Mick Malthouse: Matchwinners of the AFL and those who can emerge
Coaching great Mick Malthouse has outlined several players who he believes can become consistent matchwinners. Are there any from your club?
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There was a significant moment in the ANZAC Day clash between Collingwood and Essendon that won the game for the Magpies.
As the game tightened up, I was waiting for one of the coaches to bring his “go-to player” into the action. The player with the most potential to influence the outcome of the match.
When Scott Pendlebury was injected into the centre in the final quarter, it all fell into place for Collingwood.
With his leadership and smarts, his direction, his cool head and safe hands, the Pies’ dismal clearance rate improved dramatically.
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He was the difference between a win and a loss. Not necessarily because of his physical presence – Pendlebury is hardly known for intimidating his opponent through brute force – but he strikes fear into the opposition because of what he is capable of doing, consistently.
He attended 10 of the 11 centre bounces in the final term and it was no fluke that Collingwood scored 12 points to one from that source during that last half hour.
The Bombers had nine players attend last quarter centre bounces - Zach Merrett (nine), Dylan Shiel (eight), Darcy Parish (eight), Ben Hobbs (three), Andrew McGrath (two), Jake Stringer (one), Jye Caldwell (one) and Archie Perkins (one). None of them could curtail the Collingwood captain’s impact.
Pendlebury’s efforts inspire his teammates, and the Magpie Army, and in that sense, he drags his team over the line.
His efforts inspire his teammates, and the Magpie Army, and in that sense, he drags his team over the line.
The Go-To. Mr Consistent. Mr Reliable. There are many names for a player of Pendlebury’s ilk. Players who aren’t necessarily multiple award winners but are game winners. Players who come in a range of sizes with a range of abilities.
Players with longevity and success. Their teammates love them, and their supporters love them even more.
If you can get a side over the line in a grand final with a performance worthy of the Norm Smith Medal, three times, then you are the ultimate go-to man. Dustin Martin is the epitome of the matchwinner.
Not everyone will agree with this name, but Taylor Walker is a game-winner at Adelaide. He had the Western Bulldogs’ backline in turmoil last week, and it’s no coincidence that the Crows have re-emerged as a finals threat since he returned to the team in round 4.
He is so reliable with his long and accurate kicking.
In the past 12 months, Max Gawn has proven to be one of the heroes of the competition. Even when Melbourne was struggling, Gawn was the go-to. The difference now is that he has greater support from the players around him.
We have seen Joel Selwood lift the Cats to victory on multiple occasions. I know I use his name frequently but that is because he is the ultimate warrior. He always leads from the front, he is reliable and consistent, and he is as tough as they come.
Patrick Dangerfield and Tom Hawkins are revered by Geelong supporters for their acts of heroism, and they are truly inspirational at times, but Selwood cops a bashing every time he plays and still delivers.
I will never forget a preliminary final at the MCG in 2002, when the heart-and-soul player of Collingwood, Anthony Rocca, put a torpedo punt post-high through the goals from 60m out, to elevate the Magpies and their supporters to a new level.
That kick effectively put us into the grand final.
That’s a go-to player in a go-to moment.
Leigh Matthews and Kevin Bartlett, two totally different footballers, did it so regularly for their teams in the 1970s and ’80s. The magnificence of Wayne Carey at North Melbourne, carrying his team over the line time and again. Tony Lockett, at both St Kilda and Sydney, unfortunately didn’t win a premiership, but put genuine fear into the opposition every game. Gary Ablett Snr’s versatility and greatness made every backman nervous, and yet he only won a single best and fairest award at Geelong.
Does the current game allow a player to drag a team over the line as much anymore? Such stop-start play deprives forwards of multiple goals in many instances.
But there appears to be a re-emergence of the big forwards, and we have some wonderful modern-day footballers who could be greater still with consistency – the missing piece of the puzzle.
The Brisbane Lions could be so much better if Joe Daniher wasn’t so inconsistent. The likes of Dermott Brereton and Malcolm Blight took just one moment of greatness to lift their teams, but they did it regularly.
Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow could one day be as effective and fearsome as Stephen Kernahan at Carlton who always dealt with the best key-backs and had a ruckman dropping back on him, such was his imposing presence.
The Saints’ Max King has the potential to lift his teammates and the crowd, as Nick Riewoldt did for so long. Because of his youth one couldn’t possibly put that pressure on him yet.
Sydney has always gone in search of a full-forward hero, and been blessed with the likes of Lockett, Barry Hall and now Lance Franklin. As much as it is a team game, their individual deeds so often translate to success.
What about the Western Bulldogs? Chris Grant was the Dogs’ go-to player for a long time. So too, tagger Tony Liberatore who would do anything to get his team a win. Is it Marcus Bontempelli? (He must be playing injured at the moment.)
Or could it be Tim English? He possesses the same attributes as Jim Stynes at Melbourne – athletic, big tank, big kick, big mark, and the crowd loves him. Once you get the crowd on your side it’s like having a 19th player on the field.
Essendon is in a flux. Jake Stringer, can be, could be, and sometimes is the go-to, but not always. We await the return of Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti who has been the Bombers’ barometer in recent seasons. Can either of them measure up to James Hird or Tim Watson? It wasn’t the physical fear of playing on those men, but the mental fear of how often they got the ball and what they could do with it that impressed on opposition teams.
Everyone loves a hero. These heroes are matchwinners. Match-savers are of a different temperament, and mainly from the backline. But a hero is a hero, and if they help your team win, then they are a superhero.
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