AFL 2022 Round 10: Sir Doug Nicholls - Week 1, Dreamtime at the ‘G’, Narrm, Hawks tame Lions

Jack Riewoldt booted four majors as Richmond led nearly all evening and put away Essendon, in convincing fashion, at the annual ‘Dreamtime at the ‘G’’ clash.

Midfielder Dion Prestia (36 disposals, 19 handballs, six clearances and five marks) picked up the Yiooken Award, for a dominant best on ground display, which was presented to him by Aunty Pam Pederson OAM, daughter of Sir Doug Nicholls.

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Prior to the contest, the crowd of 70,226 were treated to a spectacular pre-show which included a “Welcome to Country” ceremony, culture performances, music from different indigenous artists before both sides then took part in a team war cry.

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Speaking in the rooms to Pilot, Shai Bolton said “It was a bit of a build-up for all us indigenous players and it was important for all of us to play tonight. It was special to get the win as well and have our families and friends in the stands.”

He continued “I think all the boys played good; we played a Richmond game. To kick two goals was a blessing for me; I was excited my family were here to see it.”

Three goals apiece from Tyson Stengle and Jeremy Cameron, which included an incredible set shot barrel from 58m on the three-quarter time siren that brought the GMHBA Stadium to its feet, helped Geelong get the chocolates over Port Adelaide.

The Power, on a good run, took a narrow lead into half-time but the Cats, who had lost three of their last five on their home deck, were able to take control after the main break and never looked back enroute to what was a pretty comfortable victory.

A new era under interim coach Mark McVeigh got off to the perfect start as he watched his Greater Western Sydney players post their highest first-half score since 2016 and go on to thrash bottom side West Coast by 52 points at Giants Stadium.

The 41-year-old (pictured below), nicknamed ‘Spike’, took over the reins this week, following the departure of Leon Cameron, and has been given the role until the end of the season.

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A damaging second quarter proved pivotal as Carlton held out to claim an impressive 15-point triumph over Sydney in a cracking Friday night blockbuster.

It was the only one of the four they won but with six goals from Charlie Curnow (pictured below) and a strong defensive display, when under the cosh in the second half, got the job done.

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Speaking on ‘Crunch Time’ (SEN Radio 1116), Sam Walsh said “In my career, I haven’t played many Friday nights in my time at Carlton. For the fans to come out like they did, it created some unbelievable excitement.”

“We’ve been celebrating team acts and players performing their role really well. I think the second quarter was a great example of that: we were playing with the ball in our forward half and some of our smalls were putting the pressure on.”

“When you’re doing that and playing proactive footy, it’s funny how things can fall in your lap a bit and things can go your way. It was a great quarter for us and a memorable night for us to get the win.”

Down in Ballarat, Adam Treloar made his 200th AFL appearance and helped the Western Bulldogs get up over Gold Coast in an exciting, high-scoring encounter.

The 29-year-old midfielder, who racked up 26 disposals and a goal in the third term, had family and friends come down for his landmark game with the highlight being able to run through the pre-match banner with his young daughter Georgie.

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Although he ended up on the losing side, young Suns forward Joel Jeffrey really caught the eye and had an afternoon to remember with a career-high five-goal haul.

Forward Max King enjoyed an evening out, kicking a bag, as St.Kilda produced a sterling finish to come from behind and run right over the top of Adelaide at the Oval.

In Brad Hill’s 200th, the Saints trailed for most of it but finished strongly, punishing the Crows for their inaccuracy (15 behinds), to came away with a result on the road.

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To mark this special round, Melbourne re-branded themselves Narrm, which is their club name in the indigenous language, but the outcome was predictably the same.

The ladder leaders and current premiers making it ten-zip, 17 straight overall, although they were made to work for it by a spirited North Melbourne outfit.

An added bonus for the Demons came in the shape of a defeat for in-form Brisbane, who crashed against Hawthorn, which means that they extend their lead at the top.

The Hawks providing quite the shock as they managed to overturn a third quarter deficit, when it looked like the contest was slipping away from them, and then were able to hold on and see it out well in what proved to be a nail biting finale.

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Speaking in the post-match presser, a delighted coach Sam Mitchell said “I thought the boys played well. We’ve had some good patches in games where we have been in most of them we played this year; I was really pleased with the maturity of the group that they were able to play all the way to the end.”

He went on “We have been trying to make progress and figure out how to get better as a team each week. We are a reasonably young group and get a win today but that doesn’t say it was a full product and we have still got a lot of work to do.”

Closing out the weekend came a scoreline that certainly raised a few eyebrows as Collingwood travelled west and romped away to a 36-point success over Fremantle.

The Magpies adapting to the conditions better, heavy rain hours before having made it wet and slippery, with 19-year-old Oliver Henry, coming on early as a substitute to replace Mason Cox, proving to be the hero by booting a career-high four majors.

Round 10 Results

Carlton 15.12 (102)
Sydney 13.9 (87)

Geelong 11.16 (82)
Port Adelaide 7.5 (47)

Western Bulldogs 15.16 (106)
Gold Coast 13.9 (87)

North Melbourne 8.5 (53)
Narrm (Melbourne) 14.16 (100)

Adelaide 9.15 (69)
St.Kilda 14.6 (90)

Richmond 11.14 (80)
Essendon 7.6 (48)

GWS 21.12 (138)
West Coast 13.8 (86)

Hawthorn 18.9 (117)
Brisbane 17.10 (112)

Fremantle 6.8 (44)
Collingwood 12.8 (80)

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