Tweet
Welcome, once again to the Troy Luff Medal countdown for 2004. My apologies that this instalment is a night late ? tonight both this and the next instalment will be posted in order to catch up. Tonight, over two posts we will review rounds 17 to 20, including the wins against Brisbane and Melbourne, and the losses to Fremantle and the Kangaroos.
First, however, we must look back at the leader board at the end of round 16. Despite their being a third of the season remaining, the Medal has become somewhat of a two horse race, with Barry Hall a massive 28 votes clear of third place. Brett Kirk, 14 votes behind, is hanging in there, but will need to capitalise on his strong form in the rounds reviewed tonight.
The leader board:
50 ? Barry Hall
36 ? Brett Kirk
22 ? Leo Barry, Paul Williams
17 ? Ryan O?Keefe
16 ? Jude Bolton
11 ? Paul Bevan
9 ? Ben Mathews
8 ? Amon Buchanan, Jared Crouch, Adam Goodes
The Swans travelled to Subiaco in round 17 needing a win to stay in touch with the top four, but Swans fans expected a victory were few and far between. Although they missed the finals and lost several games at home, Fremantle were nonetheless a highly rated team for much of the year, and playing at Subiaco is always a hard ask. This time, it would be too hard for the Swans, who simply gave away too much of a lead in the first half. At half-time, the Swans were down by 41 points, and that margin remained the same at the last break.
Although they rallied, as usual, late in the game, it was too late. Brett Kirk had 29 touches (21 of them handballs) in the midfield, while Barry Hall was fairly well subdued by Fremantle?s quiet achiever Robert Haddrill. At the other end, Jeff Farmer was too much for the Swans defence, kicking five goals. All in all, the game was startlingly similar to the West Coast game at the same ground in round eight. A loss by the same margin, with a small forward winning the match for the opposition, with the Swans never really looking like a threat.
The votes:
5 ? Brett Kirk
4 ? Matthew Nicks
3 ? Jude Bolton
2 ? Ryan O?Keefe
1 ? Paul Bevan
Congratulations to all five. Brett Kirk has narrowed the margin to nine votes; can he close the gap completely?
In round 18, the Swans hosted Brisbane in a game where victory seemed unlikely. Just the week before, the premiers had savaged Adelaide by 141 points. Nevertheless, it was absolutely vital. The Swans sat on 9 wins and 8 losses, and another loss with a tough three weeks to follow would make a finals spot far from guaranteed. The Swans appear to have no fear of the Lions, however, and once again systematically shut them out of a game. After their massive win the week before, the Lions could manage only seven goals. The Swans kicked only 12, but this was a game where the defensive game plan worked a treat. In the last quarter, Sydney completely locked down the game, not adding significantly to their lead but preventing any sort of comeback from the Lions.
It was a game in which neither of the two contenders for the Troy Luff Medal starred, and the voting reflects that. Hall had 17 touches but kicked only 1.3, and Brett Kirk had just 14 disposals. This was a game in which no player starred, but all contributed.
The votes:
5 ? Luke Ablett
4 ? Ryan O?Keefe
3 ? Jude Bolton
2 ? Paul Bevan
2 ? Craig Bolton
Congratulations to all five players, in particular Luke Ablett, who tops the votes for the first time in his career. The second half of 2004 was a time where the faith shown in Ablett began to pay off.
That concludes the voting for this instalment, although as mentioned the 10th instalment will follow later tonight. In the meantime, however, let?s review the leader board:
50 ? Barry Hall
41 ? Brett Kirk
23 ? Ryan O?Keefe
22 ? Leo Barry, Jude Bolton, Paul Williams
14 ? Paul Bevan
9 ? Ben Mathews
8 ? Luke Ablett, Amon Buchanan, Jared Crouch, Adam Goodes
Join me later tonight, for the games against the Kangaroos and Melbourne, in rounds 19 and 20. That post will be included in this thread, so be sure to check it again.
Charlie
First, however, we must look back at the leader board at the end of round 16. Despite their being a third of the season remaining, the Medal has become somewhat of a two horse race, with Barry Hall a massive 28 votes clear of third place. Brett Kirk, 14 votes behind, is hanging in there, but will need to capitalise on his strong form in the rounds reviewed tonight.
The leader board:
50 ? Barry Hall
36 ? Brett Kirk
22 ? Leo Barry, Paul Williams
17 ? Ryan O?Keefe
16 ? Jude Bolton
11 ? Paul Bevan
9 ? Ben Mathews
8 ? Amon Buchanan, Jared Crouch, Adam Goodes
The Swans travelled to Subiaco in round 17 needing a win to stay in touch with the top four, but Swans fans expected a victory were few and far between. Although they missed the finals and lost several games at home, Fremantle were nonetheless a highly rated team for much of the year, and playing at Subiaco is always a hard ask. This time, it would be too hard for the Swans, who simply gave away too much of a lead in the first half. At half-time, the Swans were down by 41 points, and that margin remained the same at the last break.
Although they rallied, as usual, late in the game, it was too late. Brett Kirk had 29 touches (21 of them handballs) in the midfield, while Barry Hall was fairly well subdued by Fremantle?s quiet achiever Robert Haddrill. At the other end, Jeff Farmer was too much for the Swans defence, kicking five goals. All in all, the game was startlingly similar to the West Coast game at the same ground in round eight. A loss by the same margin, with a small forward winning the match for the opposition, with the Swans never really looking like a threat.
The votes:
5 ? Brett Kirk
4 ? Matthew Nicks
3 ? Jude Bolton
2 ? Ryan O?Keefe
1 ? Paul Bevan
Congratulations to all five. Brett Kirk has narrowed the margin to nine votes; can he close the gap completely?
In round 18, the Swans hosted Brisbane in a game where victory seemed unlikely. Just the week before, the premiers had savaged Adelaide by 141 points. Nevertheless, it was absolutely vital. The Swans sat on 9 wins and 8 losses, and another loss with a tough three weeks to follow would make a finals spot far from guaranteed. The Swans appear to have no fear of the Lions, however, and once again systematically shut them out of a game. After their massive win the week before, the Lions could manage only seven goals. The Swans kicked only 12, but this was a game where the defensive game plan worked a treat. In the last quarter, Sydney completely locked down the game, not adding significantly to their lead but preventing any sort of comeback from the Lions.
It was a game in which neither of the two contenders for the Troy Luff Medal starred, and the voting reflects that. Hall had 17 touches but kicked only 1.3, and Brett Kirk had just 14 disposals. This was a game in which no player starred, but all contributed.
The votes:
5 ? Luke Ablett
4 ? Ryan O?Keefe
3 ? Jude Bolton
2 ? Paul Bevan
2 ? Craig Bolton
Congratulations to all five players, in particular Luke Ablett, who tops the votes for the first time in his career. The second half of 2004 was a time where the faith shown in Ablett began to pay off.
That concludes the voting for this instalment, although as mentioned the 10th instalment will follow later tonight. In the meantime, however, let?s review the leader board:
50 ? Barry Hall
41 ? Brett Kirk
23 ? Ryan O?Keefe
22 ? Leo Barry, Jude Bolton, Paul Williams
14 ? Paul Bevan
9 ? Ben Mathews
8 ? Luke Ablett, Amon Buchanan, Jared Crouch, Adam Goodes
Join me later tonight, for the games against the Kangaroos and Melbourne, in rounds 19 and 20. That post will be included in this thread, so be sure to check it again.
Charlie
Comment