Prediction So, where do we end up for season 2015?

[sauron256]

What are people's thoughts on the Stevie J trade deal GWS offered us now?

I am happy we were loyal to Stevie & he was loyal to us of course.
But geez, three top 10 draft picks (Including Cockatoo that is)...Very helpful.

I thought the offer of two top 10 picks was a myth?

 

[Daniel McL]

I thought the offer of two top 10 picks was a myth?

Oh was it?
I don't know for sure I thought it might have been one of those picks at least, maybe not two.

 

[goyoucatters]

Two of the reasons given for how we might improve were:

a) the return of Bartel and Kelly to the midfield;
b) Enright having his best pre-season ever

Fair enough. Once the games start taking place we can assess their impact. Right now I'd say it's negligible. There's nothing wrong with pointing that out.

Maybe reasons given by some, I'll admit.

But the notion that our vets were ever going to be a massive factor in improving the performance of this team (no matter where they played) flies in the face of just about every empirical source of evidence I've ever seen in football.

Players don't go to another level when they hit the age of these veterans. They in fact find it hard to maintain their previous standards of output.

And that's exactly what we have seen with our premiership heroes.

All of the three mentioned (champions, though they are) have been showing signs of decline for some time now.

To arrest that decline would be an achievement in itself, given their advancing years. To actually see them work against the curve and get back to previous standards of output would be staggering in the extreme.

If we are going to improve in 2015, I feel certain that a significant upswing in the output of players like these is not going to be a chief cause.

I want them out there and competing at the best they can now manage. But they are simply not equipped to carry all before them any longer.

And it doesn't diminsh my gratitude to them (and esteem for them) in any way.

I hope they go out (whether this year or later) with some footy to savour still in their recent history.

 

[Teriyakicat]

What are people's thoughts on the Stevie J trade deal GWS offered us now?

I am happy we were loyal to Stevie & he was loyal to us of course.
But geez, three top 10 draft picks (Including Cockatoo that is)...Very helpful.

Apparently we were only offered pick 4. The pick 7 was just hypothetical- ie if we offloaded another good older player.

 

[goyoucatters]

Apparently we were only offered pick 4. The pick 7 was just hypothetical- ie if we offloaded another good older player.

Without knowing the details, sounds much more like it to me.

 

[Teriyakicat]

I thought the offer of two top 10 picks was a myth?

Oh was it?
I don't know for sure I thought it might have been one of those picks at least, maybe not two.

Someone quoted this elsewhere- apologies for not attributing the find to the correct poster because I can't remember, despite reading it just this morning:

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...g-ceo-brian-cook/story-fni5f6yf-1227144320978

GREATER Western Sydney came at Geelong late in the trade period to offer a top-10 pick for matchwinner Steve Johnson.

He was in America playing golf and expecting a new baby so it barely progressed.

But in unemotional terms if the Cats had secured pick No.4 for a 31-year-old it might have advantaged their list management plans.

“I don’t think it was taken seriously by Stevie,” says Cook.

“It came as a complete surprise to us on the last day. This thing comes out of the blue and you could take advantage of it.

“But the issue with those things is you have the potential to upset your whole playing group. Some people say it would be a great opportunity to go and get (pick) 4 and 7 and let go a couple of players but you might talk to 10 players and upset them and nothing happens.

“We are not going to approach our players like that.”

I blame Brian Cook for starting the rumour

 

[Teriyakicat]

Without knowing the details, sounds much more like it to me.

See my post above- I've just located the article

 

[BlakeyNoFlakey]

I hope to see some improvement as the season rolls on. We've played two top 4 teams and have been shown up. That's life. That being said I do think we have enough talent to beat the middle sides, and definitely the lower ones. Fingers crossed we will finish between 6-8. My biggest concern going forward is our midfield. Shut down our outside run and and you cripple its effectiveness. If middle clubs can succeed in doing that to us, then there's a chance we might drop out of the 8 this year. But like I said, I do think we have enough talent to win those games. I hope.

 

[Sttew]

I hope to see some improvement as the season rolls on. We've played two top 4 teams and have been shown up. That's life. That being said I do think we have enough talent to beat the middle sides, and definitely the lower ones. Fingers crossed we will finish between 6-8. My biggest concern going forward is our midfield. Shut down our outside run and and you cripple its effectiveness. If middle clubs can succeed in doing that to us, then there's a chance we might drop out of the 8 this year. But like I said, I do think we have enough talent to win those games. I hope.

Agree on all points.

At the moment our midfield is probably rock bottom, and reflective of our position on the ladder. Even the midfields of Melbourne and St Kilda bat deeper.

 

[Scottland2007]

What are people's thoughts on the Stevie J trade deal GWS offered us now?

I am happy we were loyal to Stevie & he was loyal to us of course.
But geez, three top 10 draft picks (Including Cockatoo that is)...Very helpful.

SJ has an incredible football brain (so I'm told). Wish he would play as an on field coach. He could possibly be Geelongs next premiership coach. Glad we kept him.

 

[Herne Hill Hammer]

We've been poor, all the other sides we've been beating up on for a decade now face up to us thinking they're a better than even chance.

We're in big trouble this season.

 

[Partridge]

SJ has an incredible football brain (so I'm told). Wish he would play as an on field coach. He could possibly be Geelongs next premiership coach. Glad we kept him.

I'm less and less impressed with this apparently vast football intelligence with every suspension he's accumulated. You reckon someone that bright would figure out missing finals through suspension is actually incredibly stupid.

 

[Scottland2007]

I'm less and less impressed with this apparently vast football intelligence with every suspension he's accumulated. You reckon someone that bright would figure out missing finals through suspension is actually incredibly stupid.

That's the otherside of the coin. I wish he a). Got suspended less. B). Talked/ directed more on the field

 

[FredLeDeux]

I'm less and less impressed with this apparently vast football intelligence with every suspension he's accumulated. You reckon someone that bright would figure out missing finals through suspension is actually incredibly stupid.

That's the otherside of the coin. I wish he a). Got suspended less. B). Talked/ directed more on the field[/QUOTE]

I have no idea where his rep for a big footy brain comes from, or whether or not it's true.
However, he certainly does plenty of talking and directing on the ground, he's usually the one organising set-ups at the ball-ups and other midfield set plays.

 

[iameviljez]

I'm less and less impressed with this apparently vast football intelligence with every suspension he's accumulated. You reckon someone that bright would figure out missing finals through suspension is actually incredibly stupid.

I think there is a slight difference between intelligence and self-discipline - however, the two do correlate, I accept that.

If you're going to be a good coach in modern footy, however, you do need quite a bit of both. The days of highly emotive men who coached by emotional response (i.e. Ron Barassi) are long gone, judgements have to be sensible and beyond knee-jerk.

 

[Footy Smarts]

Anybody changed their opinion after the weekend?

Unfortunately the injuries to Bartel, Stokes and Mackie have come at a terrible time if we want to push for top 4. Losing 3 mature players when we've got a side that haven't played together much is far from ideal. It also comes when we've got a group of games that will decide where we finish the year with North Melbourne, Collingwood, Richmond, West Coast (away) and Essendon all in the next 7. Those are the types of games in previous years we'd just turn up and get the job done but right now you'd think we'll be underdogs in most.

I still think we've got the players to form a very good team but there's a good chance that by the time we gel we'll have way too much ground to make up. That's assuming we get something approaching our best 22 on the park at any point during the year. Realistically if we can make the bottom part of the 8 and give our kids exposure to a final or maybe 2 that would be a pretty good result. But for now it's just a matter of picking the best team we can (which will contain a stack of kids) and trying to chalk up some wins. Hopefully things go well over the next month or 2 but it's certainly a challenge and I'd be lying if I said I was confident of us producing good performances without those injured players.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Just did the AFL's ladder predictor. Have us finishing 11th.

 

[manboob]

We lost to the two teams that will play off in the granny this year. Hardly the time to be quoting New Testament scripture...
The club nor its supporters shall be cast "into a furnace of fire: [where] there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."

 

[you pick one]

Just did the AFL's ladder predictor. Have us finishing 11th.

This far out you might as well use one of these.

 

[Lana]

This far out you might as well use one of these.

View attachment 127268

Outlook not good

 

[Partridge]

Unfortunately the injuries to Bartel, Stokes and Mackie have come at a terrible time if we want to push for top 4. Losing 3 mature players when we've got a side that haven't played together much is far from ideal. It also comes when we've got a group of games that will decide where we finish the year with North Melbourne, Collingwood, Richmond, West Coast (away) and Essendon all in the next 7. Those are the types of games in previous years we'd just turn up and get the job done but right now you'd think we'll be underdogs in most.

True, but in reality both Mackie and Stokes have been singularly unimpressive in their outings this season and Bartel was pretty average against Hawthorn. Even if we had a full list I doubt that we're good enough to make top 4. Just the way it is now. The sole benefit having those injuries may provide is that they have to put games into the next (rapidly becoming the current) generation.

 

[mcwilrob]

So, any clearer now we've played 4 rounds? Revising downwards?

 

[Pure_Ownage]

7th-13th. Despite where we are on the current ladder I think we are better than Brisbane, St Kilda, Gold Coast, Carlton and Melbourne but we are miles behind the top 4 (Freo, Hawthorn, Port and Sydney) and are battling against those sides in and just outside the 8.

 

[catempire]

A lot will need to go right from here to make the 8. Right now I'm thinking around 10th.

 

[RightorKhan]

Will make the 8 no problem. Not sure about the top 4 though.