Game Day Trial V Pear 20.2

[1970crow]

I watched most of the match live on my iPad but I was preparing dinner so I didn’t have a laser focus..

The full game is available on YouTube. I watched it on the tellie late last night to check how our fringe players performed.

You have made the most posts in this thread despite not watching the game. Here’s an idea, why don’t you stop posting, watch the replay and THEN provide us with your valuable insights?

I haven’t provided a single insight. I simply questioned a poster who did, by stating a fact about how many scoring shots we conceded to a terrible side. Posters then responded that we put the cue in the rack for the final quarter, when at 3/4 time we had generated 2 more scoring shots than Port.

If we’d played Eagles and conceded equivalent scoring shots, and assuming you place any value on trial games, would that concern you? It would concern me, not Port though, I don’t think they’re that bad.

 

[Daniel6]

And yet you wee happy to call him out likely new whipping boy . Aren’t you part of problem ?

No, not at all. I never said anything negative about Charlie Edwards

I was simply pointing out he had some unnecessary negative comments and the gang mentality would use him a a whipping boy.

 

[1970crow]

Jones played well enough yesterday but id like to see more against Freo.

Cook looked the goods, Nank a little disappointing IMO.

I like Jones, I like the way he plays and reckon his best footy is pretty handy. Wing is a real weakness with Curtin going down and Cumming not that good there. We need Jones to get back to his best so we at least have another option there.

 

[119others]

Reckon my ladder predictor had us 7th and them 10th or 11th, not vastly different to the Sportsbet odds. I’m comfortable with my predictions. I also think it’s risky predicting too many seasons ahead, things can change quickly. They look like losing Butters, but also look like getting NWM a year later.

Let's review end of year. Should be pretty clear then. My predictions are objectively consistent with market beliefs and yours are just a little on the "softer" side for us and "stronger" side for Power.

 

[Cromulant]

I like Jones, I like the way he plays and reckon his best footy is pretty handy. Wing is a real weakness with Curtin going down and Cumming not that good there. We need Jones to get back to his best so we at least have another option there.

Id like to see him back it up against Freo, but Friday was a solid performance by him.

As you say with Curtin not being there and others not standing up enough, the spot is there for him.

 

[Ciao Giacomo]

I haven’t provided a single insight.

If we’d played Eagles and conceded equivalent scoring shots, and assuming you place any value on trial games, would that concern you? It would concern me, not Port though, I don’t think they’re that bad.

I agree with your first statement.

Both teams had half a dozen of their best 23 missing.
At the best of times the relative performance of teams in trial matches is a poor guide to future performance.

As I outlined in my response to your question re Poort Pear (which you have ignored), their lack of depth in some areas
(eg tall defenders) was clear. In the first half both teams were stronger and we comfortably had their measure.

I would not be buying a flight to Melbourne in late September based on Friday’s match but there were some positive signs.

P.S. I believe the replay is available on Kayo/Foxtel. Did you get a chance to watch it last night after you stopped posting?

 

[1970crow]

We play 3 wingmen.

Expect Cumming, Jones & Cook... with Ah Chee up forward.

Reckon Ah Chee will play up the ground a bit. 3 talls, ANB, Keays, Pedlar and Rankine/Rachele rotating.

 

[1970crow]

Especially after the very positive comments coming out of Footy Park about his summer.

Reckon every year there’s a player or 2 that are talked up and then spend the majority of their time in the 2s.

 

[1970crow]

Cook ready to serve up his chance

Brayden Cook reflects on his shift to the wing and what impressed him the most in match-sim win against Port Adelaide

www.afc.com.au

Why would we do this? Have him train in a new role all preseason, and then in the first trial match move him to a different position altogether?

Is it just to try and find out who can cover for Curtin? We were presumably planning on moving him to the midfield anyway.

Seems bizarre. Why did he spend months training down back if that's not where we want him to play? Or, if we do want him to play there, why did we miss out on the first chance to actually try it out against proper opposition?

My guess is that we were adding a string to his bow and reality is there’s not really a spot in the back half at present. The opportunity that has opened up is wing. The back 7 is fairly well locked in to start the season. Playing ok on a wing could get him the last spot in the 23.

 

[Mostyn]

He was a solo ruck in the SANFL last year and had done an apprenticeship at Sydney.

Whilst no doubt he'll improve after a year of it, if McAndrew wants a career, he needs to be ready now. After all, we're due for a bit of dumpster diving to find a new ruck.

He rucked with Strachan and Toby Murray - going by Wheelo stats, McAndrew had about 55% of ruck contests.

I think he can work up to it but he needs to keep getting time in his legs.

 

[1970crow]

So you think they had him train with the defensive group all preseason with the intention of playing him on the wing when the real stuff started?

He wasn’t going to push past Hinge, Max, Laird or Milera at the beginning of the season. Training with them throughout preseason makes him a viable candidate to replace an injury or poor form from Hinge. Laird had a couple of rests last year, he’s trained in defence so he can be a viable candidate when a replacement is required.

 

[Trigger13]

Watch us play an underdone/injured Soligo in round 1.

 

[1970crow]

Let's review end of year. Should be pretty clear then. My predictions are objectively consistent with market beliefs and yours are just a little on the "softer" side for us and "stronger" side for Power.

Will definitely be clearer then. I haven’t seen your ladder prediction in that thread yet. The variation is basically a win each or even an extra win to a side around us or loss to one around Port. There’s no meaningful difference between my prediction and Sportsbet. Noting that the ladder has never ended up matching the Sportsbet preseason market.

 

[1970crow]

Id like to see him back it up against Freo, but Friday was a solid performance by him.

As you say with Curtin not being there and others not standing up enough, the spot is there for him.

Also opens up possibility of Cumming going back to half back if we’ve got a viable replacement. I don’t think it would be on the table until Curtin returns, but it would be nice to get him playing his best footy.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

Reckon Ah Chee will play up the ground a bit. 3 talls, ANB, Keays, Pedlar and Rankine/Rachele rotating.

Agree once he is over his hamstring... but I would not be encouraging too many bounces down the wing in his 1st month.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

Also opens up possibility of Cumming going back to half back if we’ve got a viable replacement. I don’t think it would be on the table until Curtin returns, but it would be nice to get him playing his best footy.

At the moment we lack wingmen not half back flankers... unless one of our half back flankers swap with Cumming.

 

[1970crow]

I agree with your first statement.

Both teams had half a dozen of their best 23 missing.
At the best of times the relative performance of teams in trial matches is a poor guide to future performance.

As I outlined in my response to your question re Poort Pear (which you have ignored), their lack of depth in some areas
(eg tall defenders) was clear. In the first half both teams were stronger and we comfortably had their measure.

I would not be buying a flight to Melbourne in late September based on Friday’s match but there were some positive signs.

P.S. I believe the replay is available on Kayo/Foxtel. Did you get a chance to watch it last night after you stopped posting?

What do you mean I ignored the post, I’m the only poster that liked it. And I have a Sunday morning routine that doesn’t include watching a replay of a trial game missing many good players and lacking season level intensity. There is a chance I watched it last night, but my final couple of hours have been lost.

I’ll watch the Freo game, it’ll be a little closer to how we’re going to set up in round 1. But I’ll really only be interested in seeing the fringe types go ok. And hoping Sog increases his minutes.

 

[119others]

Will definitely be clearer then. I haven’t seen your ladder prediction in that thread yet. The variation is basically a win each or even an extra win to a side around us or loss to one around Port. There’s no meaningful difference between my prediction and Sportsbet. Noting that the ladder has never ended up matching the Sportsbet preseason market.

Not sure I have ever played the ladder game but maybe this year and, if so, clearly will do much closer to season start. A season ending injury or 2 to any finalist would materially impact ranking.

 

[1970crow]

At the moment we lack wingmen not half back flankers... unless one of our half back flankers swap with Cumming.

We definitely have numerous half backs but we lack a player with vision and elite disposal that opens up opposition. Milera is a very good kick but he rarely takes the game on and tends to kick short.

 

[119others]

At the moment we lack wingmen not half back flankers... unless one of our half back flankers swap with Cumming.

Who would you say can, or has, played wing? Without checking squad again I reckon:

Curtin
Jones
Cummings
Sholl
ANB
Ah Chee
Hinge
Soligo

Perhaps others edit Cook

 

[119others]

We definitely have numerous half backs but we lack a player with vision and elite disposal that opens up opposition. Milera is a very good kick but he rarely takes the game on and tends to kick short.

Hinge showed signs 2-3 years ago at breaking lines with calculated risk using his booming kick.

His regression, at least last year, was one of our only real negatives imo

 

[1970crow]

Not sure I have ever played the ladder game but maybe this year and, if so, clearly will do much closer to season start. A season ending injury or 2 to any finalist would materially impact ranking.

You’re allowed to make adjustments prior to the season. We’re an injury away from me going back to the predictor. If it was working.

 

[Peter Doherty]

I don't rate them but they have really really soft draw. They will go close to making the top 10.

Their draw looks super soft, especially early.

What happens though if North roll them in round 1 in Melbourne?

JHF is a big loss.

 

[1970crow]

Hinge showed signs 2-3 years ago at breaking lines with calculated risk using his booming kick.

His regression, at least last year, was one of our only real negatives imo

Actually forgot about him, weird considering I listed him when talking about Cook playing on a wing. Anyway, yeh, he absolutely has the type of kick needed. But as you say, his form last year was pretty ordinary. Him, Murphy and Smith playing any games and probably Murray over Butts late in the year would be the only real negatives in terms of players’ form/selection. I guess Keays was down a bit compared to his best and Soligo conked out or finished carrying an injury.

 

[1970crow]

Their draw looks super soft, especially early.

What happens though if North roll them in round 1 in Melbourne?

JHF is a big loss.

Is he injured? Thought I saw a headline that his scan was clear.