THE tall timber is supposed to create the contest and bring the ball to ground inside 50, but Hawthorn's Paul Puopolo turned that theory on its head in the first quarter against Collingwood at the MCG.

The former Norwood man, all 173cm of him, lept onto a huge pack and got a great ride only to have the ball bounce off his outstretched arm and go to ground.

So what surely would have been mark of the year ended up being nothing more than a good contest in the air. Even then his heroics didn't receive an appropriate send-off with Shane Savage hitting the post with a shot on the run.