Zevon
Moderator
- Moderator
- #1
Until the last quarter of the last game, this round was UGLY. It was supposed to be an unofficial Rivalry Round, but it quickly became Roll Over Round, with blowouts as far as the eye could see. The multiple hometown derbies turned into hometown demolitions (44 points was the closest margin in any of them). Never mind the fixturing… cellar dwellers clogging up prime time spots, multiple games overlapping for no apparent reason… Yeah whatever. I’m done ranting. Let’s just call this Garbage Round and wrap the whole rotten thing up.
Hawks v Blues, Thursday night: Lots to like about how the Hawks put the game to bed early and then went into cruise mode. Three out of their last four games are genuinely tough matchups, so an energy-conserving win was hugely valuable here. Was also nice that Sam Docherty’s farewell didn’t turn into a pantsing. Would have been an awful way for a top bloke to bow out.
Bombers v Dogs, Friday night: Imagine losing by 93 points and only being the third biggest defeat of the weekend. It’s the little wins I guess. The downhill skiers ski onwards, the shell shocked Bombers crawl one week closer to the end of a miserable year.
Giants v Swans, Friday night: Goodness me. What an AWESOME third quarter. Best 30 minutes of footy any side has played this year. The Giants kicked nine goals to one and looked absolutely unstoppable. They don’t need to be at that high-octane level 100% of the time, but if they can find it just often enough between now and Grand Final day they could genuinely do a Brisbane 2024.
Suns v Lions, Saturday arvo: I’ll fully admit I didn’t see this coming. The Suns had a few key pieces missing and they were playing the side that I rated as the best in the business. To beat them was a huge effort; to comprehensively dismantle them was breathtaking! The Suns have now beaten the last two premiers in three weeks. With a game in hand on the rest of the top 8 they’re right in the hunt for a top 4 spot. Wouldn’t just be making up the numbers either.
Freo v Eagles, Saturday arvo: The Eagles were competitive in patches but it was obvious from very early on that there wasn’t going to be boil over in this one. Important win for the Dockers. They can all but sew up a finals spot with a couple more soft matchups in the coming weeks.
North v Cats, Saturday night: Oh my God.
Crows v Port, Saturday night: Have there ever been two such severe hammerings in one Saturday night? Somebody go back through the records, I can’t be bothered. What I do know is that Adelaide are going to finish first on the ladder at the end of the year. Bookmark it.
Tigers v Pies, Sunday arvo: Of all the games that were entitled to finish in a mauling, 1st vs 16th would have been right up there. The Tigers were thereabouts for most of the game though, and gave another solid account of themselves despite going down by six goals. With a brutal three weeks ahead, the Magpies simply had to win and did so.
Saints v Demons, Sunday twilight: After a truly awful round of footy, who would have thought that a game between St Kilda and Melbourne was capable of saving it! After a decent body of work against strong opposition over the last few weeks, the Saints finally came up against a gettable opponent. This was their chance for a win to warm the spirits, so it was disappointing when it looked they weren’t going to fire a shot through the first three quarters. But the game came alive in the final term as the Sainters came from the clouds! The greatest three quarter time comback in history. Give Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera whatever the heck he wants, what an absolute weapon. I’ve seen a few extraordinary finishes in my time but that last minute (heck, even the last 8 seconds) had just about everything. What the bloody hell was THAT.
Don’t forget to post your Liked, Learnt, Hated below… along with any other thoughts you had about Round 20!
Hawks v Blues, Thursday night: Lots to like about how the Hawks put the game to bed early and then went into cruise mode. Three out of their last four games are genuinely tough matchups, so an energy-conserving win was hugely valuable here. Was also nice that Sam Docherty’s farewell didn’t turn into a pantsing. Would have been an awful way for a top bloke to bow out.
Bombers v Dogs, Friday night: Imagine losing by 93 points and only being the third biggest defeat of the weekend. It’s the little wins I guess. The downhill skiers ski onwards, the shell shocked Bombers crawl one week closer to the end of a miserable year.
Giants v Swans, Friday night: Goodness me. What an AWESOME third quarter. Best 30 minutes of footy any side has played this year. The Giants kicked nine goals to one and looked absolutely unstoppable. They don’t need to be at that high-octane level 100% of the time, but if they can find it just often enough between now and Grand Final day they could genuinely do a Brisbane 2024.
Suns v Lions, Saturday arvo: I’ll fully admit I didn’t see this coming. The Suns had a few key pieces missing and they were playing the side that I rated as the best in the business. To beat them was a huge effort; to comprehensively dismantle them was breathtaking! The Suns have now beaten the last two premiers in three weeks. With a game in hand on the rest of the top 8 they’re right in the hunt for a top 4 spot. Wouldn’t just be making up the numbers either.
Freo v Eagles, Saturday arvo: The Eagles were competitive in patches but it was obvious from very early on that there wasn’t going to be boil over in this one. Important win for the Dockers. They can all but sew up a finals spot with a couple more soft matchups in the coming weeks.
North v Cats, Saturday night: Oh my God.
Crows v Port, Saturday night: Have there ever been two such severe hammerings in one Saturday night? Somebody go back through the records, I can’t be bothered. What I do know is that Adelaide are going to finish first on the ladder at the end of the year. Bookmark it.
Tigers v Pies, Sunday arvo: Of all the games that were entitled to finish in a mauling, 1st vs 16th would have been right up there. The Tigers were thereabouts for most of the game though, and gave another solid account of themselves despite going down by six goals. With a brutal three weeks ahead, the Magpies simply had to win and did so.
Saints v Demons, Sunday twilight: After a truly awful round of footy, who would have thought that a game between St Kilda and Melbourne was capable of saving it! After a decent body of work against strong opposition over the last few weeks, the Saints finally came up against a gettable opponent. This was their chance for a win to warm the spirits, so it was disappointing when it looked they weren’t going to fire a shot through the first three quarters. But the game came alive in the final term as the Sainters came from the clouds! The greatest three quarter time comback in history. Give Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera whatever the heck he wants, what an absolute weapon. I’ve seen a few extraordinary finishes in my time but that last minute (heck, even the last 8 seconds) had just about everything. What the bloody hell was THAT.
Don’t forget to post your Liked, Learnt, Hated below… along with any other thoughts you had about Round 20!
