Round 4 Review

Sydney (11.17.83) defeated Essendon (12.8.80)

1. Luke Parker (151). The Swans midfield bull was fantastic all night, leading all comers with a game-high 32 touches (16 contested), 6 clearances and 1 goal. Is only in 1% of teams.

   2. Sam Reid (131). 2 goals amongst 15 touches, 7 marks and 8 hitouts for the injury prone Swan, the sort of game he tends to have once or twice a year so no need to consider him.

   3. Jordan Ridley (124). A guy worth considering is Essendon’s distributor off half-back, but since he’ll be over 600K this week, that might have to wait. Another 28 touches, 8 marks and 656 metres gained for him on Thursday night.

   4. Tom Hickey (115). Averaging 107 this far into the season, which is by far his best ever return. Had 14 disposals (12 contested), 8 clearances and 27 hitouts against the in-experienced Peter Wright.

   5. Josh Kennedy/Zach Merrett (104). This was Joey Kennedy’s first ton of the season, as he acquired 22 touches (10 contested) and 6 clearances in the midifield, while Merrett didn’t use his 27 disposals well (44% DE), but did lay 9 tackles.

Other 100+ scores: Zilch

Disappointment: A bit left field as not many coaches have him, but Dane Rampe scored 82 to take his four round average to 73, which at this point, is the second worst average of his career besides his debut year (2013, 59.5).

Rookies: Plenty to run through here so let’s get a move on. All the Swans rookies (Warner, Gulden, McDonald and Campbell) hit their breakevens and will continue to grow. For the Bombers, Nik Cox will earn plenty after his score of 97, but Harrison Jones and his score of 41 might be a slow burn. Bubble-boys Perkins (50) and Waterman (56) look like viable downgrade options leading into round 5.

Injuries: The horrid run of injuries continues for Isaac Heeney, who was on track for a big score in the first half (44 mid-way through the second) before a broken hand ended his night.

Port Adelaide (11.13.79) defeated Richmond (11.11.77)

1. Jayden Short (125). The long-kicking defender drove Richmond forward with every opportunity he got from his 31 touches (25 kicks), ultimately gaining over 800 metres for his team and drifting forward to nail a goal. ¾ hundreds for him so far.

2. Dan Houston (116). Another good game for Dan off half-back, who now boasts an average of 112. Had 23 touches, 7 marks and 1 goal for the game.

3. Shai Bolton (110). After a lean run of scores to start, Bolton repaid the faith with a 22 touch, 1 goal, 5 clearance performance, a statline he can hopefully re-create over the coming weeks.

4. Ollie Wines (106). Did his usual job leading the inside midfield for the Power, finishing round 4 with 27 touches (14 contested) and 5 clearances.

5. Aliir Aliir/Kane Lambert (103). Port Adelaide’s recruit turned in his best game thus far with 23 touches at 78% DE off half-back, while Richmond’s underrated link-man had 24 disposals and 2 goals.

Other 100+ scores: Bachar Houli/Tom Jonas (101)

Disappointment: Orazia Fantasia had a couple of good games to start the year but this 12 touch, 1 goal, 39 point effort wont generate much cash.

Rookies: The name in just about everyone’s backline to start the year was Lachie Jones, who finally made his debut with a solid hitout of 17 touches, 6 marks and 61 points. The Tigers had a couple of debutants themselves in Mansell (43) and Martin (27), who’s job security seem a little more slim than Jones.

Injuries: Big news in this one with young guns Butters (96) and Duursma (93) both suffering injuries. The only news I’ve seen thus far is Butters has at least a couple of months on the sidelines.

Western Bulldogs (10.13.73) defeated Brisbane (8.6.54)

1. Tim English (138). Spent the majority of his time up forward in this Saturday afternoon fixture, slotting 3 goals from his 17 disposals (11 contested), also hauling in 9 marks in a dominant performance.

2. Jack Macrae (137). Another 32 touches for Macrae who leads the league after 4 rounds with 35 a game. Did the hard stuff as well, winning 15 contested touches, laying 8 tackles and having 7 clearances.

3. Harris Andrews (121). Was as strong as ever deep in defence for the Lions, hauling in 12 marks and having 23 disposals (12 contested).

4. Adam Treloar (118). Has seemingly found his spot in the stacked midfield now. This week Treloar had 29 touches (18 contested) with 10 tackles, so even with 7 clangers and 48% DE, his score was pretty good.

5. Josh Dunkley (117). Hasn’t dropped under 100 yet this season and with statlines of 27 touches and 8 tackles, he won’t anytime soon.

Other 100+ scores: Marcus Bontempelli (116), Jarryd Lyons (113), Oscar McInerney (112), Aaron Naughton (110), Hugh McCluggage (103), Marcus Adams (102)

Disappointment: 8 touches, 19 points and a one week suspension for Caleb Daniel is the perfect candidate for this section.

Rookies: Scott (26) and McNeil (39) were not fantastic but with their team winning their JS seems okay for now. Rookie forward/ruck option Fullarton (40) wasn’t fantastic either but his role is important for Brisbane’s structure. Second gamer Robertson (35) grabbed 8 disposals and 5 marks.

Injuries: Nothing serious has come from this game seemingly unless theres some injuries that come in the next few days, no subs used.

St Kilda (15.12.102) defeated West Coast (13.4.82)

1. Jack Steele (150). The Saints skipper was superb all afternoon to finish with 33 touches (17 contested), 6 tackles and 6 clearances and what was pretty much the game sealing goal. One of the most consistent scorers in the game.

2. Brad Crouch (137). Really brought the pressure in this game to finish with 12 tackles, 26 touches (15 contested) and 6 clearances. Is he worth a pick at 448K?

3. Tim Membrey (125). Typically strong game in the air for the Saints forward, he grabbed 9 marks which helped him get 14 touches and kick 2 goals. Surprisingly this was his career best score.

4. Jack Billings (120). Billings has quietly gone about his business thus far, picking up 3 tons to sit at a current average of 106. Ran along the wings all day for his 26 touches that included 2 goals.

5. Max King (116). Another Saint forward who had a career best afternoon, both in Supercoach scoring and disposals (13), as well as goals (5).

Other 100+ scores: Nic Naitanui (110), Hunter Clark (108), Jeremy McGovern (100)

Disappointment: It was his first game of the season and he did have a foot concern (fingers crossed it pulls up alright) but a score of 50 for Rowan Marshall is classified a disappointment.

Rookies: The Eagles had a debutant in pick 57 Isiah Winder, who had 5 disposals and 1 goal for 31 points.

Injuries: A huge blow for the Eagles came early in the game with former skipper Shannon Hurn (6) only lasting half a quarter with a calf issue.

Collingwood (9.6.60) defeated by GWS (14.6.90)

1. Callan Ward (131). One of the inaugural Giants turned back the clock here with an outstanding 37 touch (15 contested), 7 clearance performance to lead his side to their first win of the season.

2. Shane Mumford (125). Completely blanketed Grundy’s influence in the first half and overall outscored him handsomely thanks to 17 disposals (13 contested), 8 clearances, 16 hitouts and 6 tackles. Let’s hope this performance doesn’t keep Flynn out of the team.

3. Lachlan Ash (124). By far the best game of the former pick 4’s career. Had career highs in obviously score, but also disposals (28) and marks (11).

4. Toby Greene (120). Didn’t hear much about him at 448K to start the year but with back-to-back 5 goal efforts and a 104 point average that talk might well increase. Led the Giants forward line with the 5 goals as well as 18 touches and 4 tackles.

5. Jeremy Finlayson (113). In his first game for the year Finlayson was just as important in the win as the others already mentioned. Was a target up front to finish with 4 goals from 13 disposals.

Other 100+ scores: Jacob Hopper (111), Will Hoskin-Elliot (103)

Disappointment: While most of the relevant Collingwood players underperformed, the worst of them was Maynard (45), who is averaging only 70 through four games after being in the premium discussions in the pre-season, the drop in scoring  seems to be due to the returning Howe and improved scoring of Moore and Noble.

Rookies: There was a debutant for each side on Saturday night. Collingwood’s was McCreery (56) who kicked a goal from 7 touches and also layed 8 tackles, while for GWS it was Conor Stone (32), who had 11 touches.

Injuries: Horrid news for the Magpies who will definitely be without Taylor Adams for a couple of weeks, while they will also be sweating on De Goey, Sidebottom and Sier who all might miss next week.

Carlton (9.16.70) defeated Gold Coast (8.11.59)

1. Hugh Greenwood (155). His second big score in as many weeks. Laid 10 tackles in the midfield but also gathered 27 touches (18 contested), 10 clearances and kicked the one goal.

2. Touk Miller/Ed Curnow (132). A couple of hard nuts couldn’t be split here, with Miller posting his second 130+ score thanks to 28 touches (13 contested), with 13 tackles, while Curnow had 32 touches (14 contested), 8 clearances and 1 goal.

3. Noah Anderson (124). A three game average of 112 will get Supercoach’s excited for the years to come. Not an option this season but any guy who can get 30 touches (16 contested) and 10 clearances in his second year has serious potential.

4. David Swallow (119). The co-captain was superb in the middle, having 23 touches, 8 marks and 6 tackles while trying to will his team over the line.

5. Adam Saad (112). Coming up against one of his former clubs, Saad made sure no one forgot his explosive speed and ball use, finishing the game with 21 touches at 81% DE off half-back.

Other 100+ scores: Sam Docherty (109), Jack Bowes (107), Jacob Weitering (105), Marc Pittonet (102)

Disappointment: Sorry Paddy Dow, 41 just won’t cut it, although I’m certain many a coach corrected that trade earlier than this.

Rookies: 192K forward Sam Flanders was the medical sub and had 4 touches for 21 points, so pass on him, and one could probably say the same for Luke Parks (23), who doesn’t seem to have the scoring potential just yet.

Injuries: Horrid news for the blues with important backline cog Plowman suffering an ACL injury that will see him miss the rest of the season, while Sean Lemmons was subbed out at half-time after a heavy knock.

North Melbourne (10.8.68) defeated by Adelaide (16.13.109)

1. Lachlan Sholl (160). Not yet a household name but this guy is one of the best runners in the game and hence, puts himself in good positions to get the ball. Had 31 touches (25 kicks), 8 marks, 1 goal and nearly 600 metres gained while running at 80% DE. One to watch.

2. Reilly O’Brien (135). After back-to-back 50’s to begin the year, ROB has turned it on with a couple of tons. Had a huge game this week grabbing 24 touches, 8 marks, 6 clearances and 1 goal against the experienced Goldstein.

3. Aaron Hall (133). Ran around at half-back all day to gather 33 touches (25 kicks) and over 800 metres for his club. Won’t do it every week.

4. Paul Seedsman/Brodie Smith (121). Two very similar players locked up the 4th spot in this game. Both were driving forces for their team, with Seedsman gaining 611 metres from his 25 touches, while Smith gained 747 from his 22.

5. Tom Doedee (114). One of the Crows most important players put is his best performance of the year so far, picking up 18 touches and taking 9 marks playing down back.

Other 100+ scores: Ben Keays/Jack Ziebell (107), Taylor Walker (106), Rory Laird (105), Tom Powell/Todd Goldstein/Harry Schoenberg (101)

Disappointment: Luke Davies-Uniacke has star potential written all over him but after his 118 in round one his scores have read 78, 66 and the latest one of 68.

Rookies: Powell was fantastic with 19 disposals and 8 tackles which contributed to his score mentioned above, while fellow high draft pick Phillips had 13 touches, 1 goal and 46 points before his price (hopefully) rises next week. Lazzaro had 35, Rowe had 67, Berry laid plenty of tackles once again for 51 while Butts was solid down back for his 31.

Injuries: A couple of hard-nuts finished their games in the first quarter for the Kangaroos, with McDonald suffering a pectoral injury and Zurhaar a head knock.

Geelong (9.6.60) defeated by Melbourne (12.13.85)

1. Christian Petracca (146). His first triple figure score of the year was a big one thanks to 36 touches (15 contested) to go along with 9 clearances, 2 goals and over 650 metres gained.

2. Max Gawn (135). The league’s second best scorer (behind Ridley currently) once again showed us all why the faith should be kept in him, finishing Sunday afternoon with a dominant 23 disposals, 41 hitouts and one long range goal.

3. Clayton Oliver (130). Bounced right back from last week’s tag affected 67 to have 34 touches (14 contested) to go along with 6 clearances and 6 tackles. Looked groggy after a big bump at 3QT but played on.

4. Jack Viney (115). Another Demon midfielder in here, with the former skipper doing the usual hard yards with a 24 touch (16 contested), 12 tackle, 8 clearance statline.

5. Cameron Guthrie (105). His four week average of 124 puts him in sixth spot in the comp tied with Jack Steele, and with games of 27 touches (11 contested) with over 500 metres gained coming consistently, he’ll stay up there for some time.

Other 100+ scores: Ed Langdon/Jake Lever/Joel Selwood/Tom Stewart (104), Tom Atkins (102), Bayley Fritsch (101)

Disappointment: Rookie midfielder James Jordon only saw 56% game time, resulting in just 5 tackles, 3 touches and 23 points.

Rookies: Pretty certain that Jordon was the only relevant rookie in this game, apologies if I’m wrong but nothing else to see here!

Injuries: Steven May copped an errant elbow that resulted in a pretty bad looking eye injury that will surely see his miss 2-3 weeks.

Hawthorn (12.9.81) defeated by Fremantle (13.18.96)

1. Nat Fyfe (133). Didn’t miss a beat in his return game from concussion, finishing with a season high in points, disposals (31), tackles (5) and behinds (6), oh what this score could’ve been.

2. Sean Darcy (129). Loves playing Hawthorn by the look of things, with his only two 125+ career scores coming against them. Kicked 3 goals from 5 shots, as well as assmassing 14 touches and 18 hitouts.

3. Blake Hardwick (125). Used the ball extremely well off the half-back line to boost his score, ultimately gathering 22 touches (11 contested) while running at 81% DE.

4. Adam Cerra/Chad Wingard (120). Drop Cerra’s 56 out of his scores and his average is 120. Played an all around game to finish with 23 touches, 6 tackles and plenty of metres gained, while Wingard rotated through the middle and up front for 26 touches, 5 tackles and 1 goal.

5. Jarman Impey (112). I didn’t pick him at the start of the year based of scoring history and boy have I been (and many other coaches), made to regret it after he picked up 28 touches at 75% for his third ton in a row.

Other 100+ scores: David Mundy (110), Changkouth Jiath (109), Tom Mitchell (107), Micheal Hartley (102).

Disappointment: Brayshaw (48) was tagged out of it, while Walters (61) seems to have lost midfield time with the emergence of Cerra, Brayshaw and Serong. The guy who tagged Brayshaw was Worpel, who despite having 22 touches and 6 tackles only scored 56, and he could be very very cheap soon for anyone willing to take huge risk.

Rookies: Hawthorn rookie Brockman (44) kicked 1 goal from his 8 touches and should continue to hold his spot, as should Frederick (49). but the big rookie news was the debut of Treacy, one of the most popular selections in pre-season. His game of 10 touches with 3 tackles and 35 points wasn’t crazy but he could be the forward/ruck swingman who creates other trading opportunities. Now in saying that, he was playing in the same side as Darcy and fellow rookie Meek (33), so keep an eye on team sheets. Also Heath Chapman was fantastic, scoring 91.

Injuries: Nothing in this game hopefully! Once again some stuff may come out later on so worth reading the injury post on Tuesday!

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