Hidden Gems: Round 2 v Western Bulldogs
Written by Zac Assouni
“I see it, but I don’t believe it!”. Anthony Hudson’s famous words were echoed through every single Carlton fan after that win. The team played so well as a whole and it was terrific to see the resilience of the group in the wake of what was a chaotic week at Princes Park.
Here are three players who quietly flew under the radar in a monster victory over a genuine premiership contender in the Western Bulldogs.
#27, MARC PITTONET, RUCK
As we all know, the Carlton midfield consisting of guys like Patrick Cripps, George Hewett, Matt Kennedy and the returning Sam Walsh have been incredible in the two games that have taken place. However, this midfield can only be as great as the service that it gets meaning that Marc Pittonet had to play his role which he certainly did. Pittonet had 31 total hit-outs which were 10 more than his ruck opponent in Tim English. He also had 11 hit-outs to advantage which was paramount to our midfield’s success, especially in the clearance game as the Blues dominated from the stoppage as well as centre clearances. A hit out win percentage rate of just over 55% against the Doggies has shown the sheer work and effort that has been done in the offseason which is great to see as the players are now properly applying themselves to a sound and solid game plan and the blues are reaping the benefits. Pittonet came over from Hawthorn prior to season 2020 after Matthew Kreuzer went down and has been sharing the ruck duties with Tom De Koning which makes a great pair of strength and athleticism to set the midfield up for success in season 2022 and it looks like that’s coming to fruition so far. Let’s hope that Pitto continues his great form and most importantly keeps playing his role which is vital to the long-term success of this football club.
#4, LOCHIE, O’BRIEN, WING
Something that usually pains most AFL teams like Carlton is the ability to possess a true wingman on their list, one that can do the running as well as use the footy effectively. After the conclusion of the two practice matches against St Kilda and Melbourne, it was evident that the way forward especially with Sam Walsh out was the have Lochie O’Brien and Will Setterfield on each wing. O’Brien, who was drafted at pick 10 back in 2017 has struggled to break into the best 22. He seems to have found his home playing on the wing so far and it's been refreshing to see that he’s finally utilizing his talents, especially his foot skill inside 50. O'Brien had 25 disposals with an efficiency of 76% as well as 6 scoring involvements. O’Brien’s ability to be relied on for a quick handball in to relieve congestion cannot go unnoticed as often we see bigger guys like Matt Kennedy and Patrick Cripps go into the contest to then feed O'Brien to set up a dangerous scoring opportunity. O’Brien took 6 marks as well which is again great to see considering he would sometimes go missing in games and wouldn’t exactly utilize his outside role as well as he did on Thursday night. After being delisted and placed on the rookie list after season 2021 concluded it's been great to see the resilience from O’Brien shine through as his hard work in the offseason looks to be coming to fruition as he seemed to improve on his performance against Richmond in round 1 which we can only hope is a trend that continues long into season 2022.
#11, MITCH MCGOVERN, DEFENDER
The shock retirement of defensive stalwart Liam Jones prompted the blues to look at a few fringe players on their list such as Oscar McDonald and Mitch McGovern to see if they are ‘cut out’ for a major defensive role in season 2022. It’s safe to say that blues fans have been pleasantly surprised by just how quickly they’ve adapted to fairly new roles. McGovern who came over initially as a forward from the Adelaide Crows has been tasked with playing an intercept role rather than strict one on ones in defensive 50 and it seems to be benefiting him tremendously so far. McGovern had 13 disposals on the night but his praise came from his work in the air with the big man taking 5 marks with 3 of those being contested as well as 6 intercept possessions to round out a solid night on the field. McGovern, whose 2021 campaign was interrupted by back and hamstring issues didn’t really feature at all for the blues managing just the 5 games last season. Despite this, it’s been incredible to see that he is willing to play wherever is necessary as he seems to be playing with real pep in his step almost mirroring the game of his older brother, Jeremy over at West Coast. McGovern's presence allows for guys like Adam Saad and Zac Williams to utilize their skill set off half-back, highlighting a better defensive system implemented by Michael Voss in the offseason. Let’s hope that he continues to be a presence in defence which was often a weak spot for the blues last season.
