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Sport Nation
Gerard Whateley's initial thoughts across the competition with pre-season footy finished
Gerard Whateley • March 3rd, 2025 1:31 pm
I get the feeling we’re all about to become experts in Category 2 Cyclones. Opening night is at the mercy of Alfred.
Does the season begin on Thursday in Brisbane with the handpicked Lions/Cats clash? It’s never been truer to say … it’s in the wind.
Monday is for snap judgments… what you feel most passionately from the weekend of sport. We’ve seen the Community Series… so what did it tell us about what’s to come.
We’ll hand out the grains of salt this morning but I am curious – what did you see that you’re inclined to believe.
Brad Scott’s words “a necessary evil” sat increasingly heavily over these formal practice matches. You hold your breath while you watch these games.
Anyone but the Bont… a complex calf injury further compromises the start of the Bulldogs season.
Sydney rested Isaac Heeney and Chad Warner, but played Errol Gulden – they lost him to a fractured ankle.
And how many times could Max Gawn get pummeled in a meaningless match at the beginning of March? Could they just stop kicking it on his head! Is it all worth it? Is it necessary?
There were three teams that needed reassuring performances: The Bulldogs, Carlton and Port Adelaide.
Each met the brief to keep the questions at bay until the season proper.
The Bulldogs had a system that didn’t revolve around Bontempelli, the understudies at Carlton gave a good account of themselves and Port Adelaide played fast… maybe Kenny will dial up footy’s version of T20 to counter the absentees.
I’d mentioned Collingwood are said to be old, but they don’t look old.
St Kilda are young… and did they look young – but Ross will have them better tooled than this.
If you were taking things at face value you’d have a question mark over the Giants after two seriously underwhelming trials – but I’m inclined to ignore those and take them on trust come Sunday against Collingwood.
And Gold Coast were underwhelming… which has been their natural state for most of their existence. Essendon should travel north bursting with possibility.
Last night’s Fremantle-Melbourne clash had a fascinating backdrop once the idea was planted that Luke Jackson could find his way back to the Demons in a future world.
I heard Gazey float this idea almost by accident on Friday. It reminded me of the night Spud broke the Adelaide camp story without any understanding of the future ramifications. We didn’t take him seriously on the night. Gazey might’ve stumbled onto something here.
It all added to an atmosphere between these two teams. Fremantle are making no secret that they want Kozzie Pickett… and Pickett has hinted at it too.
Melbourne says it will cost three first round draft picks. Or as Brad Green suggested a player component… could he have been alluding to Jackson.
I rather enjoyed Green’s hardline stance – you can’t get caught in trade speculation before a game has been played. Anyway, it felt directed toward the Dockers.
And then Pickett didn’t appear until after three quarter time. Perhaps it was nothing… but it felt like something.
I watched Melbourne with one overriding thought – if they have healed the environment and readied themselves for the trials ahead with clarity and unity, they are back to grappling with their age old problem… how to get the forward line to function.
This was compromised when Jacob Van Rooyen left the field seconds into the game.
The Demons were afflicted by familiar ailments – bombing the ball to the to the top of the square or missing the kick inside 50. They couldn’t get their work on the scoreboard.
This became the least of their worries last year as things unraveled… but prior to that it was the central issue in straight sets finals exits.
Last night suggested it’ll cause plenty of gnashing of teeth again. But that’s for a grain of salt as well, because there was plenty to like.
Pickett was electric when he came on, Clayton Oliver was worthy of note again.
And the best sight in the entire Community Series was Christian Petracca who made an eye-catching return from the trauma of the King’s Birthday injuries. Petracca looked restored. Powerful and explosive.
He was a constant threat and presence in the middle and ahead of the ball. He burst from stoppage and went back under the high ball.
Petracca looked the played we’ve long known – and that was the perfect tonic for all else that happened while we were practicing.
