Review R14: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly vs. Hawthorn Hawks

[CrowBloke]

The cooked part that loss was that you could sense it coming halfway through first quarter.

+

This is absolutely right. I sensed it immediately after TT missed the soda. Then, at half time, this felt very real, in that we had killed them for a half without scoring enough and they had to respond and it was unlikely that we could keep it up.

I texted a mate at half-time.
Said that Mitchell would make changes, Hawthorn would bounce back and we would lose another close one.
That's not hard to predict, given Nicks' record.
Sure enough ...

 

[cleanhands]

+

I texted a mate at half-time.
Said that Mitchell would make changes, Hawthorn would bounce back and we would lose another close one.
That's not hard to predict, given Nicks' record.
Sure enough ...

Mathew just warms the cockles of my heart

 

[footy4ever]

+

I texted a mate at half-time.
Said that Mitchell would make changes, Hawthorn would bounce back and we would lose another close one.
That's not hard to predict, given Nicks' record.
Sure enough ...

spooky! I did exactly the same thing!

 

[Slackjaw]

We didn’t have our best night but still got within 3 points of Hawthorn in Launceston - where they have dominated in recent years (I think our win against them in 2023 there was one of their most recent losses in Launceston).

Can’t fault our defence - they were outstanding and kept fighting all night. And that Worrell tackle on Watson was sublime.

Just need to get the firepower up forward firing again.

We head into the bye 9-5 and in the top 4. We have a good run home, with 3 of our 4 remaining away games against the current bottom 3 sides (throw in the Showdown and we have matches against the current bottom 4 to come).

Already, we’ve improved on last season.

I really don’t get the doom and gloom on here.

It's thinking like this that stops us from becoming that elite team.

 

[cleanhands]

We didn’t have our best night but still got within 3 points of Hawthorn in Launceston - where they have dominated in recent years (I think our win against them in 2023 there was one of their most recent losses in Launceston).

Can’t fault our defence - they were outstanding and kept fighting all night. And that Worrell tackle on Watson was sublime.

Just need to get the firepower up forward firing again.

We head into the bye 9-5 and in the top 4. We have a good run home, with 3 of our 4 remaining away games against the current bottom 3 sides (throw in the Showdown and we have matches against the current bottom 4 to come).

Already, we’ve improved on last season.

I really don’t get the doom and gloom on here.

Already improved on last year… last year was a train wreck we should not have finished where we did, it’s an improvement yes but not as big as it looks

 

[Milo Cyrus]

If Nick's worked on the last 2 minutes and how to play in the final 2 minutes like McRae has at Collingwood , we would be a different side.

What do you mean Plan C? in Plan A we trust.

 

[Milo Cyrus]

Pick Murph, he's our guy!

The poor bastard is an honest plodder like the rest of us.
He's the solution for resting the A graders against the bottom side.

Tex should never play cold wet nights, give him a blanket in the box and get him prepped for the big dance's.

Pepsi Nuts wants another contract... He's not the solution in my opinion, he's had his go and failed, it's time to go!

 

[StonesThrow]

I was the opposite. First game in a long time against a decent team where I wasn't feeling like we were going to lose. We were dominating the midfield and taking care of then defensively. After we got momentum back in the last I still thought we'd win.

Probably why I was so pissed that we lost cos of how we were so easily controlling the game for a large chunk.

Such a great opportunity squandered.

 

[CrowBloke]

Mathew just warms the cockles of my heart

Watching it unfold after half time without response from Nicks was nightmarish.

 

[Cromulant]

It's thinking like this that stops us from becoming that elite team.

I dont think thats it at all.

 

[PCORF]

Our Club will retain Nicks and probably extend his contract if we make Finals this year, which seems likely.

I say extending him would be mistake. Probably best to see how we go in 2026 before the club makes any decisions. If we miss the 8, goodbye Nicks.

 

[Cromulant]

I say extending him would be mistake. Probably best to see how we go in 2026 before the club makes any decisions. If we miss the 8, goodbye Nicks.

If we made a prelim I would look at it, but still wait

 

[George CantStandYa]

Kicking efficiency for both sides in the 50%, disposal in the 60%, a 10% drop on norm. 11 goals scored for the game.

Yeah don’t need a roof in Tassie.

 

[CrowBloke]

spooky! I did exactly the same thing!

Ch9 Footy Show just commented on the (several) moves that Mitchell made at half-time, basically concluding that he outCoached Nicks.
Not hard to do, unfortunately.

 

[Crow_68]

Ch9 Footy Show just commented on the (several) moves that Mitchell made at half-time, basically concluding that he outCoached Nicks.
Not hard to do, unfortunately.

Media slowly exposing Nicks as a fraud.

 

[John Who]

Tex (in the clear) missed an easy snap from about 25 out in the third.
Also, RoB panic-blasted away from a few metres out, kicked ootf.

They have no composure.

RoB needs to be told to stay the hell out of the F50. Tex or RT can ruck inside the F50.
O'Brien is a waste of space in the F50, adds height where we all ready have plenty, gets in everybody's way ffs.

I only saw the highlights, but can imagine we had one of those nights where our kicking turned to shit right from the start!
It was basically a script flip between us vs Lions, and us vs Hawks.

 

[SugarShane]

+

I texted a mate at half-time.
Said that Mitchell would make changes, Hawthorn would bounce back and we would lose another close one.
That's not hard to predict, given Nicks' record.
Sure enough ...

I was watching with my 8yo son. At the start of the last quarter he said "Hawks are below us on the ladder and we're in front. Do you think we'll win?"

I couldn't answer "No" quick enough.

When we inevitably lost the lead, I gave him a knowing look. Then we regained the lead and he was up and about. I told him there was too long left.

Then when we lost the lead again he goes "3 minutes is long enough for us to get another goal."

Bless the innocence of children.

 

[BRL121]

I was watching with my 8yo son. At the start of the last quarter he said "Hawks are below us on the ladder and we're in front. Do you think we'll win?"

I couldn't answer "No" quick enough.

When we inevitably lost the lead, I gave him a knowing look. Then we regained the lead and he was up and about. I told him there was too long left.

Then when we lost the lead again he goes "3 minutes is long enough for us to get another goal."

Bless the innocence of children.

He was correct.

 

[CrowBloke]

I only saw the highlights, but can imagine we had one of those nights where our kicking turned to shit right from the start!
It was basically a script flip between us vs Lions, and us vs Hawks.

I watched every minute. To be fair, it was slippery (dew/cold), but same for both sides.

This is how it panned out:
We dominated the first quarter (multiple I50s) and most of the first half, but without exerting scoreboard pressure.
Our pressure all over the ground was terrific in that first half.
4.7 could easily have been 6.5 and a 4-goal lead.

HALF-TIME: Mitchell got to work, which is what he's paid for, and made several moves.
One of the simplest was to tell them to play in front, tackle harder and exert pressure of their own.
Hawks looked a different side; our blokes looked unprepared for the fightback.

Impey was rampant off half-back, killed Murphy, NO changes made by Nicks, eg Keays to Impey, Butts to Gunston, ANYthing to change the flow and momentum, but Nicks ==> nada.
Nicks' inability to counter Hawks' changes was obvious and frustrating.
Crows hampered by Murphy's selection (shut-down player Bond or even Taylor would have been a better choice), too-tall forward line for the conditions and Nicks' tactical uselessness.

Obvious sub was either Walker (floundering) or Murphy (ineffective), but Pedlar subbed out instead.
Both sides had 5 scoring shots but Hawks 2.3 to our 5 points, so GAME ON THE LINE @ 3/4 time.

They kicked 2.4, us 1.3, most definitely aided by bewildering 50m penalties and "deliberate oob" calls.
Nicks out-Coached after 1/2 time.
We lose .

 

[1970crow]

He said recently he'll do what's best for the side, and i believe that.

Pity the coaches wont.

That’s lip service, he’ll be demanding to play, which is our lived experience. Why would you be believing differently? Do you genuinely reckon that he’s telling the coaches he needs a rest and they’re selecting him anyway? That’s just stupid.

 

[CrowBloke]

I was watching with my 8yo son. At the start of the last quarter he said "Hawks are below us on the ladder and we're in front. Do you think we'll win?"

I couldn't answer "No" quick enough.

When we inevitably lost the lead, I gave him a knowing look. Then we regained the lead and he was up and about. I told him there was too long left.

Then when we lost the lead again he goes "3 minutes is long enough for us to get another goal."

Bless the innocence of children.

Your son hasn't been Nicksed.
Lucky boy.

 

[1970crow]

If Nank hadn't played a month of dogshit, he'd still be in the team. Glad it sounds like his form is returning.

He’s a half back, not a wingman. Cumming is barely any better in that role. Our wings, or the way we use them, is a problem.

 

[SugarShane]

Your son hasn't been Nicksed.
Lucky boy.

It actually made me feel like kind of a shit dad getting him invested in the Crows. I had a real "Why am I doing this to him?" moment.

 

[BRL121]

He’s a half back, not a wingman. Cumming is barely any better in that role. Our wings, or the way we use them, is a problem.

They got our only two goals in the first quarter.

 

[Coopers]

I was the opposite. First game in a long time against a decent team where I wasn't feeling like we were going to lose. We were dominating the midfield and taking care of then defensively. After we got momentum back in the last I still thought we'd win.

Probably why I was so pissed that we lost cos of how we were so easily controlling the game for a large chunk.

Such a great opportunity squandered.

We really did dominate the game.

Absolute garbage we couldn't put it on the scoreboard at all, and then lose.

FFS.