Autopsy Round 2 vs Brisbane Lions

[nj23]

Couldn’t help noticing how often McDonald got into space down my wing and called for the ball and wasn’t given it once. Teammates don’t trust you, it’s time for a spell. It is anyway, just not good enough. Jy needs to go back and get confidence or something at VFL level.

I noticed Scott Thompson taking a kick out and LMAC screaming for it to the left of play 3 on 2 and Thompson turned and went the opposite way. Chose to kick to BBB goldy and Campbell who were all close enough to each other to be in the same contest.

 

[Tas]

I might be seriously delusional but I see a side with a fantastic midfield. That's with a number of starting players to return, whose arrival demotes Tyson, demotes Simpkin, increases Higgins forward time.

You're bang on with Wood. A Waite circa 3 years ago would be invaluable. But we don't have that. So Scott has to modify his game style to prioritise our midfield as our strong point, rather than aerial dominance which Scottball depends on. A smart small forward would be priceless and heaven forbid a half back who could kick, but for some crazy reason I see a team that could piece this abominable start together and build into the year.

I agree, we potentially have a very good midfield, if Jacobs ever returns and Brad picks the best team on form... with him leaving Ahern out, it doesn't instill confidence as he was our best inside mid over the JLT.

We didn't even try to stop bombing over the JLT and look to hit smaller forwards on the lead and we are still bombing it way too much to Brown like he is Wayne Carey. Brown only took 1 contested mark, so why bang it to him as often as we do? I think Wood was getting frustrated last week and was just running to where Brown was because even when he went on good leads they were being ignored. Too many in the midfield and half back rely on the long ball, way too much when they are incapable of sticking it out to someone's advantage.

 

[Caracas]

Hope you've got a bucket then.

It was heaps better effort from R1. And heaps better everything. There was structure. When we went handball happy we tried to change it up. The "gameplan" worked for the first half, till Brisbane nullified it and then it became a hard fought game. Aparantly Goldy was off for 11 minutes during which time Brisbane got the ascendency in the third (I heard that on the app which had Brereton commentating). If that is true it explains why he went missing.

We lost our most important defender with a few minutes to go. He should have been dragged when it was obvious that he was done and Turner put on Cameron with a bit of a reminder about Cameron hitting in the guts playing for Adelaide. Without Marley out they wouldn't have got those easy goals.

But what really cost us the game were a few poor decisions at crucial times and a failure to take our opportunities early and late in the game. A few players need to look at themselves too.

Brisbane beat the premiers last week. Then again we beat them last year and didn't even make finals. But everyone's been talking them up since last season so maybe they will come good. AS Reginald0 mentioned above we had nine players who are new - five mature recruits, 3 were very good one okay but not great, one who is in there just to be tall did his job i spose and 4 with about 10 games between them going into the game. One guy had played 8 of them.

I think its gonna take a few weeks for that to gel.

Especially when you think about how underdone Taz looked and Brown looked in the first half.

It was a disappointing game to lose tho even with all that. Might cost the team and Scotts by season's end.

But at the same time I don't think it deserves the wholesale spewing that everyone is going on with.

At the game, it seemed to me that the only thing that improved from last week was the defence, as expected. This structured us up better and had some positive knock-on effects. However, it wasn’t enough to get us the win, so we’ve suffered a very bad loss. We will improve, I know. However, we have dropped two games that we had marked down as victories before the season started. That sets us up for a 1-5 start, if we’re lucky. That’s not going to fly for us supporters, given we well and truly got ahead of ourselves when Hall, Polec, etc arrived. Reality is a bitch. As for Scott, it’s shaping up as Laidley’s 2009. So, all things being equal, he’ll, most likely, fall on his sword after the break. On the bright side, the new coach will have a solid base to work off.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Better Loosen Up]

low tackle counts and allowing near 140 I50s over two games speaks volumes of a midfield with no defensive edge

No. It speaks volumes of an uncontested, zoning style game plan that allows our opposition to switch play and hit up targets repeatedly running into open space.

 

[Better Loosen Up]

View attachment 645463
View attachment 645464


Encouraging direction the club is taking. Well outplayed by younger, hungrier sides.

Watch Bailey Scott get dropped this week

 

[nj23]

Saw that

Wat was that about

I didn’t see which person in the crowd he was yelling at but he looked pretty furious. JMac walked away and then turned around and had another go. Then he patted his Brisbane opponent on the chest.
Presume someone in the crowd went a bit too far with whatever they said?

 

[Better Loosen Up]

What's there to say?
Improvement on last week.
Everyone did their role.
Everyone had good and bad moments.
Decent game of football
Skills a bit rusty, common in the early round's.
Had TT debut and kick his first goal.
Nobody was trash .

Campbell was a good inclusion.
Obviously lacking a forward presenting up the ground to make a contest and leaving BBB in the F50.

Good structural change.

McKay looked more settled in defence. Almost kicked a goal.

Having polec instead of Gibbo/Clarke is a definite upgrade.

If your expectations were not taken down a notch or two after last week, then you're a dreamer.

As we have come to know, a Brad Scott season quickly turns from hopelessness to pleasantly satisfying.








On Pixel 3 XL using BigFooty.com mobile app

You're obviously very easily pleased.

 

[hilly]

I didn’t see which person in the crowd he was yelling at but he looked pretty furious. JMac walked away and then turned around and had another go. Then he patted his Brisbane opponent on the chest.
Presume someone in the crowd went a bit too far with whatever they said?

Do you recall who his opponent was?

 

[Gasometer]

Do you recall who his opponent was?

It was about mid way through the 3rd quarter, city side pocket

 

[Better Loosen Up]

I think there is merit playing wood alongside Campbell and Brown. Might be the opportunity to give both him and Ziebell more opportunity to get 1 on 1.

Tarrant better for the run but still a bit off it. We lack zip up forward, Cameron and McCarthy able to have impact using pace and athleticism buzzing around the packs. We don't have that.

Coaching that allows one mid from the opposition to rack them up without any direction to block or impede run particularly in the centre square is concerning. Not sure Brad is the type to think of and then utilise a Plan B on the fly. Thought we were outcoached, allowing Neale to drag them into the second half.

On SM-G950F using BigFooty.com mobile app

Need to move on from Wood. Wood offers us 1 flash in the pan performance about every 10 weeks and the rest of the time he is an absolute witches hat.

 

[DarwinRoo]

If Scott goes then Crocker goes aswell and so does Tudor

 

[Better Loosen Up]

Fellow fans
Today we had more or less 9 new players

Count em up
Scott Ldu McKay TT
Polec pittard Tyson hall Campbell

So teamwork is appalling
No big surprise

Stick Ando and Ahern in I think we will go a lot better

So you're saying we can still win the flag then?

 

[shinboner spiggs]

I agree, we potentially have a very good midfield, if Jacobs ever returns and Brad picks the best team on form... with him leaving Ahern out, it doesn't instill confidence as he was our best inside mid over the JLT.

We didn't even try to stop bombing over the JLT and look to hit smaller forwards on the lead and we are still bombing it way too much to Brown like he is Wayne Carey. Brown only took 1 contested mark, so why bang it to him as often as we do? I think Wood was getting frustrated last week and was just running to where Brown was because even when he went on good leads they were being ignored. Too many in the midfield and half back rely on the long ball, way too much when they are incapable of sticking it out to someone's advantage.

The roos will surprise us in the next month. Bookmark this post.

The forward line is a bit disjointed currently but there have been major changes to the dynamic already and its been 2 weeks. We need to continue the high possession game and the forwards need to continue to lead and lead and lead some more. I'd also like to see Ahern but forward of the ball strictly.

 

[Mav]

I noticed Scott Thompson taking a kick out and LMAC screaming for it to the left of play 3 on 2 and Thompson turned and went the opposite way. Chose to kick to BBB goldy and Campbell who were all close enough to each other to be in the same contest.

Was that the time it hit the ground and we had no small men there to crumb? It was pathetic

 

[Caracas]

The roos will surprise us in the next month. Bookmark this post.

The forward line is a bit disjointed currently but there have been major changes to the dynamic already and its been 2 weeks. We need to continue the high possession game and the forwards need to continue to lead and lead and lead some more. I'd also like to see Ahern but forward of the ball strictly.

No doubt, it is possible that we can turn it around. If we can improve our composure, there will be massive improvement. However, unfortunately, negativity, has a corrosive effect on any team. I've not given up on them. I'm sure most of you are in the same boat - despite the understandable frustration being exhibited here. Brad doesn't help himself when he flags change and then does nothing. It really backfired this week when Dumont pulled out. Ahern would have been the perfect replacement. Thomas, unfortunately, weakened the team in this instance.It, also, seemed a no-brainer that Larkey was a better option than Campbell, if for no other reason than he needs the exposure.

 

[justroyal]

Tyson just seems like surplus.
I still think he is a good player and great guy, but his inclusion still sits uncomfortable with me when we're trying to get games into our young on-ballers.
His addition makes no sense with Ahern, Dumont and Jed available (when fit).
If you're going to be adding "depth", you should hope to god it is for someone other than a meat grinder who doesn't seem to be damaging in any aspect of his game.

 

[Ocha905]

The issue I have with today is off field.

I sat with the fam in the north end near the cheer squad for the first time (have generally sat on the wing previously).

First home game of the year - see sawing game - you would think there would be a good atmosphere - but there was not.

Not only were our supporter numbers down - I suspect we had 14k there max today - but the spirit seems broken.

It just felt like we had all seen this movie many times over - the inevitable loss coming - don't over invest. We got 4 goals up one stage and there was no momentum, no energy from the crowd at all.

The cheer squad themselves were great - but the general supporter base who bothered to turn up seemed to be just like the team - going through the motions...expecting we were going to get overrun.

Have we all just had enough?

Has 10 years of middling finishes, no genuine star power, 4 games now in tassie, the same spin doctoring by the coach - are we now just over it.

The on field stuff aside (and to be discussed to death in other posts) but the level of supporter engagement with the team right now would be at a many year low.

I've missed about 10 home games (real, Melbourne home games) in the last 6 years. All because of sickness or unavoidable commitments. However today I just couldn't be bothered fronting up.

I was pumped for the season but Round 1 knocked the wind out of my sails. 4 games in Hobart and the general spin from the club are the other factors of my discontent.

Re - the spin. All the post game interviews were cringe-inducing with how hard they were trying to be positive. I love the off-feld social initiatives but on-field I don't know what the club stands for anymore when they're talking up a loss to a team we've beaten the last 5 times and who've been a basketcase for a decade. Brisbane have moved past us now for goodness sake.

The email sent by Buckley was the biggest load of self congratulation I've been subjected too from a non-politician. The only words worth reading in it was "talk is cheap". Indeed Ben, indeed. Scott and Crocker also keep mentioning 'synergy' which is the biggest corporate wank term invented and I think typifies the hollowness of the team atm.

It all just feels fake. Anyone involved with the club should be disgusted at the team efforts over the last two weeks and not trying to make excuses or attempt to distract us from harsh reality of the situation (0-2 to teams that finished bottom 6 in 2018).

What I'd like from the club is a simple message that acknowledges that they've stuffed up their preparation so far and are in a dog fight now to make something of the season. That's all and then let your actions do the talking.

 

[Caracas]

I don’t have much truck with teams’ brands and “what they stand for”. I expect all teams to go out and try their best to win every week. Yes, some teams have better players and tactics or they’re fitter and more confident. That’s the height of it in my book. The rest is all about employing extra staff and good luck to them.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Gasometer]

The issue I have with today is off field.

I sat with the fam in the north end near the cheer squad for the first time (have generally sat on the wing previously).

First home game of the year - see sawing game - you would think there would be a good atmosphere - but there was not.

Not only were our supporter numbers down - I suspect we had 14k there max today - but the spirit seems broken.

It just felt like we had all seen this movie many times over - the inevitable loss coming - don't over invest. We got 4 goals up one stage and there was no momentum, no energy from the crowd at all.

The cheer squad themselves were great - but the general supporter base who bothered to turn up seemed to be just like the team - going through the motions...expecting we were going to get overrun.

Have we all just had enough?

Has 10 years of middling finishes, no genuine star power, 4 games now in tassie, the same spin doctoring by the coach - are we now just over it.

The on field stuff aside (and to be discussed to death in other posts) but the level of supporter engagement with the team right now would be at a many year low.

If I can be bothered I will go back and bump my post from last year when I posted about the North crowd following the * loss based on my seat up that end

I don’t think I got many likes

I think I was howled down

 

[Handsome.B.Wonderful]

Brad: "If we won the game by 20 points we would be here talking about a lot of the positives out of that game."

This is a great way to look at it. I mean, let’s just pretend we beat Freo by 82 points last week and then Brisbane by 20 points this week.

Let’s also pretend he can actually coach and the club isn’t on its knees again, outnumbered by Brisbane fans at our first home game.

 

[Event Horizon]

Just came through the other end, hit me up if you need an ear, some advice - for want of a much better word. Bite your tongue, tick the boxes and breathe.

I’m also in that space. And doesn’t it suck when North serves to this crap on top of everything else...


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Roosurgence]

This year, I renewed my membership for the 20th year straight. I will get a keyring commemorating the event, plus an invite to an ‘exclusive players function’ It may or may not be the case that I am a bad luck omen for North as the last year I didn’t sign up, we won the flag.

Obviously it would be self centred in the extreme to even suggest that I have anything to do with the performances that we see week in, week out on field.

HOWEVER, I cannot remember over the last 20 years, a North team that hasn’t had the exact same problems that we have now.

North teams in my experience have been low on skill and flair, and high on heart and grit. Now being packed with heart and grit will give you a bunch of great days at the footy when the team is ‘on’. But generally you’ll get the following types of seasons which we have all seen variants of since 2000.

1 - POOR NORTH TEAM - Beaten regularly, finish low on ladder, pull off a great win now and then (like when we beat a high flying St Kilda team in 2012)
2 - AVERAGE NORTH TEAM - Finish either just out of the eight or just in it and get beaten horribly in finals. Period of about 10 games where we win 8 or so and everything thinks we're good enough, but can never sustain it.
3 - GOOD NORTH TEAM - Make prelims from dogged underdog positions (2015-16) Don’t make Top 4 because our skill levels aren’t good enough. Fall just short.

Watching today, Brisbane was going to win that game 80% of the time. The fact that it was close until half way through the last quarter was misleading. They had 20 more inside 50s than us until 3/4 time. This was because they could move the ball MUCH, MUCH easier than we did. Stats aside, after the first quarter, anyone watching could see that they were much better than us at:

(1) Winning the ball at the contest
(2) Making space and hitting targets around the ground.
(3) Hitting up targets in the forward 50

I was sitting in front of some people, and one comment made in frustration really stuck in my head. After a North handball/handball/handball/missed handball/turnover/goal on the rebound North classic, the guy behind me just screamed ‘Geez North, it’s always SO DIFFICULT’

And that’s true. Modern football is all about two things. Space and time. INFINITESIMAL amounts of space and time, attempting to evade the massive amounts of pressure that teams put on.

What separates good players from average ones, is their ability either in:

(1) Speed of thought, or
(2) Precision of disposal

These things have value in order to give their teammates some ******* space or some ******* time.

When people say ‘James Hird, it’s like he was playing the game in slow motion, they mean that he thought faster than everyone else and saw options before they did’

When people say ‘Breust is one of the best kickers in the game’ they mean that they can pick out players with precision in a way which gives them that LITTLE bit more time that will then allow them to pick out the next player, and so on and so forth.

That’s why we love Cunnington, and why I hold out hope for LDU, because Cunners finds space where there is none, and I can see the same in LDU. These players find an extra millisecond which then flows on to their teammates and those, collectively over the match, since AFL football nowadays is a constant pressure cooker are the small moments where games are won and lost.

A good team has enough players who can create those milliseconds on a regular basis to make the game that much easier for their teammates. You can’t just have one or two of those players.

We don’t have enough.

Our playing group too regularly give the loopy hospital handball, the handball/kick just a FEEEEEW inches wide, the wrong option, the sequence of too many handballs resulting in enough pressure to cough it up, the kick over the head, the fumble, the this and the that to ensure that a team like Brisbane nowadays will beat us.

There is a critical mass of these kind of players. You need enough to allow your gritty player’s efforts to be rewarded. Not enough means that turnovers abound, chains of possession break down and over a match you get beaten by teams that have those players and make that space.

The balance between grit and silk is off, and it has been for 20 years. No idea how to fix it, but I’ve been seeing the same thing for a long time now and anyone who can’t see it is blind.

That’s my two cents.
Yianni

Great post!

I have the feeling we have the talent on the list, but it’s being stifled by the coaches stubbornness to play a certain way.

Everyone can see it’s an abomination the way he coaches us to play, so you can only think the players are having similar thoughts.

When is the last time you excelled at a job where you had no belief in what you are being asked to do?

Scott has tried to turn this list into some robotic, systematic machine. As you pointed out, the great players are great because they could think on their feet and sum up a situation and adapt. I just get a feeling that this group has that and any flair being coached out of them.

I look at a player like Wood as an example. All the talent in the world, yes a little bit soft, but still very talented. You look at him now and he looks confused on where to run and what to do, it’s like he is overthinking things.

Im not saying we don’t need some system and a game style, but it’s like Brad is placing more importance on game style and system over flair and natural decision making.

Dropping Ahern goes to prove that in Brads world sticking rigidly to his system is more important that the ability to create and think on your feet.

 

[Supreme_Chancellor]

Let’s Pretend
Let’s Pretend
Let’s Pretend we aren’t a basket case!!!

 

[nicko74]

If Scott goes then Crocker goes aswell and so does Tudor

Whatever it takes man! It's ****in ridiculous now

 

[Roosurgence]

Let’s Pretend
Let’s Pretend
Let’s Pretend we aren’t a basket case!!!

I don’t think we are a basket case. I think last year we showed we can play good footy. There is talent on the list and some of our kids look like they are going to make it.

This playing group needs a new voice, a new direction. Brad has had 10 years to put his stamp on this team, but the lack of development and lack of direction, shows his time is up.