Geelong captain Patrick Dangerfield put on his Superman cape in Saturday's nail-biting win over Collingwood at the MCG, with his coach likening him to New Zealand rugby union international player Jonah Lomu.
The see-sawing affair saw the Cats trail by seven points at the final change, but a heroic effort from their skipper saw the margin jump out to 17 points late in the piece, before a remarkable comeback from the Pies that ended with a missed shot after the siren from milestone man Jack Crisp.
Dangerfield finished the game with 29 disposals, one goal, four tackles, two goal assists, eight score involvements and four inside 50s.
But those stats were spurred on by his fourth-quarter performance, recording 13 touches, 10 contested possessions, 152 metres gained, one goal and the handball to Jack Bowes' major to put the game (almost) beyond doubt.
"Not just his last quarter โ he just looked like (New Zealand rugby union international) Jonah Lomu there at one stage, like he's just really enjoying that part of the game," Geelong coach Chris Scott said.
"I mean, he always has, and we know that's he's a threat โ he's always been a threat forward โ and he can attack the ball in the air, but the ground level stuff.
"I'm a bit biased, I like those players, the [Jordan] De Goey type players, that powerful, bull at a gate ones. It's good fun to watch them at the moment."
"He put this club on his shoulders." ๐ค
Rory Sloane and the panel rave about another unreal Patrick Dangerfield performance โญ#9AFLSFS | Watch on Nine & 9Now ๐ฅ๏ธ pic.twitter.com/4hi5PvPGsK
โ Footy on Nine (@FootyonNine) May 4, 2025
Collingwood coach Craig McRae joked about the extra incentive Dangerfield may have had to play against the Victorian powerhouse, revealing a pre-game incident could've inspired his efforts.
"I stole his park before the game, and he wasn't that happy. I blame myself," McRae said.
"He's a bloody good player, isn't he? He's a battering ram. We had 20 broken tackles, or 15, and he was the most of them. He just beelines you and runs through you."
The AFL world has become accustomed to Dangerfield's gallant outings over his glittering 18 seasons, which have included a Brownlow medal, eight All-Australians, premiership medal, MVP award and four best and fairests.
His 2025 form has yielded similar efforts but in different ways, playing predominantly inside forward 50 and very little through the midfield.
Dangerfield spent 10 per cent of his time in centre bounces, with Scott trusting the likes of Tom Atkins, Max Holmes, Jack Bowes, Bailey Smith and run-with player Oisin Mullin.
Dangerfield has kicked 16 goals this season and averaged 6.4 score involvements, helping Geelong get more bang for their buck up forward.
