Game Day Preseason 1, 2025: West Coast v North Melbourne

[WCE777]

Sorry they didn't run a hard tag on Harley
They matched up but Harley could not keep up with Will
He got more of the ball and ran so hard defensively for North
He ran of Harley the whole game stop being so defensive
I dont think it's a concern HARLEY got beat

I think Harley has had such an interrupted pre-season that he wouldn't be expected to be cherry ripe for the NM match.
2nd year player with all his interruptions who is a power beast would be looking to build his fitness base over the next few weeks and early games of the season.
He has had 1 of the most extraordinary seasons for a first year player we have seen so would be expecting he will struggle with some minor issues body wise while he adjusts to AFL high impact life.
I suspect we will see 2024 Harley soon with a bit more fitness behind him, how good will that be!

 

[THE A5]

A fit Yeo would have allowed Harley to ease back into things but it’s TK’s job to find that 2023 form. Duggan was disappointing against Norf but all the preseasons talk was how good he was in the middle and now it’s high time he shows it

 

[MeltMan]

He’s trolling the North board shitting on Phillips in their thread too.

Disappointing to see on a school night.

Now that you mention it though, I didn’t actually click how piss funny it is that they ran a hard tag on Harley in preseason. He’ll need to work through them, and as we’ve seen will get zero protection unlike the Daicos and Rowell being your own whistle to work type midfielders, so in a way we should be glad but gee whiz.

Even when comms suggested we throw numbers behind the ball to preserve a late lead I cringed. It’s the Wizard Cup, lads, just keep playing your game.

i understand the premise of training for a scenario, but it's also a pre season game. i think it was one of those this doesn't happen often (especially in our last couple of seasons, (except ironocally against nth melbourne)) so having place to show what the new coach wants to do in the scenario is helpfull. evenm if what he wants to do is change nothing and play the same way that got us the lead but was concerning on turnover, that would be going away from what some of the rusted on guys are used to.
edit: duplicating keys posts

 

[jdisc]

Will Phillips smashed Harley. Former number three hitting his straps! Harley's no slouch but there's no way he can keep up with a fit Will Phill.

 

[Grahame]

Hough and Gunbey both have shown form playing on taller opponents and both only a few cms shorter that Maric. At this stage it doesn’t seem like Maric doesn’t have a solid defensive side of his game

Hough and Ginbey 191. Maric 196.

 

[THE A5]

Hough and Ginbey 191. Maric 196.

Pretty sure it’s been mentioned a but that the club basically copied his details into Dixons profile when he was drafted and it’s never been changed. Marics around that 193cm mark

Regardless both Ginbey and Hough have played taller than they’re and done well. Tho both got pantsed by Jeremy Cameron but a lot of defenders would have in that game

 

[Avalor]

It was good seeing Hunt with his pace back. His dashes in the game really set us alight.
Him and Dewar on the wings please.

 

[THE A5]

It was good seeing Hunt with his pace back. His dashes in the game really set us alight.
Him and Dewar on the wings please.

He’ll suit Mini’s style. Sorta dropped of a bit lasts season after an impressive debut season with us but seemed like he was struggling with something.

 

[squashface]

It was good seeing Hunt with his pace back. His dashes in the game really set us alight.
Him and Dewar on the wings please.

This + Hutch starting on the bench as a wing/on ball rotation is my hope

 

[Yeahnahmate]

He’ll suit Mini’s style. Sorta dropped of a bit lasts season after an impressive debut season with us but seemed like he was struggling with something.

100% could find career best form in this style. Well suited to it

 

[Kegs15]

Hough and Gunbey both have shown form playing on taller opponents and both only a few cms shorter that Maric. At this stage it doesn’t seem like Maric doesn’t have a solid defensive side of his game

Possibly there's that line of thought, work on defensive craft early on in the WAFL where it'll be both easier to defend opponents (overall lower quality 1 on 1) but probably more essential to focus on as he'll be picking up the slack of a few ammos you'd think.

In that sense could be good for him, but I do hope he's pencilled in as a future lock in our AFL backline, and that having him out of our best team early on is preparation for that rather than an indication of where we actually see him.

We're desperate for an elite, penetrating deliverer down there - Hough is composed and clean but not gamebreaking offensively, and Ginbey is more of a straight-line chaos operator. Even in a more chaotic style, feels imperative to have one guy down back who can legitimately open up the ground from there.

Think ideally at AFL level he gains the bare minimum defensive craft to be able to do that when required, but has more of a licence to pick and choose taking floaty intercept marks or leaving his man. Sort of like a smaller McGovern. And McGovern did well with solid defensive players around him which Hough and Ginbey are, they'll be able to compete against anyone Maric may be playing on when required. Think it's a good future balance.

 

[THE A5]

Possibly there's that line of thought, work on defensive craft early on in the WAFL where it'll be both easier to defend opponents (overall lower quality 1 on 1) but probably more essential to focus on as he'll be picking up the slack of a few ammos you'd think.

In that sense could be good for him, but I do hope he's pencilled in as a future lock in our AFL backline, and that having him out of our best team early on is preparation for that rather than an indication of where we actually see him.

We're desperate for an elite, penetrating deliverer down there - Hough is composed and clean but not gamebreaking offensively, and Ginbey is more of a straight-line chaos operator. Even in a more chaotic style, feels imperative to have one guy down back who can legitimately open up the ground from there.

Think ideally at AFL level he gains the bare minimum defensive craft to be able to do that when required, but has more of a licence to pick and choose taking floaty intercept marks or leaving his man. Sort of like a smaller McGovern. And McGovern did well with solid defensive players around him which Hough and Ginbey are, they'll be able to compete against anyone Maric may be playing on when required. Think it's a good future balance.

Didn’t watch the first scratchy but Hough did seem to take the game on against North and does seem to have a bit of wheels.

With Maric I’m not sure where he’s at as I haven’t seen him and while the talks been very positive, I’ve also seena few comments saying he lacks that defensive side and does seem to scrub a few kicks. Like you suggested WAFL might not be the worst place to start his apprenticeship as this is reletively a new role for him this year and he isn’t as good as Hough and Ginbey. Tho if he fan adapt to defence as he did with wing, he’d be in that 22 in no time.

 

[Kegs15]

Didn’t watch the first scratchy but Hough did seem to take the game on against North and does seem to have a bit of wheels.

With Maric I’m not sure where he’s at as I haven’t seen him and while the talks been very positive, I’ve also seena few comments saying he lacks that defensive side and does seem to scrub a few kicks. Like you suggested WAFL might not be the worst place to start his apprenticeship as this is reletively a new role for him this year and he isn’t as good as Hough and Ginbey. Tho if he fan adapt to defence as he did with wing, he’d be in that 22 in no time.

I think it's a nice feeling having players who don't actually have weaknesses in their game. Like Hough - he's elite at the contests and shut-down, but still has those wheels and ability to move the ball, like a younger but already fully realised Shep. Absolutely love him.

Think though we still need players with those S tier attributes to fill certain roles the side needs - Hough is a player who'll win us games off S-tier destroying an opponent whilst still offering quality offence, but I don't think he's a 'cut-sides-up' type. Nor is Ginbey.

Maric's skills in, what is IMO a far trickier position to use kicking as a taller HFF, were sublime at times last season. He picked off targets going forward like Jetta did. Sure he'll scrub kicks in a new role, but the offensive potential is IMO outstanding and could offer us that S tier quality our backline needs.

It's obviously nice having players who are all-round more settled in the role and can add to any aspect of the game like Hough and Ginbey, but think you do sometimes need difference-makers in vital areas, which Maric has the potential skillset for. Either way, think Hough, Ginbey and Maric will all fit into the backline at our best, with Ginbey rotating with Bo on-ball when he's ready for it (even if it's a 30-70 Ginbey-Bo split)

 

[Get_The_Gaff]

Hough and Gunbey both have shown form playing on taller opponents and both only a few cms shorter that Maric. At this stage it doesn’t seem like Maric doesn’t have a solid defensive side of his game

Maric is 196cms ?

Both ginbey and hough 191 cms ?

2 inches bigger is a lot mate

 

[WCE_phil]

Maric is 196cms ?

Both ginbey and hough 191 cms ?

2 inches bigger is a lot mate

in boots

Maric 194.5
Hough 192.5
Ginbey 192

Players are almost exclusively measured in boots

 

[flyinghi64]

Maric not playing was a little questionable and I can only surmise one of 2 reasons.
Either he is still trying to find his spot and is on the fringe and probably starting in the WAFL.
Or
Like you do in pre-season games, don't show all your cards. Maybe he does have a role in the backline as designated kicker and has already shown enough internally to cement this spot. It would be much smarter, IMO, to have Gov further up the ground as a kick in target rather doing the kicking in himself.

But hey what do we all know, maybe he just had a niggle

 

[Doashuey]

It was good seeing Hunt with his pace back. His dashes in the game really set us alight.
Him and Dewar on the wings please.

Yeah it surprised me that Hunt wasnt really mentioned post game.
I only watched the last 3 quarters and thought he really stood out, got a lot of it and carried the ball well. Havent looked at the stats to see if it backs it up but that was my impression of his game on first watch.

 

[flyinghi64]

Biggest positive, for both teams.
NO INJURIES !!!!!!! YEAH

 

[eaglevision]

Players are almost exclusively measured in boots

Except for Adam Heuskes, who was measured in stilettos.

 

[TOA.]

I'm slightly worried about Hutch's role on the wing. Ideally he'd be getting on ball minutes and when he's not there, playing up forward - he has a real knack around goals. Playing him on a dead wing is just silly. Why on earth this club can't draft a endurance accumulator type to run up and down the wing I'll never know. We keep trying to jam square pegs into round holes there. We also need players that can link up well. That is not Hutch's game, no Chesser and many others we've tried there.

If anything, Maric slides into space well and would be better suited to the wing over Hutch.

 

[FatPizza]

I'm slightly worried about Hutch's role on the wing. Ideally he'd be getting on ball minutes and when he's not there, playing up forward - he has a real knack around goals. Playing him on a dead wing is just silly. Why on earth this club can't draft a endurance accumulator type to run up and down the wing I'll never know. We keep trying to jam square pegs into round holes there. We also need players that can link up well. That is not Hutch's game, no Chesser and many others we've tried there.

If anything, Maric slides into space well and would be better suited to the wing over Hutch.

Maybe the wing won't be a graveyard under McQualter like it was with Simmo?

 

[FKASC]

I'm slightly worried about Hutch's role on the wing. Ideally he'd be getting on ball minutes and when he's not there, playing up forward - he has a real knack around goals. Playing him on a dead wing is just silly. Why on earth this club can't draft a endurance accumulator type to run up and down the wing I'll never know. We keep trying to jam square pegs into round holes there. We also need players that can link up well. That is not Hutch's game, no Chesser and many others we've tried there.

If anything, Maric slides into space well and would be better suited to the wing over Hutch.

He’s only been in the AFL for a few months and the coach has only been here for a few minutes.

Going to be lots of things that change over the next year or two

 

[Astro7]

He’s only been in the AFL for a few months and the coach has only been here for a few minutes.

Going to be lots of things that change over the next year or two

For sure, this season will be a work in progress, many changes and fine-tuning. Depending on injuries, should see a more finished/fluent product by season's end?
Then 2025 promises more positive changes and more quality new players, and hopefully a much improved ladder position - this presuming Mini's coaching chops and game plan all work out? There seems to be a genuine buy-in and a new enthusiasm amongst the group.

 

[Farmer Lister]

Just rewatched the match. Really pleased with Flynn. He got better as the game went on. Beautiful tap to H.Reid then a kick and mark to A.Reid 4 mins into the 3rd quarter as an example of what's possible. I think if he hits his straps we could really have something cooking. I wish I'd picked him up in the sponsor draft! He's clearly put some work into follow up efforts crumbing the ground ball at stoppages. Needs to work on his marking though. Him and BBW both repeatedly dropping marks. If you're a tall target for long kicks down the line you need to be clunking those bad boys. Get on the grippo!

I actually really respect Bailey Williams, he's given his heart and soul to playing a role he's not really suited for. Just bad timing for him, in another dimension he's a decent quality forward for another side.

Baker, Graham and Owies among our best players. Not necessarily reflected in the stats, but just the way they go for second third fourth efforts, the determination to attack the contest again and again. IMO our draft period was a resounding success (come at me bro). To be fair, it's worth noting that Baker's disposal was repeatedly horrendous. Baker? More like Butcher! Even with that stipulation, I stand by my previous statement.

Brockman is clearly best 22. He is poised to break out in a huge way, with Dewar not that far behind. Long once again showing not just what a clever footballer he is, but how fast he can make a decision and fire off a chip kick or a handball. After an underwhelming second season he looks to be back to the excitement machine we saw in his debut year.

My take on Harley Reid is that he's gone from Simpson telling him to just go for it and do whatever feels natural, (which in Harley's case is to don't argue 5 players in a row and then kick a goal on the run from 50 out) to Mini's more team oriented just a link in a quick handball chain style and he hasn't found the right balance yet.

He will get there, hopefully with some more elite nutrition prep. Hurn should be good for that, remember Oscar saying Hurn was hanging out with all the young guys having pizza and beer and Hurn declined the pizza and left to go home and cook himself a steak then came right back to the party. That's a Chad move right there. A lot of the guys on Coast to Coast taking about constantly getting uber eats and chugging down cans of energy drink. I have often wondered if Snake's breakout season was helped in some way by the strict diet he had to adopt when he got really sick.

Hough showing some run, carry and speed which lights up my imagination of what swapping Duggan and Hough might look like. Duggo goes back to gaining metres from the back, and Hough's AFL hardened body is just about ready for the coal face.

Duggan Hunt Kelly are pretty poor with their disposals.We really lack classy ball users that can reliably hit targets. Players like Willie Rioli. Can't believe he took the pay while he was suspended and then pissed off to a contender first chance he got. What a dick.

Watching the midfield struggle initially, the fact that Norf was blessed with so many priority picks when we were clearly a much worse team at the time is pretty frustrating. Imagine two years of extra priority picks to use on midfielders. Losing to Sydney by 171 points? Nah you guys are fine.

There were an inordinate amount of basic skill errors and turnovers, I wonder if it's because the boys were so fatigued from chasing the oppo around the park non stop.

West Coast should've never let my darling go. Now when I go through hungry jacks drive though I shed a tear when I see his beautiful face on the wall begging me to get a super deluxe upgrade meal. I'm not hungry anymore Jack. I can't blame him for leaving but I feel that his story would've been more complete with 300 games for us and then captaining our WAFL team before becoming part of the furniture at Lathlain.

That was a lot of negative shit. Thank you for coming to my therapy session. The sunshine bread of this positivity sandwich is that not only do we have serious depth for the first time in forever, we have the strongest draft hand of any time coming into this crucial pre Tasmanian draft period. Warner? Curtin? Rodriguez ? Starcevitch? Maybe even Dev? Oooh I have the vapours. Personally I feel like the Tassie team will be delayed by a few extra years but it's still good to scoop up the best talent just in case.


After the rewatch my best 22:

Hough - Hedwards - Maric
Baker - McGovern - Ginbey
Hunt - Kelly - Dewar
Brockman - Waterman - Owies
Long - O'Allen my Allen - Ryan
Flynn - Graham - H.Reid

Ballen - Jilliams - Hutchinson - Duggan

Sub: Hewitt

Think we will win a super lucky 13 games this year, finish 10th and be well on our way to being contenders in the next few seasons.

Go Eagles!

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Yeah I'm really happy with Brockman's game after having him on the delist pile.

Newbies from other clubs struggled with Simmo's gameplan even when we were good (Redden, Jetta), let alone a basketcase, hopefully things will be easier now.