News 2015 Fixture (discussion)

[Teriyakicat]

Certainly true. I don't think we are good enough but I think being "up there" is crucial for attracting free agents. Hence why I was hoping for an easier draw overall. I guess until or unless we slip down the ladder we are not going to see that.

I thought we had???

 

[Teriyakicat]

After we lose them, yes we can.

The magical 'heavy training load' will reappear then too. If only we knew in advance when it would be.

You can bet that the HTL turns up in about R13 and will last until about R18/19.

Games we lost around that time over the past few years were:
2011- R 15, 16
2012- R 13, 16
2013- R 13, 17, 19
2014- R 14 (R 15 and 16 we beat Ess and WB by under 2 goals, R 18 we beat GWS by 7 points, so we did struggle during this period- we just didn't lose the games)

 

[Biggy_Boy]

You can bet that the HTL turns up in about R13 and will last until about R18/19.

Games we lost around that time over the past few years were:
2011- R 15, 16
2012- R 13, 16
2013- R 13, 17, 19
2014- R 14 (R 15 and 16 we beat Ess and WB by under 2 goals, R 18 we beat GWS by 7 points, so we did struggle during this period- we just didn't lose the games)

I think the heavy training load started around the time they traveled up to play Port at Adelaide oval and kept going into finals this year.

 

[winty]

The Cats play three top-eight sides twice and have no double-ups against the bottom six.

They are the only team in the AFL not to play any of the cellar-dwellers twice.

IIRC, we were the only team in the league who didn't play a cellar-dweller from 2013 twice this year too.

EDIT: Just checked. We played Hawthorn (1st after H&A in '13), Fremantle (3rd), Carlton (8th), North (10th) and Brisbane (12th) twice, none of which finished in the bottom 3rd of the ladder the year prior.

 

[catempire]

I thought we had???

Evidently, not by enough!

 

[Seeds]

On a serious note, i love watching the cats play more than anything and go to every game in melbourne, but have been to geelong maybe 5 times in 15 years. Not the average cats fan so im not really relevant overall.

Missing out. Travelling down to Geelong from Melbourne to catch a game is an awesome day out.

 

[Seeds]

Have we ever played either GWS or Gold Coast twice in a season??

 

[JUBJUB]

Have we ever played either GWS or Gold Coast twice in a season??

2011 - Gold Coast Rd 10 & 20

that looks to be it

 

[Partridge]

They have memberships for only a couple of games. If they don't they should. I don't think there would be many supporters who go to every Melbourne game but then refuse to go to Geelong games. I may be wrong though but if you support the team that much I would of thought you would be willing to travel 1 hour on a train twice a year.

Getting to Geelong takes a lot longer than 1 hour for some people.

 

[Partridge]

That's a valid point which is often overlooked. Playing 11 games at KP is no longer viable in the current climate, and it's virtually impossible for the club to remain competitive in the market. As much as we'd like it to happen, it won't. We need to look at the bigger picture.

It's also wiping all our collective memories of the last 40 years. As SJ pointed out, we haven't played 11 home games at Geelong in a long, long time. I would guess plenty of us grew up going to 2-3 HOME games a year at either the MCG or VFL Park. It isn't new.

I have to be honest, getting 8 home games at Geelong, with at least 6 of them during the day, is pretty bloody reasonable if you ask me. And there's nothing inherently difficult in playing top opposition at the MCG for either home or away games. It didn't seem to trouble us in 2007 or 2009 or 2011. It only becomes an issue when, strangely enough, the team isn't quite as good.

 

[SJ]

It's part of the AFL's "Equalisation Policy", 10lana. Geelong just won't lie down and die like they want us to, so the AFL try and make things just that little bit harder wherever they can. Those little things like facing a top 4 team after a 6 day break or after an interstate game don't get factored in- they're very subtle. When we were a raging powerhouse, they didn't bother us but, as we rebuild and introduce youngsters into the team, it's those little things that add up and can be the difference in us being top 8 instead of top 4 or even missing the 8 altogether. The 6 day breaks gradually wear the older players down as they don't have time to train a lot in between their recovery sessions.
Makes me very

There is no evidence for any of that. We have had our good and bad runs with the fixture, MRP, umpires and so on like every other team.

 

[Partridge]

It's part of the AFL's "Equalisation Policy", 10lana. Geelong just won't lie down and die like they want us to, so the AFL try and make things just that little bit harder wherever they can. Those little things like facing a top 4 team after a 6 day break or after an interstate game don't get factored in- they're very subtle. When we were a raging powerhouse, they didn't bother us but, as we rebuild and introduce youngsters into the team, it's those little things that add up and can be the difference in us being top 8 instead of top 4 or even missing the 8 altogether. The 6 day breaks gradually wear the older players down as they don't have time to train a lot in between their recovery sessions.
Makes me very

Not sure about that TC.

We may not be laying down and dying, but we're simply not the powerhouse of the competition any more, and haven't been for 3 years. It's very comforting and easy for us as supporters to think that everyone's against us, be it the umpires, or the AFL, or whoever, but is there really any evidence for it? I'm pretty sure we had to deal with 6-day breaks and interstate trips in other seasons too.

Some examples:

1. In 2009 we had the worst kind of travel schedule smack bang in the middle of the year - West Coast in Perth, then a week off/bye (split round), followed by Fremantle in Perth. So for us the longest trip in football twice in a 15-day period, with the deadly bye thrown in for good measure.

One slight problem - we won both games.

2. In 2013 we got dealt a pretty tough opening - 4 games in 19 days. There was much gnashing of teeth and rending of garments about it too. It had four opponents that have all worried us in recent years - Hawthorn, North, Carlton at Etihad, and finally Sydney at Sydney. Hawthorn and Sydney are always tough, and North and Cartlon warrant respect if not outright fear (among some) at times.

Another slight problem - we won all four games.

If we fail to make the Grand Final, or top 4, in 2015, I personally don't think it'll be due to the fixture, the number of 6-day breaks, interstate travel, or whether the Moon is in transit over Venus (Astrology is complete bollocks, but honestly I think it has as much influence). It'll be far more straightforward.

We simply may not be good enough.

 

[Art Vandelay_]

Getting to Geelong takes a lot longer than 1 hour for some people.

Eastern suburbs?

My brother bought a car in the eastern suburbs and tried to tell us we could get there in an hour. Evidently not!

Takes about 75 minutes from Geelong to Melbourne by train, by car depends on traffic, Friday night taking longer usually.

 

[Partridge]

Eastern suburbs?

My brother bought a car in the eastern suburbs and tried to tell us we could get there in an hour. Evidently not!

Takes about 75 minutes from Geelong to Melbourne by train, by car depends on traffic, Friday night taking longer usually.

The fastest I ever did (when I lived in North Bayswater) was 80 minutes to the ground. I was pretty happy with that.

Now that I'm South-Eastern, so further out, it's as good as a 2-hour trip each way.

 

[Art Vandelay_]

The fastest I ever did (when I lived in North Bayswater) was 80 minutes to the ground. I was pretty happy with that.

Now that I'm South-Eastern, so further out, it's as good as a 2-hour trip each way.

I meant 75 minutes to the G. Etihad is a piece of piss.

Friday night home games aren't the best for us, unless you live/work relatively close to the ground, usually in Melbourne, getting there on time is not easy sometimes.

 

[Partridge]

I meant 75 minutes to the G. Etihad is a piece of piss.

Friday night home games aren't the best for us, unless you live/work relatively close to the ground, usually in Melbourne, getting there on time is not easy sometimes.

At the 2nd Hawthorn game this year, it took me just under 2 MOTHERLOVING HOURS to get home. That's what would normally be less than an hour. Thanks to them not letting the car park open for 20 minutes after the game, then being redirected to have to go via the CBD to get back onto the Monash. Left a really, really bad taste in the month. Very tempted to tell the club, the MCG and especially the AFL to jam it. I've got much better things to do than put up with that s**t.

 

[Teriyakicat]

There is no evidence for any of that. We have had our good and bad runs with the fixture, MRP, umpires and so on like every other team.

Of course that is true, SJ, but sometimes it does feel that the world is against us and it's easy to forget the times when things go well for us.

 

[Partridge]

Of course that is true, SJ, but sometimes it does feel that the world is against us and it's easy to forget the times when things go well for us.

It's very easy to do TC. We've all been there I'm sure.

 

[Teriyakicat]

Not sure about that TC.

We may not be laying down and dying, but we're simply not the powerhouse of the competition any more, and haven't been for 3 years. It's very comforting and easy for us as supporters to think that everyone's against us, be it the umpires, or the AFL, or whoever, but is there really any evidence for it? I'm pretty sure we had to deal with 6-day breaks and interstate trips in other seasons too.

Some examples:

1. In 2009 we had the worst kind of travel schedule smack bang in the middle of the year - West Coast in Perth, then a week off/bye (split round), followed by Fremantle in Perth. So for us the longest trip in football twice in a 15-day period, with the deadly bye thrown in for good measure.

One slight problem - we won both games.

2. In 2013 we got dealt a pretty tough opening - 4 games in 19 days. There was much gnashing of teeth and rending of garments about it too. It had four opponents that have all worried us in recent years - Hawthorn, North, Carlton at Etihad, and finally Sydney at Sydney. Hawthorn and Sydney are always tough, and North and Cartlon warrant respect if not outright fear (among some) at times.

Another slight problem - we won all four games.

If we fail to make the Grand Final, or top 4, in 2015, I personally don't think it'll be due to the fixture, the number of 6-day breaks, interstate travel, or whether the Moon is in transit over Venus (Astrology is complete bollocks, but honestly I think it has as much influence). It'll be far more straightforward.

We simply may not be good enough.

When we aren't quite good enough, the cracks can get papered over by a favourable umpiring decision now and then, an MRP decision going our way or facing a stronger opponent after a long road trip or 6 day break (that went well for us last year, didn't it?? ...not!). Little things like that can result in us being a position higher on the ladder than we maybe should be.

I would prefer us to have a fully fit team over any of those other things that are outside of our control - ie. as mentioned above.

 

[Doss]

Just stopping by to make my yearly complaint about our game being at Etihad.

And yes, yes, when it's your home game, we should be made to make the trip to Kardinia Park at least sometimes. I'd actually have no issue with that.

But, when we keep getting plumped with a dud MCG home game against the might of Melbourne, our clash's continued scheduling at Etihad craps me right off.

They say that Essendon and Melbourne are always at the MCG because Essendon and Melbourne constitute the biggest two supporter bases within the MCC. That's all well and good, but for the life of me I don't understand why it's always our home game. If it was Melbourne's home game, that'd free up our fourth MCG home game to be against Geelong. But no, we'll probably have a lazy crowd of 49k turn up to the Essendon/Melbourne game and a similar crowd turn up to our game at Etihad- when 65k-70k would attend if it was at the MCG.

Oh well.

 

[SJ]

Just stopping by to make my yearly complaint about our game being at Etihad.

And yes, yes, when it's your home game, we should be made to make the trip to Kardinia Park at least sometimes. I'd actually have no issue with that.

But, when we keep getting plumped with a dud MCG home game against the might of Melbourne, our clash's continued scheduling at Etihad craps me right off.

They say that Essendon and Melbourne are always at the MCG because Essendon and Melbourne constitute the biggest two supporter bases within the MCC. That's all well and good, but for the life of me I don't understand why it's always our home game. If it was Melbourne's home game, that'd free up our fourth MCG home game to be against Geelong. But no, we'll probably have a lazy crowd of 49k turn up to the Essendon/Melbourne game and a similar crowd turn up to our game at Etihad- when 65k-70k would attend if it was at the MCG.

Oh well.

From memory there is something in the AFL's contract with Etihad that requires a certain number of expected high-drawing games.

For whatever reason, Essendon/Geelong games have been chosen.

 

[Doss]

From memory there is something in the AFL's contract with Etihad that requires a certain number of expected high-drawing games.

For whatever reason, Essendon/Geelong games have been chosen.

Of the top 20 crowds ever at Etihad, five are Essendon/Geelong, which is more than any other combination of clubs. I reckon if you expanded that top 30, you'd find it'd be close to 10 between the two. There've been a few games with crowds of 48-49k which fall just outside that top 20.

We'd easily draw 65k-70k at the MCG.

 

[SJ]

Of the top 20 crowds ever at Etihad, five are Essendon/Geelong, which is more than any other combination of clubs. I reckon if you expanded that top 30, you'd find it'd be close to 10 between the two. There've been a few games with crowds of 48-49k which fall just outside that top 20.

We'd easily draw 65k-70k at the MCG.

Maybe, maybe not...

Round 1 2010 got 57,772.

 

[Doss]

Maybe, maybe not...

Round 1 2010 got 57,772.

True. I'm harking back to the glory days of the mid '90s, admittedly.

At any rate, even a middling crowd of 57k is still more than is possible at Etihad.

 

[rocker_oz33]

Only one night match wtf.