our annual Pythagorean wins column<\/a> – which tipped Melbourne\u2019s rise this season.<\/p>\nInstant Classic: Swans survive big scare | 03:19<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not quite the same as Adelaide in 2024, because those Crows came into that season with higher expectations than this year\u2019s Power did, but that team finished 15th with a percentage of 99.1 – going 2-6 with a draw in close games ruined their record.<\/p>\n
The Power are well on track for something similar. It\u2019s not a guarantee they\u2019ll be good in 2027, because they\u2019ll still be reshaping their list, especially if the likes of Zak Butters and Mitch Georgiades leave.<\/p>\n
But this is effectively a run of bad luck, and you\u2019d rather have all of your bad luck in a season where wins don\u2019t matter, rather than a season where you\u2019re seriously trying to win the comp.<\/p>\n
IS THIS THE $1M SAINTS MISTAKE NOBODY TALKS ABOUT?<\/p>\n
Mattaes Phillipou was just dropped by Ross Lyon, and is reportedly set to earn $1 million per year over the next two seasons.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a problem.<\/p>\n
St Kilda\u2019s big spending was all the rage last offseason – and central to plenty of hot-takes from footy pundits – but its eye-watering contract offer to Phillipou, who\u2019s yet to prove himself consistently at the level, has curiously received little attention to this point. <\/p>\n
The former top-10 draft pick entered the competition with big wraps in 2022 – touted as a pure midfielder in due course, but developing in the early stages as a half-forward hybrid. <\/p>\n
His 2025 campaign was bogged down by leg injuries, restricted to seven senior games after just 13 the year previous. <\/p>\n
And in 2024, his second season, he averaged 14.4 disposals and 0.6 goals per game. In his 13 games to date this year, he\u2019s averaged 14.5 possessions and 0.7 majors. <\/p>\n
SEN\u2019s Tom Morris reported in March that the Saints had re-signed Phillipou on that improved money – $1 million per year in 2027 and 2028 – halfway through last season. <\/p>\n
Phillipou was dropped this week after totalling four possessions in almost 80 per cent game-time in St Kilda\u2019s Round 13 loss to Sydney. <\/p>\n
Mattaes Phillipou of the Saints kicks the ball under pressure from Will Day of the Hawks during the round 12 AFL match between St Kilda Saints and Hawthorn Hawks at Marvel Stadium, on May 28, 2026, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cThey (the Saints) could see the development of a midfielder, but four possessions in 78 per cent game-time (against the Swans) – that scrutiny is going to be there,\u201d Midweek Tackle\u2019s Jon Ralph said on Friday night. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s not playing million-dollar football – he\u2019s not playing a-quarter-of-a-million-dollar football. That\u2019s a real challenge for him to get his game going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Four-time premiership player Jordan Lewis said there were \u201cquirky things\u201d in Phillipou\u2019s game, noting that he\u2019s had to develop in \u201cdifferent positions\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cEver since he got to the club, he was an interesting watch,\u201d Lewis said on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019d hear things (like) he was able to do his own thing away from the group, and certain quirky things in his game, that he didn\u2019t necessarily buy into the culture of the football club. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s going to be a player at some stage. But maybe he\u2019s one of those players with a big price-tag, and you\u2019re trying to develop your game in different positions. <\/p>\n
\u201cDo those young players get flicked around a little bit too much? Maybe Phillipou is that type of player. Go back (in the reserves), play one position, get some confidence back up, and come back in and perform.\u201d<\/p>\n
All in all, the 21-year-old has played 57 games in three-and-a-half seasons. Clubs generally like to start seeing consistent glimpses once players hit the 50-game mark. <\/p>\n
Across 13 games this year, Phillipou\u2019s player rating is considered below average among general forwards, as are his 14.5 disposals per game. <\/p>\n
To his credit, he\u2019s had four games of 15-plus disposals and two-plus goals. But he\u2019s also gone goalless on eight occasions and had fewer than 15 touches four times. <\/p>\n
While things can obviously change in an instant, Phillipou has been just OK as an AFL player. It\u2019s almost impossible to argue that he\u2019s earned \u2018million-dollar player\u2019 status. <\/p>\n
Phillipou tallied 28 disposals and nine clearances in the VFL Saints\u2019 draw on Sunday. It\u2019s only a matter of time before he\u2019s back in the AFL side. <\/p>\n
But when – if he does – will he be a consistent game-impacter at the top level?<\/p>\n
Scott lauds young rucks after win | 15:13<\/p>\n
\u2018ODD SCENARIO\u2019 THAT COULD LEAVE CATS IN COACHING PICKLE<\/p>\n
Geelong faces an \u201codd scenario\u201d with two of its assistant coaches in the frame to potentially earn senior coaching jobs elsewhere later this year. <\/p>\n
Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley is considered one of the leading candidates for the vacant Tasmania Devils job, while strategist James Kelly is a possibility to land at one of Carlton or Essendon. <\/p>\n
The Devils recently assembled their panel to pick their inaugural coach – with the suggestion they\u2019d prefer to lock in their man by the end of July – joining the Blues and Bombers on the lookout for a mentor. <\/p>\n
Midweek Tackle\u2019s Jon Ralph on Friday provided his intel on Geelong\u2019s thought process if either of Buckley and Kelly were hired for rival jobs. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is what will happen – if Bucks gets the Tasmania gig \u2026 he would coach out the season (at Geelong), then move into the Tasmanian coaching role,\u201d Ralph began on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf Buckley or Kelly got a midseason gig at Carlton or Essendon, I think they would move immediately. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe club was very open to Steven King trying to do both things for maybe a week and a half through the finals series. And they knew once he got the Melbourne gig, he was only focusing on Melbourne. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a pretty small coaching staff – an elite coaching core – but I believe that either of those coaches would move on really quickly, which presents its own challenges, given that maybe Carlton, maybe Essendon want to hire those coaches at Round 17, 18 – certainly pre-finals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Swann open to ‘compromises’ for Tasmania | 01:50<\/p>\n
Gerard Whateley called it an \u201codd scenario\u201d, with the Cats to potentially be left down on coaching personnel ahead of a finals series. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Tassie scenario is totally different, but because Carlton and Essendon went so early \u2026 when\u2019s the ideal landing spot?\u201d he asked. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not July. It\u2019s never been July. It\u2019s usually September. If it ends up being August, then what happens?\u201d<\/p>\n
Four-time flag-winner Jordan Lewis concurred with the Cats\u2019 stance, adding: \u201cI agree – if either of those guys are successful with a coaching position at Essendon or Carlton, that it\u2019s best to leave the organisation. <\/p>\n
\u201cYour attention is elsewhere, because so much that we don\u2019t understand goes along with the coaching role.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Gold Coast was supposed to finally emerge as a flag contender this year; instead, like the bad old…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":735732,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-735731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=735731"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735731\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/735732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=735731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=735731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=735731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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