It’s Round 21…isn’t tipping supposed to be far more predictable by now? Well, clearly not! It’s been a round of upsets and a round of thrilling moments. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights…

Oh Yes!

Collingwood matched the Bulldog’s banner humour this week with a corker of their own…”Jesse White 50 Club Games…Lin Jong 1 Tour of the Facilities.” Love it!

Friday night’s clash between the Bulldogs’ and the Pies’ was one of the best games of the year. It was a slow start, but as the momentum built, so did the intensity. It was goal-for-goal for the rest of the game, and scores were dead level at three-quarter time. The Doggies’ were ferocious in the final term and held on by just three points to win in an absolute thriller!

Brisbane won over Carlton in a thriller at The Gabba. That said, an impressive 40-point lead to the Lions at half time was gradually chipped away by Carlton in the second half. Poor kicking cost the Blues the game by just four points.  They had plenty of opportunities to snatch the game late, but they just couldn’t kick straight. Jack Silvagni kicked three goals, which is the most he’s kicked in a senior match to date.

The GWS vs. West Coast Eagles game looked like it was going to be a win for the home team. The Giants were favourites going in and they were in control for most of the game. There were a few narrow lead changes back and forth as the match progressed, and when GWS kicked away, the Eagles kept fighting back. When scores were level with just a few minutes to go, it looked like it was going to be our first draw of the season. A goal to the Giants with a minute to go, and they were 6 points up. The players were celebrating like they were home. Well, as they say, “it ain’t over  ‘til it’s over!” The Eagles snapped a point. They were now five points down. Miraculously, with just 8 seconds to go, in the midst of a forward fifty stoppage for the Eagles, Nic Nat kicked the ball towards goal and nailed it right on the siren! The Eagles won by a solitary point and the Giants players were left shocked and devastated. It was the one that got away. They still haven’t beaten the Eagles – ever. So close!

Buddy’s back! Six goals and an equal career best 28 disposals. With just two home and away games left, Buddy’s steaming home with a late charge in the Coleman Medal race. It was an emphatic 70-point victory (all gained in the second half of the game) to the Swans over the Saints at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night. A close, hard-fought game until half time, it was an absolute demolition job in the second half. Rising Star favourite, Callum Mills is like “Cool Hand Luke” down back. For a first year player, in big moments, I’m still amazed at his composure. Allir Allir got rousing cheers every time he touched the ball. All the usual mid-field suspects got 30+ disposals a piece, and Buddy kicked a bag! Lots to like. The Swans are coming….watch out Hawks!

Melbourne backed up their upset win over the Hawks last week, flying across to Adelaide Oval to take care of a troubled Port Adelaide on Saturday night. The Dees were in control for the entire match. A mini-comeback by Port in the second half was spasmodic at best, and it was too little, too late to make any sort of a serious challenge. Melbourne kicked a few more goals to seal a comfortable win. Fittingly, Captain, Nathan Jones made it a 40-point victory with a bullet goal that went through on the final siren. There were lots of Melbourne supporters at the ground. It was great to see the players acknowledge them all. Ruckman, Max Gawn aka “The Beard,” was soaking up the post-match celebrations like a rock star! He ran half the boundary fence to high five fans and take selfies long after the final siren. Now sitting 9^th on the ladder, the Dees’ are two games out of eighth spot. They’re a sneaky chance of getting in, but they’d have to win their next two games (Carlton and Geelong), and North Melbourne will have to lose theirs (Sydney and GWS), which looks likely, given the strong competition.

Essendon win in an upset over the Gold Coast Suns! None of the Suns tall forwards were switched on. The Bombers wanted the win more, and got it! It was an embarrassing display by the Suns. I’d rate it as their worst loss of the season, not as far as margins are concerned, because it was only a one-goal loss, but based on their opposition, they should have won, and won easily.

Geelong was down by a massive 35-points going into the final quarter, but they made a miraculous comeback and snatched a four-point win from Richmond in another thriller of a game. The Cats’ kicked six goals, nine points to Richmond’s lone goal in the last quarter.  Needless to say, there was pure jubilation from the Cats’ players, and absolute devastation from the Tigers, especially after a missed Jack Riewoldt mark in the forward fifty with just seconds to go. Despite Richmond’s loss, Dustin Martin was clearly best on ground – again! How close is he to Patrick Dangerfield in the Brownlow voting? It’s getting interesting.

It was a 72-point demolition by the Crows over the Dockers…and 6 goals to Eddie Betts…it seems the two interstate teams who can take it right up to reigning premiers, Hawthorn, based on scoring power alone, are Adelaide and Sydney. Both teams are no strangers to 20+ goal games, and they kicked 142 and 146 this week, respectively. They’re peaking at the right time. 

Oh No!

Collingwood Rising Star nominee, Darcy Moore’s collision with the boundary line fence was cringe-worthy. He went head first at full pace and he looked dazed for a moment. He eventually stood up, albeit a bit groggy. Despite a nasty-looking wound and bruising to his forehead, he played out the game. Moore was also the highest goal kicker on the ground with three goals for the night.

Travis Cloke looks set to move on to another Victorian club. Collingwood dropped him for the third time this season. His response was to take 12 marks and kick 5 goals in the VFL on Saturday. The question is…what’s his new worth? After a season of mediocrity and with one-year left to go on his over-inflated Collingwood contract, negotiating with North Korea could be an easier task than moving ol’ Trav on to greener pastures. Messy is an understatement!

North Melbourne’s Boomer Harvey looks to be in a bit of trouble with the MRP. His forearm to the throat of Sam Mitchell will be looked at carefully. In real time and slow motion, it doesn’t look good. He was nowhere near going for the ball, so not sure what his defence could be, other than the fact that he just wanted to drop Sam Mitchell with a forearm to the throat! Mitchell went down after the hit, but he played out the rest of the game. I suspect Boomer will sit out the last two home and away games of the season.

Jake Stringer has hit a form slump at the wrong time of the year. He used to be a ball magnet and goal-kicking machine for the Doggies, but he’s dropped right off.  Seems like it’s only since his mid-July shoulder injury. Since returning, he’s not contesting the hard ball, which could well be a subconscious form of self-preservation. If the Bulldogs are going to be hard-nosed finals contenders, they need Jake Stringer firing up forward. He’s got two weeks to get his mojo back!

Port Adelaide was booed off the Adelaide Oval by their own supporters at half time. That’s always ugly. They’d managed just 16 points for the half and they were trailing Melbourne by 37 points. On paper, Port has a solid team. On field, they just can’t get it together consistently enough to be finals contenders. Ken Hinkley’s senior coaching job has got to be on shaky ground. I wouldn’t be surprised if a few players are put on notice either. Hinkley is still contracted until the end of the 2018 season. Unlike most AFL coaches, he doesn’t shy away from the tough questions when asked, saying, “…I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking those questions…I’m the coach of the club that’s been inconsistent. It starts and ends with me and questions I ask myself are not that dissimilar every day.”

What happened to the deliberate rushed behind rule? There were two definite free kicks against Essendon for balls kicked through for a point, and neither of them were paid. The Essendon player wasn’t under any pressure. The definition of the rule is the player in front must be under pressure by the opposition and close to the goal line to rush it through. Both examples on Sunday afternoon should have been penalized. Even the commentators were perplexed. Given the fact that the Suns lost by just one goal…the inconsistency in this rule needs to be looked at before we get to the finals.