AFL Round 22

Another season drags to a miserable and worthless end. The only
consolation is that it's finished a bit earlier than usual. I guess you
can tell what happened to the Tiges on the weekend. Still, supporters of
eight teams still have hope and excitement and I'm sure I'll be pretty
excited too in a few days. In particular, good luck to Geelong (Richmond
beat them by 12 goals), Brisbane (two goals at the Gabba), Footscray (a
7-goal hiding) and Hawthorn (three points but hey, we did it easily).

I don't believe I've mentioned the new finals system previously. Instead
of the 1 v 8, 2 v 7 etc. of the past, it's been revamped to give every
game some meaning. Now the top four and the bottom four (in the final
eight) play amongst themselves in the first week. It's 1 v 4 and 2 v 3
(first and second home advantage), the winners advancing to the
preliminary final, the losers playing the winners of 5 v 8 and 6 v 7
(five and six home advantage, eventual losers out). I'm sure you can
work it out from there. So top four is an automatic double chance and
the totally meaningless 4 v 5 and nearly-totally meaningless 3 v 6 of
the past are gone. Capichee? Look up the Footy Tipping Software's
calculator if you're not sure.

A big week just went past. Firstly there were the 44 players - a record
- who faced a total of 55 charges at the tribunal as a result of last
weekend's frolics. In the words of The Age's Charles Happell the 18-page
report sheet hit the desk "with the force of a Dale Kickett haymaker".
Speaking of the Freo backman, Kickett copped a 9-match suspension after
pleading guilty to two charges of striking Weagle Phil Read and one of
whacking Andrew Embley. The Dockers are giving Dale a testimonial year
in 2001. Read and Fremantle's Brad Dodd both got two weeks for biffing
each other. West Coast ruckman Michael Gardiner got 2 weeks for punching
Matthew Pavlich Away back on Friday Bommer ruckman John Barnes copped
just a week for charging Brad Johnson and Johnson also one game for
retaliating. Apart from them there were 32 players fined for "engaging
in a melee" across three games, netting a total of $87,000 for the leeg.
Breaking it down, there were nine Bulldogs ($22,500), seven Dockers
($20,000), five Demons ($15,500), five Dons ($12,500), four Eagles
($11,500), two Cats ($5,000) and-a-partridge-in-a-pear-tree. Dokker
Shaun McManus was the biggest individual loser, $4,000. The bureaucrats
will have a good end-of-season trip.

Then there were the players having a kick for the last time, or
almost-last. It's easiest to go club-by-club:
Adelaide: Peter Caven, 138 games spread between Fitzroy, Sydney and the
Crows. Frustrated by injury since playing in both the Camrys'
back-to-back flags, he'll probably be remembered for being spectacularly
and bloodily KO'd by Dermott Brereton during his Swan stint.

Brisbane: Richard Champion, 183 games all with the Bears/Lions and Craig
Lambert, 212 games split between Richmond and Brisbane. Lambert was a
fantastic player in a miserable Richmond side and I could hardly
begrudge him a move. His tenacity and brilliant handball could power a
side to victory, but a succession of injuries has spelt the end.
Champion was a good full-back in his day, he's 32 and struggled for
regular game for the last two seasons. Best remembered for bursting into
tears after the Bears' miraculous late-season charge into the finals in
1995.

Collingwood: Gavin Brown, 254 games, Gavin Crosisca 246 games and
Stephen Patterson, 98 games. The two Gavs are the Pies' last remaining
link with the 1990 flag. 'Rowdy' Brown was noted for his incredible
courage and won three Copeland trophies, twice an All-Australian,
captained the Pies for three years and played with distinction for
Victoria, winning a couple of E.J. Whitten Medals. Queenslander
Crosisca, or Corsica, or Crosego as Jack Dyer called him, started as a
winger like Brown but was soon drafted into defence and did very well
down there for many a year. Patto jumped before he was pushed probably,
but he was alright.

Footscray: Scott Wynd, 236 games and Steve Kolyniuk, 176 games, all with
the Bulldogs for both. Both have at least one more game. Wynd was a very
good ruckman in his prime, winning the 1992 Brownlow Medal,
All-Australian selection and the club best-and-fairest the same year.
He's also captained the Dogs since 1994, the second-longest-serving
skipper behind Ted Whitten. Goalsneak Kolyniuk (he's kicked 198) decided
in February that this'd be his last year after a back operation in 1999.
Hope he gets to 200.

Geelong: Barry Stoneham, 240 games for the Cats, 223 goals, twice
All-Australian, best-and-fairest in 1990, captain from 1996-98. Again a
lot of injury, mainly to the legs, have given Bazza hell in recent years
but he was a strong CHF in his day in some good Geelong sides. And a
local boy, as the red hair denotes.

West Coast: Guy McKenna. The all-round champion Eagle broke down in
tears as he announced The End, caused by degenerative osteo-arthritis of
the spine. Ouch. Carrying his honours could've caused McKenna's back
problems (in fact it was a hit from Earl Spalding in 1988). 'Bluey'
played 267 games, was an All-Australian three times, won two
best-and-fairests (1989 and 1999), captained the club for the last two
years and played in both Eagle premierships.

In addition to all of them, there was the strange case of Brisbane's
Adam Heuskes. Heuskes up and quit during the week, saying he was no
longer interested in playing, he'd had enough, there was more to life
etc. Cross-dressing 'character' Heuskes attracted some negative
publicity recently when, expected to miss a week with a thigh strain, he
missed six, bought a nightclub, porked up and didn't bother with
training. More sinister rumours have connected Heuskes with the alleged
rape incident on the Lions' end-of-season trip to London last year,
Heuskes was interviewed by Scotland Yard but refused to comment on that
story. He played 125 games split between Sydney, Port Adelaide and
Brisbane and won All-Australian selection while at Port.

At Colonial:
Footscray 3.2 5.3 7.8 9.12.66
Hawthorn 3.3 7.8 10.11 11.15.81

A crucial game in the context of the final eight, but it was incredibly
boring. As events unfolded the Hawks made the finals for the first time
since 1996. It wasn't surprising that the Bulldogs were flatter than a
lizard drinking after last Fridays' heroics, despite the chance of a
double-chance their high commitment was missing. In selection the
Bulldogs brought in juniors Mark Alvey and Jim Plunkett to replace
suspended Brad Johnson and dropped Robert Murphy. The Hawks were
strengthened by the returns of Trent Croad and Shane Crawford from
injury, they replaced Luke McCabe (shoulder) and the axed Craig
Treleven.

About eighteen months ago Hawk legend Allan Jeans opined that the modern
style was killing football, with its lack of physical contests. This
game was Jeansey's nightmare, typically kicks travelled less than 30m
and were directly to players on their own, handball was a defensive
tactic and physicality rare, backlines set up in soccer-like zones. But
I suppose your Hawk fans couldn't give a poo. Or wee. Hawk forward John
Barker had a lot of touches early and kicked the first goal, lurking on
a flank to mark Salmon's pass. Bulldog Chris Grant, starting in defence
again, ran forward and a good left-foot pass found Rohan Smith who
converted with an equally good kick. Some snappy midfield play led to
Dan Chick setting up Glen Bowyer for a Hork major, Nathan Thompson and
Shane Crawford missed shots before a Bulldog defensive rebound allowed
Steve Kolyniuk to slot his 198th career major. Rapid rebounds from
packed defences were the most exciting parts of the game. Hawthorn
scored the next major, a great Ben Dixon snap after teammate Rock
spoiled his marking attempt. But another speedy length-of-field move by
the Dogs saw Trent Bartlett snap a good major just before quarter-time.
The Horks opened a gap with the first three goals of the second term,
Tony Woods cleared the first throw-up (there was no bouncing for some
reason, despite the roof and no rain all week), Nick Holland marked it
and majored. The Hawks chipped the ball around until Chick punted long,
Crawford lurked behind the pack for a mark and goal. Then Thompson
punted 'em 19 points up. Bulldog Grant shuffled forward as the Hawks
continued to control it but miss shots. Eventually Footscray's Bartlett
grabbed the ball at a throw-in and tumbled it forwards, Simon Garlick
managed a clever goal. Grant led for a diving chest mark, creating a
major for Nathan Brown which cut the margin back to 10 points. But it
cost the Dogs as Grant hurt his neck completing the grab and departed,
returning in the last term. Prior to the long break Angelo Lekkas roved
a throw-in and booted the Hawks three goals clear again.

The teams swapped styles.in the third stanza as the Bulldogs hammered on
the Hawthorn defence, it was the Hawks' turn to score on the break.
Ruckman Salmon was a big part of it, stationed across half-back he
initiated the first goal with a pass to Dixon on the wing, he handpassed
to Daniel Harford who ran inside 50m with two touch-downs, a baulk and
slot. Barker missed following a big grab before Salmon began another
end-to-end move, this time via Woods to Crawford only for the Brownlow
Man to hit the post. No mind, soon Holland punted the Horkers 30 points
up thanks to a superb bump, gather and pass from Chick. The Dogs hadn't
been in it before some great work by Garlick at the restart sent Todd
Curley in for a running goal, then Brown found Bartlett on the lead for
another. Those goals and some narky violence from Crawford stirred the
Pups but Lekkas kicked the next sausage for Horforn. It was a great
individual effort, running down Bulldog Eagleton for a free kick and
scoring a technical 50m penalty when Liberatore handballed away a
split-second after the whistle. The Hawks were 24 points up as the
Bullies improved markedly, but now it was their turn to miss the big
sticks. The pattern continued into the final stanza, Paul Hudson missed
badly from the opening ball-up and Smith postered. A bit of time
elapsed, then the Hawkers got a break when Raydon Tallis was allowed to
drop the ball in a tackle, play-on and Holland had a simple goalsquare
tap-through. Hawks by 26 points and Footscray needed five goals to win
when they'd kicked seven for the game. McAvaney wrote them off. Had some
sympathy for Brooce as he was surrounded by ex-Hawks Brereton, Dunstall
and Dipierdomenico. We even cheered Brooce when, after the Chick-Holland
combination for a goal in the third quarter, he pointed out their
un-signed status. Hawk boardman Dermie was piqued. Anyway, Grant trudged
back on for the Dogs and immediately passed for Smith on the lead, he
smacked it home from 55m and when Grant himself hooked one through from
a tight angle the Pups suddenly looked half a chance. But the Hawks
managed to control the ball and run the clock down for a well-earned
win. Late-on the Pups' night was summed up when Eagleton roved in the
goalsquare only to blast the ball into the post.

Due to the nature of the game a lot of players had a lot of touches, but
it was quality rather than quantity which counted. In this area
Hawthorn's Daniel Chick was very good, with 24 disposals in the middle
he set up several goals. Together with the recently improved Daniel
Harford (26 disposals, 7 marks, a goal) they gave the Hawks a winning
edge in midfield. Paul Salmon dropped back in defence to good effect and
was much aided in the ruck by the umps' throw-ups rather than bounces,
he took 14 marks, had 24 disposals and 24 hitouts. Glen Bowyer was
everywhere, particularly in the first half and ended with 24 disposals
and a goal. Trent Croad did a good job at CHB (10 marks, 20 handlings)
and ruck-rover Tony Woods was busy for 25 disposals. Kudos too to
backmen Jon Hay and Jade Rawlings. Nick Holland held 10 marks and kicked
3 goals, Lekkas bagged 2. Bulldog rover Scott West had 35 disposals with
a hefty 16 in the first quarter but the sluggish, non-physical nature of
the game limited his influence. Trent Bartlett tried very hard as the
Pups' sole key forward for 7 marks and 2 goals, centreman Jose Romero
(33 touches) was good. Apart from them you'd struggle to pick a Bulldog
winner, despite the welter of touches enjoyed by Nathan Brown (34 and a
goal) and Tony Liberatore (27). Simon Cox played alright with 8 marks
and 20 disposals across half-back. Rohan Smith kicked 2 goals and took
12 marks but he always struggled for time and space. Wallace said "We've
played them twice in the year and lost both times to them, so I would
think they would be pretty satisfied with that sort of result." Plough
would love to play 'em again, because they'd be in the Grand Final.
Schwab said "We won up in Brisbane and Essendon belted us - but they've
been doing that a bit. The two wins against the Adelaide teams were hard
fought and it wasn't pretty footy (and this was?). We stuck at it but
the players have been good, they've been terrific."

At the MCG:
Essendon 2.2 4.6 8.12 13.19.97
Collingwood 4.0 7.6 8.11 11.12.78

Noting the success last Friday of the Dogs' "ultra-flooding", as Swan
coach Rod Eade called it, now everyone seems set to employ the strategy
against the Dons. The Pies weren't quite good enough to succeed but
still gave the Bombers a tough time before the Dons hauled clear to
record a superb 21st win for the home-and-aways. The Dons had four
compulsory changes to their losing side, out went Dean Rioli (broken
collarbone), Damien Hardwick (ankle), the suspended John Barnes and Mark
Mercuri with 'flu. James Hird had his back injected to ease the pain of
a pinched nerve and wasn't considered. In came Paul Barnard, youngsters
Mark McVeigh and Mark Bolton for his first game of the season and
veteran rover Sean Denham, who's retiring at the season's end. The
Magpies called up Gavin Crosisca for his swansong at the expense of
Heath Scotland.

In front of 66,608 the Pies flooded back heavily and conceded plenty of
territory to the Dons, who couldn't find a way through. The Don forwards
were forced upfield to get the pill while Shane O'Bree, Paul Williams
and Tyson Lane worked hard for the Maggies, Nick Davis delivered the
ball nicely for his forwards. Pie Chris Tarrant proved a handful for the
Bommers, booting two second-quarter goals to cap off a fine first half,
Lane snapped one as well. Matt Lloyd and Dustin Fletcher got some goals
for the Dons but they were struggling, not helped by Sheedy's erratic
moves. Sheeds likes to experiment in non-critical games. Collingwood
kicked the first goal of the third term and were four in front when some
more Sheedy juggling paid off, whether by accident or design. Jon Robran
was shifted into the ruck to replace struggling Alessio and Adam
Ramanuaskas shifted into the middle, there was a huge effort from Mark
Johnson across half-back. The pace of the game lifted and rapid majors
from Lloyd, Justin Blumfield and Scott Lucas narrowed the gap before a
weak clearing kick from Pie Mark Richardson allowed Ramanauskas to speed
in and boot the Bummers ahead, a long kick which bounced through with
Michael Long watching. Dustin Fletcher and Paul Barnard had tied up the
Pie forwards. Collingwood goaled again to pinch the lead back in the
early final term, but soon Essadun had it back again and eventually Evil
One sealed it when pouncing on a loose Lloyd kick to thump it into the
stands. Brown and Crosisca had been on the bench but were allowed on by
sentimental Mick for a final bow and chairing-off.

The better Bommers were in the middle or down back, in the former
category you had the in-form Michael Long (15 disposals) and Joe Misiti
with a massive 41 possessions, 21 kicks and 20 handballs. Footy's
equivalent of the flat-track bully. Mark Johnson had 8 of his 18
possessions in the third term and was a key. Adam Ramanauskas had 16
disposals and a goal. Down back Dustin Fletcher (19 disposals, a goal
early) and Paul Barnard did well, the latter stopping Tarrant. Matt
Lloyd kicked 4.5 giving him a regular-season total of 94 goals and the
Coleman Medal by a fair distance (Melbourne's Farmer and Carlton's
Whitnall both have 65), Lloyd'll have at least two finals to get the six
he needs for the ton. Scott Lucas and Blake Caracella kicked 2 each,
Caracella and Jason Johnson had big final quarters as the Magpies waned.
For the Pies battling backman Scott Burns had a big game, 23 disposals,
7 marks and a goal. No. 1 draft pick Josh Fraser gave Alessio a torrid
time in the ruck before tiring and being overwhelmed later, Fraser had
12 possessions and 7 marks. Midfielders Tyson Lane (19 kicks, 10 marks,
3 goals), Shane O'Bree (31 disposals, 8 marks) and ol' Bucks (24
touches, a goal) worked hard and there was another decent effort from
Tarkyn Lockyer. Tarrant finished with 2 goals. Mick Malthouse said
"There were good passages and poor passages. Today was fairly reflective
of the year, I think. We did some good things and we let ourselves down
with some decision-making and skill that we've got to get better at."
There'll be plenty of time to improve, the retirements of Brown and
Crosisica and the imminent de-listing of Sav Rocca means the Nathan
Buckley will be the oldest player on the Pies' list at 27. They enjoyed
a spectacular start to the year with five straight wins before lack of
experience and depth caught up. There's players needed in the ruck and
key positions, especially up forward although the improvement from
blokes like Prestigiacomo was welcome. And the usual crop of decent kids
came through, Damien Adkins, Ben Johnson and Fraser the pick. Kev Sheedy
said "Well, it was a big crowd, it was a struggle. It wasn't fantastic
football...but sometimes finals games are a bit like that, it's a
battle, it's an ugly game and then it breaks open. In the end I think it
was a big reminder...you can't condemn our players, they've been
tremendous." Anything less than a flag will be a failure.

At Kardinia Park:
Geelong 5.6 11.8 16.13 18.16.124
Sydney 5.3 11.5 15.9 18.12.120

Hawthorn's win the previous evening ended Sydney's chance of a final but
they still gave the Cats a scare. Geelong needed to win to be sure and
they did in a high-scoring game. The Cats welcomed the returns of Peter
Riccardi and forward David Mensch from injury, tough first-year
midfielder Paul Chapman was also recalled. They replaced injured
half-forward Adam Houlihan and discarded juniors Joel Corey and Cameron
Ling. No KP send-off for injured Barry Stoneham. The Swans had Jude
Bolton return from his shoulder injury but lost Matthew Nicks with a
fractured jaw. Dunno where that came from. Stephen Doyle was dropped,
ex-Cat Gerrard Bennett got a run.

Geelong were handy early with Ronnie Burns alive across half-forward,
kicking the first goal with a tumbling mark and later another with a
great snap. In a neat reversal of last years’ corresponding fixture Cat
Garry Hocking pushed forward with opponent Daryn Cresswell in tow for a
mark and goal, although Hocking wasted another early chance with an
ill-advised pass when 30m out. Cat skipper Ben Graham hauled down grabs
across half-back and the only way the Swans could score was through
Marvellous Mick O’Loughlin, who bagged two in the first term. The Cats
went on to a 22-point lead midway through the second stanza before the
previously unsighted Swan Adam Goodes suddenly booted four goals. Swan
midfielders Dale Lewis and Jude Bolton were getting a few kicks and the
Bloods grabbed the lead before David Mensch edged the Cats back in front
just before half-time.

The lead swapped early in a tight third term, Bolton and Robbie AhMat
set up an early one for O’Loughlin to put the Swans 4 points up, then
Burns roved perfectly to a pack and slotted on his left to restore a Cat
lead. Burns had a hand in creating the next goal, for speedy David
Wojcinski as Hocking and Cresswell engaged in a lengthy wrestle upfield.
Cats by 8 points but the Swans hit back as Lewis found plenty of space
to deliver for major for ruckman Stafford. But the Cats moved 10 points
clear as Ben Graham was sent forward and booted a goal from a towering
speccie over midget AhMat. The Cats kicked the first two goals of the
final term, Burns with another one and seemed home with a 21-point lead
as time ran down. But the Swans got a major, then another one to cut the
gap down to 10 points. The Cats dithered about with some keepings-off
but lost possession, the Swans attacked again and at a bounce at CHF
Stafford tapped perfectly for Paul Kelly who snapped it through. There
were 12 seconds left on the clock and at the centre bounce Stafford
tapped straight to Kelly again, he launched a long punt which spilled
off the pack and out-of-bounds. The siren rang. Phew, said the Cats.
They were in the finals for sure.

Lively small forward Ronnie Burns bagged 6 goals for the Cats, mainly
through pouncing superbly on the spillages of others. Burns also had a
hand in goals for some other Cats, something he doesn't always do. Burns
played his 100th game last week, here he had 11 kicks and 5 handballs.
In the middle Garry Hocking had a big first half, garnering 15 touches
and 2 goals on the way to 22 possies for the match. David Clarke was
also good in there with 26 disposals and a goal. Ben Graham pulled down
11 marks and had 22 possessions, very good early before Goodes exposed
him for pace, then moving to attack and kicking 2 goals. David Mensch
was reliable in attack again with 2 goals and 19 touches with 7 marks,
in defence Matthew Scarlett did very well on Goodes after half-time.
Jason Snell (22 touches, a goal) was handy. Clint Bizzell could've
kicked straighter. The Swan champion Michael O'Loughlin was great again,
5 goals from10 kicks with 7 marks. He had help up front from the rapidly
improving Paul Kelly, who bagged 3 goals from 20 possessions and Dale
Lewis roamed in much space on half-forward for 24 disposals with 8
marks. Winger Stuart Maxfield collected 22 kicks and a goal, ruckman
Greg Stafford was handy in a good dual with Steven King for 23 touches,
8 marks and a goal. Andrew Schauble, arguably the most improved player
in the AFL, was admirable in defence again and Wayne Schwass boxed away
for 21 disposals. Goodes finished with 4 goals and Robbie AhMat kicked
2. The post-Plugger era, with Kelly missing too, was always going to be
hard for the Swans but after looking very ordinary mid-season they
finished off well. Jude Bolton and Jared Crouch may step into the shoes
of aging midfielders Cresswell and Schwass, ditto down back with
Schauble for Dunkley. O'Loughlin had a terrific year and Kelly's return
was a bonus after he was to "never play again", we were told. But Swan
fans should be tempered by the fact of their very friendly 2000 draw, 13
games at the SCG and playing only three of the top eight twice. Rod Eade
said "I'm really proud of their efforts. With Nicks not playing and
nothing to play for...I was certainly pleased with the way they went
about it. The last ten weeks, there's been a lot of good signs for next
year and I think that was another confirmation today." Strange, he
usually whinges about something when they lose. Mark 'Bomber' Thompson
said of the Cats and their recent fade-outs "We didn't let them off the
hook at half-time. We had coaches in their faces at half-time and got
them moving. Really, their spirit was quite good...They didn't want to
slip up and come out in the third quarter and be asleep." Good effort
from Bomber to get into the finals in his first year and with a game
against the Hawks they might stay beyond the elimination stage.

At the Gabba:
Brisbane 5.4 10.10 16.16 23.18.156
Fremantle 2.2 5.4 6.4 7.7.49

Brisbane secured a home final by smacking the Dockers, who probably felt
the season ended the previous Sunday. The Lions dropped rookie Nathan
Clarke and also needed to replace the retired Adam Heuskes, in came
ruckman Beau McDonald and forward Des Headland. The Dockers had a few
changes to make with Kickett and Dodd suspended and Tony Modra sporting
a broken hand - the Eagles assert he broke it on Glen Jakovich's head.
In addition the terrific debut season of Paul Hasleby ended early with a
back injury and Heath Black withdrew with a leg injury. Freo
replacements were Shane Parker, Daniel Schell, Brad Wira, speedy rover
Ben Cunningham from Claremont and Garth Taylor for his first game of the
season.

Freo kept pace with the Lions for the first ten minutes, at which time
it was 2.2 apiece. Troy Cook was single-handedly fighting (not
literally) for them, Adrian Fletcher drilled a running goal in the first
minute and Brad Wira snapped a nice one. Unfortunately for Cook his
direct opponent, Michael Voss, was no less proficient. Al Lynch soccered
a goal - they do that a lot, Brisbane - then Simon Black cruised away
from the following centre bounce and rammed it through from 50m, the
Lyin's were away. In the second term Voss orchestrated the play, Jason
Akermanis sprinted down from his defensive post for two trademark goals
and Luke Power snapped one. Regular defender Jarrod Molloy came off the
bench to play full-forward while Lynch rested and bagged a goal, the
result of a superb double-effort from Black. The Dokkers got some goals
to stay in touch but there were to be no heroics from Clive Waterhouse
this week, he was well-shackled by Chris Scott. With Modra out there
weren't too many routes to goal for the visitors. Into the third and the
Lions queued up to kick goals, Molloy booted three more including
another soccer effort after pursuing the ball doggedly for 20m, Lynch
returned to capitalise on the midfield winners. Jonathon Brown also
continued to impress at CHF. And the margin extended to another absolute
mauling for the Freo men in the last quarter. When they lose, they
really lose.

Many good players for Brisbane but once again it the dynamic duo in the
middle, to borrow a phrase, Michael Voss with 34 disposals and Simon
Black with 34 disposals also, and a goal. Chris Scott kept Waterhouse to
6 kicks and one goal while having 23 possessions and 8 marks himself,
Chris Johnson provided plenty of run off half-back with 20 disposals, 11
marks and a goal. Reliable oldie Shaun Hart gathered 30 touches with 2
goals. Up front Molloy finished with 5 goals, Al Lynch kicked 4 and
there were 3 for the very good Luke Power, two goals each for Jason
Akermanis, Dan Bradshaw and Jonathon Brown. Ten Brisbane players had
over 20 touches and only three had less then 10, mostly because of
bench-time. The better Dockers were rover Troy Cook (32 disposals, 12 in
the first quarter), big man Brendan Fewster who competed strongly in
attack for 7 marks, 18 disposals and a goal, Jess Sinclair with 17
disposals and veteran Adrian Fletcher (20 disposals, a goal). Freo could
be said to have succeeded twice in 2000, firstly last October when they
drafted Paul Hasleby, Matthew Pavlich and Leigh Brown. Hasleby in
particular and Pavlich have been very good, Brown was thrown to the
wolves a bit as regular full-back but he's got ability. Trades for Cook
and Troy Longmuir worked out well. And secondly last weekend. Simply
avoiding the spoon would be seen as a victory by many, but when
Fremantle lose they do get belted as reflected by their terrible
percentage. Drum gambled with a big clear-out last summer but it's paid
off reasonably. Of this game he said "We didn't capitulate, we just got
outplayed for the majority of the game." Leigh Matthews said "Our guys
have proven their ability to give a good side a kicking once they get
them down. Now what we have to prove is that we can hang in there in
tough games." The Lions had an erratic year until recently when they've
hit their straps at last and would be a big threat going in. Renewal of
acquaintances with their old friends the Bulldogs next Saturday night.
Wonder if Al Lynch is practicing his "choke" motion...

At Colonial:
North Melbourne 5.0 6.1 11.8 18.12.120
St. Kilda 3.4 7.10 8.14 10.17.77

Norf struggled through a competitive first half before booting away and
ending the private hell of Tim Watson. In pickin' the Kangas recalled
hard-headed backmen Mick Martyn and 'Mini-Mick' Brett Chandler, outgoing
were the dropped-again Shannon Motlop and youngster Brad Stephens.
Watson made five changes for his final game in charge of St. Kilda, full
back Daryl Wakelin (hamstring) and Ben Walton (knee) were compulsory
omissions while Jason Blake, Sam Cranage and Tony Brown were discarded.
In came a senior quintet of Barry Hall, Matthew Young, Jason Heatley,
Joe McLaren and Jason Traianidis.

Norf were back in the royal-blue and white but enigmatic Saint Sean
Charles booted the first two goals, both quick, clever snaps from pack
spillage. Stewie Loewe goaled after snaffling a weak Byron Pickett kick
but Norf stormed back to kick the last three goals of the quarter and go
in with the first-change lead. Wingers David King and Shannon Grant were
going well, Leigh Colbert kicked a very good goal. Matthew Capuano
majored from a set shot early in the second and the Roos led by 14
points, the Saints forged ahead though and could’ve been much further in
front by the half if not for some poor kicking. At CHB Barry Hall was
killing Carey, forcing the Norf man down to the Roos' defence where he
promptly conceded two goals to Saint big man David Sierakowski. Stains
Tony Delaney and Rob Harvey were going well in the middle and Peter
Everitt was handing Corey McKernan a bit of a bath. Spearhead Jason
Heatley took 4 marks in the stanza and booted a couple of goals too as
the Saints went in very excited. Roo David King booted a running goal
early in the third term, went to McKernan at the centre bounce and gave
the big man a verbal and physical gee-up. McKernan's big lift was a key
part of the Roos' improvement as he took on Everitt in a footballing and
literal sense, being reported for wrestling along with Everitt a few
minutes later. Grant and Troy Makepeace bagged a goal each, deep into
the quarter the Saints lost Hall with a sprained ankle and Carey
promptly kicked his first goal, sending the Roos 16 points ahead. The
Saints pulled one back prior to the final change but couldn't sustain
their effort into the last, Carey, Winston Abraham and John Blakey
booted two goals each as the Oranges cantered in. Justin Plapp kicked a
great goal for the Saints late-on.

Perhaps not the most convincing way to enter a finals series but the
Roos won well enough, thanks greatly to David King who had 17 kicks and
3 goals as he sprinted forward from a wing, reliable backman John Blakey
(28 disposals, 11 marks, 2 goals) who some are tipping could break
Michael Tuck's AFL games record of 426 and Corey McKernan, a second half
of 11 touches, 4 marks and a goal with a total of 18 disposals and 5
marks, he helped swing it. Centreman Adam Simpson (22 touches, 8 marks)
and rover Peter Bell (23 touches, a goal) worked hard as per usual and
Byron Pickett recovered from a nightmare start (he was on Charles) to
end up with 17 touches in a good performance. Glen Archer played his
best game since coming back with 24 disposals and 9 marks across the
backline. Carey finished with 3 goals from 8 kicks, Abraham and Grant
booted 2 goals each. Afterwards Watson was effusive in praise of Barry
Hall (14 kicks, 5 marks) for blanketing Carey, who got Hall 'sucked in'
in their first meeting this season. In the middle Rob Harvey (22
disposals) and nuggety rover Steven Baker (25 touches) were hard
battlers and Brett Knowles got the ball 22 times, 11 in the first
quarter although his disposal needs work. Justin Plapp played his best
game for the Saints, starting in defence and moving forward later he had
19 disposals, 6 marks and a goal. Tony Delaney played well again with 24
touches and Andy Thompson had 28 possies with 11 marks. Charles, Heatley
and Sierakowski kicked 2 goals each. So ends the awful year for the
Sainters and Tim Watson, a Grand Final to wooden spoon in three years is
pretty disastrous. The players shoulder most of the blame, they didn't
seem too interested for much of the time. The players seem to like
Watson, one of them saying after Saturday night’s game "It (Watson's
leaving) wouldn't be so bad if he was a c..t." The new coach, whoever he
is, will take a good look at the list. There were some good pick-ups for
the Saints though, Delaney, Jason Blake, Brett Moyle and draftee Caydn
Beetham, David Sierakowski and Steven Baker overcame lengthy injury
problems to play well in the second half of the year. But it's a long
way up. Watson said "I just thought we lacked some real intensity and
contest. That's been the story of our season, really." Denis Pagan said
"I thought our first quarter was pretty good; I thought our second
quarter was disgraceful; I thought our second half was sensational."
Norf go into the finals with their worst form since 1994, but no team is
better at raising their game when necessary.

At Football Park:
Adelaide 1.1 8.5 12.8 14.8.92
Port Adelaide 9.6 10.11 13.16 20.19.139

Port's muchly improved second half of season 2000 carried through as
they walloped the Camrys in Showdown XIII. Prior to the game Powerman
Fabian Francis suggested the blinkered Port view of the world
contributed to their poor year, having scraped into the eight last year
many Port players assumed they'd "made it" in the AFL. The club with the
adoration of a nation had more problems, during the week immediate
past-coach Mal Blight said the Crows' record of just one more win than
last season and failure to make the finals was "an indictment on the
club". Before this game Adelaide chairman Bob Hammond announced his
resignation, after leading the Crows since their inception. Port brought
in full back Stephen Paxman and midfielder Jarrad Schofield to replace
Barnaby French and Paul Koulouriotis (knees for both). The Crows
recalled some veterans in Darren Jarman, Kym Koster, Matthew Robran and
Nathan Bassett (okay, he's not so veteran), they replaced Bryan Beinke
(thigh) and dropped trio Justin Cicolella, Andrew Crowell and James
Thiessen.

Port started with a gentle breeze and stacked on the goals, Fabian
Francis, Josh Francou and Stew Dew thumped the ball forwards where Bowen
Lockwood, Warren Tredrea and last weeks' hero Peter Burgoyne marked
often and majored too. The Camrys couldn't move forward, Andrew McLeod
had one handpass for the term and Darren Jarman became so frustrated he
whacked Port's Michael Wilson. Things turned about in the second stanza
as McLeod got involved now, with 11 disposals for the quarter including
a couple of superb goals. Peter Vardy bagged a couple as well, Rhett
Biglands improved to combat Matt Primus in the ruck. Port's Nick Stevens
had a hefty 14 disposals in the term. But things had dried up a bit in
attack for the Plougher, Nathan Bassett had done well and the Corollas
scored the first two goals of the third, the margin was down to 6
points. But Burgoyne provided some relief to the stagnated scoreboard
and the Power moved forward again. The scores remained close though, the
Power led by just 15 points midway through the final term before a late
goal blitz featuring Lockwood and erstwhile full-back Paxman saw them
home to a warmly-appreciated win by the visiting (?) fans.

Port had the weight of numbers perform in midfield, with Nick Stevens
(33 disposals, a goal), Josh Francou (29 disposals), chunky Stewart Dew
(13 kicks, 3 goals) and hard-running Fabian Francis (32 disposals, 8
marks) were all solid contributors. Francis also kicked 0.6, it says
here. There were handy performances in attack from Bowen Lockwood (7
marks, 4 goals) and Warren Tredrea (6 marks, 3 goals) while Peter
Burgoyne moved nicely again for 4 goals from 12 kicks, 5 marks. Big Matt
Primus rucked solidly again and had 15 handpasses, Stephen Paxman booted
2 goals to round off a good day at full-back and Roger James also bagged
2 majors to go with his 18 disposals. The great Crow Andrew McLeod
played very, very well after his tardy start, 25 disposals and 4
brilliant goals. But as the story of the Crows' season goes, he had
little support. Ruckman Biglands played alright and Tyson Edwards had 19
disposals, 5 kicks in the first quarter when things were tough for the
Camrys. Mark Ricciuto, another reliable Camry, had 24 disposals and
kicked 2 goals, Nathan Bassett was a solid goer at full-back with 14
touches and 5 marks. Peter Vardy kicked 3 first-half goals but didn't
re-appear in the second half with a knee injury, speculation he might be
on the move. Matt Robran kicked 2 goals from 6 kicks, Tyson Stenglein
and Simon Goodwin both had 20 possies and were serviceable. Injuries
aren't often mentioned in the context of the Camrys but they had their
share this year, notably the great Brett Burton whose dislocated
shoulder coincided with the Crows' finals run shuddering to a halt. But
too often too much was left to too few. And there's the Ayres factor. He
said "You have to give credit to Port. They were really at it and we
were on the back foot, and we didn't show any initiative to try and
wrest the momentum off them, and that's very disappointing." On the
future Ayres said "The players have to be more pro-active and more
positive...The negative (to the season) is that we haven't made the
eight when we had a chance, on the positive McLeod, Goodwin, Edwards,
Ricciuto have all played consistent footy this year." They desperately
need a reliable key forward. Port had a couple of notable injuries,
Brendon Lade in the second game, Shane Bond and Gavin Wanganeen for most
of the year but most of their problems, as Francis noted, came from
big-headedness. On the game Mark Williams said "A great effort...the
fact we started so well, they came back and really took control of the
game, and for our guys to withstand that and really belt them in the end
was great. We're looking forward to next year already. We went into this
game talking about next year and using it as a forerunner for the form
we hope to show next year, and it was great to kick that many goals."
Indeed, they're not the most exciting side going around and Williams
defended his coaching and coaching staff.

At the MCG:
Carlton 4.1 6.5 13.7 19.11.125
Richmond 2.3 4.5 6.10 7.10.52

The Tigers went in knowing they needed a five-goal victory to displace
Hawthorn from the eight, while Carlton couldn't go up or down. But we'd
reckoned without the mediocrity of the Tiges. Yes, they've had injuries,
yes, they've had a tough draw with each of the top four twice. But the
top three thumped the Tiggers on two occasions each, underlining one
basic fact: Richmond aren't good enough. Carlton made multiple changes
to strengthen the side with the return of ruckman Matthew Allan, forward
Aaron Hamill and winger Adrian Hickmott, also in were Mick Mansfield and
spearhead Brendan Fevola. Out went Justin Murphy, Stephen O'Reilly, Kris
Massie, Adam White and Heath Culpitt, all dropped. The Tigers had just
one change, Aaron James in for hamstrung Jason Torney. Tiger Wayne
Campbell played his 200th game, a fine player and a fine man.

Richmond were suitably keen in the early minutes but made mistakes, the
worst being Matty Rogers marking 15m out and trying to chip a pass to
Wayne Campbell in the goalsquare. Campbell fell over and the ball
tumbled out of bounds. Then David Bourke ran 40m from defence without
bouncing it, Blue Andy McKay passed the free kick to Steve Silvagni
who'd run downfield and Last Century's Greatest Full Back converted.
Credit to Bloo coach Parkin for starting no. 2 ruckman Mark Porter in
the attacking goalsquare, another Tiger turnover allowed Scott
Camporeale to find Porter alone 20m out. Mick Mansfield galloped away
from a centre clearance and popped it through, things didn't look good
for the Tiges. Matthew Knights roved for a good Tiger sausage but soon
Lance Whitnall got on the end of a pass and goaled again for Carlton.
Right on the 1/4-time siren Tigger Aaron James led to Tivendale's pass,
marked 45m out and dobbed it, much to the players' relief. The second
quarter was tight but Carlton continued to look better, moving the ball
quickly and cleanly while the Tiges staggered and zig-zagged up the
ground with too many turnovers. With their key forwards battling for a
kick Andrew Kellaway moved forward, he managed a few marks but couldn't
kick straight and left Aaron Hamill unattended. Blue forward Brendan
Fevola has also proved fairly wayward in the past but his first shot was
a good one, aided through by a shepherd from Whitnall. Richmond lost
James with a serious knee injury as he crashed to the ground in a
marking contest. They had a break though when Ben Holland marked 60m out
and received a 50m penalty when some Bloo slapped the ball away. The
Blues' Matt Lappin roved nicely for a tight-angle slot but a bit later
Richmond's only mark in the forward 50m for the day occurred, Brendon
Gale with a strong grab in the pocket. He majored. Close on the
scoreboard at the long break, but not on the ground.

The game was ended in the third. Scott Camporeale, who'd been pretty
good so far, took over in the middle and Andrew McKay was brilliant off
half-back. The Tiges sent Darren Gaspar forward, with the result that
Whitnall cut loose. The Bloos scored an early goal, Kellaway replied for
the Tiges courtesy a dodgy free kick. Aaron Hamill seized a strong grab
in front of Knights from McKay's kick and steered it through. Kellaway
had another free for the Tiges - the Bloos around us were getting a bit
upset - but he missed badly. The Blues sped the ball from the kick-in
end-to-end, Scott Freeborn capping off with a goalsquare blast. Ben
Holland’s hoiked kick from his defensive goalsquare flopped into the
arms of Camporeale, he thumped it home and proceeded to boot the next
three goals as well. It was all getting a bit hazy as we indulged in
some commercially brewed pain-killer. But I'm sure it wasn't the beer
that made me see the Tiges' key forwards being Matthew Knights and Mark
Dragicevic. Marking power. Dragicevic did kick a goal though. By the
time of the last korter the Tigres needed twelve goals to none to make
the finals and obviously that weren't gunna happen. They turned it up,
the final straw coming when Leon Cameron, the best foot-passer in the
comp, kicked the ball down the throat of Blue Simon Beaumont and watched
as he cantered around the wing with six bounces and punted it through
from 30m. Fevola got some target practice for next weekend. Whitnall,
McKay and Silvagni were rested.

The best Blue, the best player on the ground was their excellent
half-back Andrew McKay. His best football came in the tight first half
and he not only beat a series of opponents but created several goals
with 20 disposals and 6 marks. In the middle Scott Camporeale ran hard
to find much space again and boot 4 goals from his 23 disposals. The
rest were all pretty good although Silvagni (11 kicks, 7 marks, a goal)
marshalled a water-tight defence and Adrian Hickmott was busy with 22
touches and a goal, Brett Ratten worked hard around packs again for 28
possies. Brendan Fevola kicked 4 goals from 7 marks, Whitnall booted 2.
Matthew Allan had an encouraging return. Only two Tigers worth
mentioning, skipper Matthew Knights (24 disposals, a goal) and Andrew
Kellaway (25 disposals, 12 marks, 1.3). A couple tried hard for minimal
impact, Wayne Campbell for 16 touches, 7 in the first quarter although
he was probably beaten by Franchina after then, Leon Cameron (17
touches) and ruckman Brad Ottens (21 touches). Seven individual
goalkickers. Danny Frawley was keen to acknowledge progress made rather
than recriminate. "It probably showed that Carlton are second on the
ladder and we were fighting for a spot in the eight and they deserve to
be where they are. They were very, very good today. They made us pay
every time we fumbled the ball or turned it over, they made us pay in
the highest possible fashion. Today's game, in isolation, was very
disappointing when the stakes are pretty high. You can excuse that last
quarter, it was obvious the finals were out of the race." The last two
games were an incredible let-down for the Tiges - especially last week -
but they do seem to be travelling the right road now, even if they
haven't gone anywhere yet. Parkin rubbed it in. "Incentive is a very
powerful motivation and I thought we'd be in for a very tough time
today. I don't think we've played with that passion and pressure for
some weeks so to bring it out in the game with zip on it for us...I was
very proud of the players today." It remains for the Blues to improve on
last year's finish.

At Subiaco:
West Coast 5.1 8.3 10.6 15.10.100
Melbourne 4.4 13.5 19.9 26.14.170

Melbourne won to avoid a first-up meeting with the Bombers and consign
the Eegs to a below-Fremantle finish in what's turned out a poor season,
their worst for 11 years in fact. In selection the Eegs duly recalled
Guy McKenna for his farewell, along with Andrew Donnelly, Paul Symmons
and debutant Adam Hunter from Swan Districts. They replaced suspended
pair Michael Gardiner and Phil "Public Enemy No. 1" Read, Phil Matera
and Daniel Metropolis missed with injury. The Demons recalled Steven
Febey from a long injured spell and Brent Grgic from the twos, out went
Paul Hopgood and Simon Godfrey.

McKenna received a huge send-off, partly it's said because of the poor
farewell afforded John Worsfold two years ago and Chris Mainwaring last
season. Things were tight early, the vistors were kept in the hunt by
leather-magnet Adem Yze who had 8 kicks and a goal in the first quarter
and set up two others. Guy Rigoni was the only other part of the famed
Melbun midfield who could get the ball as ageless Dean Kemp and
baby-faced Ben Cousins hunted the ball in the middle, forward Andrew
Donnelly booted a couple of goals in a bid to stay on the Eagles' list.
Demon forwards Jeff Farmer, David Neitz and David Schwarz all missed
straightforward shots as the Weegs twice led by 2 goals. But in the
second term the Dees romped clear, Yze continued to dominate and kicked
two more goals himself, Shane Woewodin, Stephen Powell, McDonald and all
them other Dee midfielders came to the party. Neitz and Farmer got on
target and kicked two goals each, Travis Johnstone slotted a ripper from
the boundary line as the Dees strolled five goals clear by half-time.
Donnelly had managed two more goals in the quarter for West Ghost but
his supply was drying up. The Dees were never really troubled after that
although the Weagles did manage to hold them up for some periods and
kicked some late goals, Peter Matera with a couple in the final term.
The one everyone was waiting for came with two minutes left, Ben Cousins
ran afield with two bounces and centered the ball for McKenna to mark
30m out dead in front, he steered it through the middle with his last
kick in AFL football. The locals went made waving their "Thanks Bluey"
placards.

Melbourne would have been equally emotional over the efforts of Yze, he
booted 5 goals and had 23 kicks with a total of 29 disposals in a huge
game. Chief assistants in the middle were Guy Rigoni (25 disposals, a
goal), Stephen Powell (29 touches, 2 goals) and Anthony McDonald (18
disposals). Ruckman Jeff White knows Subi well from his three years as a
Docker, he had a huge 41 hitouts jumping all over poor old Turnbull and
14 disposals as well. Young forward Cameron Bruce worked hard from a
flank for 4 goals from 19 possessions, plenty of other Dees queued up
for sausages including Jeff Farmer (3), Russell Robertson (2), Travis
Johnstone (2), David Neitz (2) and Brad Green (2). The Eags' Dean Kemp
was important early and finished with 26 disposals and 2 goals on the
ball. In a back pocket Drew Banfield did a good job on Farmer despite
the latter's three goals, Banfield had 16 disposals. Andrew Donnelly
ended with 4 goals from 6 kicks, in the middle Ben Cousins (29
disposals, a goal) and Chad Morrison (30 disposals with 10 kicks in the
third quarter, and a goal) fought the good fight - I suppose we
shouldn't say that concerning the WA teams - and Rowan Jones played
alright with 19 touches. Callum Chambers and Peter Matera kicked 2 goals
each, Adam Hunter kicked a goal on debut. So ends a pretty lousy year
for the Eags, they were erratic early with some massive home wins over
the Camrys and Dockers before injury took a fair toll, notably David
Wirrpunda, Scott Cummings, Ben Cousins as the most significant 'victim'
of Colonial and Michael Gardiner missed a fair bit of footy. But they're
into rebuilding now with Ken Judge. Met a few Hawthorn memebrs at a
function on Saturday who were very happy to see the back of Judge. No
quote from he or Neale Daniher in our paper, I'm afraid. Melbun go in
with good form and almost full strength, even Stephen Tingay managed a
reserves game on Saturday. They'd be a threat but also be mindful that
Carlton beat them by 98 points nine weeks ago.

Next Week:
Elimination Final: Geelong v Hawthorn, Colonial, Friday night.
Qualifying Final: Essendon v North Melbourne, MCG, Saturday.
Elimination Final: Brisbane v Footscray, Gabba, Saturday night.
Qualifying Final: Carlton v Melbourne, MCG, Sunday.

Final Ladder:
Won Lost Draw For Agin % Pts.
Essendon 21 1 0 2816 1770 159.1 84
Carlton 16 6 0 2667 1979 134.8 64
Melbourne 14 8 0 2557 2159 118.4 56
North Melbourne 14 8 0 2447 2304 106.2 56
Geelong 12 9 1 2234 2306 96.9 50
Brisbane 12 10 0 2602 2222 117.1 48
Footscray 12 10 0 2321 2241 103.6 48
Hawthorn 12 10 0 2198 2251 97.6 48
-------------------------------------
Richmond 11 11 0 2068 2221 93.1 44
Sydney 10 12 0 2254 2219 101.6 40
Adelaide 9 13 0 2255 2347 96.1 36
Fremantle 8 14 0 1886 2618 72.0 32
West Coast 7 14 1 2216 2399 92.4 30
Port Adelaide 7 14 1 1928 2295 84.0 30
Collingwood 7 15 0 2089 2431 85.9 28
St. Kilda 2 19 1 1855 2631 70.5 10

Cheers, Tim
e-mail: t.murphy@rmit.edu.au