2005 - AFL Home and Away Season
Round 21 - Results and Post-game Articles
Fremantle: 5.2, 7.2, 8.6, 12.8 ()
St Kilda: 4.2, 9.3, 11.4, 11.9 (75)
Goals - Fremantle: Pavlich 4, Mcpharlin 4, Medhurst, Peake, Farmer, Longmuir St Kilda: Gehrig 4, Harvey 3, Dal Santo 2, Peckett, Ackland Best - Fremantle: Pavlich, Haselby, Longmuir, Grover, Peake, Mcpharlin St Kilda: Harvey, Dal Santo, Montagna, Gehrig, Ball, Baker
Injuries - Fremantle: Schammer (Corked Hip) St Kilda: Penny (Knee), Koschitzke (Knee), Maguire (Hip) Changes - Fremantle: - St Kilda: - Reports -
Umpires - Allen, Head, Woodcock
Crowd - 38,057 At Subiaco Oval
Some good news for Saints
St Kilda has finally received some good injury news with centre-half-back Matt Maguire a chance to line-up in Saturday night's clash against Brisbane at Telstra Dome. Maguire was one of four star Saints injured during Friday night's heart-breaking after-the-final siren loss to Fremantle at Subiaco but, unlike fellow big men Luke Penny and Justin Koschitzke, his hip injury is not as bad as first thought. And spearhead Fraser Gehrig, who hurt his groin after landing awkwardly following a marking contest on Friday night, has also escaped serious injury although there is a chance he could be rested this week due to groin soreness.
The Article Paul Gough/Sportal/saints.com.au/22Aug05
Umpire rumour left on plane
It could be dubbed the mystery of the Friday night red-eye special. The AFL has cleared the umpires of any wrongdoing, but the football world is still buzzing about who said what - and to whom - on the flight back from Perth after the Fremantle-St Kilda game. Channel Nine has twice reported that an umpire said "Now we know what a victory feels like" - despite nobody on the flight being prepared to talk on the record about the supposed exchange. AFL umpires director Jeff Gieschen has spoken to the umpires involved and the league moved swiftly to exonerate them. AFL football operations manager Adrian Anderson yesterday said it was a non-issue. It is understood the AFL has questioned Channel Nine reporter Tony Jones, who was on the flight.
The Article Mark Stevens/HeraldSun/22Aug05
Tribunal: Saint escapes ban
Just when embattled St Kilda needed a break, it came from within the AFL yesterday. Midfielder Brendon Goddard escaped suspension despite being cited for striking by the match review panel. He was charged with a level one offence against Fremantle's Steven Dodd, but can have the one-game penalty reduced to a reprimand by pleading guilty. Goddard would carry 93.75 points towards his future record, after the 25 per cent reduction for an early plea. The first-quarter incident at Subiaco on Friday night was assessed as reckless conduct (two points), low impact (one), in play (one) and body contact (one), drawing 125 demerit points and a one-game ban.
The Article Bruce Matthews/HeraldSun/23Aug05
Saint or sinner?
. . . Parker and Gehrig spent much of the match jousting and were involved in a strange incident in the second term where the St Kilda forward challenged Parker to hit his injured and bandaged left hand. Parker obliged and the pair grappled. Both clubs were alerted to the investigation yesterday, although it is uncertain whether it will proceed to mediation, the usual course for vilification investigations. It is believed that Parker has since confided that he was not affronted by the remark and that it was brought to the attention of the umpire to upset and worry Gehrig into a subdued performance.
The Article TheAge/23Aug05
Saints in limbo
St Kilda won't know until late in the week the extent of its losses from its after-the-siren defeat against Fremantle at Subiaco last Friday night. Scans yesterday confirmed the bad news for star tall Justin Koschitzke, whose re-damaged right quad muscle is a three-to-four week injury that will keep him put of most of the Saints' finals campaign. However Matt Maguire, who limped from the ground with an apparently severe hip injury, is listed as subject to a fitness test after having a hip flexor muscle scanned. "We just have to wait for the result of the the scans, we're not too sure yet," St Kilda coach Grant Thomas said last night.
he Article Michael Horan/HeraldSun/23Aug05
It's going to take a miracle for Saints
The prophets of doom are going to have their way with St Kilda. Twelve days out from finals, the Saints are on their knees. It's wrong to say they can't win the flag for they will if they can string together three wins in September. But what's mathematically possible and what's plausible in all the circumstances are totally different things. St Kilda's chances slump by the week and it is highly improbable the Saints can overcome the damage thrown up yet again by a shocking run of injuries.
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/22Aug05
Goddard in the gun: spectre of scrutiny compounds Saints' woe
Much has been made of St Kilda's injuries from its brutal match against Fremantle. Not nearly enough has been made of the possible aftermath today at the match review panel. Brendon Goddard should come under the stiffest of scrutiny after he clashed with Docker Stephen Dodd. The video appears to show the St Kilda player strike Dodd to the midriff. The incident happened off the ball. Impact was significant enough to force Dodd from the field for treatment. And you would think any contact that happens off the ball must be intentional. On face value, then, that all adds up to trouble for Goddard.
The Article Patrick Smith/TheAustralian/22Aug05
Disappointed, but still proud
After his side missed a golden opportunity to cement third position on the AFL ladder and thus give themselves the best possible chance to avoid a possible trip back to Subiaco to play West Coast in week one of the finals, coach Grant Thomas maintained on Friday night that he was proud of his boys. The Saints were 16 points up at the last break, but Steven Powell and Fraser Gehrig each missed a couple of gettable shots early in the term, allowing Fremantle to stay alive. Then, with 30 seconds to go in the match, leading by a point, an all but stationary Justin Peckett had the ball on half-back and was run-down by the hard-chasing Luke McPharlin. The tall Fremantle forward speared the resulting free kick towards goal and Justin Longmuir grabbed a fingertip pack mark and calmly converted after the siren for the five-point win. Thomas said that at the last break, he thought the mood of the players was positive.
The Article Mic Cullen/saints.com.au/20Aug05
Thomas unfazed by injury toll Mic Cullen/saints.com.au/19Aug05
Stay positive, Thomas tells Saints
Only hours after St Kilda's dramatic and costly loss to Fremantle on Friday night, Saints coach Grant Thomas urged his players to get into a positive frame of mind in readiness for a September campaign. While St Kilda's defensive stocks were in tatters after Matt Maguire and Luke Penny went down with injuries that might sideline them for weeks, and fellow key tall Justin Koschitzke limped off with a quadriceps complaint, the players were encouraged to move on quickly. "We were shattered straight away after the game," experienced defender Austinn Jones told The Sunday Age last night. "We had recovery at the ground and then bussed back to the hotel and everyone was sort of sitting around having a bit of a feed and the mood was pretty sombre. But Grant, just on his way out, just spoke for a couple of minutes and just said how important it was that that mood was sort of put away that night and everyone was positive the next morning. And even that night just to get on with it and start focusing on (Saturday night's round-22 match against) Brisbane straight away."
The Article Samantha Lane/TheAge/21Aug05
Saints' injury crisis
Injury-ravaged St Kilda faces the prospect of needing to win through to the preliminary final before it regains Justin Koschitzke and Matt Maguire, with the club yesterday awaiting medical reports on a swag of key position stars. The Saints have plummeted in premiership markets from outright $3 flag favourite to $4.50 in the wake of Friday night's costly five-point loss to Fremantle at Subiaco. Koschitzke again tore the right quad that kept him out for three weeks mid-year. Luke Penny's continuing posterior cruciate injury forced him off in the first quarter and Maguire's right hip flexor problem could force him to miss as many as three weeks.
The Article Jon Ralph/HeraldSun/21Aug05
Double blow for Saints at Subi
The injury curse that has shadowed the Saints all season reared again at Subiaco Oval on Friday night to be the key factor in the club's five-point after-the-siren loss to the Fremantle Dockers. Matt Maguire (hip), Justin Koschitzke (quad) and Luke Penny (knee), all spent much of the second half on the bench, while Fraser Gehrig may have tweaked a groin while falling awkwardly - as the Saints fought desperately to withstand the surging Dockers in the final term . . . After the match, Saints coach Grant Thomas was refusing to get down about the mounting injury toll. "Injuries are no excuse, but it obviously didn't help our cause to lose Luke Penny early in the game and everything else," he said. "But I thought we adapted to the injuries well, especially with Koschitzke and Maguire being off. You've just got to cope the best you can and I thought the guys were terrific."
The Article Mic Cullen/saints.com.au/19Aug05
We lost the game all by ourselves . . . saintsational.com
Saints count the cost
. . . St Kilda coach Grant Thomas conceded last night that Koschitzke and Maguire would be lost for "a few weeks". "Everyone's just got to grow a bit," Thomas said."We've been dealt those cards; we've just got to deal with it." Koschitzke had his right thigh heavily iced and did not take part in the match again after falling hard in a marking contest in the third quarter. He injured his right quadriceps in June while performing a warm-up kicking drill and might miss several weeks if he has re-injured the muscle. With full-back Max Hudghton not expected to return from his hamstring injury for another two weeks, the potential losses of Maguire and Penny are major problems for the Saints. Maguire hobbled off soon after Koschitzke with what appeared to be a hip-flexor injury, while Penny was lost in the first quarter with a knee injury. He was considered a possible non-starter against the Dockers this week after hurting his knee last week against the Kangaroos.
The Article Mark Duffield/TheAge/20Aug05
Docker frenzy as ship comes in
Fraser Gehrig booted four goals, but also appeared to be struggling with a groin injury. It was the second thriller between the clubs this year after the Saints' one-point win in Launceston in Round 2. mFremantle piled on four unanswered goals in the final term, but only hit the front after the siren. Justin Peckett was run down by Luke McPharlin with 30 seconds remaining. Longmuir marked the resultant free kick amid a huge pack and then calmly slotted a goal from a pocket where the Dockers regularly practise kicking goals. "Our whole season was riding on that kick by Justin Longmuir," ecstatic Dockers coach Chris Connolly said after the match.
The Article Digby Beacham/HeraldSun/20Aug05
Goal after siren gives Freo win
A goal from Fremantle's Justin Longmuir after the siren gave the Dockers a thrilling come-from-behind AFL victory over a depleted St Kilda outfit at Subiaco Oval tonight. The 12.8 (80) to 11.9 (75) win keeps alive Fremantle's flickering finals hopes, lifting them to 11-10 for the season and likely needing to beat Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium next week to earn just the second post-season appearance in the club's history. The Saints led by 16 points at three-quarter-time, but injuries to defenders Luke Penny (knee) and Matt Maguire (hip) and in-form big man Justin Koschitzke (quad) helped Fremantle run over the top of the visitors. Add them to sidelined trio Max Hudghton, Xavier Clarke and Sam Fisher and the cupboard is starting to look decidedly bare for the Saints, who close its home-and-away season against Brisbane at the Telstra Dome.
The Article AAP/HeraldSun/19Aug05
Dockers snatch last-gasp win
Justin Longmuir kicked a goal at the death to give Fremantle a thrilling five-point win over St Kilda in their AFL Round 21 opener at Subiaco Oval on Friday night. The Saints had a 16-point lead at the last change but saw the Dockers kick four straight goals to emerge with a 12.8 (80) to 11.9 (75) win which kept their season alive and moved them into provisional sixth spot on the AFL ladder. The Saints' forward line was weakened in the final quarter with Justin Koschitzke on the bench with a thigh injury and Fraser Gehrig hobbling after appearing to injure his groin in a heavy fall. But the home side left it late, with Longmuir's major coming after more than 30 minutes of last-quarter play had already been put on the clock. Matthew Pavlich had sparked the comeback with a goal half-way through the final term and Luke McPharlin and Jeff Farmer kicked the other two final-quarter majors before Longmuir's coup de grace. McPharlin and Pavlich shared the scoring honours for Freo with four goals apiece, while Longmuir kicked just one - albeit the one which won the game. But the Dockers arguably benefited from the umpiring, with five of their goals coming from free kicks.
The Article ABCSport/19Aug05
Dockers rock Saints
Justin Longmuir has kept Fremantle's season alive with a goal after the siren to hand the home side a thrilling five-point win over St Kilda at Subiaco. After four quarters of finals like football it took until the dying seconds of the match for the home side to emerge 12.8 (80) to 11.9 (75) victors. Longmuir marked brilliantly after Luke McPharlin ran Justin Pickett down with the ball in the final minute. The big man converted and the Dockers are a big chance of playing a part in September. Matthew Pavlich was once again the shining light for Fremantle, kicking four goals while Paul Haselby bounced back from last week's shocker. For the Saints veteran Robert Harvey put in a virtuoso performance in the midfield and was ably assisted by young gun Nick Dal Santo. After a slow start in last week's derby disaster Fremantle was keen to get away well against the Saints and it did, managing four of the first five goals. The visitors kept in touch through Harvey's two majors and after a tight term the Dockers were up by a goal at the first break.
The Article Sportal/19Aug05
Thomas to be burned by the fire he lit
This was the week St Kilda went from Melbourne to play Fremantle and the club coach Grant Thomas just went from bad to worse. The afterburn of an arrogant news conference last Tuesday will still flame brightly seven days later. For next Tuesday is the deadline by which Thomas must explain to the AFL why he should not be charged with conduct unbecoming. If found guilty, the AFL can do all manner of things to him. Fine him for starters. Suspend him, too . . . By yesterday morning Demetriou left no one in doubt about the seriousness of the coach's position. Demetriou said that the league had received letters and phone calls from leagues dotted about the state that the remarks by Thomas had caused young umpires to reconsider why they should even bother to turn up and umpire this weekend.
The Article Patrick Smith/TheAustralian/20Aug05
Demetriou: The boss with an opinion
. . . Certainly, Thomas, who still occasionally refers to the AFL chief executive as "Kapil" - an old North Melbourne nickname for his apparent similarity to Indian cricketer Kapil Dev - has had issues with Demetriou and certainly a meeting took place in 2001 that ended up in a shouting match between the two. But Demetriou, who was football operations general manager at the time, denies ever standing up and subtly threatening retribution, or that he ever said, "I run the AFL." He confirmed he met Thomas at Moorabbin during an early stage of the latter's senior coaching career along with then club chief executive Brian Waldron and football director Mark Kellett and that he took umbrage at something and promptly left. "No one called me to check (The Australian) story," said Demetriou. "It's simply not true. I can't speak for Grant Thomas; maybe he has difficulties with a lot of people but I've never had a run-in with the bloke. It's just nonsense. We were teammates for a short time at North and he was a fairly happy-go-lucky guy around the club. He was pretty popular, to be honest. "I notice it was reported that Grant and I are pretty similar. So now journalists are psychologists, are they? The only similarity Grant Thomas and I have is our physical shape."
The Article Caroline Wilson/TheAge/20Aug05
G-Train leads Saints to seventh straight win
. . . Saints coach Grant Thomas hailed a satisfying win but said his side could have puit a big gap into the Kangaroos earlier on. "I thought our effort at the man and the ball was good . . . I just felt we could have really put a gap between us in the first half with some better use of the footy." The Saints led by 13 points at quarter-time and 34 at half-time but the Kangaroos had trimmed that lead to 15 at the final break. Goals to Stephen Powell and Gehrig gave the Saints the early lead and they remained ahead throughout a torrid and hard-fought first half.
The Article ABC Sport/13Aug05
Saints too steady
It was a case of third time unlucky for the Kangaroos on Saturday as they again conceded the opposition a start but this time failed to run down a St Kilda side fast closing in on a top four finish. The Roos again trailed throughout but this time there would be no fairytale comeback as the Saints won 16.12 (108) to 13.7 (85) to move a game clear of the fifth placed Kangaroos in the race for the all-important double chance in September. However the Roos again lost no admirers as they got to within 10 points in the final quarter, after having chased the game all day after conceding four of the first five goals of the game. In the past fortnight the Kangaroos had beaten Port Adelaide by four points after having trailed by 40 points at half-time and then last week beat Collingwood by a goal despite having trailed by three goals with only three and a half minutes to play
The Article Paul Gough/saints.com.au/13Aug05
Saints foil another Roos escape Scot Palmer/HeraldSun/14Aug05
Saints wins seventh straight game
. . . The Kangaroos outscored St Kilda by seven goals to five in the second half but must now win their last two home and away matches against Sydney and Carlton to have any chance of snaring the double chance. The ageless Robert Harvey was excellent all day for the Saints, who also got good returns from their other star onballers Luke Ball, Nick Dal Santo and Lenny Hayes. Coleman Medal favourite Fraser Gehrig kicked 5.4 in a entertaining battle with Leigh Brown. The Kangaroos' best forward target was Saverio Rocca with four goals, including two in the third quarter when his side was starting to mount its charge. Corey Jones was the Kangaroos other effective forward with three goals, while Michael Firrito, Brent Harvey and Daniel Wells were all good contributors. St Kilda dominated the opening two quarters and held a game-high 34-point lead at halftime after Hayes slotted a classy 45m goal on the run late in the term.
The Article AAP/HeraldSun/13Aug05
Satisfied Saints
St Kilda coach Grant Thomas was a satisfied man after the Saints notched their seventh consecutive win, this time against a team trying to snatch their spot in the top four. While Thomas believed the Saints could have put a bigger gap between themselves and the Kangaroos in the first half, he was relieved to emerge with the 16.12 (108) to 13.7 (85) victory after the Roos staged a characteristic second-half revival. "It was good to have a win against quality opposition. They're a pretty relentless side that stays in the game the whole time. It was a good effort by the boys to persevere," Thomas reflected after the 23-point win. "I thought we had a chance to put a bigger gap in the first half and we weren't using the ball as well as we'd like. It was pretty similar to last week in that regard. All of a sudden they got a couple of goals and the game was pretty tight for the last half." Thomas admitted after the win the Saints had a number of areas for improvement, namely the club's delivery to Fraser Gehrig, who booted 5.4.
The Article Scott Spits/saints.com.au/13Aug05
|
ARTICLE ARCHIVES: 2003 - 2004 - 2005 - 2006
