Round 17 Review (Part 1)

St Kilda (6.14.50) defeated by West Coast (9.11.65)

Multiple Goal Kickers

St Kilda: Zilch

West Coast: Darling, Allen (2)

1. Tim Kelly (180). Was absolutely huge in this game and looked a chance for 200+ throughout, ultimately falling 20 points short. Still, this was a career best return for Kelly, as he finished with 30 touches (15 contested), 9 clearances, 1 goal, 4 tackles and 513 metres gained, the latest being a game high.
2. Andrew Gaff (154). With a depleted midfield, both Gaff and Kelly stood up to be major components of the Eagles win. His score was also a career best, courtesy of 33 touches (13 contested), 4 tackles and 1 goal.
3. Tom Barrass (144). Really stood up in the second half after McGovern went down. Had 15 touches and 7 marks while running at 93% DE, with 11 intercept possessions mixed into that statline. Oh, this was also a career best score, and his third ton in a row! 
4. Nic Naitanui (143). A week off and back into the high-scoring for the high-leaping Eagles ruckman. His fourth score over 140 in his past seven games, picking up 33 touches, 9 clearances and 18 disposals (16 contested).
5. Hunter Clark (124). Rounding out the top 5 was the Saints young gun, who notched his fifth ton of the year. Rebounded well off half-back and finished with 24 touches (12 contested), 5 clearances and importantly, no clangers. Career high score too by the way!

Other notable scorers: Just a couple of points below Clark was midfield gun Steele, scoring his twelfth ton of the year from 26 disposals (10 contested), 7 clearances, 6 tackles and 484 metres gained, while Saints ruckman Paddy Ryder (115) joined them in the hundred club, thanks to his 13 touches, 1 goal, 4 tackles and 22 hitouts during the game. A couple of West Coast forwards also scored well, with Liam Ryan (119) playing an exceptional game, being incredibly clean with his 16 touches, while also scoring 1 goal, and Jack Darling (113) scoring his fourth ton of the year from 10 touches, 6 marks and 2 goals. Despite copping a pretty heavy knock, Oscar Allen kicked 2 goals from 5 touches while also adding in 4 tackles to score 92, while others scoring within ten points of the ton was Howard (14 touches, 92% DE), Seb Ross (18 touches, 6 tackles, 1 goal) and Membrey (11 touches, 1 goal). Not much else in terms of Supercoach scoring, especially for the Eagles, who had six players score below 40. Hamish Brayshaw (25) was one of them in his first career game, only recording 5 touches, but could find himself in the team for much longer considering the Eagles extended injury list, which was added to by important defender McGovern’s hamstring strain.

Disappointment: Rowan Marshall has really grown into a forward role but unfortunately returned his lowest score (76) since round 7 this week. 

Geelong (4.7.31) defeated by Richmond (7.15

Multiple Goal Kickers

Geelong: Ratugolea (2)

Richmond: Riewoldt (4)

1. Mark Blicavs (134). Wouldn’t have thought I’d type this, but Blicavs average is now in triple figures. Has been super for Geelong in numerous roles this year, this week finishing with 18 touches, 7 marks, 5 tackles and 12 hitouts. Eight tons for the year and only two scores below 75, he’s been a super pickup for anyone who took a chance. 
2. Tom Stewart (127). Almost criminal that this guy was below 500K for the past few weeks, he’s a true premium defender. Had his second best score of the year and sixth ton in a row from 25 touches, 8 marks and a game high 564 metres gained.
3. Esava Ratugolea (116). Kicked 2 goals in the final quarter to give the Cats a tiny sniff at stealing a win. Was pretty solid for the majority of the night, having 15 disposals and 7 marks as well for a career best score.
4. Mark O’Connor (115). Another career best score here, this one going to Geelong’s Irish recruit who is turning into a very good player. Had 18 touches and 9 marks across half-back to go along with 8 intercept possessions.
5. Cameron Guthrie/Dylan Grimes (110). A tie up to finish here. Guthrie continued his career best campaign with 23 touches, 9 marks and 6 tackles playing through the middle, while Grimes was probably BOG for his role down back, finishing with 16 touches (9 contested), 12 intercept possessions and 6 marks.

Other notable scorers: Incredibly, this was Nick Vlastuin’s seventh ton for 2020, but all of them have been between 100 and 110, this latest one being a total of 106 from 15 disposals, 7 marks and a solid DE of 86%, making him the only other Tiger in triple figures. It was the same story for Geelong, with only Sam Menegola (108) getting into the desired scoring range thanks to his 18 touches (8 contested) and 5 marks. The four goal game of Jack Riewoldt allowed him to score 94, the hard running McIntosh (13 touches, 406 metres gained) scored 91, while ruckman Nankervis (99) had a solid game in the ruck, finishing with 12 touches, 4 tackles and 16 hitouts. Midfield pair Tom Atkins (94) and Mitch Ducan (95) had 16 and 15 touches respectively, while Atkins also layed 8 tackles. Gary Rohan was a late out in this game, replaced by Ben Jarvis (37), who had 5 touches in his debut. Unfortunately for the Tigers, the win was soured by an ACL injury to Ivan Soldo which will see him miss much of the 2021 season, and a hamstring strain to star forward Tom Lynch, who will miss next round but might be good to go in week 1 of finals.

Disappointment: Numerous options here, with all of Hawkins (43), Dangerfield (66) and Jayden Short (75) all turning in season worst scores. 

North Melbourne (5.5.35) defeated Fremantle (15.9.99)

Multiple Goal Kickers

North Melbourne: Zurhaar (2)

Fremantle: Hogan (4), Walters, Schultz, Taberner (3)

1. Nat Fyfe (140). A dominant game for Fyfe who is at his cheapest price of the season after three 80’s in the past month. Bounced right back in this game with 24 touches (13 contested), 6 clearances, 7 marks and a DE of 87%. 
2. David Mundy (131). The old guard for Fremantle was represented in this game, with Mundy taking second place behind Fyfe. Had 24 touches and 5 clearances to take his five round average to 121.
3. Luke McDonald (121). After a slight drop in scoring over the past two weeks, McDonald returned to his high scoring ways of 2020 with his 19 touch game that ran at 89% netting him his fifth score over 120.
4. James Aish (120). Back to back tons now for the Freo back flanker. Had 23 touches , 4 tackles and 470 metres gained for his club, by far his best game for the year.
5. Blake Acres/Brennan Cox (117). Another game with a tie to round out the top 5. Acres is in hot form at the moment and made it three tons in a row thanks to his 24 touch, 9 mark game that included a game high 545 metres gained, while Cox scored his third ton of the year from 12 disposals (7 contested) and 6 marks playing down back.

Other notable scorers: I’ll get this out the way early, because there isn’t much to talk about for North Melbourne. The only other players bar McDonald to go over 80 were the consistent midfield duo of Anderson (89), who had 20 touches, and Dumont (98), who had 16. Only other mention for North was Perez who played game number two, but only snagged 4 touches and 11 points. Fremantle forward Micheal Walters (115) scored his first ton since round 8 with a 3 goal, 13 touch, 7 mark performance, while joining him in the 3 goal club was one of this years most consistent goalkickers, Taberner (101), who also had 10 disposals and 4 marks on the day. Premium defender Luke Ryan (104) had a typical game for him, using his 18 touches of the ball well off half-back, with young ruckman Darcy being the last of the hundred point scorers with 101, courtesy of his 13 touches and 22 hitouts. There were still plenty of players in the 90’s for Fremantle, including the three goal Schultz, the 20 touch Hill, Lobb’s 12 disposal, 1 goal game, Hughes solid game across halfback (15 touches, 8 marks, 93% DE) and finally, re-called defender Watson, who had 10 touches. Dominant Supercoach scoring for the Dockers really in the end, with all but five players not reaching 75 points, compared to eighteen from the Kangaroos. 

Disappointment: Even if it’s your 250th game and you’ve been sublime this season, that doesn’t count you out from disappointment contention. Sorry Todd Goldstein, your 76 wasn’t welcome on preliminary final weekend.

Port Adelaide (11.13.79) defeated Essendon (4.5.29)

Multiple Goal Kickers

Port Adelaide: Dixon (2)

Essendon: Zilch

1. Tom Rockliff (142). One of the form Supercoach midfielders in the competition had a season best score here. Playing inside midfield, he had 31 touches of the pill, while also contributing a goal and 6 tackles to his sides win.
2. Scott Lycett (128). Helping Rockliff and other midfielders to big scores was the dominant performance of Lycett, who had 22 hitouts and 12 possessions for his fifth ton of the year.
3. Devon Smith (120). A move to the midfield has helped Smith average exactly 100 over the past five weeks, something we were all hoping would be a season long trend but better late than never hey! 7 tackles and 26 disposals were his stats on the day, with no recorded clangers.
4. Jordan Ridley (119). Was as solid as he has been all season across the backline, gaining 23 touches and a game high 564 metres gained for his club.
5. Travis Boak (117). Another great game for the Brownlow smoky. Boak led the inside midfield with 26 touches, 4 tackles and 1 goal on the afternoon to round out the top 5.

Other notable scorers: A couple of reliable Bombers continued their fine Supercoach seasons here, with both Zach Merrett (108) and Adam Saad (109) scoring tons here. Merrett had 439 metres gained from his 24 touches through the midfield, while Saad used his 20 disposals at a very good 85% DE to boost his score. Another player who is having a fine season is Dan Houston, who scored 115 Supercoach points running off a half-back flank, which was helped by his DE of 94%, while just scrapping into the hundred club was fellow back flanker Hamish Hartlett (103), who had 17 disposals and no clangers. Dixon and Trent McKenzie were all tied up on 92 points a piece, while three points above them was Connor Rozee, who had 18 disposals and 6 tackles. Bombers midfield ace Dylan Shiel was pretty good on the afternoon, recording 24 possessions and 5 tackles for 90 points, making him the fifth and final Bomber to score above 80. Not much else to mention here really, the majority of Supercoach relevant players scored well, with Wines (86), Gray (87) and Draper (61) all returning somewhat respectable scores to be the best of the rest.

Disappointment: Nothing overly Supercoach relevant here, so Joe Daniher (23) gets it for his 8 touch, 7 clanger statline. Hope no one brought him in after that incredible first game return, only scoring 56 points from two games after that.

GWS (11.8.74) defeated by Melbourne (12.7.79)

Multiple Goal Kickers

GWS: Daniels (3), Williams, Lloyd (2)

Melbourne: Rivers, Spargo, Baker (2)

1. Max Gawn (150). Another massive score for Gawn, who I’m sure many gave the responsibility of captaincy this weekend. Had 44 hitouts, 4 tackles, 8 clearances and 15 possessions on Saturday night.
2. Josh Kelly (138). After missing a week with concussion, Kelly returned in fine form to record his ninth ton of the year. Had 24 touches (13 contested) with 5 tackles and a game high 707 metres gained.
3. Steven May (122). The next best score went to the Demons reliable backman. Had a DE of 84% from 19 touches (18 kicks), 8 marks and 467 metres gained, which was second to Kelly.
4. Tom Green (119). In his first game since round 6, Green showed that he’s got the makings of a star midfielder, picking up a career high 30 touches (22 handballs) with a huge 21 contested possessions to ultimately return the best score of his five game career.
5. Christian Petracca/Harry Perryman (115). And another game with a tie to finish! Petracca bounced back from his poor score last week with a 22 touch (19 contested), 1 goal, 6 clearance game, while Perryman had 18 touches and 1 goal for his fourth ton in five games.

Other notable scorers: Plenty more good scores from this Saturday night thriller. Jacob Hopper (110) brought up his fifth ton of the year and had the next best score after the above mentioned players thanks to his 21 touches, 5 tackles and 5 clearances, while a single point below him was Demon’s rebounding defender Salem, who had 19 touches and 5 tackles. The only other Demon to crack the ton was Trent Rivers (107), who has been playing very good footy over the last month, which has concluded with a career best score this week from 16 touches and 2 goals. Giants enforcer Shane Mumford (102) scored his second ton of the year from 7 touches, 7 tackles and 5 clearances, while a single point below him was Zac Williams who had 2 goals and 18 disposals to round out the hundred point club. The 2 goal, 13 touch performance of Charlie Spargo netted him 98 points to be the closest to the ton, while premium defender Whitfield and the three-goal performance of Daniels both finished on 97. Joining them in the 90 club was first-gamer Jack Buckley, who was extremely impressive in his first game, finishing with 12 disposals (91% DE), 7 contested possessions and 3 tackles playing across the backline. No injuries here it seems, moving on!

Disappointment: He’s one of favourite players but Tim Taranto (72) hasn’t reached his 2019 height this year, scoring below 80 in half of his ten games.

Carlton (8.8.56) defeated by Adelaide (10.12.72)

Multiple Goal Kickers:

Carlton: McKay (4)

Adelaide: Scholl, Himmelberg (2)

1. Rory Laird (136). Rory continues to produce big scores with increased midfield time, this week gathering 27 disposals (14 contested) to go along with 5 tackles and a very good DE of 88%.
2. Will Setterfield (111). Carlton’s best score came from the former number 5 draft pick, who has improved immensely in 2020, increasing his average by 30 points. Finished the game with 16 disposals, 1 goal and 9 tackles to be the only Blue in triple figures.
3. Lachlan Scholl/Tom Lynch (110). Playing through the midfield, Sholl picked up the best score of his seven game career from 24 touches, 2 goals and 627 metres gained, while the Crows link-man played well in his first game since round 11, finishing with 21 disposals and 1 goal.
4. Bryce Gibbs (106). You can’t tell me this bloke doesn’t have another year of good footy in him! After announcing his retirement throughout the week, Gibbs made sure he went out with a bang, picking up 27 touches and 549 metres gained through the midfield. Surely recruiters are drafting messages to him all this week with that performance, wouldn’t be surprised if he went to a third club in 2021.
5. Reilly O’Brien (101). Has snuck under the radar this season, but his average of 105 is a great return after stepping into the Crows number 1 ruck roll. Had 10 disposals and 35 hitouts to give his midfielders plenty of chances.

Other notable scorers: No one else ventured into triple figure territory here, but a couple of premium players did come close. Cripps (98) kicked a ripping goal amongst his 16 touches, and also layed 5 tackles and had 6 clearances to boost his score, while one of the games form Supercoach players, Matt Crouch, had 28 disposals and 3 tackles for his score of 96. Down back, it was the 12 touch, 5 mark game of Jones that got him to the same score as Cripps, while first year player Schoenberg (97) had 21 touches and 5 tackles through the middle of the ground. There were still plenty of players to score in the 90’s, so quickly they were Simpson (93), Weitering (92), Newnes and McKay (both 91) and finally, Keays (90). Jordan Butts (54) returned to the team with 6 touches at 100% DE, while the days only injury went to imported defender Sam Docherty (13), who had a calf issue.

Disappointment: And for that injury and score, he can have this game’s disappointment. Not at all his fault, just some bad luck during preliminary finals week. 

Hawthorn (6.4.40) defeated by Western Bulldogs (11.10.76)

Multiple Goal Kickers

Hawthorn: Gunston (3)

Western Bulldogs: English, Naughton, Johannisen (2)

1. Marcus Bontempelli (161). Now averaging a career best this season (116), mainly due to his third score above 160. Had 28 disposals (17 contested), 8 marks, 6 tackles and 11 clearances to be one of the best of the Dogs victory.
2. Tom Liberatore (132). Behind other big names players in the midfield, Libba has quietly had his best scoring season since 2014. His eighth ton came courtesy of 28 touches (half contested) and 9 tackles.
3. Caleb Daniel (120). Was equisate as usual off half-back, leading the game for metres gained (546) from his 28 disposals (21 kicks), while also hauling in 11 marks and sneaking forward to kick a goal.
4. Josh Dunkley (116). Coming off a season best score last week, Dunkely had a typical sort of game for him, picking up 20 touches (9 contested), 8 tackles and 5 clearances.
5. Bailey Smith (108). Rounding out the top 5 was the man with the best hair in the game. He had 25 touches, 4 tackles and 1 goal for his ninth ton of the year.

Other notable scorers: I’ll get this out of the way early, the only Hawk who had anywhere near a good score was Jack Gunston (91), who kicked 3 goals, 3 tackles and 9 disposals. Burgoyne, Morrison, Shiels and Breust were in the 80’s, while second gamer Greaves (75) was okay with 14 disposals. Now, onto the usually high scoring Western Bulldogs. Premium midfielder Jackson Macrae (102) had a typical 29 touches and was joined on that score by the 2 goal, 18 disposal game of Jason Johannisen. High-flying forward Aaron Naughton scored 105 from his 13 touches, 2 goals and 6 marks, ruckman Tim English (103) had 8 disposals, 5 tackles and 23 touches, with the final hundred point scorer being Taylor Duryea (102) who played well against his former team. Lachie Hunter (94) continued his solid season with 19 disposals and 5 tackles, but from there, there’s not much else to mention. Hawks father-son pick Maginness (52) was solid with 10 disposals and 5 tackles playing through the middle of the ground in his first game.

Disappointment: With so many Hawks underperforming, it’s hard to pick here. Since 71 was his work score of the year though, it’ll go to Tom Mitchell. 

Sydney (6.5.41) defeated by Brisbane (11.7.73)

Multiple Goal Kickers

Sydney: Papley, Hayward, Parker (2)

Brisbane: Hipwood, Cameron, Bailey (2)

1. Luke Parker (136). He may not have scored massive scores this season but has been incredibly consistent, this being his eleventh ton in fifteen games. Second-best score of the season thanks to 33 touches (18 contested) and 2 goals.
2. Jarryd Lyons (132). The man with the eleventh best Supercoach average of 2020 scored his thirteenth ton of the year from an outstanding game in the middle of the ground that included 20 touches (14 contested), 5 clearances, 3 tackles and 1 goal.
3. Josh Kennedy (127). Extremely underpriced for his potential, Kennedy showed he is still capable of fantastic scores with this 26 touch (15 contested), 10 tackle, 8 clearance display to lead the Swans inside midfield. Is averaging 103 if you omit his injury-affected score of 18.
4. Jake Lloyd (119). Fifteen tons in a row now. Had 26 touches and 597 metres gained running off half-back for his club, but I’m sure you already know that, I pretty much type up his game every week! An incredibly consistent player.
5. Cam Ellis-Yolmen (111). Rounding out the top 5 was the big-bodied Lions midfielder. In his first game since round 11, he had 15 disposals (11 contested), 3 tackles and 1 goal, while also recording no clangers.

Other notable scorers: The only player to hit triple figures was Mills (107), who kept his season average in triple figures thanks to his 17 touch, 3 tackle game, while others that came close for the Swans were the two-goal Hayward (97), ruckman Allir (92) and the 14 disposal, 5 clearance game of Blakey (90). The Lions had another four players score in the low hundreds, with the best of them being swingman McStay (105), who had 14 touches, 5 marks and 1 goal, while a single point below him was the ever improving Oscar McInerney, who had 14 touches, 20 hitouts and 5 tackles for his fifth ton of the year. The booming left-foot of Daniel Rich (101) was used to gain 623 metres for his side, with young defender Mitchell Hinge (102) rounding out the triple figure scores, he had 13 touches and 3 tackles in his first game for the year, resulting in a career high score. Ryan Lester scored 97 and second-gamer Keidean Coleman (62) did his chances of keeping a spot in the best 22 no harm with a 9 touch, 7 tackle, 1 major performance. In his first game, Joel Amartey (52) overcame an ankle knock to record 3 disposals and 8 hitouts, but his teammate Lewis Taylor (0) unfortunately finished the game early with a foot concern.

Disappointment: Copping a tag was this year’s best scoring midfielder Lachie Neale (55), who turned in his worst score of the year from only 15 disposals.

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