Essendon’s Jordan Ridley injured as Max Holmes, Nic Martin dominate in new positions in Geelong’s win over Dons
Geelong has come from behind against Essendon at GMHBA Stadium, but the Dons will be more concerned with the fitness of one of their biggest stars with Round 1 just two weeks away.
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Geelong edged over the line with a blistering final quarter in an otherwise even practice match hitout against Essendon.
In front of 11,000 fans, many of those in the freshly opened Joel Selwood Stand, the inaccurate Cats booted five goals to none in the final quarter to come from behind to record a 12-point win at GMHBA Stadium.
However, it might have come at a cost for Essendon’s backline, with intercept defender Jordan Ridley going down with a quad injury late in the game.
Essendon assistant coach Daniel Giansiracusa said they were unsure of the severity of Ridley’s injury with the interceptor set to undergo scans.
“He’s got a tight quad, obviously that will get scans during the week and see how that goes. He’s an important player for us so hopefully it isn’t that bad,” Giansiracusa said post-match.
“I think it was a little bit sore so… we’ll get it scanned and see how we go.”
Leading goalkicker Kyle Langford also walked off GMHBA Stadium with ice on his hamstring but is expected to be fine.
The Dons controlled the ball early, peppering the forward 50 entry as Darcy Parish, Zach Merrett and Nic Martin racked up the pill, but the tide turned after half time.
***FULL SUPERCOACH SCORES FROM PRE-SEASON GAMES***
HALF BACK MOVES
Running machines Nic Martin and Max Holmes both flourished on the wing last year, but the pair both shone as rebounding defenders.
There was some questions marks over the Holmes halfback experiment after the first practice match, but it took a matter of minutes in this encounter to show why the Cats pulled the trigger.
Holmes’ explosive speed was on show bounding out defence and up the ground as Cats players looked to get the ball in his hands at all costs.
He racked up nine disposals in the opening quarter and that quickly climbed to 19 and a classy goal by the half after a stint in the midfield.
The 21-year-old came off the ground in the final quarter but gave the crowd the thumbs up when he appeared on the big screen.
At the other end, Nic Martin continued his impressive pre-season down back, but it was in the forward half where he had the most impact. The smooth-mover slotted two goals – one a set shot and another from a stray Cats kick which he pounced on – and delivered the ball inside 50 several times.
Essendon’s other wingman from 2023, Sam Durham, received midfield minutes as had been flagged during the pre-season.
In other moves, Mitch Duncan started his evening in the middle and while he had a couple of fumbles early, the 32-year-old showed some good signs in the role.
Irish veteran Zach Tuohy was used up the ground on a wing and pushed forward to have a couple of opportunities on goal, which resulted in two behinds.
BOMBER RECRUITS
It was Jade Gresham who took the points out of Essendon’s quartet of recruits.
The former Saint provided spark in the forward 50 and took a gutsy mark in a pack, which he then turned into a goal with a clever kick forward.
Spearhead Tom Hawkins dominated against the Bombers in their two encounters last year and their defence looked much more solid with Ben McKay back there.
The lucrative off-season signing was the main man on Hawkins and kept him relatively quiet for most of the match, with Zach Reid also doing the job at times.
In the ruck, Todd Goldstein won a handful of clearances and looked to get the better of Rhys Stanley, while Xavier Duursma got involved on the outside.
BEST 22 CLUES
You can just about pencil in Jhye Clark and Oliver Dempsey into Geelong’s round one side.
Dempsey did it all in an eye-catching second quarter, taking a flying grab, getting his hands dirty with a smother and spotting up an inside 50 option with a sizzling pass.
His clean hands at ground level and strong hands overhead were notable throughout the clash, capping an exceptional pre-season.
Shannon Neale also had some nice moments both up forward and in the ruck, with his forward pressure leading to a goal in the second term, and would be expected to earn a spot against St Kilda.
Cats defender Jake Kolodjashnij came off the ground looking ginger at one stage and didn’t reappear after the third quarter, but the Cats confirmed he was just managed.
For the Bombers, talented youngster Elijah Tsatas was busy and got into good spots playing on a wing as he looks to cement himself as a senior regular.
Reliable defender Jayden Laverde and speedster Nick Hind didn’t come on until the second half. Hind showed some serious dash at times and booted a crafty crumbing goal late.
Irish speedster Oisin Mullin was injected into the game at halftime, while Jack Bowes and mature-age recruit Shaun Mannagh came on late in the third.
BOMBER BALL-MAGNETS
Geelong really missed Cameron Guthrie last year and the Bombers midfield had the better of the Cats in the first term.
Ball-magnets Darcy Parish and Zach Merrett amassed 21 disposals between them in the opening quarter as the Bombers gave their forwards first use with five centre clearances to two.
The Cats midfield lifted from there with the likes of young gun Jhye Clark, Mark Blicavs – who attended numerous centre bounces as a rover rather than a ruckman – and Tanner Bruhn
Parish was everywhere and Merrett wasn’t far behind him, with hit trademark left boot spotting up options around the ground.
Tall midfielder Will Setterfield finished with 25 possessions himself, while defender Andrew McGrath had it 31 times.
PLAYER NOTES
GEELONG
Max Holmes – You can see why rivals are after Holmes. His breakaway off halfback was damaging and he was also impactful in the midfield.
Jhye Clark – Some very nice moments both offensively and defensively. The main highlight from the 2022 first round pick was two rundown tackles that resulted in holding the ball free kicks.
Jeremy Cameron – One minute he was having a set shot, the next he was deep in defence helping out. Cameron could have easily had a few goals to his name but missed some gettable shots but he was moving well around the ground.
Tom Stewart – Had close checking from Matt Guelfi but still had plenty of it, racking up 11 disposals to halftime. That included a rare goal.
Patrick Dangerfield – Looked to be manned closely at stoppages by Will Setterfield and was kept relatively quiet in the first half. He came to life in the third quarter and nearly kicked a cracking goal at full speed in congestion.
Shaun Mannagh – The VFL recruit didn’t get on until the second half, which was the case during the first practice game. Mannagh did look lively when he came on, booting a final-quarter goal, but it might be time to officially scratch him from your SuperCoach plans.
ESSENDON
Nic Martin – Pushed up the ground to kick two first half goals and was the Bombers’ designated kicker out of defence. And yes, he was on the kick-ins. Expect his SuperCoach ownership to rise after this display.
Zach Reid – Took a couple of strong grabs and more than held his own when matched up against Tom Hawkins.
Darcy Parish – Brought his own Sherrin to Kardinia Park, tallying 20 disposals in the first-half alone. He added a goal in the third.
Peter Wright – Was well held up forward and had some minutes in the ruck to give Todd Goldstein a rest. He was then giving hi-fives to the fans as he ran laps around the ground at halftime with his day done.
Zach Merrett – Overlook him at your peril, SuperCoaches. Merrett was absolutely everywhere early and his ball use was sublime.
Jade Gresham – Was lively inside 50 and up the ground, hitting the scoreboard and setting up scoring opportunities. Looks a quality addition.
Kyle Langford – His breakout 2023 season as a forward appears set to continue. Took some strong clunks up forward and kicked several goals.
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