Analysis 2019 List, Game Plan and Best 22?

[The King!]

Wouldn’t everyone hope a premiership was their headline

 

[The King!]

Hoped for headline
"Longmire confesses all in Mitchell fiasco. Falls on sword"

More like “Longmire shot from a cannon into Sydney harbour goodbye forever “


Headline we dread “buddy could play off half back says Horse”

 

[connolly]

A more positive headline for the Horsies
"Swans crush Magpies by 132 points in dazzling display of attacking football. Longmire seen smoking joint in coaches box."

 

[RUNVS]

I think Longmire needs to ask himself "how would I, as a key forward, have liked it if the North Melbourne midfield in the 90's was delivering the ball the same way to me as the Swans midfield is delivering it to Buddy"

 

[The King!]

I think Longmire needs to ask himself "how would I, as a key forward, have liked it if the North Melbourne midfield in the 90's was delivering the ball the same way to me as the Swans midfield is delivering it to Buddy"

I mean this seriously he needs to ask himself how long one coach can be a voice to a playing group


He has been there since the 2002 season, almost 20 years, obviously the players change, but geez how about freshening up a bit for the club and himself, go somewhere else

 

[caesar88]

First point. We outplayed just about everyone in 2016 but factors like injuries and umpiring went against us in the end. Getting to a GF is the hardest bit. The teams you mentioned didn't even get there. As for struggling against Essendon in 2017 ?? We squeaked home once and we wiped them off the planet in the second encounter. Besides, you get to the big dance by beating most other teams, not every other team. And you only have to beat them by a single point to get the four. Somehow that offends you ? Any kind of win is a win.

2nd & 3rd- Stop attributing thought to Horse that you think he has. These guys are way ahead of the curve. Playing finals for 20 of the last 23 years is not a fluke. Don't try suggesting that the game's only changed in the last few years. It's always been evolving. We've managed again to rebuild on the fly. That takes skill. You play the game that has the best chance of getting a win from the cattle you have on the park. The Swans did that. Their game style changed throughout the year as available personnel changed. Players were moveed around to cover each other. They did every trick in the book to stay competitive and they succeeded.

4th - Your devotion to Aliir is touching but also rather blind. He had a lot of talented tricks but he also had some shocker games where the opposition worked out how to play him. He's become a better team player and a better indivdual player and will continue to get better if he adds more strings to his bow. Get rid of this idea that he was somehow born the second coming. As for players being utilised out of position. That's what you do when you don't have the depth to cover injured players. You hobble together the best combination. You ask players to step outside their natural game because the team needs them to do it. You balance that compromise as best you can. Sometimes that throws up surprises.

5th. Richmond was the closest we had to a bogey team in 2018 but I'm confident we can beat them with a full compliment of players. They, like the wonderful Dogs, have yet to play more than one GF in recent memory. We beat every other team in the eight this year and remain the bogey team of West Coast and Melbourne despite Melbourne being the most attacking team in the comp in 2018. I don't think your perceptions match reality.

Perpetuate facts by all means but don't let your personal bias towards players or coaches flavour your thoughts.

You think I have personal bias towards players and coaches that flavour my thoughts. I think you have personal bias towards the whole team that flavours your thoughts. Round and round we go. Think we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

 

[caesar88]

Players lost the suns game after patting themselves on the back in the 1st Q & thinking their work was done. Game plan don’t mean much if the players overrate their chances and don’t put the work in. Humans are not machines as yet.

I disagree. We came out after quarter time with the exact same mentality, only the opposition had lifted their intensity a tad. This made it harder for us to play the attacking, direct style we were playing in the first quarter. But instead of persisting with that which had got us 30 points up, we completely abandoned it at half time, coming out in the second half with the shutters up, ready to go into defensive mode against the mighty attacking force that was the Gold Coast Suns. IMO I don't think we showed enough confidence in our abilities because we totally panicked and surrendered our form as soon as the Suns showed the slightest bit of a challenge.

 

[caesar88]

Lol! This thread typifies the Swans board!

Is there anyone on this board sitting on the fence re Longmire? Seems to me we've all taken sides and just can't see the other side... makes for very entertaining reading lol!

Loud and proud fence-sitter here

I compliment Horse just as much as I criticise him. I've ranted and raved about how he has represented the club with class, his development of the young'n generation, getting the best out of players with limited physical attributes, continuing the strong culture of the club, and being part of the staff that have expertly put together this group of young Swans that will be pretty formidable in the near future. But I've also ranted and raved about his dysfunctional forward lines, his ultra-defensive mentality, his lack of form in getting the best out of dynamic, athletic types instead of workhorses, and his form in playing blokes that shouldn't be playing. Stating the negatives doesn't mean you don't like him or you want him gone, it's just offering honest assessments, good or bad.

 

[Punts]

IMO

Finish 9-13th

Midfield lacks class , depth and our best mid is turning 31 and coming off his worst year to date. He won’t pull us out of the s**t anymore.

Backline has 2 players that are 33 , another who is 30 and all could be finished before it starts , plus a guy who is 188cm and is still ask to play on KPF and now getting pinged flat out. Most likely won’t get back to his form of 16 and that interception role with the attack and meters gained he was so good at.

The forward is what it is and hasn’t changed, relied on 1 bloke each and every week.

The boundary line bombing game style and trying to push forwards high to create an over the back opportunitie will be while Longmire has the reins

 

[caesar88]

IMO

Finish 9-13th

Midfield lacks class , depth and our best mid is turning 31 and coming off his worst year to date. He won’t pull us out of the s**t anymore.

Backline has 2 players that are 33 , another who is 30 and all could be finished before it starts , plus a guy who is 188cm and is still ask to play on KPF and now getting pinged flat out. Most likely won’t get back to his form of 16 and that interception role with the attack and meters gained he was so good at.

The forward is what it is and hasn’t changed, relied on 1 bloke each and every week.

The boundary line bombing game style and trying to push forwards high to create an over the back opportunitie will be while Longmire has the reins

If that's the case, not saying it's not, then 9th-13th I would consider to be a fortunate finish, because you just described what sounds like a bottom four side. But we have three things that bottom four sides don't have. 1) Quality youth that's surrounded by quality leaders. 2) Ticker that can only come from a strong winning culture. 3) Probably the greatest player of the modern era at CHF. If we finished lower than 13th then I would actually be very disappointed.

West Coast this year also proved some blokes only need to have one turn-back-the-clock season and you can get far.

 

[Punts]

If that's the case, not saying it's not, then 9th-13th I would consider to be a fortunate finish, because you just described what sounds like a bottom four side. But we have three things that bottom four sides don't have. 1) Quality youth that's surrounded by quality leaders. 2) Ticker that can only come from a strong winning culture. 3) Probably the greatest player of the modern era at CHF. If we finished lower than 13th then I would actually be very disappointed.

West Coast this year also proved some blokes only need to have one turn-back-the-clock season and you can get far.

Franklin will keep anyside there abouts that’s how good he is.

Take him out and we are a bottom 4 side

The winning bloods culture imo isn’t there anymore or nothing compared to what is was

Blokes are leaving and not coming in and to me that is a sign

 

[caesar88]

Franklin will keep anyside there abouts that’s how good he is.

Take him out and we are a bottom 4 side

The winning bloods culture imo isn’t there anymore or nothing compared to what is was

Blokes are leaving and not coming in and to me that is a sign

As I said in another post 2017 and 2018 we won a ridiculous amount of games we had no right winning, playing lousy footy but keeping ourselves in matches to the dying seconds. In fact we've had more courageous character-style wins than we have wins that displayed impressive football. That tells me the winning culture is still very strong and just about the only thing keeping us in the finals the past few seasons.

I'm not sure which blokes are leaving. If you mean Hanners, Rohan and Newman, pretty sure we showed them all the door, and would you argue with any of those decisions based on their recent output? As for the ones not coming in, that's not surprising. We're a middle of the ladder side, that's the reality now. There are more attractive options out there for players looking to move, teams like Richmond and Melbourne who look set for pretty long stays up the top, or Hawthorn who have the best coach in the comp. That's just the nature of the comp.

I'm curious what are your thoughts on the youngsters? ie where do you see us in say two or three years down the track?

 

[Wolfgang West]

As much as I rant in season, every new year I have belief that this year will be another Finals Year. The negativity on this Board shits me to tears. The List has some excitement about it. Yes the Midfield needs some overhauling but FFS don't tell me we don't have the young talent to step into their shoes. Clarkson seen Hodge and Mitchell go. Did he s**t the Bed over it ? Did they as a club ? You just go with what you have at the time, mix things up and try things until you get what you are after. If that does not come in the current season then you get to the end take stock and go again. You don't put up the white ******* flag.

 

[Kirkswan]

There will be no white flag above my door...

 

[The King!]

Shitting to tears would be painful

 

[RUNVS]

As much as I rant in season, every new year I have belief that this year will be another Finals Year. The negativity on this Board shits me to tears. The List has some excitement about it. Yes the Midfield needs some overhauling but FFS don't tell me we don't have the young talent to step into their shoes. Clarkson seen Hodge and Mitchell go. Did he s**t the Bed over it ? Did they as a club ? You just go with what you have at the time, mix things up and try things until you get what you are after. If that does not come in the current season then you get to the end take stock and go again. You don't put up the white ******* flag.

I don't think anyone is arguing that the list does not have talent, or on talent we don't deserve to make the finals. I think on talent we are a top 6 team in the competition easily. What people are arguing though is that Longmire might not be able to get what we need out of the list to make the finals, that his gameplan, a gameplan he has so far refused to change, is not good enough against the top clubs.

 

[The King!]

I don't think anyone is arguing that the list does not have talent, or on talent we don't deserve to make the finals. I think on talent we are a top 6 team in the competition easily. What people are arguing though is that Longmire might not be able to get what we need out of the list to make the finals, that his gameplan, a gameplan he has so far refused to change, is not good enough against the top clubs.

Longmire is the Shaun Marsh of coaching

 

[Wolfgang West]

I don't think anyone is arguing that the list does not have talent, or on talent we don't deserve to make the finals. I think on talent we are a top 6 team in the competition easily. What people are arguing though is that Longmire might not be able to get what we need out of the list to make the finals, that his gameplan, a gameplan he has so far refused to change, is not good enough against the top clubs.

If that is the case and Longmire is the problem throw s**t at the Club and its decision makers but all you get on here is the same repetitive s**t post after post.

 

[MarkP]

Longmire is the Shaun Marsh of coaching

That's harsh.

On Shaun Marsh.

 

[bungee]

You think I have personal bias towards players and coaches that flavour my thoughts. I think you have personal bias towards the whole team that flavours your thoughts. Round and round we go. Think we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

Of course I have a personal bias towards the Swans. I'm a Swans fan.

 

[bungee]

I don't think anyone is arguing that the list does not have talent, or on talent we don't deserve to make the finals. I think on talent we are a top 6 team in the competition easily. What people are arguing though is that Longmire might not be able to get what we need out of the list to make the finals, that his gameplan, a gameplan he has so far refused to change, is not good enough against the top clubs.

This is the guy who has made the finals every year he's coached. The game has evolved over that time. He's contested 3 GFs and one a premiership. The teeam has been turned over and rebuilt. He still makes the finals. he's the only current coach with that record of making the finals every year of coaching.

So er......you think our list is good enough to make the finals but not under Longmire ? What part of the inevitable conclusion did you miss ? Seriously.

 

[bungee]

Franklin will keep anyside there abouts that’s how good he is.

Take him out and we are a bottom 4 side

The winning bloods culture imo isn’t there anymore or nothing compared to what is was

Blokes are leaving and not coming in and to me that is a sign

Sigh, you write some rubbish Punts. Franklin was injured for most of last year. We won some with him, we won some without him. Hey, we even beat the beloved Hawks without him. Sure he's a great player, one of the very best, but no ones player makes a team. We had a depleted injury hit list last year but if we'd had a fit Reid and Sinclair playing forward those two would have been more effective than an injured Franklin.

 

[bungee]

Loud and proud fence-sitter here

I compliment Horse just as much as I criticise him. I've ranted and raved about how he has represented the club with class, his development of the young'n generation, getting the best out of players with limited physical attributes, continuing the strong culture of the club, and being part of the staff that have expertly put together this group of young Swans that will be pretty formidable in the near future. But I've also ranted and raved about his dysfunctional forward lines, his ultra-defensive mentality, his lack of form in getting the best out of dynamic, athletic types instead of workhorses, and his form in playing blokes that shouldn't be playing. Stating the negatives doesn't mean you don't like him or you want him gone, it's just offering honest assessments, good or bad.

You just have a bitch at him because you think Aliir got a bad deal. Well he got exactly what he needed tol make him the best possible servant of this club that he can be.

 

[bungee]

Hoped for headline
"Longmire confesses all in Mitchell fiasco. Falls on sword"

Some folks say Horse doesn't make enough hard decisions. I imagine that was a pretty hard decision to make. Horse would have known Mitchell was capable of winning a Brownlow but the team dynamic, salary cap considerations and long term objectives would have been uppermost in any decision. Whether it was the right decision we'll find out in the next five years or so.

 

[bungee]

Interesting the comment AFL.com.au chose to publish about what Swans fans don't want to see in 2019. I imagine it will polarise supporters who either agree or disagree with the post.

http://m.afl.com.au/news/2019-01-04...o-read-in-2019-and-the-one-you-secretly-dread

I don't mind either headline if we win. I loved the ugly dour Swans of 2005 with their low scoring games and defensive mindset. Whatever works. As long as we play to win.