DARREN MONCRIEFF
Monday 12 February 2007
A BIGGER, stronger and better drilled Essendon outfit has handed the AFL Indigenous All-Stars its first defeat after out-classing the concept side in almost every department in Darwin on Friday night.
The Bombers' performance ends the All-Stars' unbeaten run of wins in these exhibition matches stretching back to 1994.
Played in near perfect conditions in front of 13,119 fans at TIO Stadium, the surprisingly pro-Essendon crowd saw the Bombers dictate play for the majority of the match, leading from start to finish to post a 50-point 14.9 (93) to 6.7 (43) win.
The Bombers kicked three unanswered goals in the first five minutes of the game in an impressive opening term. A set shot 45 metres out on a tight angle from Aaron Davey was the All-Stars' only goal for the quarter. Worringly, the usual zip, bounce, poise and spontaneity from the All-Stars were gone and in its place were indecision, indirectness, missed targets (by hand and foot) and a scattered approach when going forward.
But you can only play as good as your opposition lets you and this was certainly the case for the All-Stars. Essendon were simply too big, too strong and too slick in virtually every department.
To be fair, the last-minute omissions of Swans pair Michael O'Loughlin and Adam Goodes and Hawthorn's Lance 'Buddy' Franklin, robbed the All-Stars of some serious firepower up forward and flexibility in key-positional areas in defence, where Bomber forwards Scott Lucas (4 goals) and the emerging Courtney Johns (3) hauled in marks with ease.
All-Stars skipper Andrew McLeod was judged best for the All-Stars, and they got good service from a rejuvenated Andrew Krakouer, one of only two dual goalkickers.
"We're disappointed and we'd like to apologise to the fans for the loss," said McLeod after the game, echoing the thoughts of his team-mates. "Hopefully we can bounce back from this."
All-Stars coach Michael McLean, perhaps leading the side for the last time, said afterwards his players were disappointed with their overall performance.
"Yeah, they know that," McLean said. "We fell a bit short in certain areas and made unforced errors. We were pretty ordinary."
An early concession from McLean that things were not going as planned came when he created a loose man in defence mid-way through the first quarter.
Indicative of how under-manned the All-Stars were can be seen by these positional placements at the first bounce: Teenager Paddy Ryder at full-forward opposed to Essendon team-mate and man mountain Mal Michael; Port midfielder Shaun Burgoyne at centre half-forward opposed to Dustin Fletcher; Fremantle defender Antoni Grover in the ruck, opposed to the imposing David Hille. Darryl White, the only other real All-Stars tall, was later swung in the ruck switching with Grover, and also at full-forward.
Later on in the game, the Dockers' Des Headland and Collingwood's Chris Egan held down the forward posts. Overall, and as the players and coaches readily admit, it was a disappointing performance from the best available talent.
AboriginalFootball@westnet.com.au
Last Modified on 29/03/2012 15:34