VFL - Round 14 vs Richmond @ Windy Hill, 2pm Sunday 8 July 2018

Ah rats. Came in here hoping for some good news. :frowning:

IN A NUTSHELL: Richmond’s renowned team defence held up well in blowy conditions at Windy Hill, using the breeze to set up its win with five goals to one in the first quarter. The Tigers may not have had hardened bodies like Anthony Miles, Corey Ellis and Jacob Townsend in their line-up but were still too strong for Essendon in the contests.

KEY MOMENTS: The Bombers contributed to their downfall with an inaccurate 4.6 (30) kicking with the wind in the second term, but Richmond’s ability to restrict them to just one goal for almost all the final stanza snuffed out their hopes of riding the breeze to a comeback win. Daniel Coffield was particularly important in rebounding the Tigers forward from defence.

LEADING GOALKICKERS: Richmond – Mannagh 3, Baker 2 / Essendon – Stewart 2, Younan 2

FORMLINES: Richmond (10-2) retains top spot for another week, this win following consecutive victories over the Northern Blues and Box Hill Hawks. / Essendon (7-5) has suffered back-to-back losses to top-four opponents after going down to the Casey Demons last week.

NEXT UP: Richmond vs North Melbourne (Holm Park, Beaconsfield) / Werribee vs Essendon (Avalon Airport Oval)

How did Nick Hind play today ?

From the VFL site: http://websites.sportstg.com/round_info.cgi?a=MATCH&fixture=124984096&c=1-118-0-477472-0&pool=1

ESSENDON
Goal Kickers: D. Younan 2, J. Stewart 2, K. Huntly, N. Hind, J. Merrett
Best Players: D. Parish, A. Heppell, B. Zerk-Thatcher, D. Younan, D. Clarke, S. Draper

Great to see Parish put up his hand today as our best - he and Clarke need to come in. Colyer, for one, does not deserve to hold his spot based on his output the last 2 weeks.

From the AFL site: http://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-07-07/around-the-state-leagues-whos-starring-for-your-club

State league affiliate: Essendon (VFL)
This weekend: Essendon v Richmond - Sunday, July 8, 2pm, Windy Hill

Young gun Darcy Parish had 39 possessions (including 21 contested) and 10 clearances in Essendon’s 7.15 (57) to 13.11 (89) loss to Richmond.

Parish hasn’t played at the top level since the Bombers’ round eight loss to Carlton, and will likely be in contention for a promotion after Essendon’s AFL side lost to Collingwood on Sunday.

James Stewart kicked two goals, had 14 touches and eight marks, while 19-year-old Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (13 possessions, six marks) showed good signs.

And Dylan Clarke (23 disposals, eight tackles, seven clearances) worked hard all day.

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Huge game by Darcy. I tuned in for about 5 mins and he was getting a lot of the ball. Good to see

Where can you find all the players stats for the game ?

As stated a billion times: Footy Live app or VFL website, but sometimes it’s as late as Tuesday.

Video of game has been posted by the club, BTW.

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So sorry you had to state it a billion and one…bad day ?

It’s out now: since I perceive this was your question, Hind did not suck. Only behind Draper on points, who from what little video I watched on the way to the MCG was indeed imposing himself around the ground.

Got it …thanks and have just watched the game.

TheDJRage

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According to the Footy live stats, Parish “only” had 31 disposals. 2 tackles is disappointing.

Mynott had 30 which is a good sign

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Not sure who was doing their stats for them, but I didn’t think Darcy had anywhere near that many.

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I thought Draper did well, though not mentioned in the bests.
He is developing well.
Had my doubts.

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Goals… just go to 30 seconds in and wonder why a guy who kicks like that can’t get a game in today’s AFL.

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After momentum ebbed and flowed in the first three quarters, the Bombers were unable to match the Tigers for pressure in the final term.

Leading by 28 points but kicking into a stiff breeze, Richmond quickly snuffed out any hopes of an Essendon upset to have the four points in their keeping well before the siren. The Bombers eventually fell 7.15 (57) to 13.11 (89).

From the outset, the Tigers’ pressure around the ball tested Essendon. Although defenders Michael Hartley and Jordan Ridley generated intercept possessions and rebounded well, Richmond began to inflict scoreboard damage with overwhelming numbers up forward.

The home side conceded seven of the first nine goals of the game and trailed by as much as 31 points halfway through the second quarter before a comeback had the match on even terms at the main break.

Danny Younan relished the open space in Essendon’s forward line and kicked two goals with his customary relentless bustle. Castlemaine-born debutant Kalan Huntly got in on the act with his first Essendon goal and Nick Hind snapped his side’s fourth for the quarter to bridge the gap to just nine points at half-time.

Essendon soaked up the first fifteen minutes of the third quarter before the Tigers broke through to string together three late goals with the wind to extend the gap to 28 at the final change. The task was not beyond the Bombers but they were left rueing inefficient entry inside 50.

The Bombers looked their best when they were able to match Richmond’s pressure around contests and prevent the Tigers from streaming forward.

Darcy Parish was instrumental upon his return from a wrist injury, gathering 39 possessions (21 contested) and 10 clearances.

Brandon Zerk-Thatcher continued his recent run of saving his best for the last quarter with a pair of goal-saving efforts in defence, while Dylan Clarke had good value for his 26 disposals.

The loss leaves Essendon in fourth place, just percentage clear of fifth-placed Box Hill. As coach Dan Jordan pointed out, the Bombers matched it with the Tigers in key areas.

“They [Richmond] definitely won it. They were able to defend in their back half better … we have to be more efficient when we’re going inside 50,” Jordan said.

“There’s still some positives to come out of the game. We won contested ball and had the same number of looks in our forward half. They’re number one for a reason and it was a great challenge to come up against the best side and see where we’re at.”

Essendon will look to get back on the winner’s list against Werribee next Saturday at Chirnside Park.

ESSENDON 1.2 5.6 5.11 7.15.57
RICHMOND 5.3 7.3 10.9 13.11.89

GOALS
Essendon – Stewart 2, Younan 2, Merrett, Hind, Huntly
Richmond – Mannagh 3, Baker 2, Grewar, Bolton, Coleman-Jones, Coates, Menadue, Stengle, Lloyd, Ballard

BEST
Parish, Heppell, Zerk-Thatcher, Younan, Clarke, Draper

By Callum O’Connor

I bet all money that teams like Sydney and Geelong would have rewarded him with AFL games this year. Fogarty is still a ways off with endurance at AFL level but the crows still play him most weeks because they know he has a big future and are willing to risk the shortcomings playing him early has on the team.

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The headline stat below is not quite as impressive as it seems, given the relative accuracies.

The ladder-leading Tigers are the lowest-ranked team in the top eight for average disposals but haven’t needed much of the ball to generate 1.5 goals per game more than any other side. Against Essendon, they scored a major for every 25 disposals recorded, while the Bombers were only allowed to do so every 54 touches.

  • Hind (18) and Hartley (17) were in the top kick-getters for the league this week.
  • Parish was third for handballs with 20. Mynott (17) and Clarke (16) also featured in the top 15.
  • St Francis and small defenderJamieson Sheahan were equal fourth on 9 marks.
  • Draper was fourth for hit-outs (Richmond not in the top ten). The usual suspects in Preuss and Meese are waaaaaay ahead.
  • Younan holds onto equal fifth for goals (25).
  • Hind is fourth in the league for total Inside Fifties (and third on average per game). Shhhhhh.
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With how many below average players in the AFL I still can’t work out how Hind wasn’t given a chance, even as a rookie.

The way he takes off with speed and aggression is perfectly suited to today’s game.

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