Our current game....

[kimodgers]

There is a lot to criticise with the way our players have been playing recently – well, most of the year really.

Scarlett, Wojo, Corey, Enright to a much lesser degree, JHunt perhaps the same, are great players who are now not playing the great football they have given the club in earlier years. Even Kelly & SJ are playing below their previous high standards. But these great players are giving their best, and that will do me. No issue there.

But even their current best should be pretty powerful. But I think they have been held back because of a more recent and less attacking game plan.

I can see so much in our younger players who will make up our tilt at the flag in, say, 2015 and onwards. Very exciting.

But teach and convince these kids to attack and take risks. Play Geelong footy. Today’s other club footy strategies could not hold a candle to the flair, attack and success of recent Geelong sides.

Geelong have moved away from a focus of all out attack and its hurting us imo. Have we changed our game plan this year? The Geelong “way” was the breakthrough attacking style that other clubs were forced to counter or to copy. Our current style lacks the all out confident brutal assault that gave us those huge winning margins of only a few years ago. I’m not sure our “vets” have coped that well with this change.

To me, it seems that Geelong has now adopted the playing style of those clubs whose very style was adopted to compete with Geelong.

What I’m really saying is that the once intimidating Cats have lost a few claws more because of a shift in game plan than because of player loss of form.

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

What is the tweet the coach's twitter account. I'd like too find out the reason for a ****ing terrible change in gameplan.

 

[Siamese Cat]

It's clear they are confused. How many times do you see Enright about to give off and then realize no bastard is running past him ... then prop ... then kick. It must be incredibly frustrating.

 

[Belisarius]

Cannot work out the game plan - other than get games into the young kids. That seems to be it.

 

[Vdubs]

What was it in 07, 08, 09, 10, 11?
Changed all the time.
CS is no fool, and he would know what we have to do to keep up with the trends. We are no longer the trend setters. Issue is are we good enough with the available talent?

 

[Footy Smarts]

We didn't play "Geelong footy" from 2000-2006 while our youngsters were learning the game. It's really important to put the youngsters in high pressure situations while they're learning.

Our game plan in games like this have been completely different to the big games when we stepped up against Hawthorn, Collingwood and Sydney. Unless things go belly up over the next month we'll be seeing a far more experienced, settled and well-drilled side from now on.

 

[SuperCats9]

Hell if i know what the game-plan is, try listening to Geelong play on the radio, it's so frustrating and confusing. When we kick a point, you hear the commentator name the opposition player who is kicking out, then in 10 seconds, they are down the other end troubling our defence or having a shot at goal.

But when we kick out, it's to the pocket, a long ball which gets turned over, happened all day today. I honestly don't think Chris Scott knows what he is doing, and to be honest, we have no game plan, no defensive structure, just please go back to what worked last year !!!!!!

 

[footscore]

We didn't play "Geelong footy" from 2000-2006 while our youngsters were learning the game. It's really important to put the youngsters in high pressure situations while they're learning.

you think it's been a specific factor in helping the development of some of the younger players?

Really interesting read that one and what I can't get over is just how extreme the change from one another is...depending on the opposition we are playing that particular week.
Today was bizarre, was like Scott & his coaching team were almost daring the Suns players to give it to Gazza and play through the corridor but next week against Collingwood, we will have the defenders sitting deep and we will attack by going through the wings and near the boundary line and beat Collingwood at their own game.

Be interesting to see whether Buckley plays two rucks as I get the feeling Chris Scott liked what he saw from Dawson and West today and will go with those 2 again next week.

 

[Senatorguesty]

Ive been thinking about this ALOT the last few weeks and I've think I've found it. Our gameplan is about instigating opposition turn-overs and reducing our own.
Thats it.
Thats all I could find. We dont run and carry, we dont kick long to contests inside forward 50 (like late last year), we dont set up decent defensive walls, we dont really do ANYTHING specifically.......
I dunno why so I'm not going to point any fingers but its damn frustrating.

 

[Turbocat]

Some old guys appear to have hit the wall , some young ones are still not up to it yet. Any game plan would struggle atm

 

[kimodgers]

There are some knowledgeable posters on “Geelong – Total Footy” which is why I get my jollies by trawling through every thread & soaking up the impressive breadth of footy smarts that is out there.

Its like listening into a quality animated debate in a back corner of one of Lingy’s pubs/clubs. No pressure to contribute to the debate – stay quiet & listen, best of all worlds.

But if I did lean in and say something it would be this….

There is obviously a CS plan that is the new Geelong playing plan, but I just don’t get it. Many of you do and like a good listener I will bow to your judgement.

But if I could have my druthers, I would druther that CS call his players together tomorrow and gather them around a blank white board, blank except for one word “attack”.

He could say “OK guys, here is what we will do for the next 8 weeks. Hit em hard from the 1st bounce, carry the ball, support the ball carrier for a quick run-by hand-ball and kick long into attack. After that, do it all over again”

We’ve been chasing tail for too many weeks now. Time to be a little more adventurous and have our own tail chased.

Sounds good, sounds simple, but why not?

(ps - I’m expecting the first return post to say “I’m glad you are not CS”)

 

[JSelwoodisKing]

Hell if i know what the game-plan is, try listening to Geelong play on the radio, it's so frustrating and confusing. When we kick a point, you hear the commentator name the opposition player who is kicking out, then in 10 seconds, they are down the other end troubling our defence or having a shot at goal.

But when we kick out, it's to the pocket, a long ball which gets turned over, happened all day today. I honestly don't think Chris Scott knows what he is doing, and to be honest, we have no game plan, no defensive structure, just please go back to what worked last year !!!!!!

This really confuses me. My reading on the situation since Chris Scott took over is that we got pumped by Collingwood in a Prelim in 2010 using game plan that had obviously been figured out and beaten. 12 months later, we beat that same team with a new game plan (mostly same players), and i cannot possibly see how Chris Scott could not be given a large amount of credit for that. To say he doesn't know what he is doing after he has delivered us a flag in his only completed year as coach to date is sad.

 

[manboob]

Ive been thinking about this ALOT the last few weeks and I've think I've found it. Our gameplan is about instigating opposition turn-overs and reducing our own.
Thats it.
Thats all I could find. We dont run and carry, we dont kick long to contests inside forward 50 (like late last year), we dont set up decent defensive walls, we dont really do ANYTHING specifically.......
I dunno why so I'm not going to point any fingers but its damn frustrating.

Yeah I posted a similar thing in the match day thread. It's all I can come up with too!
I would add that perhaps putting mackie and taylor on the wing, will come into play with a longer kicking game style at some stage.

 

[ATSAM]

Don't know about a game plan or the game plan but wen I watched Scarlette in the Port game kick to a player at centre half back then run up to him-thats how lomg it took to get rid of the ball- and then tell him where to kick it it seemed like we had lost our run, our mojo, our intensity and out desire to win. In years gone by Scarlett woudl have run past taken the ball and had it past fifty in half that time.

 

[Claude Balls]

Turbocat is close the mark I feel. Too many senior blokes past their best, and too many kids for any gameplan to be effectively implemented week after week.

 

[CF]

The game plan is decidedly shit going by the performances I have seen this year. But I am not sure the guys are even following Scotts game plan because when you watch the game on TV and they cross to the coaches box CS always looks livid. I especially noticed it during the PA game he could barely keep his seat he was so angry. Even after yesterdays game in the Press Conference he said all the right things but his body language was pure anger.

The short kicks in the back half, especially from kick in is doing my head in. Allowing opposition to get a free run on behind our press yesterday was disgraceful. The running attacking game has gone all together it seems. It even looks like they accept they wont win the stoppages but instead load up to try and force a turn over rather than winning the ball in the contest. The show boating of trying to give off ridiculous hand passes under pressure and turning over the ball deplorable.

I am not sure this is all CS fault to be honest and I think the leadership group of the club really need to take a good hard look at themselves. Even though we are winning games off the backs of individual performances, this so ungeelong like from previous seasons that I am worried it indicates that something is very wrong at the club right now.

I would rather they keep attacking in the Geelong way and get rolled but at least have a crack at it. The lads are off mentally and that is showing in their performances. On the plus side some of the young blokes are looking like they will be players. But let's hope they don't pick bad habits from the others going forward.

 

[burto]

We have been spoilt for years with the greatest side that has ever played and the fans cannot accept that we are not that team any more. Simple as that.

FFS people we are sitting at 9-5 and playing more youngsters than most sides right now. We are going ok and CS is using the H&A series to experiment to find the best set up we can in time for the finals. Let Hawthorn bath in the glory of dominating easy beats in the H&A rounds. CS is priming us for one final assault on the flag with our bunch of oldies. Have we all forgotten we looked terrible at this stage of last season?

 

[winty]

We have been spoilt for years with the greatest side that has ever played and the fans cannot accept that we are not that team any more. Simple as that.

FFS people we are sitting at 9-5 and playing more youngsters than most sides right now. We are going ok and CS is using the H&A series to experiment to find the best set up we can in time for the finals. Let Hawthorn bath in the glory of dominating easy beats in the H&A rounds. CS is priming us for one final assault on the flag with our bunch of oldies. Have we all forgotten we looked terrible at this stage of last season?

The only thing about the bolded is if we don't improve on our game plan soon, we won't be playing any finals.

The thing that annoyed me the most about yesterday is prior to the Port game CS was saying we'd concentrate on playing more defensively early on in the game, then attack more once the pace has gone out of the game. I don't know how having 3 loose GC players behind our zone in the first half is "playing more defensively". If we do that Saturday night, we'll be 10 goals down at half time.

 

[Roadie]

This really confuses me. My reading on the situation since Chris Scott took over is that we got pumped by Collingwood in a Prelim in 2010 using game plan that had obviously been figured out and beaten. 12 months later, we beat that same team with a new game plan (mostly same players), and i cannot possibly see how Chris Scott could not be given a large amount of credit for that. To say he doesn't know what he is doing after he has delivered us a flag in his only completed year as coach to date is sad.

Excellent post.

 

[kanyewest]

I asked a similar question in this thread a few months ago: http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/what-is-our-game-plan.945544/.

Since then, I have become more and more frustrated watching us each week. On the weekend I honestly felt like I had gone back in time to 2010. We were handballing to players standing still, kicking dangerously into the corridor, and just generally bringing more pressure on ourselves because we weren't prepared to clear the area and play the percentages. It was bizarre but somehow so predictable.

I agree with what other posters have said above in regards to why this is going on. For me, there are two main factors:

1) Young players don't just fit into the system overnight. They need to learn the 'Geelong way' and also execute on the ground too. This is not easy and I am sure it is one of the major reasons that we look lost out there. When half of the players on the ground have played less than 50 games, it would just be unrealistic to expect them to play at the level of a premiership side.
2) Chris Scott has tried to stay ahead of the curve but so far I don't think it's working. This is most clearly demonstrated by his shift away from us being a contested ball team. When asked about it in the press conference the other day he spoke about it like it was some media myth, which anyone with a brain will realise is completely wrong. Over the last five years the players and coaches have all stressed that we back ourselves in to win more 1-1 contests than the opposition, and that if we do that, we will win. But since we started to slip in this area suddenly it becomes not our priority. I find this very confusing.

Ultimately, the team is in transition and we need to have patience. Clearly things are more complicated than what meets the eye just from watching them week to week. This is where trust and belief comes in as a supporter, and you have to give the coaches and the players the benefit of the doubt. They have a chance to beat a number of good sides in the next month or so, and we will soon find out where we are really at.

 

[footscore]

I honestly don't think Chris Scott knows what he is doing

you think he could potentially be an imposter trying to gain as much inside knowledge as possible and hand it over to Mick in a couple years time?