Roast The match committee’s decision to drop Stanley

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Farmer2Goggin

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Aug 17, 2009
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This idiotic decision will now impact on us this week.
Stanley is a confidence player and would have at least brought in good form from the 'Kreuzer' game against Grundy - he will be selected this week and comes in knowing a majority of the MC didn't trust him - not going to be easy for him.
Blitz now has to return down back as Eagles play 3 talls plus resting rucks so he returns to defence having played ruck v pies.
Bottom line is we lack continuity and it will now take a herculean effort to settle the side and restore confidence in both the team and a few players.
We have really shot ourselves in the foot so far , hope to buggery we can reverse it and bounce back
 

Spazz Cat

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Jun 10, 2013
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I know that majority of Collingwood's goals were from clearances, but that includes clearances from our end of the ground where they were able to run with the ball and we failed to stop that.

Pendles goal in the 3rd quarter was directly from the tap work of Grundy, but when you watch the replay of that passage I want to know where the Geelong players were - there's something like 3 Collingwood players not under direct pressure from a Geelong opponent.
They kicked a few (4?) in the 1st qr from purely defensive errors.
It was almost like our best back and organiser wasn't down there.
Players all going up, no-one staying down, defenders not trusting each other and no connection between them.
Blitz in the ruck cost us this final unfortunately.
On the plus side at least it's easy to fix.
 
Feb 2, 2011
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If you think Grundy was the difference then you and I were watching a different game.

21 touches, 4 marks, 5 tackles, 7 clearances and 47 hit outs.

Compared to Blitz who had 11 touches (1 kick lol), 2 marks, 8 tackles and 14 hit outs.

Of course, he had a massive impact.
 

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Sep 26, 2017
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I'm done. I really don't care for finals and after our 3 flags I'm pretty content. Just want to tune into a game of footy and see us win.

In saying that I don't see us going any further than just being competitive. I think we need a change. For all the talk of byes etc and to come as we did is unfathomable. The players are obviously too comfortable and need a new voice.

If we straight set I think that should be enough. Wont happen but I really wish it does.
I agree

Even if we manage to win this week and next week I still feel if papering the cracks

There’s no way this team or game plan will win the flag anytime soon
 
Sep 26, 2017
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CollarJazzKnee

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I agree

Even if we manage to win this week and next week I still feel if papering the cracks

There’s no way this team or game plan will win the flag anytime soon

Nail on the head. I am actually very confident about friday. Scott will be very smug, "mission accomplished" etc. But we will get blown off the park against richmond.
 
This idiotic decision will now impact on us this week.
Stanley is a confidence player and would have at least brought in good form from the 'Kreuzer' game against Grundy - he will be selected this week and comes in knowing a majority of the MC didn't trust him - not going to be easy for him.
Blitz now has to return down back as Eagles play 3 talls plus resting rucks so he returns to defence having played ruck v pies.
Bottom line is we lack continuity and it will now take a herculean effort to settle the side and restore confidence in both the team and a few players.
We have really shot ourselves in the foot so far , hope to buggery we can reverse it and bounce back
Conversely, Stanley will come in with a point to prove to the match committee - "You should never have dropped me".

I am not as pessimistic about our chances this week, provided we have a good start. Afterall, WCE turned around a devastating loss at home to Hawthorn with a big win at home. We lost to the Pies in 11 minutes of football in the 1Q.

I reckon we'll beat WCE, but give us zero chance against Richmond
 

goyoucatters

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After spending the weekend reflecting, I have come to the conclusion that this was still a fxxking disastrously bad call.

It's quite amazing, really. It's not often that you can make a monumentally epic blunder and still have it look even worse with the benefit of hindsight.

Trust Geelong to lead the way in taking the concept of absurd selection policy to a whole new level...

:mad:
 

Farmer2Goggin

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They kicked a few (4?) in the 1st qr from purely defensive errors.
It was almost like our best back and organiser wasn't down there.
Players all going up, no-one staying down, defenders not trusting each other and no connection between them.
Blitz in the ruck cost us this final unfortunately.
On the plus side at least it's easy to fix.

Absolutely bloody spot on Spazz Cat :thumbsu:
We concede the ruck and weaken the best defense in the comp - pure f***g genius move omitting Rhys
Geez I've been filthy around the coffee machine this morning ;) , still can't get over it to be honest
 

lolcat

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Geez I've been filthy around the coffee machine this morning ;) , still can't get over it to be honest

Heh heh, me too. I'm usually pretty nonchalant when it comes to win/loss results and it doesn't spill over... This time here is my response to various people in the last few days...

  • Saturday night, the missus says "Looks like Richmond are going to beat Brisbane".... my response "Are they? Good for them" <decides to do the dishes>
  • Sunday arvo, brother-in-law mentions that "Danger almost won it for you guys single-handedly in the last quarter"... me... "Did he? I wouldn't know mate, I walked out in disgust in the first 10 minutes"
  • Today... I see a bloke I work with down the other end of the office corridor as I'm arriving at work. I usually love reviewing the weekend's footy results with that bloke, since he's a Carlton supporter and so he's usually pretty subdued. This time, I couldn't face him and so I left my headphones on and got straight in the lift... can you believe it? I was too embarrassed to even talk to a Carlton supporter, a bloody Carlton supporter!

Dark times people.
 

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Goggin Our Best

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Conversely, Stanley will come in with a point to prove to the match committee - "You should never have dropped me".

I am not as pessimistic about our chances this week, provided we have a good start. Afterall, WCE turned around a devastating loss at home to Hawthorn with a big win at home. We lost to the Pies in 11 minutes of football in the 1Q.

I reckon we'll beat WCE, but give us zero chance against Richmond

Geelong have to beat West Coast 1st - no given at all we all know that - but every club wants a flag - but if Geel aernt good enough to beat WC - then they wouldnt be good enough for a flag

However - lets say Geel beat WC - i would much much much rather be annihilated by Richmond in a PF than a GF

So if you are realistic enough to acknowledge that the current Geel side has a fair few deficiencys - then if the Cats some how topple WC - then im quite happy its Richmond and Coll in that order - i dont want to see another GF massacre - 94 and 95 is enough

If they get smashed by Rich in the PF then so be it - but if you get obliterated in a GF ( ask Pt Adelaide ) then that lasts forever - it damages your brand for a fair while - think back to the end of 1995 and Geelong were right on the nose
 

Sticksman

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Feb 7, 2013
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I believe the current match committee strategy is too complex for them to handle. i.e. they've bitten off more than they can chew.

Let me explain...

For the better part of a decade now, it appears that the primary strategy of the match committee is to tinker around with tricky team selections and try to outsmart the opposition. E.g. for the next game, the stats show that <insert_opposition_club> will likely beat us in this particular area, or that one. Based on the stats, if we mix-up/change the team selection by <insert_baffling_team_selection_decision> then we are more likely to achieve a result.

Now, in theory, this sort of approach works. It is based on Red Sox Moneyball approach. However, it takes some *very* smart and able people to pull this sort of thing off effectively.

In the H&A season, it tends to work out ok - this is likely the reason we haven't completely tumbled down the ladder.

However, this is the important point, being tricky with team selections doesn't work in finals footy.

It has been obvious for years - opposition teams can easily beat Geelong in a final by implementing one simple tactic...

Come out insanely hard in the first few minutes of a game, and while the Geelong players are still trying figure out themselves how to settle in to their new roles and work together with the latest mind-boggling team structure, you (the opposition) can run around/through them. Panic sets in, you score goals and voila, Geelong is playing catch-up for the rest of the game.​
----

So, what should the match committee do?
  • Get back to basics in finals
    • Finals footy will always be won, to some degree, through shear strength
    • Finals footy is also about confidence
    • If you can show the opposition you know what you are doing, that you are in charge, and that you are bloody confident together as a team, then they won't have a chance to run around/through you.
    • Simple things.
  • Stop trying to be tricky
    • Trying to outsmart the opposition doesn't work in finals
    • Settle on your best team and positions throughout the year
    • Stop making random decisions in September
  • Let the players off the leash
    • At the end of the season, show the players you believe in them
    • Remind them that they are in the finals because they implemented the game plan well all year so far
    • Tell them them to get out there and keep doing what they've been doing so well already - but now with more strength and force
    • Give them the freedom, through simplicity, to not have to think too hard about where to play, who to link up with, who to rely on, etc...

Dear Geelong Football Club - the above recommendations are provided as an opportunity for improvement. Given your current dismal finals results over the past decade or so, what have you got to lose? Why not try them out? If you have any better ideas, by all means let us know what they are and give them a go. But please, just stop persisting with your current strategy, it is not working!

P.S. I only suspect this to be the case, I don't know if it is true.... stop threatening your players with passive/active consequences if they talk back too much or if they stray too far from your 'on-paper game plan'. Let them be humans and make their own mistakes every now and again.


What are you doing on Friday night. Brian Cook is looking for someone just like you. Excellent post BTW
 

TomsBulgingDisc

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Sep 12, 2013
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Confirmation that Rhys' omission was decided before Friday.


You know what, I hope we delist this poor bastard and he ends up somewhere that shows him some respect.
I actually think he'd go OK in the right side where he was respected and his strengths exploited, rather than pretend he's 210cm tap ruckman and then drop him when he's not.
When he says he's doing everything he can to be selected, it makes me wonder what he has to do? He can't just grow overnight, or add some new trick to his bag in the next few days. When he says he's doing all he can, does he mean crawling up the arse of the MC in hope they say yes this week?
 

darrenmorgan

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You know what, I hope we delist this poor bastard and he ends up somewhere that shows him some respect.
I actually think he'd go OK in the right side where he was respected and his strengths exploited, rather than pretend he's 210cm tap ruckman and then drop him when he's not.
When he says he's doing everything he can to be selected, it makes me wonder what he has to do? He can't just grow overnight, or add some new trick to his bag in the next few days. When he says he's doing all he can, does he mean crawling up the arse of the MC in hope they say yes this week?

Ridiculous thing is his last game was really good!
 

AlcoaCat

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Jul 23, 2014
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I think he loves getting the respect of a relatively small group of footy intellectuals, who take the sport and the statistics too seriously.
Unfortunately nerds shouldn't really have a place in sport or anything fun for that matter. They'll just suck all the fun out of it.
I was quite surprised to hear Mark Fine go hard on this angle on Footyology today. He made a lot of the rebuild, Geelong's H and A record, and how clubs like Gold Coast would love to have our problems. Rohan Connolly countered very properly by saying the supporters would find the finals record a bit of a grind. That summed things up for me: there's the perspective of the student of the game (Finey, catempire possibly) versus the more self-consciously subjective fan, which Rohan brought out.

I think the gap is now closing. The OP (Sttew) has always been really measured and a bit of a litmus for me. I really take it seriously when posters like him suggest that Scotty has finally jumped the shark.
 

AlcoaCat

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If we agree that we served up a cartload of shite on Friday, it's got to be a concern that Danger today hasn't exactly given Rhys a ringing endorsent and that Tommy Stewart has indicated that we are going to stick with chip-chip-prop-bomb.

The Krock metric of excitement is to be fully nude. Well, I'm bundled up like a seal trapper at the moment.
 

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