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Autopsy Blues down by 57 points after woeful first half

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another one pops up from the grassy knoll to take a shot after a loss - this is why I should learn to stop emptying my cellar

I really want to have a decent crack in return, but I don't even have it in me to protest your self-righteousness this week.

Morale is down across the board.
 
When your side fields a bunch of raw young developing players supported by Kerridge Thomas Lamb Casboult Wright Graham & Rowe I'm not sure how people can expect much more. The only genuine top level star is Cripps and sides are sitting on him. Kruezer is injured but still good. Simmo does his best but he is mopping up the defence and as much as I love Ed he is a worker not an impact player. When he is our 4-5th best mid (not number 2) we will be so much better. Any half decent side will pull us apart

The side will be so much different in 12-18 months
 
I think we have recruited well and have a core group of really promising youngsters. In addition to the three you noted I think Weitering, SPS , Williamson, Dow, O'Brien, McKay and Marchbank could be A grade players.

My concern has been the development of these youngsters and the lack of mature bodies to protect the kids this year. I have said on a number of occasions there is more to development than just playing the kids. We are effectively sending kids out each week with little protection and this does nothing for their confidence or their development.

Hope you're right, I'd argue we haven't seen enough of Dow, O'Brien and McKay yet to have much confidence they'll flourish like we all hope. SPS is a tough one, plays really well in patches but goes missing for long stretches over multiple games.

Agree re: mature bodies. The worry is how do we rectify that in the short term, as has been discussed over the last few pages can't see them beating our door down in the trade period.
 

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Hope you're right, I'd argue we haven't seen enough of Dow, O'Brien and McKay yet to have much confidence they'll flourish like we all hope. SPS is a tough one, plays really well in patches but goes missing for long stretches over multiple games.

Agree re: mature bodies. The worry is how do we rectify that in the short term, as has been discussed over the last few pages can't see them beating our door down in the trade period.
I think SOS definitely has his work cut out for him this year. Quite a few issues we need to deal with.
 
The facts are that Palmer was moved on from his 3rd club, with a year to run on his contract.

Ward has gone to captain an emerging side

Easy to take a pot shot at Bolton, go and have a word with Clarkson about his early years at the Hawks

Great players don't make great coaches

Voss
Hird
Leppa
Weideman
Farmer
Shaw

And no non-player has ever made a great coach.

Kinnear
Brittain
McCartney
Bolton
 
One person’s delusion is another’s foresight...

It’s easy to throw out surface level observations. “No effort” and “worst performance I’ve seen”.

Personally, I prefer to look beyond the surface. Beyond the score line. To watch each act, each play, in isolation. Granted, there was occasionally less urgency than is acceptable, but when you’re flogged week in, week out, it’s not always easy to maintain enthusiasm.

Almost every side has a core of experienced, seasoned players, who lead the way, who help the young guns come along. Our opposition on the weekend, case in point, have Fyfe, Mundy, Sandilands, Ballantyne, Neale, Sheridan.

We have Simpson, and then it’s the “kids” leading the way. Some of which are out injured. They’re on their own. Doing the heavy lifting, on their own. When those “kids” become the experienced group, you’ll see a very different Carlton.

To say “being young is no excuse” is again a surface level observation. It’s lazy. It doesn’t take into account the weight the young guys are required to shoulder.

You might think I’m delusional now. But when we’re a force in the near future, you’ll understand where I’m coming from.


Yeah we did have Cripps, Simpson, Kreuzer, Casboult, Thomas, Rowe, Wright etc. We have a decent core of senior players. That's as good as Freo's group. So it's not the kids leading the way at all, that's just another Bolton cop out. It's certainly NEVER an excuse for being outscored 12 goals to 0. But if you do want to talk about kids Freo had 7 players that had played 16 games or less compared to our 3. So if being young IS an excuse as you say, we were even poorer than you thought.
 
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It would be great if he were to do it, it doesn't look promising to me. He won't last much longer in the current climate.
I think he is safe this year and next, 2020 not so sure.
 
It would be great if he were to do it, it doesn't look promising to me. He won't last much longer in the current climate.

Current climate of developing a list while having 40 % of best 22 players out for the majority of the year?

Think he is fine
 

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Just remember the GWS footprint (SOS's)... our Kerridge's, Graham's, Lamb's, Wright's, Rowe's were their Brogan's, McDonald's, The "Chad", Setanta, Palmer, Power, Reid, and Thorntons of the world. They had 3 years of absolute crap (= 66 games... 66 game rebuild sound familair) and then the rise began from Spoon, Spoon, 16th... then 11th, then prelim and prelim and this year with really bad injuries like us consistancy is hard but still a good strong chance to make the 8.

So like GWS our 66 games will entail 3 bottom 3 finishes and if we're lucky with our injuries next year a 10-12th finish is highly possible... this is the direction the club is going, and why there is no fear by the head's of the club. This blueprint is surely what SOS is using and has done a bang up effort without 2 raids of high picks in the draft...

And Bolton is our young coach who didn't have the luxury of Sheeds to feed off (Craig was his man and gone I suspect a year earlier than would've liked).

In next years free-agency period when we start to sell ourselves this blueprint will be shown to prospectful players... but we'll be like a GWS in Melbourne with 8-10 games at the G a year! Big rival games against Collingwood, Richmond, *.....
 
How can you predict that so far out?
I base on my comment on the Judd's comments that they are not judging B.bolton on wins/losses this year and it would be a consideration in 2019 so that suggests to me he will definitely be at the club in 2019. I am not so sure he will definitely be at the club in 2020 and i think that will largely dependant on where the club is at at the end of 2019 season. I am not suggesting he will be gone in 2020 but i am suggesting it is not a certainty he will be there.

Just having read the above i am not sure i have phrased that very well:eek:
 
One thing I've heard fairly consistently this season is various media types acknowledging our rebuild and stating that we have talent on the list that just needs time to be developed.

Do supporters think this is correct? I can see 3 players under 25 (Cripps, Curnow and Doc) who are/will be genuine guns. Zac Fisher looks like he will be a solid player but lacks the frame to really influence contests. Apart from that I really can't see it, and 3 guns plus 1 solid contributor ain't gonna get it done.

Or have I got that wrong and just been blinded by some really poor performances?
You got it! I'm a bit worried that they might get jaded, physically compromised or leave before we see the best of them.
 
If it makes us feel better... The Swans were also goalless for 2 quarters (at home) against the Eagles.. glossed over perhaps because they won. Swans would have to be the best team at winning games after losing a majority of the match... like us in recent time we've had games against them where we've won 2-3 quarters against them and they just have 1 good quarter and win.

Also if it makes anybody else feel better it's not like teams are also regularly kicking over a 100 points.
Yes we're the only one not to have done it this year (if only we kicked one more in round 1),

but StKilda, Suns, Brisbane, * have only done it once this year. (suns against us, StKilda against brisbane round 1, Brisbane against Pies, * against Port).

* with their awesome premiership list only kicked a huge score once this year!

The mighty Giants and Swans only twice this year overall most teams don't have more than 3 scores over a 100 this year (funnily against us most teams have 1).. with only the:

Pies (7), Melbourne (8), Tigers (6) with scores over a 100... where most of those have been at the MCG (their home grounds and bulk of their games played).

And also most of the teams with a home ground advantage (Suns, Swans, GC, Giants, Bris, Geelong, Ade, Port, Hawks (Tas), North (Tas)) most of their scores over a 100 at their home territory.
Probably says a bit about the state of the game. Athletes are so good now that space gets eaten up so quickly, especially in transition to defense makes it hard to score. One of the reasons why we need more mature, fit bodies. We need to be more adept at filling space, cornerstone of any structured defensive effort. The youngsters can do it, just not yet.
 

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I would like to add one piece, I went to the open training at SCG, they had a drill running in, taking a handball while running and kicking from 25 metres out directly in front.

I sat with my mate and said “we play like we train”. Out of the 52 kicks we counted 28 missed. That is with no pressure, directly in front from 25. I am not sure if the open sessions are a laugh but they looked to be going at full speed. It was not the muck around before it all starts.

Not one coach pulled them in and said “concentrate” they just kept missing and then run off and get to the back of the line. Was very surprised. Can’t say how it compares to the other clubs but did not look good. Morale was high but attention to skills was low.

All I heard from the coaches was “balls, we need more balls over here”
Cheers for the insight. I remember going to an open training in 2015 and thinking something similar. My wife was with me and said, "Aren't they supposed to get it between the tail ones?" I didn't respond! Growth?
 
Just remember the GWS footprint (SOS's)... our Kerridge's, Graham's, Lamb's, Wright's, Rowe's were their Brogan's, McDonald's, The "Chad", Setanta, Palmer, Power, Reid, and Thorntons of the world. They had 3 years of absolute crap (= 66 games... 66 game rebuild sound familair) and then the rise began from Spoon, Spoon, 16th... then 11th, then prelim and prelim and this year with really bad injuries like us consistancy is hard but still a good strong chance to make the 8.

So like GWS our 66 games will entail 3 bottom 3 finishes and if we're lucky with our injuries next year a 10-12th finish is highly possible... this is the direction the club is going, and why there is no fear by the head's of the club. This blueprint is surely what SOS is using and has done a bang up effort without 2 raids of high picks in the draft...

And Bolton is our young coach who didn't have the luxury of Sheeds to feed off (Craig was his man and gone I suspect a year earlier than would've liked).

In next years free-agency period when we start to sell ourselves this blueprint will be shown to prospectful players... but we'll be like a GWS in Melbourne with 8-10 games at the G a year! Big rival games against Collingwood, Richmond, *.....
Well said!
 

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Autopsy Blues down by 57 points after woeful first half

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