Submitted by Chris Yeend.
PALM BEACH CURRUMBIN v MORNINGSIDE
6 – Palm Beach Currumbin (5/3 – 131.66%)
10 – Morningside (1/6 – 61.32%)
TALKING POINTS
LET’S HEAR IT FOR JED WALTER AS ROUND 10 RISING STAR
Jed Walter for Palm Beach Currumbin put together a complete performance in the win over Wilston Grange last week. The gifted Lions junior who possesses such enormous talent; played the complete game last week as a key small forward with four goals from 12 touches. Walter had five contested possessions and three marks inside the forward 50 to be a strong target for the Lions.
PANTHERS JUST FALL SHY OF WIN NUMBER TWO
Morningside faced a Surfers Paradise team eager for its maiden win of the season, seven days removed from its own feat in that column and the job was always going to be tough. The Dees came out swinging from the opening bounce, leading by 33-points at half-time before the Panthers came back and just fell short by a kick.
This result still shows that the Panthers have the capacity to fight and dig deep in tough situations. In matches earlier in the season, they’d be overrun a little too easily but the last three games (50-point loss to Broadbeach that only blew out late in the game, win over Mt Gravatt and loss to Surfers Paradise) highlights that the Panthers are much improved outfit as it pounces into the second half of the season. There is a lot to like.
HOW CRUCIAL IS THIS GAME FOR THE LIONS?
Very. They’ll go in as deserved favourites and the win over the Gorillas last week was important; but the second half of the season features matches against teams well entrenched in the top six. Aspley awaits them next week at Graham Road in a massive game, so what they do in this contest will put in some ideal ground work to prepare for a must-win game.
VERDICT
Palm Beach Currumbin will be too strong by around the five to six goal mark. Morningside will challenge for four quarters but don’t quite have the backline to shut down the Lions.
SURFERS PARADISE v SHERWOOD
9 – Surfers Paradise (1/6 – 65.38%)
12 – Sherwood (0/8 – 44.72%)
TALKING POINTS
WINNING STREAK ON THE CARDS FOR THE DEES?
Since its Round 5 loss to Broadbeach by 129-points; Surfers Paradise have lost matches to Noosa (three-points) and Maroochydore (16-points) before securing a six-point win over Morningside last week. It is building a quality body of work to show tremendous fight in the back half of the season. It’s been said across all previews to date; this line-up is better than where it is on the ladder and it’s starting to turn for it now. A two-game winning streak is very much on the cards. It has the potential to win at least four more games across the season, and at its best, can beat Noosa and PBC in that run too.
WILL FLETCHER DOING GREAT THINGS FOR THE LIONS
Will gathered 19 touches, laid four tackles and had three clearances for the Brisbane Lions in the recent VFL win over the Northern Bullants at Moreton Bay. Sherwood continues to be a tremendous club that builds and develops quality young players and with Will preparing for life after the club at the completion of the season, for now, the amount of work that it has put into his development is one of its great success stories this year. Let’s hope that he continues to do great things in the VFL and do Sherwood proud.
SHERWOOD A CHANCE?
Last week against Labrador was a tough loss for the Pies and one that it will be eager to learn from and put away. It was smashed in the inside 50 count, 62-19 in one of the most lop-sided counts in that space for the season and conceded 21 marks in its defensive 50. This was a rapid fall away from the team that gave the reigning premiers one of its biggest scares yet. If we see the Sherwood against Broadbeach, even at 50-percent, it’s a chance because there is still some quality in this team.
VERDICT
Surfers Paradise has been building a good body of work over the last month and with the quality in this team, it has the potential to build an impressive late-season run to build confidence heading into season 2023 and it starts with back-to-back wins and taking this one at home.
WILSTON GRANGE v REDLAND VICTORIA POINT
8 – Wilston Grange (4/4 – 80.84%)
2 – Redland Victoria Point (8/1 – 176.87%)
TALKING POINTS
LOTS OF HEART-ACHE FOR THE GORILLAS?
After sitting at 4 and 2; things were looking rosy for the boys at Hickey Park. A gun midfield led by Payne and an emerging backline; things were starting to turn upwards but losses to Aspley (86-points) and Palm Beach Currumbin (76-points) in the past two weeks are performances that show a mere shadow of what this team is capable of. It lost the disposal count by 91 and conceded 61 more marks under the ground to the Lions including 12 more in the defensive 50. Aside from those three key stats, the rest were even. Last week Payne had just 23 touches and the other onballers were quiet. Perhaps it just wasn’t enough pressure on the midfielders putting the ball inside the forward 50 for the Lions? This team is capable of so much better and it runs the risk of another big defeat against one of the flag favourites.
MATT HAMMELMANN DUE?
He kicked four goals against Noosa last week in what was a relatively even contest for much of the game. With 25 goals in the opening month; he is licking his lips with a dry ground and an in-form midfield. With Wilston Grange conceding 20 marks inside its attack 50 last week; Hammelmann is a chance to have a day out with a vastly superior midfield getting first hands on the ball to keep the forward 50 active. Do you play Eagles on him or do you clog up space if you’re Brent Moloney?
TOM SALTER IS BACK
It’s great to see a quality of player such as Tom Salter back in the team. He would have loved the wet conditions in recent weeks better than any player in this competition. We thought the Sharks were good this year, Salter off halfback takes them to another level, almost to Boss Mode.
VERDICT
Redland-Victoria Point will be just too strong all over the ground. It could be tough for the Gorillas but let’s be honest, if you’re not a top four team right now, you’re going to have a tough day anyway.
ASPLEY v MOUNT GRAVATT
4 – Aspley (5/3 – 169.55%)
11 – Mt Gravatt (1/7 – 46.35%)
TALKING POINTS
WAS THE GAME AGAINST THE CATS THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY?
The Hornets trailed by 19-points early in the last quarter on two occasions at home and gave away two easy goals; one by literally turning the ball over from a free kick in the middle of the ground with ease; and another with a free kick and 100-metre penalty. We don’t need to relive those moments beyond this report going forward, but if you take away those two goals and the momentum they were building, the Hornets go within a whisker of beating the Cats, or actually fall over the line. They missed a golden chance.
MARCUS KHOO IS A HANDY SUBSTITUTE FOR CRAIG MALONE
Khoo virtually spent three quarters in the ruck in the loss to the Panthers two weeks back, and to have that full game experience against Maroochydore last week as the main ruck option, he impressed with 31 hit-outs. Luke Castle made his way back into the team and finished with 28 hit-outs. The pair combined for Malone’s weekly individual hit-out average, but it’s great to see the pair give some spark in the ruck for the Vultures.
WILL WOLBERS ON FIRE
Wolbers finished with 21 touches (equal most for the Hornets) and 40 hit-outs against the Cats. He was simply awesome. He added 12 clearances and 18 contested disposals to that tally. How was he so good? He followed up his ruck work and contested the ball against Broadbeach’s elite midfielders. His recovery from the ruck contest to get himself to where the ball lands is outstanding. His direct opponent Ryan Pickering had 17 touches but Wolbers was super influential and arguably his team’s best player.
VERDICT
Aspley will turn it on and respond to last week’s result like only good teams of its calibre can.
BROADBEACH v MAROOCHYDORE
1 – Broadbeach (8-0 – 195.25%)
7 – Maroochydore (4/4 – 94.98%)
TALKING POINTS
WILL THE BEST PLAYER AT BROADBEACH PLEASE STAND UP?
Good luck trying to find one. Without Nutting and Moncrieff up forward last week to be those dominant influencers against Aspley, and a host of other quality absentees, the 22 that took the park played the most even; polished and clean game as you’ll see. Each player had their role and stood up when it was needed. Josh Searl led the way with 31 touches but there was nothing flashy about it, like his 21 team mates, it was a serviceable effort.
ARE THE ROOS A CHANCE?
Maroochydore needs to play the game of a lifetime to win this one, but at full strength, it’s a chance to rattle the reigning premiers in a re-match of last year’s decider. It lacks a bit of depth in the ruck, but in fairness, Broadbeach is still building in that space too with a young Pickering. Expect that area to almost cancel each other out. Sam McLachlan is the major impact player across both teams in the midfield and Jackson Bury at his best is unstoppable. Mitch Scholard is the in-form forward of the competition. He could be triple teamed and still take a contested mark or bring the ball to ground level.
ROUND 10 GOAL OF THE WEEK CONTENDER GOES TO NICK BURTON?
Go back to the 6.5-minute mark of the third quarter last week. Jellyman Turner kicks the ball to the wing, Erickson lays a tackle, the ball goes inside the forward 50 and Alex Moloney taps the ball through his legs at the top of the square to see Burton run on and kick the goal. It was a thing of beauty. On that note, Moloney and Riley Bowman were key forward targets for the Cats last week. Statistically they didn’t have break out games, but the pair presented well and influenced the contests inside forward 50. If you watched the Cats for the first time last week, not knowing that Moncrieff and Nutting were the gun forwards, the pair could easily have filled that void. Full props to the pair for their efforts, it showcases the great depth at this club. Jarrod Harbrow has missed the last few weeks too.
VERDICT
Broadbeach will be too strong but expect the Roos to get up for this one. This could be one of the more interesting games on the fixture because while Broadbeach has role players across each line, the Roos contain more impact players and if they step up (including Josh Govan in the midfield), the potential is there to get very close. Sometimes that’s not always the case.
NOOSA v LABRADOR – 1PM START
3 – Noosa (6/3 – 124.13%)
5 – Labrador (5/3 – 167.16%)
TALKING POINTS
IS THIS THE GAME FOR NOOSA TO MAKE A STATEMENT?
It was all about being competitive in the game against the Sharks and aside from the third quarter (conceded 4.4 to 1.0) it was an even game. The 41-point result wasn’t a reflection of the overall game. The concern was that it was smashed in the inside 50 count (-35) and tackles (-38) and they come up against a team that won the inside 50 count by 43.
With some minor improvements and against a team that doesn’t have the best midfield in the competition (RVP), Noosa will be more evenly matched and it is 4-1 for matches at home this season.
LABRADOR DOMINANT WITH INSIDE 50s
The effort against a hyped-up Sherwood was outstanding. To register 62 inside 50s and score on 38 occasions is a tremendous effort. The 15.23 total was not what it had hoped but if gun forward Bryce Retzlaff (25 touches) is still getting his hands on the ball to rival midfield team mate Andrew Boston (36 touches), the team is dominating the forward half. This Labrador team is building nicely after a slow start and a win here will see it launch into the top four.
WHAT WILL WE EXPECT FROM THIS MATCH?
The game will be quick, the key forwards at either end will have plenty of chances and the backline will be under pressure. Both teams have quality young players that can run with the ball and hit targets with confidence and both play a good, contested style of football. This game is made for two players; Cam Ellis-Yeolman (Labrador) and Aaron Wilson (Noosa). The pair may end up on each other; both are flashy and exciting players and they’ll absolutely tear the house down.
VERDICT
We know Labrador are coming, but how good for the competition will it be if Noosa comes away with the points? This would be the big win it needs to make a statement to the rest of the competition and could even seal its place in the finals right now after going win-less last year. The battle of the Tigers is going to be one for the ages, and the Tigers will win, but which one? Labrador, just.
Catch this game on Cluch TV
https://cluch.tv/afl/afl-queensland/qafl/
