Opinion How can this Geelong side be stopped?

[Black Saab]

I don't think the Swans will have any fear against the Cats.

I'm still expecting Melbourne to assert themselves when it gets serious.

Melbourne still look sketchy. They don't look like they can just turn it on. They look like they are still trying to find the spark. Nevertheless, cannot write them off.

 

[iameviljez]

Melbourne still look sketchy. They don't look like they can just turn it on. They look like they are still trying to find the spark. Nevertheless, cannot write them off.

Melbourne look lost without Tom McDonald. They are kind of like us with Cam Mooney in 2007, or Richmond with Riewoldt in 2017 - he might not be the greatest forward on earth, but he's the lynchpin of their attack.

 

[sobrave]

Geelong do look different this year because they aren't playing the crab chip the ball around gamestyle that doesn't work in finals. Don't know why scott persisted with that for so many years.

The question mark is the midfield. An average ruck, ancient Selwood and Dangerfield, plus hit or miss guys like Duncan and Guthrie. A team like Melbourne can still get a hold of that midfield if they get on a roll. I also dont think the cats handle intense pressure well.

So plenty to play out but they deserve to be clear favourites atm.

 

[iameviljez]

Selwood has been in the top two performers on ground in two premierships. Football didn’t start in 2017 as some Richmond supporters seem to believe.

2011 I thought he was BOG to be honest, but I assume you are also referring to 2009 and there is no way he was ahead of Jason Gram, Chappy, Ablett or Hayes.

 

[CatToTheFuture]

I never said they were?

So is your argument then that a side that finishes home and away top 4, then finishes finals top 4 is underperforming?

 

[CatToTheFuture]

Geelong do look different this year because they aren't playing the crab chip the ball around gamestyle that doesn't work in finals. Don't know why scott persisted with that for so many years.

The question mark is the midfield. An average ruck, ancient Selwood and Dangerfield, plus hit or miss guys like Duncan and Guthrie. A team like Melbourne can still get a hold of that midfield if they get on a roll. I also dont think the cats handle intense pressure well.

So plenty to play out but they deserve to be clear favourites atm.

Wanted to hide deficiencies in the backline.

 

[blaisee]

So is your argument then that a side that finishes home and away top 4, then finishes finals top 4 is underperforming?

The argument is that Geelong outperform in the Home and away season, and underperform in the finals

That argument has been proven by the facts of the last decade

It isn't that hard to follow, its common knowledge

 

[CatToTheFuture]

The argument is that Geelong outperform in the Home and away season, and underperform in the finals

That argument has been proven by the facts of the last decade

It isn't that hard to follow, its common knowledge

Which facts?

 

[patmatcat]

The argument is that Geelong outperform in the Home and away season, and underperform in the finals

That argument has been proven by the facts of the last decade

It isn't that hard to follow, its common knowledge

Simply put, Geelong was a good team but not a great team

 

[gouki88]

Melbourne still look sketchy. They don't look like they can just turn it on. They look like they are still trying to find the spark. Nevertheless, cannot write them off.

Their forward line troubles are very real. They really miss Tom McDonald

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Yep, but you'll finish a maximum of 2 games clear on top- with a fixture that essentially gave you a 2 game head start on most of your competitors


They were out of finals contention with 3 or 4 games left


11 wins and 10 losses Doggies who are relying on Carlton losing to make the 8?


Which is irrelevant to the point we're discussing... which is that Geelong ended up with arguably the easiest fixture in the competition


They're 2-19 and very few of their losses have been close.

Even in Perth they've won 1 game. Very different to playing Fremantle, or Collingwood, or Sydney, etc etc.

This is just utter crap. You're embarrassing yourself. Where were these teams when Geelong played them in their return matches? Port: 11th, a game outside the eight, playing at home for their season. Bulldogs 8th, beat Melbourne a week earlier, could have gone close to locking up a top eight spot. St Kilda 8th, could have given themselves the inside track on staying in the top eight with a win.

Look, it's not my fault or Geelong's that the last two weeks, with the season on the line, your team's dished up utter garbage (Geelong) and an incredible choke job (Brisbane). The West Coast side that we played in round 14 put in a much better performance than the St Kilda team we played in round 21. They made a game of it.

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Their forward line troubles are very real. They really miss Tom McDonald

Besides being the reigning premiers, their season has been very Geelong 2019ish. I think they have to win this week to be any hope.

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Melbourne look lost without Tom McDonald. They are kind of like us with Cam Mooney in 2007, or Richmond with Riewoldt in 2017 - he might not be the greatest forward on earth, but he's the lynchpin of their attack.

Lol selling Riewoldt a bit short there.

 

[dean33]

Lol selling Riewoldt a bit short there.

Was thinking the same, lumping Jack in with cam mooney and Tom McDonald… geesh.

 

[blaisee]

Simply put, Geelong was a good team but not a great team

pretty much

 

[theyellowsash]

Melbourne look lost without Tom McDonald. They are kind of like us with Cam Mooney in 2007, or Richmond with Riewoldt in 2017 - he might not be the greatest forward on earth, but he's the lynchpin of their attack.

i mean he was only 5th in the coleman that year, then winning his 3rd coleman and AA jumper in 2018.

even in a thread about geelong we cant get away from the blatant disrespect shown towards richmond players

 

[Mantastic]

i mean he was only 5th in the coleman that year, then winning his 3rd coleman and AA jumper in 2018.

even in a thread about geelong we cant get away from the blatant disrespect shown towards richmond players

Yes, what a horrible slur calling him not the greatest forward on earth (you just said he was 5th in the Coleman lol, ie. not the greatest forward, especially since Richmond fans base forward craft entirely on goals and contested marks now apparently) but the lynchpin of a premiership attack. Do you know what a lynchpin is? Or do they skip big words at the Richmond School for Victimhood?

 

[iameviljez]

i mean he was only 5th in the coleman that year, then winning his 3rd coleman and AA jumper in 2018.

even in a thread about geelong we cant get away from the blatant disrespect shown towards richmond players

Sorry - I didn’t mean to infer that Riewoldt was on the same plane as Mooney and McDonald, clearly he was a vastly better forward. I’m only suggesting that the forward structure was similar, and heightens the value of all those players beyond just their playing ability.

For example, Riewoldt wasn’t the equal of, say, Franklin or Cousin Nick, but he was just as valuable to his team.

 

[PJays]

This is just utter crap. You're embarrassing yourself. Where were these teams when Geelong played them in their return matches? Port: 11th, a game outside the eight, playing at home for their season. Bulldogs 8th, beat Melbourne a week earlier, could have gone close to locking up a top eight spot. St Kilda 8th, could have given themselves the inside track on staying in the top eight with a win.

Look, it's not my fault or Geelong's that the last two weeks, with the season on the line, your team's dished up utter garbage (Geelong) and an incredible choke job (Brisbane). The West Coast side that we played in round 14 put in a much better performance than the St Kilda team we played in round 21. They made a game of it.

None of this is relevant

The point about Port Adelaide and Dogs was not that they had nothing to play for when they played Geelong

The point was they haven't been as strong as the top teams who Geelong's competitors played twice this year. Ergo the ladder comparatively inflates Geelong's position relative to their competitors

Try to understand the point being made and stick to discussing that point

 

[Art Vandelay_]

They were out of finals contention with 3 or 4 games left

11 wins and 10 losses Doggies who are relying on Carlton losing to make the 8?

These two points are completely irrelevant. The fixture was done in December last year.
At that point one made a PF and the other a GF.

How 2022 has panned out is neither our fault or relevant.
To infer that the fixture was easy is just luck that they dropped off, wasn't an easy draw in December 2021.

 

[PJays]

How 2022 has panned out is neither our fault or relevant.

It's 100% relevant to the fact that beating say, Fremantle has been tougher in 2022 than beating West Coast.

To infer that the fixture was easy is just luck that they dropped off, wasn't an easy draw in October 2021.

No one has suggested it was an easy draw in October 2021.

It's turned out to be easy. That's the only point that's relevant to assessing Geelong's ladder position in the context of their fixture.

Try to follow the discussion people

This line of discussion started when I responded to somebody who claimed Geelong has been "the clear stand-out performer, rather than one of a leading pack"

In the context of the way the fixture has turned out, that's questionable

Geelongs form over the past 6 weeks has been exceptional, but looking at the season as a whole, their 17-4 record is inflated compared to the rest of the competition because they've had an easy fixture, playing WC and NM 3 times so far (teams with 2-19 records and percentage of 58 and 54) and the best double opponent being Western Bulldogs who are 11-10.

Compared to say, Melbourne or Essendon or St Kilda, Geelong had a fixture advantage that will be worth about 2 wins by seasons end

And that's purely from double opponents without even mentioning the comparative advantage Geelong gets playing at KP, compared to say Melbourne hosting games in Alice Springs

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

None of this is relevant

The point about Port Adelaide and Dogs was not that they had nothing to play for when they played Geelong

The point was they haven't been as strong as the top teams who Geelong's competitors played twice this year. Ergo the ladder comparatively inflates Geelong's position relative to their competitors

Try to understand the point being made and stick to discussing that point

Right, so your point is we should only set the 2022 fixture after the 2022 season's been played so we know which teams are going to be good and which aren't. Might be a little hard to play the games, but I'll take it on board.

Geelong has met every challenge over the last three months. Beat great teams and s**t ones. Won interstate, in Melbourne and at home. Won without arguably its best player for a month. Won while resting 2-3 first 18 players consistently for a month. What more could Geelong have done to convince people that they're the real deal?

If you still think they're imposters, you're never going to be convinced until they're holding the cup.

 

[PJays]

Right, so your point is we should only set the 2022 fixture after the 2022 season's been played so we know which teams are going to be good and which aren't. Might be a little hard to play the games, but I'll take it on board.

My point is over the 21 games they've been the leader of the pack. Not standing alone, head and shoulders above like the ladder suggests.

The ladder artificially inflates Geelong's performance relative to other teams, because they've played easier games.

Read that again. Slowly.

Then read it again.

 

[PJays]

Geelong has met every challenge over the last three months. Beat great teams and s**t ones. Won interstate, in Melbourne and at home. Won without arguably its best player for a month. Won while resting 2-3 first 18 players consistently for a month. What more could Geelong have done to convince people that they're the real deal?

If you still think they're imposters, you're never going to be convinced until they're holding the cup.

Who said they were imposters?

Any team could win the flag and Geelong's a strong chance

Try to read more carefully and respond to what's being said rather than what you dreamed the other person said

 

[Duskfire]

For a team that apparently most seem to think are going to bomb out in finals, a huge amount of threads get created about them.