These two teams shouldn't be allowed to play football against each other. Whatever it is, the matchup just causes embarrassing, embarrassing, embarrassing football. Error-riddled, low-skilled nonsense that's actually no longer enjoyable to watch - and I say that as somebody whose passion for football is only surpassed by a few other things in my life.
The death-of-a-thousand-cuts gameplan of butchering endless forward 50 entries must be the most frustrating thing to witness as a fan. Were we 2 goals, 11 behinds at one stage? It was just incredible. Realistically, the game should have been over by half time. It definitely should have been over when Mayne lined up from 20 metres to put us 4 goals up... and missed. At the end of the day, if you keep a team in the contest long enough, you're inviting them to win it, no matter how ordinary they are. We invited Richmond to win this game, and by the end had opened the door so wide that we made Shaun Grigg look like a superstar. That's some achievement right there.
Anyhow, onto the players.
THE BEST FIVE
1st. Brodie Grundy
2nd. Will Hoskin Elliott
3rd. Adam Treloar
4th. Taylor Adams
5th. Scott Pendlebury
Special mentions: Jeremy Howe, Tyson Goldsack's first half.
THE WORST FIVE
5th worst: Jack Ramsay
4th worst: Darcy Moore
3rd worst: Henry Schade
2nd worst: Jarryd Blair
1st worst: Alex Fasolo
THE REVIEWS
Brodie Grundy: Was immense all night, but especially late in the game where he was trying to drag his team over the line. Nankervis wasn't bad, but Grundy dominated the hitouts, picked up 23 possessions, used the ball well (barring one shocker) and kicked a great running goal to drag us back into the contest. The sheer will with which he attacked the footy late showed that he's set to continue his superlative late 2016 form. He's legitimately in the best handful of rucks going around in the comp at present. A wonderful game.
Will Hoskin Elliott: He gifted the Tiges their second quarter goal with an abominable cross-field turnover, but outside of that he was super clean with his hands (he picks the pill up like he's got glue on his fingers), his disposal was probably team-best, and his outside pace became more of a factor as the game wore on. Defensively he could be a little harder, but if I have to choose a Blair-esque gutsy performance or a WHE classy performance, I'll take the class every day of the week. Three last quarter goals, including two from difficult set shots on an evening where the team couldn't buy a straight kick, were good reward for great effort all night long. He's instantly moved himself to the pointy end of the forward mix with that performance. A late first-rounder could end up being a steal.
Adam Treloar: He'd be much higher on this list if his disposal was a bit neater on the night. I absolutely love him and he toiled his guts out, but just a few too many of his kicks missed their mark for it to be a truly dominant performance. He still kicked 2 goals, which goes to show what a jet he is and how harshly I'm marking him. He'll give the Brownlow a shake this season - he might have a vote or two already.
Taylor Adams: Was our main contested bull all night long, going toe-for-toe with Dusty in the midfield and, to be honest, he pansted him in the end. Pity his teammates didn't come along for the ride. He's become a super-consistent inside performer whose disposal is no longer the glaring weakness it once was. The number of forward thrusts he set up with hard ball gets and fast releasing hands was immense. Need more like him.
Scott Pendlebury: He was a little off early in the evening, but as always, when the whips were cracking at the game's end, he was there to influence the contest. Just couldn't get it going enough in our direction, but whenever the ball found his hands, you knew it would be moving our way. 32 disposals and not in the best four? We've got high standards for the captain.
Jack Ramsay: He's started the year like a man who hasn't played much football lately. Funny that. I was a little concerned about his composure in the Bulldogs game and he's done nothing to allay those fears with tonight's performance. It's not his fault, but he's still too panicky and fumbly at present. He needs to go back down to the VFL and find his feet once again. Wouldn't be playing if Sinkers had real hamstrings. He'll be okay.
Darcy Moore: Let's be honest - he's struggling. It wasn't a night for talls, and he was playing largely on Alex Rance, but still - he just doesn't look like it right now. A couple of decent plucks were an encouraging sign, but his kicking looked awkward and wobbly all night. He was a major culprit in generating the yips which lost us the game. Even the goal he kicked on the run seemed like a flukey balldrop that was lucky to sail through. He needs to find his mojo again, because without it, we're going to struggle.
Henry Schade: He does a lot right, but like Maynard, Ramsay and Goldsack around him, when he makes a blunder, it's an absolute HOWLER. Whereas other players on other teams might fumble the ball or shank it out of bounds or to a contest, Schade and a few of his teammates make their clangers count. In the first two weeks I reckon we've seen 10+ goals as a direct result of a calamitous bollock-up. And tonight, Schade was responsible for three of these. That's the ballgame right there. It really hurts. I suspect he's played himself into the VFL with that performance. Bring on Lynden Dunn!
Jarryd Blair: Two kicks. Five handballs. His tackles don't stick. He's lost any sense of composure. He tried to take Adams' head off with a stupidly powerful handpass from one metre away, leading to an early Tigers goal against the flow. On the season so far I've got him at 6 goals under, having set up one and cost the team seven over the two games. He's struggling just about as bad as he has since entering the team in 2010. With Elliott, Wells, De Goey, even Daicos possibly coming into the team, he's really at the crossroads. So far this year, he's done nothing to further his case.
Alex Fasolo: I was furious with Fasolo this evening. It was everything bad about his game personified in one putrid performance. His defensive efforts were non-existent, and to call his attempted tackles half-hearted would be a generous overstatement. Until late in the last quarter, his kicking efficiency was 0%. He butchered three eminently gettable shots at goal and cruelled any momentum we were trying to generate. Overall, he cost us the game. Which I suppose is only fair, considering he single-handedly won us the corresponding fixture last year. He may well have played himself out of the side with that effort - Bucks did not look amused.
Jeremy Howe: Excellent once again, backing himself in not just to spoil, but to mark and rebound. We look infinitely better when we can win possession in the back half, rather than just killing the ball, and he seems to be the only player brave enough to take a chance and attempt a mark, rather than just a spoil. Late on he was still busting a gut to surge us forward - a really great recruit. Let's hope his ex-Melbourne ex-teammate can be similarly revelatory when he gets his chance.
Tyson Goldsack: He was just about best on until half time, where he was winning and repelling everything that came near him. Kept Jack to one handpass despite the Tiges winning the inside 50's early on. Left his man to help his teammates. Tackled to hurt. Was generally immaculate. The second half was a little disappointing - he turned a few over by foot and let Riewoldt get off the hook a bit. Overall, he probably won his position, but he definitely peaked in the second quarter, which is a shame.
Ben Reid: This man seems to have lost the ability to kick the ball forwards; whenever he takes a mark, he instantly turns around and looks sideways/backwards. I understand the need to switch the ball in modern footy, but Reidy has taken all elements of risk out of his game, simply refusing to move quickly or kick the ball upfield. To be honest, it's a momentum killer at times, especially from a man with such a strong left peg. He's beating his man, but he's lost his intercept and rebound game. We need him to find it again.
Josh Smith: A very Smith kinda game - gathered 20 possessions and distributed the ball generally quite neatly and efficiently by foot. Some will accuse him of being too vanilla, but he works his butt off and provides a reliable release valve coming out of defence. I'll definitely take his consistent vanilla over the rocky road flavour which a few of our other defenders are serving up at the moment.
James Aish: I thought he was tidy, especially early, with both his hands and his decision making. He got put in some really tough positions and managed to execute smartly and cleanly to keep the ball moving our way. He didn't get enough of it as the game wore on, however, failing to impose himself when the Tigers got on top. Won't be the first out, but has work to do.
Chris Mayne: We got some good signs from Mayne tonight, and then one horrible moment from which we never really recovered. He was starting to move better and make himself a better forward threat, and he laid a few damaging tackles, culminating in his crunching tackle of Rance 20 metres out. The game was on his boot at that point, with a goal enough to take us 4 goals clear in the third quarter. He misses a VERY simple shot, the Tigers kick the next five, and it's game over. In a very real sense, that miss might have cost us the four points. Simply not good enough.
Brayden Maynard: We got his customary brainfade in the first quarter and his customary out-on-the-full shank in the third. Between those forgettable moments he had some good passages. He had a dominant fifteen minutes in the second quarter where he repelled four dangerous Tigers attacks, and he generally kept his head in close, contested situations, feeding out tight, accurate hands to teammates to set us away. Still, the bad with Brayden absolutely kills us. He just can't seem to eradicate the calamity from his game. As of right now, it's hard to say whether the good outweighs the horrendous.
Steele Sidebottom: Wasn't at his best tonight. His early miss, though difficult, set the scene for our abominable goalkicking. He struggled to impact and didn't gather touches with his usual prolificness, though still ended with low 20s. He was generally down. Could have used his class around goals tonight. In fact, we missed it desperately.
Tim Broomhead: He didn't get a heap of the ball, but what little he did was clean, effective, inventive and great to see. Kicked a goal with his first touch, scoring assist with his second, had a brilliant contested ball win, cut inside and visionary pass to set up Darcy for his goal. He just needs to find it more - but I'm still convinced he's the best natural crumber on the list. Great to see him back.
Jack Crisp: An awful game from Jack, a game where he fumbled, shanked and generally chose the wrong option. He had a great year for us in 2015, but we haven't seen him reach those heights for a while now. He might be making way for Greenwood, Wells and De Goey sooner rather than later. I'm sick to death of his ability to win the centre clearance, only to mongrel it twenty metres with a shanked snap, invariably into the arms of an unmanned opposition player. It's a momentum killer of the highest order, and he's made it an annoyingly frequent habit.
Tom Phillips: Was more composed and skilful than many of his senior teammates tonight. 18 disposals at 83% is about all you can ask for such a youngster. The kid's a running machine. When we can better utilise his gut-busting efforts on the outside, he'll be a real player for us.
Jesse White: Another pretty solid game in which he was our best key forward. Two goals one, some crucial contest wins and a couple of score assists with clever snaps around his body - he definitely holds his spot. To be honest, the way the remainder of our front half is performing at present, I'm almost the most relieved when I see the ball heading in his direction. What a strange turn of events. Anyway, good work Jess. Keep contributing.
Overall, what a hugely disappointing performance which saps away most all of the positives of the Bulldogs performance. We now head to Sydney knowing that we're pretty much playing for our season in round 3. Barring a minor miracle, 2017 could be over before it's even begun, and we've only got ourselves to blame. Diabolical.
The death-of-a-thousand-cuts gameplan of butchering endless forward 50 entries must be the most frustrating thing to witness as a fan. Were we 2 goals, 11 behinds at one stage? It was just incredible. Realistically, the game should have been over by half time. It definitely should have been over when Mayne lined up from 20 metres to put us 4 goals up... and missed. At the end of the day, if you keep a team in the contest long enough, you're inviting them to win it, no matter how ordinary they are. We invited Richmond to win this game, and by the end had opened the door so wide that we made Shaun Grigg look like a superstar. That's some achievement right there.
Anyhow, onto the players.
THE BEST FIVE
1st. Brodie Grundy
2nd. Will Hoskin Elliott
3rd. Adam Treloar
4th. Taylor Adams
5th. Scott Pendlebury
Special mentions: Jeremy Howe, Tyson Goldsack's first half.
THE WORST FIVE
5th worst: Jack Ramsay
4th worst: Darcy Moore
3rd worst: Henry Schade
2nd worst: Jarryd Blair
1st worst: Alex Fasolo
THE REVIEWS
Brodie Grundy: Was immense all night, but especially late in the game where he was trying to drag his team over the line. Nankervis wasn't bad, but Grundy dominated the hitouts, picked up 23 possessions, used the ball well (barring one shocker) and kicked a great running goal to drag us back into the contest. The sheer will with which he attacked the footy late showed that he's set to continue his superlative late 2016 form. He's legitimately in the best handful of rucks going around in the comp at present. A wonderful game.
Will Hoskin Elliott: He gifted the Tiges their second quarter goal with an abominable cross-field turnover, but outside of that he was super clean with his hands (he picks the pill up like he's got glue on his fingers), his disposal was probably team-best, and his outside pace became more of a factor as the game wore on. Defensively he could be a little harder, but if I have to choose a Blair-esque gutsy performance or a WHE classy performance, I'll take the class every day of the week. Three last quarter goals, including two from difficult set shots on an evening where the team couldn't buy a straight kick, were good reward for great effort all night long. He's instantly moved himself to the pointy end of the forward mix with that performance. A late first-rounder could end up being a steal.
Adam Treloar: He'd be much higher on this list if his disposal was a bit neater on the night. I absolutely love him and he toiled his guts out, but just a few too many of his kicks missed their mark for it to be a truly dominant performance. He still kicked 2 goals, which goes to show what a jet he is and how harshly I'm marking him. He'll give the Brownlow a shake this season - he might have a vote or two already.
Taylor Adams: Was our main contested bull all night long, going toe-for-toe with Dusty in the midfield and, to be honest, he pansted him in the end. Pity his teammates didn't come along for the ride. He's become a super-consistent inside performer whose disposal is no longer the glaring weakness it once was. The number of forward thrusts he set up with hard ball gets and fast releasing hands was immense. Need more like him.
Scott Pendlebury: He was a little off early in the evening, but as always, when the whips were cracking at the game's end, he was there to influence the contest. Just couldn't get it going enough in our direction, but whenever the ball found his hands, you knew it would be moving our way. 32 disposals and not in the best four? We've got high standards for the captain.
Jack Ramsay: He's started the year like a man who hasn't played much football lately. Funny that. I was a little concerned about his composure in the Bulldogs game and he's done nothing to allay those fears with tonight's performance. It's not his fault, but he's still too panicky and fumbly at present. He needs to go back down to the VFL and find his feet once again. Wouldn't be playing if Sinkers had real hamstrings. He'll be okay.
Darcy Moore: Let's be honest - he's struggling. It wasn't a night for talls, and he was playing largely on Alex Rance, but still - he just doesn't look like it right now. A couple of decent plucks were an encouraging sign, but his kicking looked awkward and wobbly all night. He was a major culprit in generating the yips which lost us the game. Even the goal he kicked on the run seemed like a flukey balldrop that was lucky to sail through. He needs to find his mojo again, because without it, we're going to struggle.
Henry Schade: He does a lot right, but like Maynard, Ramsay and Goldsack around him, when he makes a blunder, it's an absolute HOWLER. Whereas other players on other teams might fumble the ball or shank it out of bounds or to a contest, Schade and a few of his teammates make their clangers count. In the first two weeks I reckon we've seen 10+ goals as a direct result of a calamitous bollock-up. And tonight, Schade was responsible for three of these. That's the ballgame right there. It really hurts. I suspect he's played himself into the VFL with that performance. Bring on Lynden Dunn!
Jarryd Blair: Two kicks. Five handballs. His tackles don't stick. He's lost any sense of composure. He tried to take Adams' head off with a stupidly powerful handpass from one metre away, leading to an early Tigers goal against the flow. On the season so far I've got him at 6 goals under, having set up one and cost the team seven over the two games. He's struggling just about as bad as he has since entering the team in 2010. With Elliott, Wells, De Goey, even Daicos possibly coming into the team, he's really at the crossroads. So far this year, he's done nothing to further his case.
Alex Fasolo: I was furious with Fasolo this evening. It was everything bad about his game personified in one putrid performance. His defensive efforts were non-existent, and to call his attempted tackles half-hearted would be a generous overstatement. Until late in the last quarter, his kicking efficiency was 0%. He butchered three eminently gettable shots at goal and cruelled any momentum we were trying to generate. Overall, he cost us the game. Which I suppose is only fair, considering he single-handedly won us the corresponding fixture last year. He may well have played himself out of the side with that effort - Bucks did not look amused.
Jeremy Howe: Excellent once again, backing himself in not just to spoil, but to mark and rebound. We look infinitely better when we can win possession in the back half, rather than just killing the ball, and he seems to be the only player brave enough to take a chance and attempt a mark, rather than just a spoil. Late on he was still busting a gut to surge us forward - a really great recruit. Let's hope his ex-Melbourne ex-teammate can be similarly revelatory when he gets his chance.
Tyson Goldsack: He was just about best on until half time, where he was winning and repelling everything that came near him. Kept Jack to one handpass despite the Tiges winning the inside 50's early on. Left his man to help his teammates. Tackled to hurt. Was generally immaculate. The second half was a little disappointing - he turned a few over by foot and let Riewoldt get off the hook a bit. Overall, he probably won his position, but he definitely peaked in the second quarter, which is a shame.
Ben Reid: This man seems to have lost the ability to kick the ball forwards; whenever he takes a mark, he instantly turns around and looks sideways/backwards. I understand the need to switch the ball in modern footy, but Reidy has taken all elements of risk out of his game, simply refusing to move quickly or kick the ball upfield. To be honest, it's a momentum killer at times, especially from a man with such a strong left peg. He's beating his man, but he's lost his intercept and rebound game. We need him to find it again.
Josh Smith: A very Smith kinda game - gathered 20 possessions and distributed the ball generally quite neatly and efficiently by foot. Some will accuse him of being too vanilla, but he works his butt off and provides a reliable release valve coming out of defence. I'll definitely take his consistent vanilla over the rocky road flavour which a few of our other defenders are serving up at the moment.
James Aish: I thought he was tidy, especially early, with both his hands and his decision making. He got put in some really tough positions and managed to execute smartly and cleanly to keep the ball moving our way. He didn't get enough of it as the game wore on, however, failing to impose himself when the Tigers got on top. Won't be the first out, but has work to do.
Chris Mayne: We got some good signs from Mayne tonight, and then one horrible moment from which we never really recovered. He was starting to move better and make himself a better forward threat, and he laid a few damaging tackles, culminating in his crunching tackle of Rance 20 metres out. The game was on his boot at that point, with a goal enough to take us 4 goals clear in the third quarter. He misses a VERY simple shot, the Tigers kick the next five, and it's game over. In a very real sense, that miss might have cost us the four points. Simply not good enough.
Brayden Maynard: We got his customary brainfade in the first quarter and his customary out-on-the-full shank in the third. Between those forgettable moments he had some good passages. He had a dominant fifteen minutes in the second quarter where he repelled four dangerous Tigers attacks, and he generally kept his head in close, contested situations, feeding out tight, accurate hands to teammates to set us away. Still, the bad with Brayden absolutely kills us. He just can't seem to eradicate the calamity from his game. As of right now, it's hard to say whether the good outweighs the horrendous.
Steele Sidebottom: Wasn't at his best tonight. His early miss, though difficult, set the scene for our abominable goalkicking. He struggled to impact and didn't gather touches with his usual prolificness, though still ended with low 20s. He was generally down. Could have used his class around goals tonight. In fact, we missed it desperately.
Tim Broomhead: He didn't get a heap of the ball, but what little he did was clean, effective, inventive and great to see. Kicked a goal with his first touch, scoring assist with his second, had a brilliant contested ball win, cut inside and visionary pass to set up Darcy for his goal. He just needs to find it more - but I'm still convinced he's the best natural crumber on the list. Great to see him back.
Jack Crisp: An awful game from Jack, a game where he fumbled, shanked and generally chose the wrong option. He had a great year for us in 2015, but we haven't seen him reach those heights for a while now. He might be making way for Greenwood, Wells and De Goey sooner rather than later. I'm sick to death of his ability to win the centre clearance, only to mongrel it twenty metres with a shanked snap, invariably into the arms of an unmanned opposition player. It's a momentum killer of the highest order, and he's made it an annoyingly frequent habit.
Tom Phillips: Was more composed and skilful than many of his senior teammates tonight. 18 disposals at 83% is about all you can ask for such a youngster. The kid's a running machine. When we can better utilise his gut-busting efforts on the outside, he'll be a real player for us.
Jesse White: Another pretty solid game in which he was our best key forward. Two goals one, some crucial contest wins and a couple of score assists with clever snaps around his body - he definitely holds his spot. To be honest, the way the remainder of our front half is performing at present, I'm almost the most relieved when I see the ball heading in his direction. What a strange turn of events. Anyway, good work Jess. Keep contributing.
Overall, what a hugely disappointing performance which saps away most all of the positives of the Bulldogs performance. We now head to Sydney knowing that we're pretty much playing for our season in round 3. Barring a minor miracle, 2017 could be over before it's even begun, and we've only got ourselves to blame. Diabolical.
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