How the Scott brothers ignited Collingwood’s downfall in the space of a fortnight, a grim new reality for Richmond, while questions over a big Blue emerge.
Plus, Hawthorn are somehow still in the finals race, but a $950k-a-year move for a free agent could make them a true contender in 2025 – and it’d help the team he’s leaving too – and Geelong’s ultimate draft bargain with picks one expert said they “won’t use”.
The big issues from Round 18 of the 2024 AFL season analysed in Talking Points!
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Hawks to offer Battle $950k to leave? | 01:24
MITCH’S MATCH-WINNING MOVE HIGHLIGHTS HAWKS’ NEED TO ‘PAY OVERS’ FOR FREE AGENT
A match-winning magnet move by Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell may have emphasised the importance of pursuing a free-agent Saint this off-season.
On Saturday afternoon in Launceston, Mitchell shifted skipper James Sicily forward of the ball against Fremantle in a move that paid delicious dividends.
Sicily, returning from a shoulder injury, by his own admission wasn’t playing at his best as an intercept defender at UTAS Stadium — and with Mitch Lewis out of the side again, the Hawks needed all the scoring power they could muster against the stingy Dockers.
Hawthorn’s captain snagged three goals and took five marks, adding 13 disposals at 85 per cent efficiency as the Hawks claimed a 13-point win to validate their finals bid.
Sicily booted his first major in the third quarter before his second put the Hawks in front. His third — after taking a brilliant goal-line grab — instilled an unassailable eight-point lead.
The 29-year-old, of course, was initially drafted as a goalkicker before making a career-blossoming move to defence.
“I wasn’t doing much down back, I was probably a liability,” Sicily told Fox Footy post-game on Saturday.
“(I’m) rapt that the coach made the move, (it was) awesome.
“(That late mark) just fell in my lap. I don’t know, it was just one of those days, you know — you get on the end of a few.”
Mitchell explains Sicily’s shock switch | 08:53
While Sicily is unquestionably at his best as an intervener in the back half, the prospect of adding Battle — who continues to emerge in a similar intercepting role — would allow the Hawks the flexibility to swing Sicily forward if need be.
It would be a particularly nice luxury to have as Lewis prepares to spend 10-12 months on the sidelines, while emerging key-position talent Calsher Dear continues to develop.
“You might have to pay Battle $950,000 a year to leave St Kilda,” Herald Sun journalist Jon Ralph told Fox Footy on Saturday night.
“I think he likes the Saints. You clearly have to pay him overs, because that would potentially net St Kilda a top-10 pick — (it) might be seven or eight.
“Who wins that deal? Are you overpaying to try and get (Battle) to Hawthorn to try and free up James Sicily? Or is St Kilda saying ‘he’s not an amazing player, we’d be really happy to net that pick and move on as well’?”
Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall believed the Saints would be willing to part with Battle if the Hawks offered a juicy financial sum.
“There’d certainly be a number — there’d be a number where they just say ‘yep, that’s over the odds, so then let’s load up and get the best deal we can for him’,” Dunstall said.
“He’d be a great pick-up for Hawthorn. They desperately need assistance down back, and I rate him, I think he’s a really consistent performer — but, what price? That’s the question.”
St Kilda great Leigh Montagna agreed, adding: “I think the number would have to be whatever triggers a first-round pick for St Kilda, because they do need more high-end talent.
“They wouldn’t want to lose Josh Battle — he’s been one of their best players this year — but if they do get a pick inside the top-10 for whatever price he does go for, the Saints have to seriously consider it.”
Currently sitting 15th on the ladder, the Saints could land Pick 5 as compensation for Battle if his new contract is large enough.
Vic Metro U18 champs after 50m penalty | 00:59
As for the remainder of this season, Hawthorn’s improbable charge at a September berth continues after a hiccup at GMHBA Stadium in Round 17.
“That well and truly keeps our season alive, and (there’s) plenty of hope and optimism now,” Sicily told Fox Footy.
“That’s a big win for us. We lowered our colours last week, but we’d won eight of our last 10 so we were due a bit of a crappier performance.”
Well, they got that ‘crappy’ performance out of their system in Geelong last Saturday, with their finals assault looking dangerous as their final six home-and-away fixtures await.
The Hawks meet Collingwood in a mouth-watering clash next Saturday afternoon, before Adelaide (in Adelaide), GWS (in Canberra), Carlton, Richmond and North Melbourne (in Launceston) await in the run home.
Lyon laughs after BREAKING phone | 00:32
CATS’ ULTIMATE DRAFT BARGAIN… WITH A PICK THEY ‘WEREN’T GONNA USE’
Throw your mind back to the 2023 trade period, when Geelong and Port Adelaide were in tense negotiations over Esava Ratugolea’s move west.
The Cats were unwilling to accept just pick 25 for the athletic key position player, eventually landing picks 76 and 94 as well – which left plenty in the footy world baffled.
After all, we’re used to clubs stonewalling over first- and second-round picks. But who even knew the draft went that late?
“Geelong argued for six weeks over pick 76 – a pick they won’t use in the draft. Someone actually got paid to do that,” Kane Cornes wrote on social media.
He added in a separate post: “LMFAO”. (He didn’t mean the band.)
But Andrew Mackie and the Cats had a plan in mind at the time, and it’s only looking smarter by the week.
The Geelong footy boss told Trade Radio on deadline day: “Right now, that 76 is our third pick of the draft. That’ll come in with all the Gold Coast bids and everything involved, so that was the thinking there.
“We do value every pick. We’ve known all year we’re probably working in the back end of the draft. Hopefully it comes in a bit and we can find a player.”
Thanks to a whopping seven Academy and father-son picks in the first round of the 2023 draft, those picks indeed came in a bit, giving the Cats a bit of value.
They ended up using six picks, including both of those obtained from Port Adelaide. 76 became 58, giving the Cats access to George Stevens, while 94 ended up being the 63rd selection, with which the club plucked little-known defender Lawson Humphries out of the WAFL reserves.
And Humphries looks like another Geelong ‘who?’ draft special.
Geelong marking themselves into finals | 03:25
He had 23 disposals, going at 96 per cent efficiency, with 13 marks in Friday night’s win over Collingwood – with Geelong unbeaten in Humphries’ three AFL games.
“You want it getting in his hands because he’ll find someone,” Chris Scott said of the 21-year-old post-game.
“He’s slotted in really nicely, when we brought him in we’d been talking about him for a while.
“The opportunity opened up for us to get him in and we were always hopeful that we would sit back and go ‘why didn’t we find a way earlier?’.”
He added: “It’s nice when a young player comes in and improves your team.
“It’s not always the case, even with the very best teams in the competition you’re thinking ‘how can we get some experience into some of our younger players?’
“Sometimes you need to take two steps back to take a step further, but we haven’t had to do that with him.
“He’s done what we have expected him to do, we had high expectations. He has come in and impacted the way we play really positively.”
Scott unleashes on umpiring concerns | 14:51
Humphries’ captain Patrick Dangerfield was also full of praise for the Indigenous youngster.
“I still can’t grasp the fact that he play six or seven senior games in the WAFL last year, like he didn’t spend his whole year in the seniors and nothing against where he’s come from but what the hell are they thinking because as soon as he got into our program it was like ‘man no one can pick what foot he is’,” Dangerfield said on SEN.
“He had to bide his time in the VFL through the year but we always knew that when he eventually came into the side good luck dislodging him because he was always going to be better at the next level as you could see that in the VFL program.
“He just thinks a step ahead, understands the game really well and it’s a pretty incredible story and once again it kudos to our recruiters acknowledging and finding the talent.
“Why as a player you fall in love with Lawson even more is because he’s such a good person and when you add those two things together when somebody is such a positive and vibrant personality it’s just infectious and that as an older player reinvigorates when you’re playing when you see that enthusiasm from younger players playing their first game at the MCG.
“He’s been a great story for us.”
‘NOT RUNNING OVER THE TOP’: SCOTT BROTHERS’ TACTIC COOLS PIES
Have the Scott brothers devised a game plan to shut down Collingwood and its ability to produce comebacks?
There was a feeling of deja vu at the MCG on Friday night, with Collingwood losing in a similar fashion for two-straight weeks at the hands of Essendon and Geelong.
Indeed, the same tactic was used against Collingwood across two weeks to great effect — with a high uncontested marking brand diffusing the Pies from being able to play their natural chaos game.
Heck, Craig McRae’s side couldn’t get its hands on the ball at stages in both matches.
McRae eager for Pies to change mindset | 09:21
In fact, Geelong took a whopping 70 extra marks to the Pies including controlling the ball in the fourth term to hang onto its lead and never let Collingwood even look like challenging.
It marked the Cats’ third-highest amount of marks in a game ever (145) and their most ever uncontested marks ever (139).
And it came off the back of Essendon taking 50 extra marks against the Pies the week prior, with Brad Scott’s Bombers racking up 139 marks — 129 uncontested. Even in Collingwood’s narrow Round 15 win over North Melbourne it was -45 in marks.
“This is probably the talking point,” Demons legend Garry Lyon said on Fox Footy after Geelong’s win over the reigning premiers.
“When you watched (the Cats) execute in the manner they did, this is why Craig McRae has said they can’t keep coming back.
“They’re not going to keep rolling over the top of teams because (opposition) will go to school on the way they play.
“What Geelong did was: ‘You’re not running over the top of us when we’re taking 139 uncontested because you’re not going to have the ball’.”
Collingwood coach Craig McRae suggested it didn’t hurt his side for the most part, but conceded it’s something they’d review.
“It was interesting because (Geelong) kicked the ball around and it really didn’t go anywhere. If anything, at times, they kicked it back to us, there was really no territory gained from it,” McRae said after his side’s third-straight loss.
“This is the thing we weigh up — for three quarters it didn’t hurt us and there was relatively low scores from that phase.
“But there’s potentially a cost of energy. Whether we got that right or not is something we’ll reflect on.”
Take notice Sam Mitchell, with the Pies and Hawks set to square off next week in a do-or-die match for both clubs.
Curnow somehow misses from 2-METRES out | 00:30
Magpies legend Nathan Buckley noted it’s an “interesting dynamic,” questioning whether his former club in such instances needed to consider switching from its trademark zone that’s made is so successful under McRae to playing more man-on-man.
It’s the old dilemma of giving yourself a greater chance to win, but risking getting opened up the other way.
The Pies taking risks and playing to win games at all costs — not save them — has been such a key feature under McRae too.
Of course, it hasn’t helped that Collingwood has been well beaten in the midfield over the last fortnight and thus hasn’t been able to control territory or field position.
There’s clearly several issues McRae and company need to work through if the Pies are any chance of getting their wobbly premiership defence moving back in the right direction.
For as the premiership coach himself admitted, they’re running out of time.
Issue that’ll stop a Carlton flag | 03:15
CURNOW IN FOR CRITICISM AS BLUES FALL BACK TO THE PACK
The margins are so close this season, that two two-goal losses have left Carlton with big questions to answer.
While they’re still very likely to play finals, with one of the AFL’s easiest remaining draws, defeats to GWS and the Western Bulldogs have left Michael Voss’ men in second… but just two wins ahead of 13th-placed Hawthorn.
“We need to reset now,” Voss said post-game.
“We’ve had a couple of losses and it’s quite clear what we need to get after, and we’ve got a couple of things we need to correct. Get a little bit more consistent than we currently are.
“It felt like at times we were not very reliable.”
While star forward Charlie Curnow seemed to have a major impact on Saturday’s game, booting 3.7, one of those misses came when he opted against a team-first act in a critical moment.
Honest Voss reflects on surprise loss | 11:03
With the Blues down by 11 points with five minutes left in the third quarter, Curnow marked and played on from inside the centre square, ignoring several teammates running ahead of Bulldogs defenders to bomb it towards goal.
“I didn’t like a couple of moments from Charlie Curnow yesterday where it wasn’t about team,” Matthew Lloyd said on Nine’s Sunday Footy Show.
“One in particular, I thought they were coming at this time – look at Ollie Holland through the centre of the ground, you’ve just got to hit him and he’s having a nice easy run and shot for goal, or even hit the captain.
“But he just wanted to have the shot himself, and I thought that hurt. You can imagine if it was back the other way, he’d be pretty disappointed.
“Three goals seven (behinds) happens when you’re just taking pot-shots.
The Blues will also need to reconsider the dual ruck combination of Marc Pittonet and Tom De Koning.
The young gun De Koning was fantastic when playing alone through the middle of the season, while the Blues are 2-5 when he is partnered with Pittonet.
While Pittonet adds plenty to their clearance game, it negates the Blues’ improvements in the turnover game, and perhaps makes them too tall up forward when De Koning has to rest elsewhere.
Voss, though, seemed to wave off the conversation.
“We’re still learning a lot about it,” he said.
“We’re still evolving as a footy team, there is nothing that’s set. We seem to be somewhat besotted by that conversation, is it one is it two.
“We’re really fortunate that we have some strengths in our team and that we’ve got two guys that can play ruck very well. Tom can impact forward as well.
“It probably didn’t impact as well as what we wanted it to tonight but we feel like it’s a strength of ours and if we need to explore it in the latter half of the year, who’s to say we won’t need it by the time we get to the back end of the year.
“It probably didn’t have its effect tonight but it’s probably not about one or two. It’s about what gives us the best chance to be a consistent team over a period of time.”
Redman RAMS fence in nasty collision | 00:33
TIGERS COP 20-YEAR WORST IN SIGN OF LOOMING DARK TIMES
The rise of the Richmond Army through their dynasty era at the end of the 2010s was something to behold.
Those first two finals in 2017, with 95,028 at the qualifying final vs Geelong and then 94,258 at the preliminary final vs GWS were incredible atmospheres – particularly when the latter was 99% fans of the yellow and black persuasion.
The good times have rolled since then, and even over the last one and a half seasons, the Tigers have enjoyed five crowds of over 80,000 with a staggering 92,311 making the trip to the MCG for Dustin Martin’s 300th.
But that may have been the last visit to the ground some Tigers fans are planning to make for some time.
Sunday’s loss to GWS saw a 20-year low for a Richmond home game at the home of football (excluding the Covid seasons), with just 19,040 making the trip to the MCG.
It’s a figure admittedly impacted by a cold and wet day, but it’s also their worst figure since Round 12, 2004 and a loss to Fremantle.
‘Disappointed’ Yze looks for positives | 09:08
At that time the Tigers were battling through a third consecutive poor campaign, and there would be eight more seasons without finals footy until their 2013 return.
There’s been much less pain to this point, though they are sitting 18th for the first time in club history, so you can understand why Richmond fans aren’t particularly motivated to watch their side in person right now.
Richmond’s lowest MCG crowds this century
19677 vs Fremantle, Rd 3 2003
19519 vs Fremantle, Rd 19 2002
19226 vs Adelaide, Rd 18 2010
19040 vs GWS, Rd 18 2024
18666 vs Fremantle, Rd 12 2004
Covid-impacted 2020 and 2021 seasons excluded
Crowd figures like this will spark some suggestions the game should’ve been played at the smaller (and warmer) Marvel Stadium, but that’s a poor idea for competitive balance reasons.
After all, if we just always send the smaller non-Victorian teams to Marvel, they’ll never get to sample the MCG; this was just the Giants’ third win at the ground this decade, and they’ve been a solid team for much of that period.
Just like Hawthorn had enormous membership bases and crowd figures during their glory years, and then saw much lower numbers over the past half-decade, the Tigers are set for a lull.
Winning always dictates these things. That’s just the reality of footy fandom.