Western Bulldogs trounce St Kilda after quarter time to sour Nathan Freeman’s long-awaited AFL debut
IT was the night Nathan Freeman had long been waiting for but it wasn’t the result he or St Kilda were dreaming of as the Western Bulldogs pile more misery on the Saints’ horror season.
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TONY Abbott led the country, Eminem had Australia’s No. 1 song and Prince George had recently been born.
The former now sits on the backbench in Canberra and the latter is about to finish his first year of primary school – it’s been a while.
And while November of 2013 seems a lifetime ago for some, Saturday night signalled the end – and a long-awaited beginning – for luckless Saint Nathan Freeman.
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It had been 1718 days since he was drafted, then by Collingwood, but his 120 minutes had finally arrived.
Some had said it would never come. Not his mum, Natalie.
“His determination is one of his biggest assets,” she told the Sunday Herald Sun.
“He has amazing resilience and his work ethic … he always did everything that was asked of him and never left any stone unturned. We’re just totally stoked but I never doubted that he would get here.”
There were nerves – that was obvious. For Natalie, too, who admitted she had been a “bit of a nervous wreck” before getting it together for a surreal drive to the ground.
“There was the realisation that after five years that he had finally gotten to what his goal was … it was the icing on the cake,” she said.
“He’s played his first game for the club he barracked for as a kid. He’s always been a Sainter. And I have, too.”
His first kick after starting on the wing was met with cheers but scuffed the turf and the 23-year-old battled to find his effectiveness early.
That was to be expected.
He’d come the long way to Etihad Stadium - both literally and figuratively - with trips to Germany, Dr Death on the Mornington Peninsula and Christmas Day sessions at the Saints.
Those hamstrings hadn’t been kind to him, with surgeries, setbacks and countless radical treatments resulting in a five-year wait to debut.
Once he settled, he looked right at home to finish with 19 disposals.
It was the night for comeback stories as Alex Johnson also ran out for Sydney at the exact same time after enduring five knee reconstructions. It was pretty special.
The game threatened early to be anything but as the Dogs struggled to find a way forward with a goalless first term. Once they did, they dictated play freely and with flair.
After not kicking one goal all season, it was as if Saint Seb Ross felt like he had some making up to do, booting three in a spirited and near-seamless performance in a team again plagued by inaccuracy.
It has been a round of blockbusters, and while this contest didn’t quite have the gloss of some other games, the thrill made its way to Etihad Stadium.
“A real arm-wrestle,” Saints defensive coach Danny Frawley dubbed it on SEN, and it was the Dogs that flexed longest to arrest what had been a four-match losing streak by pushing the Saints’ forearm through the table.
Premiership quartet Jason Johannisen – who turned on a sublime night with 42 possessions – Marcus Bontempelli, Jack Macrae and Lachie Hunter all had an impact, while Caleb Daniel proved influential as the Dogs surged in a vital eight-goal-to-none third quarter that marked a 73-point turnaround from quarter-time.
It was, after all, a special night for comebacks - in more ways than one as the Dogs had their day.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 0.5 6.6 14.12 15.13 (103)
ST KILDA 4.2 7.4 7.9 9.14 (68)
WOOD’S BEST
Bulldogs: Johannisen, Bontempelli, Dunkley, Macrae, Lipinski.
Saints: Ross, Gresham, Billings, Carlisle, Steven, Geary.
GOALS
Bulldogs: Bontempelli 4, Schache 3, Greene, Crozier, Macrae, Hunter, Jong, Wallis, Lipinski, Dickson.
Saints: Ross 3, Lonie 2, Newnes 2, Billings, Membrey.
INJURIES
Bulldogs: Smith (concussion).
Saints: Battle (concussion), Hickey (hamstring).
UMPIRES
Dalgleish, Haussen, Fleer
CROWD
20,748 at Etihad Stadium
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