IF THERE is a poster boy for Queen's Birthday footy it is Jack Watts.

We all remember his debut for Melbourne in 2009. Selected by the Demons as the No.1 pick at the previous year's NAB AFL Draft, the Demons waited until the Queen's Birthday clash against Collingwood to pick him for his debut.

Make no mistake it was an unveiling by the Demons, a selection based around marketing requirements as much as team balance. As was Melbourne's wont back in the day, he was hailed as the team saviour, despite the fact he was still completing his year 12 studies at Brighton Grammar. 

It was a terrible day for Watts and his team, kept to five touches by the unsociable Magpies, who frankly bullied him and the Demons from the opening minute. Collingwood won by 66 points that day and Watts would have his card marked for years.

At last Watts enjoys his 'nice little moment'

Fast forward eight years. This time with 70,000 people in the house at the MCG and with the Demons hanging on by barely a kick, someone was needed to drive a dagger into Collingwood's heart at the end of a magnificent, white-knuckle game of football.

Enter Watts, who gathered the ball on the outer half-forward flank, took two bounces, ignored teammates in better position to run to within 15 metres of goal and kick the sealer.

It was revenge, redemption, vindication … call it what you like. And it was served cold.

And Watts wasn't quite done. Collingwood still had time to snatch an unlikely win when Scott Pendlebury had a shot for goal that was touched on the line. By guess who?

Watts had 13 touches for the game and it was by no means one of the best he has played. Christian Petracca was the undisputed star of this one. But as the Demons won their sixth game and marched into sixth place, Watts' fingerprints were all over their four most precious premiership points of the season to date.

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Clouds finally lift in the Sunshine State

The hearts and minds of most red-blooded Queenslanders might be with their suddenly beleaguered State of Origin rugby league team, but let's hope that a significant weekend for both of the AFL's northern frontier clubs isn't lost in the wash.

Gold Coast ended a four-match losing streak at the MCG, and won there for the first time in three years, after a 14-point defeat of Hawthorn on Saturday that was more complicated than it ought to have been.

A few hours later at the Gabba, the Brisbane Lions followed up the news of Josh Schache's unexpected commitment to a new playing deal with a 57-point mauling of Fremantle.

It was the first time since round 18 last season that both Queensland teams had tasted success on the same weekend and only the eighth time since the Suns entered the competition in 2011 that this has happened.

No doubt, the local brew would have tasted that bit sweeter on Saturday night.

Gold Coast's win was built on another dominant midfield display by Gary Ablett, who traditionally has saved some of his best work for Alastair Clarkson's men.

The maestro had 37 touches and 10 clearances, and while the Hawks did come hard in the final quarter that corresponded to when Ablett was off the ground for an extended period.

When he came back, the Suns won a key clearance and helped get the goal that iced the result.

Steven May was tremendous down back, and from listening to his post-match remarks he did not give the impression of someone who might be moving on at the end of the year. David Swallow, Jarryd Lyons and Michael Barlow were also very good, while Jarrod Witts was the best big man on the ground.

But the key for the Suns is that they took over early and then were able to wrest back control of the game in the final quarter. They don't get much of a look-in at the MCG, but they looked comfortable and they deserved to savour the win.

The well-drilled Carlton (see below) back at Metricon Stadium this week won't be a shoe-in, but win that and they're 6-6 and in the finals mix.

As for the Lions, it was the result that was always on the cards but that few of us had the conviction to pick. The Dockers are in free-fall, making the second longest road trip (China now takes the cake in that department) in the competition off a six-day break against the rested Lions fresh off their bye week.

This one was in the bag early, with the Lions kicking the first four goals of the game. The midfield was flying and they had 11 more clearances than the Dockers, whose midfield coach Ross Lyon rightly said was "obliterated".

This was the consummate team effort, but Dayne Zorko's 30-possession game deserves mention as does Lewis Taylor, who finally found the sort of form that made him the NAB AFL Rising Star winner in 2014.

The Lions deserved this one. The Schache signing was a shot in the arm because there were genuine fears he was gone, but Chris Fagan has never wavered in his belief, and never deviated from his message, insisting all along that things were rosy at the club despite a nine-match losing streak.

The Lions are establishing a spine that just needs time, and having Schache back there soon will fortify it further. And when the midfield shines as it did against the Dockers, the Lions will be competitive more weeks than they are not.

Bolts from the Blue

This column wasn't subscribing to the "men versus boys" narrative attributed to the Carlton-Greater Western Sydney clash at Etihad Stadium on Sunday purely on the basis of the number of significant players still absent from the Giants squad.

The Giants were particularly anxious ahead of this one, given their fair share of luck in close games until now – surely that had to run out at some stage – while the Giants were keenly aware how well coached the Blues are.

Leon Cameron and Brendon Bolton did coach together for two years at Hawthorn under Alastair Clarkson.

Carlton's victory was one for structure and process. Bolton came up with a plan to constrict the speedy Giants and their dangerous forwards and it was executed to perfection.  

We've banged on about it before in this column and we will do so again – the Blues will be beaten by teams with clearly more talent. And there is a fair argument that the Giants blew this one with some poor kicking and some awful decision-making in the final quarter.

Had Heath Shaw not been furiously pointing at his teammates and looking the wrong way late in the match when Toby Greene kicked in his direction, he may have taken a mark and kicked the winning goal. And Greene himself had a nightmare of a final quarter in front of goal.

But the Blues made it hard for the Giants. Bolton comes up with the right game-plan and has them prepared every week. He is rarely outcoached. Carlton's record will likely preclude him from any coach of the year awards, but he should be in the conversation.

Of course, if he can turn Liam Jones into a bona fide centre half-back then he absolutely should win it.

Other observations

1. Case closed. Jeremy Howe is the best aerialist the game has ever seen. Soon-to-be official legend of the Hawthorn Football Club Peter Knights had a serious case to be considered, and Warwick Capper will have his fans (and will put himself at the top of the list) but Howe's ability to take hanger after hanger after hanger puts him ahead. His effort in front of the MCC Members on the shoulders of former teammate Tom McDonald on Monday was as good as any of the many he has taken. And it certainly was the highest.

2. If you want to see football 2017 played at its very best, have a look at the first 20 minutes of Saturday night's Essendon-Port Adelaide clash. The match was over after 15 minutes, by which time the scintillating Bombers had kicked six goals to nothing. Essendon's ball movement off half-back was breathtakingly good and if they can bottle that sort of footy and bring it most weeks from here to the end of the season, they're likely finalists. Good coaching, too, from John Worsfold to ignore the white noise about Cale Hooker and leave him at full-forward. The result? A career-best five goal game.

3. Stay classy, Essendon fans. Almost everything about your 'Comeback Story' has been great and virtuous, but why the jeering of Paddy Ryder? Especially given your indignation when West Coast supporters booed Jobe Watson a few years back.

4. Where is the Plan B at St Kilda? If the Saints don't bring the heat, there isn't much for them to fall back on, as Friday night at Adelaide Oval demonstrated. There was no dash and no dare from the Saints, and early on they couldn't move the ball out of their defensive area. It has all fallen apart after the great win over the Giants and now there are injury clouds over key defenders Nathan Brown and Jake Carlisle. Little wonder the only joy for the Saints is coming from Hawthorn's continued poor form, given they own that club's first-round draft pick later this year. The Saints are desperately hoping that Josh Kelly will be the answer to all their problems and you wonder how closely the uncontracted Giant will watch the Friday night clash between the Saints and North Melbourne, his two main Victorian suitors.

5. With every passing week, the resemblance between the Western Bulldogs of 2017 and Hawthorn of 2009 grows stronger. The Hawks could never string together more than two wins on the trot in that shambolic premiership defence, and through 11 games of this year it is the same for the Bulldogs. Increasingly, the Dogs look like the seventh-best team of last year that struck a rich vein of form for four weeks in September.

6. Tom Liberatore's absence from the team becomes more mysterious by the week, but given the runs on the board, there is no reason to question what Luke Beveridge believes is best for the team. But they're up against a hard and tough Melbourne midfield on Sunday in a game they need to win to remain in the eight. Surely, he plays.

7. A event such as Sam Reid's seven contested marks for the Swans on Thursday night is what makes list managers feel weak at the knees and why some club will throw a substantial amount of cash at him at the end of the season.

8. Smart media management from the Hawks to get on the front foot with Alastair Clarkson's apology on Sunday. Luke Hodge did the same thing after his DUI episode in 2015. Ring the match broadcaster the following day, ask for some air time and knock the issue on the head. Clarkson should not have said what he did, but given Hawk defender Kaiden Brand didn't move once Ben Ainsworth was on his approach, what was the 50m penalty for? Isn't it up to the umpire to set the mark and non-encroachment zone in the first place?

9. Good luck to the AFL determining the next teams to win licenses for the 2019 AFLW expansion. Every club looking to get in offers a compelling case. But seven into two or four, whatever the League decides, just won't go.

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