Autopsy Round 9, 2019: Collingwood v St.Kilda *Bruce 100th, Savage 150th, Young debut*

[BrutThough]

Battle forward in the last was telling. I think he goes there on a more permanent basis while Bruce is unable to impact regularly enough (was good last week). Marsh takes Battles spot down back.

I've been on the keep Battle back train, but we really need someone up forward because Bruce is having much little impact right now leaving Membrey as our only realistic scoring option. As good has Battle has looked down back, we are desperate for someone like him up forward.

 

[BrutThough]

Although I am as pissed as anyone about how the team folded in the last quarter, here is some perspective of where we actually are at.

Average Attributes
Collingwood Attribute St Kilda
188.0cm Height 187.5cm
87.0kg Weight 86.4kg
26yr 8mth Age 24yr 2mth
120.6 Games 64.6

Total Players By Games
Collingwood Games St Kilda
4 Less than 50 9
5 50 to 99 8
7 100 to 149 3
6 150 or more 2

Beaten by a considerably older and more experienced team.

Average 120 games to 64 games is the most telling number there.

 

[VDS66]

Seb does have composure and good vision with ball in hand. Didnt have his best day but how anyone could say he isn't a good midfielder is laughable.

Sidebottom was fantastic today. Easily BOG for mine. Probably his best game for the year. And just like Seb, has had fantastic games this year and games where he didnt really impact much. Sidebottom is a better player overall but it's also much easier to perform well when you have other A grade midfielders on the field to help support, take attention from the opposition, kick to etc. And when Sidebottom doesn't play a great game, he has teammates who actually stand up and help cover him so his underwhelming performance is less noticeable - right now Seb doesn't have that luxury.

It's a team game where individual performance is affected by the performance of your team mates.

If they are sub par, then you are constantly under pressure.

 

[luca77]

It's a team game where individual performance is affected by the performance of your team mates.

If they are sub par, then you are constantly under pressure.

A bit like this forum.
My posts definitely suffer in quality when you guys are posting a whole lot of crap around me. Give me something good to reply to and watch me soar.

 

[jwikked]

A bit like this forum.
My posts definitely suffer in quality when you guys are posting a whole lot of crap around me. Give me something good to reply to and watch me soar.

Who would you rather play for the Saints in their peak? Trigger Trianedes or Ryan Gamble?

 

[luca77]

Who would you rather play for the Saints in their peak? Trigger Trianedes or Ryan Gamble?

See what I mean? If I say the former, which I would...then my spelling goes to the scheizer too.

 

[Human Person]

Brightsides for me were the games from Billings, Skunk, Savage, Spook, and Marshall. Battle continues to show his worth, as does Wilke (that dropped mark has been his only blemish all year). Young and Parker up forward looks good. Gresh had some moments, Steele is doing his thing consistently, and Ross was better than a lot of people on here will credit him for.

The hard thing is that it isn’t clear where our improvement will come from. The only other developed tall option up forward is Paddy, who may not play again, and even if he does he hasn’t been a match winner yet. Clark and Coff don’t appear ready to really impact, Hind seems to be the only one knocking on the door.

We are a better team then last year. But we’re still at a cross roads. I’ll always love and support the team, they just don’t be make it easy.

 

[tomjoad]

Young was good, so was Dunstan. Both Kent and Dmac need a game or two with Sandy. Parker needs a break before the bye, same with Wilkie...both have been good, but they're slowing a bit & could do with some management. Its a deflating loss from the "fittest" team in the league...but we move on. We now know where we stand as a team. We're lower mid table. That's it.
Grab a couple of wins over the next month to steady the ship & then play some of our other guys White, Coffield, Hind, Clark etc until we get some of our injured regulars & maybe even Hanners, back into the team..and ride the breakers to the end of season.

 

[The Boar]

Young was good, so was Dunstan. Both Kent and Dmac need a game or two with Sandy. Parker needs a break before the bye, same with Wilkie...both have been good, but they're slowing a bit & could do with some management. Its a deflating loss from the "fittest" team in the league...but we move on. We now know where we stand as a team. We're lower mid table. That's it.
Grab a couple of wins over the next month to steady the ship & then play some of our other guys White, Coffield, Hind, Clark etc until we get some of our injured regulars & maybe even Hanners, back into the team..and ride the breakers to the end of season.

Agree generally but Wilkie, the guy is a rock down back! Watch him more closely, we need more like him and not less. He was in the top 5 easily today!

 

[St Neil]

For the seventh time in nine games we’ve kicked either 9 or 10 goals.

That’s the reality. That’s where we are. And it can’t stay like that.

Collingwood showed us what the best teams do and we languished when it was up for grabs. They killed us when it mattered.

Reality check when planning for the future.

 

[tomjoad]

Agree generally but Wilkie, the guy is a rock down back! Watch him more closely, we need more like him and not less. He was in the top 5 easily today!

No doubt Wilkie has been a revelation back there & I did think twice before adding his name. I just think it'd do more good than harm to let these guys rest a little, get over their niggles (which they are bound to have) and play out the year without fear of burn out. We have guys that are playing well with Sandy that can fill a role whilst they refuel...unlike our mid fielders and focal targets. I think we should be utilising the list to advantage. There are those who should be dropped, and there are those who should be managed for their own good. Sort of like a personal day for first year players.

 

[Sab22]

White, Hind would only improve our kicking from the back with Battle and Wilkie. That 4 would be lethal.

 

[Sab22]

I've been on the keep Battle back train, but we really need someone up forward because Bruce is having much little impact right now leaving Membrey as our only realistic scoring option. As good has Battle has looked down back, we are desperate for someone like him up forward.

Wait few more weeks for King.

 

[Mat Mann]

Nothing is going up change until we see two.more elite mids. Simples.

Structures are good IMO. Entire are rubbish because of ordinary players.

Put some silk in there and will look a different team.

Got smashed in the trade thread but the club should and will make some hard calls.

The silence around Acres is as loud as his absence in the game. And many more like him.

There will be gradual improvement, but in the end their class won them the game... Class that we don't have.

Was going to post an almost exact copy

It’d be easy to blame the coaches but put it simply. We lack class

Ross is a good midfielder if he was the #3
Bruce would be a dangerous fwd if he wasn’t the focal point.
The backline imo has done a bang up job considering the losses down there

The sides biggest problem is that those with the class can’t get the ball and those who either make poor decisions and poor disposal get it lot.

We all know the issues. Only drafting/trading can fix them.


Mids mids mids. We draft/trade for anything else and we’re idiots.

 

[saints2066]

Josh Bruce tries hard but 11 goals in 9 games, is not good enough and membrey has had one good game. Unfortunately our #1 draft pick has been a bigger bust than Tom Boyd...so we are severely lacking in the forward half, I think our defence is decent and along with our wingers but our midfield, although good accumulators lack polish..we will never be a top 12 team unless we have a decent forward and midfield.

Hopefully Hannebery and Steven can be playing at their a grade levels, we would then need battle to become the forward we need, when Carlisle comes back
I don’t think we will score 100 points this year.


On iPad using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Sheeza69]

It's time the coach backed in some of our younger talent & drop players who overall are having a minimal influence on the game..
Horses for courses, players knock out 2 poor games in a row they don't deserve a run third time lucky..
Unless you've proven yourself like Jack Steven/Roberton/ or Geary....??? !!
Kent, Newnes, Parker, Phillips, Paton & a few others should face the chop..
McKenzie fumbled at a few critical times, but you can never question his "courage"!

Coffield, Clark, King, (when match conditioned) these are the players who possess skill, talent & hopefully build towards becoming elite players in the game..
Coffield moved like an AFL player in many of his first dzn games..
No offence but Phillips/Paton they'll never be considered more than role players in my view..

Most players should be utilized to there strengths, & we're going to struggle beating the good sides averaging 10 goals a game..
A spine of Carlisle/Bruce (KD's) & King/Battle/Membrey (KF's) is the spine that takes us forward..
Bruce would've been a better match up on Reid today, but that's hindsight..
A goal average of 1.2 a game & 3.8 marks a game for a KF, isn't going to cut it as an effective KF in any side looking to play finals..

Can we swing Battle back to the front half!!
Lining up the stats avge of Battle's first 7 games as a forward, is practically on par with Bruce's output this year as a KF..
Bruce though has had 8 yrs in the system & is turning 27 next month, with Battle into his 3rd yr & not turning 21 till post season..
Battle was obviously a natural forward with an ability to gut run, strong overhead & below the knees..
He topped it off with a fine goal kicking technique, that Plugger would've given his nod of approval..
I think just maybe he'll influence games more as a Forward, than a Backman!!

Should've been up by 4 goals at 3/4 time, with the opportunities that were presented..
We had 5 x 100+ game players out there today for us, & the Pies had 13..
There was every chance they'd over run us with there experience, unless we had a handy buffer at 3/4 time & we didn't!!

 

[St Muir]

We lack genuine class. Great triers but a few too many GOPs. We have potential stars, but we're not there yet. Get to work, Gubby.

*interesting fact: Alec Guinness is an anagram of genuine class.

Good to see you posting again mate!
I caught up with an old friend (Collingwood supporter) at a club down the Gold Coast, so the game didn’t have my full focus but we had a room full of pies supporters absolutely crapping themselves up until we ran out of legs in that last quarter.
The gap in class was obvious though and we had to play a high intensity game to stay in it. I was really proud of us until our legs went.
The one thing that is really annoying me though is the goal kicking. A lot of players don’t get their heads over the ball, focus on a target and kick through the bloody thing. Their approach, body language and eyes all indicate to me that they don’t believe they can kick a goal. Meanwhile our opposition seemingly can’t miss, especially early in games.
We need a good psych to undo the damage that Dixon has done.

 

[Saintbloke]

Same old same old for the Saints- one day the penny will drop about consistent 4 quarter performances, but under Richo nothing has changed. There's optimism from some, but really, we are treading water.

 

[Grav]

Good to see you posting again mate!
I caught up with an old friend (Collingwood supporter) at a club down the Gold Coast, so the game didn’t have my full focus but we had a room full of pies supporters absolutely crapping themselves up until we ran out of legs in that last quarter.
The gap in class was obvious though and we had to play a high intensity game to stay in it. I was really proud of us until our legs went.
The one thing that is really annoying me though is the goal kicking. A lot of players don’t get their heads over the ball, focus on a target and kick through the bloody thing. Their approach, body language and eyes all indicate to me that they don’t believe they can kick a goal. Meanwhile our opposition seemingly can’t miss, especially early in games.
We need a good psych to undo the damage that Dixon has done.

As I’ve said a million times on here (unfortunately Dixon obviously doesn’t read) as the player lines up for goal, he should imagine he sitting on the edge of a bar stool, this brings his torso forward every single time. Simple idea but back in my days of coaching juniors it worked about 95% of the time.
Also what is this holding the ball with your hand on top? I’m old school where both hands are evenly placed on the sides.

 

[St Muir]

As I’ve said a million times on here (unfortunately Dixon obviously doesn’t read) as the player lines up for goal, he should imagine he sitting on the edge of a bar stool, this brings his torso forward every single time. Simple idea but back in my days of coaching juniors it worked about 95% of the time.
Also what is this holding the ball with your hand on top? I’m old school where both hands are evenly placed on the sides.

That’s a really good tip Grav. Unless, like me, there’s an unfortunate history with bar stools...

 

[SaintSteele9]

I still find the criticism of Bruce and Membrey hard to cop. Not saying they’re above it by any means, but they kicked five between them yesterday, of which at least three (from memory) came from set shots as a result of being rewarded on the lead. Those opportunities are what allows key forwards to do their best work, and I’m sure we’d all agree such opportunities have been few and far between all year.

I just don’t think that any other forward combo will suddenly thrive given the same opportunities under our current method going forward.

 

[jwikked]

What does GOP stand for?

 

[bergholt]

Clear difference in class and experience, as people have said. The main way this shows through:

- Composure with the footy, especially inside 50. We take a lot of dumb low percentage shots. That's a large part of why our accuracy is so bad.
- Mistakes around the ground. Wilkie's dropped mark, McKenzie getting run down, Parker getting caught a lot, Marshall getting beaten badly when it counted, etc.

All of this improves as the team gets more experienced, as the effort is there. But an injection of class (Hanners, Steven, Jakey) would also help a huge amount.

 

[SaintersUnite]

Who would have predicted we’d be 4-5 after the first 9 rounds? We’ve done extremely well considering our injuries. Many predicted us to not win a game even with a fully fit squad.

We lost to the premiers by 18 and were with the flag favourites this year until 3qt.

Dunstan was brilliant today btw, hope he continues with his good form.

Next two weeks are very winnable and could see us heading into the bye above the ledger. With a lot of senior players hopefully returning after the bye, we could still snag another 5 or 6 wins after that. Lots to look forward to, don’t lose hope yet.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Saint12]

What does GOP stand for?

Good Ordinary Player a Jack Dyerism