AFL Five Things We Learned From Round 10

Author Photo
Sam Docherty

Don't get carried away with Gold Coast's ladder position
The Suns have made great strides this season to be sitting third on the ladder with seven wins from nine matches. But talk of them challenging for the top four are wide of the mark. Six of their seven wins have come against the bottom six sides and while their win over North Melbourne was credible, the Roos have proven to be the most inconsistent side in the comp. They were completely outclassed against contenders Fremantle (48 points) and Hawthorn (99 points). On Sunday, Gold Coast completed a 45-point win over the Western Bulldogs. As the margin grew, the commentators were seemingly hoping it would get big enough for the Suns to leapfrog second-placed Geelong on the ladder. Sure Gold Coast have improved significantly this year, but let's judge them in six weeks after they've played Adelaide (away), Sydney, West Coast (away), Geelong, Hawthorn (away) and Collingwood.

From Chill Pill to Thrill Spill
Sunday’s Carlton v Adelaide match at the MCG may have had a grandstand finish but there is no escaping the fact the first half was a snorefest, filled with amateur skill level and a lack of dare from both sides. It was enough to have fans at home throwing their pay TV remotes at the box. It goes to show, even in 2014, following the footy on the radio remains an excellent option.

Instead of becoming depressed watching repeated turnovers and bewildering umpiring decisions while anchored to your couch, you can spend your Sunday afternoon pottering around the house with one ear on the wireless. The Blues and Crows combined for just six goals in the first two quarters, think of all the odd jobs around the home you could have done in that time. And if you choose your radio station carefully, there are no idiotic statements from Dwayne Russell to destroy your day.

Struggling GWS are becoming a massive concern for the AFL
After such a promising start to the season that yielded two wins over Sydney and Melbourne, the Giants have gone completely backwards. Their last two matches resulted in two 100-point floggings by West Coast and Richmond. The loss to the Tigers was particularly concerning given they had arguably their best side in. Their development will always be tracked against Gold Coast but that's unfair given the Suns have the best player in the comp playing for them. The Giants lack that star player that can will his side over the line. But perhaps even more concerning was the low crowd that turned up to Spotless Stadium. Only 8331 watched the game, which was marginally better than their Round 3 attendance against Melbourne. They play Essendon and Carlton at the venue in the coming weeks and they would be banking on at least 10,000 attending both of those games.

The Coleman Medal Race is a lottery
It's the most open race in years for the Coleman as the game's big forwards dip in and out of form. Jack Riewoldt is the new favourite with the bookies to take it out once again after bagging 11 on the weekend. Suddenly everything is rosy in Jack Land. He's on top of the Coleman table with 28 goals, but before that he'd only kicked 17 goals in eight games and we were wondering about Richmond's ability to deliver the ball to him. Collingwood's Travis Cloke doesn't appear a Coleman contender now with just 10 goals to his name for the season and plenty of issues with his confidence, while North's Drew Petrie is in a similar boat. The Kangaroos big man also has just 10 goals to his name, but did lift his rating on Friday night and kicked three against the Cats. Yet, a few big games in a row for this pair could change the Coleman race completely, while West Coast's Josh Kennedy is capable of anything on his day.

Luke Breust, though, is enjoying another quality campaign for the Hawks, outshining the likes of Jarryd Roughead and Jack Gunston to be the Hawks' highest goalscorer with 27 to his name, to be second on the Coleman medal table. Breust could be a serious contender as well, especially as he's only notched up four behind in 2014. But maybe the best option is the big Tomahawk. Free of the back issues that have plagued recent seasons, Tom Hawkins is having an immense year, kicking vital goals and setting up other. He did have one goalless match in terrible conditions against Richmond a few weeks back, but booted four against North Melbourne and set up several others on Ffirdya night.

Pies depth
Collingwood have an opportunity to consolidate their position in the top eight over the next three weeks against St Kilda, Melbourne and the Bulldogs but questions linger over the defensive depth. Premiership defender Nathan Brown appears at long odds to play again this season after dislocating his shoulder for a second time against West Coast on Saturday. Brown can be covered by Lachlan Keefe but any more injuries to key defenders will cause issues for Collingwood, especially as Ben Reid remains troubled by ongoing calf issues.

Ben Sinclair may have been in contention this week against the Saints – especially if Jarryd Blair gets rubbed out for his hit on Mitch Brown – but he's also injured his hamstring in the VFL while Paul Seedsman has taken a knock to his knee. However, the Pies do have Taylor Adams, Patrick Karnezis, Sam Dwyer and Kyle Martin waiting in the wings, so their issues pale in comparison when compared to other sides. Now if only they could get Travis Cloke firing!

Author(s)