Which team is closer to playing in finals - Carlton, Gold Coast or St Kilda?

[Mr.X]

Saints as of now have a better list but gcs and Carlton have a shedload more potential imo I’d back Carlton to resume finals around 2021

?????

Saints list is very average, full of plodders who'd struggle to get a game at another club.

Could be a battle for them to get out of the bottom 4 for at least 3 seasons

 

[Plugger35]

?????

Saints list is very average, full of plodders who'd struggle to get a game at another club.

Could be a battle for them to get out of the bottom 4 for at least 3 seasons

That doesn't say much for North then who we beat quite comfortably yesterday.

I doubt we will finish bottom 4 this year but like most teams that depends on having our best players available, our best line up will at least be competitive.

 

[aussierulesrules]

?????

Saints list is very average, full of plodders who'd struggle to get a game at another club.

I think what he means is that for playing games right now our list is better/more capable, as has proved to be the case for the last 4 years.

Could be a battle for them to get out of the bottom 4 for at least 3 seasons

The same was being said about North this time last year and it took them one year to get well out of the bottom 4.

If we get hit hard by injuries we'll most likely finish bottom 4 again, but if not I won't be at all surprised if we bounce back to being the sort of team we were in 2016/2017 again.

A big chunk of our list is now into that crucial 50-100 game area, we've gotten Richo some much needed quality support, and we've added a few ready-to-go types who can immediately help to address some of our clear weaknesses (like speed and forward pressure in particular).

 

[Ambrosia]

I think what he means is that for playing games right now our list is better/more capable, as has proved to be the case for the last 4 years.

The same was being said about North this time last year and it took them one year to get well out of the bottom 4.

If we get hit hard by injuries we'll most likely finish bottom 4 again, but if not I won't be at all surprised if we bounce back to being the sort of team we were in 2016/2017 again.

A big chunk of our list is now into that crucial 50-100 game area, we've gotten Richo some much needed quality support, and we've added a few ready-to-go types who can immediately help to address some of our clear weaknesses (like speed and forward pressure in particular).

Haven't you already been hit massively with injuries with Carlisle and Steven out indefinitely though?

 

[projectv]

That doesn't say much for North then who we beat quite comfortably yesterday.

I doubt we will finish bottom 4 this year but like most teams that depends on having our best players available, our best line up will at least be competitive.

With all due respect, we shouldn't read much into JLT games.

I am not sure where the Saints will end up this year. Until last week I was quietly confident we'd improve. Now with Steven and Carlisle out I'm back to the usual level of skepticism, but hey ho I'm still looking forward to finding out.

 

[aussierulesrules]

Haven't you already been hit massively with injuries with Carlisle and Steven out indefinitely though?

Carlisle out is definitely not a good start and is a big hit, but it will depend on whether any of those who are likely to replace him also get injured.

Last year for instance in the games that Jake missed Logan Austin got to play and in those games he averaged about 20 disposals and 8 marks per game, so while he's obviously nowhere near as good as Carlisle overall, he is not too much of a downgrade if he's able to keep performing at that sort of level.

Getting Roberton back also cancels out a lot of losing Carlisle, so again it will depend a lot on whether the likes of him in that area are able to play most weeks. If they are, I'm pretty confident that we'll be able to cover for Jake adequately, like we did yesterday.

If on the other hand we lose others from the team who play that sort of role, we could obviously be in trouble.

As for Steven, of course if he's out for any significant sort of period that will be a big blow as well, and we'll be well on the way to the significant injuries etc hit I was talking about, but as of right now he's stated that he doesn't want to miss any games at all, and could potentially be back at the club within a week.

It's a big wait-and-see, that one.

We're probably in the best position to handle losing him that we've been in for years though, with the likes of Gresham, Hunter Clark and Acres training a heap with the midfield this summer, and likely more ready than ever to play decent minutes in there.

 

[Juddernaut08]

Saints wont go backwards in 2019. A lot of north 2018 about them.

 

[aussierulesrules]

Saints wont go backwards in 2019. A lot of north 2018 about them.

Last year was a trainwreck of a year for a number of reasons (and wasn't helped by having the no.1 ranked hardest draw of any team- we didn't play any of the bottom 9 teams twice, for instance!- whereas this year our draw is ranked the easiest, like North's was last year), but we've had 6 months to work out all the reasons it went so badly, and to implement measures to rectify the situation, so for us to finish bottom 4 or go backwards this year it would be a pretty diabolical result for the club.

Significant injuries could cause it to happen, but otherwise it would be pretty damn bad, and will of course spell the end for Richo.

 

[Turboman1994]

?????

Saints list is very average, full of plodders who'd struggle to get a game at another club.

Could be a battle for them to get out of the bottom 4 for at least 3 seasons

I made that comment before the injuries to Carlisle and Stevens. I don’t fancy Saints future prospects but as of last year there list is currently better than Carlton and Gold Coast from a pure W/L stand point however I might be eating crow soon and it wouldn’t surprise me if you guys pass saints very soon whilst having a high up side