VFL Game Day Round 2: 35 point win over the Pies

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Massive quarter from Cutler. Backing up a good game from last week with a monster today. Certainly doing everything he possibly can for a senior recall.
 
A close game at the start; Essendon grabbed Collingwood by the neck and shook the life out of them in the 3rd quarter. This was a hard one to give votes too, Cutler was the clear best on, the others you would make a case for (throw a blanket over them) being in a different order as they all had quiet patches at stages. Essendon dominated possessions and made the most of their forward 50 entries – more cohesion and teamwork between the players this week.

5. Cutler: (27 disposals, 3 goals) Kicked a few goals in the 3rd quarter to help the Bombers pull ahead. It was really a game-winning patch. Got a lot of the ball and used it quite well. Got a bit more quiet in the 4th when the rain came and most tougher stuff was required. Backing up again nicely from last week (well actually improving on last week). Is really pressing his case for a recall (to being the sub though hopefully). Good response to improve on last week.

4. Cahill: (20 disposals) Getting involved a bit, and was quite good in the 2nd half. Non-sighted in the last quarter.

3. Ambrose. (12 disposals, 2 goals) Started quietly, got a few goals 1st and 4th quarter (I think). Playing forward and looks a lot less rusty than last week.

2. Waterman: (16 disposals, 2 goals) Finished with 2.4 on the scoreboard. Could have had more. Kept improving as the game went on.

1. Tynan: Wearing the helmet did a few nice things. Could argue Younan or Bryan here.



The others;

Johnson; (11 disposals) still playing in the middle. I’m not sure this is his go, as he doesn’t impact the game enough for a midfielder.

Brand: (7 disposals) still developing nicely. Was taking some of the kickout responsibilities and has a nice long kick when required. Did launch a nice torp.

Hird: (16 disp) still buzzing around. Is working on finding the ball more, and improved on last week. Finding more of the ball in the 2nd half but lacks size, even at VFL level.

Bryan: (13 disposals, 29 HO) started the game really well. Was probably best on in the 1st quarter, but went quiet after that. Was able to beat Cox in the ruck. Had some nice centre clearances and good at ground level (1st quarter).

Eyre: (6 disposals, 0 goals) is improving, but needs to command the ball a bit more.
 
Hird looks alright. Got footy smarts for impacting the contest, reading the play and directing traffic. Obviously lack of size and speed means he's pushing uphill to get to top level, but certainly will develop into a key VFL player at the very least.
Size and speed is the issue. He has football ability.
 

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A close game at the start; Essendon grabbed Collingwood by the neck and shook the life out of them in the 3rd quarter. This was a hard one to give votes too, Cutler was the clear best on, the others you would make a case for (throw a blanket over them) being in a different order as they all had quiet patches at stages. Essendon dominated possessions and made the most of their forward 50 entries – more cohesion and teamwork between the players this week.

5. Cutler: (27 disposals, 3 goals) Kicked a few goals in the 3rd quarter to help the Bombers pull ahead. It was really a game-winning patch. Got a lot of the ball and used it quite well. Got a bit more quiet in the 4th when the rain came and most tougher stuff was required. Backing up again nicely from last week (well actually improving on last week). Is really pressing his case for a recall (to being the sub though hopefully). Good response to improve on last week.

4. Cahill: (20 disposals) Getting involved a bit, and was quite good in the 2nd half. Non-sighted in the last quarter.

3. Ambrose. (12 disposals, 2 goals) Started quietly, got a few goals 1st and 4th quarter (I think). Playing forward and looks a lot less rusty than last week.

2. Waterman: (16 disposals, 2 goals) Finished with 2.4 on the scoreboard. Could have had more. Kept improving as the game went on.

1. Tynan: Wearing the helmet did a few nice things. Could argue Younan or Bryan here.



The others;

Johnson; (11 disposals) still playing in the middle. I’m not sure this is his go, as he doesn’t impact the game enough for a midfielder.

Brand: (7 disposals) still developing nicely. Was taking some of the kickout responsibilities and has a nice long kick when required. Did launch a nice torp.

Hird: (16 disp) still buzzing around. Is working on finding the ball more, and improved on last week. Finding more of the ball in the 2nd half but lacks size, even at VFL level.

Bryan: (13 disposals, 29 HO) started the game really well. Was probably best on in the 1st quarter, but went quiet after that. Was able to beat Cox in the ruck.

Eyre: (6 disposals, 0 goals) is improving, but needs to command the ball a bit more.

I disagree with Johnson. He was only average today but he is a player who will be building his tank after an injury lay off. Not saying he will make it but I saw a few things today he can work with. Will be interested to see how he is going towards the end of the season.
 
Cutler was the best. Work rate very good. Involved all day.
Bryan started well but faded out of the game. Probably the reason they have not pulled the trigger.
Cahill was solid playing midfield all day.
Waterman involved all day. Missed a couple of goals he should have kicked early.
Ambrose good. Worked hard all day.
Eyre did a couple of nice things but was out pointed at times. Conditions did not really suit.
Brand. Quiet in defense but his actual defense was okay.
McBride. Like Brand he was a bit quiet but did the odd handy thing.
Hird was solid in the back half but the issues is for a very light / small bloke he has no x factor. Has football ability.
 
Only saw a little bit of Eyre. Seemed to rush what looked like a fairly standard set shot for it to slide across goal. Might have been raining by then.
It was :)
 
I disagree with Johnson. He was only average today but he is a player who will be building his tank after an injury lay off. Not saying he will make it but I saw a few things today he can work with. Will be interested to see how he is going towards the end of the season.
Yeah, Johnson is an interesting one to see where he will finish. They seem to be persisting with him in the middle, so that is where they want to develop him.
 

blitzer

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Aug 27, 2006
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From that game the guys you'd consider at AFL level would be:
Bryan, Waterman, Ambrose and Cutler.

Cutler was the best of the lot today but I don't know whether you'd ask him to back it up before bringing him in.
I thought Waterman was quite good myself and he'd be the one I'd bring in. His finishing was off but we know he's normally a great kick and I thought his leading and marking was impressive and he did some good things up the ground as well. Plus I'd say there's a spot for a medium sized forward in our AFL lineup.
You could also bring in Bryan. He was absolutely on fire early and competed well vs Cox I thought. Its funny how different he is to Draper as a ruckman. Draper is all aggression and raw athleticism whereas Bryan is calm, collected and good at all the fundamentals - in particular his disposal impressed me.
Not sure why we are playing Ambrose up forward but he put together a good game in the end. Still think lockdown defender makes much more sense at AFL level.
 
Oct 1, 2006
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Not sure why we are playing Ambrose up forward but he put together a good game in the end. Still think lockdown defender makes much more sense at AFL level.

Seems pretty straight forward to me. Richmond model Rutten helped build is entirely reliant on defensive cohesion and roll over. No room for a lock down defender, especially one that won't be there in a year or two. We have 7 defenders (Reid, Francis, Laverde, Ridley, BZT, Redman, Hind) that could be there for another 5 years minimum, Rutten seems happy to relax and let them build that synergy.
 
May 6, 2007
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Was a terrific game from our VFL squad yesterday, thought our VFL guys were better than the Pies whilst our youngsters were better also.

Thought Tynan was our best early, Cutler broke the game open after half time whilst Lachie Johnson was very good across the 4 quarters imho.

Cahil had some decent moments playing on ball whilst Nick Bryan was our most dominant player by half time. Younan chiming in with 3 was great whilst Ambrose fwd is odd but ok kicking two.

The young keys were very quiet as one would expect, the VFL guys were also ok.

Onto Carlton next week at Windy Hill which should be a great test, should be one of the favourites to win the whole thing


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Club write up:

VFL Bombers comfortable winners over Pies
Essendon records its first VFL victory of the season with a 35-point win over Collingwood.

VFL-Bombers.jpg

The VFL Bombers celebrate their round two win over Collingwood. (Photo: Ben Johnstone)

Essendon VFL has bounced back from a tough round one loss to Brisbane with a 35-point win over Collingwood in its Anzac Day eve clash at Victoria Park.

The Bombers, who managed to outscore the home team in the first term, were able to maintain a comfortable lead throughout the game to eventually run away with a 12.13 (85) to 6.14 (50) win.

Essendon started strongly and dominated possession, with Josh Smithson striking from outside 50 for the Dons' first.

Ruckman Nick Bryan had an excellent start and was dominant in the ruck and up forward, setting up forward-50 entries for Essendon.

Co-captain Danny Younan was impressive from the get go, dominating the Dons' forward half to secure two early goals.

Defender Patrick Ambrose also had a piece of the action in the first term, taking a mark inside the goal square and adding another major to the scoreboard.

Essendon had strength in numbers and was able to cover the ground well. Its pressure and intensity made it challenging for Collingwood’s forwards, which inevitably saw the Dons outscore the home team four goals to one at the end of the first term.

Tom-Hird.jpg

Tom Hird in action against Collingwood. (Photo: Ben Johnstone)

The Bombers' momentum diminished in the second quarter as Collingwood stepped up its pressure and defence, which meant the Dons were unable to secure a goal.

Although they struggled to get the ball down to their forward line, Essendon’s defenders were impressive in their ability to combat Collingwood’s consistent inside 50s. Ned Cahill was able tocontinue his impressive form throughout the quarter, making a big impact in midfield and defence.

Collingwood was too strong in the second term, however, cutting the margin to just five points at the main break.

The start of the third quarter saw Essendon regain its momentum and pressure it had shown in the first quarter, with Bryan continuing to dominate the centre bounces and in midfield.

Tom Cutler was prolific early on, scoring two sensational goals in a row from deep outside the forward 50 which put Essendon in a 17-point lead.

Cutler was able to follow this up later in the quarter, orchestrating a turnover near the Dons' goal square and running into an open goal to nab his third goal of the day.

As heavy rain set in and changed playing conditions, Essendon had already established a comfortable 29-point lead and had set itself up going into the last term.

Essendon’s movement inside 50 continued to be strong in the final quarter, with Alec Watermanand Ambrose scoring their second goals of the game which saw the Bombers end the day with a 35-point win.

VFL assistant coach and senior development coach Cam Roberts was happy with the forward leads the Bombers were able to generate in the first quarter, but said that lapsed in the second term which allowed Collingwood to bounce back.

“We sort of gave [Collingwood] a chance. At half-time we sort of addressed that particularly as a midfield group,” Roberts said.

“That second quarter we had a bit of a lapse, particularly when the rain came in. We just tried to get the footy forward and really focus on that contest and the boys did that really well actually. It was really good to see us do that.”

Overall Roberts was impressed with the Bombers' performance and what they were able to bring to the game.

“Our pressure around the footy all day was really good which was a focus area for us. Our ability to make [Collingwood] turn the footy over and us capitalise on that was really good.”

The Bombers will kick off round three against Carlton next Sunday from 12:05pm at Windy Hill.

COLLINGWOOD 1.4 3.8 5.12 6.14 (50)
ESSENDON 4.4 4.7 10.11 12.13 (85)

Goals: Cutler 3, Younan 3, Ambrose 2, Smithson 2, Waterman 2

Disposals: Cutler 27, Baker 21, Cahill 21, Tynan 21, Atley 17, Dunkley 17, Harrold 17, Waterman 17
 
My thoughts overall:

12. Tom Cutler. 10 minute patch in the 3rd was awesome, won us the match. Great at this level, let's see if he gets the call up next week.
24. Nick Bryan. Was excellent early but faded away late. Probably needs a genuine ruck partner at this stage so he can take more breaks forward.
28. Ned Cahill. Like Bryan I thought he was good early but faded late. Not sure where his best position is.
29. Patrick Ambrose. Does what Ambrose does. Presented well, worked hard and kicked a couple.
32. Josh Eyre. Barely noticed him actually apart from the poor set shot in the last. I wouldn't mind seeing him move up the ground a little bit.
36. Lachlan Johnson. He's slow and an average kick but tough. Not sure where his best position is either.
38. Cody Brand. Didn't notice him or his man really. Did a good job.
41. Cian McBride. Liked his game, strong defensively, has a nice kick.
45. Alec Waterman. Played well but was a tad wasteful in front of goal. Should have kicked a bag.
49. Tom Hird. Has footy smarts and skills but is a little slow ar this point and needs to work out how to work in the game.
 

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