No Oppo Supporters General AFL and other clubs discussion thread. **Opposition fans not welcome**

[Xtreme]

I hope this is the case, but they would want to flick the "fired up" switch so they can actually perform to the peak of their powers in the finals

 

[smeltitdeltit]

Question is: do we rest half the team next week?
Ross has hinted he's going to play the twos next week, and I'm not suggesting that's the way to go, but it is interesting. The travel this year makes a case for it.
We cant go any lower than 4th.
We're likely playing the Friday night vs west coast if we win. Six day break.
We lose were likely Saturday night vs freo. 7 day break
Even if we rest everyone and still win, it would help with the 6 day break.

Personally, I don't think our form has been consistant enough to do so, and if we did, who knows which hawthorn will turn up after the break. Also,say we do, and win the Qf it's then only one game in 3 weeks come the prelim. And we all know how dusty we are in prelims.. ......

 

[Gralin]

There will be minimal changes AFL changed the rules after Ross left half the team home in 2013
Expect Poppy and Mitch to come back and leave one spot for Hodge the next week

 

[Steven Tyler]

Question is: do we rest half the team next week?
Ross has hinted he's going to play the twos next week, and I'm not suggesting that's the way to go, but it is interesting. The travel this year makes a case for it.
We cant go any lower than 4th.
We're likely playing the Friday night vs west coast if we win. Six day break.
We lose were likely Saturday night vs freo. 7 day break
Even if we rest everyone and still win, it would help with the 6 day break.

Personally, I don't think our form has been consistant enough to do so, and if we did, who knows which hawthorn will turn up after the break. Also,say we do, and win the Qf it's then only one game in 3 weeks come the prelim. And we all know how dusty we are in prelims.. ......

Didn't Clarko say he'd be hesitant to rest a lot of players again after we did in the final game at the Gold Coast in 2011?
That qualifying final loss to Geelong was a poor game from us

I'd be hoping to rest 1 or 2, replacing them with Poppy and Mitch, getting out to a big lead early v Carlton, and then manage the players throughout the rest of the game

With Carlton wanting to lose to get pick 1, that shouldn't be too hard a task surely

 

[HR Roughnstuf]

Didn't Clarko say he'd be hesitant to rest a lot of players again after we did in the final game at the Gold Coast in 2011?
That qualifying final loss to Geelong was a poor game from us

I'd be hoping to rest 1 or 2, replacing them with Poppy and Mitch, getting out to a big lead early v Carlton, and then manage the players throughout the rest of the game

With Carlton wanting to lose to get pick 1, that shouldn't be too hard a task surely

I 100% agree with you but I will also add that in 2011 Hawks had no where near the depth that they do today.

Basically I think Clarko and the coaching staff will look at it like this.

'Who can we see playing finals?'

The team that played on Saturday:
Gunston
Rough
Frawley
Sicily
Suckling
Rioli
Hale
Burgoyne
Hill
McEvoy
Shiels
Smith
Breust
Birchall
Duryea
Gibson
Hartung
Howe
Lake
Langford
Lewis
Stratton

I have bolded the players whom are on the edge of selection. Out of those 5 who would you be comfortable playing a Prelim final? Sicily? Howe? What if they are required?

Players that will definitely come in if fit:
Hodge
Puopolo
Mitchell

Possible inclusions but not automatic:
Spang
Ceglar
Shoe
O'Rourke
Litherland
Anderson

Do any of these 6 play this weekend to see if they can cut it in the finals?? Who do you drop from this weekends team for the finals. 3 in's, Sicily and Howe are the only 2 that are easy to drop from this squad. Rucks have been getting rotated all year, does Hale get a rest? Good luck trying to convince him of that. Has McEvoy done enough, has been very up and down the last 3-4 weeks.

Bloody tough decisions coming up, this is why clarko gets paid the big bucks.

 

[Cleavy]

Simpkin not in the selection frame?

 

[hawk for 37]

Bit of a numbers man.

The years ending in 5 have not been kind to the Hawks in our years as a competition powerhouse.

65' - our last wooden spoon.
75' - bad GF loss to North.
85' - as above to Essendon.
95' - shocker of a year. Fell out finals contention for 1st since 82 and finished 2nd last.
05' - another shocker and avoided WS by percentage.
15' - ????

 

[jenniferHAWKinS]

Bit of a numbers man.

The years ending in 5 have not been kind to the Hawks in our years as a competition powerhouse.

65' - our last wooden spoon.
75' - bad GF loss to North.
85' - as above to Essendon.
95' - shocker of a year. Fell out finals contention for 1st since 82 and finished 2nd last.
05' - another shocker and avoided WS by percentage.
15' - ????

We smashed through the unlucky 4 last year. Next stop 5.

 

[Bikefreak]

Starting to annoy me all these posts about games we lost. Well all teams could probably have similar claims. I look at it this way, last year karma went against us in the H & A season, with so many injuries, and Clarko's illnes. However, come to finals time and our luck changed, and allowed us to get a pretty good team on the park for the last game.

This year we have had bad luck, as well as some poor form, in several close losses. Come finals time we will win the close ones, if there are any.

No disrespect.... but I dont feel that karma or bad luck had anything to do with it.

We played poorly and lost.

We were not beaten badly. We did not play well and get beaten by a better side. We played like s**t and the results went accordingly.

As we all know and still believe....our best on any day will smoke all comers.....but if we dont bring it in the finals in every game....it could well be out in straight sets.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

 

[Glasgow Hawk]

First loss in 11 games? Didn't we beat them a couple of weeks ago?

Hehehe! Sure are some real dumb folk at the AFL..
Wonder how long it took before they fixed it?

 

[twentythree]

I like what Roos has done with Melbourne. Really developed some players and their game plan. #saidnooneever

Now that's just being mean

 

[HR Roughnstuf]

Simpkin not in the selection frame?

Nope. That's the point I was making.

He won't play finals if he hasn't played this week or next week.

 

[Thaihawk]

,

No disrespect.... but I dont feel that karma or bad luck had anything to do with it.

We played poorly and lost.

We were not beaten badly. We did not play well and get beaten by a better side. We played like s**t and the results went accordingly.

As we all know and still believe....our best on any day will smoke all comers.....but if we dont bring it in the finals in every game....it could well be out in straight sets.

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Well I disagree. Many goals Port kicked in the first quarter were very lucky. Poppy was very unlucky to be called for throwing, when he palmed that ball, (forget which game) and Breust was unlucky he ran out of time when running into an open goal.

 

[Bikefreak]

,


Well I disagree. Many goals Port kicked in the first quarter were very lucky. Poppy was very unlucky to be called for throwing, when he palmed that ball, (forget which game) and Breust was unlucky he ran out of time when running into an open goal.

Acknowledged.....but we still played s**t and so we let another side in effect....decide our destiny in a handfull of games because we played way below what we are capable of.

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[B&GBlood]

First goal wins?

Penalty shoot out

 

[Agent Smith]

Movie Review - I Am Legend

Obviously, a story about the life of Luke Hodge. Don't be fooled like I was though, it doesn't go on about his footy career at all. In fact, it looks as though he's travelling through Geelong on his way to Colac in a bit of a documentary style feel. It's a bit strange they got Will Smith to play the role of Hodgey but think about it and it makes sense - he's the only Hollywood star with enough physical presence and charisma to take on the role, so they sort of got it right.

What they got wrong (or exaggerated):

• Geelong is not a major city (gross exaggeration there, looks like they filmed it in New York)
• Geelong is not made up purely of Handbagger supporters
• Handbaggers are not afraid of direct sunlight (but I understand where they were going with this)

If you look closely enough, you will see a Paul Chapman cameo in the scene where Hodgey captures Gary Ablett Jnr and attempts to make him more human by converting him into a Gold Coast player (clever, coz Gold Coast are the 'Suns' and handbaggers are afraid of direct sunlight). Ahh... Hollywood.

Anyway, apart from the fact they made handbagger supporters far more likeable and intelligent than they actually are in real life (I suppose just to fit the script), it's not a bad movie. Spoiler Alert: In order to have a big climax at the end, Hodgey is faced with the prospect that only his blood could save Geelong and make all those handbaggers become human, but he decides f*** that, and blows himself up with all the handbaggers instead. Obviously not a true story, more of a 'what would you do if you were in the same situation?' They nailed it.

Score: 8.5 goals out of 10.

 

[Crankyhawk]

Yeah and the commentators said something similar along the lines of being their first time they'd been blown away in the 1st quarter for a couple of years. Rnd 1 anyone?

Or the first derby.

 

[badgrill]

Or the first derby.

That's what I meant

 

[Thaihawk]

Acknowledged.....but we still played s**t and so we let another side in effect....decide our destiny in a handfull of games because we played way below what we are capable of.

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If you read my original correctly, you would see I said we played poorly. The point I was making, is that in 2014 we had bad luck during the home and away season, but not in the finals. I pointed out some bad luck we have had this year, and hope tht ends our bad luck for 2015. Can you understand that?

 

[Bikefreak]

If you read my original correctly, you would see I said we played poorly. The point I was making, is that in 2014 we had bad luck during the home and away season, but not in the finals. I pointed out some bad luck we have had this year, and hope tht ends our bad luck for 2015. Can you understand that?

Nah.

Bad luck is a furphy.......just superstition.

Events that you can't control....now that is a different story....life is full of them.

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[Pessimistic]

Simpkin not in the selection frame?

I like simpkin but hsi game yesterday wasnt great

Spangher and shoe didnt get rested too much either

Also fooscray in a vfl qf might be a loet tourgher than carlton easing out of the seaso

 

[IdiotBox]

So, the very club that caused a rule to be created now wants an exemption to those rules???

Yes Ross, your poor little purple players may well be fatigued - that happens when you go all out and secure top place easily without taking due care and consideration during the entire season to spread the workload of your personnel.

from the article: Eight Dockers have played every game this year including veterans Aaron Sandilands and David Mundy

Compare that to Hawthorn who have only 3 players in this category (Bruest, Burgers, Gunston).

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2015-08-...-rest-major-changes-likely-for-minor-premiers

I have no doubt whatsoever that the AFL will not have the goolies to hold Freo to account for poor player management and will bend over backwards to ensure the Dockers get whatever they want for their tilt at the flag.

 

[cryptor]

So, the very club that caused a rule to be created now wants an exemption to those rules???

Yes Ross, your poor little purple players may well be fatigued - that happens when you go all out and secure top place easily without taking due care and consideration during the entire season to spread the workload of your personnel.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2015-08-...-rest-major-changes-likely-for-minor-premiers

I have no doubt whatsoever that the AFL will not have the goolies to hold Freo to account for poor player management and will bend over backwards to ensure the Dockers get whatever they want for their tilt at the flag.

Eh let them. They're out of form and the less game time they play the less opportunity they have to regain it.

Plus, I don't want any of their supporters to have an excuse when they're knocked out of finals.

 

[Thaihawk]

Nah.

Bad luck is a furphy.......just superstition.

Events that you can't control....now that is a different story....life is full of them.

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You live in your world, mate. I'll stay in the real one.

 

[Pessimistic]

It says the shockers will rest and hopue a big first quarter will get them over the line to a prelim.

Same for the prelim after a weeks rest.

So even if strong finishing team dont get them, they will be toast the grand final.

ross is just puttuing that that on the record. Begining of the end as a coach really