What they got right & wrong: The wins & woes from Round 19

Another fascinating weekend of footy as teams in and around the top eight continue to jockey for finals positions.

Who were the big winners out of Round 19? And which teams had the deepest woes?

See our assessments of each game below:

Essendon v Adelaide

Conceding goals late cost the Dons dearly

Essendon led by 15 points with seven minutes remaining when Jade Gresham finished with a clever check-side.

The Bombers conceded almost immediately but still held a nine-point advantage with just over three minutes left.

The lead was two points with a little over 60 seconds on the clock, yet still the Dons were unable to keep things tight and would cough up the goal that would cost them the match.

After a bright start to the game, Brad Scott’s outfit conceded eight straight goals and despite positive runs throughout the contest they were ultimately flimsy in defence.

Not saying the Crows weren’t, but they were able to hold up at the death when the Dons seemingly fell in a hole.

While they’ve scored 604 across their last seven games at an average of 86, they have conceded 663 in that time at an average of 94.

They will get the opportunity to be sturdier defensively against St Kilda in Round 20.

Crows never gave up in, Keays and Fogarty were influential

Despite conceding the opening three goals of the game, Adelaide led by as much as 36 points late in the first half.

The Crows banged home eight goals in a row in a remarkable stretch from the ninth minute to the 26th minute of the second term.

Highlighting the savage momentum swings within the game, Matthew Nicks’ side then conceded seven straight goals from late in the second until midway through the third.

It was unthinkable late in the fourth term that the Crows would actually get up but they dug deep and found a way.

A major reason for their victory was the fact they scored heavily from stoppages, returning 9.7.(61) from that source.

Ben Keays set the standard with a best-on-ground, five-goal performance while Darcy Fogarty was influential with four majors including two in the fourth quarter.

The duo kicked three of Adelaide’s four final-term goals in what was a famous win.

Andrew Slevison

GWS Giants v Gold Coast

GWS’ ridiculous efficiency in front of goal

14.5 to 6.14. Sometimes, footy is simple. When every result could swing whether you finish 6th or 13th, you have to make the most of your chances and the Giants certainly did just that.

Their expected score for this game was 64.2, meaning they were +24.8 on the day.

Jesse Hogan kicked four straight, while Toby Greene and Brent Daniels combined for 4.1. They were ruthlessly efficient and, again, sometimes it’s a really simple game to analyse.

Gold Coast’s ridiculous inefficiency in front of goal

As above! When you win the clearances by 13 and the inside 50s by 19, you really should win the game.

Unfortunately for the Suns, Ben King kicked 0.3 from seven shots at goal and those yips infected the entire side.

It further highlights that this Gold Coast team isn’t yet ready to play finals. They lack the polish to win the 8-point swing games.

Nic Negrepontis

St Kilda v West Coast

Tim Membrey has still got it

30-year-old Tim Membrey put together a season-best performance booting five goals against a wounded West Coast defence, helping the Saints produce their highest score this season.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Membrey has somewhat struggled to earn his position under coach Ross Lyon in 2024 spending a few games in the VFL with Sandringham.

However, with the absence of key forward Max King for the remainder of the season due to injury, Membrey has grasped the opportunity to assert himself back into the side and potentially earn a contract extension.

The Eagles struggle to play four-quarters of football

Whilst West Coast were five goals down at three-quarter time, they lacked the maturity to play out the remainder of the game suffering a 72-point loss along with their lowest score of the season.

The Eagles ultimately fell apart after three-quarter time, only registering one straight goal to St Kilda’s seven goals and two behinds in the final term.

With senior heads like Jeremy McGovern and Liam Duggan out of the match due to injury, the Eagle’s backman failed to reduce the amount of scoring opportunities that was given to St Kilda’s forwards late.

Often the case with younger sides, the Eagles will need to improve their ability to play out games if they are to develop in the post-Simpson era.

Tom Williams

Hawthorn v Collingwood

This win proves that the Hawks are coming, and they might just be a top-four side

Hawthorn were utterly dominant in their 66-point win over Collingwood on Saturday evening.

Their win has been lauded by everyone in the footy community, but should be that surprised?

The Hawks have now won nine of their past 11, and while they’re 11th on the ladder, they would be outright third had Connor MacDonald not missed a relatively easy running shot against the Pies in Gather Round and if they just held onto their 41-point lead late in their clash against Port Adelaide away from home.

Sitting third would probably be a better reflection of where this side is truly at, they’re absolutely firing on all cylinders at the moment while playing with genuine dare and excitement.

In trying conditions, the Hawks were simply too tough and hard for the reigning premiers and they won all of the important stats in disposals, contested possessions, uncontested possessions, marks, clearances and inside 50s.

Simply put, it was a performance that wasn’t just critical in their hopes to make finals, but was a warning shot that if they get there, they’ll be seriously dangerous and could inflict some serious damage.

Does anyone want to get their hands on the footy at Collingwood?

A lot has been said about Collingwood’s loss on Saturday, but one big negative was that they simply couldn’t get near the footy.

Whether it was from a lack of desire to run, present or pick up hard balls, the Pies lost the disposal count 434-288, an utterly ridiculous margin.

There are a lot of problems Craig McRae and his coaching staff need to address, but allowing your opponent to touch the footy that often will lead to scores and put you on the back foot - it really is as simple as that.

Collingwood’s top disposal-getter was of course Nick Daicos with 24, but even that was his third-lowest tally for the entire campaign.

All of Oleg Markov, John Noble, Ned Long, Dan McStay, Bobby Hill, Will Hoskin-Elliott, Reef McInnes, Isaac Quaynor, Joe Richards, Jamie Elliott, Jeremy Howe and Darcy Moore had 10 or fewer disposals despite playing full games.

That is just not good enough and won’t lead to a single win in the back end of the season if it continues.

They’ll be desperate to bounce back in a big way next Sunday against Richmond.

Lachlan Geleit

Geelong v Western Bulldogs

Multiple unwanted milestones

Almost nothing went right in the wet for the Cats on Saturday night, with the tone being set from the opening bounce as the Bulldogs dominated around the ball.

Geelong ended up losing the disposal, inside 50, centre clearance, contested possession and uncontested possession battles, and when you’re resoundingly beaten in that many areas, the score is a foregone conclusion.

It was particularly brutal in the first term, with Geelong recording just two behinds to mark the first time in the Chris Scott era that the Cats have gone goalless in the opening quarter at GMHBA Stadium.

While they attempted to claw their way back through the middle two quarters, another goalless term in the fourth saw the Cats suffer their biggest defeat on the home turf under Scott.

Time to put this one in the rear-view mirror and instead focus on a Kangaroos outfit in Round 20.

Rory Lobb has revolutionised the Dogs’ defence

The idea of Rory Lobb completely negating Jeremy Cameron would have been a completely unfathomable concept at the start of the season.

Yet that was exactly how things played out on Saturday night, with the former key forward keeping a three-time All-Australian and Coleman Medallist to just one goal and six touches.

It was easily the best performance Lobb has put together since moving into the backline in Round 16, and the shift itself has had a drastic impact on the entire defence.

The Bulldogs struggled when it came to defensive one-on-ones and intercepts through the first 15 weeks of the season, however since Lobb was injected down back those numbers have improved dramatically.

While still sitting just outside the eight, the Dogs boast the third-highest percentage in the competition and the Lobb move looks to be the final puzzle piece for a strong run to September.

Jack Makeham

Port Adelaide v Richmond

Power veteran reminds the footy world he still has something to give

It has been a fairly tough 2024 for Port Adelaide’s Charlie Dixon.

The Power veteran has found himself in the SANFL as well as serving a suspension and dealing with a tired and ageing body.

But Dixon wound the clock back with an immense showing against Richmond to remind the footy world that he still has something to give at almost 34.

He took six marks including five contested inside 50 grabs to finish with four goals in a commanding key forward display. A firing Dixon makes the Power so much more dangerous.

Travis Boak also played well, proving he still has a bit to offer.

The 35-year-old (36 next month) had one of his better games of the season with 24 touches, five inside 50s and three clearances.

In his 363rd career game, Boak proved his worth from an attacking sense with a game-high nine score involvements, two goal assists and kicked 1.2 (which could have been three goals had he kicked straight).

Another of Port’s best on the night in the eventual 41-point win was 18-year-old Logan Evans.

The mid-season draftee out of Norwood played his best game at AFL level with 22 disposals, took nine marks, provided five inside 50s and three rebound 50s, took three intercept marks and had a game-high 675 metres gained.

It was an accomplished showing from the fifth gamer.

Another late fadeout from the Tigers

Richmond has been quite competitive for the most part over the past few weeks.

They were good value against the Giants last weekend and were on the tail of the Power for more than three quarters on Saturday night.

They trailed by 10 points at three-quarter time but were found out late once again, conceding 4.8 in the final term while managing just a behind of their own.

Adem Yze’s Tigers are 3-15 in final terms this year, conceding on average 25 point per fourth quarter while scoring just 12 themselves.

The effort and intensity has generally been good early in games before fading out badly at the business end.

From a positive viewpoint, Daniel Rioli was absolutely excellent with 28 disposals, a massive 631 metres gained, 10 intercept possessions and kicked two goals in a damaging display off half-back.

Up the other end it was Rhyan Mansell who was the shining light with three goals from 12 touches, seven marks, six score involvements and four inside 50s.

Andrew Slevison

Brisbane v Sydney

Brisbane get it done without a huge outing from Lachie Neale

Brisbane got the job done against the best team in the comp on Sunday against Sydney by two points.

If you told Lions fans that pre-game, they would have assumed that two-time Brownlow winner and co-captain Lachie Neale would have had a massive say in the result - but that wasn’t the case at all.

Given the dominant form the on-baller was in, Sydney opted to send Taylor Adams his way and Neale ended with just 18 disposals, his lowest tally since Round 20 last year.

With Neale kept quiet, the likes of Hugh McCluggage and Cam Rayner stepped up, while Jarrod Berry and Will Ashcroft also played their roles well around the footy.

It’s the kind of spread that Brisbane has been looking for, and they’ll be just about impossible to beat if those players continue performing to a high level when Neale is given more freedom from the opposition.

The Lions are absolutely coming, and if they aren’t relying on their best player to overcome the best team in the competition, then a top-two spot well and truly awaits them in the last five rounds of the home and away season.

Sydney’s injuries could begin to hurt

Sydney dropped their third game from their last four on Sunday against Brisbane, but it was on the injury list instead of the ladder where they were really hurt.

Given they still remain two games and percentage clear on top, the Swans shouldn’t be worried about coughing up the minor premiership, but they’ll be worried about the immediate futures of Tom Papley, Will Hayward and Dane Rampe.

Both Papley (ankle) and Rampe (calf) couldn’t play out the game and will likely be sidelined for a period, while Hayward was clearly battling despite remaining on the field.

Even though the Swans have the depth to cover for a few outs, they’re certainly losing that air of invincibility and are slowly coming back to the pack.

We also know that premiership teams need to be at almost full health come September.

They’d hate for the injury bug to hit them now after setting up their season so brilliantly throughout the home and away campaign.

Lachlan Geleit

Fremantle v Melbourne

Fremantle’s midfield put it one of the most impressive group performances of 2024

Fremantle’s on-ball unit had an absolute day out in Sunday’s 50-point win over Melbourne at Optus Stadium.

With no Max Gawn for the Demons, the Dockers made sure they got the most out of their first use at the stoppage, winning the clearance count 47-16 and the hitout count 47-9.

We’ve seen teams in recent weeks - including the Dees against the Bombers - still performing brilliantly on-ball despite not having their ruck feeding it to their midfielders, but the Dockers ensured that wasn’t going to be the case on Sunday.

Looking at disposal counts alone, Caleb Serong finished with 36, Andrew Bradshaw 41 and Hayden Young 28.

That’s utterly prolific from their three best on-ballers who are forming one of the most formidable trio’s around the league.

There’s no doubt it’s Freo’s trump card at the moment and with West Coast, Essendon and Geelong ahead across the next three weeks, you can expect them to continue filling up in terms of touches. 

Deestroyed in the ruck

Melbourne’s ruck issues became glaring against Fremantle on Sunday.

Without captain Max Gawn, the Demons were destroyed by Sean Darcy and former Dee Luke Jackson in the 50-point defeat in Perth.

Harrison Petty and Jacob Van Rooyen’s nine hit-outs was dwarfed by the Dockers duo’s 47 as the 200cm Tom Fullarton, who was recruited from Brisbane last trade period, sat on the sidelines.

The ruck dominance of the Dockers led to an absolute smashing in clearances with those numbers finishing 47-16. Freo had 17 centre clearances to just eight from the Dees.

Thankfully, Gawn could be back for the crunch Round 20 clash with GWS.

Lachlan Geleit & Andrew Slevison

Carlton v North Melbourne

Going small in defence did not work for the Blues

Carlton has made a few questionable calls at the selection table in recent weeks. For this clash with North, they dropped Brodie Kemp and went with just the two key defenders.

Alastair Clarkson took advantage of this, throwing Charlie Comben forward – a move opened up by the return of Griffin Logue.

This essentially left Nic Newman to play on Comben or Brynn Teakle, before Carlton swung Matt Kennedy into defence to take the matchup in the second half.

It’s fair to say this wasn’t ideal and clearly won’t work against Port Adelaide’s tall forward line on Friday. The Blues will surely make some personnel changes.

Charlie Comben looks like a long-term key forward

With Griffin Logue back in the side, the Roos now have the flexibility to throw Charlie Comben forward – where many expected him to play early in his career.

Comben has thrived in 2024 as a key defender, finally gaining confidence in his body and form after many setbacks.

He kicked three goals, took a pair of contested marks and looks like the wingman Nick Larkey has been searching for.

If Aidan Corr and Logue can hold up the key defensive slots, the Roos essentially have their spine sorted, with Comben being the final piece of the puzzle.

Nic Negrepontis