Oppo Camp Non Geelong football (AFL) discussion 2023, part I

[And_ROOS]

Bit late to the party, but gee Tom Green has become an absolute ball magnet. In the heat of it, he was playing like Oliver and Cripps combined. Loved watching it.

Midway through the first quarter, even though Port were going goal for goal, I just thought to myself, GWS will win this if they keep winning every single clearance. There is no way Port's turnover game was competing with that clearance game with the way that GWS run toward goal and push up with their defence.

What I found interesting was that the commentators were saying that normally Port have clearance dominance, and GWS play a turnover game. Is that right? I havent watched either all year.

I'm definitely on board the GWS train. They have out and out superstars playing roles in their team. For once they have become that team that doesn't have one player who can be locked down and the whole thing falls apart.

Collingwood are definitely that team. NDaicos is tagged out of the game and they have to rely on heart + the other team having an average night.

According to Footywire, Port are 5th for clearances and GWS are 10th overall.
But specifically for centre clearances Port are 2nd and GWS are 9th and for stoppage clearances Port are 8th and GWS are 10th.

For rebound 50s GWS are 2nd and Port are 14th and for intercepts GWS are 2nd and Port are 8th.

So the stats lend to that comment.

However, in rd24, EF and SF GWS won the clearances (+8 against Carlton, +1 against St Kilda and +16 against Port) while still winning the rebound 50s in those games as well. Meaning they are getting the clearances, and when they don't they are still getting it out of their defence in their usual manner.

 

[Goggin Our Best]

I think Melb will be ok

They dominated both finals but kicked inaccurately - not just points but plenty out on the full as well - re Kosi and a few other team mates

So Melbournes straight sets exit this year ( unlike the previous year when they had the flag hangover ) was unlike any other team - they kicked deplorably for goal thats it

If they had kicked straight in that 1st final - they would be presently at an odds on quote to win this years flag

I know Big Footy posters love to exaggerate problems at other clubs - but Melb dont have to tinker with much - they just kept kicking points instead of goals - 32 more inside 50s - thats what you call domination - but they kicked points

Plus the other major relevant point - is the competition across the board is as weak as pisss - so they are not going to be swamped by all these much better teams next year - because these much better teams dont exist

This missed opportunity by Melb this year - youd reckon it will sting their club ( and drive their supporters insane ) because they were easily good enough but just kicked a stack more points than goals that is it

 

[Chinacats]

Possibly Bruz v Toby on Friday night! Thoughts?

 

[Partridge]

I think Melb will be ok

They dominated both finals but kicked inaccurately - not just points but plenty out on the full as well - re Kosi and a few other team mates

So Melbournes straight sets exit this year ( unlike the previous year when they had the flag hangover ) was unlike any other team - they kicked deplorably for goal thats it

If they had kicked straight in that 1st final - they would be presently at an odds on quote to win this years flag

I know Big Footy posters love to exaggerate problems at other clubs - but Melb dont have to tinker with much - they just kept kicking points instead of goals - 32 more inside 50s - thats what you call domination - but they kicked points

Plus the other major relevant point - is the competition across the board is as weak as pisss - so they are not going to be swamped by all these much better teams next year - because these much better teams dont exist

This missed opportunity by Melb this year - youd reckon it will sting their club ( and drive their supporters insane ) because they were easily good enough but just kicked a stack more points than goals that is it

Beg to slightly differ - they need forwards, they REALLY need a key forward - and they need forwards to kick straight.

 

[cats_09]

 

[cats_09]

 

[Play it Sam]

View attachment 1807288

Biased much. GWS don't have any old club champions to back them- unless we count Jezza.

 

[Vdubs]

Bingo, it can't be done until they resolve their forward line. They're in Ground Hog Day over that, a bit like Geelong 2013-2018. Rohan, Miers, Cameron, Close and Stengle over the next few years sorted us out.

For Melbourne, maybe Chandler is their Miers - understandably it won't happen overnight for him but there were good signs earlier in the year. JVR their Rohan? But will be a couple of years before he could lay that claim. I guess you could argue Pickett is a Stengle type but he has yet to put together a 2022 Stengle season. That still leaves one really high quality tall and small IMO, plus the players they have developing fast and peaking at the same time.

They won a flag with BEN BROWN, no Melksham, and got lots out of Fritsch, Petracca, Gawn, and Kosi.
With JVR, their developing smalls, their excellent mids allowing Petracca to play even more forward time, they are not that far off. Smith looks to be a bit of a son of a bit of a gun as well.

 

[feelinfeline]

They won a flag with BEN BROWN, no Melksham, and got lots out of Fritsch, Petracca, Gawn, and Kosi.
With JVR, their developing smalls, their excellent mids allowing Petracca to play even more forward time, they are not that far off. South looks to be a bit of a son of a bit of a gun as well.

McDonald was also pretty good in 2021. They’ve missed his impact since he got injured mid last year. He was nowhere near match fit this finals series.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Possibly Bruz v Toby on Friday night! Thoughts?

To-by! To-by! To-by!

 

[Play it Sam]

They won a flag with BEN BROWN, no Melksham, and got lots out of Fritsch, Petracca, Gawn, and Kosi.
With JVR, their developing smalls, their excellent mids allowing Petracca to play even more forward time, they are not that far off. South looks to be a bit of a son of a bit of a gun as well.

Maybe they need to shake up their coaching then. Stafford in particular.

 

[Play it Sam]

I'm worried for Collingwood

Walking today, swooping season we know, and this one has literally hit the wall.
Hope it's not an omen.View attachment 1806197

I laughed at this, but that guy on the news tonight with the pecked out eye.........sheesh
Maybe that's the omen.

 

[Mr Meow]

They won a flag with BEN BROWN, no Melksham, and got lots out of Fritsch, Petracca, Gawn, and Kosi.
With JVR, their developing smalls, their excellent mids allowing Petracca to play even more forward time, they are not that far off. South looks to be a bit of a son of a bit of a gun as well.

Like I said in the GFC trade thread you can't rely on all of those points firing again. Petracca was racking up multiple goals and assists per game that finals series. Fritsch couldn't miss. Brown and McDonald fell off a cliff the second service declined for starters and now neither are the same player (that was already good solid role player - no more - in 2021). Gawn's goal kicking and forward craft in general just isn't what it was for those finals - and no Jackson to partner with.

Melksham will miss most of 2024 and he had become one of their more important forwards. They are relying a lot on their excellent but inexperienced youngsters JVR and Chandler. Personally I think they need Petracca up forward 50% of the time to score enough, but that means they need to be sure their other midfielders can still carry the load.

It'll be interesting to see if they keep trying to strike gold with Shache type acquisitions, or whether they can land a big fish up forward. Even another midfield bull to release Petracca to HFF in the Dustin Martin destroyer role. You're right that they're not miles off, but they need a few crucial adjustments like Geelong made in the couple of years prior to our flag.

 

[SleazySimon]

Not sure about that. All except Hawthorn were winning flags a long, long time ago. I agree Carlton definitely bought flags in the '80s and '90s, but they won plenty before then as well. If there's one thing Hawthorn did not do it's achieve success easily. They were the competition's whipping boy for decades, and even in the 1980s it's not like there were Hawthorn fans everywhere. There are far more now (makes sense, it's another generation).

Hawthorn had a bigger zone than other clubs back in the day which gave them a leg up.

 

[SleazySimon]

Actually no, the same rules were in place to every side at the time Hawkins was drafted.

I'll say it again, does Geelong have access to academy advantages plus father/sons? It's a rort.

My pet hate is bandwagon supporters ... Collingwood, Carlton, Richmond, Hawthorn and Essendon are big clubs due to the premierships they were winning in the VFL when the clubs with money could buy whoever they wanted, hence every man and his dog jumping on those clubs.

I'll never support any of them in finals as a result.

No one complains about the father son rule anymore now that collingwood has done so well out of it with the Daicos brothers

 

[Vdubs]

Maybe they need to shake up their coaching then. Stafford in particular.

I don’t mind if they don’t

I think it'll depend on what happens during the trade period and if they manage to bring in a competent tall forward

Without changes and improvements to their forward line, I disagree they have enough talent and will instead be found wanting yet again

Good points.
Jfi, what do you think of JVR?
He was a loss on the weekend, not necessarily game-winning, but they were pretty close.

 

[cats_09]

 

[Vdubs]

I laughed at this, but that guy on the news tonight with the pecked out eye.........sheesh
Maybe that's the omen.

Did they catch the magpie?

 

[Footy_Fan2007]

Woohoo, it's not Geelong being written off

Geelong being written off has been done to death. Year after year.
They’ve learnt by now surely.

 

[Partridge]

They won a flag with BEN BROWN, no Melksham, and got lots out of Fritsch, Petracca, Gawn, and Kosi.
With JVR, their developing smalls, their excellent mids allowing Petracca to play even more forward time, they are not that far off. Smith looks to be a bit of a son of a bit of a gun as well.

Very big difference though.

Brown played decent footy for a few weeks for that finals series, but even then he was only a small cog - 6 goals in 3 finals. He hasn't replicated that and is now nearly 31. Petracca, Gawn, and Oliver were all red hot and the entire team was hungry. McDonald was younger and much better and also contributed, which meant Fritsch was playing to what he is - a half forward flanker and not a key forward. Unfortunately right now, Brown and McDonald both look shot. Van Rooney and Smith both look promising, but they aren't there yet. Another factor is as talented as Pickett is, he's horribly inconsistent and undisciplined.

With Petracca, every club continues to fixate on shifting a star midfielder forward (especially as Martin did it - mostly in 2019/2020), but it continues to hardly ever work, and it robs them of Petracca in the middle. If you were an opposition coach you'd love to see Petracca up forward - it means he's not winning the ball in the middle.

I'm not sure at all they're going to be in contention next year, unless a few second tier players improve, and they start kicking straight.

 

[Shell]

So my cousin and her son went to the footy last week.

Guy sitting behind them an absolute tool- my second cousin was standing up celebrating a goal, guy behind him grabs him by the shoulders shoves him back in his seat, tells him to sit down.


Cut a long story short, my cousins moved seats. But they're putting in a complaint. Apparently they've got cameras everywhere around the stands, and the MCC have the footage.

I cannot believe that- that guy is lucky he didnt get thumped.

 

[Shell]

Apparently he was mouthing off at others as well


Oh yeah did I mention my cousins are Carlton supporters and so was the other guy

 

[Partridge]

Apparently he was mouthing off at others as well


Oh yeah did I mention my cousins are Carlton supporters and so was the other guy

One of the more memorable brawls (as brief as it was) happened at a Geelong Carlton game a few years back funnily enough.

 

[Shell]

One of the more memorable brawls (as brief as it was) happened at a Geelong Carlton game a few years back funnily enough.

There was a big one at the Geelong v Pies NAB Cup GF wasnt there??

At Docklands- I was baffled like who the hell even cares about this game, why is everyone getting so worked up..

 

[Partridge]

There was a big one at the Geelong v Pies NAB Cup GF wasnt there??

At Docklands- I was baffled like who the hell even cares about this game, why is everyone getting so worked up..

One I saw was at Docklands too.