Kerr's genius denies dogged Tigers
Mark Duffield at Subiaco Oval | August 19, 2007 | The Age
IT TOOK a virtuoso performance from Daniel Kerr and a brilliant effort at both ends from Adam Hunter to allow West Coast to see off a determined Richmond challenge and remain focused on a top-two berth at Subiaco Oval last night.
Kerr was simply brilliant, seeing off two opponents and having more than 30 touches before Daniel Jackson managed to exert some sort of control over Kerr's influence.
Hunter played in defence but drifted forward to take three massive pack marks and kick three critical goals.
And that, along with seven goals from Quinten Lynch and four from Mark LeCras, was enough to see off a Richmond challenge that had dragged the Tigers to within nine points in a tense third quarter.
West Coast eventually eased clear to win 18.9 (117) to 12.14 (86), while Richmond was left to rue a wasteful 10 minutes in the last quarter when Matthew Richardson dominated All-Australian full-back Darren Glass but missed critical shots at goal.
With Chris Judd (groin) and Ben Cousins (hamstring) rested from the match, the Eagles needed a big effort from Kerr and they got one.
By quarter-time, Kerr had nine touches while his opponent, Richard Tambling, had three — one of which was a dreadful handball turnover across half-back resulting in a soft Eagles goal.
Elsewhere, the Tigers were actually doing OK, despite copping a good old fashioned mauling at the stoppages.
With Tyson Stenglein locking down Richmond's diminutive clearance king Nathan Foley, Kerr dominated at the stoppages for the Eagles, giving them a 10-4 edge in first use of the ball.
But that didn't translate into anything dramatic on the scoreboard, with the Tigers grabbing the lead a couple of times in the first quarter before a late goal to Michael Braun sent the Eagles to quarter-time eight points ahead.
There was no escaping the damage on the scoreboard in the second quarter, though, when the Eagles, mainly through Kerr again, won four of the first five clearances of the quarter to help create a 32-point lead by the 12-minute mark.
By then, LeCras and Lynch had each kicked three goals and the biggest impact the Tigers had managed to make on the Eagles is likely to have a tribunal aftermath, with Jake King cracking Steven Armstrong across the mouth with a clumsy spoiling attempt five minutes in.
With Adam Pattison forced to ruck against Dean Cox and Mark Seaby with only Graham Polak for back-up, some of the Eagles' clearances resembled training drills.
Richardson had made the most of opportunities to kick two goals and Nathan Brown did likewise but the Tigers suffered from having a high proportion of the team's talent isolated deep in the forward line.
Terry Wallace tried to change that in the third quarter, swinging Brett Deledio into the midfield. Deledio's five touches for the quarter had an impact, and while the Tigers had to survive, another early quarter surge thanks to Cox and Kerr took the Eagles five goals clear again. However, the Tigers steadied and reined the Eagles in, kicking three of the last four goals of the quarter to be within 15 points at three-quarter-time.
The Tigers had their chances to pinch the game in the final quarter. Richardson had Glass out on his feet and took two towering marks but sprayed the shots on goal.
WEST COAST 4.5 9.8 13.8 18.9 (117)
RICHMOND 3.3 6.6 10.11 12.14 (86)
GOALS
West Coast: Lynch 7, LeCras 4, Hunter 3, Staker 2, Braun, Seaby.
Richmond: Brown 3, Richardson 3, Deledio 2, Edwards, Tambling, Pattison, Riewoldt.
BEST
West Coast: Lynch, Kerr, LeCras, Cox, Hunter, Hansen.
Richmond: Brown, Richardson, Tuck, Deledio, Pattison, Johnson.
UMPIRES Allen, Woodcock, Filla.
CROWD 39,752 at Subiaco Oval.
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