Two games in...

I got to watch both the Richmond Carlton and Port Adelaide Geelong matches last night, and gathered a few thoughts about each game.

Richmond 109 vs. Carlton 79

-The general consensus after the game was that Chris Judd makes Carlton a better team, but it will take time. The fact is that one player, no matter how good he is, does not make a team. Carlton fans and the media are completely off the mark in saying that Carlton could contend for a finals spot this year. This year the Blues' ceiling is 8-9 wins and 10th spot. More likely is 6-7 wins and 13-14th position. The team plays absolutely no defence, the attack is too Fevola oriented, and the midfield isn't tough enough.
-Richmond still aren't a good football team. They're slightly better than Carlton, but that's not saying much. Richmond are a team that if everything goes right (Brown stays healthy, Coughlan returns to 05 form, Richo kicks 55-60 goals) they could make an impact. In my eyes though they're still 1-2 years away from competing for the 8th spot.
-Nathan Brown could be just about the most exciting player in the league when he's on.

Geelong 105 vs. Port Adelaide 96

-Geelong are every bit as good as they were last year. Defence is rock solid, forward line is okay, midfield is incredible. Bartel and Ablett are two of the five best midfielders in the comp, Ling is arguably the best tagger, and then you have to worry about All-Australian Joel Corey and future Brownlow Medallist Joel Selwood.
-Geelong is still too Mooney-dependent. Mooney goes down and Geelong are West Coast 05-07, great defence, amazing midfield, terrible forward line. Tom Hawkins is not the answer yet, and Steve Johnson and Matty Stokes are complementary pieces. Mooney is the key.
-No team runs the ball out of defence than Geelong. Incredible stuff watching Scarlett gather, run and give the hands off before they break through the corridor.
-I actually tipped Port last night (making me 0-2) figuring that the ruck match-up of Lade and Brogan would be too much for Geelong. Port won the ruck but did a poor job giving their own midfielders first use of the footy. Credit to Geelong for adapting to the situation so well.
-I have as much respect for Kane Cornes as I do for any other AFL player. The guy is an elite tagger who always locks down his direct opponent, and picks up 30 disposals every weekend. He's not especially quick or strong, and his kicking is an eyesore, but he finds the ball and works hard for four quarters.
-His brother might be my favourite player in the AFL. Chad is the complete AFL player. Relatively quick, unreal strength, one of the strongest pairs of hands in the league, and he uses the ball well by foot and by hand. He reads the play magnificently as well. He's by far the most versatile player in the league, and probably the most valuable. Putting aside the fact that he's an arrogant prick, if you were going to pick a single AFL player to start a team it'd be Chad Cornes.
-Warren Tredrea is nothing but a waste of space.
-Westhoff is not a football player.
-Daniel Motlop is the most mentally inept player in the league.
-Port are hard to figure, because they were 35 seconds from missing finals last year (as opposed to finishing 2nd). They're not premiership material, but to me they look good enough to compete for a top four spot and maybe even a home final.