Ok I have held this thought for sometime now and it continues to be pressed on my brain after every failure against top 4 teams in big matches where we are in winning positions but failed to get the chocolates.
We simply don't and havent had a match winner that performs in big contests when it matters the most.
When the game is there to be won against top 4 sides or in massive games like the weekend.... who is in our list to grab the game by the balls and take the team over the line ???
Look back at our lost pre-lims... Riewoldt and Lenny got the job done for the saints... Before that types like ablett and bartel and Chapman got the job done. Thats why Hawthorn IMO are rated as challengers ... they have Buddy, Mitchell and Hodge among others that can get a team over the line in a close one that most of the big clashes are.
Yet when the scores are close in the last 5 minutes of a match I look at our team and teams in the last 5 or so years and we have no one IMO.
On the positive side...
- I think Griffen is growing into that sort of person and is the closest thing we do have to it.
- It kills me to say cause I am not a fan but I saw signs in Higgins last quarter that he may have what it takes to do it. He was the one that lifted us when we went 20 points down.
On the negative side....
- Johno was never able to do it ... on a number of occasions had shots to win or seal games but missed under the pressure of it all.
- Akka and Hall while in their prime were able to do it the bulldogs versions are not.
- Cooney - our brownlow medalist - I am afraid to say that we have seen his best come and go. 2008 was a terrific year for him but for whatever reason people want to make for him his last two years have just been ok.... Whats been terrible is his disposal. Second half of last year and so far this year his kicking has been simply dreadful and it cost us dearly the other night when he had that chance to take the team to a win.
- Boyd/Cross - These blokes are the engine... Engines live under the hood and are by no means the finishers that could have the affect a Bartel or a Chapman would on a game when it matters most.
Question is which of our youngsters are going to have that element to their games to do it for us moving forward.... Id love to hear a commentator say " He is just imposing himself on this contest" about one of our players deep into the last quarter... cause I cannot see any outside of griffen that have it in their make up.
We simply don't and havent had a match winner that performs in big contests when it matters the most.
When the game is there to be won against top 4 sides or in massive games like the weekend.... who is in our list to grab the game by the balls and take the team over the line ???
Look back at our lost pre-lims... Riewoldt and Lenny got the job done for the saints... Before that types like ablett and bartel and Chapman got the job done. Thats why Hawthorn IMO are rated as challengers ... they have Buddy, Mitchell and Hodge among others that can get a team over the line in a close one that most of the big clashes are.
Yet when the scores are close in the last 5 minutes of a match I look at our team and teams in the last 5 or so years and we have no one IMO.
On the positive side...
- I think Griffen is growing into that sort of person and is the closest thing we do have to it.
- It kills me to say cause I am not a fan but I saw signs in Higgins last quarter that he may have what it takes to do it. He was the one that lifted us when we went 20 points down.
On the negative side....
- Johno was never able to do it ... on a number of occasions had shots to win or seal games but missed under the pressure of it all.
- Akka and Hall while in their prime were able to do it the bulldogs versions are not.
- Cooney - our brownlow medalist - I am afraid to say that we have seen his best come and go. 2008 was a terrific year for him but for whatever reason people want to make for him his last two years have just been ok.... Whats been terrible is his disposal. Second half of last year and so far this year his kicking has been simply dreadful and it cost us dearly the other night when he had that chance to take the team to a win.
- Boyd/Cross - These blokes are the engine... Engines live under the hood and are by no means the finishers that could have the affect a Bartel or a Chapman would on a game when it matters most.
Question is which of our youngsters are going to have that element to their games to do it for us moving forward.... Id love to hear a commentator say " He is just imposing himself on this contest" about one of our players deep into the last quarter... cause I cannot see any outside of griffen that have it in their make up.
