AFL Autopsy Rnd 1: Done by the Hawkes

[Yoda_]

Leadership is going to be a longer term fix. Nothing we can do about it right now. The club knows the problem exists which is why they sought out Dunkley and why they are working more leadership training into the likes of Merrett and McGrath but it will be a process over 3 or 4 years. I have no doubt they will target another leader again next year. I also have no doubt our recruiting has moved away from just Adrian and his team to a model that includes more discussions with the footy department and senior coaches. I know it seems on the surface that Mark Harvey has been pushed away to a minor type role but I hear his role in identifying targets from other clubs was a strategic role which has been covered in part cost wise by him also having the coterie role.
They are 100% working on fast tracking the leadership. They know it is a massive hole. Trouble is there is no short term fix.

I keep thinking back to what helped Melbourne rectify there problems all those years ago and they went and caked up Daniel across. No superstar but a consummate professional that helped lift the professionalism of a poor club.

I wouldn’t mind Essendon doing something similar. We could use some leadership


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[fairbump_playon]

If people aren’t in a position to take positives from losses this year then prepare yourselves because you are in for an absolute stinker.

We’ve somehow selected more youth and inexperience than the Suns, North Melbourne and the Crows, we are absolutely going to play in fits and starts and I suggest everyone embrace it.

100%. A lot of people seem to have said they have low expectations of the year but it’s harder once you’re actually in front of a game.

I was pleased last night to just watch for upside and there was plenty. Not sure how long I can sustain that tranquility but I’ll try because as you say.. it will otherwise be a very Lomb year.

Set shot conversion would have won us the game but there were also half a dozen key contested ball situations in the second half, any of which could have led to a different result.

Journos should have asked Rutten post game if he thought the second half was blue collar. It wasn’t. Hawks just willed clearances and no one from our side could stand up and stop the flow.

Rutten has patches of a good style going and with such a young team, time is on his side. But you have to earn “blue collar”, not just say it. He is going to have to overcome a cultural issue that goes a long way back.

 

[fairbump_playon]

Given our performance and the performance of other teams. We're a great chance to be 0-20.

Seriously the game I have circled on the calendar for a win if we blew that is Gold Coast. In Round 22.

We will have some good days. Not that many, but we will.

 

[fairbump_playon]

I keep thinking back to what helped Melbourne rectify there problems all those years ago and they went and caked up Daniel across. No superstar but a consummate professional that helped lift the professionalism of a poor club.

I wouldn’t mind Essendon doing something similar. We could use some leadership


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Let’s bring Nick Maxwell out of retirement LOL

 

[CBombers17]

Wow. One round of footy and we have predictable.
Apart from that they actually started their rebuild 2 seasons ago so you would expect they would be in front of us in that department given that until the end of last season we where still dicking around trying to do something on the back of our saga players.

I cant remember my exact post on here last year but it was something along the lines of Sydney will be actual flag contenders again before we win a final - and that was while our club was still dicking around hoping Joe would stay. Some said i overrate them as an organization but i don't think i do.

Here we are 6 months later with a couple of perennially injured players moved on being the only real changes to the list of note (but apparently representing our future hopes and dreams). And we are fielding one of the worst Essendon sides i can remember in the last 40 years.

Sydney showed gradual improvement last season and we showed nothing. The clubs are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of culture and putting together a team that will win finals.

 

[citizen-erased]

Who is a worse campaigner?

Daniel Levy or Adrian Dodoro?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MalooElCamino]

I stopped watching at half time.
I f'n knew a meltdown was coming.
Same old s**t different year.
The early 5 minute run that results in 5-6 unanswered goals gets into the bombers heads in which makes them believe they are better than what they are.
Please prove me wrong bombers.

 

[Big Slam]

Posters really need to stop suggesting it was turn overs from the mid field that allowed Hawthorn to move the ball uncontested into their forward line.

Even if the ball is turned over, there’s still 6 of their players playing forward and 6 of our guys playing back.

Turn overs don’t allow 3 or 4 of their guys to run into their forward line without one of our guys within 30 meters of any of them.

 

[ant555]

I cant remember my exact post on here last year but it was something along the lines of Sydney will be actual flag contenders again before we win a final - and that was while our club was still dicking around hoping Joe would stay. Some said i overrate them as an organization but i don't think i do.

Here we are 6 months later with a couple of perennially injured players moved on being the only real changes to the list of note (but apparently representing our future hopes and dreams). And we are fielding one of the worst Essendon sides i can remember in the last 40 years.

Sydney showed gradual improvement last season and we showed nothing. The clubs are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of culture and putting together a team that will win finals.

One season rebuild. Happens all the time.

 

[ant555]

na I don’t. Still plugging away though I see. Trolling every post. Wanna be Club land...

 

[owen87]

Posters really need to stop suggesting it was turn overs from the mid field that allowed Hawthorn to move the ball uncontested into their forward line.

Even if the ball is turned over, there’s still 6 of their players playing forward and 6 of our guys playing back.

Turn overs don’t allow 3 or 4 of their guys to run into their forward line without one of our guys within 30 meters of any of them.

That's not how modern field setups work...

 

[owen87]

If you told me before the game we'd go down by 1 point to a Hawthorn team that is at a similar level of expectation to us this season, I'd have said that's ok.

Getting out to such a big lead before half-time was the surprise, which made the result disappointing.

As a couple of others have said, without being able to put my finger on it we didn't look as dysfunctional or disorganised. We got crunched in the 3rd and couldn't stem the flow, but managed to steady ourselves in the 4th and keep it competitive until the end. There should be something to work with there, and it sounds like (from Smith's comments) the players realise themselves they went away from the system.

The last 90 seconds was typical of an inexperienced side. Shiel should have known better, and on-field leadership was lacking when the game needed to be held-up and shut down, but that's going to happen. What we want to see is that we remain competitive in games, and week-to-week see that system style of play develop.

FWIW the Hawks side had on average 30 games more experience than ours did. Hell, Carlton fielded a team with about 22 games more experience per player than we did and should have lost by more than 25 points.

Also, for those who care:

We had the 2nd most tackles, the 3rd most i50's and least Frees Against of any team in the competition in Round 1. All areas we've been pretty poor at in the past.

 

[HirdsTheWord]

I cant remember my exact post on here last year but it was something along the lines of Sydney will be actual flag contenders again before we win a final - and that was while our club was still dicking around hoping Joe would stay. Some said i overrate them as an organization but i don't think i do.

Here we are 6 months later with a couple of perennially injured players moved on being the only real changes to the list of note (but apparently representing our future hopes and dreams). And we are fielding one of the worst Essendon sides i can remember in the last 40 years.

Sydney showed gradual improvement last season and we showed nothing. The clubs are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of culture and putting together a team that will win finals.

your pretty spot on here.

there have been numerous clubs that have won finals, done full rebuilds and then win finals again before we have done anything.

I have been pretty disillusioned with AFL recently, i think mainly because I cannot feed off the bits of optimism anymore. It's a finals win or nothing for me.

 

[owen87]

It's a finals win or nothing for me.

You'll be waiting a couple of years then

 

[CBombers17]

your pretty spot on here.

there have been numerous clubs that have won finals, done full rebuilds and then win finals again before we have done anything.

I have been pretty disillusioned with AFL recently, i think mainly because I cannot feed off the bits of optimism anymore. It's a finals win or nothing for me.

I feel your pain. We haven't won many more games than the likes of Sydney while they have been at it either (5 more wins in the last 2 seasons).

Being able to accurately and honestly assess where you are at is a pretty important element of success it seems.

 

[HirdsTheWord]

You'll be waiting a couple of years then

a couple of years? lol

suggest it will be the best part of another decade.

 

[owen87]

a couple of years? lol

suggest it will be the best part of another decade.

k.

 

[MalooElCamino]

One of the oldest players in the league and playing full foward shanking kicks 10m out. Come on most abled non footballers would have made the kick with a million bucks on the line

 

[owen87]

One of the oldest players in the league and playing full foward shanking kicks 10m out. Come on most abled non footballers would have made the kick with a million bucks on the line

I see you've never heard of Matthew Richardson or Travis Cloke.

 

[Beerfish]

I see you've never heard of Matthew Richardson or Travis Cloke.

Or Sticks 'Stand by Your Man' Kernahan.

 

[calyam]

We've play high-quality, exciting football at various points against both Geelong and Hawthorn. However, we are a young and inexperienced side and we will play some pretty bad football at times across the season.

If you cannot manage your expectations, raging against every mistake and shortcoming, then this is going to be a very long season.

You'll be waiting a couple of years then

Someone's an optimist!

 

[ant555]

Posters really need to stop suggesting it was turn overs from the mid field that allowed Hawthorn to move the ball uncontested into their forward line.

Even if the ball is turned over, there’s still 6 of their players playing forward and 6 of our guys playing back.

Turn overs don’t allow 3 or 4 of their guys to run into their forward line without one of our guys within 30 meters of any of them.

Depends on how the ball is turned over. If we have the ball and going forward and our players are also going forward and the ball goes to the opposition then we are all moving the wrong way while they are going the other way. The turnovers going inside 50 also allow defenders to attack more freely as the ball has landed in an area the forwards did not expect it to be. Of course it is not all turnovers but anyone who has played or coached knows the difficulties of defending them. When you get the combined results of some poor turnovers and some scrappy defense on the edge of the zone that allows over lap then you get players able to move the ball up the ground in waves.
If the ball hits one of our blokes inside 50 then the opposition is not going the other way with the footy.
And no I am not saying we defend well. We do not and have not in the last 15 years.

 

[donlav99]

Decided to watch the 3rd qtr again (sadistic, i know). Parish was involved in only 1 centre bounce.... for which he got the clearance.

I thought the club had realised he's an inside mid first and foremost.. clearly not.

Meanwhile. Shiel was a liability in the middle during the 3rd, always looking for the easy outside ball.

 

[citizen-erased]

Decided to watch the 3rd qtr again (sadistic, i know). Parish was involved in only 1 centre bounce.... for which he got the clearance.

I thought the club had realised he's an inside mid first and foremost.. clearly not.

Meanwhile. Shiel was a liability in the middle during the 3rd, always looking for the easy outside ball.

funnily enough i noticed Parish more in the 3rd (kicked the "stabiliser" didnt he?) than Shiel.....go figure.

 

[Saint]

I actually missed the first 3 quarters out to dinner, then was watching the 4th in a busy area without the sound on.

I thought we were battling valiantly against something which felt inevitable, but we kept fighting and bouncing back.

Guys like Burgoyne with ball-in-hand really stood out compared to inexperienced players on both lists.

A hard lesson for our young team, but a worthy one.

(Then I found out how much we led by and I wondered what had happened, but after watching some bits, Hawthorn were pretty ordinary in the first half and we were up and about. I'm not that surprised that it turned, TBH. But I have the benefit that I didn't watch the tide turning live and feel the emotion of it)