This video made the rounds on most sports blogs yesterday, with most people just drooling over the awesomeness of it. I’m going to take a slightly different tack here, though, because it’s Grand Final Weekend in Melbourne, and, well, this is a different sort of football blog, after all.
Take a look at this catch by Morgan State wide receiver Edwin Baptiste…
In this instance, the quarterback was leading the receiver forward. The receiver got ahead of the defense, looked back for the ball and made that ridiculous play.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen that in an AFL match. In most cases, a potential receiver who gets away from his defender is always coming toward the ball, or the kicker boots it to a specific spot and lets players congregate underneath and fight for it. You never see anyone kick a ball with an eye on a receiver moving toward the goal.
I’m curious as to why that is. Is it because players running forward have a harder time taking a mark? Do players who run forward attract more defenders? Does the nature of the game convince coaches that you only have to move forward enough to get in goal-kicking range, thus allowing forwards the freedom to give up 10-15 meters if they’re still able to mark inside the 50? Perhaps some of you out there can explain that one to me.
In the meantime, coverage of the AFL Grand Final kicks off at 11:30 PM ET tonight on Setanta Sports. If you don’t have Setanta or can’t find a pub nearby that carries it, give AussieSport TV a try. Here’s hoping Hawthorn does what last year’s Port Adelaide Power couldn’t — make a game of it against Geelong.
9 responses so far ↓
1 Soups // Sep 26, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Dave the question has to do with space and more specifically free space. In American Football (and to a lesser extent the two rugby codes) the free space is over the top of the opposition who to a man is facing you. It is relatively safe to throw (kick) the ball (way) over the top and get your player/s to chase it down whilst the defenders have to turn around and monitor the flight of the ball and the offensive player. In Aussie Rules there is no prescribed or certain free space, it is more organic. Sure you can set up schemes to manipulate free space but oppositions can play a spare man in defence to clog the space back up. One well known scheme was “Pagan’s Paddock” where champion North Melbourne centre-half forward Wayne Carey played solo at the top of the offensive 50 and the other 5 Kangaroo forwards played in defense and the midfield. North Melbourne would get the ball and just ‘bomb’ it forward where often Carey, running with the flight of the ball, would mark and goal. In todays football running with the flight of the ball and marking does still occur but it is usually risky because defenders are given more time to get to the contest. Do a search on Jonathan Brown marks and you’ll see several where he’s taken the mark running with the flight of the ball into a pack! That’s brave. Enjoy the GF in Raleigh, here in Perth, home of the mighty Eagles, the GF starts @ 12 noon. Better than starting at midnight heh! And talking of the Eagles I was at the G in 05 & 06. Obviously a much better feeling in 06.
2 Travis // Sep 26, 2008 at 2:28 pm
That was the sickest catch I have ever seen!
3 Bartel // Sep 26, 2008 at 4:14 pm
re jonathan brown, riewoldt’s was better;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJGeSRJ5MMQ&feature=related
4 Travis // Sep 27, 2008 at 12:41 am
Bartel, Watch the NFL on sunday and you will see that type of catch about 3 times each week. It was a great catch but I do not think it even compares to the one posted on this site.
5 Ryano // Sep 27, 2008 at 5:48 am
Pretty epic catch! me likey very.
Not as epic as the Grand FINAL, but pretty epic.
6 Ryano // Sep 27, 2008 at 5:48 am
man im soo drunk from todays festivities. AWESOME BLOG DAVE1
7 Sean // Sep 27, 2008 at 8:34 pm
You used to see it a lot back in the 1980s when they were more lax on the hands on the back.
I’ve seen Gary Ablett senior take a few overhead while falling backwards. There is one in particular, but I’ll get back to you on it.
Anyway, check out this vid if you want to see some similar freakish skills.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4k95MQ-SEI
In the 1980s this situation would often happen when the full forward works his opponent under the ball.
But these day’s they’d probably get penalised for it.
8 Sean // Sep 27, 2008 at 8:37 pm
See video at 1:21
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4k95MQ-SEI
Gary Ablett takes a near identical mark under much greater pressure in the AFL !
9 Sean // Sep 27, 2008 at 8:38 pm
was the 1989 AFL Grand Final Geelong vs Hawthorn and he kicked a great goal from it as well when he was best on ground in a losing side