Preview AFL Round 1 - Hawthorn v Geelong, MCG, Monday April 6 3.20PM

[Stan The Caddy]

I bet you'd leave your money with him, though

Haha I sure would!

 

[Claude Balls]

But you didn't need to see the stat sheet to know Lang didn't do a lot.

You and I disagree on his overall impact against Carlton, but it's not even relevant. My point to Goggin Our Best is simply that he is overrating the disposal count as an isolated means to assessing a kid's potential or readiness to come in. Someone said they 'rated lang' and then he came up with this:

Based on what ?

I hope anyone who plays for Geelong becomes a star
However you compare Lang to say Enright when he 1st started off - Enright played as a midfielder in the VFL- he was before he got promoted to the seniors totally dominating games- 30-40 possessions - i can remember Mark Thompson saying at the time - look we could have and probably should have given Enright an opportunity earlier because his VFL form has been outstanding - he just keeps racking up huge possessions etc etc

Thats what Lang has to do mate - hes not ready for Hawthorn - no way - Murdoch will get that spot

And of course, it's illogical to discount Lang based on his lack of possessions and then say Murdoch should get the spot.

 

[dazbroncos]

I can't believe how many of you guys subject yourselves to reading the Hawk board. Why don't you just smack yourself in the face with a brick, less painful, less frustration and you won't get carded by a trigger happy mod/admin with an ego for simply putting your point of view across

I read for the perspective and to form judgements. I never post. They are WAY too up themselves to hear an opinion other than theirs.

That is the mods not the rank and file. There are several extremely good posters on there whom I enjoy reading. The rest is chaff.

GO Catters

 

[Cataholic]

I read for the perspective and to form judgements. I never post. They are WAY too up themselves to hear an opinion other than theirs.

That is the mods not the rank and file. There are several extremely good posters on there whom I enjoy reading. The rest is chaff.

GO Catters

and what a lot of chaff there is.......

Like you, I never post but read to try and form balanced judgements.

But it's hard to gain anything meaningful from their board after ignoring all the snide, arrogant, self-congratulatory posts that usually play the man and not the ball.

And don't for one moment suggest anything other than the HFC is the almighty, supreme entity. No reasonable comment or debate will be tolerated.

Thankfully, the mods here encourage reasonable and respectful debate, and maintain the decorum of discussion with far more class.

 

[dazbroncos]

Ill read over there but refuse to post. Much prefer to have the balanced discussions here.

GO Catters

 

[romeoh]

Ill read over there but refuse to post. Much prefer to have the balanced discussions here.

GO Catters

I never go onto their board, its enough to deal with them on the main board. Some of them are quite reasonable, quite witty but a lot of them are off the wall. Presume its a measure of such success over 50 years and maybe we'd be just as bad. Well not me personally of course!
Sometimes though I remember they had many, many dark days way back, that many of their fans would not have experienced. But those days can always return, and their characters will be tested, so I take some solace from that.

 

[footycats007]

Ill read over there but refuse to post. Much prefer to have the balanced discussions here.

GO Catters

Agreed. Anytime somebody goes over to their board, they are attacked if they say anything slightly anti-hawthorn.
It is sad because if any hawks supporters come over to our board, we are really accepting and keen to listen to what they have to say.
A message to the more arrogant hawthorn supporters on their board - "it's nice to be great, but far greater to be nice"....

 

[Jon Douglas]

I am unsure about how we will go this season. Many reasons exist in my mind about how we could do badly this season - and nearly as many are that we would start to turn it around and do ok.

And we start against the premiers and have the hardest rated draw. We are still transitioning, we lost two finals last season but we do have a few that look ok coming thru or picked as FA.

Hard to see us having the same team as we will open with against the Hawks but I just cannot see us yet having the midfield to beat them so early in the season. Maybe later in the year when we see if any of the youngsters can push into the best 22 we might be a better chance.

Stanley will not play against the Hawks so there is one potential player that may have helped out already. Maybe McCarthy would have been a chance if he had had a full pre-season and was fit. Walker seems to be unlucky not to get another gig after his finals performances last season. Cocky at some stage will get the gig as sub - but when ?

But we will have Clark and Simpson. I think both will be ok - so that will make us a little more competitive.

Is SJ fit - match ready ?

Great to win this one but the odds are against us. But I think if we continue to play players like Bews, Lang, Thurlow, Kolo, Cocky, GHS and Walker - we will have a few up and down games. None of them are 50 gamers - and they all need to play at some stage so we can check that they are capable at senior level - and for 2016 when Enright, Kelly, Hmac and Rivers are gone.

I think it would be a good sign if we are very competitive with the Hawks first up. A win would be even a better sign and result of course.

 

[WWSD]

The narcissist in me says that it should have been!

I doubt that it ever crossed WWSD's mind though.

Stan The Caddy... this isn't you is it? haha

 

[Art Vandelay_]

Oh my word. The Hawks board arrogance has reached new heights.

Mental pygmies. Time we put them in their place!

 

[catters05]

Mental pygmies. Time we put them in their place!

Unfortunately we cannot do that till we win a flag against them.

 

[Art Vandelay_]

Unfortunately we cannot do that till we win a flag against them.

I'll settle with raining on their flag unfurling parade then

 

[FredLeDeux]

I'll settle with raining on their flag unfurling parade then

Raining?

 

[catters05]

Raining?

raining cats and cats.

 

[BlightysCats]

You and I disagree on his overall impact against Carlton, but it's not even relevant. My point to Goggin Our Best is simply that he is overrating the disposal count as an isolated means to assessing a kid's potential or readiness to come in. Someone said they 'rated lang' and then he came up with this:



And of course, it's illogical to discount Lang based on his lack of possessions and then say Murdoch should get the spot.

But I think if we continue to play players like Bews, Lang, Thurlow, Kolo, Cocky, GHS and Walker - we will have a few up and down games.

Thurlow is the one I think could have a big jump this year, his disposal and decision making and even the way he moves has more than a hint of class about it. Luckily he did most of the preseason running and fitness before his injury so I think once he gets back he'll be returning off a pretty good base and hopefully take the next step to being a regular in the team this year. I was actually surprised Scott/the MC didn't play him more last year.

 

[romeoh]

I'll settle with raining on their flag unfurling parade then

Me too.

 

[romeoh]

Unfortunately we cannot do that till we win a flag against them.

Like a few others, we missed our chance in 2008 when we should have cleaned them up.
So they will always have that over us and even if we beat them in a GF one day, it will make no difference to the ferals-they will just publish the list of all the other times they have beaten us when it counts. And they are right-so who cares-let's just beat them when we can. And most especially on a flag unfurling day, or in any game to keep a three -peat out of reach!

 

[catters05]

Like a few others, we missed our chance in 2008 when we should have cleaned them up.
So they will always have that over us and even if we beat them in a GF one day, it will make no difference to the ferals-they will just publish the list of all the other times they have beaten us when it counts. And they are right-so who cares-let's just beat them when we can. And most especially on a flag unfurling day, or in any game to keep a three -peat out of reach!

The dream would be to absolutely smash them on Grand Final Day in 2015, over 100 points, over 119....

That would shut them up for a few years!

 

[romeoh]

The dream would be to absolutely smash them on Grand Final Day in 2015, over 100 points, over 119....

That would shut them up for a few years!

Haha or a week! Still your dream seems a little fanciful at the moment-but a week is a long time if footy!

 

[catters05]

Haha or a week! Still your dream seems a little fanciful at the moment-but a week is a long time if footy!

Everything starts with a dream!

 

[Teriyakicat]

Thurlow is the one I think could have a big jump this year, his disposal and decision making and even the way he moves has more than a hint of class about it. Luckily he did most of the preseason running and fitness before his injury so I think once he gets back he'll be returning off a pretty good base and hopefully take the next step to being a regular in the team this year. I was actually surprised Scott/the MC didn't play him more last year.

Didn't Thurlow go down in mid-December, at the beginning of preseason?
I think he's missed all but the last few weeks- and hasn't long come back and started running. Not sure when he'll be available for senior games but I'm almost certain his p/s has been significantly affected.

 

[steady2]

Unfortunately we cannot do that till we win a flag against them.

We did beat them soundly in 1963, my dad went to that game Polly Farmer was BOG.

 

[Catsmaninamerica]

A few thoughts. Waite has been the biggest disappointment of the last 10 years. Between injury and suspension. He's been a failure. Anyone thinking some vertical stripes will turn around 11 years of being a complete waste of talent is deluded. He's a ******* muppet.

Hawthorn fully fit can't beat geelong fully fit ~ let me te you doubting Thomas's why..

Forward power. See all over the ground we match well. They have a great midfield- but so do we. Selwood, Johnson, Bartel, stokes and motlop are genuine a graders. Add Kelly, cockatoo, Duncan, caddy, Guthrie and blicavs abd it's seriously top 4 and bats deeper than most.

Rucks ~ in the past 2 years we've hurt here. This year a for fit Dawson, Stanley and clark will at least make sure we break even.

Back 6. Ours is better. Lakes good but old and only ever a heartbeat away from a brain fade fucj up. Frawkey = massively overrated. Thank * we didn't sell the farm for him ~ he's a dud ! Lonergan Taylor rivers and co have those coksmokers covered by the length of the flemington straight.

Hawkins, clark, and co will be better wurh every game together. And will be better than anything they have.

 

[catters05]

We did beat them soundly in 1963, my dad went to that game Polly Farmer was BOG.

Yeah but all knob dork fans don't know about that one amazingly.

 

[BlightysCats]

Didn't Thurlow go down in mid-December, at the beginning of preseason?
I think he's missed all but the last few weeks- and hasn't long come back and started running. Not sure when he'll be available for senior games but I'm almost certain his p/s has been significantly affected.

It happened just before the Christmas break so he got the main block of preseason running under his belt, he started training again on the 6th of Feb so he's prob lost about 3/4 weeks on the other guys but he said he's expected to be fit for the early rounds of 2015. So I reckon hopefully we could see him in the AFL team by round 5 to 7.