The Tackle: Mark Robinson’s likes and dislikes from Round 8

Mark Robinson says he loved Port Adelaide wearing the Prison Bars after its Showdown win — but not the tit-for-tat afterwards. See his Round 8 likes and dislikes.

Gary Rohan of the Cats celebrates kicking a goal against Richmond.

The Round 8 dislikes are a Collingwood-free zone.

After weeks under the blowtorch Nathan Buckley eased — or at least temporarily put on hold — the pressure on his job with a desperately needed win.

But another power club is in the spotlight after Carlton gave up a 27-point lead against the Western Bulldogs. Meanwhile, the Hawks’ season sinks further into the mire, there are more questions about Richmond, Eddie McGuire and David Koch engage in a childish but entertaining war of wards and a Cats forward makes headlines for the right reasons.

See all of chief footy writer Mark Robinson’s likes and dislikes below.

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DISLIKES

Patrick Cripps is in a big form slump. Picture: Michael Klein

1. MOTHER’S DAY CHOKE

Carlton just finds new ways to disappoint.

The Blues led on Sunday by 27 points at the 27th minute of the third quarter, and lost the game by 16 points.

Key misses in the second quarter by Jack Silvagni, Lachie Fogarty and Levi Casboult proved crucial because the Blues controlled the game but did not capitalise on the scoreboard. And when the Bulldogs came at them, they couldn’t handle it.

They are an average team and have many players in average form. Zac Williams looks lost, Patrick Cripps is in a slump, and if not for the bookends — Jacob Weitering and Harry McKay — the Blues would be worse than their present 3-5 standing.

Ultimately, they are a three-quarter team. They produce a shocker in almost every match and on Sunday it was in the pivotal final quarter.

2. BATTEN DOWN, HAWKS FANS

A long season shapes to get even longer after back-to-back poor performances from Hawthorn.

The Hawks were never in the game against West Coast, and how could they be with a miserable -28 differential in inside-50s.

The total was 63-35. It was the fourth-worst differential this season and Hawthorn’s worst. The Eagles were clinical and the Hawks wayward, though West Coast “lost” the disposal count. There was a clear difference in class and system.

It gets easier for the Hawks because they play North Melbourne next week. But you cannot argue they should be overwhelming favourites in that game.

3. SHOULD WE BE WORRIED ABOUT THE TIGERS?

Not worried because the Tigers will play finals and there’s not a team in the competition who will relish September combat against the Punt Rd mob.

Still, there has to be questioning at 4-4 whether their dominance is as absolute as previous years.

There’s no doubt the challengers this year bat deeper than previous seasons, led by Geelong, Melbourne, Port Adelaide, a Brisbane team getting it together, the Bulldogs and maybe even West Coast.

The Tigers have injuries and they can’t be ignored, but is anyone absolutely 100 per cent right-now confident the Tigers will win the premiership?

They still might and if they do, they’ll probably be crowned the greatest team of all time.

But maybe the Cats presented the competition with a psychological reminder that it can’t be about how you deal with Richmond’s pressure, but how Richmond deals with your pressure. What a terrific season is unfolding.

An ankle injury to playmaker Shane Edwards has added to Richmond’s problems.

4. THE ROOKIE WALL (I)

Essendon’s Nik Cox needs a rest and, eventually, a Rising Star nomination.

After all, he is third favourite and has yet to receive a nomination. It will come.

In the meantime, the multi-talented 19-year-old looks like he’s hit the wall. Only 11 disposals this week after 14 disposals the week before.

The Bombers will want to play as many of their youngster as they can in Dreamtime at the ’G in Round 12, so they might even give Archie Perkins a spell too before bringing him back.

Cox is a mammoth talent, but only three and two marks in his previous two games on a wing suggests the body might need a refresh.

5. THE ROOKIE WALL (II)

Sydney’s Errol Gulden is in the same bracket as Cox.

His startling start to the season has been replaced by several average outings.

The Swans have already rested/demoted Logan McDonald and Braeden Campbell and it looks like Gulden needs a break.

He had nine disposals on Saturday night against the Demons and last week it was seven. The week before it was 12.

There were bigger issues for the Swans on Saturday night, other than Gulden not getting a kick.

The Demons had winning tall forwards in Tom McDonald and Ben Brown, who combined for seven goals and 11 marks.

At the other end, Hayden McLean and Lance Franklin combined for zero goals and eight marks.

In a tight, tough, ball-on-the-deck kind of game, the stark difference between these two teams was the performances of the talls in the forward half.

Errol Gulden has tired after a brilliant start to the season. Picture: Michael Klein

6. WHERE ARE YOU, JY SIMPKIN?

Eight rounds gone and Simpkin, nominally North’s best player, is rated only “average” by Champion Data.

And, to be fair, you didn’t have to see the numbers to judge Simpkin’s season.

He’s had a minor rankings drop from 2020 in most of the game’s key categories — disposals, contest possessions, clearances and tackles — when there was an expectation those numbers would increase marginally.

He’s only 23, and he is a good player with upside to come, but it’s only an average season from him to date.

7. WHEN WILL MASON WOOD GRAB HIS OPPORTUNITY?

It’s his first season at St Kilda and his eighth in the AFL and still we ask: Is he a good footballer?

On Saturday against the Suns, he came in for his second full game of the season, which suggests the Saints want him in the team long-term.

That encouragement was not rewarded.

He had five disposals in a touch over half of game time. He is 27, he came to the Saints as a pre-season pick, so every game he plays must be with the mentality that he’s playing for his career. He’s running out of chances.

Mason Wood is playing for his career. Picture: Michael Klein

8. THE FAILING SUNS

The clear brand is to maintain the ball — chip, mark, chip, mark, low in pressure, high in marks. Is that formula that wins finals? Because it’s not winning them enough home-and-away games.

Last year, the Suns were more frenetic — low disposals, get the ball forward, chaos and bring the pressure.

It’s a big turnaround this season. It’s working somewhat, but still can’t win big games.

They would be gutted they lost to the Saints. They led by 16 points late in the third quarter and lost by nine points, succumbing to St Kilda’s pressure — the Saints scored 22 points off turnover in the final term — and St Kilda’s marking strength.

9. NED GUY V MATT RENDELL

No winners in this stoush and it would seem it’s not over yet.

Guy is considering legal action against Rendell for comments made last week and on Sunday, Rendell didn’t back down.

“It was only my opinion,” Rendell said.

Guy might argue there’s a major difference between opinion and truth.

Rendell is a straight-shooter and a former Collingwood recruiter and has had the Pies in his sights for some time. It would appear Guy has ‘Bundy’ in his sights now.

LIKES

1. THE CAPTAIN AND CALEB

A captain’s quarter from Marcus Bontempelli in the final term with eight disposals, seven contested possessions, six score involvements and a goal. Little wonder the likes of Chris Judd and Dane Swan say he is a big-moments player.

Caleb Daniel was the other key for the Bulldogs. He had a mare for Two-and-a-half quarters playing more forward and started the final quarter on the bench.

When activated, he returned to defence, where he helped kill off the Blues. He had 11 disposals, three intercepts and went at 100 per cent by foot.

While the Blues lost momentum, run and delivery, Daniel and Bontempelli took over the game and the Bulldogs the contest. A glorious win at the ed.

2. PICKING FIGHTS

Loved the prison-jumper play after the game because it’s great to see clubs stand up for what they believe in. In this case, it is the traditional jumper.

The AFL played it low-key, not wanting to buy into the situation. Eddie McGuire, however, was more confrontational. He was picking a fight on the AFL’s behalf, even getting personal about the size of David Koch’s nose, after Koch called McGuire “Donald Trump’’.

It’s all getting pretty childish. Still, you can expect headquarters to make a call to Koch this week and find out if this will be ongoing exercise.

It shouldn’t be. After a Showdown if they win is a sufficient enough statement.

Anyway, Port has bigger issues this week. Ruckman Scott Lycett will be sent to the tribunal for slamming Ned McHenry’s head into the turf.

He should get three matches. It was a deplorable show of force and intent, even in the competitive moment, and the sight of McHenry in the aftermath was disturbing.

To think it — the slam tackle — was not so long ago an accepted part of the game is a blight on everyone in football.

Port Adelaide at its cheeky best.

3. THE JONES BOY

It was a demolition from the Eagles and just maybe they might have found another small forward in Jamaine Jones.

He’s a slow burn, Jones. He played seven games for Geelong in 2018, was delisted at the end of 2019, was picked up by the Eagles in the pre-season of 2020 and on Sunday played his eighth straight game this season.

The first six were ordinary but Adam Simpson persisted and Jones’s past two have produced 21 and two goals and on Sunday 14 and a goal.

He’s a watch as the Eagles try to balance their tall forward line with smalls

4. PRESSURE WINS MATCHES

The post-match was all about Geelong’s speed of ball movement from the back half, but what led to that outcome was Geelong’s willingness to not only compete, but to hunt Richmond.

That’s what Richmond does to all its opposition. If a team plays slow footy, the Tigers get them. If a team plays fast footy, the Tigers get them.

The Cats’ pressure in the dominating third quarter was a season-high 209. And it was the highest standard pressure: Front on and press. It didn’t allow the Tigers to surge when they won the ball because Cats players time and again were there to hunt the Tigers.

It was once said of Essendon by Leigh Matthews, if it bleeds we can kill it. The Tigers bled on Friday night because Geelong’s pressure forced a Tigers surrender, and not vice versa.

Gary Rohan is part of a very dangerous Geelong forward line.

5. GARY ROHAN

Don’t know about anyone else but am happy to have Gary Rohan’s name in the media for his footy performance and not his overpublicised private life.

The marriage split, there’s children, it’s very sad, we get it.

All the time, Rohan has tried to play footy. He ran out with his kids on Friday night, which is always a lovely family moment, and then proceeded to remind everyone what a dangerous player he is.

He kicked five goals against Richmond, forming one part of perhaps the game’s most productive three-headed monster in the forward line.

Don’t know if Rohan can maintain the form, but I do know that if anyone needed a player to kick for their life, Rohan would be a safe selection.

6. JORDAN DE GOEY

There’s not a story written about Collingwood recently that doesn’t include Jordan de Goey, Darcy Moore or Nathan Buckley.

At least after the weekend, they are all positive.

De Goey spoke after his six-goal performance, on one hand blaming the media for the sensational headlines and, on the other, blaming himself. “Obviously, I probably wasn’t at my best footy and I knew that myself, I don’t need other people to tell me that,” he said.

“It has been my own fault in the past, so there’s not many people to blame other than myself.”

It was a pure De Goey performance: One-on-one deep, plenty of space, his prowess too good for North’s Aiden Bonar.

He was targeted 15 times, seven more than the next best — Darcy Cameron with seven — and won three of his four one-on-one contests with Bonar.

Moore’s 19 marks in defence supported the avalanche of opinion that he is a backman and not a forward.

It’s probably right, but at least coach Nathan Buckley had the conviction to experiment. It didn’t work, so we move on.

Jordan De Goey celebrates one of his six goals. Picture: Michael Klein

7. TIM TARANTO

He’s back big time in the Giants’ midfield, and with a different mindset and role.

He was forging his career as an inside mid, which hit a wall somewhat in 2020 when the Giants’ season fell apart.

That season he averaged 85 ranking points, 21 disposals and 44 per cent by foot in 11 games.

This season, it’s 103, 29 and 55 by foot. He’s always been a high contested possession winner, but he’s added an outside layer to his game.

It’s produced career-high uncontested possessions, which makes a double-edged mid.

Add goals — he’s kicked just three for the season — and 23-year-old Taranto could emerge into the elite category.

8. TIM MEMBREY’S FINAL QUARTER

Leigh Matthews often laments how coaches are hamstrung on game day from making matchwinning moves.

St Kilda’s Brett Ratten did exactly that against the Suns on Saturday.

Membrey didn’t see the ball in the first three quarters in his customary forward role, so Ratten, needing to do something to salvage the win, sent Membrey behind the ball. In the final quarter, Membrey took five makes, four of them in the defensive half. Maybe it was a desperate move, but Ratten made something happen.

The Saints overwhelmed the Suns in the air, led by Membrey, Rowan Marshall and Patrick Ryder, and won a critical game.

9. JAMES HARMES

The hard-nosed midfielder added another layer to Melbourne’s midfield in his first senior game since he was injured in Round 1.

His redeployment back to the midfield was forecast by Simon Goodwin in the pre-season and Saturday night’s result suggests it will be a winner for the Demons.

Harmes’ best season for Melbourne was 2018 and his best run of games was mid to late 2018 when he was given a run-with role. Since then his career has spluttered along in roles across halfback and, at times, half-forward. Against the Swans, he filled Jack Viney’s inside mid role and had 31 disposals and a team-high 132 SuperCoach points. A future tagging role is not out of the question for Harmes.

James Harmes had a big game against the Swans.

10. BACKMEN ARE STIFF

Can’t wait for the coaches’ votes from the Showdown to see how coaches Ken Hinkley and Matthew Nick judged midfielder Travis Boak and defender Tom Clurey.

Boak won the Showdown Medal after yet another meritorious game in the middle. It was a good game. He had 28 disposals but went at 36 per cent efficiency in the wet.

Clurey had a season-high 10 spoils and 17 disposals and restricted Tex Walker to six disposals, one mark and a single behind. Clurey couldn’t have played a better game. He also had team-highs in intercept possessions (10) and marks (four).

10. RICH BUSINESS

Daniel Rich’s surge towards his first All-Australian jacket continued on Sunday night with another 30-disposal game. You’d reckon the time’s come for an opposition team to stop him from having it so easy. This year he is averaging 27 disposals and 662m gained, which places him No. 2 in the competition behind Adelaide wingman Paul Seedsman. Rich’s main opponent on Sunday night was Mitch Crowden. Not sure if he played as a defensive forward role. If it was, it didn’t work. If it wasn’t the young fella let Rich off the hook too much. An AA for Rich would be stellar recognition in his 13th season.