Time to talk the "R" word yet?

[Cleric]

We are an aging side, and together with the potential loss of Sloane and even Lynch, we are going to have to replace a large section of our team in the not too far away future.
Sauce is almost done. ROB and Hunter I do not see as top level material, so we need to find one. And for those saying Ruck isnt that important should have learnt a bit about football with Grundy smashing us last night.
Gibbs is playing well but he is 30 next year. Need to make sure we get a 100 games out of him to have any sons as potential F/S for us.
Betts has started the decline.
JJ is 30 next year.
Tex is 29 next year.
Mookay is 30 this year, and still in our best 22.
Douglas is 32 next year. Still best 22 at the moment and Gallucci hasnt shown he is going to take over his position any time soon.
Why the hell we took on an aging Gibson has got me totally miffed.
Our shot at the flag was last year and we couldnt take it.
We have alot on the list who are back up or not a given to be best 22 or always injured such as Otten, CEY, Dear, Hampton, Gallucci, Himmelberg, B Crouch, Knight, Sig, Davis, Polk etc.
The list isnt in great shape for the future from that angle.
Maybe dropping out this year, getting a good compo pick for Sloane and Lynch if they leave could be best thing long term.

 

[Vhaluus]

If we're rebuilding next year, overpaying for Gibbs was a ridiculously huge mistake.

That being said yes, if we lose Sloane it's the final straw.

We could do a 3-4 year rebuild and be back in a window when some of our younger stars like Matt Crouch, Laird etc should still be in their prime.

 

[1990crow]

Reactionary loss thread. When we get both Crouch brothers back in we will be much better. Add in Smith and a FA for Sloanes salary and we will be fine.

Sloane for Saints first (Rankine)
Jenkins for a late first.
Our first - C.Rozee
Carlton’s second - Hately
Kelly - Francis
FA - A.Gaff

Brown Hartigan/Keath Francis
Laird Talia Doedee
Smith Gibbs Gaff
Lynch Walker Rankine
Fogarty McGovern Betts
Jacobs M.Crouch B.Crouch
Seedsman Greenwood Milera/Atkins Galluci/Rozee

Hately, McPherson, Knight, Poholke, Himmelburg, Davis, Wilson

 

[Thetrader15]

I think we need to go full bore this year at it and see what happens.

We have some good picks to start and its a strong draft so there are worse years to start it

 

[Squiba]

Full bore at the flag this year, see what happens at end of year. If both Sloane and Lynch leave we bail, we almost need to rebuild. But we wouldnt be one of those clubs who bottom out in that phase, we still have a decent core.

 

[Scorpus]

May as well have a crack at the flag this year but we should not be afraid of a rebuild if it fails.

If Sloane and Lynch leave it's game over. Full rebuild including the coaches and admin, time to instill a new culture. If we don't make it to the prelim, rebuild

 

[Redleg Crow]

IMO our 9 most important players are (in no particular order):
Sloane, Smith, Matt, Brad, Gibbs, Laird, Lynch, Talia and Jacobs.

Tex is not important in terms of us winning games when we're struggling, he never takes a game by the scruff, but he can make use of good delivery, Betts is the cream. The rest are role players of various importance.

Sloane can't break a tag

Smith is injured
Matt is injured
Brad is injured

Jacobs is old and shot.

Lynch is coming back from injury

Laird is Laird
Gibbs is all we hoped

So 3 are out, 1 has a fatal weakness, 1 is past his best, 2 are playing well and 1 should be soon.

So 2 1/2 out of 9 does not equal a winning team.

 

[Redleg Crow]

May as well have a crack at the flag this year but we should not be afraid of a rebuild if it fails.

If Sloane and Lynch leave it's game over. Full rebuild including the coaches and admin, time to instill a new culture. If we don't make it to the prelim, rebuild

Yep - the rebuilt you do when you're still ok. Be like the Hawks - you don't wait to bottom out to rebuild, you do so as soon as the warning signs are there

 

[Mike Smyth]

At the moment we ate effectively down 5 A graders. Smith and the Crouch brothers are injured and Betts and Tex are no longer capable of playing consistently good A grade football so there will be pain.

If lynch and Sloane leave we could potentially have 5 top 25 picks in the superdraft. this year has to be the year we move on a heap of players. I can think of at least 10 without even giving it too much thought.

 

[Cleric]

Reactionary loss thread. When we get both Crouch brothers back in we will be much better. Add in Smith and a FA for Sloanes salary and we will be fine.

Sloane for Saints first (Rankine)
Jenkins for a late first.
Our first - C.Rozee
Carlton’s second - Hately
Kelly - Francis
FA - A.Gaff

Brown Hartigan/Keath Francis
Laird Talia Doedee
Smith Gibbs Gaff
Lynch Walker Rankine
Fogarty McGovern Betts
Jacobs M.Crouch B.Crouch
Seedsman Greenwood Milera/Atkins Galluci/Rozee

Hately, McPherson, Knight, Poholke, Himmelburg, Davis, Wilson

Lol. You say my post about needing a list overhaul to improve is a reactionary thread and then proceed to put foward a list overhaul as all we need to do.

 

[Crowhorse]

I think it’s the culture that needs a bit of a rebuild. Pyke has pushed the bejesus out of our senior players and they are now all cooked, physically and mentally.

Clarkson provides a certain level of trust with his senior playing group which brings out better on field leadership. Pyke sticks his nose into every facet. Which is fine at the start but let it go at some stage else the players are always going to look at the coaches box to make an on field decision.

Sometimes I wonder if he’s too business minded with his approach. Injuries or not, young or old, the performances have been quite unspirited bar Richmond game.

 

[Slippery Pete]

It’s Round 4. What is this thread?

Do we need Blighty to come in here and write 18 on the board again?

 

[Rotayjay]

This year is the last year. That core we've had since the Sanderson days - Talia, Sloane, Walker, Betts, Smith, Jacobs, Jenkins and Lynch are all ageing. When they're retired or cooked, we're left with enormous holes across every line.

 

[LiamPickering]

Pfff stupid - we got pumped by North last year and well beaten by Melbourne. Richmond got smashed by us by 75 points. Both teams should've given up?

Our best is still good enough - we just need to fix a few things between the ears.

 

[footy4ever]

It’s Round 4. What is this thread?

Do we need Blighty to come in here and write 18 on the board again?

Yes, yes we do. If it works, yes we do. I'm thinking 18 was the number of games left in the season right?

 

[Markthirtytwo2]

It’s Round 4. What is this thread?

Do we need Blighty to come in here and write 18 on the board again?

At last someone with a fair bit of common sense.

 

[Scorpus]

Pfff stupid - we got pumped by North last year and well beaten by Melbourne. Richmond got smashed by us by 75 points. Both teams should've given up?

Our best is still good enough - we just need to fix a few things between the ears.

We haven't given a single inkling that we have even begun to fix the issues between the ears. Not to mention both the North and Melbourne games last year were clear warning signs we chose to ignore and... surprise! We got smashed in the biggest game we'd played for 20 years

 

[Vhaluus]

Pfff stupid - we got pumped by North last year and well beaten by Melbourne. Richmond got smashed by us by 75 points. Both teams should've given up?

Our best is still good enough - we just need to fix a few things between the ears.

Our best?

We haven't shown anywhere near last years best in any of our 4 games so far this year.

There's no saying we have that best anymore.

 

[Vhaluus]

We haven't given a single inkling that we have even begun to fix the issues between the ears. Not to mention both the North and Melbourne games last year were clear warning signs we chose to ignore and... surprise! We got smashed in the biggest game we'd played for 20 years

And then we've proceeded to ignore that smashing too.

Even a s**t coach in Hardwick saw the smashing the Crows gave and went 'well this isn't good' and made MAJOR changes that had significant impact for that side for the rest of the year.

I'm tired of being locked into Neil Craigs shadow, teams MUST adapt.

 

[hugecannon]

Restructure yes, rebuild not yet.

I’d love to see a few senior players who are consistently shown to underperform in crunch games to be moved on ASAP. I for one don’t care how hard Mackay tried last night he was ineffective as one of our senior players and leaders, same as Douglas - when was the last time he really stepped up in a big game and led from the front?

 

[Cleric]

It’s Round 4. What is this thread?

Do we need Blighty to come in here and write 18 on the board again?

Its a thread about the future of the list profile in the next couple of years.
If you want to talk about round 4 I believe the autopsy thread is still open.

 

[StonesThrow]

Our best?

We haven't shown anywhere near last years best in any of our 4 games so far this year.

There's no saying we have that best anymore.

Richmond game.

Looked poor in the other 3 though.

 

[Vhaluus]

Richmond game.

Looked poor in the other 3 though.

We were mediocre in the Richmond game, they were worse though.

Go compare it to the Richmond game last year and tell me we were anywhere near our best this year.

 

[Tex200]

There is, to me, a very significant flaw in core of this playing group, a flaw that's been there since 2015.

Put generally, the team does not have the collective mental toughness to "hang" in a game, to swim against the tide for a while, absorb momentum, then wrest it back.

If you track back through our losses there are very few I can think of where we have been put to the sword, have come back and made the game competitive.

Sure there are games we have got the scores closer, but they were games we were never in. Conversely when we win, we've broken sides relatively early and take the game away.

Games last year like North in Hobart (10 goals to 0 in Q1), Hawks at home, D's at home, of course the GF.

In 2016, R23 v WCE, Semi v Syd. All putrid performances, all looked exactly the same as last night.

Of course there's always exceptions, but I believe last night is the rule. No capacity to regroup at 1/4 time.

It's happened too many times, it's not an event. It's a pattern. We need to look past the core leadership and senior players of this group.

This years draft presents the perfect storm to act, we will lose 1 maybe 2 of our senior group returning home, we are stockpiling a war chest of picks and there will be quality SA talent to choose.

 

[StonesThrow]

A very important off season that will shape our next 10 years. Will Sloane and Lynch leave on their own accord or will we bite the bullet and seize the opportunity to draft heavily by helping them move on?

I'm tempted to go the latter rather than try hard to retain them. I feel like this is a golden chance to get some high quality talent into the club. Moving on Sloane would make the Gibbs trade look silly in hindsight, but I fear that not taking advantage of this situation could look even sillier in 5 years time.