A remarkable comeback has seen Richmond take giant strides towards playing finals football in 2003. The Tigers superb fightback against Hawthorn was one of the highlights of round five action and it now finds itself on second place on the ladder. West Coast and Port Adelaide scored important wins while Geelong slumped to the bottom of the ladder after going down to St Kilda.

Sydney got over the top of Melbourne thanks to a 10-goal final quarter. The Swans trailed for the first three-quarters but the home side ran riot in the final 30 minutes with youngster Adam Schneider outstanding late in the game. Jason Ball took 10 marks and kicked two goals with Michael O’Loughlin and Nick Davis both kicking three goals. David Neitz was the star for Melbourne kicking six goals while Jeff White did well in the ruck.

Richmond also produced a remarkable come-from-behind victory. The Tigers found themselves down by 51 points midway through the second quarter but then slammed on 14 unanswered goals beofre running out 20-point winners. Wayne Campbell collected 29 possessions and kicked two goals for the winners. Mark Coughlan and Kane Johnson were very good in the midfield. Kris Barlow and Angelo Lekkas were best for the Hawks. Peter Everitt suffered a fractured a cheekbone in the second quarter.

Port Adelaide held of a late challenge from Adelaide to claim victory in the 13th showdown by 12 points. The Cornes brothers - Chad and Kane - were excellent as was Roger James in the midfield and Gavin Wanganeen in the back half. Ronnie Burns did well up forward for Adelaide but star recruit Wayne carey failed to flatter. Graham Johncock and Simon Goodwin starred in the midfield.

Brisbane simply had too many good players for a gallant Western Bulldogs, running out 27-point winners. Michael Voss was again brilliant while Daniel Bradshaw did the damage up forward finishing with six goals. Brad Johnson and Scott West got plenty of the ball through the midfield but the Bulldogs just couldn’t find an avenue to goal.

Carlton chalked up its second win for the season when it defeated the Kangaroos by nine points at The Dome on Saturday night. Brendan Fevola continued his dynamic form for the Blues kicking eight goals. Ryan Houlihan kicked three important goals while Andrew McKay was supreme across the half-back line. Anthony Stevens was the best for the Kangaroos.

West Coast started well against Fremantle and never gave the neighbours a look in after that winning by 35-points. Michael Gardiner was brilliant in the ruck for the winners as was youngster Ashley Sampi. The Dockers were best served by captain Peter Bell who worked tirelessly in the midfield and Sean McManus.

Geelong faces an uphill battle to reach the finals after going down to St Kilda. The young Cats were in the game until three quarter time but a seven goal last quarter saw St Kilda run out easy 45-point winners. Stephen Milne kicked four goals and Fraser Gehrig three. Lenny Hayes (30 possessions) and young Luke Ball (27) were the stars in thew middle. James Kelly - 26 possessions and two goals - was the best for the Cats.