Sunday Tackle: Sam Landsberger reflects on Round 1 of AFL season
Just over a year after a trade period from hell, Collingwood fans are celebrating one of the great steals of recent years after Pat Lipinski’s inspired debut in black and white. Round 1 review.
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Round 1 never fails to produce a host of talking points.
They started on Wednesday night when Melbourne backed up its grand final win and continued into the weekend with WAFL recruit Nic Martin’s stunning Essendon debut.
That came less than 24 hours after St Kilda’s SANFL SSP signing Jack Hayes starred against Collingwood — not that it mattered for Magpies fans.
They were too busy revelling in the exciting start to Craig McRae’s tenure and wondering how they snared former Bulldog Pat Lipinski for a bargain price.
Patrick Dangerfield’s blitz, Christian Petracca haunting the Dogs (again) and massive question marks over Richmond and Essendon.
Round 1 has delivered in spades.
Scroll down to see Sam Landsberger’s likes and dislikes in our new column, The Sunday Tackle.
DISLIKES
LIBBA ON THE OUTER
Tom Liberatore finished 2021 as the AFL’s No. 1 clearance player and started 2022 cleared out of the centre square. Libba attended just one centre bounce against Melbourne, which was the second-fewest of his impactful career. The game’s best phonebox player looked a touch agoraphobic on the open grass, finishing with three contested possessions, three ground ball gets and one clearance – three measures he ranked inside the AFL’s top-10 for last year. It appeared Bailey Smith’s evolution from wing to onballer – he attended 17 centre bounces against the Demons – squeezed Liberatore outside. It was unusual to see Jack Macrae win it out of the centre and kick long to Liberatore, who was lurking at half-forward. If the Bulldogs believe Libba is at his snarling best then surely he lines up in the guts against Carlton’s grunt guys on Thursday night. Where will they play him?
RICHMOND REWIND
The manner of Richmond’s loss to Carlton was far more alarming than the loss itself. It was a 2021 re-run – smashed in the midfield and unable to defend from the source. The Tigers have long ranked low for clearances, but last year they plummeted from second to 13th for points conceded from clearances, leaking about six goals a game from Round 8. Coach Damien Hardwick used his longest pre-season in five years to repair that DNA, with pressure and post-clearance contested ball his game plan’s fundamentals. But with Dion Prestia (hamstring) once again injured and Trent Cotchin largely an observer, Carlton won clearances 17-2 in the final quarter and scored 4.3 (27) to zero from them. Game, set and match. Prestia is a giant loss and arguably Richmond’s best player. He won the 2019 Jack Dyer Medal in a premiership season and would’ve scooped last year’s on pro-rata votes. As for Cotchin, he had a sharp summer of preparation, but would want to respond in round 2. The Tigers want to test out Riley Collier-Dawkins and Thomson Dow shortly, too.
PANIC LIKE IT’S 1967
Red flags everywhere for the Bombers although the group of supporters walking down Bridge Rd after leaving the MCG at halftime must’ve mistaken them for white flags. Perhaps they’ve glanced at the fixture. Dates against flag fancies Brisbane Lions and Melbourne make 0-3 a distinct possibility, which would be the club’s worst start to a season since 1967. Missing plenty of firepower, yes, but not even Tony Lockett would’ve helped in the first half as the Bombers were destroyed at stoppages and barely able to move the ball out of the backline. Not even Zach Merrett’s 39 disposals would’ve worried the Cats, given 29 came in the defensive half. Darcy Parish had 13 clearances against Geelong last year as he blossomed into a premier inside midfielder. At halftime on Saturday Parish had one clearance as Geelong kicked 5.6 (36) to 0 from stoppages. It was a similar story for St Kilda, who gave up 5.2 (32) to 1.2 (8) from centre bounce on Friday night.
LIKES
NEW COACHES ON BRAND
Michael Voss reminds new Carlton chief executive Brian Cook of a young Mark Thompson, who Cook appointed at Geelong in 2000. Like “Bomber”, Voss is a premiership captain with coaching experience at a strong rival. Craig McRae’s temperament is so cool he could empty a sauna. “Fly” focused his three-quarter-time address on Collingwood’s electrifying start to that quarter rather than its powerless finish. More importantly, the AFL’s newest coaches have stamped their brands in just four quarters. It is “Chaos Collingwood” and “Clearance Carlton”. The Magpies kicked sideways and backwards under Nathan Buckley — a disaster recipe for defenders in the event of a turnover — whereas now players handball to break defensive lines and the Blues have loaded up on inside bulls as recruits with Patrick Cripps, Adam Cerra, George Hewett and Matthew Kennedy absorbing Richmond’s heat. And don’t be surprised if Ash Hansen — who will stand in for Voss (Covid) on Thursday — is stamping his brand in years to come. Hansen has been hailed one of the Blues’ best recruits this off-season and his admirers from nine years at Whitten Oval also believe he has senior coach potential.
LIP SERVICE
Lifelong Western Bulldogs fan Patrick Lipinski still lives with ex-teammates Tim English and Aaron Naughton. But after playing nine of the first 11 games last year Lipinski appeared to have his papers marked, with his only appearance after that as a substitute when Naughton went down injured. Roarke Smith was then preferred and Collingwood swooped on Lipinski for draft pick 43. Boy, what a steal 12 months after getting burnt on the Adam Treloar trade. Lipinski, 23, is already one of McRae’s most important cogs as a hard-running inside midfielder and his numbers against the Saints mirrored last year’s unstoppable form in the VFL. The irony is the Dogs couldn’t find room on a wing for Lipinski whereas at the Magpies, McRae has allowed sweet users Steele Sidebottom and Josh Daicos to return to the wings. He’s a damaging player, Lipinski, and his vision opens areas most are blind to. That handball to Oliver Henry, who sold some candy to thread a Steve Johnson-style goal in the last quarter, was high class.
TALENTS MISSED
Jack Hayes might have enjoyed the best debut by a St Kilda player since Dean Greig had 39 touches against Carlton in 1991. He single-handedly swung the match with an unstoppable burst deep in the third quarter. Hayes kicked back-to-back goals, plucked intercept marks and chased like his life depended on it. It was 26 years in the making and came off a mini pre-season, which posed the question … where the heck has this SANFL star with an Adelaide haircut been? Hayes lit up 93 state games and was best-afield in last year’s SANFL grand final without a club ever giving him a chance. Brett Ratten conceded it was easy to dwell on what players can’t do rather than what they can. Hayes has long boasted the best contested mark outside the AFL. But recruiters doubted he had the speed and agility to cover the ground and said at 194cm he was undersized. Well, Hayes made a mockery of those queries against the Magpies. Essendon’s Nic Martin then kicked five on debut after training with West Coast last year and booting 24 WAFL goals. It makes you wonder what WAFL gun Jye Bolton could do if given the chance. What a shame umpire Ray Chamberlain, who was on the edge of round 1 selection himself, missed a free kick that would’ve allowed Hayes to drag the margin under a kick in the final minutes.
PADDY WHACKED
A shiny new game plan and the Patrick Dangerfield of old suggested the Cats are not out of lives as they shoot for a 15th finals campaign in 16 seasons. Last year Geelong’s outdated kick-and-catch tactics proved to be below premiership standard and coaching additions James Kelly and Eddie Betts provided some fresh eyes. Brandan Parfitt attended 26 centre bounces, up from last year’s average of 12, and won 11 clearances. He is a hunter while Tyson Stengle (4.3) is a finisher. The ex-Tiger and Crow who wanted to reunite with Betts has made some dumb decisions off the field, but boy does he make smart ones on it. Dangerfield’s first half felt like a message to Christian Petracca. He had nine inside-50s (equal-fifth best in the AFL over the last 10 years) and 22 disposals (third-best of his career). Brownlow night should start with Dangerfield, Petracca and Patrick Cripps all on three votes.
BUDDY’S BUDDIES STEAL LIMELIGHT
Phil Davis won the battle against Lance Franklin, but Sydney won the groundballs and the war in what was an exhilarating contest that defied some of the cobwebs seen in March. Franklin kicked one goal, requiring four more to reach 1000, but once the ball hit the deck it was the Luke Parker (five goals) and Isaac Heeney (three) show. Parker’s forward craft is intoxicating and he won a fourth Brett Kirk Medal. Sydney, once dubbed the “ugly ducklings”, are now the Sexy Swans and probably the AFL’s most watchable team. Their blistering foot skills burst games open. Errol Gulden is the teenager with a golden boot while Oli Florent’s goals — one launched from 50m and another after twisting and turning around defenders — were a joy to watch. The ultra-efficient Swans kicked 4.1 from nine inside 50s in the final quarter whereas GWS managed 1.4 from 15 entries as Tom McCartin repelled alongside brother Paddy, who played his first AFL game behind the ball. The Swans play their next two games in primetime and while the Buddy countdown will command eyeballs, the wait watching this slick side will be an enjoyable one regardless of what round it comes.
TRAIN HOW YOU PLAY
Chris Fagan designed a host of situational training drills over summer to teach his players how to close out tight games. The Lions lost last year’s semi-final by a point after having it under control and were eliminated by three points in the 2019 semi-final. On Saturday night a 24-point deficit morphed into a mature 11-point win that will serve as a reference point for these players. Brandon Starcevich and Joe Daniher would’ve breathed a sigh of relief. Late in the last quarter Starcevich’s blind kick out of the backline went straight to Travis Boak, giving Port Adelaide a look at the goals. Dan Houston’s rocket hit the post to let Starcevich off the hook while Daniher’s goalsquare hanger on the stroke of halftime was undone by handballing to a teammate with one second left and with 32:23 showing on the Gabba clock, costing a goal. Joe lacked game awareness but made up for it with 4.3 and the poise of Lincoln McCarthy, Noah Answerth and Lachie Neale boosted Brisbane’s recent home-and-away record at the Gabba to 29-2. Early-season games in Queensland, particularly at night, often under deliver due to the dew and thankfully this contest grew after the first quarter. Should the Lions and Suns start the season on the road?
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Originally published as Sunday Tackle: Sam Landsberger reflects on Round 1 of AFL season
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