The best game ever by a ruckman? Maybe, but Gawn isn’t Mr September just yet
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Clark Keating carries the moniker of Mr September but Max Gawn delivered a performance on Thursday night that drew an admiring nod from the Brisbane Lions premiership ruckman. He just won’t relinquish his nickname just yet.
“You have to win multiple premierships in a row for that, don’t you?” Keating said with a laugh. He was part of Brisbane’s three-peat from 2001-03.
Max Gawn took on Mason Cox on Thursday.Credit: Paul Rovere
Gawn became the first ruckman to have 10 clearances and 10 inside-50s in a game. Not only that, he became one of only 15 players to have delivered those stats as well as getting more than 20 touches (he had 27). Every one of the other 14 players to do that were midfielders, with not a ruckman in sight.
He also had 11 hit-outs to advantage and four contested marks, so by the numbers at the very least this was as strong as it gets from a ruckman.
He was, for many, the best on ground at the MCG in the loss to Collingwood.
“Max Gawn played one of greatest ruck games that I’ve ever, ever seen,” Essendon champion Matthew Lloyd said on 3AW.
“It feels like Max Gawn versus Collingwood at the moment … He’s been everywhere. I don’t know how much else he can do,” David King said in Fox’s coverage.
Keating was enthusiastic about Gawn’s game for the fact he did all of that while ostensibly being one out against Collingwood’s two rucks, Mason Cox and Darcy Cameron, but admitted Gawn was shaded by Cox in the first 15 minutes of the game when Collingwood took an important lead.
Max Gawn was outstanding in the qualifying final but needs to back up his form against Carlton.Credit: AFL Photos
“Cox did have the better of him early but didn’t have the engine to go with him [Gawn]. Rotating rucks on Gawn he is just licking his lips when the first bloke goes off,” Keating said.
“He is 209 centimetres tall and 110 kilos – he is an amazing athlete. He runs all day, the only other person who could do that was Dean Cox.
“His ability to get his hands on the ball, especially at boundary throw-ins… and then he is so quick to get the ball to his boot.
“It was really important for him as captain and ruckman to have that sort of performance, especially for a team like Melbourne after they won the flag in ’21 but went out quickly last year.”
It was a very impressive performance, especially as Gawn, himself, acknowledged before the game he was acutely aware that he needed to deliver after an underwhelming September last year.
On the day of the game last week, Gawn volunteered on his regular segment on Triple M that he was determined to have a superior finals series this year to last, and further to that that his team had been embarrassed by its straight-sets exit last year and was determined to atone.
“We are talking about our exit last year, which was humiliating. Certainly, my own performance internally I am making sure I do not go down that path again,” Gawn said.
The captain at least delivered on his commitment to be vastly better than last year but after falling short against Collingwood the Demons remain vulnerable to a repeat quick exit from the finals were they to lose to Carlton this week. Not if Gawn has anything to say about it, though.
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