On Thursday night at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium, young North Melbourne forward Paul Curtis delivered a career-defining performance that will live long in the memory of Kangaroos supporters, producing a mark widely tipped as a contender for Mark of the Year, slotting four goals, and spearheading his side to a convincing 23-point victory over the Western Bulldogs.
North Melbourne’s senior coach Alastair Clarkson could not hide his admiration for the 20-year-old’s breakout display, with only one playful criticism: the club only has one Paul Curtis. Curtis was everywhere on the ground, turning the game with his electrifying movement, and his standout individual play didn’t end with his four goals. His spectacular soaring mark over Bulldogs defender Michael Sellwood immediately drew gasps from the crowd and has dominated early conversations for the league’s annual Mark of the Year award.
In a post-match press conference, Clarkson compared Curtis’ versatile game-changing ability to some of the biggest names in Australian Football League history, noting that the young talent has the rare flexibility to dominate both high up the ground and deep inside the forward 50. “When you have a special talent like this, you want to use him everywhere,” Clarkson explained. “If the Bulldogs had two Marcus Bontempellis, they’d play him both forward and in the midfield, just as Richmond did with Dustin Martin for years. We’ve already seen it with players like Kozzie Pickett, who made the jump from forward to elite midfield, and Zak Butters, who followed the same path to become one of the league’s best on-ballers. I expect Curtis will spend most of his career forward, but we saw tonight he has all the tools to go into the middle and produce magic when we need him to.”
The win became even more impressive for North Melbourne after key defender Aidan Corr was forced off the ground halfway through the second quarter with a sudden back injury. Corr, who had been tasked with containing Bulldogs star spearhead Aaron Naughton, suffered a back spasm after an awkward landing during a marking contest. Clarkson confirmed that the injury is not believed to be serious, but the spasm left Corr unable to continue, as back spasms severely limit mobility at the elite level. “You ever had a sore back? They’re brutal,” Clarkson said. “It wasn’t critical long-term, but it never settled enough for him to get back out there. And when you’re going up against a player as big and strong as Naughton, you need every part of your body working 100%. It was really pleasing to see the group dig in when we went a man down and still find a way to get the win.”
For the Western Bulldogs, the damaging loss has dealt a major blow to their already fragile finals hopes, with Bulldogs coach Bevo O’Connor offering no excuses for his side’s underperformance.