Carlton scored yet another upset win over Essendon last season. Can the Blues do it again this week? Photo: AFL MEDIA
1. Dale Thomas’s alcohol-related indiscretion and a dismal 1-9 record aside, last-placed Carlton has good reason for some extra pep in its step this week.
Why? Ess-en-don.
They’re three syllables which should rouse a tribal instinct in even the most disheartened and downtrodden Bluebagger.
Sunday afternoon at the MCG presents Carlton – no stranger to pouring heat on the Bombers in recent times despite its lean spell – with the chance to inflict another shattering defeat upon a fierce rival.
Last season, a 13-point upset in round eight consigned Essendon to a 2-6 record from which John Worsfold’s side would never fully recover, as it missed the top eight despite winning 10 of its final 14 matches.
The stirring victory was one of just two wins all season for Carlton, which finished dead last.
It was a similar story in 2017, when Essendon did play finals, but not before a round-three upset by a Blues outfit that would only finish one win clear of last-placed Brisbane.
For the record, Carlton has won three of its past seven encounters with the Bombers, as well as a draw in 2014.
The Blues’ history of unexpectedly knocking off their old rivals goes back a lot further than that. Who could forget 1999? But we digress…
A prickly Worsfold this week had to fend off a glut of questions about pressure building around his position at the helm, and he can thank Essendon great Matthew Lloyd for that after the champion former goalkicker’s public comments about the coach.
The groans of dissent will only grow louder if Worsfold’s men suffer a fifth defeat in six matches.
An embarrassing loss to the near-unbackable wooden spoon favourite would be the worst possible way for the injury-hit Bombers to head into their bye week, especially given there would be no chance for on-field redemption until the Friday night showdown with Hawthorn on June 14.
2. Good luck to whichever opponent Taylor Walker sets his sights on this Saturday night.
The Adelaide wrecking ball was anything but his usual robust self when confronted by West Coast skipper Shannon Hurn over a loose ground ball last weekend.
Big Tex copped a barrage of criticism after appearing to shirk the contest, and will no doubt be out to make amends by throwing his 100-kilogram frame around.
“As skipper, I wouldn’t want any of my players to do it, and it’s an example that I don’t want to set for my teammates,” Walker told Triple M this week.
“I’ve just got to take the ball and stay lower for longer, as simple as it is. I put my hand up, that’s the way footy goes. I’ll put myself in that opportunity again and do it better.”
Walker will get his chance when the Crows take on Melbourne at TIO Stadium.
The Darwin venue is about as “off-Broadway” as it comes in the AFL – and we’ll get to Shanghai soon – but you can guarantee the TV cameras present will be focused firmly on Walker.
The key forward has also come under fire for his sub-par form across the board in 2019 and was held goalless as Adelaide coughed up a 33-point lead in the home loss to West Coast.
Walker, however, won’t yet be coming face-to-face with former teammate Jake Lever, with the Melbourne defender ruling himself out of a return from injury this week, almost a year to the day since his last senior appearance.
3. Fans bemoaning the latest Shanghai sojourn as a waste of AFL resources shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for league’s grand plans to scrapped.
Gillon McLachlan and co. are hell-bent on gaining a foothold in China and won’t be relenting in their push any time soon.
A reminder: debt-ridden St Kilda is only in the first season of a three-year agreement with Port Adelaide, the AFL and Victorian Government to pass on rights to one of its home games.
And the league itself is in the process of setting up an office in Shanghai, adding to bases in the United States, New Zealand, Europe and South Africa.
The humidity and 30-degree temperatures forecast in Shanghai might not be conducive to a high level of football this week, but the AFL expects tickets to sell out at Jiangwan Stadium.
How many are actually “sold” and how many are complimentary passes is anyone’s guess.
The venue has attracted crowds of a tick over 10,000 for Port Adelaide-Gold Coast fixtures in the past two seasons.
4. Here’s something you might not have thought you’d be reading a few short years ago – wouldn’t it be nice if we got through a round of football without another instance of fan violence?
A spate of worrying incidents has already cast a dark shadow over the 2019 season.
Last week, it was a group of men wearing Richmond jumpers who reportedly punched on in a public car park near the MCG.
Rival fans have been involved in a growing list of altercations this season.
There is no doubt increased use of mobile phone cameras has played a role in bringing more of these incidents to light.
But anecdotal evidence from many fans suggests the problem at hand is getting worse.
How did we get to a point where some parents are too scared to take their children to AFL matches?
It’s beyond time for the small minority of troublesome fans to pull their heads in.
5. Melbourne-based commentators can often be guilty of ignoring the teams that exist beyond Victorian borders.
It took until round nine last season – when West Coast thrashed 2017 premier Richmond at Optus Stadium – for many to take notice of the rising force in the west.
Even then, many doubted the Eagles’ credentials, only to be made to look silly when the self-proclaimed “kings of the big game” overcame a raft of setbacks to salute in September.
Be warned: the Eagles are starting to take flight again.
The reigning premier has gone about its business quietly for the most part in 2019, but found a new gear late in its barnstorming win over Adelaide.
With a 7-3 record and star ruckman Nic Naitanui set to return after the bye, Adam Simpson’s men are perfectly placed for another crack at the flag.
This week’s test comes in the form of the Western Bulldogs, fresh off a loss to North Melbourne in Brad Scott’s emotion-charged final match at the helm.
The Bulldogs have a torrid history in Perth and appear ripe for the picking.
They have lost all three previous matches at Optus Stadium by an average margin of more than seven goals.
Their only win over the Eagles in Perth in the past eight seasons was the 2016 elimination final – with their six losses in that time coming at an average 66 points.
West Coast spearhead Josh Kennedy has been at the forefront of the demolition jobs.
The dual Coleman medallist has kicked 49 goals in 14 appearances for West Coast against the Bulldogs, including bags of 10 and seven.
