Game Day AFL Round 18: West Coast Eagles vs North Melbourne @ Metricon Thursday 5.10 pm 17th of September 2020.

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The Legendary mighty West Coast Eagles vs Norf.

True best team in the comp vs the second worst team in the comp (worst team in the comp if Adelaide beat Richmond lol). We have to win and hope Richmond lose to Adelaide for us to get top 4 for a double chance.
The Kangaroos lost their past 5 matches by convincing fashion except for the Brisbane game where it was a close side (could Brisbane be the worst top two side in history?). At the start of the season everything looked all good winning two games until going through a long losing streak where their only win was against an even worst Adelaide outfit at the time and fellow bottomed Dockers smashed them by ten goals lol.

We match up well against them despite our outs and we'll be getting AhChee and Sheed back. In 2018 round 19, they smashed us in windy Blundstone where we can't play in windy conditions and our mids got smashed with Cunnington looking like a god although we managed to keep up with them by half time until the game got out of reach for us but to be fair, we had no Shuey, JK, Jetta, Ryan and Nic Nat who done his ACL that year. In 2019 we smashed them with JK kicking his 600th goal and kicked 7 on Robbie Tarrant, Willie Rioli's dummy duking goal was legendary, Sideshow Brown had no answers when Schoey was on him.

We just need to hold on without Gov, Redden, Shuey and Yeo. Good news is Gov won't be needing surgery so we won't be available until finals at least, I don't think Yeo will come in as both he Shuey and Redden should be available by finals.

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Schoey will be disappointed that Sideshow Brown will not be available since he was excited to dismantle Sideshow again but Sideshow Brown must of got injured on purpose since he's scared facing Schoey.
How do we beat North?

Short answer:
Field half a team.

Well North haven't been playing well this year with poor inside 50s, players out of form and poor executions.

We should have midfield supremacy against them even without Shuey, Yeo and Redden but we'll be getting Sheed back. We need to deliver the ball inside 50 cleanly so the likes of JK, Darling, Allen, Waterman and Ryan can dominate. Backline is strong even without Gov but I'd like to see Edwards come in for Gov and Sideshow Brown won't be available which should help our backline considering they have avarage KPFs other than Sideshow. Good news is we'll be having two more days break than North so we can put up more intensity.

Kelly and Gaff need to continue their form from the Saints game and Sheed needs to step up as well if we're going to beat North and Nic Nat has to beat Goldstein to show that he's the undisputed AA. What we can do is attack the corridor hard and open up our forward line so we can get easy inside 50 marks. Ryan thankfully has become a decent crumber instead of going mark of the year every goddamn time so if we do go down the line, we'll have crumbers ready to propel the footy forward. Ainsworth to tag Anderson so they have less attacking options in the midfield.

Having Gov out is huge but at least both Barrass and Gov don't go after the same footy which has been plaguing us in the hubs since any dropped marks go to oppo crumbers (see Richmond game) so having only one go for the mark allows for crumbers so we can rebound with ease and allow our forwards to work their magic.


Key Matchups.

Kennedy vs Tarrant:
JK plays really well against Norf so he should kick goals against them no problem considering we'll get good entries especially with Sheed back adding class.

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JK has kicked 23 goals in his last 5 matches against Norf.
Nic Nat vs Goldstein: This is the battle of the potential AA rucks. Nic Nat has to beat Goldstein to make sure our still depleted midfield go on top.

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Nic Nat is the true AA Ruckman. Anyone who says otherwise is a BUM.

Barrass vs Larkey: With Sideshow injured, Larkey has become their number one target so Barrass will need to stop him so North won't have any tall viable options.

Ryan vs one of their small defenders: Ryan has been in gun form for the past few weeks with his ability to avoid tacklers in traffic and his decision making skills combined with a penetrating kick. He'll need to be crumbing more for us to have constant F50 entries.

Ainsworth vs Anderson: Anderson been pretty much their best midfielder. So Ainsworth has to tag him from the start if we're going to get on top, he did well on Jones when sent on him and against Daniels too. Ainsworth could be an upgraded version of Hutch in the future.

Last five matches.

West Coast Eagles


W vs Selfish GWS 61-49.
L vs We're the only team that can stop Richmond 61-88.
W vs Woosha will be gone Bombers 60-45.
L vs Up and down Dogs 47-49.
W vs Fraudulent side who cannot beat us with a depleted midfield St Kilda 65-50.


Last five matches vs North Melbourne.

R19 2019: W 121-72. JK was a god kicking 7 straight (again) and his 600th goal in the process and he plays like a god against the Roos, who can forget Rioli's magical goal? Schoey took Sideshow to the cleaners.
R19 2018: L 41-81. We had some big outs but we can't play well in windy conditions in Blundstone. If only JK was there.
R1 2017: W 136-93. Good old dish against his old club. JK kicked 7 goals straight with Le Cras kicking 4.
R16 2016: W 104-72. JK kicked four (should've had at least seven).
PF 2015: W 80-55. Got us to the granny baby. Don't want to know what happens after.


Teams.

TBA at 4.20 pm the day before the game.

Predicted changes: Sheed obviously comes in for Brayshaw, AhChee comes in for Petch or for Gov but if we still want to maintain the tall backline then Edwards comes in for Gov since it's forecasted to be dry.

No surprises that Sheed comes in for Brayshaw, Williams and AhChee comes in for Gov and Brander. Nice to see Foley debut, probably at the expense of XON who's been pretty quiet at the Saints game. With Williams in, we can reduce Nic Nat's load for him to fire in finals (he played 80% TOG against the Saints) and it allows Allen to be that stay at home forward and swing back if needed.

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Weather Predictions.

Should be all good:
Mostly sunny. Light winds becoming northeasterly 15 to 20 km/h during the day then becoming light during the evening.


Where can I watch the game on TV or hear it on the radio?

Free to air:
Seven or Seven Mate at 5.00 pm AWST considering all of our (and Freo's) games are free to air to please us non Foxtel WA viewers.
Subscription TV: Fox Footy.
Streaming/IPTV: Kayo.
Mobile: AFL Live pass.
Radio: Triple M Rocks Footy, ABC, AFL Nation or 6PR. Just hear the our BigFooty commentary, beats the radio hacks for sure.

West Coast Eagles BigFooty Commentary: HoneyBadger35 will send us a link above the post. F*ck BT for confusing confusing Ryan and Rioli and Brander and Rotham. Badge and co are passionate Eagles supporters and will NOT confuse our players unlike those VIC cucks.


Venue Tickets.

Call Ticketek on 13 28 49 for tickets to watch the game at Metricon Stadium to support the legendary mighty West Coast Eagles for Gold Coast and Brisbane based WCE supporters. North don't have a strong support in QLD but I maybe wrong but we cannot get complacent and allow Norf to overrun the crowds otherwise they will get morale and we can kiss top 4 goodbye.

Address is in: Nerang Broadbeach Rd, Carrara QLD 4211 for any QLD based WCE supporters wanting to watch the game in person.


Predictions.

West Coast Eagles by 52.


Even with our depleted midfield we should get on top of North and smash them with Nic Nat winning against Goldstein. JK will kick a bag and our forward line will be all over them. Dry weather will help our game plan in kick mark so we should outplay them overrall. Norf has no structure so they will blindly bomb it forward and Barrass will be BOG.

Thank goodness my predictions was soo wrong in the Saints game. Hopefully the Saints win was like the win that motivates us to the flag against Geelong in 2006 and Port Adelaide in 2018.

 
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xInfected_Virus

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Should win by 10 goals.

But with finals locked in and largely nothing to play for, expect the players & coaches to go into preservation mode early killing any chances of a 200 point win that would see us leapfrog Geelong into the top 4.

Kennedy only 9 goals behind Hawkins. Genuine chance of taking the Coleman home as we chase the 200 point win.
 

Rowan18

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Should win by 10 goals.

But with finals locked in and largely nothing to play for, expect the players & coaches to go into preservation mode early killing any chances of a 200 point win that would see us leapfrog Geelong into the top 4.

Kennedy only 9 goals behind Hawkins. Genuine chance of taking the Coleman home as we chase the 200 point win.
Buddy pipped him once when JK was about 7 or 8 goals ahead and Carlton let Franklin kick 10+. Pretty sure it was 2016 season.

Would be great to see him achieve the same against Hawkins.
 

DanWCE

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Buddy pipped him once when JK was about 7 or 8 goals ahead and Carlton let Franklin kick 10+. Pretty sure it was 2016 season.

Would be great to see him achieve the same against Hawkins.

Doesn't seem likely as we play first. If it was a season relying on margin and not wins we'd be in a precarious spot also, with other clubs able to calculate on the fly knowing our result.
 

Yoey

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I'm waiting for us to belt a side and run into form, thanks to Melbourne back in 2018 hopefully it can repeat itself.
 

ezywalker

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I know there is a finals bye and all that... but it there anyone playing who could do with a long rest right now? Risk losing form? NM potenially playing for the top draft pick.. Will they turn up.. WC massive chance of finishing 5th regardless. I can see 5 changes coming potentially?
 

Happy Mastenator

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I know there is a finals bye and all that... but it there anyone playing who could do with a long rest right now? Risk losing form? NM potenially playing for the top draft pick.. Will they turn up.. WC massive chance of finishing 5th regardless. I can see 5 changes coming potentially?
Do we even have five fit players available to make 5 changes?
 
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is it worth it for West Coast to lose in order to get 5th spot and a home final?

don't think its the worst thing for the Eagles to be back at home for a final, rather than be stuck in QLD for another couple of weeks.

I know a double chance is a big thing but in a season like this one, there is no home advantage playing in QLD .
 
I doubt we'll rest players.

We'll attempt to play our brand and try to flat track them to go into our finals week off with some momentum and good vibes :rainbow:




Realistically it'll probably be a scrappy and unconvincing 19 point win, and we'll all be disappointed afterwards.

"Fold the club" comments incoming.
 

Happy Mastenator

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is it worth it for West Coast to lose in order to get 5th spot and a home final?

don't think its the worst thing for the Eagles to be back at home for a final, rather than be stuck in QLD for another couple of weeks.

I know a double chance is a big thing but in a season like this one, there is no home advantage playing in QLD .
No. Top 4 is the goal. Win and you’re in a prelim. You take that over 5th any day.
 

Astro7

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Nows our chance to prove to all that when we want to be flat track bullies we can do it mercilessly and in emphatic fashion-with a depleted team!
 
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Doashuey

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is it worth it for West Coast to lose in order to get 5th spot and a home final?

don't think its the worst thing for the Eagles to be back at home for a final, rather than be stuck in QLD for another couple of weeks.

I know a double chance is a big thing but in a season like this one, there is no home advantage playing in QLD .
WCE do NOT play for anything other than a win. Tanking is for s**t teams with s**t cultures. Look at the good it has done for Dees and Blues- they tanked a decade ago and a decade later they both have multiple high draft picks and both are still s**t. Once losing becomes acceptable, you cant scrub that stain out of a jumper.
Win or lose we will be 5th unless Crows or Sydney pull off an almighty upset. Not to mention, the double chance is a huge boost for a team with a lot of injuries. Win the Qualifying and you get an extra week to get guys up and running again.

We will be looking to flat track and flat track hard for the first 3 quarters on Thursday and then put our guns on ice for the last quarter Id say.
 
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WCE do NOT play for anything other than a win. Tanking is for sh*t teams with sh*t cultures. Look at the good it has done for Dees and Blues- they tanked a decade ago and a decade later they both have multiple high draft picks and both are still sh*t. Once losing becomes acceptable, you cant scrub that stain out of a jumper.
Win or lose we will be 5th unless Crows or Sydney pull off an almighty upset. Not to mention, the double chance is a huge boost for a team with a lot of injuries. Win the Qualifying and you get an extra week to get guys up and running again.

We will be looking to flat track and flat track hard for the first 3 quarters on Thursday and then put our guns on ice for the last quarter Id say.


In a year like this which is unprecedented, 5th isn't a bad spot to be playing from in the Finals. The chances of a win from 5th with the home support- id rate as 75%-80%. If the Eagles were to play from 4th against Port, Port would be a 65:35 favourites, and against Brisbane at the GABBA, would be a 70:30 chance. I haven't been sold on the Eagles performances in QLD this season, and would have them as slight underdogs on neutral soil against Geelong or Richmond.

Do agree with the sentiment from most of this thread, that Top 4 gives you a real shake at winning the flag.

Of the venues available in the finals, in my opinion West Coast order of preference venues is: 1) Perth Stadium 2) Adelaide Oval 3) GABBA 4) Metricon.
 

Doashuey

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In a year like this which is unprecedented, 5th isn't a bad spot to be playing from in the Finals. The chances of a win from 5th with the home support- id rate as 75%-80%. If the Eagles were to play from 4th against Port, Port would be a 65:35 favourites, and against Brisbane at the GABBA, would be a 70:30 chance. I haven't been sold on the Eagles performances in QLD this season, and would have them as slight underdogs on neutral soil against Geelong or Richmond.

Do agree with the sentiment from most of this thread, that Top 4 gives you a real shake at winning the flag.

Of the venues available in the finals, in my opinion West Coast order of preference venues is: 1) Perth Stadium 2) Adelaide Oval 3) GABBA 4) Metricon.
It isnt about which is better, 4th or 5th- that is out of our hands (we have to win to have a chance of 4th but that will rely on Cats or Tigers shitting the bed). My post was answering the question of 'do WCE tank against the equal worst team in the comp in the last H&A match to completely eliminate any chance of finishing top 4 and a direct route into the prelims against our bunnys at our home away from home (Port at AO)?'.
I think we are a chance from 5th or 4th but WE DONT TANK.
 
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WCE do NOT play for anything other than a win. Tanking is for sh*t teams with sh*t cultures. Look at the good it has done for Dees and Blues- they tanked a decade ago and a decade later they both have multiple high draft picks and both are still sh*t. Once losing becomes acceptable, you cant scrub that stain out of a jumper.
Win or lose we will be 5th unless Crows or Sydney pull off an almighty upset. Not to mention, the double chance is a huge boost for a team with a lot of injuries. Win the Qualifying and you get an extra week to get guys up and running again.

We will be looking to flat track and flat track hard for the first 3 quarters on Thursday and then put our guns on ice for the last quarter Id say.
You forgot to add Freo to that list as well. I do remember a year where they totally played a 2nd string team in the last round of the home and away season in order to beat a team in a home Final the following week. Can't remember the year but im thinking along the lines of having 2 weeks home (including the bye) will freshen the team up for a deep run in the finals in QLD. Quite clearly we are on opposing sides of thinking.
 

Doashuey

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You forgot to add Freo to that list as well. I do remember a year where they totally played a 2nd string team in the last round of the home and away season in order to beat a team in a home Final the following week. Can't remember the year but im thinking along the lines of having 2 weeks home (including the bye) will freshen the team up for a deep run in the finals in QLD. Quite clearly we are on opposing sides of thinking.
Look I understand the benifits of a finish at 5th, we can win it from there, it was just the mechanism you suggested of getting there that was a rediculous notion.
I didnt forget Ross'the Tank either- we are reminded of that after round 23 each year since. Thing is Freo were just as bad before as they are now and they were not doing it for draft picks. But still, if you dont try to win you set yourself back.
 
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OK I was not quite on the same page, in 2010 Freo lost to Hawthorn in the penultimate round by 116 points in Tasmania. A win, wasn't going to improve their situation on the ladder, although mathematically they could have finished top 4 by winning that game by a large margin.

The week after they beat Carlton at Home, beat Hawthorn in Week 1 of the Finals at Subiaco by 5 goals.


You could make a case that Freo wouldn't have beaten Hawthorn in Week 1 of the Finals, if they went all in in Round 21 against the same team.
 
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