Australian Football

Round 19

Premiership Season 2015 - Round 19 Review

Total Crowd 258,802 (Avg 28,756)

The composition of the AFL top four has changed for the first time since round 12. This is not an entirely unexpected development as Sydney, the team that has dropped out, has been considered vulnerable by pundits for some time. What has caught the footy public by surprise, however, is the team that has replaced the Swans. A month ago most pundits would have forecast Richmond to take Sydney's place but it is the Western Bulldogs, fresh off a 10-goal win over Port Adelaide, that has done so.

The Doggies have now won seven of their last eight matches and their form over the past two months is as good as that of any side. Whether they can carry that form into the rest of August and through September remains to be seen but if they can, 2015 could well see one of the greatest footy fairytale stories in many years unfold.

Round 19 kicked off at the Adelaide Oval on Friday night and the match saw Richmond, the team that many thought would replace Sydney in the top four, put in a rather insipid performance against the Crows to go down by 36 points, a margin that could have been much greater had Adelaide not been so poor in front of goal. The Crows kicked 11.22 to the Tigers' 8.4 to stay very much in touch with the top eight.

On Saturday at the MCG, Collingwood broke a six-match losing streak with a win over Carlton. The Pies led for most of the match but had to withstand a late surge from the Blues before holding on to win by 18 points. The Magpies remain a slim chance to make it to September, while Carlton could slump to last on the ladder of it loses to Brisbane at the Gabba in round 20.

At Docklands, the Western Bulldogs gave up the first three goals to Port Adelaide before kicking the next nine in a row to leave Port in their wake. Things did not improve for Port in the second half, the Dogs adding a further 10 goals to six to win by 64 points and move into the top four.

The 10th Q Clash saw Brisbane and Gold Coast play out an entertaining match, with 31 goals kicked between the two sides. The Lions finished with 14.16.100, a winning score in most other matches in 2015, but fell short of the Suns' 17.12.114. The Suns are now a game and a half clear of the bottom-placed Lions, who could climb from that spot with a win over Carlton next Saturday night.

Geelong hosted Sydney at Kardinia Park on Saturday night, with Adam Goodes returning to football after time away from the game following the booing controversy. The the two sides ran through a shared banner as a sign of respect and inclusion before Geelong got down to the business of beating the Swans comfortably to shore up a top-eight place and knock Sydney out of the top four.

In Perth, at a wind and rain-swept Subiaco Oval, West Coast and Hawthorn played out a close match. The Eagles had first use of the weather and took full advantage of it to lead by three goals at quarter time but the Hawks worked their way back into the match over the next two terms and got home on the back of a five-goal-to-two last quarter.

On Sunday at the MCG North Melbourne burst out of the blocks against Melbourne and looked like recording a huge win but the Demons proved themselves to be made of sterner stuff than in past years by fighting back in the next three quarters to get within a few points of the Roos on several occasions. But they couldn't quite bridge the gap and North steadied in the last term to win by 35 and move up to sixth on the ladder.

The Giants kept their September hopes alive with a comfortable win over Essendon at the Sydney Showground. The Bombers were competitive in the first half, and led by eight points at the long break but faded badly fro mid-way through the third term to go down by 32. The win keeps GWS within half a game of the top eight.

Round 19's final match pitted St Kilda against Fremantle at Docklands. The Saints won the corresponding fixtures against the odds in 2013 and 2014 but there was to be no repeat in 2015, the Dockers squeezing the life out of them in the first half to lead by 54 points at the long break before dropping a gear in the last term to win by 37.

With four weeks of the home and away season remaining, the composition of the top two, top four and top eight remains open. Round 20 will present crucial games for many sides. Eight of the nine matches will help shape finals prospects for at least one of the participants and even the ninth game - Brisbane versus Carlton at the Gabba - could ultimately decide the 'winner' of the wooden spoon.

R-19, Ladder