1. Western Bulldogs 15.13 (103) d Essendon 11.4 (70) at Docklands
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The moment: A late blow-out meant the scoreboard didn’t reflect how tight this game really was. When the game was in the balance in the final term, Essendon’s Adam McPhee ran against the flight of the ball to take a solid contested mark. It would have been a game-turning grab – if his teammates had been able to respond.
2. Carlton 19.10 (124) d Sydney Swans 9.9 (63) at Docklands
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The moment: Matthew Kreuzer showed he has the ability to play more footy up forward with this first-quarter beauty. Brendan Fevola did well to put the ball out into space in front of the impressive youngster. With a defender chasing hard, Kreuzer picked up the ball effortlessly, saw off another opponent and snapped the ball neatly through the middle at pace.
3. Geelong 17.15 (117) d Melbourne 11.5 (71) at Skilled Stadium
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The moment: Having kicked four goals last round, Liam Jurrah again turned Demon heads on Saturday. The classy recruit from Yuendumu in Central Australia plucked a fabulous one-hand grab in the final term. Soon after, he took the aerial route for another soaring mark.
4. Hawthorn 18.13 (121) d Collingwood 11.10 (76) at the MCG
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The moment: The Hawks were starting to win momentum when Luke Hodge gathered the ball in the centre square, baulked a couple of Magpies and from 75m out tried to unload the torpedo. It didn’t come off the way he would have liked but bounced and rolled through for a goal to get the Hawks back to within one point. They soon gained the lead and never looked back.
5. Brisbane Lions 9.8 (62) d Fremantle 7.5 (47) at Subiaco
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The moment: Daniel Rich has a left boot to behold and on Saturday night it was used endlessly to break open a wet-weather grind. After taking the handball from Bradd Dalziell 55m from goal late in the third term, the 18-year-old took a short shuffle and sent the ball through for a crucial major. The Lions led by seven points and only built on that lead.
6. Port Adelaide 17.10 (112) d West Coast 11.10 (76) at AAMI Stadium
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The moment: With his side trailing by 34 points, West Coast skipper Darren Glass tried to assert some authority in the second quarter. But instead of laying a tackle, Glass opted to bump Port forward Justin Westhoff. While succeeding in slightly concussing the stick-thin goalkicker, Glass failed in his main objective by allowing the ball to skid on for Brett Ebert to kick an easy goal.
7. Richmond 12.13 (85) drew with North Melbourne 12.13 (85) at the MCG
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The moment: With 20 seconds remaining and scores level, Tiger youngster Jarrod Silvester and tall Kangaroo forward David Hale locked horns deep inside the North Melbourne forward 50. Playing in just his third game, the young Tiger stood firm, won the free kick and helped the Tigers snatch a face-saving draw.
8. St Kilda 15.15 (105) d Adelaide 7.6 (48) at Docklands
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The moment: You knew it was going to be St Kilda's day when Farren Ray's speculative centre went horribly right two minutes into the second quarter. Ray threw the ball onto his boot deep in the pocket and watched as it nearly hit the roof, somehow found its way through a sea of arms to the goal square, then bounced at right angles through the big sticks.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
