By Peter Ryan, Jon Pierik, Gemma Grant and Marc McGowan
Bailey Smith is never boring.
Geelong’s boom recruit played his first game, of sorts, for the Cats on Monday in a match simulation hit-out against arch rival Hawthorn, getting plenty of the ball and making a fashion statement in the process.
Bailey Smith made a statement with his football and with his choice of headwear.Credit: Getty Images
After spending his final year at the Western Bulldogs on the sidelines in 2024, Smith burst out of the blocks for the Cats with 10 possessions in the first 15 minutes playing on the wing and through the midfield.
He did not necessarily break the lines with dashing runs, but positioned himself well to intercept possessions and kick the ball inside 50. He began the second half inside 50 at centre bounces before finishing his day midway through the third quarter before four late goals from Ollie Henry helped the Cats to a 20-point win, 15.16 (106) to 13.8 (86).
But it wasn’t just Smith’s football that turned heads. Always at the cutting edge of fashion trends, he used a thick white headband to keep the sweat out of his eyes and flowing mullet in place.
While plenty of players have sported similar accessories over the years, the AFL warned he would not be allowed to wear this particular item – with the Nike swoosh prominently displayed – on the field when official matches start next week.
Cats’ assistant James Rahilly said Smith was relieved to get through the game.
“He was anxious, like anyone would be after having a year off,” Cats’ assistant Rahilly said. Another
Geelong recruit, Jack Martin – formerly of Carlton – played a half in the VFL after the main game with the Cats being cautious given the veteran’s injury history.
Will has a day out: Will Day he showed why he is such an important player for Hawthorn with an outstanding performance. He is smart and complements the midfield grunt of Jai Newcombe, Conor Nash and James Worpel. “He’s had a good summer, and he has touched on it being the first full pre-season he has had. He looked the player we know he is going to be,” Hawthorn assistant David Hale said. “He is dynamic inside and he kicked a couple of goals to add to the scoreboard, which is something we want him to do a bit more of.”
Hawthorn fans would have been pleased to see Will Day strutting his stuff against Geelong.Credit: Getty Images
Knevitt makes a mark: Mitch Knevitt was impressive in the middle for the Cats and will contend for a round one spot along with key defender Connor O’Sullivan who took two outstanding intercept marks in the first half. “Mitch Knevitt has been training really well, and he showed that through the middle of the ground, and Connor O’Sullivan was strong,” Rahilly said. The best Hawks youngster was Bailey Macdonald who was willing to break the lines.
Defensive battle begins: Hawks recruit Josh Battle was solid without being spectacular, as is the way of the former Saints’ defender. Although he left the ground late with a corkie, he showed he will be a handy addition to the brown and gold backline. How the Hawks fit James Sicily, Battle and Tom Barrass – who was on his honeymoon – and Sam Frost into their defence remains a mystery. Jack Scrimshaw did not play the second half after being accidentally poked in the eye during the second quarter. The Hawks are hopeful the injury isn’t serious.
Dangerous forward: Cats’ champion Patrick Dangerfield started forward alongside Jeremy Cameron and did not attend a centre bounce. How many goals he would kick if left as a permanent forward is one of those nice questions to ponder, and it might become reality (although we know not to put much store in what the Cats say about positions at this time of the season). “There will be times when we definitely need ‘Paddy’ playing with the midfield, but he has trained a fair bit forward, and he is going really well,” Rahilly said.
No.1 draft pick Sam Lalor came off second-best in this incident against West Coast.Credit: Fox Footy/Kayo
Tigers no.1 pick concussed
No.1 draft pick Sam Lalor has been concussed and could require scans on his jaw after he was involved in a sickening collision in the Tigers’ six-goal loss to the West Coast Eagles in match simulation at Mineral Resources Oval on Monday.
Lalor had been impressive up forward and through the midfield in his first serious hitout for the Tigers, booting two goals. But he was left dazed and feeling his jaw after he was hurt in an incident in the final two minutes of the three-term game.
Lalor was leading for a mark when his opponent Reuben Ginbey pushed him in the back and straight into the back of oncoming Eagle Sandy Brock, who had taken an intercept mark.
Lalor, who barely had time to brace for the clash, lay on the field, and was assessed before he was taken from the field. A free kick was paid against Ginbey, denying Brock of his mark.
Sam Lalor in the hands of trainers after a heavy knock.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
The Tigers were due to leave Perth on Monday afternoon.
Speaking before Lalor’s concussion diagnosis was confirmed, Tigers assistant coach Sam Lonergan said he expected the boom recruit would be available for round one, irrespective of the outcome of his testing, as the minimum rest required under concussion protocols is 12 days.
“I suspect he will be ready regardless. We just have to wait and see what happens with the concussion and the protocols, how many days, if it is, if it isn’t,” Lonergan said.
The Tigers face Collingwood in their only official practice match on February 26, but they don’t open the season proper until they face Carlton at the MCG on March 13.
Essendon great Matthew Lloyd said on social media that Ginbey should be cited by the match review officer.
“Has to be looked at that incident from Ginbey on Lalor. Lalor in such a vulnerable position and the ball player needs to be protected. A form of tunneling,” Lloyd said on X.
Lalor is seen as the new Dustin Martin and showed why he is the future of the club with two goals. He began inside attacking 50 and delivered the Tigers’ first major after a strong mark and conversion from 30 metres, and converted from a similar range in the final term.
He spent about 50 per cent of the game through the midfield, and more than held his own at centre bounces and at stoppages.
He will work well alongside Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper when they return.
Project ruckman Oliver Hayes-Brown, a former Perth Wildcat in the National Basketball League, and now a listed rookie after playing with Old Ivanhoe Grammarians last year, also impressed with his work around the ground and up forward.
“He has got the size and athleticism. It’s about bringing the skills across,” Eagles premiership player Will Schofield said while commentating on Kayo.
With several of their prime movers absent, including Tom Lynch, Jacob Hopper, Tim Taranto, Nick Vlastuin, Nathan Broad and skipper Toby Nankervis, Richmond’s only player in the contest with more than 70 games of experience was Kamdyn McIntosh.
Tigers coach Adem Yze had his team play a high-possession game, but this came unstuck as the ball was too often turned over and they were scorched on the rebound. “I don’t see this winning many games of footy … but they could be using it to educate all facets of the game,” Schofield said.
Liam Baker and Jack Graham were impressive – but not for the Tigers. The new Eagles have taken their premiership credentials home to Perth, and both showed why they will be missed at Punt Rd. Graham was a bull in the midfield, while Baker’s fierce tackling was something the Eagles have lacked.
Surgery for Weightman as Ugle-Hagan remains unsighted
Gemma Grant
Western Bulldogs small forward Cody Weightman will miss half of the upcoming AFL season following a knee surgery, while teammate Jamarra Ugle-Hagan was absent at training on Monday despite hopes he would attend.
The Bulldogs will be without playmaker Cody Weightman for half the season.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
Weightman has been dealing with bipartite patella, a rare knee condition. He had previously been on a modified training program to combat soreness.
Chris Bell, head of sports medicine with the Bulldogs, said that surgery has become the best option.
“This injury has not caused Cody any concerns across his career until he received some direct impact on it during a pre-season training session.” Bell said.
“A return to play plan will be finalised in coming weeks, with Cody set to miss the next three months.”
Meanwhile, Ugle-Hagan missed training in Footscray on Monday morning as he continues to undertake “flexible training arrangements as he deals with personal issues,” according to a club statement in January.
Ugle-Hagan travelled to Perth alongside the Indigenous All Stars team at the weekend. He didn’t play in that team, but told Seven News reporters beforehand that he was excited to be travelling with the Indigenous team.
“Right now I’m just going to take it day by day, obviously enjoy this trip ... just have fun. See what happens. And hopefully I’m back training on Monday,” the 22-year-old said at the airport on Friday.
The club confirmed that Ugle-Hagan did not attend a team session on Monday morning. On Saturday, Bulldogs assistant coach Brendon Lade said that the club expected Ugle-Hagan to return to training this week. “He sounds excited to come back to training on Monday, and we look forward to him being here,” Lade said.
Weightman and Ugle-Hagan join a growing group of unavailable players for the Dogs. Adam Treloar is set to miss the start of the season because of a calf strain, as will Jason Johannisen and defender Liam Jones, who both have hamstring injuries.
Why a search for a sidekick could make or break the Demons
Marc McGowan
Shane McAdam’s cruel Achilles tendon rupture – the latest setback in a career riddled with injuries – has added further mystery to the make-up of Melbourne’s maligned forward line.
Shane McAdam was helped off the ground at Casey.Credit: Joe Armao
The former Crow arrived at the Demons via a trade two years ago in the hope he could add a new element in attack, but played only three games last season and faces another extended absence following likely surgery after hurting himself in match simulation on Friday.
Melbourne’s big hope is Jacob van Rooyen, a 21-year-old key forward who ex-Demon Russell Robertson likened to a “young David Schwarz” for their physical likeness but also fearless attack on the Sherrin.
“I feel like I’ve put in a really strong block over the pre-season. It hasn’t been interrupted at all, and hopefully, it stays that way,” van Rooyen said.
“I’m really looking forward to [this season], and working with the group we have, and building off last year. I’m only 21, so I’ve still got a lot to learn [with] my forward craft.”
Jacob van Rooyen is the centrepiece of Melbourne’s forward line.Credit: Getty
Van Rooyen kicked 58 goals across the past two seasons and shapes as a future star, but the Demons are yet to find a reliable second tall target to partner him.
That is one of the reasons Melbourne were the fifth-lowest scoring team in the AFL last year, mustering a paltry 77.6 points per game as they tumbled to 14th on the ladder and missed finals for the first time since 2020.
Coach Simon Goodwin’s experiment with Harry Petty as a forward failed, and he will return to defence this year, while Matt Jefferson – the No.15 pick in the 2022 draft – is yet to play a senior game.
For all their draft success in different areas of the ground, particularly in the midfield, Melbourne have struggled to unearth a key forward besides van Rooyen, with Sam Weideman also a bust as a top-10 pick a decade ago.
They opted not to select one with any of their four first-round picks in the past two drafts, including passing on the likes of Jonty Faull, Harry Armstrong, Jack Whitlock and Thomas Sims last year.
Melbourne instead took a punt on late-bloomer Aidan Johnson, a “very, very aggressive” 193-centimetre forward out of VFL club Werribee and Lavington, with the 68th selection.
The club’s national recruiting manager Jason Taylor said at the time that he had tracked 24-year-old Johnson for several seasons.
“We think he could potentially have an instant impact for us,” Taylor said. “We’re excited by what he could become.”
The Demons’ two key forwards in their drought-breaking 2021 grand final triumph were the since-retired Ben Brown – secured in a trade with North Melbourne – and Tom McDonald, who started his career as a defender and is back there now.
However, their attempt to transform Brodie Grundy into a forward-ruck in his one season at the club backfired spectacularly; he was not even selected in their finals campaign that year.
Bayley Fritsch, a 188-centimetre lead-up forward, has kicked 38 or more goals in each of the past four seasons and is the most reliable option Melbourne have, while Kysaiah Pickett is one of the game’s best and most prolific small forwards.
Kade Chandler, another small forward, is also a regular goalkicker.
But the Demons lost Alex Neal-Bullen, their best game runner and pressure player, to Adelaide last year after he requested a trade home on compassionate grounds. They recruited fringe Lion Harry Sharp to fill the void.
The latest tall forward being used alongside van Rooyen in attack is Daniel Turner, another ex-defender who was the last pick in the 2021 mid-season draft.
Turner kicked 17 goals in 15 games last year, including three hauls of at least three. Melbourne rewarded him with a two-year extension.
Former Brisbane player Tom Fullarton, a forward-ruck, is also on the Demons’ list. Van Rooyen said having so many options was “a good problem”.
“There are still a lot of guys fighting for those spots,” van Rooyen said. “And they are all looking really strong.”
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