The Footy Almanac 2007 Round 17 – Fremantle v Geelong: Who’s to blame for the purple fade?

The first printed edition of The Footy Almanac came out in 2007, before we had a website. In the absence of a real 2020 season, we will be publishing the 2007 pieces for the first time ever on www.footyalmanac.com.au. Follow the season!

 

 

Fremantle versus Geelong

2.10pm, Saturday, July 28

Subiaco Oval, Perth

by LES EVERETT

 

THERE WAS A SIGN BEFORE THE FIRST BOUNCE that Fremantle might not be as attuned to this encounter as their top-of-the-table rivals. The Dockers had only three players in the centre square for the first bounce. Dean Solomon noticed, left his man at half forward, and ran in to even things up. Josh Carr got the first kick and it landed in the arms of Andrew Mackie, the man Solomon had left to go into the square.

 

That wasn’t game-breaking but something else that happened in the first quarter was. In no time, Cameron Mooney got right on top of Antoni Grover. The Fremantle key defender is seldom beaten and his demise sent the backline into a spin – easy and unusual goals resulted and at the first break the Cats led by 31 points.

 

The Dockers steadied a little in the second quarter but reduced the margin by only a point. The Cats were simply quicker and more assured in the midfield, with Gary Ablett looking very much like the Brownlow Medal favourite he had become. However, the star of the quarter was Fremantle’s Luke McPharlin, whose assurance in all sorts of marking situations was remarkable.

 

Things remained fairly even during the third quarter but that just meant the Dockers were making no headway.

 

I put the glasses down early in the last quarter – it became obvious Geelong was by far the superior team – and Fremantle’s midfield was horribly exposed. A sad observation from a Fremantle point of view was to see Paul Hasleby – for so long adept at getting hold of the ball – finding he was where the ball wasn’t. This match was passing him by. A hard question for player and club to ponder was whether the game was passing him by.

 

There is pleasure in watching Ablett, Joel Corey and others in the Cats midfield – there’s a combination of speed, skill and strength that makes them irresistible when it’s all working well. And it all worked well at Subiaco Oval in Round 17.

 

The supporters who would have bayed for blood had it not been for the change of coach remained silent. A penny had dropped. Fremantle’s woes weren’t all the fault of a coach.

 

 

Fremantle  1.3 4.5 8.9 10.12 (72)

Geelong  6.4 8.11 12.18 20.20 (140)

 

GOALS

Geelong: Stokes 5, Kelly, S. Johnson, Mooney 2, Harley, Hunt, Byrnes, N. Ablett, G. Ablett, Milburn, Wojcinski, Enright, Ling.

Fremantle: Pavlich 4, Headland 2, Mundy, Tarrant,?Farmer, Hayden.

 

BEST

Geelong: G. Ablett, Corey, S. Johnson, Ling, Stokes, Harley. Mooney.

Fremantle: McPharlin, Pavlich, Gilmore, Headland,?J. Carr, Mundy.

 

MILESTONE

Kelly (Geelong) 100 games.

 

UMPIRES

Margetts, Avon, McLaren.

 

OUR VOTES

Ablett (G) 3, Corey (G) 2, McPharlin (F) 1.

 

BROWNLOW

Kelly (G) 3, G. Ablett (G) 2, S. Johnson (G) 1.

 

CROWD

36,741

 

 

For more Round by Round reports of the 2007 season click HERE

 

Printed copies of The Footy Almanac 2007 can be purchased here.