Round 9 – Melbourne V Hawthorn

So Close, Until It Wasn’t

Liam Chambers

Dees showed good form, staying in touch with the Hawks

With three wins under our belt, we could have been forgiven for feeling confident against a top four side that hadn’t been seriously challenged so far this year; okay, maybe Geelong.

Charlie Spargo had a chance to score the first major. It looked to be going through but suffered a late hook. A minute later Jacob van Rooyen had a set shot from a similar distance on the other side of the ground. It looked good initially but slipped passed the outside of the upright.

Then it was Hawthorn’s turn. Ruckman Lloyd Meek took a mark 40m in front of goal, then went back to make sure. Harvey Langford again showed his value as a Demon when he took a contested mark inside 50, then converted the 50m set shot to bring Melbourne level with the Hawks.

Luke Breust displayed why he’s still a goal scoring machine when he was on the end of Hawthorn wave, kicking from the edge of the square to give his side back the lead. Nick Watson increased it to twelve points when he slotted his 35m set shot.

Tom Sparrow had a chance to close the gap when he marked Clayton Oliver’s kick directly in front. No problems with the set shot. Melbourne almost made it a one point game after the siren but Bailey Fritsch’s boot couldn’t make clean contact, so it was a six point game at quarter time.

Inaccuracy in front of goal still a problem for Demons

Hawthorn started the second quarter by upping the pressure and making repeat entries into the Dees’ defensive 50. Melbourne eventually broke out and made some incursions of their own, deep into Hawks’ territory but were unable to make them pay. There were a couple of almost there, but no cigar.

The Dees would rue the wasted opportunities when Hawthorn made it back inside 50 and Dylan Moore marked and ran on, tapping the ball through from the edge of the goal square. Melbourne should have been a couple of goals up by the latter half of the term, but inaccuracy in front of goal continued to let them down.

It also didn’t help that a blatant foul on Kozzie Pickett in the square was ignored by the Umpires. The subsequent set shot would have been a certain goal. When Kozzie was fouled again less than a minute later, his set shot was cleanly taken. Up the other end, Nick Watson was awarded a free kick in the pocket and the margin was back out to nine points.

Just before the break, Jai Newcombe went to mark but left the ball on the ground. Harvey Langford pounced, collecting the ball and snapping it through for his second of the afternoon.

Low scoring quarter has sides neck and neck

Despite not being able to make the most of their scoring opportunities in the first half, there was a lot of positives for Melbourne, especially with respect to their younger players.  It continued to be a low scoring game, with inaccuracy in front of goal letting both sides down.

Eventually it was Josh Ward who scored the first goal of the third quarter, when he received the hand pass inside 50 and had enough space before chipping the ball from 20m out.

As mentioned earlier Melbourne has some very talented younger players and Harvey Langford is proving himself to be an important asset, as he showed again when he took a contested mark on the edge of the square. His set shot was efficiently taken and it was back to a two point game. Speaking of young talent time, Harry Sharp’s running kick from 40m was calm and clinical, giving Melbourne back the lead.

With three minutes to go, Hawthorn reclaimed the advantage when Jack Ginnivan marked in the pocket and converted with his round the corner 20m set shot.

Hawks press turbo and accelerate to the finish line

With such a slim margin going into the final term, it was anyone’s game. However, even the most optimistic Demon fan knows that, in recent times, we reserve our worst footy for the fourth quarter. Our opponents know that too and it is now so ingrained in our psyche that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. We all crossed everything and hoped that it’s different this time.

Two minutes in and Max Gawn takes a contested mark inside 50. Everyone holds their but the kick is just off target.

Then Jack Gunston manages to get at the top of the square, receives the hand pass and taps the ball across the line. Five minutes later and Gunston, who couldn’t hit the side of a barn all afternoon, marks in the pocket and cleanly converts.

With the biggest lead of the game, the Hawks had the wind at their backs. Mabior Choi then took an impressive mark, edging Tom McDonald off the ball in the process. Again, the set shot was cleanly taken and the advantage was out to nineteen.

The Dees needed something special to give the faithful some hope; who would answer the call. Who else, but Kozzie Pickett. After some impressive get out of trouble hand passing in their defensive 50, they finally broke through and Pickett was the last player in the chain. His ran from the middle of the ground, evading the clutches of Bailey MacDonald, bounced the sherrin twice and launched from the 50m arc. The ball landed just over the line and the hope was back.

Mabior Choi got his second when he snapped from 25m in front and the hill became a little steeper for Melbourne. With each passing minute, the chance of a winning comeback became less and less lightly. The way things were now panning out for Jack Gunston, he could have closed his eyes, kicked the ball over his head and still nailed a goal. His casual 45m kick from the pocket sailed through with the greatest of ease.

After the centre bounce, Josh Weddle got in on the action by snapping one from 35m out.

There were no more goals but Melbourne had conceded six goals after being neck and neck with the Hawks all afternoon.

We played well for the majority of the match but in the end Hawthorn proved that they deserved to be in the top three.

Unfortunately the news doesn’t get any better for Demon fans. Next up we travel to Brisbane to face the reigning premiers at the Gabbatoir. We will be odds on favourites to get completely trounced, but Melbourne have a history of upsetting the punters when the odds are stacked against us.

Go the Mighty Dees!!!