GF player reveiw

[DanA]

Steve Johnson:
10/10 - Was tremendous, took marks, kicked goals, assisted in several more. A fantastic performance by the guy who has always had the talent but needed a kick in the pants to get there.

Paul Chapman:
10/10 - Could have also been a norm smith medalist. Took the best mark in a GF since Jezza was the critical player when the match was there to be won.

Matthew Scarlett
9/10 - What a champ. toweled Westhoff, spoiled, took marks and set up play all day. Not much more he could do (maybe kick one of those goals).

Corey Enright:
8.5/10 - Critical part of our rebound out of the backline, played the link man all day very well.

Cameron Mooney:
8.5/10 - 5 goals 12 marks is a big day for anyone. He took so great grabs and did everything that was needed of him.

Brad Ottens:
8/10 - Was great in the ruck, Very dangerous up forward. Probably would have been a 9 had he kicked those goals.

Matthew Stokes:
7.5/10 - The little champ was great. A couple of tremedous gathers in a tight contest. In particukar one comming off the wing at full steam was inspirational.

Cameron Ling:
7.5/10 - Was tremendous. Let S.Burgoyne get away from him for that one goal but other than that easily got the better of his man.

Joel Corey:
7/10 - Had some fantastic clearances. I particularly like the desperate handball out in front of Chappy at the 50 meter line which resulted ion a goal.

Steven King:
7/10 - Gave away a few too many free kick but really controlled the game. Was exception aon Lade when he pushed forward and controlled the centre. The veteran stepped up today.

Nathan Ablett:
7/10 - Took some great marks and kicked 3 while giving one off to Byrnes. A good day for the young lad and he should draw confidence from this performance.

Jimmy Bartel:
7/10 - A typical Jimmy day, you expect so much from him that 29 possies 2 goals can be an average day.

Gary Ablett-
7/10 - Like Jimmy 19 possessions 8 tackles and a goal seems a BOG standard day for lil Gaz. Did some amazing things but not regular enough for me to say he was very good. It is the G.Ablett weight of expectations.

Selwood, Mackie, Kelly, Wojak, Harley & Milburn
6.5/10 - All did there job and then some but these guys did not particularly stand out to me.

Max Rooke
6/10 - The hard man was the hardest man on the feild, some grandfinal bumps & tackles as well as a nice goal. I thought he was good but could have had a bit more of it.


Shannon Brynes:

5/10 - Tried hard and did his job but was caught out a few times and was a little sloppy with his disposal. Still was pretty good overall.

What do you guys think?

 

[griff]

10/10 to every single one of those blokes for giving me one of the best days of my life..to win a grand final by that margin you dont do it with a few blokes you do it with a team of absolute superstars..

 

[CF]

Darren Milburn:
8/10 his experience in the backline seen him cover a few players as he played the loose man in defence role.

Josh Hunt:
8/10 - beat Ebert and his courage was terrific. Kicking was mostly pin point accurate bar one mess up kicking in.

Andrew Mackie:
6/10 - provided lots of run from half back and his kicking was excellent

David Wocjinski:
5/10 - broke even, made a few nice plays but didn't impact as other players did

Matthew Stokes:
7/10 - tough, did well up forward and roatating in the midfield. He is afraid of no man.

Tom Harley:
6/10 - Took his usual marks in the last line of defence. He is so cool calm and collected when going for the contested ball.

 

[DanA]

Darren Milburn:
8/10 his experience in the backline seen him cover a few players as he played the loose man in defence role.

Josh Hunt:
8/10 - beat Ebert and his courage was terrific. Kicking was mostly pin point accurate bar one mess up kicking in.

Andrew Mackie:
6/10 - provided lots of run from half back and his kicking was excellent

David Wocjinski:
5/10 - broke even, made a few nice plays but didn't impact as other players did

Matthew Stokes:
7/10 - tough, did well up forward and roatating in the midfield. He is afraid of no man.

Tom Harley:
6/10 - Took his usual marks in the last line of defence. He is so cool calm and collected when going for the contested ball.

Forgot Hunt I would give him a 7.5. Beating an AA nominee and then providing the rebound he did was a sensational effort.

 

[Bomba Sheldon]

Johnno's game I rated it as a 15 because thats what the TAB was paying yesterday and I backed him for the Norm Smith. Thanks the money Stevie boy.

 

[My5t3r10u5]

Steve Johnson:
10/10 - Was tremendous, took marks, kicked goals, assisted in several more. A fantastic performance by the guy who has always had the talent but needed a kick in the pants to get there.

Paul Chapman:
10/10 - Could have also been a norm smith medalist. Took the best mark in a GF since Jezza was the critical player when the match was there to be won.

Matthew Scarlett
9/10 - What a champ. toweled Westhoff, spoiled, took marks and set up play all day. Not much more he could do (maybe kick one of those goals).

Corey Enright:
8.5/10 - Critical part of our rebound out of the backline, played the link man all day very well.

Cameron Mooney:
8.5/10 - 5 goals 12 marks is a big day for anyone. He took so great grabs and did everything that was needed of him.

Brad Ottens:
8/10 - Was great in the ruck, Very dangerous up forward. Probably would have been a 9 had he kicked those goals.

Matthew Stokes:
7.5/10 - The little champ was great. A couple of tremedous gathers in a tight contest. In particukar one comming off the wing at full steam was inspirational.

Cameron Ling:
7.5/10 - Was tremendous. Let S.Burgoyne get away from him for that one goal but other than that easily got the better of his man.

Joel Corey:
7/10 - Had some fantastic clearances. I particularly like the desperate handball out in front of Chappy at the 50 meter line which resulted ion a goal.

Steven King:
7/10 - Gave away a few too many free kick but really controlled the game. Was exception aon Lade when he pushed forward and controlled the centre. The veteran stepped up today.

Nathan Ablett:
7/10 - Took some great marks and kicked 3 while giving one off to Byrnes. A good day for the young lad and he should draw confidence from this performance.

Jimmy Bartel:
7/10 - A typical Jimmy day, you expect so much from him that 29 possies 2 goals can be an average day.

Gary Ablett-
7/10 - Like Jimmy 19 possessions 8 tackles and a goal seems a BOG standard day for lil Gaz. Did some amazing things but not regular enough for me to say he was very good. It is the G.Ablett weight of expectations.

Selwood, Mackie, Kelly, Wojak, Harley & Milburn
6.5/10 - All did there job and then some but these guys did not particularly stand out to me.

Max Rooke
6/10 - The hard man was the hardest man on the feild, some grandfinal bumps & tackles as well as a nice goal. I thought he was good but could have had a bit more of it.


Shannon Brynes:

5/10 - Tried hard and did his job but was caught out a few times and was a little sloppy with his disposal. Still was pretty good overall.

What do you guys think?

I reckon Johnno and Chappy were both great but not perfect - I'd give them 9's with Scarlo.
Don't agree with your assessment of Nathan - competed but 2 of his goals came from questionable frees and he didn't do much else. I'd give him a 5.
Also thought Mackie, Kelly and Milburn were all worth more than a 6.5 - I'd give them all at least 7.5.
Basically a fantastic team performance - no passengers, and that was the difference between the teams!

 

[Scuderia]

I think the club should do a similar review to 2006 to work out how the hell we managed to lose 3 games during the year

 

[Nunga]

I'm sure Travis Varcoe would have been far better than Burns but maybe they were worried about his lack of experiance

Steve Johnson:
10/10 - Was tremendous, took marks, kicked goals, assisted in several more. A fantastic performance by the guy who has always had the talent but needed a kick in the pants to get there.

Paul Chapman:
10/10 - Could have also been a norm smith medalist. Took the best mark in a GF since Jezza was the critical player when the match was there to be won.

Matthew Scarlett
9/10 - What a champ. toweled Westhoff, spoiled, took marks and set up play all day. Not much more he could do (maybe kick one of those goals).

Corey Enright:
8.5/10 - Critical part of our rebound out of the backline, played the link man all day very well.

Cameron Mooney:
8.5/10 - 5 goals 12 marks is a big day for anyone. He took so great grabs and did everything that was needed of him.

Brad Ottens:
8/10 - Was great in the ruck, Very dangerous up forward. Probably would have been a 9 had he kicked those goals.

Matthew Stokes:
7.5/10 - The little champ was great. A couple of tremedous gathers in a tight contest. In particukar one comming off the wing at full steam was inspirational.

Cameron Ling:
7.5/10 - Was tremendous. Let S.Burgoyne get away from him for that one goal but other than that easily got the better of his man.

Joel Corey:
7/10 - Had some fantastic clearances. I particularly like the desperate handball out in front of Chappy at the 50 meter line which resulted ion a goal.

Steven King:
7/10 - Gave away a few too many free kick but really controlled the game. Was exception aon Lade when he pushed forward and controlled the centre. The veteran stepped up today.

Nathan Ablett:
7/10 - Took some great marks and kicked 3 while giving one off to Byrnes. A good day for the young lad and he should draw confidence from this performance.

Jimmy Bartel:
7/10 - A typical Jimmy day, you expect so much from him that 29 possies 2 goals can be an average day.

Gary Ablett-
7/10 - Like Jimmy 19 possessions 8 tackles and a goal seems a BOG standard day for lil Gaz. Did some amazing things but not regular enough for me to say he was very good. It is the G.Ablett weight of expectations.

Selwood, Mackie, Kelly, Wojak, Harley & Milburn
6.5/10 - All did there job and then some but these guys did not particularly stand out to me.

Max Rooke
6/10 - The hard man was the hardest man on the feild, some grandfinal bumps & tackles as well as a nice goal. I thought he was good but could have had a bit more of it.


Shannon Brynes:

5/10 - Tried hard and did his job but was caught out a few times and was a little sloppy with his disposal. Still was pretty good overall.

What do you guys think?

 

[Stripey PJs]

What do you guys think?

Dan, you posted this on Sunday? I think you sound disgustingly sober.
Nice summary.

It's difficult to judge players after a 119 point walloping, but I'd place a greater emphasis on our teamwork and narrow the gulf between the best and the rest. I'd award less 10's, and rate other players more highly than 6.5 (Dasher, Kel -who was sensational in the opening quarter). Disagree most with Tom Harley’s rating. The early nerves of last week never made an appearance, and he kept one half of Port's highest scoring duo -Motlop- to 4 possessions, 0 goals.

I'll post my own analysis when my head stops throbbing, my feet touch the ground, and I've viewed a replay.

 

[DanA]

Dan, you posted this on Sunday? I think you sound disgustingly sober.
Nice summary.

It's difficult to judge players after a 119 point walloping, but I'd place a greater emphasis on our teamwork and narrow the gulf between the best and the rest. I'd award less 10's, and rate other players more highly than 6.5 (Dasher, Kel -who was sensational in the opening quarter). Disagree most with Tom Harley’s rating. The early nerves of last week never made an appearance, and he kept one half of Port's highest scoring duo -Motlop- to 4 possessions, 0 goals.

I'll post my own analysis when my head stops throbbing, my feet touch the ground, and I've viewed a replay.

Yes unfortuantely I start work at 6am every Monday. Big night on Saturday was enough for me. too sore a head to leave the house Sunday

 

[Stripey PJs]

OK, my Grand Final player review. All references to transvestism have been removed to protect Mooney21's sensibilities.
Apologies for taking so long, but I was seduced by the Rugby.
(Timey, ya might wanna skip this one)

Matthew Scarlett: 9
My choice for BOG. Spent the opening 15 minutes on Tredrea, and a further 15 minutes on Lade late in the match. The rest of his time was spent dominating the ‘Hoff’. 29 possies, no clangers, his opponent has 7 touches, no goals. This was nearly the perfect game from Scarlo, he created great drive from defence, ran off his slower opponents at every opportunity and never gave them a sniff of the ball. Scarlett had most of the defensive contests covered, and I lost count of the number of times he spoiled...half a dozen? His team-mates fed off his self-assured manner. Would’ve scored a 9.5 had he converted one of his two shots.

Steve Johnson: 8.75
Flair with a capital F. Set the game up for us in the opening quarter and was outstanding throughout, a worthy Norm Smith winner. Played with an injection in the shoulder, but you’d never have known. Dominating Troy Chaplin who looked lost in the heat, SJ used his smarts to work into open space, where he was fed with constant ball from Chapman and Mooney. Symes also spent time on Johnno, but was as ineffective as Chaplin. SJ worked tirelessly, always encouraging his team-mates and looking for ways to advantage from any situation. Cleverly picked Surjan’s pocket, but missed the banana’d goal. Defensively he pressured Chaplin, who’d created so much drive for Port in their prelim. This week Chaplin was reduced to collecting 15 metre kick-ins in the pockets, and on a few occasions he coughed the ball up as Stevie tackled him. SJ also pushed hard into Port’s defence, assisting our backmen before tearing back into the forward line.

He kicked three of our first six goals, but then became a little too goal hungry. I’ve docked him half a point and my BOG for at least two passages of selfish play in the second quarter, when he ignored better options to try kicking the low-percentage goal. Words must’ve been spoken, for Steve’s second half was all about the team. Redeemed himself somewhat by squaring the ball to those in better positions, setting up Otto, Bartel, Mooney and unselfishly finding Nablett 15 metres out (who chose to hb to Byrnes). Had his team-mates kicked straighter, he may well have had 6 or 7 assists to go with his four goals. Game highlight? The umpire had blown his whistle, but Stevie kept scrabbling for the ball with three Port players and, with little idea of his bearings, STILL attempted the miraculous goal from a ridiculous angle.

Paul Chapman: 8.5
Another who was brilliant early, Generalissimo’s "roll-on deodorant" had Port sweating for much of the match. Though his influence on the ground belies this, to me Chappy looked a little hampered by injury, on occasions moving stiffly. In a terrific opening quarter he provided the link across the half-forward line, cleverly finding space on Michael Pettigrew and taking a number of marks. His kicking was his strongest attribute as he set-up his team-mates, delivering the first goal of the match to Mooney and providing Johnno with a number of early chances. He even hit up Scarlo, who failed to convert. Peter Burgoyne played a much tighter game on Chappy for part of the second quarter, quelling his influence and running off him -Chappy ain’t exactly renowned for his chasing. But Burgoyne’s as susceptible to Paul’s trademark shoulder-roll as any other player, and he conceded a high tackle free around the 50 mark, allowing Chappy to nail his first of four goals. His second was the last for the quarter, as he marked a beautiful pass from Kelly, pranced around Wakelin and goaled. Pettigrew was back on Chappy for the third quarter, but Paul pressed deeper into the middle, allowing Selwood to play the linking half-forward role. Chappy muscled a couple of clearances, spoiled strongly in Port’s goalsquare, took an almighty screamer -one of our best for the season- over Warren Tredrea as Dasher cleared from defence, and ran to receive Corey’s desperate handball to kick his third. The fourth quarter was more of the first, a couple of loooong bombs to the square that resulted in Geelong goals to Ling and Mooney, and he strongly outmarked Pettigrew -despite being nearly 6 inches shorter- to kick his fourth, thanks to another lengthy kick to the goalsquare, this time from Enright. Speaking of Enright…

Corey Enright: 8
Boris was outstanding defensively and as the link-man between our backs and half-forwards, especially when Geelong’s midfield were heavily tagged. Ran with last year’s Rising Star for most of the game, shutting Pearce down after he’d used his pace to collect a few hot possies early. Enright started the second quarter on fire, running hard from the half-back flank to receive from team-mates and drive the ball forwards. They protected him, making sure Pearce didn’t run him down, and Enright returned the favour later in the match, getting crunched by Chad Cornes as he shielded Harley. Harley was able to mark uncontested, the start of another Cats’ goal. Enright delivered a long bomb to Chappy late in the fourth, who marked and goaled.

Cameron Mooney: 8
Just a solid, powerful performance from Mooney as our key-forward, finishing with 12 marks (4 contested) and 5 goals. Kicked the opening goal of the first, third and fourth terms. Moons was well contained early by Darryl Wakelin, but the Camster had too much pace for the aging Wakes, and utilised it by leading strongly, gradually wearing him down as the match progressed. The amount of ball firing in helped; long kicks to the goalsquare putting Port’s defence under the pump, and invariably either Mooney marked or their defenders infringed. Cam ran hard and pressured all day, as evidenced in the first five minutes when he chased Pearce down the wing and into defence, demonstrating to his team-mates the commitment level that was acceptable. He provided a physical presence, seeking body on body contact, and on one occasion clipped both Ebert and Wakelin after spilling a mark. Didn’t mind using his elbows either. Thurstans’ would spend time on him in the third when Otto swung forward, with Wakelin shifting to the big O. Missed a gettable shot in the fourth, but otherwise was accurate. Must stop meeting with behind posts, otherwise Mrs.Cam’s jealousy will be inflamed.

Brad Ottens: 7.5
Was not as effective in the ruck as he’d been in the lead-up finals. Began, oddly, against Brogan (Mark Williams may’ve planned to use his stronger ruck against our weaker ruck, as he did in round 21). In the first quarter Brogan outpositioned Otto at the ruck contests, and won most of them. On one occasion Otto was able to shark Brogan’s tap, but other than that he was ineffective in the ruck and Port were winning the clearances -Chad holding Corey back didn’t help. King came on and stemmed the tide, and Ottens shifted forward. This is where the not-so-lumbering Otto provided my highlight of the match: a team-lifting chase down of the speedy Michael Pettigrew -who’d won his draft camp's 20 metre sprint. He intercepted Pettigrew’s path along the boundary and then -after spending the previous 10 minutes rucking- hit a fifth gear, thrust out the arms and BANG! Revealed Pettigrew’s petticoat. His ruckwork in the second quarter improved, he came on to replace King 10 minutes in and started getting his palm to the ball, but rarely did he hit a friendly jumper (or kick accurately for goal), and he conceded the free that set up Chad’s goal. Was much better in the third quarter, getting on top of Lade and Brogan, who’s knee injury limited his performance. Another highlight came in this quarter, a four-bounce run along the wing to deliver inside 50. In the fourth, Thurstans opposed him in the ruck and it was party time.

Otto provided a handy target when swung forward, using his height to either out-mark Wakelin, or palm the ball down to the likes of Ling, Johnno and Chappy for resulting goals. But…he missed three gettable shots! Major downgrade material. Only once he marked a third-quarter Johnno…pass?…in the goalsquare could he slam one through the middle. His athleticism was important around the ground, his forward marking troubled Port, his second efforts prevented Lade from looking like an AA, and he won plenty of contested ball. If Otto had kicked straighter and rucked better in the opening quarter, he would’ve scored an 8.5.

Jimmy Bartel: 7.5
Suppressed by Kane Cornes is the first half, before bringing the Cats home.
I thought Jimmy was the best of our midfielders; even when he wasn’t getting the ball he was still doing the HARD stuff, the one-percenters, etc. He smothered many kicks, twice courageously spoiled, backed into packs for marks, kicked the goal of the game -a curling shot off his left, was the chock that brought down Brogan, delivered a massive bomb to set up Otto, deftly batted the ball to a team-mate, tackled strongly -including a bone-rattler on Motlop, and all that in the first half when he only had 9 touches.

The second half saw Kane loosening up and Surjan sharing the responsibility of tagging him, which freed Jimmy to win more of the ball. Added a second goal thanks to a great pass from Johnno, and had 12 possessions in the final quarter -including a couple of ruck HOs as he went third man up. His disposal was classy, and he played a very unselfish, team-oriented game. Normally I wouldn’t rate a player so highly when his opponent had 37 possessions, but most of Kane’s were defensive-side handballs that invariably travelled sideways, and when he kicked he wasn’t that accurate. One of the least damaging 37 touch performances I’ve seen.

Darren Milburn: 7.5
Dasher was Dasher, what more do ya need to know? Played with an injection in his calf, a calf that must’ve been chewing cud in Farmer Brown’s paddock for all its restrictive influence on him. Played a big first quarter, suppressing Westhoff for the first half and running off him at every opportunity, before shifting to Tredrea when Lade pushed forward. For most of the match Dasher was at his grizzled best and, like Scarlo, he covered a number of defensive contests, cutting off Port's forward thrusts by marking courageously or spoiling, and when the ball hit the ground he made sure it went no further backwards. When he was at the contest, the ball just STOPPED.

Downside? His second quarter. Dash fluffed a bounce, turning the ball over. Chad Cornes swung forward and Dasher manned him as Tredrea rested up on the bench. Chad took a contested mark on Dash and goaled, then Tredrea came back on and started getting the ball, pushing harder up the ground to involve himself in the play and running Dasher around, who was weary with the effort he’d already expended. But Dasher beat Tredrea for the majority of the game, conceding only one goal as he left to cover Motlop (Tredder’s first came from a Wojack free) and providing run from defence, every disposal hitting a team-mate.

Tom Harley: 7.5
Murdered the dangerous Daniel Motlop, who played perhaps the dirtiest of his 76 games: 4 possies, 0 goals...oh, but a tapped assist to Tredders after Harley spoiled Brogan. For most of the match Danny boy was left standing still, shrugging his shoulders at the umpires. Harls didn’t make an error all game, and there were no signs of the early nerves that struck him in the Collingwood prelim. When he wasn’t sweeping the ‘G with Motlop he was covering his fellow defenders, cutting off Port thrusts and taking his customary strong marks. Suppressed Lade when the Port ruck went forward. A Captain’s game, played with physical hardness.

Andrew Mackie: 7
Defensively, Mackie was solid. Limited Salopek’s effectiveness for much of the game, and helped suppress Rodan in the third quarter. But it was on the rebound that Andrew shone, the Robin to
Enright’s Batman. The pair often linked up, especially in the second term, and Mackie’s run through the corridor and long raking kicks troubled Port all day, opening holes in their defence. A clumsy Cornes tackle with follow-up 50 gifted Mackie the goal you always felt was coming.

Joel Corey: 7
TBH, JC escaped my attention for most of this match. He and Chad Cornes opposed each other as defensive midfielders in the first half; Chad tightening on Corey at ruck duels and using his strength to prevent JC from collecting his customary clearances. Rodan shared this responsibility, sacrificing his own game to keep Corey away from the action. JC started quietly, getting his first kick -a grubber- halfway through the first term. His disposals weren’t all that flashy, but he got the job done. He was workman-like, laying a number of tackles and applying persistent pressure. Always provided support for his team-mates, running forward to receive or backing up those making the play. Peter Burgoyne played the defensive role on Corey in the second half, without great effect. I’d say Corey’s match highlight was chasing down Boak in the second quarter. Gave 100%.

Josh Hunt: 7
The string was OUT. Hunt killed Ebert -who looked far from fit- restricting him to 8 touches, 0 goals. Joshy began the match a tad tentatively, turning over his first kick-in (Ebert failed to make him pay) and trailing his opponent’s leads by a number of paces. Fortunately Port’s early disposal to Brett was poor, except for one Kane Cornes pass (again Ebert failed to make him pay), and Josh was able to intercept without difficulty. Hunt’s confidence grew and by the time Port’s I50 accuracy improved, it was too late, Joshy had his man. He spoiled or outmarked Ebert, and used his powerful left boot to clear the ball from defence. When Ebert drifted into the middle, looking for kicks, Hunt was with him every step of the way. When the ball was on the deck, Hunt was physical, hard at the man and he tackled strongly. Red-faced moment? Slipping over, allowing Logan to kick an unchallenged goal.

James Kelly: 7
As in the prelim, Kelly’s opening term was excellent and he helped set the game up for us. His sublime skills shone under the early pressure, and often it was Kelly tapping the contested ball our way. The only disappointing moment was his missed shot on quarter time. Ran hard all day, received plenty of handballs, and would often be at the beginning and end of a number of coast to coast plays, on one occasion saving Byrnes from total embarrassment. Comprehensively outpointed his main opponent (of a number) on the day, Jacob Surjan. The Roos gave Surjan the space he needed to collect 25 possies in Port’s prelim, but Kelly (and Byrnes) shut him right out of the game, restricting Power’s run from defence.

Cameron Ling: 7
The Mayor of Geelong tagged the dangerous Shaun Burgoyne, and did a reasonable job. Ling wasn’t his usual dominating self, starting poorly before slowly squeezing Shaun out of the play. Most of Jr Burger’s disposals were under pressure and ineffective, though on one occasion his hard-running saw him break free of Ling’s tag and he was able to goal by arriving at a ruck contest just as the ball was palmed down. (Shaun’s second was scored on Rooke). Offensively Ling won a fair share of the ball himself and used it well, including a roved goal that brought up the 100 point margin. Ling was strong, frequently standing up in tackles and handballing to team-mates which kept the ball moving, and one such occasion allowed Rooke to score. Lingy continually put his body on the line, and loved every one of Port’s hits.

Gary Ablett: 7
Gaz is a victim of his own high standards. He didn’t play a poor game, but was kept relatively quiet by Dominic Cassisi. I wondered whether Gaz was haunted by memories of Cassisi’s match-winning goal: to the best of my judgement he was playing more defensively, always ready to pounce on Cass and keeping him under pressure when Port had possession. Laid a game high 8 tackles and had as many rebound 50’s as inside 50’s. Maybe his creative game suffered as a consequence? Speculation aside, Gazza struggled to get a touch in the first half yet still managed a pair of memorable moments: in the first quarter he intercepted a Chaplin kick intended for Cassisi and goaled, and in the second was the hottest link in a chain of 11 Cats that ended with Chappy’s second goal. Gary never gave up, winning more of the ball in the second half. He kept battling, kept fighting for space, and when he did break free he made the most of it by running hard with the ball and setting up team-mates. The crowd voiced their appreciation for Gary’s endeavour as he came to the bench -exhausted- towards the end of the third quarter.

Steven King: 7
Brogan had gotten the better of Ottens, and Port were winning the clearances. Enter the King. He came out pumped, leaping high into the first ruck contest and conceding a number of frees, the first leaving Cassisi with a bloody nose, the worst holding the ball on a wing as he looked to handball to an out of bounds Ling. King was tremendous in the first quarter, throwing himself into the contest and minimising his ruck opponents’ worth with his persistent pressure, smothering, tackling, etc. When his team-mates broke clear with the ball, King positioned his body to screen. Geelong started winning clearances. He spent time down back, taking a couple of strong grabs and filling up space.

If King was tremendous in the first quarter, he was tretremendous in the third. Brogan, his opponent, was returning from a second quarter knee injury and failed to make any impact on the game, but even switching for Lade couldn’t help Port. King dominated, out-positioning his opponents and winning most ruck contests, and when he didn’t win, his second and third efforts forced secondary ball-ups. On their kick-ins, King patrolled the 50 arc, marking and spoiling to prevent Port clearing the ball from their defensive zone. He even had a quick ping from 40. He moved to FF late in the final quarter after the game became congested, and team-mates looked to give their ex-captain a goal, targeting him -unsuccessfully- with their last four forays forward.

Joel Selwood: 6.75
Played his first Granny with the composure of a retiree feeding ducks by the lake.
Bomber protected Selwood by starting him in defence on Rodan halfway through the first quarter, before he was thrown into the midfield to be manned by Symes. Joel put his head over the ball, won the most clearances, copped the whacks and drew the frees, including one for chasing down Pearce. Had a number of opponents, Salopek, Boak, and beat them all. Like Kelly, he missed a gettable goal, leading to some humourous by-play with Brogan (what is it with Selwoods and their opponents’ appearances?) Sometime during the third quarter Joel switched positions with Chappy, becoming the link man across half forward, and played the role to perfection despite being manned by Cassisi (who needed entertaining after Gazza was benched). Delivered a number of perfectly weighted kicks into the forward 50, thrice setting up Nathan and also Mooney for goals, but the highlight of Joel’s match was his baulk and handball assist to Bartel. Shared the pine for most of the last term with Nab, Stokes and Byrnes, as the Coaching staff rewarded those who’d bled in years past with junk-time game-time. Playing longer would’ve increased his rating.

Matthew Stokes: 6.5
Freddy Kruegar couldn’t have conjured a more nightmarish start as Stokes popped his knee attempting to mark over Peter Burgoyne and was carried from the ground 5 minutes in. 1 needle and 20 minutes later saw Stokesy miraculously back on the turf and making an impact, receiving a couple of questionable frees after having a crack. The Burgoyne brothers switched roles in the second quarter, and Stokesy -despite starting the q on Pettigrew- followed Peter into the middle. Here he did his best work, tenaciously winning the contested footy and handballing to his team-mates’ advantage. Was tough for most of the day, played with confidence, and linked up well with the deeper forwards. Missed a couple of shots, one following Otto’s chase-down and the other hitting the goalpost’s base. Despite his bravery coming back onto the ground, I’ve deducted a point for those misses and his inability to control his opponents; Purgoyne in the second quarter, Symes in the last. Forgivable under the circumstances.

Jared Rooke: 5.5
Ferocious. Crashed into Rodan at the opening bounce, and dumped Pearce into the turf -late- shortly afterwards. Played with his usual intensity, tackling strongly and hitting hard. I’d little idea who Rooke was manning in the first half, and I doubt he knew either. A bit of Rodan, a bit of the Chad. Mostly he seemed content with chasing and harassing whomever had the ball, covering the ground like a rugby hooker. In the second half it became clearer the Chad was his man, and he also spelled Ling on Shaun Burgoyne (conceding a goal). Rooke looked his fittest since returning from Germany, but still couldn’t maintain the effort and appeared exhausted at times in the second half, even mistaking Symes for a rocking chair. Two highlights: the goal he kicked from Ling’s handball, and the jarring tackle laid on Thurstans that stunned Toby into conceding a 50.

Nathan Ablett: 5
Was pussy whipped by Thurstans up until the halfway mark of the second quarter when he suddenly kicked 2 goals in a minute. The first courtesy of a free kick, the second came after a maaaarvelous one handed clutch -both after long kicks to the square by Selwood. We didn’t see Nathan again until the third quarter, when he suddenly started taking strong marks on the lead against Thurstans and then Pettigrew as Port restructured their defence to account for Otto’s arrival and Chappy’s absence. Selwood AGAIN found him with a beautifully weighted kick, and while Nablett didn’t take the mark, he did receive a free for having his arm chopped and duly converted. Also unselfishly assisted Byrnes after marking only 15 metres out. Spent a large portion of the fourth quarter on the pine, as Operation Snag King A Snag commenced.

David Wojcinski: 5
Started on the bench, which is traditionally the quickest way to rouse the Flying Kielbasa’s passions. And roused they were, he entered the fray and immediately conceded two frees in quick succession, handing Tredrea an undeserved goal. He settled soon after his third FA, helping the cats clear from defence with panache, but without ever looking dangerous. His best work was defensive, keeping Boak quiet for a period, and alternatively Logan and Rodan. He slipped up once when Ebert outmarked him, but Brett’s day was over a loooong time ago and hitting the post was written into the script. The only highlight this match lacked was a flying Wojack goal; a couple of two-bounce dashes from defence weren’t enough to appease his fans.

Shannon Byrnes: 4
I’m filled with gleeful delight at the thought of little Byrnesy and his premiership medallion! I’m thrilled for our board’s SBGs and their capt’n, Eliiiiiza.
What can I say? Offensively, Byrnes was Byrnes. Came on when Stokes was injured, played in bursts, shepherded to the best of his ability, twice ran himself into trouble. Panicky and not overly effective with the ball, his traditional clanger was fortunately cancelled by a free kick. He ran hard to provide a link for his team-mates, and they WEREN’T afraid to utilise him. Stumbled the ball through for a goal, thanks to the stupidly munificent Nathan. For those appreciative of order, he finished the season with his perfect goal:behind ratio of 1:2 intact. Defensively? Byrnes was terrierific. He harried and pressured like a terrier. Was pushed around like a terrier. Bared his teeth like a terrier. And at the end of the day, was a key reason Port were unable to get any rebound from their defensive smalls. (Except for one patch, allowing Purgoyne four possies inside a minute) Game highlight? Most will say his goal, but I liked his Shannon-sized (the size below ‘fun’) bump on Pettigrew.

Note: a little difficult to determine match-ups when watching on television.

 

[thejester]

Ah, you never disapoint Stripey. Sensational reading.

 

[ALM_30]

"His teammates fed off his self- assured manner."

Perfect description of Scarlett's impact. One of the standout performances of his career.

Those 2 behinds outscored the output of all 3 of his direct opponents (1 behind) across the game. Pretty much says it all.

 

[mainboardboycotter]

Stripey, that is just wonderful analysis. That is special. I agree with the ratings, think you may have been a little critical at times for a game that Geelong won by 119 points but just wonderful mate. I think Joel Selwood can be counted stiff not to get a 7 or more because he was great out of the middle and was wonderful with the one percenters. I'm not sure if I was just in awe of the Cats performance and too relaxed to be so critical of some of their performances. I have to buy the DVD and then after watching it, I might see if I have any differing opinions.

But great work mate!