Preview Geelong v West Coast Sunday Apr 28 @ GMHBA

[Turbocat]

Very glass half empty there, Turbo. I don't think you're giving us enough credit for those wins. To be 4-1 is certainly no fluke and given we have blooded several young and promising players, this year has been a raging success so far.

Big test this week as you say, but we are rightfully favourites heading into this one. West Coast might be the reigning premiers but they have been badly dismantled twice this season already, one of them at home. I'm just going to continue enjoying the journey and seeing the development of our young players. I personally don't think we're a contender as we're still very much transitioning this list, that's why I have just enjoyed the wins week by week. Others will disagree and have greater expectations.

I don't get to bogged down thinking about top 4 and flags, it becomes less enjoyable. If I'm wrong and we can contend with this developing list, it's just a massive bonus.

I don't think I have been overly negative ..but there is a need to be levelheaded about our performance and our opposition .. one really doesnt know how good you are or they are till a few results get in the can. 6 Weeks in , we are starting to get to the stage where we can frank our performance.
It not negative to say this week is a big test.. its a bit more info on where we really are. Win or lose ... it will affect our rating.

 

[Spazz Cat]

I don't think I have not been overly negative ..but there is a need to be levelheaded about our performance and our opposition .. one really doesnt know how good you are or they are till a few results get in the can. 6 Weeks in , we are starting to get to the stage where we can frank our performance.
It not negative to say this week is a big test.. its a bit more info on where we really are. Win or lose ... it will affect our rating.

I think the game against Essendon will be a really good indicator of where we are.
MCG, against a style we haven't coped with well.
If we win that I'm actually gonna be pretty excited about the year. Reckon we could win a final or two.

 

[Hamingja]

I think the game against Essendon will be a really good indicator of where we are.
MCG, against a style we haven't coped with well.
If we win that I'm actually gonna be pretty excited about the year. Reckon we could win a final or two.

I think externally it would just be so you beat the Eagles in Geelong, so what, if we win this week.

If we go 3/3 at the G against a team that has caused us problems the last few years I'm well and truly on board for the year ahead.

TBH I'd probably take 1-1 for the next two games if offered.

 

[Turbocat]

You could have just gone with "it's not who you play but when you play them"
In Constable for Parfitt inj and Smith for Sav managed.
The club should have another look at Smith against reasonable opposition with a decision having to be made on him this year(out of contract).
2E back for Essendon,with no VFL this weekend he will be in heavy training this and early next week.

Thats one way of saying I guess.. im pretty sure there are some sides that would be tough to play no matter what but Pies may well be harder to play now .. Freo may well be thinking they were happy to play GWS after they had played us.
So playing West Coast after being beaten at home.. one will see if thats a good time to play them.

 

[Turbocat]

I think the game against Essendon will be a really good indicator of where we are.
MCG, against a style we haven't coped with well.
If we win that I'm actually gonna be pretty excited about the year. Reckon we could win a final or two.

Ess present as an extreme test v speed but I feel we do have good control mostly on this sort of test ..as long as we dont get too sucked up the ground.. Ess can do us on the fast break a bit. I dont think we will go at it like North ..who tried to match Fire with Fire

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Whilst I am a fan of Sav gaining experience I think this is the week to play VFL or rest him if he's proppy from last week - we can't afford him to be off this week as we need to ensure we compete in the air up forward and make their talls accountable.
I also think we need to look after Stanley and have him ruck less minutes by playing Abbott ( like his aggression and size).
Abbott presented well at CHF last season and did kick a couple in a game so I'd give him the nod over Fort or Smith at this stage - plus Vardy and the other banana aren't setting the world on fire at the moment.

I know it's good to play a settled line up but we also need to ensure we are fresh and up for the contest - we have depth and shouldn't be afraid to use it if we sense a player is fading or in need of a spell ( particularly the young guys)

 

[Goggin Our Best]

Big test for Geelong...

One might say...

Collingwood.. Should have won and were underdone
Melb ... Looking more and more like they have had a bighead offseason
Adelaide... Any win over there is good but they are not playing like there were predicted
GWS .... Looked like a differnt level to us
Haw... Undermaned


Preseason it looked like the fixture from hell..but the match ups have fallen our way a bit....

but niw we play WC off a loss.. we play at home after losing at home last time out..

Big test for Geelong .. serious threat or not

Agree with the theme of your post

However i liked what i saw against Hawthorn ( dont care how many they had out - their still hard to beat )

There are plenty of shocking AFL games - but i thought the Geel v Haw game was a good game to watch - quick movement of the ball and plenty of goals

 

[Turbocat]

Agree with the theme of your post

However i liked what i saw against Hawthorn ( dont care how many they had out - their still hard to beat )

There are plenty of shocking AFL games - but i thought the Geel v Haw game was a good game to watch - quick movement of the ball and plenty of goals

as a generalisation both Haw and Geelong pref to play a brand where they back our own guys. I doubt that Haw would get as many easy exits from the CB's against a Freo or someone more focused on prevention.

There was a lot to like ..and easy to like positive stuff. Rohan and Ablett tc was obvious but the continuation of the growth of MOC and Meirs etc .. theres a couple of names that I didnt have in our best 22 ..but hey would go close to now ..even with a full list.
And Bliz and Kolo have really played well most weeks this year.. we have transitioned our backline to the point now that Taylor is the onnly player that looks possible to be gone soon.

Our mids setup is still no great. Id love an experts opinion .. in some part at least it must have something to do with Stanley..who around the ground is very good.. but this year with the 666 .the CB are more critical than they have been for many a year. I do wonder what a Rod Blake or a Damien Bourke could with our mid group.

 

[Isaac Norm Smith]

I don't think I have not been overly negative ..but there is a need to be levelheaded about our performance and our opposition .. one really doesnt know how good you are or they are till a few results get in the can. 6 Weeks in , we are starting to get to the stage where we can frank our performance.
It not negative to say this week is a big test.. its a bit more info on where we really are. Win or lose ... it will affect our rating.

Yeah, I didn't mean you were being negative about this week, I was more referring to the wins which I thought you didn't give us enough credit for. You made a few excuses for the sides we have beaten. It also seems to be common in the media that when we win, it's because the other team played poorly, they were in bad form, undermanned etc.

I'd like to see us get more recognition for what we've done, even if some of the things you mentioned were indeed factors in us getting the win. I think credit needs to go to Chris Scott and the players for the great start to the year. I certainly agree with you that this week is a massive test, and it'll be a great indicator as to how we're progressing.

 

[Max Milburn]

Was thinking of crossing the ditch to catch this one. Alas, will have to be another game.
Hopefully my absence will spur them to victory.
Looking forward to seeing Tuohy play. Be interesting to se who he replaces.

 

[Isaac Norm Smith]

I didn't think we'd be 4-1, put it that way.

There's also just the visual test, too - in terms of the quality of the actual game itself. You can tell a Geelong vs GWS game from a Norf vs Adelaide shitshow. The Collingwood game was scrappy, but that's Collingwood, we were slightly the better side, and it's also Round One. The rest of them were all genuinely good performances, not perfect but certainly good.

Yeah, I don't think any of us thought we'd be 4-1. I don't think we're getting the credit and recognition we deserve. We identified some weaknesses in personnel, and recruited players accordingly. We've also blooded some young players which Chris Scott has been criticised for not doing enough of over the last few years.

I think Scotty and the entire club deserve a lot of praise for what they've achieved thus far. A long way to go, but at least the club have been pro-active in making changes in order to improve. I guess it depends what your expectations are, if it's a flag or bust, then the real test is ahead and the club will be marked harder.

I just want to see us make the finals and win a couple. If we lose to WC by a couple of goals, so be it, I won't be throwing the toys out of the cot. However, it's certainly a winnable game given WC aren't traveling as well as they hoped to be. They've been pulled apart in a couple of games and it's only round 6.

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Not dropping them just wondering if they're getting sore.

Honestly Menegola is the one I've got question marks over of those forward/mid players. He does some good things I just don't really see what his current role is and when he's bad he's utterly horrendous. Like 2 turnovers yesterday under no pressure going inside 50 that hit Hawks lace out and allowed them to immediately rebound.

As you point out he has been a hybrid mid and forward until this season. We are now stacked with small/medium forwards with the emphasis on extreme pressure which is not Sam's forte - so it's the midfield for him IMHO.
I saw a lot of him in WAFL and he was poor as a flanker/winger but came into prominence as an inside mid with Subiaco.
He has elite endurance and prepares impeccably but he has had an interrupted preseason which is probably hampering him at the moment.
I think his game is solid but he can overthink and hang on too long , he also has a very slow and high ball drop which can get him into trouble at times.
If I was him I'd work on becoming an elite clearance machine which is an area we need improving , that will get him picked most weeks.

 

[cats_09]

Was thinking of crossing the ditch to catch this one. Alas, will have to be another game.
Hopefully my absence will spur them to victory.
Looking forward to seeing Tuohy play. Be interesting to se who he replaces.

Hopefully you can make it across the ditch for a game later in the season

 

[Gunf]

As you point out he has been a hybrid mid and forward until this season. We are now stacked with small/medium forwards with the emphasis on extreme pressure which is not Sam's forte - so it's the midfield for him IMHO.
I saw a lot of him in WAFL and he was poor as a flanker/winger but came into prominence as an inside mid with Subiaco.
He has elite endurance and prepares impeccably but he has had an interrupted preseason which is probably hampering him at the moment.
I think his game is solid but he can overthink and hang on too long , he also has a very slow and high ball drop which can get him into trouble at times.
If I was him I'd work on becoming an elite clearance machine which is an area we need improving , that will get him picked most weeks.

I wouldn't mind seeing him tried as a tagger has a huge tank and is big bodied enough as well

 

[Turbocat]

Yeah, I didn't mean you were being negative about this week, I was more referring to the wins which I thought you didn't give us enough credit for. You made a few excuses for the sides we have beaten. It also seems to be common in the media that when we win, it's because the other team played poorly, they were in bad form, undermanned etc.

I'd like to see us get more recognition for what we've done, even if some of the things you mentioned were indeed factors in us getting the win. I think credit needs to go to Chris Scott and the players for the great start to the year. I certainly agree with you that this week is a massive test, and it'll be a great indicator as to how we're progressing.

credit will come if we keep winning.. but there will always be some thats spin to their version of the truth. if i have heard it once , i have heard it 50 times about pies in 2011 being the best team. the best team that we beat 3 times.

 

[Mad_Hatter]

Any news of Parfitts injury?

 

[Jimmy Willis Jawline]

I think the team is clicking very well at the moment. Maybe a few tweaks here and there, but with regards to player management, the only player I would be resting is Jordan Clark. He only has one preseason under his belt, and lets not forget his bout with glandular fever. Other than that I like the idea of the best 22 getting as many games as possible so they can gel. This is a very new look side for us, and regardless of whats happening at the clubs we have beaten so far, it seems to be working.

 

[Isaac Norm Smith]

credit will come if we keep winning.. but there will always be some thats spin to their version of the truth. if i have heard it once , i have heard it 50 times about pies in 2011 being the best team. the best team that we beat 3 times.

My boss who is a diehard Pies supporter, likes to bring up that they were the best team in 2011 and they were more deserving premiers than us. I also remind him we were 3/3 against them and clearly had their measure that year.

Credit will certainly come if we keep beating good sides, although I suspect real recognition won't come until we beat these good sides when it matters most, something we haven't done in a few years. But we can only keep beating who we come up against, that's all we can control at this point in time. Right now we are doing a very good job of that and I'm pleased we have been able to do it whilst blooding the future at the same time.

 

[iameviljez]

My boss who is a diehard Pies supporter, likes to bring up that they were the best team in 2011 and they were more deserving premiers than us. I also remind him we were 3/3 against them and clearly had their measure that year.

They were the best team for the first 15 to 20 weeks or so, but they started to lose it in the last two months - much like Essendon in 2001.

 

[BotsMaster]

This game will really show where we are at.

Just like the same fixture back in 2007 which showed we were the real deal.

 

[romeohwho]

Expecting us to do well in this game. WC not exactly firing on all cylinders at this point in season. Home ground, playing well -should be enough to get us over the line.

 

[romeohwho]

They were the best team for the first 15 to 20 weeks or so, but they started to lose it in the last two months - much like Essendon in 2001.

Thought they were still very good during the whole H&A - we were their stumbling block all year. If they had met anyone else they probably would have won the flag again.

 

[Footy Smarts]

As you point out he has been a hybrid mid and forward until this season. We are now stacked with small/medium forwards with the emphasis on extreme pressure which is not Sam's forte - so it's the midfield for him IMHO.
I saw a lot of him in WAFL and he was poor as a flanker/winger but came into prominence as an inside mid with Subiaco.
He has elite endurance and prepares impeccably but he has had an interrupted preseason which is probably hampering him at the moment.
I think his game is solid but he can overthink and hang on too long , he also has a very slow and high ball drop which can get him into trouble at times.
If I was him I'd work on becoming an elite clearance machine which is an area we need improving , that will get him picked most weeks.

I wouldn't mind seeing him tried as a tagger has a huge tank and is big bodied enough as well

It's a tough one because he's got real strengths. His ability to gut run ahead of the ball is elite and his contested work is very good. He's got the tank and build to be a tagger but he ball-watches way too often and would be exploited massively. He's got the ball winning and goal sense to be a high half forward but that really doesn't fit with our high pressure forward line and he makes bad decisions going inside 50 which means if he misses his target it can lead to really bad turnovers like it did on Monday a couple of times. It sort of feels like he's in our best 22 players but doesn't really fit into any particular spot in the team right now. His individual skills mean he's one of our best 22 players but maybe he's not in our best team.

In saying that though he's earned the right to have plenty of chances and he deserves another month of bad footy before serious questions are asked. But I wouldn't mind seeing him given a spell at some point during the year and us bring in another pressure forward to see how our setup looks. That's not likely to happen until guys like Fogarty and hopefully Cockatoo are back though.

 

[iameviljez]

Thought they were still very good during the whole H&A - we were their stumbling block all year. If they had met anyone else they probably would have won the flag again.

I still think that the Geelong-Collingwood-StKilda triumverate of 2009-2011 were the best set of quality sides at the top I've ever seen. That StKilda side would have won pretty much any flag between 2001 and 2006 inclusive IMO.

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Our mids setup is still no great. Id love an experts opinion .. in some part at least it must have something to do with Stanley..who around the ground is very good.. but this year with the 666 .the CB are more critical than they have been for many a year. I do wonder what a Rod Blake or a Damien Bourke could with our mid group.

I think we have plenty of upside as you have pointed out.
On Centre clearances so critical to get first hands on the ball - which is what Constable assisted with over the first 4 games.
PD is our best clearance mid IMO but it's also good to see us trialling Atkins and Parfitt in there as the next generation.
Using Joel sparingly is also a good option as per the 3rd quarter , turned it our way big time
Definitely a work in progress

A big concern v Hawks was the goals conceded from D50 throw ins - far too many and we need to fix that structurally and fast

Let's hope we get the combinations and chemistry sorted well before September