Comes at a good time for us. Hopefully we'll get a few guys back in the next few weeks.
With Weitering's injury and the MSD coming, this weekend couldn't be better for us.
I'm ambivalent about the bye :-\
I used to look forward to our bye because it meant a weekend without a humiliating loss. I know that the bye brings us one week closer to the return of Harry, Weiters, Pitto, Zac, Marchy and Gov, and the players will benefit from a week off, but I'd prefer to be watching us play this weekend.
The bye also gives Sam Durdin some time to learn our defensive set ups.
3rd to 5th and soon to be 6th with Geelong destroying the Dogs thus far.
3rd to 5th and soon to be 6th with Geelong destroying the Dogs thus far.
Freo vs Lions this round will help.
3rd to 5th and soon to be 6th with Geelong destroying the Dogs thus far.
Never write the Doggies off, particularly when they’re playing the Cats 🙂
Bailey Smith is a very very good player.
The bye gives us a chance to take stock. Although that shouldn't take long as our stocks are low and damaged.
Fortunate the bye coincides with the draft. Whilst Hayes knows our systems, it'll give Durdin tall version, a chance to size up his role and the pace of play. Albeit only during training.
Do you think he'll come straight in?
The bye gives us a chance to take stock. Although that shouldn't take long as our stocks are low and damaged.
Fortunate the bye coincides with the draft. Whilst Hayes knows our systems, it'll give Durdin tall version, a chance to size up his role and the pace of play. Albeit only during training.
Do you think he'll come straight in?
straight in
Agree ... put him in
Agree ... put him in
Hopefully he's a very fast learner and is given a clear role within his skillset
The other six defenders should be able to cover for Durdin if he isn’t all over our defensive structures after a week and a bit.
What Durdin won’t be able to do is provide the leadership and direction that Weiters does. Doc and Plow will have step up.
Heaven forbid Syd beat Melb we will drop to 7th.
Heaven forbid Syd beat Melb we will drop to 7th.
Worrying about our place in the eight hasn’t been problem for quite a while 🙂
We’ve got an extra game to play and that should push the pretenders back.
Worrying about our place in the eight hasn’t been problem for quite a while 🙂
We’ve got an extra game to play and that should push the pretenders back.
Indeed, I guess what I'm eluding to is a win against the Filth would have made a world of difference. One that got away definitely and one we may well rue.
As soon as the byes come into play, I take little interest in the ladder as we'll probably gain a position without even playing.
Didn't matter where we are now, only at the end of the season.
Didn't matter where we are now, only at the end of the season.
I don't think it's a matter of either/or, K... both are important. To be 8/3 at the half way mark should be acknowledged as strong improvement. Naturally it is no guarantee of where we'll be at season's end, which is also very important, but as a position of strength it is an excellent place to find ourselves at this point.
I don't think it's a matter of either/or, K... both are important. To be 8/3 at the half way mark should be acknowledged as strong improvement. Naturally it is no guarantee of where we'll be at season's end, which is also very important, but as a position of strength it is an excellent place to find ourselves at this point.
I'm not saying you can't be excited about it, just ultimately, it doesn't matter.
If we go 0-11 from here, the 8-3 won't mean squat.
Only in our dreams can we win all the close ones. A sharper angle on JSOS’s kick or the umps paying the 2 frees that were there in the dying seconds would have kept our unlikely run going, but we’ve won more than our fair share nevertheless.
On the other hand, only in our nightmares could we have imagined the injuries we’ve suffered so far. Usually, a team that makes a run at the 8 after years in the wilderness does so on the back of a charmed run with injuries. Not us.
It’s as though a supernatural being is playing Jenga with our team to see how many we can lose before we collapse. And the supernatural being knows a bit about footy: first s/he messes around with taking out our 5 mids piece by piece, then took out the Gov and OMac, then took out our bollocking 1st ruck, then the Coleman Medal leader, and finally completed the job on the backline by taking out Weitering.
We've won as many games to this point as we won in all of 2021.
So even if we lose all the games for the rest of the year....we can at least say we haven't gone backwards in 2022 ;) ;D
Considering that Sydney have defeated Richmond and Melbourne in the last couple of weeks makes our win against them look so much better.
The question for us is, can we get enough of the people on the field to continue doing that? Especially Weitering. Sam Durdin is filling in some mighty big boots!
Has the Melbourne halo slipped a bit?
I'm wondering if this is the kind of year where maybe you could pinch a flag, but we're going to need our best players on the park and that's extremely unlikely.
I'm wondering if this is the kind of year where maybe you could pinch a flag, but we're going to need our best players on the park and that's extremely unlikely.
Reckon it's wide open, Professory. As usual, it'll come down to the side with the healthiest list come finals time.
Sydney play with incredible belief and faith in their system and players. I have the feeling we are developing in the same way. We obviously need to get back to our best 22 asap but I'm sure players coming in will be well aware of what is expected.
I'm wondering if this is the kind of year where maybe you could pinch a flag, but we're going to need our best players on the park and that's extremely unlikely.
definitely. Last year was one of those years too. Melbourne conceded 5 consecutive goals in the grand final... 😄
Has the Melbourne halo slipped a bit?
Hunger slipped a bit and it got easy, couple of injuries to players who are important and you come back to the field.
They haven't been smashed so for me with their full crew they are still clear favorites.
On the plus side for the Dees, they’ve been beaten by top 4 aspirants rather than crap teams.
On the minus side for the Dees, they’ve been beaten by top 4 aspirants rather than crap teams.
Maybe Carlton losing to crap teams inSydney and the Saints in 1995 was the better way to go as we dominated all our rivals and maintained our mystique of invincibility.
Next four rounds will be huge for the club - Essendon + Richmond + Freo + Saints.
Next four rounds will be huge for the club - Essendon + Richmond + Freo + Saints.
If we get three, we're looking good.
All depends on how desperate we are to work the game over the line. This will be character building considering we are all over the place covering keys roles. The next 4 games will set us up or see us slowly slipping. The gap between top of the ladder and the next 7 at the moment isn’t as large as I thought it would be a few games ago.
Hunger slipped a bit and it got easy, couple of injuries to players who are important and you come back to the field.
They haven't been smashed so for me with their full crew they are still clear favorites.
You would have expected them to win on the back of Gawn's performance. Perhaps they have a few players expecting that others will get the job done.
I imagine that Goodwin will be all over any compacency and, with May back, they'll be back to their best.
Did the Hawthorn coaching staff not watch our game? In the last, they let Sidebottom run around unopposed and he basically did what he liked. In a close game on a wet day, get back to basics. That cost them the game IMO.
Did the Hawthorn coaching staff not watch our game? In the last, they let Sidebottom run around unopposed and he basically did what he liked. In a close game on a wet day, get back to basics. That cost them the game IMO.
Thought the kid Henry did what he did to us and in the previous game before us where he kicked four, one of those inbetween height players who can take pack marks and play taller. CJ had a shocker on him in the last quarter.
Agree on Sidebottom......like the kid Newcombe for Hawthorn, they got a bargain with a kid that readymade and tough.
Did the Hawthorn coaching staff not watch our game? In the last, they let Sidebottom run around unopposed and he basically did what he liked. In a close game on a wet day, get back to basics. That cost them the game IMO.
I get the feeling the Filth are allowing Sidebottom to hang back, and by hanging back he's being left unattended as the least threatening option, but the problem is he is the most reliable.
Club's would be better off forcing the Filth to target one of the kids on the rebound and keep Sidebottom locked down even if Sidebottom drags someone away and stays wide of play. At least when the ball is in some kids hand they are 50/50 in decision making and ball use, they'll make more mistakes than Sidebottom.
Has the Melbourne halo slipped a bit?
In 1995 we lost 2 in a row to bottom teams I think, then went 16 - 0 to win the flag. Think Melbourne will come back and not look back again. I would think they need the losses to pull their heads in a bit and not get to ahead of themselves.
In 1995 we lost 2 in a row to bottom teams I think, then went 16 - 0 to win the flag. Think Melbourne will come back and not look back again. I would think they need the losses to pull their heads in a bit and not get to ahead of themselves.
I think they have problems. Their forward line is not exactly great. If one of Petracca/Gawn/Oliver were to go down, they would be right back in the pack with the rest of us.
not sure if this is the appropriate place, or maybe in Voss objectives. Since the bye round came in, we seem to have experienced a long period where winning post the bye has been a bit of an issue for us unless I am mistaken?
not sure if this is the appropriate place, or maybe in Voss objectives. Since the bye round came in, we seem to have experienced a long period where winning post the bye has been a bit of an issue for us unless I am mistaken?
Winning before the bye has been an issue for us too!
I think that it’s safe to assume that issues that afflicted our club in the last decade or so are now irrelevant 🙂
If we don't win after the bye agains the Cheats, I will spew up.
If we don't win after the bye agains the Cheats, I will spew up.
If we lose, we won't be playing finals.
If we lose, we won't be playing finals.
I think its a 50-50.
We are ripe for the picking. Will be forced to play a bloke who wasn't even on a list a week ago and expect him to fill the shoes of someone who was odds on for AA before the injury.
At the same time, missing our reigning coleman medalist, our #1 ruck and a handful of other players who would make our life better.
FWIW, this will have no bearing on finals. Injuries will.
I think with our injuries we have to win this one as the following games are much more difficult.
I think with our injuries we have to win this one as the following games are much more difficult.
From here we should get Harry back, which will give us a 2nd target up forward and allow Jack to focus more on ruck and/or helping down back.
Just like the pies did, who lifted against us, the bombers will too.
And we can't withstand a lot at present.
Games like this one that need the extra hunger and desperation to win, just increases the chances of additional injuries. Probably looking less forward to this game against the cheats than any game we have played so far. A loss will destroy belief and any confidence that has been built so far. Allow the slide down the ladder to begin. Please don’t let that happen guys. Not by playing these pricks into form.