News Robbo on Collingwood

[Snag Breac]

Rohan Connolly was talking us up in The Age yesterday. Didn't see the article posted here.

He says:

But the Magpies' momentum at the moment is like a tidal wave, and the club's prospects of a second premiership in the past 52 years better than they've ever been. They've won their past four games by 64, 65, 53 and 66 points, averaging just over 20 goals a game.

It's been an awesome month of form, and one that has put the Magpies firmly in the same bracket as the magnificent Geelong. Collingwood copped a pounding from the Cats in last year's preliminary final. The gap since has narrowed significantly.

Article here:
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...arrowed-the-gap-on-geelong-20100509-ultb.html

 

[Bay Pie]

Did Will Brodie suck in a lemon before he wrote that article? Man that was brutal. I laughed though.

Seriously, does anyone think we are a better team now then the team from the PF? Shit yeah! Beams, Thomas, Wellers, Sidey all much better. Swan not injured. Oh yeah, we've added Jolly, Ball, a fit Medders & Pendles.

Is it good enough to beat the Cats when it counts in September? We won't know until then irrespective of the result of our game in 2 weeks.

I think Geelong a favourites now anyway. I prefer to cop a spray in the media then glowing praise. Keeps all focused.

 

[Chaz Pendlebury]

That's transparent bullshit. Over the last twenty years, Collingwood hasn't failed because of the 'occasion' or because of 'game plan'. We've failed because we're not good enough. Simple. In finals, and under MM, Collingwood have regularly played up to, and sometimes beyond, reasonable expectations given the quality of our list and our home-and-away ladder position. It's not as if we're worldbeaters who inexplicably underperform in September (see Adelaide).

To wit:

• We were one of the four best-performed teams in 09, and we played a prelim. Geelong and St Kilda were clearly the two best teams last year and they played the GF. Finals performance reflected home-and-away form that year.
• In 08 we finished eighth and beat fifth-placed Adelaide in the first week, beating expectations given our ladder position (not to mention the away venue).
• In 2007 we finished sixth, but made a prelim. Again outperforming our Rd22 ladder position.
• 2003 we finished second (behind Port) after Rd22 and were runners-up to the Brians, who were clearly a more talented (albeit AFL-created Frankenstein) team and were in the middle leg of a threepeat.
• In 02 we finished fourth, a long way adrift of the top two, but made a GF.
• Only in 2006, where we finished fifth but got knocked out in week one by the eighth-placed Dogs, could you say that our big-game performance when it counted at year's end was short of our home-and-away performance.

In short, our September performances in recent years -- and, in fact, even over the last two decades -- are actually pretty bloody good when put them in the context of our home-and-away form. If anything, we tend to exceed what you'd reasonably expect given our pre-Sept performances: see 02 GF, 07 prelim, 08 elim.

If there's a difference this year, it's that we might at last NOT be in the position of being plucky underdogs who slog our guts out only to eventually go down to superior talent and better teams. This year we might -- might -- have claims to being the best team in it.

Pretty ****ing straightforward, I would've thought.

This is right on the money. The manner in which we got knocked out last year is probably what Robbo is hanging his hat on

Our 07, 08 performances were both well above what could have been expected. 07 we knocked out the two previous premiers and then pushed Geelong to the hilt. In 08 we had no right being there given how young and inexperienced the team was with injuries club suspensions retirements etc

If we keep it together we may go into september top two and need to win 3 games out our home ground in front of crowds similar to those we play in front of every single week - i.e. big and Collingwood dominated. Particularly if the likes of Freo, Port and the Swans maintain their form

There is a long way to go but we are very well placed with the best list we have had in memory

 

[Raveneyes]

Re: Robbo Shot at Pies

Haha, I liked that you were paying homage to my girls. They'll be back, nothing wrong with a bit of man love for Bally as well, I'd boof him if I got the chance

I have to ask, just who was that blonde girl? Her face and smile are simply stunning.