While you’re a senior coach, any main resolution you make is intently scrutinised – and their success or failure almost at all times is determined by the end result.
Have a well-known, backs-to-the-wall win? Then it doesn’t matter what strikes you’ve made to get there, they had been the fitting ones. Acquired pumped by anybody, from the bottom-placed battlers to the premiership favourites? Then it was a blunder, a game-destroying error that ought to have your job positioned firmly below the microscope.
Chris Scott has greater than sufficient credit within the financial institution to keep away from the latter destiny for his name to go into Geelong’s conflict with Carlton on Friday night time and not using a recognised ruckman: however after 4 quarters of close to wall-to-wall dominance from a quicker, stronger, more durable and meaner Blues midfield, it’s clear to anybody watching that the gamble backfired on the two-time premiership coach.
Taking part in the younger, creating Toby Conway or the skilled however restricted Rhys Stanley had been unlikely to maneuver the needle a lot the Cats’ method – there’s solely a lot Geelong’s shallow on-ball brigade, even with Patrick Dangerfield again in motion, may have finished in opposition to Sam Walsh and Patrick Cripps within the kind of temper they had been in on the MCG; however they may hardly have been dominated extra comprehensively than Sam De Koning was by older brother Tom.
The elder De Koning, to be truthful, is in devastating type – since Marc Pittonet’s finger damage pressured him to go solo within the Blues’ ruck division, the 24-year previous is displaying simply why Sydney had been so eager on throwing a monster contract his method earlier than he re-signed with Carlton.
And from the second he actually rag-dolled his youthful brother at a ahead 50 ruck contest earlier than snapping by the sport’s first objective, Tom De Koning was on the way in which to one of the best efficiency but of his burgeoning profession.
How good was he? Effectively, by half time not solely was he the top-rated participant on the bottom, however set a brand new season excessive in Champion Information’s rating system for the primary half. Higher than something Marcus Bontempelli, or Nick Daicos, or anybody from Sydney has managed earlier than half time. Yowza.
Tom De Koning marks in entrance of Sam De Koning. (Picture by Quinn Rooney/Getty Pictures)
These whopping numbers handed the attention check, too: De Koning won’t have overwhelmed his youthful brother for each hitout, however he received a good portion of them, and when he didn’t his follow-up work to hunt the ball at floor degree, throwing his gentle however rising body round to each win the footy and create area for the midfielders at his ft, was much more impactful.
By the primary break, his 15 contested possessions had been far and away away from anybody else on the sphere, whereas his six clearances was equal second behind Cripps, who feasted on each his greater teammate’s faucets in addition to a Cats midfield, and tag from Mark Blicavs, that merely had no reply for his stoppage supremacy.
His one mistake in a 25-disposal, 34-hitout, seven-clearance, 20-contested-possession beast of a efficiency? Gifting Sam a objective with an ill-judged hanger try on his youthful brother in defensive 50.
The lion’s share of the harm was finished within the first time period: three of Carlton’s 5 objectives, together with De Koning’s final sibling bragging rights second, had been generated from clearances, in comparison with zero from the Cats.
The Blues’ clearance dominance – 32-14 up at half time, and 50-39 forward by the ultimate siren – is all of the extra spectacular contemplating, of their different conflict almost two months in the past, the Cats appeared to have labored out clamp them, successful the clearance rely by three throughout the ultimate three quarters of that match.
Stoppages have been an understated weak hyperlink within the Blues’ armour this season – whereas they’ve been among the many greatest groups at scoring from them, they’ve additionally leaked objectives going the opposite method. Even within the final 5 weeks once they’ve shot up the latter, heading into Friday night time their common rating per match from stoppages – 38.2 – was precisely equal to what their opposition had been scoring.
However the Cats merely don’t have the cattle in midfield, even with Dangerfield in there, to deal with the weapons the Blues have; and any likelihood that they had of breaking even went with De Koning, who, whereas an thrilling prospect, has averaged simply 3.3 per cent of sport time within the ruck this season.
Briefly, he was thrown to the wolves in opposition to his now-fearsome older bro.
The Blues’ stoppage dominance led to regulate of territory, manna from heaven for his or her deadly, Charlie Curnow-led ahead line. With Alex Cincotta holding Tom Stewart’s intercepting below wraps, and the Blues persistently capable of equalise forward of the ball to stop an additional Geelong quantity behind the footy, as is there wont, the end result was carnage inside 50.
The Cats conceded a objective from 38 per cent of Carlton’s inside 50s to half time, far and away their worst effort of the season. Making issues worse? Their tallest key defender, the one who was such a vital cog of their premiership workforce of 2022, was being thrashed within the ruck.
It will do the Blues a disservice to say that was the one motive for his or her dominant win: the Blues bagged eight objectives turning over the Cats’ defensive 50 disposal chains. As soon as an enormous power of Geelong’s attributable to their excellent foot abilities popping out of defence, simply 14 of such chains escaped being intercepted by Carlton at some stage.
By the top, even defenders Nic Newman and Lachie Cowan had been urgent excessive sufficient to show mentioned intercepts into uncommon objectives.
That, plus the clearance dominance, led to 21 objectives, a season-high rating, and a celebratory feeling among the many Carlton devoted that they’re certainly correctly, actually formidable proper now.
All up, the Blues are a fearsome unit, and De Koning’s emergence right into a genuinely elite ruck is simply one other string to their bow. There might be no query now of pairing him with Marc Pittonet; the latter’s strengths in contested ball-winning and tapwork are actually effectively and actually outmoded by the whole lot his youthful, extra cell teammate can present.
I wrote, after the Cats’ overcome the Blues of their final match, that Geelong remained the most effective groups in it; the particular phrase I used was ‘inevitable’.
Sydney’s presence forward of them means I can’t be fairly so assured about Carlton; however this can be a workforce that lacks for nothing. And if any workforce disrespects them sufficient to strive one thing as left-field as Scott did by leaving out a ruckman, the Cats received’t be the final workforce to really feel the wrath of a workforce getting ready to one thing awe-inspiring.
