All about the youf
Preview West Coast season preview - Me? I Like Football
- Thread starter The Hitman
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I think we should just start with beating Freo over here and work our way up, no point winning too many games this year we want a fair shot at some youf this November Draft
Well we aren't winning the Premiership this year so I'd be satisfied if we beat Freo and at the end of the year they still said "You didn't beat anyone who finished in the 8 this year".
Obviously as an Eagles supporter I am hoping for improvement in our team and our ladder position. What you have written is a good description of what happened last season hence the prediction of still finishing outside the 8 but slipping two places which is nothing really.
But lets look at those names and what they delivered (or didn't deliver) last season. Also who should get better and who may have already played their best football already.
Upside in 2015
- Scott Selwood - injury disaster in 2014 was out for 2/3's of the season.
- Wellingham - injured the ankle angain and never found fitness or form
- Naitanui - still struggled after no preseason, battled on.
- Yeo - just as he started peaking in the midfield broke his hand.
- Rosa - another injury interrupted year.
- Sheed - first year got a taste, looks much better prepared for 2015
- McGovern - banished and told to go get fir in the preseason - did well in the second half of 2014.
- Gaff - struggles with tags in 2014, a little stronger and little wiser.
- Nelson, Duggan, Newman and Karpany should be fighting for the small forward / bench utility role and provide quality competition for the last spot picked in the team each week.
Downside for 2015
- Eric MacKenzie gone, big loss but at least we have McGovern, Brown and Schofield + experienced defenders in Hurn, Butler, Ellis plus Sheppard Yeo coming through.
- Cox retired but Lycett and a fit Naitanui will cover, Sinclair a good backup.
- Darling having little to no preseason - won't be seen for the first two months
- Waters retired, didn't play in 2014 but leadership will be missed.
First year coach and a new game plan also is a factor.
I'd be interested in your write up for Freo and Collingwood.
Brilliant wrote up mate, great job!
- Nov 4, 2010
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Seriously? Tanking is both unsportsmanlike and destroys club culture (such as Melbourne).I think we should just start with beating Freo over here and work our way up, no point winning too many games this year we want a fair shot at some youf this November Draft
I'm all for moving on dead wood and playing an in-form youngster over an experienced C-grader should our season turn to s***, but to be saying "we don't want to win too many this year" is nothing more than a bad joke.
F*** that. I want to see us beat a top 8 team. Winning is a much better starting point.
The other side of things - theres nothing worse than sitting mid table - getting average draft picks and then sitting mid table
We aint geelong in that we cant seem to get great value out of ordinary picks.
Rather than tank id happily play youth to win - but lose trying whilst they learn their craft - get that good draft pick and run with it.
Yes it is true that we aren't like Geelong draft wise, last year we finished 9th the definition of mid table, and while its yet to be seen our 2014 draft has the potential to be one of if not the best of the year. If only we could continue that into the future we wont have to bottom out.
id have to agree on the 14 draft - havnt felt this bullish about a draft since gaff/ darling / lycett and before that cant remember
- Nov 4, 2010
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I'm ok with playing youth and copping a few losses - as long as the team is doing everything it can to get over the line on game day, and those young players are having a big impact. Seeing half-efforts and fadeouts from senior players ****s me more than midtable blues.
We just might have gotten some great value out of some ordinary picks, but time will tell.
LordHaart
Club Legend
- Mar 27, 2011
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Had ordinary picks last draft (9th is as ordinary as you can get, you miss getting final experience and your pick comes after half the other teams'). Yet we are already talking about playing up to 3 of our picks in round 1 this year.
I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that Simpson didn't have the sway to impact recruitment in 2013 but he did in 2014 and the results (of not being WA-centric and of looking for players who can start playing early rather than looking for project players who might be OK starting in 2+ years) are showing.
When was the last time we drafted more than 1 player who was (seriously) talked about as a potential round 1 start?
... with that in mind, I'm absolutely fine with finishing 9th so long as we still do our best to both reward youngsters with AFL games when they've done well and also actually make a push for top 8. Some might say that winning that last 2014 game cost us the chance to draft Cockatoo (though Geelong likely would have figured out how to get pick 9 then) but I'd rather that we were a team that still wins whenever possible rather than folding up like we did at the end of the 2013 season.
http://boundforglorynews.com/2015-season-preview-west-coast/
That would be the best write up so far in that they have done their actual research.
That would be the best write up so far in that they have done their actual research.
Yeah, that site does a lot of research on rookies, I use it a lot to get information on who's coming through the ranks.
Interesting saying they could see Lamb used as a defender to improve his main weakness, I doubt we'd see something like that, but it's a good thought.
Only issue is no Yeo, Cripps or Sheed (possibly) in best 22.
Yep i agree about the best 22:
this was theirs listed:
B: Jamie Bennell, Mitch Brown, Brad Sheppard
HB: Shannon Hurn, Will Schofield, Liam Duggan
C: Andrew Gaff, Matt Priddis, Sharrod Wellingham
HF: Mark Hutchings, Jack Darling, Chris Masten
F: Mark LeCras, Josh Kennedy, Scott Lycett
Foll: Nic Naitanui, Scott Selwood, Luke Shuey
Int: Jeremy McGovern, Matt Rosa, Xavier Ellis
Sub: Tom Lamb
This would be mine for round 1:
B: Jamie Bennell, Mitch Brown, Jeremy McGovern
HB: Shannon Hurn, Will Schofield, Brad Sheppard
C: Andrew Gaff, Matt Priddis, Matt Rosa
HF: Tom Lamb, Scott Lycett, Chris Masten
F: Mark LeCras, Josh Kennedy, Jamie Cripps
Foll: Nic Naitanui, Scott Selwood, Luke Shuey
Int: Elliot Yeo,Sharrod Wellingham , Dom Sheed
Sub: Duggan
EMG: Nelson,College, Butler
- Need to fit Ellis in there if he is fit to play round 1.
- When Darling is back i would take out Lamb. But will very interesting if he is performing well.
- Nelson might get a gig if Shep isn't playing well.
On paper that is a pretty solid team and also a lot quicker than past years.
Dark Sharks
Premium Kent
That's the best write up i've seen all pre season.
Even the best 22 they did is spot on, as it doesn't ridiculously include Mcginnity.
guero
rock my world
Was going to wait and bump this thread at the end of the season, but 2015 has been so bloody good I just couldn't wait.
Personally im hanging out for the sequel - "From Guppies to Goliaths - How I Started the Dynasty Decade" by A. Simpson.
Is this a Specky McGee spinoff?
HoneyBadger35
The Big Kahuna
- Aug 11, 2011
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Eerily accurate prediction. Not knocking Rosa, but the bold ones are unquestionably players who have shown massive upside in 2015. Well done.
guero
rock my world
Not a spinoff, but similar style.
Working title for the follow-up: Torpor-edoes in the twilight.
Author now wants to be known as Nicholas Nait-ennui...after the success of the first novel, he believes he's moved beyond being called Nic.
guero
rock my world
Sure, but this one deserves particular attention for use of the words torpor and ennui...there's no place for 'em in a footy preview.
Well, if Gary wrote a book about Naitanui it'd be quite the read.
lmach
Naitanui2Yeo
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