Facts and Figures
Average Score: 81.11 points per team; fairly low, considering nine teams scored 87 points or more.
Average Winning Margin: 26.44 points per game, which accurately displays the closeness of the games in Round 8. There were five games that had a margin of 18 points or less.
Round 8 (In a Nutshell): In Round 8 I correctly predicted two out of nine results. Round 8 had a bit of entertaining footy and some one sided games. Discover what transpired in the Round 8 Review!
Friday Night Game
Richmond (126) v Geelong Cats (63)
Cats Comeback for Landmark Win!
Facts and Figures: It was 31 scoring shots to 18 in favour of the Cats. It was 55 Inside 50s 43 in the Cats favour as well.
Pivotal Moment: Gary Rohan of the Cats kicked a goal that made the deficit four points in the 2nd quarter. It stopped the momentum that Richmond had built.
Richmond Game Changer: Shai Bolton
Geelong Cats Game Changer: Gary Rohan
Saturday Afternoon Games (Eastern Time)
Gold Coast Suns (54) v St Kilda (63)
St Kilda Fight Back from the Brink of Defeat
Facts and Figures: Gold Coast had 53 Inside 50s compared with St Kilda’s 57. That stat substantiates why the game was so close. It was 23 scoring shots to 19 in favour of St Kilda. Both teams were inaccurate with their goalkicking. It was 49 hitouts to 15 in favour of St Kilda, which isn’t a surprise with Paddy Ryder and Rowan Marshall combining in the ruck.
Pivotal Moment: Brad Crouch gave St Kilda a ten point lead in the 4th quarter.
Gold Coast Suns Game Changer: Touk Miller
St Kilda Game Changer: Jack Billings
GWS Giants (107) v Essendon (105)
Giants Win Thriller!
Facts and Figures: It was 61 Inside 50s to 49 in Essendon’s favour. The hitouts were 36 to 28, also in favour of Essendon. The Giants had 29 scoring shots compared with Essendon’s 27.
Pivotal Moment: Jacob Hopper of the Giants gave them a ten point lead, late in the 4th quarter.
GWS Giants Game Changer: Tim Taranto
Essendon Game Changer: Zach Merrett
Saturday Evening Game (Melbourne Time)
North Melbourne (76) v Collingwood (94)
North Melbourne Still Winless!
Facts and Figures: It was 24 scoring shots to 21 in favour of Collingwood. Despite that, it was 55 Inside 50s to 52 in favour of North Melbourne. Collingwood only had five more hitouts, with 25 compared with North Melbourne’s 20. In the end Collingwood just did enough in a game that they should have won easily. Jordan De Goey was the difference between the two teams with six goals.
Pivotal Moment: Jordan De Goey kicked the opening goal of the game.
North Melbourne Game Changer: Aaron Hall
Saturday Night Games
Melbourne Demons (67) v Sydney Swans (58)
Demons Still Unbeaten!
Facts and Figures: The Swans had 58 Inside 50s to the Demons 46. The Swans had one more scoring shot than the Demons, with 18 compared with 17. The Demons had 53 hitouts to the Swans 29. The Swans lost a game that they could’ve won.
Pivotal Moment: Tom McDonald gave the Demons a ten point lead in the 4th quarter.
Melbourne Demons Game Changer: Tom McDonald
Sydney Swans Game Changer: Jordan Dawson
Port Adelaide (87) v Adelaide Crows (38)
Crows Simply Not at the Races!
Facts and Figures: Port Adelaide had 27 scoring shots to the Crows, 13. The Inside 50s were 63 to 49 in favour of Port Adelaide.
Pivotal Moment: Mitch Georgiades of Port Adelaide made the margin 21 points halfway through the 3rd quarter.
Port Adelaide Game Changer: Charlie Dixon
Adelaide Crows Game Changer: Rory Laird
Sunday Afternoon Games (Melbourne Time)
Hawthorn (60) v West Coast Eagles (98)
Eagles Too Good!
Facts and Figures: It was 28 scoring shots to 20 in favour of the Eagles. The Inside 50s were 63 to 35 in favour of the Eagles. They also led the hitouts with 37 to 27.
Pivotal Moment: Brendon Ah Chee kicked the opening goal of the game for the Eagles in the 2nd quarter.
Hawthorn Game Changer: Tom Mitchell
West Coast Eagles Game Changers: Brendon Ah Chee, Andrew Gaff
Western Bulldogs (107) v Carlton (91)
Bulldogs Comeback from Substantial Deficit
Facts and Figures: It was a morale boosting victory for the Bulldogs. They were outplayed for parts of the game and the scoreboard reflected that fact. The amount of scoring shots each team had was symptomatic of why the game nearly went down to the wire. The Bulldogs had 27 scoring shots to Carlton’s 26.
Pivotal Moment: Adam Treloar made the deficit 19 points in the 3rd quarter.
Western Bulldogs Game Changer: Marcus Bontempelli
Carlton Game Changer: Jacob Weitering
Sunday Evening Game (Brisbane Time)
Brisbane Lions (95) v Fremantle Dockers (71)
Lions Do Enough to Claim Win
Facts and Figures: The Dockers had 52 Inside 50s compared with the Lions 49. The Dockers had 53 hitouts to the Lions 17. The Lions had just one more contested than the Dockers; 34 compared with 33.
Pivotal Moment: Callum Ah Chee gave the Lions a 28 point lead in the 2nd quarter.
Brisbane Lions Game Changer: Hugh McCluggage
Fremantle Dockers Game Changer: David Mundy