Sep 26 2009
Geelong Vindicated in Ugly Instant Classic
It wasn’t nearly as pretty or as high-scoring as the Round 14 clash between Geelong and St. Kilda. A downpour in Melbourne coated the turf and made the ball slick, and the high stakes made it seem even slicker and made the hits seem harder. The Cats and Saints wrestled and struggled through the ugly conditions, producing a Grand Final that had all the flow of a dammed stream.
But damn if you couldn’t take your eyes off of it.
With the score deadlocked at 68-68 in the dying moments of the final frame, the match cried out for a moment of genius to determine the winner. In the end, it was Geelong who made it happen, as Matthew Scarlett kicked a wobbling ball off the turf directly to Gary Ablett Jr., who used tons of space in front of him to boot it to the goal square, where it finally found Paul Chapman, who quick-snapped it high enough to hit a scoreboard in Dallas and watched as it finally flew through the goal posts for the game winner. A late goal at the siren proved meaningless, aside from making the final score 80-68.
St. Kilda was shut down after that. The Saints proved once again that nobody could disrupt the Cats’ transition game better than they could, but in the end, they were done in by inaccuracy in the 2nd and 3rd frames, where 9 of their 15 scores were behinds. A few more goals would have changed this one considerably. Getting the ball to big center-forward Nick Riewoldt proved difficult as well, as he was triple-teamed just about every time the ball was sent inside the 50 to him.
It was the Cats’ day, however, and with two Premierships in three years, this team has cemented its place as one of the greats in footy history, and they show no signs of slowing down. As for St. Kilda, they’ll be back as well, but their first title since 1966 will have to wait.
The only question I have left is this: what were the TV ratings like in America? How many people watched and/or recorded this Grand Final here? If the numbers are good, it could help Aussie Rules build an audience here. If you see the numbers before I do, feel free to post them in the comments.
Cats the last ones standing in epic battle. (afl.com.au)
3 Responses to “Geelong Vindicated in Ugly Instant Classic”
I DVR’ed this match and due to circumstances just watched it this morning (Sunday sept 27th). It was a heavily fought game–some of those tackles looked real vicious out there and that guy on St Kilda that got his nose broken was a real gory sight–the blood came down like a river. I couldnt believe it when he came back on the field with a medical wrap on his nose!! I sure hope he went to a hospital after the game and got it properly tended to. It was difficult to watch the disappointment of the St Kilda players after the game was over–grown men were crying on the field but it was understandable after such a hard fought game.
I agree that the difference was St Kilda not having enough accuracy–too many behinds. Geelong dominated possession of the ball in the last quarter and yet much to St Kilda’s credit the game came down to the final minutes. Once the Geelong player marked the ball so close to the goalposts it was a given that he wouldn’t miss from that distance.
The ESPN feed was very clear and could have been HD quality or close to it. I couldnt believe the size of the crowd in that stadium 100,00+ wow!! ESPN’s feed was in my opinion light years ahead of the very few games ive caught on Setanta.
I want to see more footy!!! I hope it gets a better US broadcast deal next year. Go Western Bulldogs!!
Another amazing Grand Final. There is every reason to believe that the Saints and the Cats could again be in the 2010 GF.
Cant wait for next season. Hopefully ESPN Classic show games on a regular basis.
Wonder what the ratings for the game were, and if ESPN was happy with it and willing to play more games live? Even if its just one Saturday afternoon game (Melbourne time)/very late Friday night/early morning Saturday in the US.
LOL I failed to read the last paragraph of your post Dave, sorry.
Where would one find the TV ratings? Could the blog TV by the Numbers help?