Review Rd 1, 2019: Freo destroy the Roos

[SiempreFreo]

Personally I think that makes us too tall down there and I've seen nothing to suggest he could be a defender. My opinion is that to be a defender you have to be as fast or quicker than a forward because your naturally normally trailing. While he reads the play well, its not well enough to make up for his speed (which while he's not slow, he's slow for a defender). McGovern gets away with it because he is the best reader of the play in the game and has the sticky hands to boot.

He would best as a 3rd tall that I think we have Logue for and given he has shown so much up forward, I dont see why we should shoe-horn him into the backline when it doesnt make best use of our players.

This is going to sound harsh but Tabs will make way for him at some point this year. Conditions couldnt have been any easier for Tabs on the weekend given the KPD stocks of the Roos and from JLT Cox was clearly the preferred (and better) player. I predict Tabs will have a few average games and be back in Peel but like I've said in other posts, its his to lose now. Keep performing and he cant be replaced

Understood, thanks Snuff & The Gav. And as experienced even in the ultra-small minority, small team (2 or 3 players a side) sport I play, there is solid merit in keeping the winning combo till circs dictate otherwise.

 

[theGav56]

Taberner is one of our players who has improved every year, so I don't want to limit him. If we are as smart in the forward line throughout the season as we were against NM then he is a real weapon.

My issue with him has always been about how he fits in with the other forwards, and also his s l o w n e s s in decision making and ability to keep the ball moving. Didn't see any issues on Sunday, and again it seems he may have made further improvement.

 

[yyou]

Alex Pearce was scary good. He is going to excite the crowd lots this year.

 

[Taylor]

Alex Pearce changes direction at speed like a cat made of bouncy balls

 

[Cesoir]

Alex Pearce changes direction at speed like a cat made of bouncy balls

Alex Pearce is a God.

 

[Deathly]

Alex Pearce changes direction at speed like a cat made of bouncy balls

I love how he looks when he straightens up and does that. Looks like a burglar on the run too with how he holds the ball.

 

[dockerfemme]

After Cam, the guy I'm most excited about is Tucker.

He's now shown he could be ready to step up through 3 consecutive games, that's starting to build a body of evidence even if two of them are JLT.

His disposal and decision making has always been so good and a real strength but he just didnt get enough of the ball. Becoming a 20-25 touch per game lockdown midfield for someone of his disposal calibre would be an incredible asset

That’s my buddy.

 

[wayToGo_]

Thought people might enjoy browsing through some of the comments on the North board before the game from a favourite poster of ours. Makes me smile so much...

Right from one of his first posts he clued in to the key to the game. If we hadn't have scored more than 70, in just the first half, I'm not sure we would have won Also nailed North being 'slicker' - their hands and boots certainly were.

The most critical stat Freo have to overcome is that they averaged 70 points a game last year. North surpassed 70 points in 17 out of 22 matches last year, one of the remaining 5 matches was played in a cyclone, and we'll be stripping as a much slicker outfit in round 1.

He should have really stuck with this early (Feb) prediction of his.

You have convinced me. Freo by 50 goals.

Always love when oppo supporters come in to tell us what our issues are/will be.

IMO, the 7 man defence had a lot more to do with the past leaky midfield than the defence itself. That's not the case now, so I can't see the 6-6-6 thing being a great issue for us. Freo set up as a 7-6-5 combination most of the time also. However, their starting midfield is going to be weaker...

Well this is ummmmm... embarrassing

They're going to have to. Yeah, I see you lot were drooling over his intraclub hit-out. The main thing you haven't factored is he was playing AGAINST the Freo midfield. Who? These blokes wouldn't be in our best 28! Nope. We will get you on the spread and with superior running numbers...

In fairness he was right. Their players had plenty of room to run away from the ball so they couldn't be held accountable. Hall: "This is my spot to hide, * off Mason."

It's big and spacious mate. Will suit us more as the game goes on.

People's wallets thanking the stars this guy has zero credibility.

If we lose to this mob, then the 22 players and the entire coaching staff should be forced to walk back from Perth.

You can get 15/1 on Freo for the spoon. GET! ON!

Put Freo for the spoon in to your multiples.

They are....................

s**t!

If Fyfe went down for the entire season, they could go through it winless.

Only got himself to blame. Clearly Scott took his advice literally.

Hogan is Freo's only forward, and Fyfe is the only midfielder we should worry about.

JLT form is the bomb.

Rory Lobb: 9 disposals (3 clangers) @ 44%, 4 marks, 0 goals, 1 behind, and 14 hitouts in 89% TOG.

Darcy is also rubbish.

They lost the centre clearances 5 to 19, and overall clearances 27 to 55.

On reflection not sure if this was about Freo or his own team? Although saying 2 top players probably rules North out.

Agree, they are a joke.

2 top players, 4-5 good ones and a heap of s**t stacked around them.

On McCarthy obviously. Can we have an oppo supporter stick the boots in to another player next week? Maybe Matera?

That boy has gone backwards at light speed since leaving the Giants.

Not sure if he noticed but our midfielders just ran through that gaping hole.

I can't see how that's going to fix the gaping hole in his midfield.

I must admit their transition was the highlight of their game for me.

I just expect us to win, and if we improve our transition, I expect us to win well.

He's right, there is no way Sandi, Mundy or Ballas would want to be on North's list atm.

They're 18-24 months behind us in a rebuild. This is what is killing them right now. There's no way Sandilands, Mundy or Ballantyne would be on our 2019 list.

The pineapple is on its way...

Matchups in bold.

- Walters will play up the ground as Freo cannot afford the luxury of leaving him in the FP. (Williams)
- Ballantyne should have been retired two years ago. (Frank Gumbleton......at 67 years of age)
- Lobb was putrid yesterday and has kicked one bag of 3 in his last 40 matches. He will be required a lot of the time on Goldstein, or Darcy will have a myocardial infarction before half time. (Tarrant/McKay)
- McCarthy is only getting a game by default. (MacMillan)
- Bailey Banfield has kicked 5.5 in 20 matches of football. (McDonald will slaughter him)
- Hogan is a class forward. (Vickers - Willis)

If this mob can kick 15 goals against us, we need rooting with a pineapple.

Might be waiting a while for the dust to settle

Here's something that's no assumption whatsoever though. Putting Hogan to one side, Lobb has kicked 3 goals in 4 outings against us, and based on 2018 figures the other 4 are good for 4 goals, so make that 5. Our midfield will kick more than those 5 players.

Let's wait & see how it turns out when the dust settles.

JLT form a clear indication unless you are North

Anyone who watched the game should know the Freo players were fair dinkum in their intent.

The Darcy/Lobb combo worked a treat against Goldy. Who woulda thunk it? Not this guy...

Okay, then we might get stretched early, but after watching Darcy hulk around the ground I have no doubt Lobb will be running around next to Goldstein the longer the game progresses, otherwise Goldy will run riot. Like I have stated a couple of times, Freo are going to be dangerous for the first 40 minutes. If they don't put us away in that time it will be our game.

He was a pretty valuable contributor for them us.

I'm not concerned about Marley. He'll play..

Betting on a sure thing apparently

Please, put everything you own of Freo. I'll happily take up the odds displacement.

Lucky we got a jump on them and led by 6 goals at half time. Their come back by -8 goals in the 2nd half was concerning.

This 6-6-6 stuff has made it a lot harder to defend scores, which is the first 300 pages of the Ross Lyon playbook. If you don't get a significant jump on us, and then defend it, you lose.

People underrating Mundy is always a fun.

Mundy is as slow as treacle and turns 34 this year. He shouldn't have to be doing the grunt work now. He also averages less clearances than Cunnington, Anderson, Tyson and Ziebell, and he won't be raising that bar this year...

How massive would the margin have been if we had a 'tactically skilled' coach coaching us?

As for the 6-6-6 structure. Ross Lyon would be amongst the least tactically skilled coaches to capitalise on this as it is predominately an offensive change in the game, and Lyon is renowned as the coach who defends 20 point leads for 90 minutes. That's MUCH harder to do now.

He's right, we were very lucky to make up that 5 goal margin from the last time we played... and then pile on another 14 more.

You're cherry picking mate. Look at the round 10 match from last year then add up the comings & goings and see how Freo can make up 5 goals

Think North may have had a few more challenges than that in reality. Meanwhile our paper thin midfield really struggled against the might of North's.

- Freos challenge will be to adjust to a much more offensive style of football and manage their paper thin midfield.
- North's challenge will be to manufacture more goals from running midfielders.

He's a master of interpreting statistics (incorrectly).

- Cunningtons last 3 games v Fre have returned 8, 8 & 10 clearances. Fyfe has returned 8, 12 & 8.
- Here's where it hurts them though losing Neale 6, 7 & 7, whereas we still have Higgins (5)
- We can cover Jed (5) with Tyson, and I expect LDU will do just as servicably as Jacobs (4) in actual clearances.
- Mundy will be good for his 3-4, but Conca ain't no Neale.

Clearly we are s**t, we can't even tank properly.

LOL, the ball hasn't been bounced yet and they're tanking!

On the ruck match up.

If they can catch him. If Darcy goes head to head with Goldstein he will be rooted by half time.

Clearly has foresight referring to Cunnington as a 'pure thug'.

Pure thug. Pound for pound he has the physical presence of Carey.

In relation to Fyfe's performance last season

He had 31 (24 contested), 8 clearances, 7 tackles, 7 free kicks in 92% TOG last year against us and we still beat them by 5 goals. This year he is coming off no competitive pre-season and doesn't have Sandilands & Neale next to him.

This next prediction seems highly likely in retrospect... ha ha ha

If it was our best 22 vs their best 22, we'd still win.

Gotta applaud the commitment to the optimism. Completely unfounded and proven so but I'm not sure I've seen a poster look so incredibly goose like after a result. If only he had then owned it rather than blaming umpiring, injuries, and finally the game plan afterwards... I would have had some level of respect.

 

[Monument Hills]

we don't look as young and inexperienced as many of our teams last year. Those 4 experienced older recruits plus the extra year on Cerra, Brayshaw, Darcy, made such a difference. Never once got pushed around.

 

[Unique Name]

Reading a few comments from norf supporters. Not sure they realised Hamling and Pearce are probably the two of the fastest key position defenders in the comp.

 

[Deathly]

I'm glad all that garbage in the preview thread from Norf supporters amounted to nothing in the end. That thread was unbearable, made me hate Norf even more actually.

 

[Cesoir]

we don't look as young and inexperienced as many of our teams last year. Those 4 experienced older recruits plus the extra year on Cerra, Brayshaw, Darcy, made such a difference. Never once got pushed around.

We looked bigger, stronger and faster than them yesterday. We still have some mature bodies to bring back - Blakely, Cox, Hogan, Logue, SANDI to name a few - I think the days of us being physically bullied are gone, and we can now afford to carry a few younger bodies in amongst that lot.

I really, REALLY hope the Eagles try their Mitchell inspired thug tactics again in round 4 - I think it will not end well for them.

 

[mightymouse75]

Taberner is one of our players who has improved every year, so I don't want to limit him. If we are as smart in the forward line throughout the season as we were against NM then he is a real weapon.

My issue with him has always been about how he fits in with the other forwards, and also his s l o w n e s s in decision making and ability to keep the ball moving. Didn't see any issues on Sunday, and again it seems he may have made further improvement.

He is a wingman. His marking & kicking are superb. He only gets fumbly when the goals are close by

 

[theGav56]

He is not a crab he is just completely 1 dimensional.

And when you couple that with their forward line being onedimensional in terms of tall forwards, you multiply the problem.

A bit like if we lined up with only Taberner or Lobb as a tall forward.

 

[Outshined]

Think it's worth taking a moment to breathe out and take stock. It was a ******* brilliant win and there are more positive signs from our first 4 quarters than most of last season.

But...we're still going to be inconsistent and better teams are probably going to score heavily against us when we're not as dominant around the stoppages/our ball movement is placed under more pressure.

Current evidence suggests at the very least it's going to be a much more watchable season.

 

[wayToGo_]

Just enjoy it the day after a good win. Worry about the challenges ahead in a few days time.

 

[Okinakashi]

Alex Pearce changes direction at speed like a cat made of bouncy balls

Alex Pearce lookes and moves like he's 160cm tall. It's hard to fathom that he's that agile at over 2m tall!

 

[Steinfreo]

Think it's worth taking a moment to breathe out and take stock. It was a ******* brilliant win and there are more positive signs from our first 4 quarters than most of last season.

But...we're still going to be inconsistent and better teams are probably going to score heavily against us when we're not as dominant around the stoppages/our ball movement is placed under more pressure.

Current evidence suggests at the very least it's going to be a much more watchable season.

True, we couldnt buy a clearance for the first 10 mins of the game, good teams will get a few despite how good Alex and Hamling are.

 

[FreoMonocle]

Watching the game I felt like cerra had a bigger impact.

2 or 3 clean hand balls, 2 or 3 clean kicks.

If he ever gets 20 possies a game he will deadly.

Once he's built his tank and he goes to midfield, He will be a gun inside mid (same as Brayshaw wil be), consistent with clean disposal, fast/excellent decisions and both do the team things really well. He'll be upwards to a 25-30+ possession player and as a bigger bodied mid, will be more accountable defensively than Neale (for example) was - tackles will stick better, won't be outmuscled etc.

I don't have the same lofty expectations of everyone, he is, well, I'd use a car metaphor for one of the best high performance cars - but I'd probably give the name of a breakfast cereal by mistake. When Cerra hits his peak in a few years, if he only averages 20 possessions a game (as a midfielder) we haven't developed him properly and have squandered his talent.

 

[Scatter]

Has anyone else seen Tabs hit McKay I think it was in the balls as he was falling over from the mark near the goal square?
Amazing that he did it, must have been reflex haha. Not sure if he may get a fine if it is seen by the MRP, seemed innocuous but got him in the right spot.

 

[Scatter]

Also, while Cerra didn't get heaps of it, everything he did was pure class. Setup a few goals.

 

[Wally Walpamur]

A lot of praise has been given to Billy but my buddy Ed, low key, had an outstanding game (even surprised me).

From The West:

Ed Langdon

Stats: 25 disposals, nine inside-50s, eight marks, six rebound-50s

Was extremely damaging in space - much like Hill - and gained a team-high 542 metres. Featured at both ends of Fremantle’s transitional play with nine inside 50s and six rebound 50s, and used the ball efficiently 80 percent of the time he had it. Also seems to have developed excellent synergy with the Dockers’ other midfielders and looks to be making similar strides with Freo’s forwards. Re-sign him, quick smart.

 

[jedi mind tricks]

Alex Pearce lookes and moves like he's 160cm tall. It's hard to fathom that he's that agile at over 2m tall!

Alex Pearce was a mid until he grew 30cm in 1 year and turned into a kpp

 

[FreoRicci]

I don't have the football knowledge, so serious Q: couldn't you for now put him in (defensive) place of Ethan Hughes? Ethan a gallant character but not in the same league as Cox.

In what way? Hughes is faster and better at transitioning from defence to forward. Think we're overthinking Hughes. Aside from that mistake, he got into game, took some good marks and was very involved. He has a great kick on him too. Think that he puts too much pressure on himself and when he just calms down, he's a decent player
Cox reads the ball well, but we all learned he's not a defender whatsoever. He's slow and doesn't have a great kick coming out of defence

 

[Alfonz]

Was not expecting that performance or game style at all. Can actually look forward to going to games and seeing a good brand of football.

Even if North were dreadful, sometimes you need that to get your confidence up. We've got to make the most of the next 2 weeks and keep building before playing some good sides.