Dolphins go berserk; 'ridiculous' Roo has 43; bag for returning Don

Frankston had not gone close to beating Footscray in 11 previous attempts, and it looked like more of the same when the Dolphins trailed the reigning premiers by 25 points at three quarter-time at Mission Whitten Oval on Sunday having kicked just 3.9 for the day.

In a possession-heavy game in the wet, skipper Trent Mynott was sensational with 33 disposals, eight marks, eight inside-50s and a goal, with Darby Hipwell (31, seven tackles), Tyson Milne (34, 11 rebounds) and Will Hamill (30, six rebounds) continuing their fine seasons, while Noah Gown and Corey Ellison kicked three goals each.

Adam Treloar (37) and Riley Garcia (33 and a goal in his first game of the year) shared 70 disposals on injury return for Footscray, but the Bulldogs were left to rue spraying 7.16 when they had the game on their terms.

Tom Simpson became only the second Werribee player to kick an after-the-siren match-winner, squeezing through a set shot from the top of the goalsquare to steal a one-point win from a gallant St Kilda at RSEA Park on Sunday.

The Saints led for most of the second half and had a five-point lead on the back of a great left-foot snap from Isaac Keeler a few minutes earlier when Jay Dahlhaus intercepted Jack Carroll’s exit kick and thumped to the hot spot where Dan Butler was penalised for pushing Simpson in the back.

Experienced Tigers Jack Riding (31, eight entries, one goal), Dom Brew (26, 16 contested, seven clearances, 12 tackles) and Louis Pinnuck (26, six marks, nine rebounds) again starred, with key defender Ryan Eyers frugal as usual in holding Bailey McKenzie goalless.

Hunter Clark (32, nine marks) and Jack Macrae (28, 11 contested) emphasised the Saints midfield depth, with the ruck contest between Alex Dodson (21, 15 contested, 43 hitouts) and Ajang Kuol mun (24, 10 clearances, 34 hitouts) was mouthwatering for both sets of fans.

Williamstown forward Angus Sievers narrowly missed a set shot inside the last 10 seconds as the Seagulls shared the points with Sydney in a heartstopping draw at Blacktown International Sports Park on Saturday.

In a see-sawing that saw eight of the 11 lead changes happen in the second half, the Swans came back from 18 points down midway through the second quarter and looked like they would pinch it when skipper Nic Shipley snapped truly in the 22nd minute.

That was the last score until Sievers pulled in a strong contested mark 30 metres out, only for his kick to take a wicked curve at the last moment to narrowly miss the left goalpost, with the siren sounding as Riley Bice’s kick-in found Patrick Snell, leaving both teams still inside the top 10.

Smooth-moving Swan Braeden Campbell made an impressive return from a leg injury in his first game of the season with 21 disposals and 2.2, while Bice (31, nine marks, seven rebounds), Snell (18, 13 marks), Jevan Phillipou (23, 10 marks, one goal) and VFL forward Jake Sutton (four goals) also starred.

Seagull Jack Toner, however, was best afield with 36 touches, eight clearances, seven marks and two goals, with the evergreen Jake Greiser (34, nine marks, eight rebounds) not far behind and Toby Triffett and Lachlan Wilson also good with 28 possessions each.

Coburg exploded in the second half with 14 goals to five to turn a 10-point deficit into a 43-point win over the Casey Demons at Barry Plant Park on Sunday to draw closer to a first finals appearance in 18 years.

The Lions kicked eight goals to two in the third term and added another six to three in the last as ruckman Cooper Keogh turned in a stunning display that netted 36 disposals (29 contested), 38 hitouts and 17 clearances, while 100-gamer Lachlan Walker (27, one goal), 50 club-gamer Joel Trudgeon (30, nine marks), Hugo Bromell (28, three goals), Flynn Gentile (30) and Jack Bytel (30) combined to eliminate the Demons from the finals race.

Ricky Mentha (20) was Casey’s best with a lively display on the wing as he chases a Melbourne debut, with Luis D’Angelo, Luamon Lual and mid-season draftee Lukas Cooke also good.

Carlton continued its bounce back to stay on the edge of the top 10, leading nearly all day to shock top-four rival Box Hill Hawks by 23 points at Box Hill City Oval on Sunday on the back of 32 disposals from Lachie Fogarty and 28 from Blake Acres, while Flynn Young (three goals) and Liam Reidy (22 hitouts, two goals) also put their hands up against a Hawks’ team led by Cody Anderson (22, two goals), Finn Maginess (27) and Flynn Perez (26).

A ridiculous 43-disposal, six-clearance, nine-entry, five-rebound display from Bailey Scott was nowhere near enough as Collingwood forward Max Mahoney’s career-best five-goal haul put a huge dent in North Melbourne’s finals hopes in a convincing 43-point win at Marvel Stadium on Friday, with fellow Magpie VFL-listers Josh Browne (32, one goal) and Oskar Faulkhead (25) also impressive alongside Jakob Ryan, Roan Steele and Lachie Sullivan.

Essendon kept itself on the brink of the top 10 as Liam McMahon’s six goals ended the Brisbane Lions’ resurgence at Brighton Homes Arena on Sunday. Having missed two months with an ankle injury, McMahon was unstoppable in kicking 6.1 from seven marks to give himself 10 in two matches as the Bombers blew the match open with eight out of nine goals from midway through the third term, sparked by 35 possessions from Elijah Tsatas and big contributions from Will Setterfield (29, 16 contested, one goal), Zak Johnson (28) and Jaxon Binns (26, 10 marks), while Sam Marshall (32, seven marks, one goal) and Dan Annable (32, eight marks) starred in Tahj Abberley’s 100th game.

Tasmania produced a powerhouse effort after quarter-time to thrash bottom team Gold Coast by 50 points at North Hobart Oval on Sunday – turning a 27-point quarter-time deficit around with 18 goals to six for the rest of the game on the back of 25 disposals and nine marks from Nick Williams and four goals for Jed Hagan, while Sam Clohesy put his hand up for a Suns recall with 37 touches at 81 per cent efficiency, eight tackles and 11 rebounds.

Port Melbourne consolidated its spot in the top six, holding off a late Sandringham charge to win a wet-weather slog by 11 points at ETU Stadium – the Zebras hit the lead through Lachlan Voss entering time-on, but Charlie Clarke and Luca Alessio responded to save the day as tough nuts Josh Green and Ben Hobbs revelled in the wet and Dom Bedendo (22, one goal) continued his strong year, while Sandy’s Darcy Chirgwin (26, 10 clearances, nine tackles) and Daniel Pinter (16, 51 hitouts, 13 tackles) were sensational for their team.

Geelong’s dominant season rolled on with a 10th-straight win as the Cats overwhelmed Richmond in the second half, turning a five-point lead into an 82-point thrashing as Jesse Mellor (six goals) and potential AFL debutant Jay Polkinghorne (five) cashed in on the dominance of James Worpel (33, 19 contested, seven tackles, seven entries, one goal), Hunter Holmes (32, nine entries, one goal) and Gryan Miers (24, 10 tackles, three goals), while Tyler Sonsie (32) was terrific for the Tigers.

North Melbourne’s Wil Dawson will miss this week for striking Collingwood’s Charlie West in the last quarter at Marvel Stadium on Friday, as will Footscray’s Ryan Gardner for striking Frankston’s Noah Gown in the second quarter at Mission Whitten Oval on Sunday and Box Hill Hawks’ Max Ramsden for a high bump on Carlton’s Harry Charleson in the last quarter at Box Hill City Oval on Sunday.

Coburg’s Daniel Johnston is the fourth players suspended, banned for tripping Casey Demons’s Luis D'Angelo in the last quarter at Barry Plant Park on Sunday.

Riley Bice accepted a reprimand for striking Williamstown’s Angus Sievers in third quarter at Blacktown International Sports Park on Sunday, and the weekend run of careless umpire charges posted to the SCG climbed to five, with Malcolm Rosas and VFL captain Nic Shipley adding to the three fines from Perth last Thursday night.

Shipley was fined $200 for a second offence and Rosas was reprimanded for a first offence. Finally, Seagull Kye Turner was also reprimanded for careless umpire contact.