Wise words from reader Jack.
A great day of footy, with some stunning goals and awesome finishes.
I won't get to do this blogging business much because I mostly lurk in the shadows of the ABC, pacing around and writing reports ... but while I can do it, I'm going to enjoy it. And I very much enjoyed joining everyone today for all the action.
Thanks again for getting involved, and I'll be back on deck for the QClash!
Elliot Yeo injured his groin during his milestone match and Harley Reid suffered a late injury scare of his own as Essendon posted a pulsating six-point win over West Coast at Perth Stadium.
Yeo went off in the final quarter of Saturday night's match nursing a groin strain.
Minutes later, Reid pulled up abruptly while chasing an opponent near the boundary line, with the emerging star immediately leaving the ground to have his right hamstring assessed.
West Coast closed the margin to six points with 63 seconds remaining when Jack Williams kicked his third goal.
Reid sprinted back onto the ground after being given the all clear to resume, and the Eagles won the next centre clearance to give themselves a chance to draw.
But Essendon's defence held firm under the intense pressure, clearing the ball to ensure they wouldn't endure two draws in a row, following on from their stalemate against Collingwood last week.
The 11.11 (77) to 11.5 (71) win improved Essendon's record to 5-2-1.
Essendon midfield star Zach Merrett led the way with 29 disposals and three goals, while Kyle Langford kicked three goals.
Tim Kelly starred for West Coast with 29 disposals and nine clearances, while Jake Waterman and Williams kicked three goals apiece.
Reid endured a quiet night, finishing with 14 disposals and two clearances in his first match back from being rested.
West Coast will now be sweating on the seriousness of Yeo's groin injury, with the setback a crushing blow for the veteran in his 200th AFL match.
However, coach Adam Simpson referred to it as a 'small groin' injury after the match.
Essendon dominated the clearance battle 13-5 in the opening term, but their return of 2.5 meant the Eagles trailed by only 10 points at the first break.
Bombers ruckman Todd Goldstein became the first player to crack through the 10,000 barrier for hitouts during the opening term when he racked up his fifth ruck tap for the night.
West Coast snatched the lead early in the second quarter courtesy of goals to Waterman and Yeo.
But a series of horror turnovers and defensive mix-ups cost West Coast dearly as Essendon hit back hard to take a 22-point lead into half-time.
Reid tallied only six disposals in the first half.
West Coast sprung to life in the third quarter, with Reid providing the biggest highlight.
In a piece of play Dustin Martin would have been proud of, Reid fended off Merrett and Ben Hobbs before sending the ball forward to Reuben Ginbey, who found Jack Darling in the goalsquare.
The goal reduced the margin to four points, but Merrett hit back shortly after with a magical dribble goal from the pocket to help extend Essendon's lead back out to 15 points at the final change.
Eagles forward Noah Long injured his left knee while being tackled in the third quarter.
Essendon subbed off Jye Caldwell due to a tight calf.
West Coast had the chance to close the margin to four points with 10 minutes remaining when Waterman marked near goal, but the umpire reversed the ball after Eagles goalsneak Jamie Cripps pushed over opponent Nic Martin.
The Eagles kept pushing despite Yeo's injury, but the Bombers were able to hang on to victory in a thriller.
AAP
There's plenty of frustration from fans about the Cripps incident, but coach Adam Simpson is trying to take the heat off him.
“We missed a couple opportunities, but that’s footy. I don’t think we can point the finger at Crippa.”
And the Elliot Yeo news might not be too bad.
“A small groin. We’ll see. We’re pretty pragmatic about it.”
Noah Long though ... potentially not good.
“Fear for the worst and hope for the best. We will see what the scans say early next week.”
Here's one I was going to post earlier but I got distracted by, ya know, footy.
Will Elliott taking an absolute screamer in the VFL for the Bullants.
And Will Elliott's dad is none other than the great Matthew Elliott, the former Australian Test opener.
Feature writer and all round good guy Paul Amy spotted the former batter turning snags before the game.
The votes are in from the first three games of the day from our ABC Sport on-air team. These are pulled together by our experts in the box straight after the match:
Swans v Giants
3. Errol Gulden
2. Will Hayward
1. Chad Warner
Saints v Kangaroos
3. Jack Sinclair
2. Darcy Wilson
1. Brad Hill
Demons v Cats
3. Clayton Oliver
2. Steven May
1. Gryan Miers
Thoughts and feelings footy fans?
Bayley Fritsch's likely AFL goal of the year helped Melbourne secure a gritty eight-point win, ending Geelong's perfect start to the season.
The 10.14 (74) to 9.12 (66) win on Saturday night at the MCG is a significant boost to Melbourne's bona fides and takes them to 6-2, while the Cats are 7-1.
Melbourne kicked five goals to three in the last term, a stark contrast to the goalless second term that featured nine behinds.
Cats star Jeremy Cameron, who has been in such strong form this season, missed two straightforward set shots in the last quarter, including the last score of the game.
Cameron and fellow Geelong spearhead Tom Hawkins kicked 0.4 between them — Cameron also kicked another behind in the last term and three for the game — with Melbourne key defenders Steven May, Jake Lever and Tom McDonald all excellent.
Melbourne led by three points with three minutes left, when a long ball from Christian Petracca looked like rolling out of bounds as Fritsch ran after it.
His opponent, Jack Henry, eased up in pursuit and Fritsch pounced, somehow dribbling through his third goal — and the last of the game — from deep in the pocket.
Melbourne midfielder Clayton Oliver and Geelong's Max Holmes had 31 disposals apiece, while Ollie Henry kicked three goals for the Cats.
The Demons kicked the last two goals of the opening term to hold a four-point lead and then everyone's radar went missing.
There were 14 consecutive behinds from 21 minutes in the first quarter until five minutes into the third, when Kade Chandler finally broke the goal drought from his set shot.
That sparked a rush of goals, with Melbourne twice going 14 points ahead.
But Geelong kicking four to two in the term for a two-point lead at the last change.
Melbourne captain Max Gawn was floored in the third term when Rhys Stanley caught him with a leg to his head at a ball-up.
Gawn looked dazed as he lay on the ground, but he took the next centre bounce.
He gave Melbourne back the lead two minutes into the final term when he kicked a booming goal from outside 50m.
Geelong onballer Taylor Bruhn was subbed out with a shoulder injury.
AAP
Thanks Greg, that's exactly why we're here.
We know not everyone has easy access to the game, or they just want to keep track of the big moments, and hopefully that's what we're providing.
It's the first time we've blogged all the AFL and the NRL, and the audience response has outdone even my lofty expectations.
Thanks to everyone who's joined us so far, we've loved being here.
That is an absolute heartbreaker for the Eagles.
They got the centre clearance with a minute to go via Tim Kelly but couldn't keep it in the F50, with that man Zach Merrett taking the mark from a hurried kick out of defence.
They had their chances, West Coast, and the free kick to Nic Martin after Jake Waterman had marked about 15m out from goal will haunt Jamie Cripps tonight. A total brain fade and while you can't say it cost them the game, it was an absolutely shattering moment for the Eagles faithful.
Elliot Yeo is also injured again, but Harley Reid looks like he's fine after suffering a hamstring cramp.
Tough night for West Coast, but that win puts the Bombers half a game outside the top four and looking like contenders.
There's 1:03 left and six points in it! And Reid's back on!
The top draft pick is off the field after pulling up lame while chasing for the tackle.
It could be cramp. The motion looked a little bit hamstringy at the time but the trainer is stretching him pretty hard on the bench and he's not flinching at it.
This has been a horror few minutes for the Eagles.