+ 52 Sunday Herald Sun, September 30, 2007 heraldsun.com.au + THE WASH-UP

THE WRAP

Why they won it Like they have done for most of the season, Geelong turned on a near perfect combination of attacking football, power running and 10 moments that relentless pressure. The defence was impassable, the midfi eld unstoppable and the multi-pronged forward line impossible to halt. COMPILED BY JACKIE EPSTEIN AND GLENN McFARLANE

1 1st quarter – 6min: fl ies for a mark over but comes off second best. He lands awkwardly and clutches his right knee straight away. It looks bad but, amazingly, he comes back

SECOND on at the 28-minute mark of the quarter. 52

“ casually snaps Why they lost it at goal and Port chose the biggest day of the the ball curls year – and the biggest stage – to put in an absolute stinker. The midfi eld was ineffective, back superbly.

SHS 30-SEP-2007 PAGE the backline under siege and the forward line Brilliant stuff abysmal, kicking its lowest score of the year. The best 2 1st quarter – 8min: He did not make an

K A year ago Steve Johnson was offered up impression in his fi rst Grand Final, but Cameron Y for trade. Fortunately there were no takers. ” Mooney makes a ripping start to this one. He marks on Yesterday Johnson etched his name into the goal line and calmly posts the fi rst major of the game. M Grand Final folklore. He was creative, C damaging and, above all, team-oriented. A worthy Norm Smith winner. The worst Take your pick from Port Adelaide’s forward line. was over-awed by the occasion, couldn’t get warm and didn’t

FB123 do enough. (above) struggled. The move 3 1st quarter – 19min: Darryl Wakelin tries Mark Thompson made to pinpoint Domenic Cassisi with his the best move during kickout but Gary Ablett reads it beautifully and the week when he pickpockets him to drill another one. The signs brought aren’t good for the hesitant Port side. into the team to replace the unlucky Mark Blake. King did his job in spite of pre- 1st quarter – 30min: game jibes from Mark Williams. 4 is doing it all. Resting The chase in the forward line he chases Michael Brad Ottens set the scene late in the fi rst Pettigrew for 30m out of defence and quarter when he summoned all his energy to catches him along the boundary line at run down Michael Pettigrew. half-forward. The free for holding the ball results in a Stokes shot on goal. The goal Take your pick out of ’s fi ve goals or Steve 5 1st quarter – 31min: With the Johnson’s four. Johnson was Cats on a roll, Brownlow his usual creative best. medallist Jimmy Bartel gets in on the Mooney didn’t get a touch act. He casually snaps at goal and the in the 1999 Grand Final ball curls back superbly. Brilliant stuff. but more than made up for that yesterday. The mark Poor couldn’t take a trick. Not only did he have a game to forget, he was also the launching pad for Paul Chapman’s STATS THAT MATTERED classic mark seven minutes into the third quarter. ■ Geelong’s three quarter-time ■ The Cats win 58 possessions players to rack up 30 or more The bet margin of 90 points is the greatest from turnovers and from these disposals, combining for 105. No worries for one punter in a Grand Final, as is the generate 17 goals. ■ Not one player on the ground who gambled $340,000 at 119-point winning margin. ■ Port wins the clearances 34 to plays the full 127 minutes. Jacob SECOND $3.40 on Geelong to win ■ The forward 50m marks 30. But Geelong scores seven goals Surjan plays the most with by 40 points or more with are 26 to six. Geelong scores to four from these. 125 minutes. Darwin Sportsbet, for a 12 goals from these, while ■ , Peter Burgoyne ■ Port’s 77 interchanges are its $1.15 million return. Port only scores one. and are the only equal most for the season. + +