Round 5. Anzac Weekend

Round Five.
This weekend was hyped as a weekend full of one sided matches, which threatened to put many bookmakers out of business. Luckily for them we saw a few massive boil overs.

Without doubt the feel good story of the round was Melbourne, and for the first time in five years they were in the eight momentarily, having won their last three matches. Sadly though, us Melbournians could not view the match on free to air TV, due to Channel 10's inexplicable decision to broadcast the Port Adelaide vs. St.Kilda match instead. Despite winning 26 of their last 30 matches, St.Kilda members must seriously consider whether having a season ticket is worth the money. If you have a small child that is having issues sleeping, put a St.Kilda game (preferable one where Nick Reiwoldt is injured) on the TV and they'll be snoozing before you know it. Honestly, the way they play is infuriating. The worst part is that it clearly works, so there's no chance of them changing it anytime soon.

There was one good thing to come out of the boring match that Channel 10 aired. Steven Milne kicked the goal of the year. It cannot be beaten. In wet conditions Milne took the little dribble kick from the boundary to new heights.

Adelaide is in deeper trouble after another lose, this time to the Bulldogs. They have no confidence in moving the ball forward, and at times are going five minutes without a kick. The Gold Coast must be happy that Kurt Tippet signed on for Adelaide. As for the dogs, I'm sure they are going to win enough games throughout the year to make the top 4, and if they get their timing right, are up to their necks in the premiership race.

Carlton announced itself today as a major threat to the premiership hopes with a huge win over the cats. They have a super midfield and a forward line that is small, but when it works is near impossible to stop.

This week gave us proof that you cannot win games without ruckmen. Hawthorn had Brent Renouf pull out late in the build up to its match against North Melbourne, and it hurt the 2008 premier. The Roo's had three designated ruckmen playing, with Hawthorn having Jarryd Roughead in at the centre circle, and even more embarrassingly, Luke Hodge, Xavier Ellis, and at times Brad Sewell rucking around the ground. Considering this, the effort against North seemed okay, although neither team will see this match as the highlight of their season.

For the first time this season Richmond showed that they perhaps can play football, and gave their supporters hope that they might actually sneak home for one win at some stage during the year. They were eventually overrun by the much improved Dockers, who must have been worried that old habits may have been back had they have lost this one.

One side note for the Tigers is that Coburg's best player was Daniel Connors. He looked a level above the VFL against Box Hill on Saturday. Maybe this sanction was the wake up call the much talented player needed. Tigers fans will be praying for a Steve Johnson style turn around.

Finally this week, the ANZAC day clash between Essendon and Collingwood was a complete fizzer. Unfortunately I was given the advice that 'It'll be fine to watch the game from quarter time, what could we miss in the first quarter?'. Tragic mistake. The game was COMPLETELY over by quarter time, and sitting at a pub along Swan St. I was able to see a steady stream of Essendon supporters filing out of the ground from early in the second quarter, and who could blame them?


SMILING THIS WEEK

* Dean Bailey - his contract could get to Melbourne Storm proportions if the Dee's keep winning like this.

* The bookies - went in nervous, but came out winners, with Melbourne, Port, North and Carlton getting the job done for them.

* Magpies fans - but do they have a side consistent enough to win a flag?

WEEK TO FORGET

* Geelong - will turn out to be a small bump in the road, plenty of fight still left in the Cats.

* West Coast - getting worse by the week.

* Brisbane Lions - Will struggle to win a premiership if you can't get over the Demons.

Lookout later this week for a preview of Round 6.