Leo

[MC Bad Genius]

Leo's going better this season than last season, BUT this week we play the Pies who's forward's, pressure and tackle, defenders heaps more than the teams we've played.

The games last year Leo was shown up as overly creative/indecisive and his poor option taking, usually resulted in a turnover, and no surprise a bloody goal.

The Pies will target him, and it may be a career defining game, as this sort of pressure will be the norm, with the swans to play the better teams and then finals for the rest of the season.

I hope he goes well, but if he doesn't it's just another sign that he time is getting closer, and that's just a function of his age, his size and the position he is being asked to play. It's got nothing to do with 2005 and that mark, and years of service, just simply what he's got left and and what he has to offer the club in 2009.

Just ask Matthews and Crouch.

i thought it was interesting what robert walls wrote in his article:

"Bad news for Sydney was the form of its veterans. Full-back Leo Barry is slowing down and the speed and efficiency of the Collingwood tackling saw him repeatedly turn the ball over. "Spida" Everitt looks slow, old and skinny. His legs look like matchsticks and he struggled to kick with any power and penetration. At 34, "Spida" looks shot. What was also bad for the Swans was the good coaching of Mick Malthouse. His boys controlled the tempo of the game with precise foot passing to teammates out in space. It was hard for the Swans to get their hands on the ball. The Collingwood forwards spread out wide to separate the Sydney defenders and Lewis Roberts-Thomson was identified as a weak link so they repeatedly played through his opponent."

although leo is obviously getting older and slower, is he the weakest link in the sydney defence? nope. thats LRT.

the biggest problem with leo is that because he is older (and therefore slower, and without as much of a leap), he loses one of his biggest attributes which was his flexibility.

a great example was st kilda. he could match it with the g-train, but he sometimes manned up steven milne and held him almost touchless.

now, he relies on getting the right match-up. he can't match it with pace for those little fellas (like medhurst on saturday night) and he will really struggle against tall leading forwards.

he's a bit in no man's land.