Round 10 Hostplus SANFL League Match Previews

The Crows are ramping up for another finals appearance. They’ve played major-round footy in three of the past four seasons and, after knocking South out of fifth spot with a solid 44-point win at Noarlunga, they are again well set with a game in hand.

After trailing by 13 points at quarter-time, Crows coach Matthew Wright described the next three quarters as “a good step forward for this group” which claimed its fourth win in the past six games.

First-year Crow Archie Ludowyke provided plenty of highlights with his best game of the season as he clunked four contested marks and booted a game-high five goals.

“He is fun to watch – ever since he got to the footy club he’s done everything right,” Wright said of the Sandringham product.

Ruckman Reilly O’Brien again was dominant. How are these stats? Ten kicks, 14 handballs, 10 marks, 43 hit-outs – and a goal for good measure.

“He has been able to stand up and play a really dominant brand of football,” Wright said.

The Roosters missed a chance to stay in touch with the five, their loss against West a third-straight defeat but this time it was so near, yet so far, ahead in time-on of the final quarter and pushing right at the end to try to regain the lead before finishing a frustrating five points short.

The game was pretty typical of the fine line between pleasure and pain around the SANFL in Round 9, with three games decided by a kick.

Angus Schumacher and Mitch Harvey must have particularly felt the pain after this loss – Schumacher had racked up 32 disposals and eight clearances and Harvey 25 disposals and 42 hit-outs.

Clearly Bulldogs fans wouldn’t agree but there was a real feelgood finish last round at Woodville.

After all that had happened to the Eagles, the three stars ripped away in the mid-season draft, injuries again mounting and seemingly exposed by top-placed Norwood, with memories of how the past two campaigns had so quickly slipped away, you could have thought they were on the brink of collapse trailing Central 0.2 to 5.7 after one minute of the second quarter. No way!

In a win for the ages that would have done the men of the 2006 premiership team proud as they celebrated in a reunion, the Eagles gradually clawed their way back into the contest before kicking six successive goals to snatch the lead late in the third quarter.

While Central kept coming and twice put their noses back in front, the Eagles refused to concede, this year’s huge improver Kade Herbert sealing the issue 24 minutes into the final quarter.

Coach Sam Jacobs said: “This is really an emotional win which can’t be underestimated. The past few weeks have been a real mix in emotions with players lost to the mid-season draft and a few others hoping to be drafted and not getting picked up, losing Riley Knight and others to injury – to fight back like that and get that result is just so important to the group. To win a game like that was just so special.”

The light at the end of the tunnel was pretty bright on a weekend the Eagles went five-from-five, with wins in all grades and SANFLW.

For South, the light at the end of the tunnel keeps flickering. Every time the Panthers look up for the finals fight they slip up.

Injuries didn’t help against Adelaide after an impressive first quarter with star recruit Seamus Mitchell forced off with a knee injury and Ryan Borlase, who came in for No.1 ruckman Olivier Northam (knee), suffering a concussion, leaving South short in every sense of the word.

While the young Panthers have been hot-and-cold, Finn Emile-Brennan was on fire in their strong opening against the Crows, skating past Lachlan Sholl and curling around a 40m miracle from a near-impossible angle in the pocket.

A huge shot at goal of the year, it showed anything is possible and South fans should be believing that’s the case as they head out to Woodville.

Port Adelaide has had an up-and-down campaign but the Magpies will be certain to be up for this one, with the Russell Ebert Tribute Cup on the line for the fifth time.

Jacob Surjan’s men will be playing to honour the memory of the Port and SA football legend who died in 2021, aged 72.

Ebert played 392 games for the Magpies, winning Magarey Medals in 1971, ’74, ’76 and 1980 and six club best-and-fairest awards to be recognised as the greatest Port player of all.

The Magpies have been off the pace in their past two games, beaten by the Eagles (86 points) and Glenelg (49 points), but their two previous games were strong wins against Adelaide and Central, so they will feel confident their best is good enough.

The Eagles weren’t the only feelgood factor of Round 9. West Adelaide’s snapping of a three-game losing streak in knocking off North by five points was a wonderful fillip for a club that has faced more than its fair share of adversity, most recently with the flooding of its home clubrooms.

The Bloods’ clash with the Roosters was a dour struggle before the game sprung to life in a thrilling final term in which the lead changed hands three times in the final minutes.

Not only did Chris Burgess kick the goal that seemed the matchwinner with the Bloods 11 points clear at the 25-minute-mark, when the Roosters edged back within five points it was him who went back and stood tall in defence with a game-saving mark.

While it wasn’t always pretty to watch, West coach Nathan Bassett noted, “we stood up pretty well in the last quarter … I think for a youngish defence our guys really held up well and Burgo was huge for us”.

Now it’s on to a huge clash with the Russell Ebert Tribute Cup up for grabs and pitted against a club desperate to keep hold of it.