How the Magpies plan to contain Izak Rankine in high-stakes clash
Collingwood has been treating every game like a final since the bye.
On Thursday night, after beating Port Adelaide, Richmond, Gold Coast, North Melbourne and Carlton, the eighth-placed Magpies finally got a worthy final opponent as they played an in-form fifth-placed Adelaide.
The Magpies will have to deal with Izak Rankine in action for the Crows for the first time since he was suspended from the finals for using a homophobic slur in last year’s round 23 clash against Collingwood.
The Magpies won last year’s knockout final and the Crows won in the first round, ensuring they each have one win since that fateful match, but the match-winning Crow’s presence on Thursday night is significant.
Rankine has put last year’s mistake behind him and is starting to regain the form he showed with the Crows in the previous two seasons.
He was at his best on Friday night, his tackle and smothering of Swans star Isaac Heeney in the final quarter on Friday night was a key indicator of his development as a player.
Fierce competitor Alex Neal-Bullen is the only Crows player to apply more pressure than No.23.
All eyes will be on him as the Magpies are likely to send cooling agent (or WS-23) Ed Allan alongside him at stoppage time. Allan was one of five Collingwood players with less than 30 match experience to play in the win against Carlton (who had seven).
With the competition’s two best teams at pressure set to wrestle like grizzly bears, the Crows need to make a play in the front half to get the winning score, it will be a battle within the battle, especially with Darcy Fogarty likely to miss due to suspension.
The Magpies attack more than defend against the Crows and their scoring from kicks becomes a problem for the opponents. The Crows will need to stay alert against Jeremy Howe’s straight runs up the center and Nick Daicos running down the lane and causing damage.
Some players don’t deserve the stats they get at the throw-in, but the argument for not counting disposals in individual statistics tables doesn’t apply when Howe or Daicos get the ball. If they get the shot wrong there is a good chance it will go over their head. Otherwise the Magpies can score.
Richmond’s excuses are no longer valid
Richmond trailed by 63 points at half time against Hawthorn. The class difference was very clear. The only thing everyone was waiting for was a reaction.
The opposite happened in the opening minutes of the second half as the Hawks waltzed around Richmond as if the Tigers players were taking part in the Mannequin Challenge.
Regardless of Richmond’s injuries and experience, this was unacceptable and inexcusable.
Midway through the quarter, the Tigers’ pressure rating was 138. The measure may depend on style of play, but Richmond have recorded the lowest degree of pressure of any team this season.
Essendon’s effort against the Giants after half-time was at the other end of the scale, making the toothless Tigers’ performance even worse. The Bombers’ win put Richmond at the bottom of the standings and, to be fair, they look set for the wooden spooners on Sunday. Richmond made 50 tackles and made nine inside the 50. The Bombers scored 69 and 18 inside the 50 over.
Their manager Adem Yze is a good character, but he needs to demand more from his team because his coaching career may depend on his team showing fight and applying pressure as well as some improvement on the injury front as the club searches for a new high-performance boss.
The 70-point defeat against Hawthorn was the 17th time the Tigers have lost by a margin of 10 or more goals under Yze and the 15th time they have lost by that margin in the last 41 games. They are the only team in the league this season without scoring five unanswered goals. The Bombers had six unanswered kicks against the Giants on Sunday.
Josh Smillie hasn’t played yet. Sam Lalor was impressive in limited minutes on Sunday. Sam Grjl, Harry Armstrong, Jonty Faull, Sam Cumming, Luke Trainor and Jasper Alger showed some of their talents.
But under Yze, the Tigers have barely had a fight with the premiership players who still look like they are coming into action. It’s not good enough.
Ken Hinkley’s appointment will wake up enemies
They announced that Tasmania will now enter the real world Ken Hinkley as the club’s first coach.
Hinkley, who has built a strong culture at Port Adelaide and maintained many relationships since his time at the Gold Coast and Geelong, where he remains popular, is a good decision as he can attract and retain coaches and staff as well as players.
But they will need his breakthrough style because the rest of the competition won’t be as accommodating as they have been so far when they start putting sign-up bonuses ahead of their own talent.
Departed Giants chief executive Dave Matthews telegraphed on 3AW on Saturday the uncompromising approach his rivals will take as they try to capture talent with future Giants skipper Tom Green as one of their targets.
“I don’t think it’s a very attractive proposition to go and play in Tasmania,” Matthews said.
“It’s a beautiful place to visit. I don’t think it’s an incredible place to make a career and live.”
Given that Matthews will consult with the AFL once his time at the Giants comes to an end with a 20th team, international expansion and the upcoming collective bargaining agreement, his comments are likely to be on the lighter side of the skepticism clubs will direct at the new club. Matthews admitted the training and management center would not be built when the 2028 pre-season begins, while Macquarie Point Stadium would host matches from 2031.
And for another thing, it’s time the Devils got a media professional now because their managers need to learn how to deal with breaking news when it leaks and not get offended when questions are asked about their progress. So far their performance in this regard has been poor.
The gloves come off.
Can Max King do Charlie Curnow?
That’s what the Saints will be hoping for as their key forwards prepare for a potential comeback in their first game since June 30, 2024 against North Melbourne on Sunday, July 26.
Comparisons of time away from the AFL are eerily similar.
Curnow began his two years on the sidelines on June 30, 2019, and returned on July 30, 2021 against the Saints.
Like King, Curnow missed more than two seasons.
Like King, he returned with his team and had a slim chance of making it to the finals, but did not make it to the relay.
The Blues had four games remaining when Curnow returned. The Saints have five.
Curnow was 24 years old and had scored 77 goals in 58 games. King is now 26 years old and has scored 159 goals in 83 matches.
In the last four games of 2021, Curnow has scored just two goals but, more importantly, played 80 per cent game time in each match, preparing himself for pre-season (coincidentally, all four current Saints, Jack Silvagni, Liam Stocker, Tom De Koning and Paddy Dow, were in the Blues squad for Curnow’s return match).
Curnow has since played 108 games and scored 286 goals in almost five seasons and won the Coleman Medal with Carlton.
This is the kind of result the Saints hope the King will achieve. He is capable of repeating Curnow’s effort but now all the work is in front of him.
They need him too, with Cooper Sharman and Anthony Caminiti not being key forwards and breaking forwards like Jack Higgins reliant on forwards struggling to create ground balls inside 50 points. Geelong had 23 interception points against the Saints.
St Kilda are still alive for the wildcard spot but it will be equally satisfying to watch King make it through the final five games unscathed in preparation for next year.
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