North vs Brisbane GDT

[SB Dan]

we won, but that game was still horrible. Very pleased with greenwood's goal & cunnington showing some form - best game yet.

 

[Spire]

How does that work? Sydney and us are both on 5 wins and have much higher percentage

Yeah, I was a bit absentminded when I made that post.

Sorry about that!

 

[kangagirl7]

Final Results
North Melbourne 7.5 10.10 11.15 12.18 (90)
Brisbane Lions 2.1 5.4 10.8 13.11 (89)
GOALS
North Melbourne: Swallow 2, Thomas 2, Hansen 2, Harvey, Lower, McIntosh, Wright, Cunnington, Greenwood
Brisbane Lions: Fevola 5, Brown 3, Buchanan 2, Brennan, Rich, Clark

BEST
North Melbourne: Swallow, Harvey, Hansen, Lower, Ziebell, Bastinac
Brisbane Lions: Johnstone, Brown, Power, Fevola, Rischitelli, Rockliff, Sherman

INJURIES
North Melbourne: Nil
Brisbane Lions: McGrath (hamstring), Power

Reports: N/A

Umpires: Nicholls, Hay, Wenn

Official crowd: 19,100 at Etihad Stadium


I just wanted to point out the bests for us. Excluding Harvey the oldest is Swallow which is quite hard to believe that he just turned 23 on Wednesday. It is an encouraging sign to see our younger guys stand up and that the future at the North looks very very bright.

 

[Brad Roo]

I just wanted to point out the bests for us. Excluding Harvey the oldest is Swallow which is quite hard to believe that he just turned 23 on Wednesday. It is an encouraging sign to see our younger guys stand up and that the future at the North looks very very bright.

Very good observation K-girl.

BEST
North Melbourne: Swallow, Harvey, Hansen, Lower, Ziebell, Bastinac

Babies, every one of them, and they weren't playing on mugs tonight.

 

[ansonholt]

One goal five in the 3rd almost cost us the game. This is starting to become a trend, this coasting in the 3rd quarter. Youth, perhaps?

Thought Bastinac was very good again, and Cunnington is making incremental improvements as well.

Hansen, far from "arriving" tonight as another poster said earlier, has already been here for a while, just is starting to show what he is capable of on a regular basis. Could easily leave a legacy similar to McCann, Glendinning and others by the time he's done.

Surely both Lower and Garlett deserve a decent run of games after their performance tonight. Lower in particular just looks like a senior player now, not a kid, and gives us some hardness at the clearances that we've been lacking.

Garlett looks polished, and not only has leg speed, but quick hands as well.

LT surely deserves to be totally left alone on this board for several weeks after his performances in the past few weeks.

Wright - I still don't know what to make of him. But at the very least I think he needs to be persisted with. Tonight was one of his better games.

David Hale, though, is gone. We are much better off not having him in the side at all, in any position. He needs weeks of consistent performance in the twos before we let him back in, if at all.

Of our established players Swallow, Firrito and Harvey were very good. Swallow and Firrito in particular must be leading the B&F between them. Rawlings was good also, but needs to fix up some of his turnovers. I liked Hamish's game tonight, and Goldy was good also.

Matty Campbell, much better tonight. Grima good once again, Thompson disappointing, but as others have said, he's not cut out to be a shutdown defender. That's Lachie's game, but I prefer Hansen at CHF. His marking tonight was exceptional.

All in all, a win is a win, and I will take every one we get, even if they're all by a kick after giving up an 8 goal lead.

 

[Ghostwriter]

I just wanted to point out the bests for us. Excluding Harvey the oldest is Swallow which is quite hard to believe that he just turned 23 on Wednesday. It is an encouraging sign to see our younger guys stand up and that the future at the North looks very very bright.

Quite a turnaround from the old days when it was always Simmo, Stevo, Arch etc in the bests and none of the kids, but the flip side of this is where are the older guys today?

 

[Northern Exposure]

Rawlings was good as usual but cost us two goals with poor skills. At some point in the future the team will play a solid 3 to 3.5 quarters and cream sides. The signs are there but we have to be patient.

 

[Kimbo]

Swallow is just two quarters away from being elite.

Interesting. So, he's half elite?

LT surely deserves to be totally left alone on this board for several weeks after his performances in the past few weeks.

Around these here parts, I wouldn't hold my breath. But I will take the opportunity to talk him up again, in defiance of the crap he's been dished out on this Board. Work rate solid, creativity excellent and attitude exemplary!

On the other hand, while Lachie showed a good pair of hands tonight, I was a bit concerned about his facial expressions. Still a long way to go in that regard.

 

[Ben the Gooner]

G'day lads, congrats on the win tonight. I went along as a neutral tonight (albeit in the North members) so I thought I'd give you an outsider's view of how the young guys are tracking.

The more I watch of North, the more they remind me of Essendon in 2008, Knights' first year. There were some brilliant games (the win over you in Rd 1, a couple of wins over Carlton and Collingwood etc.) and some horrible losses (flogged by an average Port team, conceding the last 13 or something goals v Sydney, 100 odd points from Geelong and St Kilda etc.) and you seem to be the same. Some great high points (first half was some sublime footy) and some shocking lows (Freo last week).

The biggest single issue IMO (and I'm certain you've heard this ad nauseum) is the lack of a CHF. All of your key forward types (Hale, Edwards, Smith and Tarrant in the ressies, Hansen at times) seem to be full forwards, and that's not sustainable. You need a hit-up target across half forward, because your forward structure looks pretty average without one. Petrie can play that role well, but IMO he's the sort of player you want to be able to plug holes with, rather than having him locked into CHF, and being unable to really throw him into defence or into the ruck when need be. If you can afford to have him as a rich man's Adam Hunter or a taller Brendon Goddard, you'll be a very good side.

Tbh, I'm not sure that there's someone on your list who can fill that role well right now, although I think Goldstein could be tried there. He's looked impressive as a key defender and a loose defender at times, and I think he has the smarts to play there. He was leading up the wing a lot tonight, and he'd be a potent force doing the same through the corridor. I'm not sure what his engine is like, or whether his marking game is up to it (looked all right tonight IMO), but with Petrie out for 6 weeks, you need something.

The next major issue is the zone. Sitting on the second level, it was really easy to pick out huge holes in dangerous positions (HFF, and once, alarmingly, CHF). There were a couple of examples of Daniel Rich getting the ball, running 10 or so metres, and clearing the zone with a long kick by 20 or so metres. Clearly the young guys haven't fully adjusted to the gameplan, but by next season it should be second nature, and more effective. Nothing to worry about long term, but it will cause you some short term pain.

The first quarter's tackling effort was outstanding. Ziebell was immense with 5, and the contested footy from Swallow, Ziebell, Bastinac etc. was brilliant to watch. Obviously the first and second year bodies got tired after half time, but that midfield excites me. Add Cunnington and Anthony to that list, and you've got the makings of one of the best midfields in a long time. Your ruckmen go all right as well.

Plenty of things to be excited about for Roos fans. Keep the faith through what will be a trying year (trust me, I know exactly how it feels) and you'll reap the rewards in 2011 and 2012 as you start to push for finals footy, and after that who knows?

Cheers

 

[Flawed Genius]

Who's Jake Melshkam? Is that like Levi Greenhead, or Nathan Henderson?

 

[Black Flag]

thank you.

 

[Ben the Gooner]

Who's Jake Melshkam? Is that like Levi Greenhead, or Nathan Henderson?

Knights + words = not so good

 

[Kings Army]

If we could find a power forward we could be anything in a couple of years. Our midfield will shortly become elite. Also no problems with our defence. Grima is a gun!

 

[DarkPhoenix]

And its a goal, need as many now as we can cause the lions will come on strong in the second half.

Think I jinxed it.

 

[ansonholt]

Thanks BtG - appreciate the neutral POV and for help out the club in small way by going to the game.

 

[Ben the Gooner]

Fingers crossed for a 45k+ crowd on Friday.

 

[Twinkletoes]

G'day lads, congrats on the win tonight. I went along as a neutral tonight (albeit in the North members) so I thought I'd give you an outsider's view of how the young guys are tracking.

The more I watch of North, the more they remind me of Essendon in 2008, Knights' first year. There were some brilliant games (the win over you in Rd 1, a couple of wins over Carlton and Collingwood etc.) and some horrible losses (flogged by an average Port team, conceding the last 13 or something goals v Sydney, 100 odd points from Geelong and St Kilda etc.) and you seem to be the same. Some great high points (first half was some sublime footy) and some shocking lows (Freo last week).

The biggest single issue IMO (and I'm certain you've heard this ad nauseum) is the lack of a CHF. All of your key forward types (Hale, Edwards, Smith and Tarrant in the ressies, Hansen at times) seem to be full forwards, and that's not sustainable. You need a hit-up target across half forward, because your forward structure looks pretty average without one. Petrie can play that role well, but IMO he's the sort of player you want to be able to plug holes with, rather than having him locked into CHF, and being unable to really throw him into defence or into the ruck when need be. If you can afford to have him as a rich man's Adam Hunter or a taller Brendon Goddard, you'll be a very good side.

Tbh, I'm not sure that there's someone on your list who can fill that role well right now, although I think Goldstein could be tried there. He's looked impressive as a key defender and a loose defender at times, and I think he has the smarts to play there. He was leading up the wing a lot tonight, and he'd be a potent force doing the same through the corridor. I'm not sure what his engine is like, or whether his marking game is up to it (looked all right tonight IMO), but with Petrie out for 6 weeks, you need something.

The next major issue is the zone. Sitting on the second level, it was really easy to pick out huge holes in dangerous positions (HFF, and once, alarmingly, CHF). There were a couple of examples of Daniel Rich getting the ball, running 10 or so metres, and clearing the zone with a long kick by 20 or so metres. Clearly the young guys haven't fully adjusted to the gameplan, but by next season it should be second nature, and more effective. Nothing to worry about long term, but it will cause you some short term pain.

The first quarter's tackling effort was outstanding. Ziebell was immense with 5, and the contested footy from Swallow, Ziebell, Bastinac etc. was brilliant to watch. Obviously the first and second year bodies got tired after half time, but that midfield excites me. Add Cunnington and Anthony to that list, and you've got the makings of one of the best midfields in a long time. Your ruckmen go all right as well.

Plenty of things to be excited about for Roos fans. Keep the faith through what will be a trying year (trust me, I know exactly how it feels) and you'll reap the rewards in 2011 and 2012 as you start to push for finals footy, and after that who knows?

Cheers

Good summation there BtG. Btw, re the CHF options., the one's we have are young and developing or young and injury prone. Hopefully one of them really kicks on. In a few years I'd love to see Majak own that posi and set the league on fire!

 

[Ben the Gooner]

Majak is an interesting one. For anyone who's seen him in the 2s, how are his footy instincts?

 

[Twinkletoes]

Majak is an interesting one. For anyone who's seen him in the 2s, how are his footy instincts?

Gratuitous pic which best answers your question BtG...

 

[RooDude]

He's a female body part that is often used to describe Collingwood players????

 

[The Other Dean]

Surely both Lower and Garlett deserve a decent run of games after their performance tonight. Lower in particular just looks like a senior player now, not a kid, and gives us some hardness at the clearances that we've been lacking.

Well said. Pretty happy with his effort tonight, and I see he made the listed Bests, too. Like a few of his team-mates, he was a lot quieter in the second half, but clearly played his part in setting up the early lead, even managing to drift forward and slot one (and very, very nearly two) himself. The hit-out will do his confidence the world of good, and he'll only get better from here. Go Ed.

 

[DaveyBoy123]

Fantastic post Ben... And totally spot on with all your comments. Although, I don't think we have the pace the bombers did/do.

We here often overlook the lack of a hit-up player at CHF... Especially when the opposition are on a roll & putting our half-back line's disposal under pressure. Thought Hansen was ok in that role tonight, but he wasn't there all the time. Looking forward, I think O'Keefe could be the person to fill the role.

 

[Brad Roo]

He's a female body part that is often used to describe Collingwood players????

He's a North American nocturnal aquatic rodent????

 

[Ben the Gooner]

Fantastic post Ben... And totally spot on with all your comments. Although, I don't think we have the pace the bombers did/do.

We here often overlook the lack of a hit-up player at CHF... Especially when the opposition are on a roll & putting our half-back line's disposal under pressure. Thought Hansen was ok in that role tonight, but he wasn't there all the time. Looking forward, I think O'Keefe could be the person to fill the role.

No I agree, we have better talls and pace, but your midfield is going to be a hell of a lot better than ours. The similarities come in the huge swings in form, and the adjusting to a gameplan with a young list.

Hansen really impressed me last night, although it seems like he's one of those players you'll never be 100% comfortable with. Don't know much about O'Keefe, so I won't comment there.

 

[Royal Flush]

Interesting. So, he's half elite?

.

If Swallow can do what he did in the first half and clock up 20 possessions the way he did in the second half, then we have an ablett/judd on our hands.