Review Round 14, 2023 vs Geelong

Remove this Banner Ad

Must say though, there's still that lingering lack of trust for me under the surface. It's going to take a long time to wash away whilst under the same regime. I still can feel the moments where we almost concede to easy, or do simple errors, or we just seemingly look like we cower in specific moments. There's a heck of a lot of good, amazing counter punching, great ball use and composure, but there's still all those seeds that I keep seeing which leave me like the PTSD dog struggling to just enjoy this form complete with all the hope it should engender. I mean, had we done this in 2014 when we were all just riding this amazing new wave I would've been going nuts, but after all the failures we've had, the arms still end up folded frequently during these games. Great wins, enjoyable wins, but lacking I pure joy as that belief and trust is just proving hard to build.
Agreed, I still don't trust us either. Got to enjoy the streak we're on but I still see the dumb stuff, the clangers, the poor individual efforts that the best teams don't do and I think it'll bring us undone in the end, along with our shaky defense. Hope I'm wrong and we can stand up when it counts at the business end.
 

Log in to remove this ad.

When did our field kicking get so good? It's like we were blessed this whole time with elite kicks in Houston, Farrell, McKenzie and Burton. Haven't seen it for many years.
Our mids have been poor kicks from clearances, Ollie, Boak, Drew, Rockliff etc but we have been stacking the backline with our best kicks. Aliir is a decent kick just his 15-20m chips are shakey. DBJ and Jonas missing from down back also helps.

Since 2019 Burton, Mckenzie and Houston, then added Bonner, Farrell, Bergman and now Williams. Jones isn't necessarily a great kick but he has a bloody good long kick.

The mids now have good kicks, Butters, Rozee and JHF, Drew has improved as has Ollie's I50s when he has time.

Marshall has become a great set shot, but we still dont convert enough given how many I50s and shots on goal we generate.
 
Last edited:
Fantastic win. Very proud.

There is belief growing everywhere now - the players, coaches, and the fans.

Still a long way to go but when have we ever seen Port blow Geelong apart in a quarter like that? And then rally to respond to their response.

There are no easy games in the run home, and there's the Prelim monkey to kick off but man... dare to... begin to dream.
 
Special mention to Dylan Williams

He has gone from a SANFL forward who got delisted looking like he was no better than an amateur league player, lucky enough to get re-rookied to being a key pillar of our backline.

I'll be honest and thought Port were wasting their time giving him another go, but wow has he turned it around. I dont know what the hell happened in the off season and who thought they would give him a go at the other end of the ground but its been a master stroke

He has a fantastic mark, and his kicking out of defence is a real weapon. He reads the play very well and his fitness has gone to another level after not even being able to run out a quarter before being completely gassed last season. Defensively he is very solid and he has slotted into the backline seamlessly. He is absolutely cemented his spot in this team. He has some real composure for someone still so early into his AFL career

He absolutely deserves a being put back on our main list and offered decent contract moving forward. He is a real asset to the team.

He is an absolute shining light this season and i am so happy for him
 
Last edited:
I believe my comment in the game day thread was “Finlayson looks off tonight”.

Jeremy Finlayson, I was wrong!!

Great win and hard to pick a clear best. Probably Houston over the 4 quarters but we had lots of good contributors.
Liked Narkles game purely because he played at short notice, hasn’t been here long and slotted right in.


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com
 
Good win . Started off a bit scratchy and they were definitely ON . Had some poor goal kicking again but we’re starting to get on top by halftime.
Third quarter burst was sublime , just overwhelmed the Cats with power speed and aggression, great to watch .
Kept on top in the last , they basically played a good game but we were too good for the.
Was a bit harder to pick best players tonight . Thought Marshall was really good . Houston , Finlayson , S.P.P Rozee , Butters , Lycett, Horne Francis , Drew , Wines , Williams , Bergman Narkle , D. B. J .we’re all good . McKenzie was unobtrusive but effective , Boak was quieter , McEntee as well even though he did some good pressure work . Dixon was below his normal output .
Sinn was ok but needs to do more to stay in the side . Burton was ok , best thing was his long goal . Bonner was quite good when he came on .
Another good win , this run at the finals is looking as good as any in Ken’s time , a little bit of luck for a change would be nice this year we’re due for a bit .
 
Watching the replay now, Sam Powell-Pepper is the thumping heart of this team. He's always there helping a team-mate off the ground, standing up for his mates and patting someone on the back for encouragement.



And hilariously, he still reflexively slicks back his hair when he finishes a play, just like in his debut season!
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

When did our field kicking get so good? It's like we were blessed this whole time with elite kicks in Houston, Farrell, McKenzie and Burton. Haven't seen it for many years.
How tf are you going to make this post but leave out Butters? Or Marshall?
 
Special mention to Dylan Williams

He has gone from a SANFL forward who got delisted looking like he was no better than an amateur league player, lucky enough to get re-rookied to being a key pillar of our backline.

I'll be honest and thought Port were wasting their time giving him another go, but wow has he turned it around. I dont know what the hell happened in the off season and who thought they would give him a go at the other end of the ground but its been a master stroke

He has a fantastic mark, and his kicking out of defence is a real weapon. He reads the play very well and his fitness has gone to another level after not even being able to run out a quarter before being completely gassed last season. Defensively he is very solid and he has slotted into the backline seamlessly. He is absolutely cemented his spot in this team. He has some real composure for someone still so early into his AFL career

He absolutely deserves a being put back on our main list and offered decent contract moving forward. He is a real asset to the team.

He is an absolute shining light this season and i am so happy for him
Dylan Williams is a perfect example of why I'd always rather put time into a super talent with fitness or application issues than a plodder who tries his best but isn't up to it.

Sam Hayes can still be the next Dylan Williams if he and the club want it enough. Although in fairness to Scooter he'll have to be prepared to wait his turn at the moment.
 
Wow, Lycett has done so well the last 3 weeks. I didn't think his body would allow him to play this well. Massive for us. Such a good team win without standout performances from our top midfielders. Most players lifted their work rate in Q2 & that's all that was required with our more talented list.

Dix looked very sore all game. His back looked quite stiff & he couldn't bend over at all (looked more than a knee issue to me). Took a brilliant overhead mark & never stopped trying despite his obvious distress. Break couldn't come at better time for him.

Enjoyed Williams game, clever player, never over commits & very composed. Great to see Todd playing in front, twice the player when he does. Thought some of our kicking into F50 was superb.
 
I believe my comment in the game day thread was “Finlayson looks off tonight”.

Jeremy Finlayson, I was wrong!!

Great win and hard to pick a clear best. Probably Houston over the 4 quarters but we had lots of good contributors.
Liked Narkles game purely because he played at short notice, hasn’t been here long and slotted right in.


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com
Fin had a great 2nd half but was quiet early. So talented.
 
Want to mention 3 players
Scott Lycett, literally back from the dead was fantastic again tonight
Miles Bergman- Outstanding job on one of the best players in the AFL, must keep him.
Dan Houston- Another outstanding game, must be All Australian
Bergman has become a complete player. Plays tall, nice mark & kick. Tough match up & he excelled. Will be so disappointed if he goes.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top