Young Essendon star Nate Caddy has delivered a contender for the worst miss at goal in AFL history.
The 20-year-old had what should have been the easiest goal of his career against Port Adelaide on Sunday.
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In the early stages of the second quarter, Peter Wright handballed off to Caddy who was streaming towards goal unopposed.
The third year player slammed the ball towards goal and half-heartedly celebrated before the goal umpire sent it upstairs to be reviewed.
The review showed the ball had clipped the inside of the goal, leaving Caddy with egg all over his face.
“It’s a bad miss, he was point blank range,” Matt Hill said on Fox Footy.
Ken Hinkley added: “He could have ran right to the goal line couldn’t he and just dropped it over the line.”
“That is extraordinary,” one caller on SEN proclaimed.
Essendon fan account The Flight Plan wrote on X: “Nate Caddy has showcased some fantastic athleticism today, but there’s absolutely no excuse to miss from there. He could have literally walked to the goal line.”
Another wrote: “Nate Caddy needs to be dropped for that.”
Things however got better for Caddy in the second half when he kicked the first two goals of the third quarter.
He added to his tally by slotting two more in the final quarter. Despite his horror blunder, he was a key standout for the club on an ugly day.
Coming off a 62-point loss in round 1, fans had been hopeful the club would deliver a better outing and give some promise for the season ahead.
The Power however were in even more need of fighting back after losing to North Melbourne in round 1 and they delivered for their fans.
After conceding the opening goal of the match, the Power reeled off nine straight goals to all but put the contest to bed.
The Power won every quarter as they secured the dominant 20.13 (133) to 10.10 (70) victory to get in the win column for the first time in 2026.
