Four Points: Hawks and Sicily make statement in round of statements; push-in-the-back rule; falling Cats in rare ground

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This was a very upsetting round of football. It was an awful round for tipping and a brilliant round for watching.

In a round of statement performances, Hawthorn’s was probably the most remarkable. And within that game James Sicily’s the most convincing and authoritative statement of intent from the new captain.

James Sicily gets the ball away against St Kilda on Saturday.Credit: Getty Images

Two weeks ago, the Hawks had come off back-to-back 10 and nine-goal losses and were drifting. Beating West Coast, given where the Eagles are presently, was notable only for the size of the margin, not the fact of winning.

But coming from behind late to beat St Kilda and make it two wins in a row is a pointed comment about playing for wins, not draft picks, and that while progress is not linear, there is clear progress being made there.

What comment it made about the Saints remains unclear. But just a reminder that St Kilda were 8-3 after 11 rounds last year under Brett Ratten. They are now 7-4. This is a statement offered without comment.

Harry McKay.Credit: Getty Images

Which is different to the opening game of ‘statement round’ when Carlton were asked to make a statement to correct their season and offered only ‘no comment’.

Playing against a team without a recognised key defender and, still, the fact their Coleman medallists could not get close to the goals was lamentable. Previously, the yips only afflicted Harry McKay but this week Charlie Curnow couldn’t find the radar.

Enough time has been spent discussing McKay’s goalkicking that we needn’t dwell on it here, but it feels like the time has come for him to have a spell in the twos to take the pressure off and get back to playing with freedom and assurance. And accuracy. Don’t forget accuracy.

The Gold Coast Suns’ victory had a subtler context than every other teams, but it made the statement in their victory no less clear. The backdrop to the game had nothing to do with them– it was Damien Hardwick quitting and the idea that the Suns’ muddling about mid-table would see them chase the Richmond coach to replace Stuart Dew.

Dew knew it, he spoke about it mid-week and said, “I am the man for the job”. The team then made their comment and said we finally have to beat one of these good teams above us on the ladder. Not only did they win but they did so after being jumped early and then having to close out the game in the last quarter when the Dogs came at them again. There was maturity to this win which is something that has not been said of the Suns.

Walyalup beating Narrm was not so much an upset, given the Dockers’ return to form, but it was a game from the Demons that said we are a different team without Clayton Oliver. Luke Jackson, meanwhile, said to his old team, you are a different team without me. Jackson ended up going solo against Max Gawn and Brodie Grundy after Sean Darcy went down, and he beat them both.

Luke Jackson goes up against Max Gawn.Credit: AFL Photos

The victory was also the most significant for Walyalup since they turned around their poor start to the year. They beat Geelong last week, but this was bigger. They booted five goals from stoppages in the third quarter alone, which probably spoke to the Oliver’s absence at Narrm as much as anything. But also as a consequence raised a question about the depth of the Demons’ midfield.

The final statement was at the MCG on Sunday when Richmond fans applauded Damien Hardwick at the 17-minute mark of the first term. It was the most the Tigers could cheer on the day when the team could offer little more statement of their own.

Push in the back

Does the push-in-the-back rule still exist in marking contests? Seriously. The trend to ignoring players being pushed out that began as soon as the unpopular hands-in-the-back rule was dropped has reached the point where it feels like the rule has disappeared altogether.

Gerard Healy has long complained at the policing – or non-policing – of the rule and the latitude given to players, but it feels like it has worsened this year. Forget push in the back at ruck contests or on the goal line, different rules apply in those situations, just consider the standard marking contest.

James Sicily had a brilliant game, but he got away with a decent push out for a mark. Sicily is excellent at using his body to work players under the ball, but this was one was a push. Richmond’s Noah Balta was tremendous all day for the Tigers, but he got shoved out and lost his footing at the death in that game.

The umpires allowed Tom Hawkins to get away with a “show of strength” for years, and now it has become commonplace.

The hands-in-the-back rule was poor, as most mandatory rules are, but saying you can put your hands in the back to hold your position is very different to extending them to force the other player out. The balance has completely tilted the wrong way.

Falling Cats

In the entirety of Joel Selwood’s career, Geelong lost three games in a row once. This year they have already done it twice. The fact Selwood is not there is not the reason they have done that (though it won’t have helped), it is the absence of others that is largely the reason the Cats find themselves in this rare ground.

The last time they lost four in a row was 2006. They play the Bulldogs at Marvel next week.

Geelong’s malaise is largely personnel-driven. Paddy Dangerfield, Mitch Duncan and Cam Guthrie are out of their midfield and Max Holmes’ absence is as painful as any of that trio because of the pace he brings the Cats in creative running.

This is not to diminish the Giants’ effort. They played terrifically well, they pressured, hunted and beat Geelong around the ball and forward of it. They have now beaten Geelong the last three times they have played them in Geelong, so the fact they won is not a surprise – the surprise is how the reigning premier has fallen away.

Troublingly, they conceded 45 points from stoppages to the Giants. That comes after giving up 66 points from stoppages to Fremantle. That is 111 points in two rounds. For context, they gave up that amount in the previous five weeks.

Yes, that is largely about who is missing from their midfield than who is there. Compounding their problem on Saturday was Jeremy Cameron had rare misses in front of goal.

Jack Lukosius.Credit: AFL Photos

Rising Sun

When Izak Rankine walked out on the Suns he could not readily be replaced because match-winning players of his type are so rare they cannot just cut and paste someone else in.

Jack Lukosius, having been everywhere man to plug holes and gaps for the Suns – and admittedly, there have been many – has now settled into a role under Stuart Dew as the canny goal kicker. A beautiful kick, Lukosius is so smart and difficult to play on because of his athleticism and height he can play tall and small and be a target when all eyes are otherwise being drawn to Max King or Levi Casboult. Four goals in a quarter and five for the match was a good night. He doesn’t do it Rankine’s way, but the Suns are clear now on where he is best played.

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