Likes and dislikes for round six

Skipper ... Julian de Stoop says Nick Riewoldt is close to career-best form. Source: AAP

Fox Sports' AFL expert Julian de Stoop reviews round five in the AFL and discusses his likes and dislikes.

LIKES

Hawthorn

		P	W	L	%	Pts
1	Essendon	6	6	0	171.36	24
2	Geelong	6	6	0	119.72	24
3	Port Adelaide	6	5	1	136.95	20
4	Sydney	6	5	1	134.16	20
5	Hawthorn	6	5	1	129.00	20
6	Fremantle	6	4	2	111.62	16
7	Collingwood	6	4	2	98.69	16
8	Carlton	6	3	3	114.36	12
9	Richmond	6	3	3	101.74	12
10	West Coast	6	2	4	109.84	8
11	North Melbourne	6	2	4	101.86	8
12	Adelaide	6	2	4	97.06	8
13	Gold Coast	6	2	4	88.34	8
14	Brisbane	6	2	4	72.27	8
15	St Kilda	6	1	5	93.47	4
16	Bulldogs	6	1	5	72.76	4
17	Melbourne	6	1	5	56.07	4
18	Greater Western Sydney	6	0	6	64.39	0

Essendon and Geelong may have made perfect starts to the season but Hawthorn have also set themselves up for another big year with their opening six rounds.

No team has had a tougher start to the season than Hawthorn who play the remaining seven finalists from last year in the opening seven rounds. That streak comes to end when they face the Swans at the MCG on Saturday night in the grand final rematch.

There were some early question marks - mostly surrounding their leg speed - after they surrended a big lead to Geelong in round one. But since then the Hawks have won five straight despite long-term injuries to Matt Suckling, Ryan Schoenmakers and Cyril Rioli. Brad Sewell also missed three matches while Buddy Franklin hasn't hit his straps yet and for the first time in eight years, he's been held goalless in consecutive weeks.

As well as five straight wins, the biggest bonus for the Hawks has been the return to form of skipper Luke Hodge. A win over the Swans this week and the Hawks are right on track for another top two finish.

Nick Riewoldt

Scott Watters said last week "On The Couch" that Nick Riewoldt 'Hasn't got the credit he has deserved' for his performances in the past 12 months and it's hard to argue.

The Saints are going through a tough patch as Watters look to rebuild his list but he can't ask anymore of his skipper.

Riewoldt was again superb on Friday night against the Pies, finishing with four goals, 11 mark and 19 disposals.

At the end of 2011, Riewoldt was battling a knee problem and wasn't enjoying his football, but his response in the past 12 months just demonstrates what a champion he is.

Michael Hibberd

Jake Carlisle has won high praise this season but teammate and fellow defender Michael Hibberd is another who would be in All Australian contention after six rounds.

While many of his teammates struggled against the Giants, Hibberd was good from start to finish finishing with 29 disposals in a best on ground performance.

The boy from Frankston has a good balance between attack and defence. He reminds many Bomber fans of a young Bomber Thompson.

Jonathan Griffen and Michael Walters

Without Aaron Sandilands, Matthew Pavlich, Nat Fyfe and Stephen Hill the Dockers appeared ripe for the picking at Metricon Stadium on Saturday night but they brushed aside the Suns in impressive fashion.

Leading the way were two players who were in the football wilderness 12 months ago in Jonathan Griffen and Michael Walters.

Griffen was behind Sandilands, Kepler Bradley and Zac Clarke in the pecking order but has since flourished in the absence of Sandilands. Against the Suns he was also a threat up forward kicking three goals.

Walters was banished early by Ross Lyon due to behavioural issues early last year but he returned late in the year to give the football world a glimpse of what he is capable of.

He's taking his game to another level this year, kicked four against the Suns and is currently one of the most dangerous small forwards in the competition.

Corey Enright

Quite simply this man is a superstar and it was great to see him the get the recognition he deserves following another stellar performance in game 250.

You only had to see the reaction of his teammates and his coach when he kicked a goal in the final term to see how popular and how well-respected Enright is at the Cattery.

Chris Scott said post-game that Enright has been the best small defender of his generation and it's hard to argue. Gavin Wanganeen, Andrew McLeod and Chris Johnson were all brilliant too but no one has been more consistent than Enright.

Pick 47 in the 1999 National Draft, Enright is one of recruiting manager Stephen Wells' best selections and two best and fairests in premiership years is testimony to how important he has been to the Cats' success.

DISLIKES

Pushing In Marking Contests

Now this isn't being critical of the umpires, as the decisions against Pie Ben Reid on Anzac Day and Crow Scott Thompson at AAMI Stadium on Saturday for pushing in a marking contests were both correct to the letter of the law. The problem is the rule is wrong.

Within five metres, a push in the side or a slight push on the arm like Thompson did should be allowed. In both of these situations, the marking players showed better judgement in flight and more strength yet both have been penalised.

With hands in the back and chopping of the arms outlawed in recent seasons, there' s not much left for the players to do in a marking contest.

St Kilda's Veterans

Nick Riewoldt may be at the top of the game but not many of his senior teammates are following his lead.

Nick Dal Santo and Stephen Milne were challenged by Scott Watters ahead of the clash against Collingwood but both again struggled.

Dal Santo was held to just 16 disposals by Brent MacAffer while managed just one goal and went at just 40% efficiency from his 10 disposals.

The duo were dumped to the VFL by Ross Lyon back in 2008 and Watters won't be afraid to do the same.

Justin Koschitzke's time is also coming to a close and he is set for a spell on the sidelines for his stray elbow which collected Jamie Elliott. Lenny Hayes also injured his calf in the warm up which will see him miss a few weeks and Sam Fisher isn't playing with the same verve of recent seasons.

Richmond

There is no shame in losing to Geelong but the manner of the Tigers 44-point loss on Saturday night was disappointing.

The Tigers led by 19 points late in the second term but when the Cats went to another level, Richmond had no answer. In the following 48 minutes, the Cats outscored the Tigers by 56 points and it was a similar story against Collingwood a fortnight ago.

Richmond needs to learn how to halt the opposition's momentum and they face a crunch game against Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium this weekend. A fourth consecutive loss will raise genuine question marks about the Tigers' ability to end their 12 year finals drought.

Queensland Footy

It was another disappointing weekend for the two teams from the sunshine state.

Many gave the Suns a huge chance against an undermanned Fremantle but instead Guy McKenna's men put in their most disappointing display of the season.

As for the Lions, the heat is on Michael Voss. His boys were blown away in the first term against Sydney and for the third time this season they were on the wrong end of a heavy defeat.

With a nightmare run to come starting with West Coast at the Gabba this week, their finals hopes appear over already and that means noises about the future of Voss will only get louder.

Jack Grimes

The Melbourne co-captain is cursed when it comes to injury.

Grimes is set to miss up to 10 weeks after breaking his collarbone in a clash with former Demon Brock McLean.

Since making his debut in 2008 Grimes has played just 59 of a possible 106 games and two years ago, the majority of his season was wiped out by a serious foot injury.

Let's hope this latest setback is his last for a while.

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