Post Game Passion: AFL 2019 Rd 15: Carlton vs. Freo

[tonyo]

The contrast between what Richmond do and what we did in the Freo game is like night and day. It's like comparing an original hard copy document with a copy of a copy of a copy - the latter gets to the point where you can't differentiate between a 2, a Z and a squiggle.

If you think the Freo game is an example of a sustainable game style that will win us a good number of games, I'm not sure what to say.

I don't look at last week's win in terms of how they went about it.  I am far more interested in motivation and hunger.

Consider this - we had a young side playing on hostile foreign soil without our very best player and captain.  Our second-best forward is also in the grandstand, and we lose our best forward within 10 minutes of the opening bounce.

We go 5 goals down at quarter time and haven't scored one single major.  We have the next 17 inside 50's and get back in to the game with goals coming from all types of sources.  It goes goal for goal until we fall 15 points down with 6 minutes left on the playing clock.  Even David King said at this point it had been an unbelievable effort despite how the result was looking.

We kick the next three goals in 4 minutes and pinch the lead.  They snaffle a goal with a minute or so left on the clock and that would have previously knocked the stuffing out of us. But they fight, scrap and scramble and with a pinch of luck, get the job done.  We kicked 11 goals in 3/4 of footy in the wet without our two best forwards and superstar midfielder.

Despite all the naysaying about how badly Freo played, and how scrappy it was, I think this was one of the greatest victories this club has had in 10 years.  This was a victory over adversity, and a victory over self-doubt.

These type of victories can build a team much quicker than any 5 goal win which might look much prettier, but doesn't do as much for the psyche.