Opinion Are we being too optimistic?

[footscore]

On average players improve to a peak at 27 and then slowly roll down the other side of the hill from there.

We can't expect more from him next year. If we get the same output we will be doing well.

gut feel but Stevie J is going to be one of those very rare cases where a player actually continues to improve as they get near the end of their footy career.
He's no blessed with explosive athleticism and he's not the biggest kick of a football but he is definitely one of the most different players (unorthodox perhaps?) in the entire compeition.
I felt the same as you as his 2012 season was only sub-par, his best is incredibly brilliant and because of his innate ability to read the play so well, he uses his lack of speed to get to all the right places, sometimes he'll push to a position on the field and you wonder why he isn't get involved in the play until he's got the ball and heading in the direction of defenders...he actually prefers to run toward them than try to avoid them.
Even after all these years of blind turns, side steps and fake handballs, opposition players have no idea what he is going to do once he gets the pill and if he can get through a grueling pre season, 29 going on 30, he's still one of the most gifted players in the game.

 

[BUSTER29]

yeah I can agree with that - but I would be pretty content if his output was maintained, I was pleasantly surprised with what he offered us in the midfield this season. It was a different sort of year for Johnson, that's for sure.

I think his best games during the year were played in the midfield. He gave us the creative spark that we have missed in the middle since Gaz left. We looked fairly pedestrian in the midfield for big parts of 2012,especially
in the first half of the year when we got basically nothing offensively out of Joel Corey and Taylor Hunt.
The game against the Bulldogs? where Johnson played in the middle was probably his best,and a good
example of his creativity with ball in hand.
Still, i do prefer him roaming inside the forward 50 kicking goals on his left,over the shoulder,out
of his backside!

 

[FredLeDeux]

Something which makes me optimistic is that, for the first time for yonks:
(1) only one 1sts player has retired, and
(2) reportedly, every 1sts player is fit for a full pre-season.
To add, for the first time in living memory, 3 1sts-ready recruits would be icing on the cake.

 

[Jimmy Yamazaki]

Would think that injuries pending, our list will be better in 2013 then 2012.. That said ,Hawks improved their list whether Lake is in 2010 form or not. Pies getting rid of Dawes improves their list are West Coast better with Wellingham?

Not to mention Sydney may get Tippett and the much lauded Rohan back so the other contenders will improve also.

Think Crows may go back a bit without Tippett.. Also had a pretty good run with injuries this year

First half of the season I expect a difficult draw which will soften a bit for the back half when the stadiums built so hope we have a good run similar to 11 and then rest players in the softer back half of the draw

We will improve heaps if we can fix the slow starts and soft 50s we did so often this year.

 

[Scottland2007]

With the new season coming through, we're getting back players that would have helped us go that much further in 2012.

Vardy, in my honest opinion, could be the difference between us winning or losing a close game. I trust his kick for goal a lot better than I would a Pods or Walker. We were left wanting a few times this year. Our midfield would work out of their skin only for our forwards to waste their opportunities and lose us the game.

Varcoe is far and beyond our most important running player. That famous Varcoe goal in the 2011 GF only emphasises his effort and impact.

Menzel was our third highest goalkicker in 2011. When this kid comes in I think he'll have an impact, knee recos or not.

Caddy is a promising young player who will only improve with more games, this time in an infinitely better team.

Pretty good ins so far, yeah? Our outs are Scarlett, Wojcinski, Byrnes and Hogan; all who I love and admire and respect more than the next person, but all were fairly average most of the year to be completely honest. We have players like Enright, Chapman, Corey and Hunt all aging. But in all truth, Enright has never shown obvious signs of aging, Chapman will play as a fulltime forward where he is still dangerous, Corey has a fair few promising youngsters on the sidelines waiting for him to chuck off the boots and Hunt had a good 2012 season.

I expect a finish from 5th-8th, but I will in no way be surprised if we make top 4. The boys do like to shock people.

I went on the Main Board predictions thread, and expected a bunch of doubters, who at least this time were justified. I expected a bunch of 8th places for Geelong. To my "surprise", it was worse than I thought. People left, right and centre were predicting a sub-12th position for Geelong. Which, by the way, we have never had the pleasure of achieving in our entire history.

I like these ones the best.




These anomalies got me thinking. Most of us have gotten used to the success, maybe so much so that we've forgotten the cycle of footy...whereas other less fortunate clubs would have a better idea of when we'll fall. Are we being too optimistic or hopeful on our chances? Or are they just unreasonable idiots who assume we'll bottom out just because their club did?

Discuss

Mate, you only need to look at where Esscross put Carlton to realize how serious that list is.!

 

[Trek]

Since we acquired Caddy, Rivers and Hmac, I would say NO!

Paving the way...

 

[Moggy]

Since we acquired Caddy, Rivers and Hmac...

I think making the eight just got a whole lot more certain, with top four a real possibility.
On a good day, we should truly be a match for anyone. With luck, form and a lot of hard work, we could get a shot at another flag.

I expect the media will upgrade our chances significantly, but hopefully not too far.

Am I optimistic? Of course.
Too optimistic? Possibly.
Is it feasible? Absolutely!

(I'll take my fun upfront and deal with any egg on the face later.)

 

[Trek]

I think making the eight just got a whole lot more certain, with top four a real possibility.
On a good day, we should truly be a match for anyone. With luck, form and a lot of hard work, we could get a shot at another flag.

I expect the media will upgrade our chances significantly, but hopefully not too far.

Am I optimistic? Of course.
Too optimistic? Possibly.
Is it feasible? Absolutely!

(I'll take my fun upfront and deal with any egg on the face later.)

Agreed, except I can help but feel upbeat about next year. It's a significant enough change from this year. We're a top 8 certainty at the bare minimum.

 

[CatAttack84]

Put simply, I think some supporters on this board are jumping the gun, extremely jumping the gun in some cases, especially after this week's signings. That said, it's ok for people to get excited, especially as we have to wait 6 months for more AFL. Let people have some excitement, it can be an exciting time to get "new" players.

Aside from that I couldn't give a sh*t what other club supporters think about how we'll go, I never have and never will. Why even bother listen to or read those posts, bullsh*t of the pureest form. Those who like to gamble can't but help themselves and that's their perogative.

We all know it'll take a certain amount of games for the entire squad to find their groove with the changes and new players, until they all mesh. I'm just looking forward to more of our youth getting better, and welcome the chance for "new" players to have a fresh start and hopefully contribute towards something that one hopes could lead to another premiership, maybe not in 2013 but in the nearer coming years. I have faither in OUR club, from the players to the coaches to all the back-end staff, we have established something special this past decade, and it can only get better if we keep doing all these right things.

GO CATS in 2013!!