AFL 2022 Round 6: ANZAC Day, Q-Clash, Walker 500th, Greene returns

Updated: Apr 25, 2022 3:27 pm

Jack Ginnivan kicked a career-high five goals as Collingwood took the honours by defeating Essendon in their annual ANZAC Day blockbuster at a packed MCG.

In only his tenth appearance for the Magpies, the No.13 pick in 2021 rookie draft wasn’t phased at all by the occasion and went on to have an afternoon to remember.

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Addressing the 84,205 inside the stadium, as he accepted the ANZAC Day Medal, the 19-year-old (pictured above) said “I just want to thank Essendon for a good game. Appreciate everyone coming out, the crowd was pretty amazing. Go Pies!”

Speaking later to Pies TV, he further added “Obviously it hasn’t sunk in yet, the significance of the medal and stuff like that. First of all to get the win was amazing; individual stuff comes second but it was a pretty cool feeling.”

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Despite amassing 22 behinds, reigning Premiers Melbourne remain top of the pile as they still had enough to get the job done against Richmond in the ANZAC Eve clash.

Demons midfielder Clayton Oliver was the star as he racked up 41 disposals, 10 score involvements and nine inside 50s to earn the Frank ‘Checker’ Hughes Medal.

Prior to the contest, the crowd of 70,334, which included recently retired Australian tennis player Ashleigh Barty, witnessed a spectacular ceremony, recognising those who served and sacrificed for the country, that included an impeccable minute’s silence, the Last Post and lighting of the cauldron by Paralympian Curtis McGrath.

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Fremantle lead the chasing pack, following another impressive display, as they recovered from a slow start to knock over Carlton by 35 points at Optus Stadium.

The only disappointment for the Dockers was losing key ruckman Sean Darcy to a concussion, late in the encounter, which will rule him out for next weekend.

Brisbane marked their 800th game as a club at Carrara, the venue where it all began 36 years ago, as they hammered their rivals Gold Coast in the Queensland derby.

Midfielder Zac Bailey (pictured below) picked up the Marcus Ashcroft Medal and had a day out by booting a career-high six majors; he became only the fourth player in Q-Clash history to complete the feat (Ash McGrath, Charlie Dixon and Charlie Cameron).

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Speaking to Lions TV, the 22-year-old said “Really good; I think as a team we started off really well from the get-go. In the second and third quarter we sort of fell away a bit but cleaned a few things up and were able to finish well.”

He also earnt the praises of coach Chris Fagan who said “He’s been on the rise for a couple of years. It’s only six games in and he’s probably taken another step forward in his football. He’s a great finisher, a clever player. We are lucky to have him.”

St.Kilda made it five in a row, for the first time in over decade, and spoilt Toby Greene’s much anticipated return for Greater Western Sydney in the process.

The lead up had all been about the Giants forward as he finally made his comeback following a six-week suspension for making intentional contact with an umpire; however, the Saints clearly didn’t read the script as they got the chocolates.

Jeremy Cameron (pictured below) booted seven snags and was awarded the RSL Tasmania ANZAC Medal, for his effort, as Geelong thrashed bottom side North Melbourne by 60 points.

The Cats had far too much for the Kangas and, in truth, it could have been an even bigger margin had they been more accurate in front of the big sticks (19 behinds).

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Port Adelaide are finally on the board, at the sixth time of asking, and did it in some style as well by recording their biggest ever victory over a disappointing West Coast.

Forwards Todd Marshall and summer recruit Jeremy Finlayson both slotted five apiece while Connor Rozee won the Peter Badcoe VC Medal (10 votes) for his best on ground display. Completing a fine afternoon for the Power saw Kane Farrell back in the line-up having been out for nearly ten months after a knee reconstruction.

Down in Launceston, Sydney produced a monster last quarter to come from behind and completely run over the top of Hawthorn in chalking up a 41-point success.

Despite getting off to a dreadful opening, in which they conceded the first five goals, the Swans slowly worked their way back into it, getting things on their terms, with their pressure eventually telling as the damn wall broke open in the latter stages.

Taylor Walker notched his 500th goal and then kicked the sealer as Adelaide got up in a thriller over the Western Bulldogs, by just a single point, at a blustery Ballarat.

‘Tex’, leading Crows scorer for the last three seasons, becomes the first player in their club history to reach the milestone and has been in great form since his return.

Speaking on ground to Fox Footy, the 31-year-old said “I knew the wind was coming across so I just had to kick it hard at the left goal post and it just came back.”

He continued “The most pleasing thing for us is we haven’t had two wins in a row for a good couple of years now. So to get on the road and come down here, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for us coming over here, so it’s another character-building (winning) and gives our young boys a lot of belief. We know the way we want to play and it’s starting to come to fruition now so it’s great for our young boys.”

Round 6 Results

GWS 8.12 (65)
St.Kilda 10.17 (77)

Western Bulldogs 9.8 (62)
Adelaide 8.15 (63)

Port Adelaide 18.9 (117)
West Coast 4.9 (33)

Fremantle 14.13 (97)
Carlton 9.8 (62)

North Melbourne 9.7 (61)
Geelong 17.19 (121)

Gold Coast 11.14 (80)
Brisbane 21.6 (132)

Richmond 8.6 (54)
Melbourne 9.22 (76)

Hawthorn 10.8 (68)
Sydney 16.13 (109)

Essendon 12.10 (71)
Collingwood 15.3 (139)

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