Autopsy 2024 Second elimination final : Hawks roll the dogs

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A great night with wonderful performances. Newcombe and Meek sensational!

But the damper, was the bronx cheers for Chol. Yeah ok, didn't have his best game, but thought at least he was flying at everything, brought the ball to ground and had a couple nice touches that helped set up some goals. Didn't deserve bronxies, especially with how well we were going!
 
Calsher’s first goal, where he tapped it with his left boot setting his up his right boot to kick that goal, was joyful to watch.
Scrimshaw down back, attacking the footy, and than launching us forward. Newk’s third quarter. Frosty being dependable down back and holding his own. So many things to love about the game last night. Bring on Port, Geelong beat them by 60, he will beat them by 70.
 

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A great night with wonderful performances. Newcombe and Meek sensational!

But the damper, was the bronx cheers for Chol. Yeah ok, didn't have his best game, but thought at least he was flying at everything, brought the ball to ground and had a couple nice touches that helped set up some goals. Didn't deserve bronxies, especially with how well we were going!
Didn’t think they were ‘Bronx’. Very affectionate cheers I reckon.
 
Really thrilled for Josh Ward, the best game I've seen him play and I hope he can run with it.

Josh is a great player who I have a lot of belief in, but he did need to improve his contest work early this year. Not that he needs to be a pure inside mid, he is naturally a runner/ball user. But he needed to be able to approach contest work less like an outside player and attack the footy/defend better. So that when he does end up around the bounces he doesn't give up damaging clearances the other way.

Cut to last night and he's out there laying the most tackles on the ground and getting knee deep into every contest, providing a presence and breaking away on occasion. Overall we lost clearances but they had no damage or penetration from their centre breaks, I think in large part because Ward stepped up.
I had been worried about the mids not just because of Day, but also Mckenzie who had been filling in for a few centre bounces. In the end while our midfield probably wasn't at full strength it didn't matter, and we were very defensively accountable. Jai even played up forward on plenty of occasions and was allowed to roam around and have an impact everywhere. He didn't have to play purely at the coalface, which is not possible if Ward didn't play the way he played.

In the long run I do see Wardy as more of an outside player with his running capacity and skills, with Mckenzie more likely to be in the guts. That being said, the contested mindset/ability is essential to rounding out Ward as a player and taking him to the next level. Was super impressed and felt like last night was a step forward.
Ward went from solid prospect to top ten underage player moving from the wing to the centre. He is a centre square mid with versatility rather than the other way around. His weapons work better on the inside. Clean hands and vision in tight. Good use of the ball short in congestion and ability to break from stoppages to find the ball on the outside.

He lacks top speed and long kicking that you want on a wing. And he doesnt have the size to win one v one marking on the outside as a bailout option (moore doesnt either but still somehow wins it!). I am very happy to see him get a run in the centre and perform because this is the role he shined in at underage level and where he is best suited.
 
Calsher’s first goal, where he tapped it with his left boot setting his up his right boot to kick that goal, was joyful to watch.
Scrimshaw down back, attacking the footy, and than launching us forward. Newk’s third quarter. Frosty being dependable down back and holding his own. So many things to love about the game last night. Bring on Port, Geelong beat them by 60, he will beat them by 70.
It was a brilliant piece of play , kept the ball in when a forward stoppage would have been applauded .
Outworked his opponent and then had the deft touch to finish , brilliant at his size .

A shame the call by Brayshaw with all the enthusiasm of me getting told I'm taking my wife and 2 girls dress shopping at highpoint for 3 hours didn't do it justice .
Luckily the proper experts have in the aftermarth.
 

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It was a brilliant piece of play , kept the ball in when a forward stoppage would have been applauded .
Outworked his opponent and then had the deft touch to finish , brilliant at his size .

A shame the call by Brayshaw with all the enthusiasm of me getting told I'm taking my wife and 2 girls dress shopping at highpoint for 3 hours didn't do it justice .
Luckily the proper experts have in the aftermarth.

That call from Brayshaw, sums Brayshaw up perfectly as a commentator, underwhelming. That is all we got from the rest of the game from him.

Dear’s goal actually was a game changer, as it was a struggle up to that point for either side, in trying to score. After he kicked it, we actually went into another gear, Watson started to get more involved, Newcomb was getting off the leash in the middle Ward was laying and sticking tackles like there was no tomorrow, Scrimshaw was marking anything in the back line, Ginni was getting involved and doing the little things. Meek was dominating against English.
 
Credit where it is due - you said it could be our 07 year.

SYL - Staunch in his Positivity

After 2 pre-season stinkers and 0-5 I had little faith - boy I was wrong.
I believed that our late 2023 form should be the baseline of our 2024 form, and that the footy dept would be looking to improve on that.

In the first 5 rounds the improve in statistical measures was only marginal, but I was an advocate for “get the midfield back on track and the wins will come because we’re doing so much right in transition and in the forward half”…. And they sure did come.
 
Just a reminder of the statistic.

Hawthorn and the Bulldogs have never faced off in the finals without one of them going on to play in the Grand Final.
 
Hey one thing I forgot that I thjnk needs to be mentioned. The crowd getting behind Chol and revving him up when he wasn't having a great night was wonderful. I hope the fella took it the right way, because I don't think it was a Bronx cheer.

Love the bloke, he struggled to get up to full speed tonight after the early knock.

Edit: Just saw this has been discussed already. Sorry.

Sent from my SM-A526B using Tapatalk
 
To beat the Dogs, you must minimise the influence of Bontempelli - particularly his clearance impact.

Very few AFL mids would be ready willing and able to do that.

That’s why I reckon Nash was in our best handful.

He was the main reason the opposition tried to change their use of their captain and clearly best player by sending him forward for most of that term.

Bevo blinked and we pulled away in the third term.
 

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Autopsy 2024 Second elimination final : Hawks roll the dogs

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