Facts and Figures
Average Score: 55.72 points per game; Reasonably low scoring considering West Coast scored over 100 points!
Average Winning Margins: 19 points per game, which indicates there were a lot of close games.
Round 8 (In a Nutshell): There were six out of nine games with a margin of 13 points or less. It’s something that the AFL would be happy with as closer games on the scoreboard often make for more entertaining footy. Therefore, Round 8 was a good spectacle on the whole, find out why!
Thursday Night Game
Gold Coast (46) v Western Bulldogs (51)
Dogs Win Nail Bitter!
Facts and Figures: The game was a tough and tight contest between two potential contenders. Lachie Young kicked his first goal of his career in his eighth game.
Pivotal Moment: Izak Rankine kicked an outstanding goal in the 2nd quarter, which displayed his youthful exuberance.
Gold Coast Game Changer: Jarrod Witts
Western Bulldogs Game Changer: Jack Macrae
Friday Night Game
GWS (62) v Richmond (50)
Giants Take a Giant Step Forward!
Facts and Figures: Jason Castagna kicked a clever goal off the ground, which happened to be the opening goal of the game.
Pivotal Moment: Toby Greene kicked the Greater Western Sydney’s fourth goal of the game.
GWS Game Changer: Toby Greene
Richmond Game Changer: Dustin Martin
Saturday Afternoon Games
North Melbourne (57) v Carlton (64)
Kangaroos Give Blues a Fright in Tight Contest!
Facts and Figures: The game ebbed and flowed in what was a tightly fought contest.
Pivotal Moment: Michael Gibbons kicked a clever goal in congestion, which was the first goal of the game.
North Melbourne Game Changer: Jared Polec
Carlton Game Changer: Sam Walsh
Swans (60) v Hawthorn (53)
Swans Win Close Game!
Facts and Figures: Tom Papley kicked at least one goal for his 26th game in a row.
Pivotal Moment: Tom Papley kicked a ball off the ground in the second quarter.
Swans Game Changer: Tom Papley
Hawthorn Game Changer: James Sicily
Saturday Night Game
Port Adelaide (44) v St Kilda (73)
Saints Power On!
Facts and Figures: The game was in the balance until the fourth quarter when St Kilda put their control of the game onto the scoreboard.
Pivotal Moments: Rowan Marshall kicked the first goal of the game with a clever snap. Nick Hind kicked St Kilda’s fifth goal of the game to give them the lead in the 2nd quarter. Tim Membrey kicked a remarkable goal in mid air.
Port Adelaide Game Changer: Brad Ebert
St Kilda Game Changer: Zak Jones
Sunday Afternoon Games
Adelaide (59) v Essendon (62)
Crows Lose Nail biter!
Facts and Figures: Scores were level at 13 points each at quarter time.
Pivotal Moment: Brodie Smith kicked Adelaide’s third goal of the game from outside 50.
Adelaide Game Changer: Matt Crouch
Essendon Game Changer: Zach Merrett
West Coast (111) v Collingwood (45)
West Coast Smash Woeful Pies!
Facts and Figures: Scott Pendlebury was a late withdrawal so Collingwood lacked leadership!
Pivotal Moment: Jamie Cripps kicked an outstanding goal in the third quarter from a tough angle.
West Coast Game Changer: Josh Kennedy
Collingwood Game Changer: Taylor Adams
Sunday Night Game
Melbourne (49) v Brisbane (53)
Dees Not Quite Good Enough!
Facts and Figures: Brisbane controlled the balance of play after quarter time. Daniel Rich appeared to have strained his hamstring in the second half, which helped give Melbourne the ascendancy after that point in time. Despite that it was to no avail as Brisbane claimed the four points!
Pivotal Moment: Dayne Zorko snapped a clever goal that levelled the scores at 20 points each.
Melbourne Game Changer: Clayton Oliver
Brisbane Game Changer: Lachie Neale
Monday Night Game
Fremantle (16) v Geelong (48)
Fremantle Make Geelong Look Like Premiership Favourites!
Facts and Figures: It wasn’t the best game to watch due to the weather making it difficult to play attacking footy.
Pivotal Moments: Brad Close kicked the first goal of the game in his first game, which lifts the morale of Geelong. Mitch Duncan kicked a clever soccer goal crumbing off a pack, which was the second goal of the game. Tom Hawkins kicked a clever snap, which was Geelong’s fourth of the game. Sam Menegola kicked sixth goal of the game with an intelligent kick.
Fremantle Game Changer: Andrew Brayshaw
Geelong Game Changer: Sam Menegola