The fifth round of the 2024 AFL season saw the West Coast Eagles record their first win, Hawthorn’s struggles continue and the dominance of Jeremy Cameron.
West Coast Eagles find points at home
Number one draft pick Harley Reid has had a starring role in his first victory in the AFL and the West Coast Eagles’ first win this season. The draftee recorded 27 disposals as the Eagles ran rampant over the Richmond Tigers in front of a home crowd of 47,665 fans. Not only did they walk away with the four points, but they produced their highest-scoring half since 2021.
While Reid was a primary factor in the victory, so was veteran Elliot Yeo. Showing that he is still in the best form of his career, the two-time All-Australian and two-time club best and fairest winner will likely pick up the three Brownlow votes. At the age of 30, the injury-free Yeo finished the game with 27 disposals, 15 clearances, and two goals.
That first win feeling 🫶 pic.twitter.com/3muoLFgvFg
— West Coast Eagles (@WestCoastEagles) April 14, 2024
The Hawthorn Hawks struggles continue
After an extremely close game with the Collingwood Magpies a week before, the Hawthorn Hawks aimed to continue their good form in Round 5 against the Gold Coast Suns but failed to get any flow. The midfield struggled and was outplayed in the process. Accumulating to a 53-point loss, the Hawks allowed Noah Anderson to record 36 disposals which was more touches than the midfield trio of James Worpel (14), Conor Nash (10) and Jai Newcomb (10).
Hawks coach Sam Mitchell said the performance was “as bad as we’ve played in a long time” as the club suffered their fifth loss of the season and registered their worst start in over 50 years since 1970. Mitchell also revealed that the team “can’t play AFL football against aspiring finals teams” but will hoping to win against the North Melbourne Kangaroos next week as he takes on his former mentor Alaister Clarkson in the battle of the bottom teams.
Post-high from Clohesy 💥#AFLSunsHawks pic.twitter.com/AB1od50YJl
— AFL (@AFL) April 13, 2024
Is any forward more dominant than Jeremy Cameron?
Without his partner-in-crime Tom Hawkins, Geelong Cats forward Jeremy Cameron stood up in his absence, producing a dominant display against the North Melbourne Kangaroos. Cameron owned the Cats forward 50, booting six goals in the game- three of those coming in the opening 35 minutes of the contest.
Taking control over the opposing defenders, Cameron finished the match with 21 disposals, eight marks, and 11 score involvement as the Cats ended up winning the game by 75 points – 139 (21.13) to 64 (10.4). Surprisingly, Cameron also kicked no behinds, meaning he was 100 per cent from in front of goal.
Brad Close would go on to kick four of his own while Shannon Neale (3), Tyson Stengle (2), Max Holmes (1), Mark O’Connor (1), Ollie Henry (1), Oliver Dempsey (1) and Mark Blicavs (1) joined in on the action and were able to find themselves on the score sheet.
Jeremy Cameron is on fire early with three goals already 🔥#AFLCatsNorth pic.twitter.com/7tAZIMDBPS
— AFL (@AFL) April 14, 2024