I've serious doubts about Harf having watched the 1st half of Rnd 1.
We've basically got the same game plan as last season, but now without Downey or Harris.
Downey and Harris would offer about 10 touches between them, on a good day, and won't be missed.
Jess Good had 12 hitouts today as our backup ruck. Downie had 6 touches as their #1 ruck.
Moody dominated the ruck with 25.....and placed them wherever she wanted.
Problem with today was that the pies midfield is about the best in the game. The only position we won from that midfield was the ruck position.
The second half we were up and running, but the umps killed the momentum for us on multiple occasions, including with 3 50m penalties resulting in goals.
Make no mistake, Pies will make finals, probably top 4 and would probably be the best vic team in the game. (Crows, Lions, Freo probably the other top 4 with home advantage factored in).
Prespakis limping off the ground with 2 seconds to go sums up our performance.
Disappointing result. Too many passengers. Wholesale changes possible, but with 22 out of 30 players already playing....and some of the other 8 injured, its a bit hard. Grace Egan going down early was not ideal and may be a forced change.
Of the 'debutants'... Annie Lee....largely unsighted, had high hopes for her. Its only her first game though. Jess Good was ok and showed something we can work with. Courtney Jones was very good. Been on the list for a few years and persistence paid off. Top 3 today IMO. Paige Trudgeon is a work in progress, but has the athletic attributes that could set her apart. Needs to work on her kicking. Jess Dal Pos.....only a carlton debut, but was the most disappointing of the lot. Barely sighted. Simply not good enough for essentially the Jess Hosking replacement in terms of trade value. She is better than that.....at least was....hopefully she can recapture it.
Tayla Harris had her debut with the dees last night in their win over the dogs.
Harris had 7 touches, 3 marks, 0 tackles and 1.1 Sounds about right. Only 2 players for the dees had less touches, a young ruck Caris and former Carlton player (from season 1) Allison Brown....who was delisted from us, and st.kilda after that.
Not sure thats the numbers you'd expect from your gun recruit....
We will miss Charlotte Wilson. Muscles has been great at dealing with tall forwards. Hopefully Good can start forward sometimes, as he has the height and the mobility. Hopefully she can make an impression in the ruck. Last year, when Moody ran out of steam, so did we.
I didn't even notice Wilson missing, is she injured? Lee keeping her out of the side?
I actually meant to write something about our height.
For reference, Al Downie who looks like a giant is only 182cm (6'0") and Bree Moody is 180cm. Paige Trudgeon is 180cm also, Jess Good is 185cm and a former basketballer who will be agile. (FWIW, Tayla Harris was 177cm) We should be able to stretch them and i wouldn't be surprised to see Moody drop back into the hole and help out our defence when one of the other girls is on.
Not sure what happened to Poppy Schaap.....injury? She was a monty for a gig.
A couple of things of note IMHO. 1. 'Velcro' in the midfield. Maddy Prespakis will be joined by her bestie and velcro tattoo twin Georgia Gee. Look to them to link up well. 2. Velcro#2 lined up in the FF line. Odea and Vescio will also work very well together. 3. Annie Lee slotting into a very solid, experienced backline will be great for her development, as our first pick in the last draft she will no doubt hold her own as well. 4. Pies midfield scares me. The highlighted names below show no weakness and would be the strongest midfield going around i think.
I ended up going with AFLW as i think its easier to go up and down the ladder with just an off-season of changes.
Technically, our list is worse off than it was last year (at least potential wise), but as far as team unity goes, i think they are closer than they have been previously.
Could have easily gone with VFLW, but thats more of an unknown with the way their playing list works and who can play when. I think you need an advanced mathematics degree to even work it out.
Half has said there will be at least 1, maybe 2 debutants for this game. Teams will be announced 5pm.
Schaap would be one of those names and not sure of he's including dal pos in that list, but carlton debut for sure.
When asked what are the "non negotiables" he looks for from a player, half pointed out that you need to.... 1. Compete 2. Be a team player ...and if you don't do both, you want be in navy blue for long. Shout out to Tayla Harris.
Yep, @Macca37 I can confirm this, I have contacts suffering the very same, nasty cough, sore throat, congestion, loss of appetite, multiple negative COVID tests. Our local Chemist was the first to alert us to it, but they don't want to make a big deal about it because they still want people to make sure they get COVID tested.
Not sure how accurate it is but i've heard reports that omicron is better detected via a saliva swab and the up the nose ones are coming back negative, even if the patient has it.
Could explain a few things with people being sick, but negative.
Is anyone really surprised that amateur hour and red tape seems to be the order of the day?
For those that are playing at home, Novak is not your regular anti vaxer.
He's a confessed Vegan which makes his feats to become not only world number one, but arguably the greatest Male Tennis player of all time even more remarkable.
The irony is not lost on me, that most people seem to be making this more about how they view Novak on a personal level.
Similar could've been said about a former world number 1 who came back from cancer to reclaim his title.
I'm not sure if tennis players are on the same gear as cyclists, Lance Armstrong says hi, but it's hardly done with just diet and hard work. Maria Sharapova was on something legal for a decade before it was banned.
Personal or not, don't put these athletes up on a pedestal, you will be disappointed.
