelong, as it did in the first term, squandered easy opportunities that would have sown the game up earlier.
With Hamill absent, Fraser Gehrig was needed to shoulder the duties in the forward line but apart from a goal in the third quarter, was kept silent by Scarlett.
The most effective way of defeating the flood is gaining first possessions and getting quick clearances away. We have been able to do both to some effect, so far this year, but we miss the in and under work that Powell and Thompson did a lot of last year. The inclusion of a player like McGough may make a big difference to our ability to get the ball out quickly. The loss of Kosi and Hamill has, and will continue, to hurt us. Our ruck stocks are not cutting it and we need to investigate other options. At this stage that looks like giving Rix a run, as Brooks is still injured.
Options we might consider are inclusions of Leigh Fisher, McGough, Milne, Rix
Options for exclusions might be Hamill, Ackland, Murray, Fiora
Q1 1.4 1.4 2.4 2.4 Q1
Q2 2.4 3.8 4.1 6.5 Q2
Q3 3.0 6.8 4.2 10.7 Q3
Q4 3.2 9.10 2.3 12.10 Q4
Total (64) (82) Total
Kicks 210 219 Kicks
Long Kicks 70 72 Long Kicks
Handballs 121 151 Handballs
Disposals 331 370 Disposals
Marks 124 122 Marks
(Contested) 12 8 (Contested)
Possessions 342 381 Possessions
(Contested) 35 38 (Contested)
Hit Outs 10 33 Hit Outs
(to advantage) 1 17 (to advantage)
1st possession 13 44 1st possession
Clearances 14 37 Clearances
Tackles 56 39 Tackles
Frees For 8 14 Frees For
Frees Against 14 8 Frees Against
Rushed Behinds 0 1 Rushed Behinds
Goals:
St Kilda: N Riewoldt 3 C Ackland F Gehrig B Goddard J Gram M Maguire T Schwarze.
Geelong: P Chapman 3 S Johnson 3 D Johnson J Kelly C Ling H Playfair J Rooke K Tenace.
Best:
St Kilda: M Hudghton, L Hayes, B Goddard, S Baker, L Ball, N Dal Santo, J Gram.
Geelong: D Milburn, P Chapman, M Scarlett, B Ottens, S Johnson, J Kelly, C Ling.
Umpires: R Chamberlain S Ryan D Goldspink.
Official Crowd: 48,313 at Telstra Dome.
This was an extremely disappointing match for St Kilda fans.
This is not to denegrate our opposition here, which, I might add is of very high standard, but most Saints fans believed that St Kilda was capable of beating Geelong. And with the added incentive to honour Robert Harvey, were always going to provide their very best efforts.
Geelong adopted a "flooding style" defensive gameplan. They were diciplined and patient and took their opportunities when they presented. When St Kilda gained possession, they shut out almost every avenue forward.
We lost Hamill early, which freed an extra defender to shut out Riewoldt. Scarlett shut out Gehrig, and our other forwards were ineffective.
We continually lost in the ruck contest, and failed at gaining anywhere near enough first possessions to move the ball quickly and effectively to defeat the flood. We were ferocious at the man and tied their attack up repeatedly but when we gained possession they were too quick and disciplined and tied up our forward targets.
St Kilda were forced to play their (Geelong's) game. This led to a slow, boring, battle of defences. It was a likely tactic, but one that Thompson has rarely resorted to. After four consecutive losses, it was a desperate but effective tactic. St Kilda are vulnerable to the flood. Thomas made some changes to combat it, knowing that Riewoldt and Gehrig were shut down, bringing Ackland forward in a few thrusts, doing similarly with Maguire.
Hudghton was superb in defence. Baker shut Gary Ablett out of the match. Goddard got a lot of the ball but was unable to press forward enough to be dangerous. Gram was servicable. Voss played a reasonable game, as did Fisher.
Milburn put himself in the hole near CHF and shut out the fast lead forward from Gehrig or Riewoldt. He was superb for them, gathering plenty of possessions as well. Scarlett shut out Gehrig. Cameron Ling shouldered plenty of the defensive workload as did Rooke and Joel Corey. Murray didn't do enough, Schwarze did a few valuable things. Gehrig did little, Riewoldt couldn't get free.
Lenny was solid, he tackled hard, got a fair bit of possession but faded late. Dal Santo played a fair game. Luke Ball hasn't seemed to be at 75% yet, but was committed and gathered a fair few possessions. He isn't as damaging as he has been, but is definitely improving. Harvey had an uncharacteristic poor match. Montagna and especially Fiora were ordinary. Blake and Ackland were ineffective. I'm not sure who Andrew Thompson was tagging and McQualter was nothing to write home about. Chapman killed us on the ground, he was the driving force for Geelong.
The sad thing is that we did not win for Harvey.
Cats too tough for St Kilda (http://www.theage.com.au/realfooty/news/match-reports/cats-too-tough-for-st-kilda/2006/05/12/1146940738368.html)
By Lyall Johnson
May 13, 2006
After four straight losses, Geelong last night shrugged the monkey off its back and saw off fellow premiership contender St Kilda by 18 points at Telstra Dome.
But not without doing all it could to lose a match that it led by 23 points at three-quarter-time as the Saints surged and threatened to pinch a win they really didn't deserve.
A running goal to Kane Tenace at the 16-minute mark gave the Cats back a 19-point lead and plugged what looked frighteningly like a sinking ship. Tenace was one of Geelong's best in the final term as others around him tired.
Only a minute earlier, Nick Riewoldt would have given St Kilda a real chance but somehow hit the post from 15 metres out, ruining his great effort in juggling a tough, contested mark.
After some tense passages of play in which the ball rebounded from one end of the ground to the other, it found its way into the hands of Steve Johnson, who showed he was getting back to the type of form that makes him one of the Cats' best. It was the 23-minute mark and Johnson crumbed the ball and snapped truly to seal the game.
The Cats' win rained on the 324-game celebrations of St Kilda veteran Robert Harvey, who bettered the club's games record held by Nathan Burke. Sadly for Harvey, it was not a game he would want to remember. He was creditable, but had little impact on the match.
The match also brought with it another injury blow to a key St Kilda forward, with Aaron Hamill limping off at the seven-minute mark with a knee injury. He had come off second best in a clash of bodies.
The match began at a ferocious pace, with both sides running hard and putting bodies on the line, and looked like it was going to be a battle worthy of the occasion. St Kilda applied plenty of pressure to the Cats early but Geelong simply soaked it up and ran back at the Saints, working hard at the stoppages and moved the ball with slick handpasses.
Jarad Rooke opened things up with a running shot but Troy Schwarze countered with a goal of his own to have the sides level pegging.
The Cats would have gotten away to a good lead but for misses by Kent Kingsley and Henry Playfair, while Riewoldt found the post.
Geelong led at the first break by eight points. But after all the promise of the first, the second quarter could not have posed a greater contrast, with both sides inexplicably coming out intent on flooding back into defence.
What was a spectacle turned into the sort of static game fans hate. St Kilda invented new ways to kick the ball laterally and while Geelong was not much better, probably had the better of the quarter.
Geelong at least used the ball better to open space in its forward line, the best being when Matthew Scarlett found himself in possession just outside 50 metres and located Johnson with a beautifully weighted pass.
Coach Mark Thompson's message at the long break to work and run harder was received well and the Cats dominated the midfield where barely a Saints' player was sighted.
Cameron Ling shouldered plenty of the workload as did Rooke and Joel Corey.
But the star of the quarter was Paul Chapman. He collected two goals and was instrumental in Ling's when he gathered a loose ball on the behind line and brilliantly floated a banana kick to Ling 25 metres out.
In the final quarter, the Saints threw caution to the wind, running harder than they had all night, and although the margin was 18 points, it could very nearly have been closer as Geelong, as it did in the first term, squandered easy opportunities that would have sown the game up earlier.
With Hamill absent, Fraser Gehrig was needed to shoulder the duties in the forward line but apart from a goal in the third quarter, was kept silent by Scarlett.
The most effective way of defeating the flood is gaining first possessions and getting quick clearances away. We have been able to do both to some effect, so far this year, but we miss the in and under work that Powell and Thompson did a lot of last year. The inclusion of a player like McGough may make a big difference to our ability to get the ball out quickly. The loss of Kosi and Hamill has, and will continue, to hurt us. Our ruck stocks are not cutting it and we need to investigate other options. At this stage that looks like giving Rix a run, as Brooks is still injured.
Options we might consider are inclusions of Leigh Fisher, McGough, Milne, Rix
Options for exclusions might be Hamill, Ackland, Murray, Fiora