SPECIAL MENSCH FOR WEST WARRIOR
GEELONG West coach Greg Mellor is trying to find the positives from his side’s worst loss of the season.
The Giants’ 100-point thrashing by St Joseph’s on Saturday was their heaviest loss since a 103-point belting by the same opponent in 2019.
But despite being beaten
“in all facets of the game” at West Oval, Mellor found praise for Giants midfielder Baxter Mensch, who has enjoyed a flying start to the GFL season.
“His job as an inside mid is to get hold of the ball, that’s the same with all our midfielders,” he said.
“He tried really hard to have an impact, and for a whole heap of reasons going forward offensively we didn’t execute.
“But his role is to win the contested ball, the more times you get it the better chance you have to use it, but the key thing for all our midfielders is to make the possessions count, not count the possessions.”
Mensch’s 30 disposals in Saturday’s defeat was his fourth game this year with 30 or more touches, putting him third in the league with an average of 31.83 per game.
The Giants had three players with 30 or more disposals against St Joseph’s, with Noah Gribble and Tanner Lovell collecting 33 apiece, but St Joseph’s dominated the clearances 38-15.
Mellor (below) said the Giants would need to work on efficiency with the ball in hand, but Mensch’s efforts around the contest were unmatched.
“He’s a fantastic player, any side would love to have someone like him on their team because he wants his hands on the ball,” he said.
“We need to work out everything around it because our offensive threats didn’t work (against St Joseph’s).
“Our midfield was beaten, we had plenty of the ball, but how efficient we were I’m
not sure.”