Confidence!

[LeonDavies21]

If we play anywhere near as bad as last week, we will lose to hawthorn and come into the finals with 2 poor showups. Would u write us off? I really hope we don't waste this year, cause we have been the best thus far!! Hope the boys get their confidence back, cause That's all it is!!! Confidence!!

2010 is our year!!

 

[shawthing09]

People really over rate the idea of confidence, momentum and going into a finals series with "winning form"

It is probably mentally hard to get up for a game against a side playing for nothing knowing that 1st spot is pretty much sewn up (last week) and people are also really under rating Adeliade. They have been very well performed over the last couple of months and their defensive structures are very good. It is a little like Geelong coming out and saying how poorly they played when we beat them, a big part of how poorly we played was caused by how well they defended.

Hypothetically we could play our whole VFL side in the 1's on the weekend and forefit the VFL game and I don't think it would impact the sides performance in the 1st final even a little bit.

One loss or one poor performance (against a side who has always matched up well against us) or a week off for a few guys or anything in that manner isn't going to change the strength of the side. We haven't been winning because of some freak run of form, or burst of confidence or anything else. Class players playing their role in a well drilled structures. None of this changes over the course of a week or a fortnight.

 

[The Get Up Kid]

People really over rate the idea of confidence, momentum and going into a finals series with "winning form"

I'm not so sure about that. I know when I've played in footy clubs the confidence drop off hurts badly and it starts with one game, whether you lose against a good team or just beat a team who's been struggling. It can flow on for a few weeks.

A loss against Hawthorn would put more pressure on us than needed. I think we lost a bit of mojo when hawthorn dismantled us last year after our long winning streak.

If we put Hawthorn to the sword we can use that confidence going into the Bulldogs game.

 

[shawthing09]

I'm not so sure about that. I know when I've played in footy clubs the confidence drop off hurts badly and it starts with one game, whether you lose against a good team or just beat a team who's been struggling. It can flow on for a few weeks.

A loss against Hawthorn would put more pressure on us than needed. I think we lost a bit of mojo when hawthorn dismantled us last year after our long winning streak.

If we put Hawthorn to the sword we can use that confidence going into the Bulldogs game.

No offence but you must have been part of some pretty mentally fragile teams. Essendon 2000 and Geelong 2007 both lost games late in the year. In fact a lot of teams lose games they don't expect to late in the year when not much is on the line. Brisbane lost to us during the finals series in 03 for christ sake.

I've played with individuals like that, who if they put in a poor performance would drop their head and it would take a bit for them to get back to their best, but I have never seen a whole team morale drop after a week or even 2. Especially coming into the business end of the season. Most teams in the position we are now would be steadily thinking about what they need to do in finals not what they need to do this weekend against Hawthorn.

 

[The Get Up Kid]

Actually yeah most of the teams have been fragile hence never winning a senior GF. I understand your point but the Essendon, Brisbane and Geelong teams are rated in the top few teams of all time. Also they are professionals so it shouldn't be that easy but we are yet to prove ourselves.

You have to remember this is Collingwood and we have more pressure on us than most teams. I'm not saying we've lost it or will lose it but if we get beaten by Hawthorn the pressure will intensify. I just noticed we're back to second favourite in betting for the flag? WTF?

My personal opinion is that we will have a more than successful finals series but I think beating Hawthorn this weekend needs to be the first step. Round 22 for teams playing finals needs to be treated as the first step up from the Home and Away season.

 

[mattys123]

I also believe we have to go into the final series with some confidence, but I want to see the selected side first.

With all the rumours going around, if every player who is supposedly injured is out, and then you add Leeroy to that list, we simply may not be able to beat Hawthorn.

The side selected this week to me is the most important of the year so far, as any player with a slight injury has to be rested, but also the ins are important, as the likes of Fraser, Meds, Lockyer, Wood, Anthony (played last week) and Leon want to prove themselves before the finals start.

I think no matter what, as long as we aren't "thumped" by Hawthorn, we will go into our first final against the dogs with a lot of confidence, simply based on our performances over 21 rounds, and especially over the last 11 games (undefeated).

 

[shawthing09]

If you finish first on the ladder and lose confidence because you lose a game that means nothing you don't deserve to win a flag it's that simple, mental strength is a skill and one that is needed in finals football. If winning or losing is going to have an impact on how we perform in the finals we aren't good enough in that area anyway, what happens if we are behind coming into the last quater on grand final day, surely you guys are suggesting we wouldn't have the mental strength to overcome that.

 

[Dawson]

If we play anywhere near as bad as last week, we will lose to hawthorn and come into the finals with 2 poor showups. Would u write us off? I really hope we don't waste this year, cause we have been the best thus far!! Hope the boys get their confidence back, cause That's all it is!!! Confidence!!

2010 is our year!!

I think you missed that we won last week.

You should have watched it, close game but we got over them in the end
I think you might be able to buy a DVD of it

 

[The Dawes]

People really over rate the idea of confidence, momentum and going into a finals series with "winning form"

It is probably mentally hard to get up for a game against a side playing for nothing knowing that 1st spot is pretty much sewn up (last week) and people are also really under rating Adeliade. They have been very well performed over the last couple of months and their defensive structures are very good. It is a little like Geelong coming out and saying how poorly they played when we beat them, a big part of how poorly we played was caused by how well they defended.

Hypothetically we could play our whole VFL side in the 1's on the weekend and forefit the VFL game and I don't think it would impact the sides performance in the 1st final even a little bit.

One loss or one poor performance (against a side who has always matched up well against us) or a week off for a few guys or anything in that manner isn't going to change the strength of the side. We haven't been winning because of some freak run of form, or burst of confidence or anything else. Class players playing their role in a well drilled structures. None of this changes over the course of a week or a fortnight.

History says otherwise.

Last 10 round 22 results for the eventual premiers:

2009 - Geelong won by 40
2008 - Hawthorn won by 78
2007 - Geelong won by 42
2006 - WC won by 88
2005 - Swans - won by 54
2004 - Port won by 96
2003 - Brisbane - won by 43

finally in 2002 Brisbane lost - by 6 points.

2001 - Brisbane won by 31
2000 - Essendon won by 19.

This seems to clearly show you need to hit the finals with form and confidence - most of the eventual premiers won easily in the final H&A game.

I'll be watching on Saturday with interest!

 

[Tarkyn_24]

History says otherwise.

Last 10 round 22 results for the eventual premiers:

2009 - Geelong won by 40
2008 - Hawthorn won by 78
2007 - Geelong won by 42
2006 - WC won by 88
2005 - Swans - won by 54
2004 - Port won by 96
2003 - Brisbane - won by 43

finally in 2002 Brisbane lost - by 6 points.

2001 - Brisbane won by 31
2000 - Essendon won by 19.

This seems to clearly show you need to hit the finals with form and confidence - most of the eventual premiers won easily in the final H&A game.

I'll be watching on Saturday with interest!

FWIW, Brisbane lost to the minor premiers (decided in that game TBH) with Roger James scoring a late goal (after the siren?).

Discount that result and your analysis is spot on.

 

[Koki Freelander]

I bet not all of those were dead rubbers though

I want winning form going into the finals. I want to win, but I am worried about the key back situation.

Presti is out, Reid I have not heard a thing about.

Nath to Roughy doesn't worry me much - Brown has been awesoem in the last two I thought.

Who goes to Buddy if Reid doesn't play? Even the backup defender is suspended.

Jack to Buddy? Would be amazing if he held his own. Could make his career. I'd rather see the Sack on Buddy - someone else suggested this this week and lots disagreed. But Buddy does his damage when the ball hits the ground. In the forward 50 the high ball should cop the Maxwell chop out, but we need someone to run with Buddy in the centre and to stop him dribbling all those goals

 

[LeonDavies21]

I think you missed that we won last week.

You should have watched it, close game but we got over them in the end
I think you might be able to buy a DVD of it

Umm I wouldn't watch that game ever again!! Was just the way we played, all I'm saying is i hope we play the way we have been!! We were a different team to the one we have been previously!!

 

[Dawson]

Umm I wouldn't watch that game ever again!! Was just the way we played, all I'm saying is i hope we play the way we have been!! We were a different team to the one we have been previously!!

We were playing a team that always gives us some trouble, they negate our 'forward press' better than any other team.

So again I'll ask - you do realise we actually won?

 

[Vinnie Vegas]

The real issue it hand, rather than the specious reasoning of suggesting that you need "winning form" going into the finals, is that if you really are a top team, then you don't lose many games period, and going into a finals series, even if you don't need to win, you will most of the time anyway, because you're better than your opponent.

 

[Plogs]

The real issue it hand, rather than the specious reasoning of suggesting that you need "winning form" going into the finals, is that if you really are a top team, then you don't lose many games period, and going into a finals series, even if you don't need to win, you will most of the time anyway, because you're better than your opponent.

This. I remember 1990 & when we got smashed ay Waverley just before the finals & i thought to myself "we have played so well this year to put up that rubbish", we can't win the flag. Then i thought to myself, what a wonderful world...... Nah, i remember the moment like yestaerday, i thought, if we are good enough, which i had full confidence that we were, we win win this thing. We have this year finished what was concieved as a tough campaign on top of the ladder. We are good enough.

 

[Football God]

2 hard faught close games and the end of the season would be ideal for us.

 

[Gambit78]

I think two things will not change regardless of the result this week:

1)we are where we deserve to be
2)we can defeat any of the teams in the finals

And having those two things confirmed and unquestioned means our confidence will be rightly quite high whether we beat the hawks or not.

Personally, I'd rather we entered this finals series healthy, rather than on the back of a win. I remember 2002, where we limped into the finals and then BANG, powered to the GF (and almost to the title).

We have been the best team in the league. Let's just make sure we are right to go come September.