NAB Cup - so far

[LostDoggy]

Whilst its hard to really judge teams based on the first round this is what has struck me so far.

Geelong were super impressive yesterday and do not appear to have any premiership hangover.
Carlton have improved but you would question if they can sustain this over a season.
Essendon have a vastly different game plan under Knights and carried the ball well.
Adelaide won't slide like they were predicted to.
Melbourne in for a long season.
I was happy with the Dogs in a difficult game.

Freo vs West Cast will be an interesting encounter.

Did anything surprise you on what you have seen so far?

[Bulldog Revolution]

Did anything surprise you on what you have seen so far?

Havng missed the pre-season stuff last year due to travel whats struck me is how scrappy the games have been, and how appalling the umpiring has been and I'm not one to complain about umpiring normally.

I think whilst the conditions of our game were poor the standard of the game was a lot higher due to both North and us fielding much stronger teams than many other clubs. I wonder whether we may rest a crew of players this week.

Carlton have finally bitten the bullet fully and really stacked the team with kids, they have a few who I like, but with Stevens and Fevola as their senior players they really are lacking in the leadership department. IMO it would be an enormous mistake to make Stevens captain.

[Dogs 24/7]

Carlton have finally bitten the bullet fully and really stacked the team with kids, they have a few who I like, but with Stevens and Fevola as their senior players they really are lacking in the leadership department. IMO it would be an enormous mistake to make Stevens captain.

I actually don't mind Stevens and think he would be a solid leader. Judds got the job though.

Did you geta chance to se Armfield and Pfieffer? The Blues have had some some success with their recycled players although given how many they get they should get some right.
Actually Armfield is more of an older recruit than a recycled one.

[LostDoggy]

Carlton - They just beat a Port Adelaide team missing K.Cornes, C.Cornes, P.Burgoyne, S.Burgoyne. B.Lade. Which is realistically more then half of Ports team. Carlton only had Judd missing, who continues to battle leg problems.

Based on that performance Fev reckons they will easily win 11 games this season.:rolleyes:

[LostDoggy]

Based on that performance Fev reckons they will easily win 11 games this season.:rolleyes:

With the addition of Judd and a fit Stevens, I expect Carlton to tank later in the season than the past few years.

[LostDoggy]

With the addition of Judd and a fit Stevens, I expect Carlton to tank later in the season than the past few years.
You'd hope so. They have had the last 3 number 1 picks playing yesterday. Murphy, Gibbs, Kreuzer....and Stevens has a fat arse. Although i'd like to see him get back to his best.

[LostDoggy]

I have no sympathy for Carlton's plight over the past 5/6 years.
They can rot at the bottom end forever. They cheated to get premierships and now they continue to play on the 'edges' to get back up the ladder.
No one will touch their premeirships so they have gotten off very lightly.

[hujsh]

Carlton - They just beat a Port Adelaide team missing K.Cornes, C.Cornes, P.Burgoyne, S.Burgoyne. B.Lade. Which is realistically more then half of Ports team. Carlton only had Judd missing, who continues to battle leg problems.

Based on that performance Fev reckons they will easily win 11 games this season.:rolleyes:

Also Ebert and Motlop. Something like 7 of the top 10 in the best and fairest were missing. Carlton only lost Judd.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Whilst its hard to really judge teams based on the first round this is what has struck me so far.

Geelong were super impressive yesterday and do not appear to have any premiership hangover.
Carlton have improved but you would question if they can sustain this over a season.
Essendon have a vastly different game plan under Knights and carried the ball well.
Adelaide won't slide like they were predicted to.
Melbourne in for a long season.
I was happy with the Dogs in a difficult game.

Freo vs West Cast will be an interesting encounter.

Did anything surprise you on what you have seen so far?

Geelong did play pretty well, they moved the ball in similiar fashion to last year. Very quick movement, lots of backing up and sharing the ball, good skills generally too. To be fair though, Melbourne had a fair few youngsters playing with a lot of quality on the sidelines. The disappointing thing for them is that only a few of their kids look OK.

Carlton have always performed well during the NAB Cup; what's new? They're still the same team they were last year. It's still 2+ years before they show anything IMO, and by then, Fevola & Stevens will be aged. I have my doubts on Judd's injuries, too.

It's too early to tell how most teams will perform though, as afterall, it's the NAB Cup. Carlton have been the best performed team in recent years during the pre-season but needless to say they've been the worst for the last 5-6 in the H&A season. Some sides may come good, some may slide. The thing to look out for during the NAB Cup is depth, which clearly a few sides lack already (Melbourne, Tigers).

[Dogs 24/7]

I watched a bit of Freo vs West Coast and the Dockers look OK. The Eagles are still a huge side physically and the likes of Selwood and Ebert have slotted in nicely.