Review AFL NAB Challenge 1 autopsy - Gold Coast defeats Geelong by 8 points

[Play it Sam]

Suns looked fast and assured, perhaps acclimatised to the conditions.
Deserved victors and will win more biggens than they lose this year.

Best thing is reading BF opinions that have up until now been confined
to training vids and guesses.

My take home:
The draftees got a valuable lesson in pace and place-
where opposition interceptions prove the link between
brain, hand and ball synapse faster than a scalded cat.

Simpson's looking like a dud, but lay off Murdoch just yet.

 

[Stan The Caddy]

Post match interview.. Keeps mentioning Gregson first... Good signs Stan the Caddy

He was lively Chook! Made some mistakes early but once the nerves settled he looked alot more comfortable out there and did some nice things. For a young player playing his first game, he certainly wasn't afraid to get involved and have an impact which is a good sign.

 

[manboob]

I think we have to remember it was A) our first hit out B) hotter than Satan's hooha.

 

[Chappycats]

Good to have the footy back!! Thought there was some real positives to come out of today- Lang, Kolo, Cocky, Gregson and Gore each showed some good signs for the future. I thought Mots and Harry played well and I really enjoyed seeing the boys swarm Clark after he kicked his first, plus that grin!
I will reserve my judgment on the negatives as its only the first game. I would hope they improve those in games 2 & 3 but if they don't then I think we have some real reasons for concern this year.

 

[David the Cat]

Lots of definitive statements being made about players after a game on March 1. But as its in vogue …..

Lang really impressed me…looks like an AFL player to me and far and away the most impressive of the new boys.
Mitch Clark is a win for us.
Duncan, Kelly, Motlop and Bartel looked very good.
I liked Gregson's effort. Some clangers particularly early on, but he showed plenty for me.
Cockatoo was ok. Will play games this year. Seems a little over-hyped to me at this stage…but agree he'll be a player..
Harry was superb. Smedts ok…reserve judgement there (and everywhere for that matter)
We were murdered in the ruck. Premature to write Simpson off but would like to see HMac get a run by NAB 3
Caddy was quiet.
Wanted a little more from Gore and Kolo..
Murdoch was …well..ordinary..
Thought we missed the calming influence of Rivers.

Would be most interested to know game time on the ground for our players…

Nice hit out with no injuries, which was a relief. Better for the run in many cases I expect. Looking forward to the next game so we can build on what we saw today.

 

[JUBJUB]

Feeling validated in thinking that taking Lucey up there robbed someone of a game today who might actually play some senior footy in the next 2 years.

What other possible ruckman was available ?

 

[David the Cat]

Just start of the season, tons of 'no injury' kind of comments ahead I still have to see. I hope I can see tons of 'win' instead. 'no injury' is really discourage. It's a soft term for me, mates. Throw any bricks, eggs or rotten tomatoes if you want.

I think every team breathes a sigh of relief when they get through a game in pre-season with no serious injuries. Not soft at all.

Just ask Western Bulldog or WCE supporters how it feels to suffer major injuries to their B&F players on March 1.

 

[JUBJUB]

what if McIntosh plays as poorly in his first game back as what Dawson did?

A few people will have these out before the final siren

 

[David the Cat]

A few people will have these out before the final siren

A few people will have those out before he runs out on the ground.

In fact, they are out now.

 

[you pick one]

.

Would be most interested to know game time on the ground for our players…

Nice hit out with no injuries, which was a relief. Better for the run in many cases I expect. Looking forward to the next game so we can build on what we saw today.

39 1 2 3 1 2 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 52 7
Geelong Cats
second last figure is % of game time
Geelong Cats
Player No. K H D CP UP DE% CLG M CM M50 HO CLR CC ST R50 FF FA T 1% Bo I50 SG G B GA G% TG% AF
1Jimmy Bartel 3 15 11 26 10 15 61.5 1 6 0 1 0 4 2 2 5 1 0 6 2 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 72 110
2Mitch Duncan 22 12 8 20 9 10 65 1 4 0 0 0 3 0 3 5 0 0 5 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 77 84
2Harry Taylor 7 9 13 22 4 17 90.9 3 10 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 87 84
4Mathew Stokes 27 12 8 20 11 8 75 1 2 0 0 0 2 1 1 1 4 0 3 0 0 4 0 1 1 1 50 79 81
5James Kelly 9 9 11 20 11 8 70 4 2 0 0 0 3 1 2 2 0 1 6 0 0 4 0 0 0 1 0 63 76
6Steven Motlop 32 17 5 22 7 15 59.1 3 2 0 0 0 2 1 1 3 2 0 1 2 0 5 1 0 1 2 0 77 74
7Darcy Lang 11 8 6 14 5 9 57.1 2 2 0 2 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 5 1 0 3 0 2 1 0 66.7 66 73
8Tom Hawkins 26 9 0 9 3 6 55.6 1 7 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 2 0 2 0 2 1 0 66.7 91 70
8Corey Enright 44 10 3 13 5 8 76.9 2 6 0 0 0 2 0 2 5 0 0 4 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 74 70
10Cameron Guthrie 29 7 7 14 5 9 85.7 0 2 0 1 0 4 1 3 1 1 0 2 1 0 2 0 1 1 0 50 65 57
11Josh Caddy 23 6 10 16 10 6 62.5 3 1 0 0 0 4 2 2 2 0 1 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 70 54
11Nakia Cockatoo 5 4 6 10 6 6 80 3 2 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 6 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 57 54
13Mitch Clark 19 4 5 9 6 3 66.7 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 0 2 0 1 66.7 89 48
14Tom Lonergan 13 5 1 6 1 5 83.3 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 5 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 80 43
14Dawson Simpson 16 1 6 7 5 2 71.4 0 0 0 0 15 3 1 2 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 53 43
16Jake Kolodjashnij 8 4 4 8 4 4 37.5 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 75 39
16Cory Gregson 28 4 5 9 3 6 66.7 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 100 70 39
18Andrew Mackie 4 7 3 10 0 10 70 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 81 37
19Shane Kersten 39 6 2 8 2 4 62.5 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 57 36
20Billie Smedts 2 4 5 9 3 6 77.8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 66 34
21Michael Luxford 37 4 3 7 1 6 71.4 2 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 57 32
22Dean Gore 15 2 4 6 3 3 33.3 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 55 31
23Mark Blicavs 46 3 6 9 6 3 88.9 4 2 0 0 3 1 0 1 2 1 3 2 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 62 30
24Jordan Murdoch 21 2 5 7 1 6 57.1 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 62 27
25Jed Bews 24 4 2 6 1 5 83.3 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 60 21
26Padraig Lucey

 

[r32godzilla]

Yeah its 'mickey mouse' footy this NAB Challenge stuff as my father in law puts it lol. Hard to gauge where we are at until at least a few H&A games are under our belt. Some promising stuff from youngsters like Cockatoo, Gregson and Lang. Great to see Mitch Clarke snag a few at the end and will only get better I feel.

Clearances were a worry again but it will be great to have Selwood and Johnno back helping out in that area. Rucks are the biggest concern tho. DS looked well out of it today.

I think GC would be better acclimatised though to that sort of humid weather so it may well have given them an advantage. Wait till we get back to the good old Vic rain and cold weather!

No injuries was good to see. Roll on H&A games!

 

[Warnez]

I thougt it was a good hit out for the boys today,the older players look in good shape and the youngsters showed glimpses of whats to come.I wont be surprised if we give the crows a flogging in nab 2 now that the cobwebs have been blown out.Cant wait to see more of the hawk,clark combo going forward,lang looks like a future star and should be in our side rd 1,my only concern was the rucks but hopefully dawsons better for the run and come rd1 is up and about

 

[WA Cat]

It was interesting how Hawkins played up the ground while Clark stayed close to goal. I would suggest that it would be better if these roles were reversed when the serious games start.

I reckon Matthew Knights has been handed the poison chalice taking on the role of mid field coach. I can't really see how we are going to improve on the clearance tally in 2015, based on today's performance.

 

[Chinacats]

No injuries= good result.
Lang and cockatoo good and should play in the ones this year. Can we find forward players that can lock the ball in our forward line and that can put pressure on opposition backs ? Last years final against hawthorn was embarrassing and with Hawkins and Clark in the forward half I'm worried opposition sides will get it out too easy and expose us on the rebound. It's a problem!

 

[manboob]

 

[Teriyakicat]

A few people will have these out before the final siren

Is that what we're throwing in when we sell Dawson?

Why? It's a darn good set of knives!

 

[Teriyakicat]

lol. Poor Harry

 

[meto]

I thougt it was a good hit out for the boys today,the older players look in good shape and the youngsters showed glimpses of whats to come.I wont be surprised if we give the crows a flogging in nab 2 now that the cobwebs have been blown out.Cant wait to see more of the hawk,clark combo going forward,lang looks like a future star and should be in our side rd 1,my only concern was the rucks but hopefully dawsons better for the run and come rd1 is up and about

Can't agree more, the new group of kids are terrific, plenty to look forward to with Cocky very determined to get involved, a big tick from me as with the others.
Very happy with Lang, no doubt he's out to prove his P16 was justified. Great having a couple of big targets up forward as well with Mitch getting involved and enjoying the contest.
The result means nothing but didn't they get a few free kick goals,.... and some real loose ones, we'll tighten that up no doubt.

After that Guthrie goal, the evasion and inside out kick for a goal, he's a midfielder for me, that takes skill and talent.

 

[TheJimmyCartel]

I don't remember seeing Hawk that free-moving and mobile for a long time either. Looked fantastic moving around the ground, think he could be in for a massive season - Clark helping that.

 

[thegerman]

Some really positive results yesterday. Loved Cockatoo getting his hands dirty; that run in the last quarter, was spellbinding. When he took off, then evaded an opponent, I thought that's just like Motlop, but only quicker.

Darcy Lang just knows football, where to go and how to punish his opponent. Those front and centre goals, never looked like missing.

Clark was rusty, and by his own admission, but the play in the third quarter of the two back to back goals shows why he could be a force.

Guthrie was good being a stand alone mid. Though too many of the lads have similar haircuts, making it hard on the digital subscriber to work out who's who.

Thought Duncan was exceptional at times. Bartel has lost weight and was probably BOG for us.

It was fun, bit of slap and tickle. Skills were a bit down, they seemed to hunt in packs for our dropped chest marks and errors, but being the first game back, I liked what I saw.

 

[thegerman]

Overall I think given that there's still over a month to go before our first H&A game, everything is going OK at the Cattery. The criticism of Lucey is unwarranted because it's highly unlikely he'll be playing the AFL team this year. He has a lot to learn. Bottom line is, don't get carried away by the first preseason game of the year.

It's a bit rich to take it out on a guy whose hardly played the game. He will learn all year in the magoos, all the better for him.

 

[sauron256]

OK so due to circumstances beyond my control I missed the whole game. Although those circumstances did involve eating fresh baked bread and drinking homebrew so it wasn't all bad.

Looking forward to watching the full match replay. Tried the highlights on AFL.com.au but they should have been labelled highlights for Gold Coast.

Judging by the reactions of some on this thread, I'm guessing that based on first preseason games they're going to be penciling in Collingwood for the flag and Cats and Hawks to fight it out for the wooden spoon.

But in the 'highlights' I heard the commentators mention our clearance woes rearing their ugly head again. To be fair our midfield seems to be where a lot of the younger inexperienced players were - Selwood, Johnson, and GHS will be handy inclusions. Still, it's an early concern and will be interesting to see if it's a trend that continues in NAB 2.

Other concern without watching the game was despite the small final margin the scoring shots ended up 29-18 in their favour. 19 behinds suggests the final margin could have been much bigger.

Still, I made the prediction before the game that we likely wouldn't win, and it came true. Playing for the first time under a new coach always seems to bring out the best for players and no exception from Gold Coast. I'm sure I'll have some more thoughts after actually watching the game whether you want to hear them or not... I've managed to write this much without even watching it!

 

[WaxiesDargle]

Great to have the footy back, even if it is only NAB Challenge. Was hanging out all week to watch the game and like most preseason games it was a scrappy affair. The 30+ heat and humidity didn't help but it was a good hit out with no injuries!
A few positives I took out of the game:
As everyone has already mentioned, Lang was brilliant. I have been on the bandwagon for him to get that small forward spot and after yesterday I'd be very surprised if he's not in the team for round 1. Doesn't panic with the ball, is super composed and has great skills. Seems to have the knack for finding space inside 50 and can hit the score board. Doesn't mind putting his body in either and winning his own ball.
I though all the new draftees showed a bit. Gore, although he didn't have a heap of the ball, showed plenty of composure and made good decisions with the ball. Gregson was very lively, seems to know where to be to find the footy. He did fumble a bit and mad a couple of mistakes but all that will come with more experience. Cockatoo did some great things and showed why he was rated so highly. That strong mark at CHB and the lace out pace to Kersten were a taste of what he may bring! Silky as.
Good to see Motlop fit and firing.
Hawkins looks as fit as I've ever seen him, he's trimmed down a bit and was moving better than ever. Could be a Coleman year for the big guy if he stays fit.
Jimmy in the guts played well. Harry is the rock down back, I'd hate to think were we would be without him.
Also thought Kolo was solid down back.
Clark worked his way into the game and to finish with 2 goals was a good effort. Was excellent below his knees and when the marks start sticking you can see how important he will become for us. Great to see the passion from him when he kicked those goals and good to see the boys get around him. Playing a full game and kicking a couple of sausage rolls will be a massive confidence boost for him!

Couple of negatives from the game:
Simpson worries me. I have been suss on him in the past but I just don't know if he's the answer. Yes, he's coming of the back injury and yes, Zac Smith is a gun (BOG in my opinion) but he just offers very little. Does nothing around the ground and you'd expect a guy of his size to at least be winning the hit outs but he seemed to struggle in this area too. Hopefully he can improve with more game time.
Murdoch had an absolute stinker. Couldn't get near it and coughed up a lot of his touches. Needs to really step up with Lang, Cockatoo etc. breathing down his neck. Can be damaging with the ball but needs to find more of it and iron out this little mistakes he's susceptible too.
Mackie seems to have lost a yard or two. Gets brushed off the ball constantly and seems to panic and turn it over a bit under pressure. I'm hoping he is just dusting off the cobwebs and it isn't a sign he is slowing down a bit.

Always hard to read too much into these practice games but all the boys will be better for the run. Plenty to work on for round 1 so bring on Adelaide on the 12th. Looking forward to seeing Cowan & Jansen in action.

 

[RegHickeyStand]

Was impressed by Duncan. He has arrived.

Just noted the way he went around opponents like they weren't there in pressure moments and drilled it perfectly. Especially during the period where they had their forward press working well. You want the ball in Bartel's hands. You want the ball in Johnson's hands. You want the ball in Selwood's hands. Now Duncan.

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Feeling validated in thinking that taking Lucey up there robbed someone of a game today who might actually play some senior footy in the next 2 years. Skills poor overall, game plan was unattractive and ineffective from the looks of how it went today. Simpson was dominated, tried to put in a bit of followup efforts which was encouraging but still looked outclassed. Murdoch was shocking as nearly everyone here has noted. Got the feeling lang was probably going to get first crack at the spot left open by Bundy and went a good way towards locking that in today. Smedts had a crack, didnt set the world on fire but not our worst. Taylor, Bartel, Kelly were pretty impressive. No injuries are good things.

Such as...? As far as I'm concerned, that's exactly the environment that Lucey should be exposed to. He didn't set the world on fire, but he was as competitive as we could expect. And let's face it, with McIntosh and Simpson as our nominal number ones, with Blicavs, Vardy and Walker (and McIntosh...and West for that matter) getting their pants pulled down to varying degrees in the last six finals we've played, with Stanley managing double figure hitouts just seven times in his career (career high: 21, in a game where his opponent had a lazy 49) it would be nice if Lucey is an option as a genuine big bodied ruck, in case of emergency. We may need him, like it or not and I was encouraged that with more seasoning in the VFL, he could absolutely be as good an option as an emergency as Orren Stephenson was a few years ago. And that's the best way to fast track his development as a potential AFL ruckman: to give him exposure against top 10 calibre ruckmen in the league, not simply monstering 19 year olds and part-timers in the VFL. Simpson gets 60 hitouts a game in the VFL.

Murdoch needs to pull his finger out quick smart. He was invisible. If he's going for the third tall role, I'm going with Kersten (or perhaps even Stanley or Vardy) over him in a heartbeat. If it's as a small, Lang is in the Round 1 team, based on his performance. He'd want to be a standout in at least one of the remaining games, or he'll be starting in the VFL.