Herculean game lands gun Demon North Smith Medal

3 years ago 358

Gun Melbourne midfielder Christian Petracca has taken retired the Norm Smith Medal aft producing a breathtaking show to assistance pb the Demons to their archetypal premiership successful 57 years.

The dual All-Australian was phenomenal arsenic the Demons carved retired a 74-point thumping of the Western Bulldogs successful Perth, posting their biggest-ever expansive last triumph of the 13 they've won.

He matched Brisbane icon Simon Black's grounds 39 disposals successful a expansive final, which the superb Lion tallied successful 2003, portion helium besides collected 24 contested possessions, 9 clearances, 11 wrong 50s, 15 people involvements and 2 goals.

Both of Petracca's goals besides came successful spectacular fashion, with the No.5 blasting location a extremity from the 50m arc to snare the opening large of the game, earlier dribbling location an epic six-pointer from the left-forward pouch during the 3rd term.

"I don't deliberation I've seen a crippled of that magnitude this year," Essendon fable Matthew Lloyd said connected 3AW's coverage.

The Demons trailed by 19 points midway done the 3rd quarter, but they responded to an electrical Bulldogs onslaught with their astir emphatic connection of the season, moving successful six goals successful 15 minutes to instrumentality a 24-point buffer into the last change.

One of the astir staggering stats down the Demons' triumph is the information that from the 16-minute people of the 3rd word they piled connected 16.4 (100) to the Bulldogs' 1.1 (7).

Petracca was the stand-out during the Demons' second-half blitz, racking up a glut of possession and blitzing the Bulldogs with his bonzer explosiveness retired of congestion.

Petracca kicks Melbourne's opener

Making his mode astir the Optus Stadium bound to convey Melbourne supporters, Petracca tried to marque consciousness of the fairytale scenes successful an interrogation with Hawthorn large Luke Hodge connected the Seven Network.

"It's sunk successful a small spot now," an ecstatic Petracca said.

"This is unbelievable. This is what you play footy for, Hodgey ... You've done this 4 times and it astir apt gets amended and amended each azygous clip you bash it. This is unbelievable.

"To bash it with a radical of boys that person invested truthful much, sacrificed truthful overmuch from their ain crippled to sensation occurrence for the archetypal clip successful 57 years – it's a imagination travel true."

For a regular dose of the champion of the breaking quality and exclusive contented from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!