What they got right and wrong: Each club’s wins and woes from Round 11

What did your club get right and what did your club get wrong in Round 11?

Draws, upsets, big wins and brilliant individual performances everywhere.

See our assessments below:

What they got right

Merciless annihilation

When you’re sitting outside the top eight and need every tiny bit of percentage on your side, you need to make the most of your easy kills – and Adelaide certainly did that.

They held the Eagles goalless for well over a quarter, kicking 137 points and walked away with a 99-point victory.

West Coast has been in good form, particularly at home, but Adelaide broke their spirit quickly on Sunday evening.

Reilly O’Brien continues to put up numbers

At 28, Reilly O’Brien is putting up the best numbers of his career.

He is averaging 40.7 hit-outs per game and has won 448 in total, 50 clear of Max Gawn in second.

O’Brien is winning more clearances per game than any season since 2018, while he is greatly restricting the impact of his opponents.

His hit-out dominance hasn’t necessarily translated to midfield and clearance control however, something for them to work on.

What they got wrong

They didn't win the stoppage clearances, I guess

West Coast's midfield was well held numbers wise, but they did win the clearances around the ground.

Adelaide also only laid two tackles inside 50? We're reaching for anything here... Given they kicked 21 goals and won by 99 points.

Nic Negrepontis

What they got right

Youngsters getting more exposure

Amid their injury woes, the Lions have been able to continue getting valuable minutes into their developing players.

Darcy Wilmot continues to have a strong season while Kai Lohmann has flourished in recent weeks and Jaspa Fletcher has played every game so far in 2024.

Throw in Bruce Reville and Logan Morris, plus Harry Sharp and Brandon Ryan, and that’s seven kids who have played 40 games or less.

Brisbane’s season might not be going to plan, but it must be said that this exposure for their inexperienced players is a positive.

What they got wrong

Missed chances… again

It feels like we’ve been harping on about this all season.

The Lions are creating the chances - they just can’t finish them.

They kicked 3.7 in a wasteful third quarter to Hawthorn’s 1.3. At least a goal or two better than that and they might have found themselves in front at three-quarter time.

Chris Fagan’s side finished with 10.15 to the Hawks’ far more efficient 15.10. Same amount of scoring shots and only two less inside 50s yet a 25-point loss.

Charlie Cameron had 5 shots but only returned 1.3 and one on the full. This year he has kicked 18.16 after 11 games. Last year he had 32.10 at the same point.

Couldn’t stop the run-ons

The Lions coughed up three lots of four straight goals throughout the game.

They conceded four unanswered goals from the 11-minute mark of the first quarter until quarter-time.

Another run of four straight goals was copped in a little over seven minutes in the second term.

Again the Lions conceded four without answer from the 28-minute mark of the third to the 16-minute mark of the fourth.

Brisbane’s pressure fell away dramatically in those blocks of time.

Dropped another one to the Hawks

That’s five defeats in a row at the hands of the Hawks.

Granted they haven’t played them at the Gabba during that time, but that’s a one-sided streak regardless.

It was a fairly important match for the Lions to win in order to stay in touch with the eight. They now sit 10 points in arrears as they head into their second bye.

Andrew Slevison

What they got right

Is one ruck the way to go?

Carlton is two completely different teams depending on whether they’re playing one ruck or two.

If Marc Pittonet and Tom De Koning play together, the Blues tend to dominate clearances, but struggle to move the ball from their defensive half and struggle to put forward half pressure on.

When they play only De Koning, the Blues seem to transform into a forward half pressure side capable of moving the ball at speed.

Is this a coincidence or do we have enough of a sample size to declare it?

De Koning had 25 disposals, 27 hit-outs and eight score involvements on the weekend, an enormous upgrade on his output when playing primarily forward.

Harry McKay also benefits from chopping out in the ruck, allowing him to get involved around the ground.

Zac Williams the forward

Props to Michael Voss for finding a way to reinvent Zac Williams and allow him to regain some confidence.

Williams has generally struggled this season across half back, dealing with injury niggles and failing to have much impact.

He has been thrown forward across the last fortnight, kicking four goals against the Suns and looking dangerous at ground level.

Williams could be the third goal kicking forward Carlton has been crying out for.

What they got wrong

Ball use going forward

Despite the comfortable win, it was frustrating at stages for Carlton fans watching the Blues butcher inside 50s, especially in the first half.

Sam Walsh seemed hellbent on making Mac Andrew look like prime Jeremy McGovern, lacing him out on three separate occasions going inside 50.

Given Carlton’s complete dominance of possession, they really should have been further up and won this game by more.

They were a little more efficient in the second half, which helped put the game to bed.

Nic Negrepontis

What they got right

Giving themselves more than enough chances to win

Collingwood well and truly gave themselves enough chances to win on Friday night against Fremantle.

While they ended up drawing 75-75, they were the better team on the night and were probably robbed late by some contentious umpiring calls.

Looking at expected score, Collingwood should have won by a score of 97 to 62. They also had five more scoring shots than their opponents.

While accuracy was also a, ‘What they got wrong’, having far more opportunities with a makeshift forward line deserves some credit.

On another day, the Pies leave Perth with a well-deserved four-point victory.

They’re really beginning to motor. It’s just a matter of if they’ve hit a breaking point with injury.

Clearance work and ruck influence

Fremantle’s biggest strength might be their midfield, but Collingwood beat them on the inside on Friday night.

The Pies won the clearance count 36-47, and that was again led by Nick Daicos who may have picked up ANOTHER three votes with 35 disposals, and 10 clearances.

That on-ball group was incredibly well supported by Darcy Cameron (21 disposals, 35 hitouts), who took the points up against a star ruck duo in Sean Darcy and Luke Jackson.

Collingwood’s midfield game has really stood up over the last month. If it remains in that shape once the forward cavalry return, look out.

What they got wrong

Last quarter capitulation

Everyone thought Collingwood was home once they went up 75-50 at the 19-minute mark of the fourth term.

Obviously, the Dockers would kick the next 4.1 in the next 15 minutes to snatch a draw.

While part of that was thanks to some brutal umpiring calls, the Pies shouldn’t have let Freo back into it to even give the umpires a chance to impact the game late.

Yes, injuries hurt Collingwood, but they really should have finished that game off – as they have in that situation so many other times under Craig McRae.

For the masters of the close finish, this is one they’d rather forget.

Mihocek selection

Collingwood took a risk picking Brody Mihocek off a hamstring injury on Friday night.

While the key forward played well for the first three quarters, kicking 2.2, he reinjured his hamstring late with his absence costing the Pies late as they couldn’t find a tall target.

The Pies would love their time again to pick Mihocek. There’s no doubt they’d give him an extra week off in hindsight to make sure he was in perfect shape for the back end of the season.

Now they’ll be without him again probably until after the bye.

Lachlan Geleit

What they got right

Ridley makes all the difference

It wasn’t just a best-on-ground performance by Jordan Ridley than won the Yiooken Award in a 12-point Dreamtime win for Essendon, but the lift he gave his teammates in the defensive 50.

Ridley had a whopping 14 intercepts among 34 disposals and 759 disposals in his first game for the year off a quad injury in sign Essendon should get better in 2024 with his presence.

But Ridley’s inclusion also freed up Dyson Heppell (26 disposals), Mason Redman (24 touches) and Jayden Laverde (13 intercepts) to play some of their best games of the year.

There are few players who can produce starring performances while also elevating their teammates. But on Saturday’s evidence, Ridley could be Essendon’s trump card in 2024.

Shedding the tag

Saturday’s win marked the fourth occasion in 2024 that Essendon has won a game by three goals or less as Brad Scott’s men prove they can stand up in the big moments.

Add to that games where the result was in doubt for the first half, such as matches against Hawthorn, the Bulldogs and Giants, and Essendon is proving they’ve shed the tag of a weak mental side.

Their percentage of 104.4 proves they’re not yet among the top tier teams, but they know how to win.

What they got wrong

Smashed around the clearance

It’s been a strong part of Essendon’s game in 2024, but the midfield unit wasn’t at their best against Richmond.

The Tigers were +10 in clearances and almost broke even in contested possessions with a deleted midfield. Sam Durham was the only Bomber to have more than 10 contested possessions as Todd Goldstein was smashed in the hitout count.

While Goldstein was good around the ground, Saturday’s evidence suggests he can’t get beat up in the ruck like that again.

Seb Mottram

What they got right

Go time late in the fourth quarter

Once Fremantle went down by 25 late in the last quarter, they hit the go button.

That all-out attack method resulted in them clinching a draw.

It was in stark contrast to their efforts in the first three quarters when they struggled to score and got themselves into a hole.

Using the ball with dare and without fear clearly paid off late, and it’s a wonder why they don’t play with a bit more of that freedom in other circumstances.

This team can score when they want to. Perhaps it’ll give Justin Longmuir something to think about going forward.

Accuracy

Fremantle should not have pinched a draw with the Pies on Friday night.

Looking at expected score, they should have lost by almost six goals.

The reason they were in the game was their accuracy – particularly late – and Collingwood’s relative inaccuracy throughout.

Accuracy in front of goal has been something that’s hampered the Dockers at stages, so perhaps their work in this space is beginning to pay off.

If they can continue outscoring their expected score with some nice finishing, they’ll certainly win more games than they’ll lose in the back half of the year.

What they got wrong

Ball movement for the first three and a half quarters

Fremantle found themselves staring down the barrel of defeat midway through the last quarter because of their stagnant ball movement.

While they won the disposal count 404 to 373 and took 101 marks to 79, the Dockers were still behind on the scoreboard until the final minute.

Again, Freo went slow and sideways too often.

Funnily enough, once they went direct, things began to work well for them.

It’s long been a criticism of Longmuir’s coaching and you get the feeling it’s something they’ll have to change if they’re to challenge the competition’s absolute elite.

If they go slow and steady next Sunday against Melbourne in Alice Springs, they’re no chance given the Demons’ elite intercepting defenders.

Let’s see if they change things up for that one.

Lachlan Geleit

What they got right

Not panicking just yet

No doubt the final few minutes were frustrating for Chris Scott, who then had to front the press after yet another loss, this time to GWS by four points.

But he produced another cool, calm media display.

“My assumption early in the year was that every team is going to go through patches where it gets a little bit difficult, and those that come through them will be the ones that finish up towards the top of the ladder,” Scott said.

“I think the greatest risk is you overcorrect and see problems that aren't necessarily there and you end up a bit confused as to how it is you want your game to look… within (our losses), we've kind of found a way to give ourselves a chance to win.”

It’s the right attitude considering the three of their last four losses have come by a combined 18 points.

What they got wrong

Where to start?

Geelong’s footy department must feel as if they’ve got 100 problems to fix this week. At least half a dozen players are well out of form, there are concerns in all thirds of the ground, the system is breaking down everywhere and the Cats can’t capitalise when they get momentum.

It’s too many problems to dissect, only for Scott to fix. However, he would be mildly buoyed by the fact that the Cats have so many issues yet were only a Mitch Duncan dropped mark away from a shot to win the game.

Match review dramas

The Cats are struggling enough in the midfield as it is and Scott certainly would have wanted Mark Blicavs and Jhye Clark available this week.

But that duo were suspended for separate bumps on Giant Lachie Whitfield and now Geelong’s on-ball unit is just as depleted as Richmond, their opponent for Round 11, if not more.

This game is no shoo-in, despite the Tigers’ woes, especially considering Richmond beat Essendon in clearances on Saturday.

Seb Mottram

What they got right

Ben Long as a small forward

The Suns have found something with Ben Long as a small forward. He’s a savvy player who gets to the right spots, attacks contest with ferocity and tackles hard.

Against the Blues, he laid five tackles, kicked two goals (easily could’ve had four) and finished with two goal assists as well.

Long has absolutely earned a shot at this role across the next few months.

What they got wrong

Bashed on the inside

Teams need to realise that sending their inside bull to Patrick Cripps does not work. The Giants learned this lesson the hard way earlier in this season with Tom Green and the Suns did on the weekend with Matt Rowell.

Cripps had a dominant, best on ground performance, ultimately a key part of Carlton’s win with his 13 clearances.

Rowell meanwhile was restricted to 15 disposals and just two clearances. He fought hard and laid 15 tackles, but this matchup did not work out for the Suns.

Bashed on the outside

Did the Suns touch the footy in the first quarter? It didn’t feel like it.

Carlton controlled possession almost completely, outside of a stretch in the second quarter.

The Blues had 270 uncontested possessions to Gold Coast’s 156. They won the clearances, got the ball to the outside and the Suns simply couldn’t win it back.

Nic Negrepontis

What they got right

Handled the big tasks well

Adam Kingsley set some of his Giants players some big tasks on Geelong’s stars.

Xavier O’Halloran played a defensive forward role on Tom Stewart and quelled the five-time All-Australian’s influence.

While Stewart finished the game with 20 disposals and eight marks, he took just two intercept marks and only had 13 touches and four marks to three-quarter time.

Connor Idun played similarly influential role on Jeremy Cameron, restricting him to just 17 disposals, four inside 50s and a goal. The star Cat had only two touches in the tight final term.

Aside from beating his opponent, Idun also had a game-high 13 intercept possessions included in his 19 touches.

They were two big jobs which helped the Giants break a three-game losing streak.

Leek unleashed

Wow! That was some performance from seventh-gamer Leek Aleer.

He took two enormous defensive marks in the final quarter for a total of seven marks (including six intercept and four contested).

There’s a lot to like about his athleticism and rawness. The Giants just need to harness it.

Inexperienced midfield stepped up

Without Josh Kelly (injured) and Callan Ward (ill), and despite losing Stephen Coniglio to a shoulder injury in the second quarter, the Giants held up in the middle.

We all know how good Tom Green is, but the 23-year-old did have help from emerging types such as Finn Callaghan and James Peatling who combined for 43 touches and 12 clearances.

Not as young, but ruckman Kieren Briggs asserted his authority on the contest with 44 hit-outs, 23 disposals, eight clearances and seven tackles.

Toby’s goal

It was a special moment from the skipper.

His perfect banana in the final term ended up being the match-winning goal.

Greene’s 24 touches and two majors were enormous in leading his side to a fourth straight win at GMHBA Stadium.

What they got wrong

Midfield beaten late

We did praise the inexperienced midfield for getting the job done, but that group was comfortably beaten in the final quarter.

They lost clearances 8-14 in the fourth term and were belted 5-24 for inside 50s.

The Giants could have been overrun but did show plenty of character.

Injuries mounting

The injuries are mounting at the Giants with Coniglio likely to spend time on the sidelines and Harry Perryman hurting his hamstring.

They already had double figure numbers on their injury list and it hasn’t exactly eased up.

Kingsley’s playing group now gets a week off to freshen up for the second half of the season.

Andrew Slevison

What they got right

The scalp they needed

The jury is still out on just how good Brisbane is in 2024, but this was Hawthorn’s best win of the year on Sunday.

A dismantling of the Lions’ system, combined with a consistent effort across the 22 on the park was all it took for Hawthorn to runaway comprehensive 25-point winners.

The Hawks have now won three of their last four games against teams that were all – in pre-season – expected to play finals in 2024.

Mitchell’s men are moving the ball superbly and have rightly lifted themselves out of the bottom four.

Learnt from last week

After going into their shells last week against Port Adelaide and blowing a 28-point lead at the final break, the Hawks weren’t going to make the same mistake twice.

Mitchell’s troops only had an eight-point lead at the final break on Sunday at Marvel Stadium but this time kept the foot on the pedal and played their best quarter for the match, kicking five goals to two in the last term.

The young Hawks are growing in front of our eyes.

What they got wrong

Should Breust have come on sooner?

Sunday played out almost perfectly for the men in brown and gold.

But if we were to nitpick, should Luke Breust have been activated as the sub?

The veteran only came on with around five minutes left and at that time, the Hawks were well in protect the game mode.

Breust kicked a major and had five touches in his short burst and undoubtedly could have had a bigger impact with more time on ground.

But there cannot be any criticism levelled at the Hawks this week.

Seb Mottram

What they got right

Brutal in the contest

After being shown up by the Eagles last week, the Demons needed to respond in the contest to ensure that last week’s performance was just a one off.

Although they recorded three less than their season average on the weekend, winning the contested possession stat for the first time in three weeks would please Simon Goodwin a lot.

Coupled with doubling the Saints in contested marks for the afternoon, the Demons made a statement to the rest of the competition that they wouldn’t be pushed around two weeks in a row.

Versatility in goal kickers

Despite the issues and doubt around Melbourne’s forward line, the versatility that they showed on the weekend can give Demons fans great hope that the club is slowly finding a way closer to forming the winning formula.

Of Melbourne’s key forwards (Petty, van Rooyen and Fritsch), five of the Demons 14 goals for the afternoon came from them with three of them coming from van Rooyen alone.

Likewise, six of the remaining nine goals were kicked from midfielders in Petracca (two goals), Viney (two goals), Hunter (one goal) and Gawn (one goal).

What they got wrong

Defending transition ball movement is starting to go backwards

Despite the convincing win, an aspect of Melbourne’s game that would have Goodwin and his coaching staff concerned would be how their transition game is looking when defending the opposition.

Melbourne produced their worst defensive effort this season when it came to defending the transition game, conceding a season high 50 points for the afternoon.

Frustratingly for the Demons, this resulted in 80% of St Kilda’s score and could have lead to an even bigger percentage boost for the club if they were to have defended it better.

Likewise, Melbourne’s three worst performances in this stat have come within the last four games – further highlighting the drop off in defensive form which could come back to bite the club if they’re not careful.

Zac Sharpe

What they got right

Matching it with Port at the contest

While North Melbourne went down by 59 on the scoreboard, they actually matched it on-ball against Port Adelaide in Hobart.

Looking at the clearance count, the Roos only lost that stat 32-34, which is a pretty impressive number given they were playing against the likes of Ollie Wines, Travis Boak, Jason Horne-Francis, Zak Butters and Willem Drew.

They were led by Luke Davies-Uniacke (nine clearances), Harry Sheezel (seven clearances), George Wardlaw (five clearances) and Tristan Xerri (three clearances) in that aspect.

On a down day, it’s something that the Roos can hang their hat on.

What they got wrong

Inside 50 efforts and efficiency

North Melbourne had 40 inside 50s on Saturday but could only muster 13 shots on goal.

While they were somewhat accurate kicking 7.6 (48), they’re not going to beat anyone having just 13 shots at goal.

They either need to get more efficient or get more inside 50s.

Given they actually matched Port in clearances, it’s their work immediately post-stoppages that is letting them down.

It’s two areas of their game that must be addressed if they’re to pick up their first win any time soon.

Lachlan Geleit

What they got right

Dominating the air inside 50

Port Adelaide absolutely dominated in the air up forward on Saturday.

The Power took a huge 18 marks inside the arc compared to North Melbourne’s eight.

Todd Marshall (five goals) was the main beneficiary, while Darcy Byrne-Jones, Mitch Georgiades, Zak Butters and Ollie Wines all kicked multiple goals.

The Power ended up having 27 scoring shots, and the fact that they were able to have 18 set shots played into that significantly.

Yes, the Roos have a poor aerial defence, but it was still impressive to see the Power take full advantage of that and slice them up with ball use going forward.

Veteran midfield return

With Connor Rozee out of the team and Zak Butters nullified somewhat by Liam Shiels, two veterans wound back the clock for the Power.

They were Ollie Wines (two goals, 26 disposals and six clearances) and Travis Boak (25 disposals, 12 marks) who both had a big say in the win.

While both players have been somewhat up and down in 2024, their ability to still bring something close to their absolute best when needed gives Port Adelaide an awesome base to work with.

If they can keep up that form when Rozee returns and Butters has a big say, then the Power will be simply dominant across the middle of the ground.

What they got wrong

Slow start

While Port Adelaide eventually pulled away, they didn’t start on fire.

In fact, the Roos even led until the 28th minute of the first term.

Yes, this is a pretty stiff aspect to point out, but you would have expected Port Adelaide to come out firing after they shipped six goals against Hawthorn in the first quarter of the Round 10 one-point win.

They’d want to begin jumping out of the blocks better than they have in recent weeks if they’re to take care of Carlton at home on Thursday night.

Lachlan Geleit

What they got

The spirit was back

After two absolutely disastrous weeks, Richmond simply needed to show some spirit.

It was a massive occasion for Dreamtime against Essendon at the MCG and the Tigers had to bring the effort and intent.

That they absolutely did in a game that they could have pinched but ultimately fell short in.

The Tigers are undermanned due to a crippling injury list and after being battered pillar to post by the Dogs and Lions, they were able to save some face with a competitive and spirited display.

Vintage Dusty

Wasn’t the performance of Dustin Martin nice to see?!

He had 23 touches and kicked three goals - including a remarkable curler in the first quarter - and certainly looked up for the fight.

Martin has a great record in Dreamtime matches as a two-time Yiooken Award winner and again polled votes in the game, finishing third behind Jordan Ridley an Zach Merrett.

It was vintage Dusty and we’re here for it.

Won the clearance battle

There were promising signs in the midfield as the Tigers won the clearance battle.

Led by captain Toby Nankervis (eight clearances), Dion Prestia and Liam Baker (both four clearances), as well as Thomson Dow (five clearances), the Tigers won overall clearances 41-31 thanks to a 12-9 centre clearance ascendancy and 29-22 at stoppage clearances.

Despite that, they couldn’t quite turn it into more territory and more shots on goal.

What they got wrong

Repeat entries didn’t mount

There were stages during the game where the Tigers had repeat inside 50s yet couldn’t capitalise.

The Dons were so good at transitioning the ball so quickly from those stoppages and scoring against the run of play.

The sort of stuff that can crush spirit, but the Tigers did remain engaged for the most part.

Inopportune Bolton knock

It’s never a good time to lose a star, but the timing of Shai Bolton’s departure from the field was very inopportune.

At the time the Tigers were down by eight points and playing well. It may have been a different story if he was able to play on.

Yze will be without Bolton for the trip to the Cattery to play Geelong next week, so will need get creative at the selection table.

Low tackle count

Once again, the Tigers had less of the ball only to finish the game with less tackles.

The Dons worked harder for longer, winning the disposal count 400-354 and the tackle count 49-37.

While the spirit did return from a Richmond perspective, the determination and pressure dissipated at stages which invited the Bombers in.

Andrew Slevison

What they got right

The CHAD

It is quite possible that the Sydney Swans will have joint Brownlow medal winners in Isaac Heeney and Chad Warner and the latter put on another clinic against the Bulldogs.

25 disposals, 10 score involvements, six inside 50s, four clearances, four tackles, four goals and an early mark of the year contender.

Capitalised on their strong pressure

You can put it down to poor skill execution but the Swans’ pressure was enormous on Thursday night and they made the Bulldogs pay.

The Swans laid 75 tackles which is 10 above their season average of 65. Despite losing in every major stat on the night, the Swans outscored the Dogs despite less shots on goal.

What they got wrong

Uncharacteristic ill-discipline

Whilst the Swans may have been gifted a late and dubious 50-metre penalty, their own discipline was far from exemplary. After conceding a free kick right on defensive 50, Brodie Grundy threw an unnecessary gut punch at Tim English in plain view of the umpire and handed the Bulldogs their second goal.

Later in the match, Chad Warner pointed towards the big screen at Marvel Stadium to criticise the high tackle decision which resulted in another 50 metre penalty and another goal for the Bulldogs.

Charles Goodsir

What they got right

Transition game is improving

For the second half of this season, the Saints have been struggling to score when moving the ball from their backline to their forward line and has seemingly been a major reason why they’ve gone backwards in this period.

On the weekend, this definitely wasn’t the case.

Despite the overall disappointing performance, the Saints can hold their heads up high for being able to improve in this area and score their biggest score from the D50 transition for the season.

Additionally, their 50 points that they scored from this stat was three goals above what they’ve been averaging over the last five games.

What they got wrong

Bullied at the coalface

St Kilda were physically outplayed on the weekend and would be disappointed with how they performed in most of these crucial errors.

The Saints loss the contested possession count and the centre bounce clearances which allowed the Demons to dictate how the game would be played for majority of the afternoon.

Additionally, St Kilda conceded 16 contested marks for the whole game, which was the most they’ve conceded so far this season. What’s even worse, only six other teams have conceded more than 16 contested marks in a game this season.

To put it frankly, they were outmuscled both in the air and on the ground on the weekend.

Pressure was way off

For a side that prides itself on pressure, the Saints were well off in this mark on the weekend and would be embarrassed with how they performed in this area.

St Kilda only managed 44 tackles for the game, which was the lowest that they’ve registered all season.

Likewise, the Saints only managed four tackles inside 50 for the whole game, which was seven below their season average.

This is a stat that would've had Ross Lyon seething when reviewing the game and could see some heads roll at the selection table ahead of their match against the Eagles this week.

Zac Sharpe

What they got right

Stoppage clearances

There wasn’t much that went right for the Eagles on Sunday, but at least they won the stoppage clearances?

It’s been area of concern for West Coast all year, ranking third-last in the competition despite their overall clearance game looking much healthier, clearly being carried by their tidy work in the centre square.

The Crows have been one of the league’s best at stoppage this season, so the fact that the Eagles managed to win the battle amidst a display like that is one of the more bizarre quirks of the season.

What they got wrong

Completely different on the road

2024 has been a tale of two sides for West Coast.

In front of their ever-faithful supporters the Eagles have been completely revitalised, boasting a record of 3-2, with all of those wins coming by a margin over 30 points.

However as soon as they step foot outside Optus Stadium, West Coast reverts back to the uncompetitive side they were in 2022 and 2023, losing all six away games this year by an average margin of 59 points.

Their 99-point loss to the Crows was the Eagles’ biggest losing margin of the season and was easily their worst display of 2024, barely putting up a fight as they had just 36 per cent of possession for the game.

A return to Optus next week marks a welcome reprieve for West Coast, with three of their next four games on their home deck.

Jack Makeham

What they got right

Going toe-to-toe with the competition’s best

If there’s ever going to be a loss that makes you more confident in your finals credentials, it would be the Bulldogs’ display against the Swans.

The Dogs triumphed in essentially every statistical category other than the scoreboard, taking the fight to the flag favourites in a fashion that the bulk of the competition hasn’t been able to this season.

The 14-point margin that saw the Swans over the line certainly favours John Longmire’s men, with the Bulldogs boasting six more scoring shots and closing the gap to single digits late in the final term.

Luke Beveridge’s squad did have some trouble with the relentless pressure imposed by Sydney, however they easily triumphed in both contested possessions and inside 50 count.

The Bulldogs may be sitting 11th, but their game is in the best shape it has been all year and their finals hopes look bright.

What they got wrong

Scoring efficiency

If the Bulldogs can sort out their accuracy on goal, they will skyrocket to becoming one of the most potent attacks in the competition.

They’ve kicked 39.57 across their last three games, averaging 32 scoring shots in that span but with just 13 of those being majors.

With the Dogs being one of the better sides in the competition when it comes to scores per inside 50, it’s clear that capitalising on these opportunities is their next step.

Injury woes continue

The Bulldogs came into Thursday night with several key names on their injury list.

They left with several more.

Just minutes into his first game for 2024, Anthony Scott saw his day end without a touch after being substituted out of the game with concussion.

Things got worse in the second term when Aaron Naughton had his knee trapped in a tackle by Lewis Melican, suffering a medial ligament injury that will keep him out for at least a month.

The third quarter was no reprieve either for the Bulldogs, with Ed Richards’ stretch of white-hot form being cut short after leaving with a concussion from a head clash with Ollie Florent.

With this trio joining Tom Liberatore, Cody Weightman and Jason Johannisen on the sidelines, Luke Beveridge’s infamously creative selection abilities look set to be put to the test.

Jack Makeham