GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN, DOCKER ROARS BACK
FORGOTTEN forward Cam McCarthy silenced his knockers with a five-goal haul in Fremantle’s 82-point AFL win over North Melbourne at Optus Stadium last night.
McCarthy struggled in his first two years at Fremantle, and had fallen so far down the pecking order over the summer that he wasn’t even selected for any of the club’s JLT pre-season games.
But Jesse Hogan’s alcohol slip-up and a hamstring injury to Brennan Cox opened the door for McCarthy to earn a surprise recall against the Kangaroos.
The former Giant made the most of it, booting four first-half goals to help set up the 21.15 (141) to 9.5 (59) win in front of 40,033 fans.
North Melbourne’s loss was compounded by what appears to be a serious left knee injury to Ed VickersWillis, with the defender to undergo scans.
Vickers-Willis suffered a season-ending posterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee last year after crashing into a goalpost in Round 7, but his latest setback could be even worse.
And midfielder Ben Cunnington could come under scrutiny for an off-theball hit that floored Nathan Wilson in the last quarter.
Meanwhile, GWS have spanked a poor Essendon side by 72 points, making it a wretched homecoming for a couple of former Giants.
Playing at the newly rebranded Giants Stadium, GWS cruised to a 16.16 (112) to 5.10 (40) win in front of 15,424 fans, the largest non Sydney-derby regular season crowd at the venue. It was a dark day for a Bombers side including former Giants Devon Smith and Dylan Shiel, who were booed by some of their old supporters, but that was the least of their problems.
The large contingent of Essendon supporters would have left disappointed by the lack of fight from their side following the optimistic preseason expectations. Jeremy Cameron kicked four goals, and Lachie Keefe and Stephen Coniglio three each, with the latter adding 31 possessions.