Autopsy Round 7 vs Saints rant thread

[Crippa#9]

Where were the marking targets up forward apart from Waite? Our forward line completely broke down because we couldn't even make a contest and get the crumbers into it. We were stretched a little bit in defence too. Do you think I think you could have sacrificed a player like Joseph for another tall and that would have given us more structure.

Yeah TBird was probably stiff but I nderstood the MC's decision to go with another mid (Ellard) and believe our mids and forwards would be too quick for them.

 

[Tanks_Alot]

Heres what you do champ. Bump the posts where you picked all of these BEFORE the drafts or piss off with your hindsighting. We can all do that, not too many can do this BEFORE THE DRAFT though. Piss poor post.

Yeah agree with ya on this one, anybody can do hindsight drafting. They think they look smart but just end up looking stupid.

But if Vladmir ****wit didn't change the rules just in time for us to miss out on 2 1st round DP's in that 2006 draft we would've drafted Selwood and Gibbs with pick 1 and 2, can even remember Pagan saying so.

 

[jonoman89]

- Couldn't win a clean stoppage to save ourselves.
- Handballing INTO traffic occurred all night...no outside spread whatsoever from stoppages
- Kicking was to the advantage of every Saints defender
- Overlap handball non-existent

Players:

- Murphy absolutely molested by Jones and didn't seem interested in breaking the tag
- Gibbs equally couldn't give two shits
- Waite's leads were timed appallingly
- Joseph offered us absolutely nothing defensively or offensively

Only two positives were Judd and Ellard. Everyone else was average to abysmal.

 

[dumb]

Been said by a few posters about the extra defender in our forward line all year, it is the easiest way to beat Carlton. Adelaide will do this from the first bounce, no need to change gameplans mid-game, it is 100% certain to happen, how will the coaching staff overcome this?

i'd be thinking about putting robinson on this loose man, depending on who it is. or gibbs. it looks like we're going for a 'loose man shoot out' and coming off second best.

 

[blue gunslinger]

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
wake up

 

[Azul]

i'd be thinking about putting robinson on this loose man, depending on who it is. or gibbs. it looks like we're going for a 'loose man shoot out' and coming off second best.

I've been screaming at them all year to man up!

 

[blue healer]

I'll leave those questions to the MC but my perception is we've been structurally deficient in being down a tall. Relying on Walker, Betts and Garlett as per last year hasn't worked.

Thornton, Bower, Waite, Jamison and Henderson can all play in the one side. Even with 2 rucks, that's still 11 'smalls' on the field at any one one time (12 depending on who's having a 5 minute rest).

I said this before the game and have said it several times before, just sick of Eddie being marked by guys who are much taller. FFS sit Hampson at FF, Waite at CFF and Thornton in the pocket. Surely one of these guys can take the odd mark.

Becoming increasingly impatient with Bower. I originally thought Laidler's injury was Bower's chance but I'm no longer sure and wouldn't be averse to giving Watson a go. I know he hasn't shown much in the 2's but we have to try him sometime and he couldn't be much worse than Bower.

 

[FlowersByIrene]

Gibbs > Harden Up > Midfield
Murphy > Shake A Tag
Judd > Take More Advantage Of No Tag
Waite > Better Leading

 

[The Old Dark Navy's]

Cotchin went 2, unquestionably the player of that draft, the sort we lack, already had plenty of ruckmen coming through...

We took Kreuzer in the 2007 draft.

Our ruckmen in 2007 were:

Cain Ackland (undersized, ordinary)
Cameron Cloke (undersized, ordinary)
Shaun Hampson (1st year player expected to take a fair bit of time due to being a relative newcomer to the game)
Sam Jacobs (1st year rookie who didn't show anything in his first year)

Of course we needed Kreuzer as insurance.

We had just come through the French, De Luca, Bryan, Mott years to boot.

Unless somehow you thought we had guarantees in a first year latecomer and a first year rookie, that is an awful call.

 

[SE_Blue]

The worst part of the night was having to listen to that St Kilda woman standing behind the Carlton cheer squad.

 

[gbatman]

I'm all ears as to how this could possibly be done when the game is as fast as it's ever been.

True, I'm not a big fan of Mclean but our clearance work is as bad as any team going around, even GWS smashed os here, what do you recon the crows will do to us? we can't get it out of the middle and we lack size and strength in there. I think if you have a good look at the Luke Ball story, another slow plodder, and look at how the saints went when they refused to give him a go and how Collingwood went when they did give him a go you will find that pace is not the be all and end all. He's fit and he's in form, he has played well at AFL level in the past many years ago and we are getting smashed in this area. It's desperate times and you never know, we just might find/gain something.

Next week we play Adelaide who are the number 1 contested possession and clearance side and I am afraid, they way things are looking, we are looking like copping one hell of a smacking. This will be our biggest challenge yet.

 

[Wickzki]

I'm sick of the "bomb it into Eddie Betts from outside 50" go to move that seems to be happening more and more.

 

[Azul]

I said this before the game and have said it several times before, just sick of Eddie being marked by guys who are much taller. FFS sit Hampson at FF, Waite at CFF and Thornton in the pocket. Surely one of these guys can take the odd mark.

Yes.

And I'm stick of midfielders having set shots from 48m out. It's a low % kick and mainly because we have a lack of tall marking targets able to demand the footy 35m out from goal.

An extra tall makes us less predictable than Bomb it to Betts because Waite is covered.

 

[The Coach]

Soft team. Weak with contested footy. Outmuscled AGAIN.

Dont run.

Game plan of 'kick it to the pocket' sucks.

There is definitely a belief from the rest of the comp that we are soft - we will have to extinguish this. Kreuze and Hammer have not a mean bone in their bodies, nor do ball players Judd, Murph, Simmo etc. Gibbsy should be really embarrassed if he watches a replay. Ellard is a must. Robbo has to hurt teams more by improving his disposal. Miss Carrots but need to add more muscle than just him and Ellard. Worried Curnow is already dropping off again but McLean is not the answer. I am stuffed where the mean streak is going to come from. We have to train someone up - Tuohy? JR is a huge disappointment as he should be as ferocious as Robbo if he really wants a game

Seriously.

How the **** do you win the hitouts 50 to 20 and lose the clearances.

Weak frontrunning pricks.

Robinson put his body on the line.

He was the only one.

Murphy, Gibbs and co need a lesson in hardening the **** up.

And someone show Jeff how to tackle. Laid three high tackles with his sloppy technique.

Jeff could get a reputation for not liking a tough game - I know he is a flyweight but there is nowhere to hide out there.

What a disgrace. Barker and Williams offering nothing as specialty coaches.

- Flankers as midfielders? Get it out of your mind Ratts. Tuohy, Russell, Duigan, Joseph is far too many flankers, give me pure mids.

- Garlett is terribly out of form. Time he starts following through with the talk of being scared for his spot, very comfortable, too comfortable.

- Scotland is just filling space right now.

- Walker not gelling well with Waite, Thornton would have been an upgrade on Duigan and could have gone forward and clunked a few for us.

OUT: Joseph, Duigan, Scotland, Russell, Garlett
IN: Mclean, Lucas, Collins, Yarran, Thornton

As most have said - you are wrong about Scotland but little else. Would have liked to see Yazza stand up in a game like that but I am not sure he would have liked the argey bargey anymore than Jeff does

What genuinely decent players are to come back in, Carrots and Yarran?

Laidler adds a lot to our backline and Thornton is far more versatile and reliable than Emu. Duig's injury prone body and lack of pre-season has definitley resulted in a big drop off in form

ps Kreuze has not a mean bone in his body but his attack on the footy is mean

 

[Warsaw]

Very poor showing tonight. Sucks even greater when a good chunk of your mates are Saints fans.

Adelaide worries the bejesus out of me.

 

[GoBlues!]

Personally i thought Ratts and co were as much to blame for tonight piss poor effort as the players....

Who the **** are we to act all arrogant and rest guys in rd 6? we've accomplished nothing yet and were preparing for finals? fmd
No plan B.
Slow to react.
Ellard as the sub?
Thornton dropped?
Forward line structure? when its not working change it..Barker is it?
Backline small/medium mids everywhere in the backline....

Did the club decide to give Waite this week off too? no? oh dear...

HARDEN THE **** BOYS...ITS EMBARRASSING.

Agree - after 5 rounds of footy resting Judd and Waite sounded great in theory, but imo the rest did absolutely sfa for those two tonight. Probably their worst games for the year.


Lets not kid ourselves, we're not that good (or as good as Geelong were) to be resting players in R6 so that they're in peak condition for the finals. We need to harden up and get some blue-collar toughness into our game.

PS: Ratts, I think its time you also tried something different and maybe coach a few games from up in the box rather than on the sidelines. I know you've got great assistants in the box and all that....but you are the man, the Head Coach and who knows you might just get a better perspective of the game and whats going on.

 

[blue gunslinger]

I'm sick of the "bomb it into Eddie Betts from outside 50" go to move that seems to be happening more and more.

thought it was bomb it to tex

 

[Azul]

True, I'm not a big fan of Mclean but our clearance work is as bad as any team going around, even GWS smashed os here, what do you recon the crows will do to us?

Mclean got plenty of clearances against Essendon and we still lost.

Leading me to conclude clearances are a largely meaningless fixation.

 

[jj1978]

Angry, sad, disillusioned!

Our pre-season form Has been masked by some luckily timed games. I want Ratten to get fired up... Scream.. Do Something except for fist pump!

Too many comments about us emulating Geelong resting players last year... Must make the team think we've won it already.

Risk a loss this week and drop Gibbs, Joseph, Garlett, duigan and Russell, Rest Scotland as well. Bring in some spirit in Davies, Bootsma, Yarran, and whoever else will consider dying for a senior game.

Gibbs and Garlett the biggest disappointments of the year.... Playing like passionless rag dolls .. Pagan era all over again.. Thought it was 2004 again

 

[SE_Blue]

thought it was bomb it to tex

I think it's just bomb it

 

[Wickzki]

I think it's just bomb it

Probably is that way. Either way I vividly remember on several occasions our midfielders bombing it in the general direction of Eddie who was defended by three much bigger and stronger defenders. Makes me ill seeing that.

 

[SBYM]

True, I'm not a big fan of Mclean but our clearance work is as bad as any team going around, even GWS smashed os here, what do you recon the crows will do to us? we can't get it out of the middle and we lack size and strength in there. I think if you have a good look at the Luke Ball story, another slow plodder, and look at how the saints went when they refused to give him a go and how Collingwood went when they did give him a go you will find that pace is not the be all and end all. He's fit and he's in form, he has played well at AFL level in the past many years ago and we are getting smashed in this area. It's desperate times and you never know, we just might find/gain something.

Next week we play Adelaide who are the number 1 contested possession and clearance side and I am afraid, they way things are looking, we are looking like copping one hell of a smacking. This will be our biggest challenge yet.

That's a pretty bloody good rebuttal.

Adelaide will hand us our arses if we dish up seconds. Thing is, I see Ball as much less of a plodder than McLean. Ball doesn't look out of place out there, Brock does in my opinion, like the pace of it is beyond him. And I'd be shit scared about how much an in-form, quick, hard-running Crows midfield would expose him.

You're right about it being desperate times.

 

[gbatman]

Thornton must be a chance next weekend too. We were far too short up forward and didn't stretch them at all and that allowed them to double team Waite. It seemed like Hampson and Waite weren't working well together. I know things are really hard for forwards when you can't win a clearance and gain a clean break as it gives the opposition time to set up defensively.

I'm looking forward to the Adelaide clash next weekend, it's going to be an almighty challenge. Their strength happens to be a thing that wins flags and that is midfield strength, both physical strength and strength in terms of quality and their ability to win the contested ball and clearances. This also happens to be our weakness. It will show us what we are made of.

 

[Peete]

Yes - we have too many small bodies - who get out muscled and whose tackles (too often) don't stick. About time the MC figured this out don't ya think?

Yes - we need a general back in defence - calling the shots that Ratts is too late making...No we cant cover for Bower/Joseph/Russell - NOT being up to it.

No we don't have an established attacking structure-in fact it is total mess from center forward to goal square - who is to blame for this absolute stuff up?

Yes Ratts is a good guy NO he doesnt have 22 Top4 team players playing week in week out. So what -YES it is HIS job to make what we have work for us.

YES: This game was a defining game as to where we really sit in the competition. On current form we are (maybe Top8 - it all depends on a few matches like this - and lifting for the (currently) un-winnable games ( like next week )

Ratts has some serious thinking and hard decisions to make - otherwise we are on a slippery dip down hill. We desperately need to learn to win the hard contests- for 4 quarters.

Positives?

NO:Saints tried but didn't succeed in the in your face stuff - they just wanted it little more than us and we were out-coached for this game.

Chin up - the year isn't over - yet.

 

[skadoosh]

If you watch the centre bounces we are content with letting the opposition get their body infront of ours. We are content with them getting first to the ball.