In Round 9 of the 2024 AFL season, Christian Petracca produced one of the best performances of all time ... in a loss, and a free agent Swan had a second straight blinder, while another 'messiah coach' is showing signs of struggling. Here's whose stocks are up and down.
Our footy experts cast their eye over the week's action to find out whose stocks are up -- whether it's a coaching masterstroke or a player having a blinder -- and whose are down.
Adelaide
Stocks up: Crows fans won't be too thrilled with the draw, but they will be upbeat about the contributions of the tall forward brigade. After a slow start to the season, Taylor Walker contributed two majors for a third straight week despite being well held by Jack Payne. Darcy Fogarty kicked four as he posted a major in his fourth consecutive match (something he hasn't done since mid-2023), and Elliott Himmelberg had some impressive moments for two majors. Take the little wins in a draw, right?
Stocks down: It's incredibly important to be able to run out games, especially tight ones, so for Matthew Nicks to bank on no injuries in the second half, only to lose Josh Worrell minutes into the third having already used his substitute ... well, we're not saying it cost the Crows, but sometimes you gamble and lose. Young draftee Daniel Curtin was pulled from the game at half time, replaced by Luke Nankervis, but the Crows then played most of the second half a man down after Worrell suffered a wrist injury and was unable to play on. Who knows if it would have played out differently.
Brisbane
Stocks up: Looking more accomplished as the weeks roll by, Jack Payne was excellent for the Lions in their draw with Adelaide on Sunday evening. Taking 12 marks -- eight of which were intercepts -- and keeping Taylor Walker to two majors, his play especially late in the game was notable. Has become a great Marcus Adams replacement.
Stocks down: Brisbane's finals chances took another hit with the draw, which leaves the team in 13th spot on the ladder, two wins and percentage behind eighth spot (held by Collingwood). Crucially, now, there are four teams with two points from a draw, and both Adelaide and Collingwood (but not Essendon) have superior percentage. All four will be hoping to compete for a spot in the eight. It's looking tough.
Carlton
Stocks up: Patrick Cripps has had a solid season so far, but he seems to go to another level when Sam Walsh is in the midfield with him. The Walsh-Cripps combo is absolutely on the podium for best midfield one-two punches, and they starred to great effect in Carlton's heartstopping one-point win over Melbourne. Walsh had 34 disposals, 11 tackles, and kicked a goal, while Cripps had 35 disposals, a game-high seven clearances, and kicked a goal. An envious combination indeed.
Stocks down: Yes, they've won a few close games this year, but what can Michael Voss do to ensure his side can bank some percentage? The seemingly way-too-early 'shut it down' mentality isn't working for Carlton, who have been (or nearly been) run down by the Dees, Pies, and Crows in the past six weeks of footy. It's a bit of a worry.
Collingwood
Stocks up: Collingwood was forced into several changes due to a spate of injuries during the week, which opened the door for Joe Richards to make his senior debut. And it took him no time to settle in to the level and make his mark, immediately looking comfortable under the Marvel Stadium roof and providing loads of energy in the Magpies' front half. Richards finished his afternoon with an impressive 18 disposals, six tackles and one goal. He'd be stiff to lose his spot, that's for sure...
Stocks down: The Pies went into Sunday's game undermanned through the midfield and forward line, and unfortunately for Craig McRae, it didn't take long for his troops to add to the injury carnage. Swingman Jeremy Howe was subbed out with a groin injury in the first quarter, moments before Harvey Harrison's day was done after getting his leg caught under a tackle. Then, substitute Jack Bytel, who was playing his first game at his new club, was ruled with out with concussion in the third term.
Essendon
Stocks up: The legitimacy of this Bomber side seems to be rising with each passing week. Despite some shrewd offseason acquisitions, it was tricky to see a path to September for Essendon. Yet after nine rounds, they sit in third spot with a record of 6-1-2. With games to come against North Melbourne and Richmond over the next fortnight, we could be looking at a seriously impressive record.
Stocks down: He's been in the system for a while now, but Harry Jones still looks like a kid trying to find his way at senior level. Against the Giants, Jones kicked two behinds from his seven touches, continuing a rather underwhelming theme. This year he's averaging a shade under 10 disposals and a goal per game, not overly dissimilar to his year one productivity.
Fremantle
Stocks up: It's up for debate whether or not Friday night's match should have gone ahead, given the Dockers had only just learned of former teammate Cam McCarthy's passing earlier in the day, but you have to respect how the Dockers handled the situation. The pre-game tribute was extremely moving, and fitting, and aside from rampant inaccuracy, the team competed all night against a great team in the Swans.
Stocks down: Should the AFL have consulted more with Fremantle to determine if Friday's match should have gone ahead? It seems almost dystopian they were asked to front up on the day news broke of McCarthy's passing, and Justin Longmuir said in his post-match press conference that delaying the clash "wasn't a conversation that came across my desk". Feels like an oversight to not consult the coach. Also, from a football perspective, 26 shots on goal for just 19 scoring shots at 4.15 is a poor night in front of the sticks.
Geelong
Stocks up: Once upon a time, Zach Guthrie struggled to cement a spot in the Geelong side and didn't offer too much impact at the top level. But in 2024, he has been one of the Cats' best and most consistent performers, again putting together a night worth highlighting. Guthrie picked up 24 disposals, seven marks, three tackles and a goal, and finished the match as the highest-rated Cats player. He is a critical component of what Chris Scott is building in 2024.
Stocks down: The Geelong defence is supposed to be one of the major strengths of Chris Scott's side, yet for the second time in three games it coughed up 100+ points. The Blues scored 105 points in Round 7, a game they probably should have won. This week it was Port Adelaide reaching the triple-figure score. Need to tighten up down back.
Gold Coast
Stocks up: The Darwin Suns. Has a nice ring to it, huh? There's something about the Top End this side just loves. Gold Coast has won five straight games in Darwin, dating to 2022. And who pops up every time? Local lad Joel Jeffrey. Playing his first game for the year, he tallied 598 metres gained with his 20 disposals coming at 95% efficiency. Next week the Suns face Geelong up north again. If they win that one, they might have to seriously consider relocating!
Stocks down: Surely that's the last we see of Bailey Humphrey the substitute? The big-bodied midfielder has too much talent to be playing just one quarter of footy, and that was backed up by his performance in the fourth term against North Melbourne. Humphrey had 12 disposals, four centre clearances, five tackles, seven inside 50s, and 405 metres gained. In one quarter. Let the bear loose, Dimma.
GWS
Stocks up: It's not unfair to say Keiren Briggs is becoming one of the most reliable rucks in the game. He had another 25 hit outs during Saturday's loss to Essendon, as well as 16 disposals and a game-high 10 clearances. He's averaging 15 touches, 24 hit outs, and seven clearances a game in 2024, after posting similar numbers throughout last season.
Stocks down: After a tough few weeks, the legitimacy of the Giants has to be questioned. A one-point win to the Saints in Round 6 -- one in which they coughed up the last six goals of the game -- has been followed by three losses in four weeks, the most recent being a 20-point defeat to Essendon. After a month of footy, they looked the team to beat. After two months, they feel like fringe contenders. Interesting times ahead for Adam Kingsley.
Hawthorn
Stocks up: If Sam Mitchell deserved criticism when the Hawks were losing, and losing badly, it's only fair he receives a bulk of praise for an unexpected win over St Kilda. Mitchell hasn't been afraid to shuffle the magnets in 2024 and stamp his contested game style on his squad. If Alastair Clarkson is afforded time to turn things around, so too should Mitchell.
Stocks down: Players surely need to be getting it -- dump tackles are out. Jack Scrimshaw was banned for one match for a dangerous tackle on Liam Stocker, in which the Hawks defender pinned both of Stocker's arms before slinging him to the ground. Not good enough.
Jack Scrimshaw has been handed a one-match suspension for this incident involving Liam Stocker.
— AFL (@AFL) May 12, 2024
Saturday Match Review: https://t.co/brMMI04kFu pic.twitter.com/JDIq7EVLDT
Melbourne
Stocks up: If Melbourne had pulled off the remarkable comeback against Carlton on Thursday night, Christian Petracca's performance would be hailed as one of the greatest ever individual games played. He was simply unstoppable after he made the move to the forward line, tallying 21 disposals, FIVE goals, and two goal assists in what was a mesmerising performance. Just think, if he'd managed to slip the last tackle with 15 second remaining and hit the scoreboard again... It's not quite Paul Salmon in 1993, but it's not far off...
Stocks down: It's the same old issues for the Dees forward of the ball. They lost by a point, but had 20 more inside 50s than Carlton. The Dees were held scoreless in the first term -- but had more inside 50s. There's no focal point threat in that forward line, and it took a disruptor in Christian Petracca moving forward to finally find an avenue to goal. It's been Simon Goodwin's biggest conundrum for years -- convert the entries and find a consistent and capable front six.
North Melbourne
Stocks up: In yet another tough outing for the Kangaroos, Bailey Scott showed he has tremendous promise as a running half back, or even someone who could make the transition to the wing. Scott had a game-high 750 metres gained as well as 24 disposals, 18 kicks, five inside 50s, and five score involvements. One of only a few Roos who could hold their head high on Saturday night in Darwin.
Stocks down: He was a popular pick to win this year's Coleman Medal, but Nick Larkey's chances of leading the league in goals looks to be all but gone. Larkey, who booted 71 goals in a career-best 2023, has 'just' 18 majors to his name after nine rounds, already trailing Coleman Medal leader Charlie Curnow by nine goals. It's going to be a huge ask from here.
Port Adelaide
Stocks up: Have the Power unearthed one in Dante Visentini? The fourth gamer was one of Port's best on Friday night against the Cats, taking on veteran duo Rhys Stanley and Mark Blicavs, and winning. Stanley was subbed out before half time, and Blicavs was forced into the ruck role, while Visentini himself had a game-high 31 hit outs -- 10 of which were to advantage! He also had two clearances on the night. Ivan Soldo and Jordon Sweet have some competition...
Stocks down: Those who prematurely wrote off Ollie Wines, what did you make of his performance against the Cats? The 2021 Brownlow Medal winner was superb in the win, lifting in the absence of skipper Connor Rozee to finish the game with 33 disposals, 15 contested possessions, nine clearances, 11 score involvements, seven tackles, and a goal. Huge!
Richmond
Stocks up: Grim. It's very grim at Tigerland right now. Everything is trending in the wrong direction, nothing is working, and you fear it'll only get worse from here. But hey, you'll take it after three flags, huh?
Stocks down: It's becoming more and more clear season 2024 will be Dustin Martin's last, at least in yellow and black. Whether we want to admit it or not, the struggles of Richmond are tainting Martin's Tiger legacy. If North Melbourne didn't exist, Richmond would be the worst side in the league and with Martin's numbers diminishing, let's just hope this isn't how we remember him...
St Kilda
Stocks up: Well, Rowan Marshall certainly played his part. The St Kilda ruck was a colossus, finishing with a career and game-high 23 contested possessions, game-high 12 clearances, and game-high eight inside 50s. He also had 28 disposals, 24 kicks, and 11 tackles. You can't ask for much more from your ruck.
Stocks down: He was brought back to turn things around, but, thus far, Ross Lyon's second tenure at the Saints has been a monumental failure. St Kilda sits 15th after Round 9 with wins against Collingwood, when they were firmly in the midst of their premiership hangover, and cellar dwellers Richmond and North Melbourne. Lyon loves the defensive approach but scoring just 53 points against a depleted Hawthorn backline is downright embarrassing.
Sydney
Stocks up: For a man who is drawing the attention of rival clubs, with six-year deals being thrown about in the media, Will Hayward certainly did his free agency prospects no harm at all. The tough half forward was prolific for the Swans in their win over Fremantle in the west, kicking four goals and having a direct goal assist. Hang on, doesn't this sound like deja vu? Well, yes, he's booted four goals two weeks in a row. Talk about a contract season!
Stocks down: All wagers made on the 2024 Brownlow Medal that don't include Isaac Heeney. Wow, what a start to the year it's been! Heeney may well have polled votes in all nine games, in fact, our Brownlow Medal predictor has him on 18.5, well clear of second place. He's going to take some running down from here...
West Coast
Stocks up: It wasn't perhaps the best game we've seen from the youngster, but Harley Reid's hanger was at least a highlight from an otherwise disappointing effort from the team. Fair effort, this! He's shown some great signs already in his young career. What can't this man do!?
HARLEY HIGH 👏
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) May 12, 2024
Gee this kid is exciting
📺 Watch #AFLPiesEagles on ch. 504 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/c5VwhmeFbG
✍️ BLOG https://t.co/QoDjG09mhN
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/ov0yx5mdIb pic.twitter.com/K7OwbqBsNy
Stocks down: His good games are great, but his poor games are horrific. Sure, Jack Darling didn't have a great deal of opportunity against the Magpies on Sunday afternoon, but being held to just two kicks and one behind is simply not good enough from one of the club's senior players. Darling has kicked just eight goals this season in what shaping as easily the worst campaign of his career.
Western Bulldogs
Stocks up: He's been battered from pillar to post, including in this column, but it's relief for Luke Beveridge after his side's 91-point win over Richmond. Yes, a depleted, rebuilding Richmond, meaning he hasn't bought himself too many credits, and still has a number of questions to answer as hid side seeks an identity and a pass mark in season 2024. Shout out to Adam Treloar, too, who turned back the clock with an explosive 41 disposals and a freak goal.
Stocks down: Surely Ryley Sanders in the VFL is done? Get him in, Bevo, he had 42 disposals, 12 clearances, and kicked a goal in the Dogs' VFL win over Richmond. Just has to play seniors. Please.