Autopsy Round 11, 2019: St.Kilda v Port Adelaide

[BigPowerForward]

I was sitting in that temporary stand behind the goals and most of it was reserved for the people in the marquee in the centre of the picture and they chose to stay in the shade, eat and drink and watch the big screen rather than sit in the sun. Although a few did smuggle some drinks out, alcohol was not supposed to be removed from the tent. There was another marquee at the other end of the ground which I assume had similar arrangements.

That said, the stadium did look half empty which is something they do need to address. Not sure how they can do that as there is no shade other than a small seating area on one of the wings.

The conditions we fairly bad. Quite hot and humid but not as bad as Shanghai can be. No doubt Billings and Savage were not right to play. JB standing on the goal line for the first bounce was not a good sign. I suspect with Marsh and DMac out we needed to have Savage (and Gears for that matter) play to try to bolster the defence. I wonder if others were ill too but we just didn't have enough bodies to replace them.

Don't lose heart. We will be better for the experience and will learn from the mistakes of this year. No use whinging about it anyway. We're playing in Shanghai the next two years. If you don't want us to sell home games, then turn up to our home games at Marvel. Make it impossible for the club to sell home games because we make so much money even when we play against interstate opposition. I don't wanna hear "I'd go if we played better". Maybe if we had 10,000 extra fans or 5,000 extra fans cheering us on at Marvel maybe we would play better. It's a bit of a chicken/egg situation. What does come first?

Putting the way we played aside, I enjoyed the Shanghai experience. The heat was difficult to deal with though. My wife spent the 2nd half behind the grandstand in the shade and I ended up wearing the portable seat on my head to give me some shade. I think it is a good initiative by the club. Lots of people around me were new to the game and seemed to be enjoying the experience.

 

[dct66]

Putting the way we played aside, I enjoyed the Shanghai experience. The heat was difficult to deal with though. My wife spent the 2nd half behind the grandstand in the shade and I ended up wearing the portable seat on my head to give me some shade. I think it is a good initiative by the club. Lots of people around me were new to the game and seemed to be enjoying the experience.

What else dd you do in Shanghai? Did you go anywhere else in China/Asia?

 

[dct66]

Thanks for this.

Question for you, would you recommend going next year for others, like me, that are contemplating it? I was really close to pulling the trigger but had a late family commitment that stopped me (obviously I'm glad I didn't now...).

Any tips I should know about? Is it just a matter of booking a ticket to Shanghai and rocking up and getting a ticket at the ground or are there things I should know about in advance?

Would really appreciate a rundown if you have time as it will influence whether or not I go next year (and I'm sure there are others in the same boat as me that would like to know as well).

Sorry, I should have said. I pre-booked my tickets before I left but did all the other travel arrangements myself and didn't have any need for the other sightseeing things that the organised tours were offering. If you are a confident traveller you can get around with little difficulty. The Metro ticket machines have English and Chinese options. The taxis, in general are good. Keep clear of the old red ones or if the driver wants to quote a price rather than use the meter. Most wont speak English so you need the address in Chinese to show them. Either from your guide book or the internet. The hotel will help you get a cab and tell the driver where you want to go but you'll need to have the address of the next place if you need to hail one yourself ... or use the Metro!!! Apple maps works really well and Google maps does bot work at all. Nothing Google works. I usually get a local sim (so my wife and I can go our separate ways but keep in contact to meet up when we are ready). We get the sims from China Unicom and a plan with 500 mins talk, 80 SMS messages and 3GB of data cost about A$20. The plans are always changing and they have lots of stores in downtown Shanghai and I always found at least one member of staff who speaks enough English to get the job done.

 

[NarklesHelmet]

Sorry, I should have said. I pre-booked my tickets before I left but did all the other travel arrangements myself and didn't have any need for the other sightseeing things that the organised tours were offering. If you are a confident traveller you can get around with little difficulty. The Metro ticket machines have English and Chinese options. The taxis, in general are good. Keep clear of the old red ones or if the driver wants to quote a price rather than use the meter. Most wont speak English so you need the address in Chinese to show them. Either from your guide book or the internet. The hotel will help you get a cab and tell the driver where you want to go but you'll need to have the address of the next place if you need to hail one yourself ... or use the Metro!!! Apple maps works really well and Google maps does bot work at all. Nothing Google works. I usually get a local sim (so my wife and I can go our separate ways but keep in contact to meet up when we are ready). We get the sims from China Unicom and a plan with 500 mins talk, 80 SMS messages and 3GB of data cost about A$20. The plans are always changing and they have lots of stores in downtown Shanghai and I always found at least one member of staff who speaks enough English to get the job done.

Thanks a lot for both replies! Appreciate it, really useful stuff. I'm certainly more of a confident traveller so it sounds like the way you did it suits me down to the ground.

I'll definitely be going in one of the 2 next years so might message you closer to the time as well if I have anything more specific .

 

[BigPowerForward]

What else dd you do in Shanghai? Did you go anywhere else in China/Asia?

Shanghai was a layover from our European vacation. As per your previous post the Bund is well worth the visit. We also went to the top of the Shanghai Eye which is 100 stories high and has a glass floor.
Agree with you that food is fantastic. I'm still thinking about a pork belly dish I ate.

 

[dct66]

Thanks a lot for both replies! Appreciate it, really useful stuff. I'm certainly more of a confident traveller so it sounds like the way you did it suits me down to the ground.

I'll definitely be going in one of the 2 next years so might message you closer to the time as well if I have anything more specific .

Please do. Happy to help/bore you stupid with information overload

 

[dct66]

Shanghai was a layover from our European vacation. As per your previous post the Bund is well worth the visit. We also went to the top of the Shanghai Eye which is 100 stories high and has a glass floor.
Agree with you that food is fantastic. I'm still thinking about a pork belly dish I ate.
View attachment 686931

How much fun is that glass floor!!!

 

[gringo2011]

How much fun is that glass floor!!!

I'm getting vertigo from the pic. I hate heights.

 

[cooperg]

In: HIND, Acres, Webster/White, McKenzie, Marsh
Out: Geary (inj), LONG, Joyce, Coffield, Young.

If no Webster then either in White, Paton , King or Armo.

 

[pebblesofsand]

Couple of simple questions. Longer or Marshall as first ruck? And why don't hit outs lead to clearances?

In the context of the discussion about whether we should have pursued Lycett - your first question is not relevant.

Hit outs do lead to clearances especially if you a have good midfield, in which case they even lead to that mythical entity called a "scoring opportunity clearance" rather than a scrambled helicopter kick clearance which you may know as the "Saints clearance".

So the question really is - would a substandard midfield perform better if they were getting better service from a ruckman who could do more than break even at ball ups?

Which brings us back to the original question being discussed - would our ruck stocks have been improved if we recruited Lycett?

 

[pebblesofsand]

I would've thought a club that played Weller and Newnes injured for a year each would already know that.
Here's a rule of thumb: If Dustin Martin can't play well when injured then it probably can't be done.

How Geary passed a fitness test is absolutely beyond me. Turned his body to avoid contact in his first contest.
Lethlean should be going through the medical/selection process to ensure integrity in the future. Without exception.

Sent from my LG-H872 using Tapatalk

A word of advice - don't let your thought patterns be directed by Channel 7 commentators especially Dwayne Russell.

Geary turned his body to protect the ball from being knocked out of his hands - something many of our defenders seemed to forget to do for the whole of the game.

 

[mad-saint-guy]

I would love for these to be our changes for the next game

Out: Geary (inj), Young, Kent, Newnes, Joyce, Phillips
In: Hind, Clark, Marsh, McKenzie, White, Acres

B: Marsh, Brown, McKenzie
HB: Savage, Wilkie, White
C: Ross, Steele, Sinclair
HF: Billings, Bruce, Long
F: Parker, Battle, Membrey

Foll: Marshall, Gresham, Acres
Int: Clark, Coffield, Dunstan, Hind

Of course it won't be anything like that with Richo as coach. I do wonder if they'll rush Hanners or King into the side for a good news story though. King v King would generate plenty of interest.

 

[luca77]

I would love for these to be our changes for the next game

Out: Geary (inj), Young, Kent, Newnes, Joyce, Phillips
In: Hind, Clark, Marsh, McKenzie, White, Acres

B: Marsh, Brown, McKenzie
HB: Savage, Wilkie, White
C: Ross, Steele, Sinclair
HF: Billings, Bruce, Long
F: Parker, Battle, Membrey

Foll: Marshall, Gresham, Acres
Int: Clark, Coffield, Dunstan, Hind

Of course it won't be anything like that with Richo as coach. I do wonder if they'll rush Hanners or King into the side for a good news story though. King v King would generate plenty of interest.

Happy with all those changes. Would be nice!

 

[plugger66]

In the context of the discussion about whether we should have pursued Lycett - your first question is not relevant.

Hit outs do lead to clearances especially if you a have good midfield, in which case they even lead to that mythical entity called a "scoring opportunity clearance" rather than a scrambled helicopter kick clearance which you may know as the "Saints clearance".

So the question really is - would a substandard midfield perform better if they were getting better service from a ruckman who could do more than break even at ball ups?

Which brings us back to the original question being discussed - would our ruck stocks have been improved if we recruited Lycett?

No idea but on your other part I gather the pies win clearances every week as do Melbourne as both have strong midfields and obviously they score more from those clearances. Someone better tell Melbourne. And by the way did you see our clearance numbers against port with lycett and Ryder rucking against Marshall. Hit outs are the most overrated stat in footy. Even hit outs to advantage are overrated unless we can at least see hit outs to disadvantage.

Just out of interest the question still stands. Longer who will get more hit outs or Marshall who will get more of the ball

 

[mad-saint-guy]

Happy with all those changes. Would be nice!

It's a shame Newnes and Kent are zero chance of getting dropped despite Kent playing 1 good game out of 11 and Newnes having 5 poor games in a row.

 

[kernelT]

While he was a bit shaky again, I'd rather we give Joyce a few games to give him a chance, Brown was as bad as anyone last week… we need to start getting games into his replacement which will hopefully be next year.

OUT
Brown, Geary, Phillips, Young

In
White, McKenzie, Clark, Acres

 

[BrutThough]

While he was a bit shaky again, I'd rather we give Joyce a few games to give him a chance, Brown was as bad as anyone last week… we need to start getting games into his replacement which will hopefully be next year.

OUT
Brown, Geary, Phillips, Young

In
White, McKenzie, Clark, Acres

Isnt Brown's replacement Jake Carlisle?
No chance Joyce is viewed as his actual replacement.

 

[kernelT]

Isnt Brown's replacement Jake Carlisle?
No chance Joyce is viewed as his actual replacement.

Where do you think they see Joyce playing?

He replaced Brown in round 7 & Brown replaced Joyce in round 2.

I would have thought Carlisle plays further up the ground than last line.

 

[BrutThough]

Where do you think they see Joyce playing?

He replaced Brown in round 7.

I would have thought Carlisle plays further up the ground than last line.

I don't think the club sees Joyce as anything more than back-up player. Him playing instead of Brown against GWS is one of the most baffling selection decisions I can remember in recent times.

And in such a do or die game against the Gold Coast, it's not the best time to start experimenting with players and getting games into replacements. We must win that game and we are a much better side when Brown is at full back.

 

[Saintbloke]

While he was a bit shaky again, I'd rather we give Joyce a few games to give him a chance, Brown was as bad as anyone last week… we need to start getting games into his replacement which will hopefully be next year.

OUT
Brown, Geary, Phillips, Young

In
White, McKenzie, Clark, Acres

Take it easy on the backline- the midfield and forwards applied no defensive pressure against PA and let the ball relentlessly push into their forward half..hate to be a Saint backman in that game.

 

[Mikka84]

Clark, McKenzie, Acres & White have to play.

Don't care who comes out. Take your pick of: Young, Newnes, Ross, Kent, Sinclair, Phillips & Joyce.

Would like to see Coffield have another one or two otherwise we would have lost a whole year on him. Long and Parker did enough to keep their spots, depending on how they pull up through the week.

 

[kernelT]

I hate the idea of waiting till finals aren't mathematically possible before we put time into young promising players…

If we dropped the underperforming senior guys when they deserve it, we would be seeing a lot more players coming through the side.

 

[kernelT]

Take it easy on the backline- the midfield and forwards applied no defensive pressure against PA and let the ball relentlessly push into their forward half..hate to be a Saint backman in that game.

Geary broke his leg, Brown had one kick and didn't take a single mark… his spoils are a liability which opp smalls just feast on IMO. He seems to get a free pass from most though.

 

[MOLTEN GANGLANDS]

Coff's gotta stay in, he wasn't anywhere near as bad as people are saying. We were completely overrun, hard for individual to look good in those circumstances.

Kent's been eh, but long and young have been more so, can't drop them all..

As much as I'd like to see newnes have a rest, we're an extremely young side and we really need the win, so the coaches won't do it... at least not until hanners is available.

out - young, long, joyce, phillips
in - clark, mckenzie, white, acres

Hope hind gets a look in soon too..

 

[mightymalaka]

I don't think the club sees Joyce as anything more than back-up player. Him playing instead of Brown against GWS is one of the most baffling selection decisions I can remember in recent times.

And in such a do or die game against the Gold Coast, it's not the best time to start experimenting with players and getting games into replacements. We must win that game and we are a much better side when Brown is at full back.

Agree that the selection of Joyce over Brown for GWS was baffling to say the least!
But i must say i don't really see Carlisle as our full back! Not this year or any year to be honest. For all of Jake's strengths, having him defend on the last line
Doesn't suit him! He's a bit too loose, plus trying to make him that accountable in a defence first role is wasting his talent in my opinion!

He's at his best as an attacking, intercept centre half back! With the odd run forward!
Does beggar the question though who our future Full back would be and Joyce is still a fair way off for all of his improvement!
Kernel's idea is not without merit though, the only way we can get him up to speed is to play him as much as possible to fastrack his development!
Difficult decision though whilst we are still contending for finals for a few weeks anyway, unless the bottom drops out and we are no chance!
The other options don't really look up to it. Austin way too loose from what we have seen so far, a bridge too far to expect Clavarino to be able to do it
In the next couple of years anyway.....Maybe Wilkie, he has exceeded our wildest expectations already and is versatile enough to be seen as a possible option!
Unless they are still planning on leaving Battle in defence to play Jake forward, which could work in short bursts, though for mine when everyone's fit
He goes forward as we are clearly lacking there and with his improvement, i'm excited to see how he goes doing what we drafted him for!

But then there's Winx who we no doubt see as our focal point! So to summarise i've rambled so much shite i have now painted myself into a corner!!
For everyone's sanity i will stop now, plus i've given myself a headache!
Back to the Dungeon for me! Apologies all!