The fifteenth round of the 2024 AFL season saw the Sydney Swans emerge victorious in the Sydney Derby, the Brisbane Lions thump Port Adelaide, and the Kangaroos push the Melbourne Demons to the limit.
Swans emerge victorious in Sydney Derby
Once again the Sydney Swans have beaten inner-state rivals GWS Giants in the ‘Sydney Derby’ – this time by 27 points. The Swans controlled the match from the opening bounce and wouldn’t let go of the lead for the entire match after scoring the first behind and goal of the clash.
A large part of the Swans’ success was Errol Gulden’s best-on-ground performance and the under-the-radar showing of 23-year-old James Rowbottom. Yet to poll a single Brownlow vote, Rowbottom showed elegance and class on his way to making a career-best 32 disposals and a game-high 11 clearances and 10 score involvements.
“He was fantastic,” Swans coach John Longmire said on Rowbottom’s performance.
“He was really good early in the game and then he paid a bit more attention to (Tom) Green in that second half.
“Green was going really well and Rowbottom’s ability to (shut him down) was fantastic.
“He’s been very important for us. He puts enormous pressure on the contest. His contest-to-contest surge running was really important.”
First kick, first goal for Caiden Cleary as Swans fans take a deep breath!
📺 Watch #AFLGiantsSwans LIVE on ch. 504 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/c5VwhmeFbG
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🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/TxnnKP6WJi pic.twitter.com/lTarjBHBqN— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) June 22, 2024
Power troubles continue as Brisbane earn thumping win
Port Adelaide fans have called for coach Ken Hinkley to resign after the Power fell to an embarrassing 79-point loss to the Brisbane Lions on the weekend. Only managing one win in their past four matches and sitting 8th on the AFL ladder, the Power were outplayed for the entirety of the match and gave up 117 points in three-quarters of footy – 60 minutes of game time.
While Zak Butters and Connor Rozee finished the match with good stat lines, the remainder of the team struggled to find any consistency, and their stars failed to live up to expectations. For the Lions, Eric Hipwood (5), Oscar McInerney (3), and Joe Daniher (3) led the goal-scoring, whilst Lachie Neale (37) and Josh Dunkley (32) had multiple touches.
“It’s part of what goes with this job, it’s always been the same,” Hinkley said on the reaction of fans that saw them leave the match at three-quarter time.
“The disappointment comes out in many different ways. No-one’s more disappointed than us inside the football club.
“I get the reaction. I’ve been around for a long time.”
Port Adelaide fans have turned up the heat on coach Ken Hinkley, calling on the club to immediately end to his 12 year tenure.
It follows an embarrassing 79-point loss to Brisbane, with a Power great also asking if Hinkley's time is up. @coreynorris9 #9News pic.twitter.com/RCOavKHJdY
— 9News Adelaide (@9NewsAdel) June 23, 2024
Melbourne Demons nearly fall to Kangaroos
In back-to-back weeks, the North Melbourne Kangaroos have nearly produced the two biggest upsets of the 2024 AFL season. Winless for the first 11 matches of the season, the Kangaroos nearly prevailed against the Collingwood Magpies last week and produced a good showing this weekend against the Melbourne Demons, which saw them only lose by three points and give their opponents an all-time scare.
Looking like a different team, the Kangaroos showed toughness, grit and fight as they took control of the match through the likes of Cameron Zurhaar and Eddie Ford. However, the Demons were just able to hold on with Daniel Turner kicking two and Jack Viney (25) leading the team’s disposal count.
“It seems a little bit comical we weren’t doing a hell of a lot of it in the first half of the year, because what’s the point of practising it when you’re never in close finishes,” Clarkson said post-match.
“It gives us heart we can practice some of that now, not that we absolutely ignored it, but it’s pretty hard for players to get motivated to practise red-time finishes in games when you’re very rarely in them, but that’s the pleasing part of it.
“Just at the moment, the more experienced sides know what to do in the crunch more than we are, but at least we’re giving ourselves a chance in games.
“We’ll learn and the Collingwoods and Melbournes and Sydneys have, over the journey, had disappointments in close losses, but hopefully the exposure to it augurs well for the future.”
Next man up ⬆️ Trent Rivers excelling through the middle.#DemonSpirit | #AFLDeesNorth pic.twitter.com/duQRqA5ePK
— Melbourne Demons (@melbournefc) June 22, 2024