The Time Vault for 2009

[bulldogtragic]

3 words to describe how you feel about the 2009 WB Season

1. Excited
2. (High) Expectations
3. (Need) Consistency


For me, I am excited at the year. It's different for seasons past for me because excitement was based on player signings or 'hope' in the general sense. What excites me is that is we had executed well in the pre-lim we would have played in the GF. From this point and a strong pre-season with this burning, our list has got another big preseason and year of experience. So this combined with what we are doing off-field brings a sense of excitement i haven't really felt before. It's almost like a belief, rather than an emotion.

The club, players, members need to have high expectations. We need to demand hangers on pay their dues and crack 35,000 members. We need to continue to shore up of off-field financial position and have no excuses for the playing group. They are talented enough, have a good coach with good support and have great facilities and other support. They have matured and should be firing on all cyclinders in 2009. We need to acheive these expectations.

Consistency. Although i think last years slow-down was because we had nothing to gain or lose, it has happened for a few years now and we need to ensure season long performance.


Par Score:

Top 4 Finish

Expectation:

Top 2 Finish

Last game for 2009:

Grand Final (Which I expect us to win in a tough game)

Members:

33,000

BnF

Ryan Griffen

Retirees:
Aker, Welsh, Eagleton (May find it hard to stay in the side), Hudson (Johnson to stay another year on)

Guys that need a really big year:

Wight, Skipper, Stack, Lynch

Pups/Debuts:

Grant 5-10 Games
Cordy 1-3 Games
Roughead 1-3 Games
Wood 1-3 Games
Williams 15-20 Games
Andrejs 15-20 Games
O'Keefe Not Sure
Stack 1-5 Games
Jones 10 games in VL Seniors
Boumann Full Season in Seniors (Hopefully puts some pressure on)

3 Players to Watch

Higgins
Harbrow
Stack

[mighty_west]

Par Score:
Grand Final [we have to progress on last season to go on par imo]

Expectation:
Top 2 Finish

Last game for 2009:
Grand Final

Members:
31,873

BnF
Dale Morris

Retirees:
Akermanis [has already said this will be his last]
Eagleton [Ward, Reid, Stack, Lynch to step up, could mean the end of the Bald one]
Welsh [we finally have some tall forwards coming through plus Minson to improve up forward]
Hudson [Roughead & Cordy as well as Shaw coming through, Hudson really looked done by finals time, he lost his groove]

Guys that need a really big year:
Wight, Skipper, Lynch

Pups/Debuts:
Grant [Rocket has already said that Grant should be good for 10 or so games, lets hope he steps up to the plate]
Roughead [whilst he's young, he has the body to compete, is a class tap ruckman]
Stack
Cordy [may sneak a game or 3]

3 Players to Watch
Higgins
Ward
Everitt

How confident am i?
Grand Final

What i want to see in 2009:
Apart from the obvious, the clubs 11th Premiership [2nd VFL/AFL], but to beat Carlton & North, we broke the Swannies hoodoo last year, now it's time to give those bluebaggers a beating.

[LostDoggy]

3 words to describe how you feel about the 2009 WB Season

1. Excited
2. Nervous, trying to dampen down expectation - so I won't get disappointed if we don't go all the way.
3. Hope - that we get some luck - as without luck we won't win the big one.

Par Score:

Top 4 Finish

Expectation:

Top 2 Finish

Last game for 2009:

Grand Final (I will worry about that when it happens, just make the damm thing first)

Members:

30,000

BnF

Ryan Griffen

Retirees:
Aker, Eagleton, Wight if he doesn't step up and I really hope he does, Johnno may retire if we win the big one.

Guys that need a really big year:

Wight, Skipper, Everitt

Pups/Debuts:

Grant 5-10 Games
Cordy 0 Games
Roughead 1-5 Games
Wood 1-3 Games
Williams 15-20 Games
Andrejs 15-20 Games
Stack 1- 3 Games
Jones 0
Boumann Full Season in Seniors

3 Players to Watch

Higgins
Harbrow
Wight

[Happy Days]

Par Score:

Prelims.

Expectation:

Grand Final

Last game for 2009:

Grand Final (If we get there, I think I'll have my eyes closed the whole time)

Members:

30K+

BnF

Daniel Cross

Retirees:
Aker, Eagleton

Guys that need a really big year:

Wight, Skipper, Williams (more injury free than big), Lynch.

Pups/Debuts:

Grant 7+ Games

Roughead 1-3 Games
Wood 2-5 Games
Cordy 3+ Games
Stack 1- 3 Games
Picken 2-5 Games

3 Players to Watch

Williams
Ward
Higgins

[mjp]

I think we will fall back a spot or two in 2009 as we try and sort the forward line out, as well as getting used to a midfield featuring the experience of West and Eagleton to one driven a bit more by Higgins, Harbrow etc.

Nothing we have done in the offseason will address (in the short term) the tall forward/tall back issues we struggled with in the 2008 finals.

Par Score:
6th --> 8th

Expectation
Somewhere between 5th and 10th

Last game for 2009:
Round 22/First week of the finals exit

Members:
30K

BnF
Daniel Cross

Retirees:
Aker - Everyone else will try and go again in 2010.

Guys that need a really big year:
Wight, Skipper, Stack, Lynch, O'Shea

Pups/Debuts:
Grant - 10 Games if everything goes right.
Cordy - VFL seniors at best
Roughead - Might play a couple of games late. Hudson injuries could force him in.
Wood - A couple of games
Williams - Will play nearly every week if fit.
Ward - 12 games +
Reid - 10 games
Andrejs - Every week player
O'Keefe - 10 games
Stack - 3-5 games
Lynch - Maybe 2
Jones - VFL seniors at best
Boumann - VFL seniors

3 Players to Watch
Everitt
Addison
Gia

[Mofra]

3 words to describe how you feel about the 2009 WB Season:

Bring. It. On.

Par Score:

Top 4 Finish

Expectation:

Top 4 Finish

Last game for 2009:

Grand Final (positive expectancy is a proven phenomena)

Members:

31,000

BnF

Cooney

Retirees:
Aker, Eagleton (forced). Welsh may be close

Guys that need a really big year:

Wight, Skipper (wouldn't expect either to be at the club next year) O'Shea, Lynch, Welsh, Eagleton

Pups/Debuts:

Grant - happy with a debut and no injuries
Cordy - lock him in the gym and only let him out on match day - Willy seniors
Roughead - Willy seniors, maybe a late debut on an interstate trip to rest Hudson if Skip
isn't available
Wood - debut
Williams - as many as he is uninjured for
Andrejs - every game he is fit
Stack - 3+ games
Jones - Willy, development year
Boumann - Willy, development year, no indescretions
Ward - 10+ games
Reid - 5+ games
O'Keefe - 3+ games, solid year at Willy (just maintaining his fitness late into the season)


Players to watch:

Griffen
Higgins
The Brow

[Bulldog Revolution]

3 Players to Watch
Everitt
Addison
Gia

I thought these were particularly interesting selections mjp

What's your thinking behind Gia?

I'd always thought you were somewhat sceptical of Addison and his disposal. Is a proposed move to the midfield the making of him?

[mjp]

I thought these were particularly interesting selections mjp
I may have interpreted it slightly different than others though...my players to watch are not necessarily ones I think will improve dramatically etc - more those who we will be depending on improvement from in order to be successful.



What's your thinking behind Gia?

Given all the 'Gia is a leader' stuff we always hear from the club, with West gone (from the meetings as well as the ground) it is time for Gia to become a permanent mid-fielder and actively lead what is still a pretty inexperienced group. Cooney will continue to be tagged very heavily - what is Gia going to do about it. Cross cannot continue to set the standard for work-rate and gut-running - he needs others to join in on a more regular and consistent basis.

For me, after seven (I think) seasons, Gia remains an enigma. A talented player, who seems at his best when playing a limited role from the half-forward line or against the oppositions 2nd/3rd string mid-fielders. He has good speed, good foot-skills...but what are we going to remember him for? If it is going to be as a very good player who played a key role in winning us a flag, then his output - and the consistency of it - simply HAS to increase.




I'd always thought you were somewhat sceptical of Addison and his disposal. Is a proposed move to the midfield the making of him?

I remain very dubious of Addison's decision making - and it is the crucial '3rd season' for him. He is one to watch for me because this is the year where he will demonstrate whether he has the potential to be a 150game player or simply a handy fill-in who is good for 8-12 games a year.


Everitt was the easy one. He has elite kicking skills and we need the ball in his hands 20 times a game...if he can recapture his form from late 2007 then it will be an absolute bonus.

[Rocco Jones]

Par Score:
Making prelim

Expectation
That we will lose a prelim

Last game for 2009:
Guess what? A prelim

Members:
32,464

BnF
Daniel Cross

Retirees:
Aker and Welsh. Eagleton can move onto the veterans list in 2010 but atm I can't see him being much worth by then,

Guys that need a really big year:
Wight, Skipper, Stack, Lynch, O'Shea

Pups/Debuts:
Grant - 10 games
Cordy - Hard to tell. Could be a Westhoff type forward and get a few games.
Roughead - Depends on Hudson/Minson staying fit.
Wood - 5 games
Williams - Every game he is available
Ward - 15+
Reid - 10+
Andrejs - Every game
O'Keefe - 5-10
Stack - 10+ (could easily be a regular)
Lynch - 0-5
Jones - VFL seniors at best
Boumann - VFL seniors

3 Players to Watch
Higgins
Hill
Griffen

[Bulldog Revolution]

I may have interpreted it slightly different than others though...my players to watch are not necessarily ones I think will improve dramatically etc - more those who we will be depending on improvement from in order to be successful.

Given all the 'Gia is a leader' stuff we always hear from the club, with West gone (from the meetings as well as the ground) it is time for Gia to become a permanent mid-fielder and actively lead what is still a pretty inexperienced group. Cooney will continue to be tagged very heavily - what is Gia going to do about it. Cross cannot continue to set the standard for work-rate and gut-running - he needs others to join in on a more regular and consistent basis.

For me, after seven (I think) seasons, Gia remains an enigma. A talented player, who seems at his best when playing a limited role from the half-forward line or against the oppositions 2nd/3rd string mid-fielders. He has good speed, good foot-skills...but what are we going to remember him for? If it is going to be as a very good player who played a key role in winning us a flag, then his output - and the consistency of it - simply HAS to increase.

I remain very dubious of Addison's decision making - and it is the crucial '3rd season' for him. He is one to watch for me because this is the year where he will demonstrate whether he has the potential to be a 150game player or simply a handy fill-in who is good for 8-12 games a year.

Everitt was the easy one. He has elite kicking skills and we need the ball in his hands 20 times a game...if he can recapture his form from late 2007 then it will be an absolute bonus.

All interesting explanations MJP,

I thought Gia was very good in 2008 given the very limited preparation due to the frayed ACL. He needs to do more of the heavy lifting through the midfield and put his body on the line consistently, not just when he is motivated or in the mood. My criticism has been, and I'm not suggesting he is soft, but there are some games where he plays with a physicality (i.e lays out Kosi) and throws his body around (i.e vs North in Archers club games record) and too many others where he exerts no physical impact. The only thing I would question from your description is whether he really is quick enough to add anything different to our midfield mix? Or does he just bring the same foot speed that Boyd and Cross do? Is it primarily in and under work you think he should do more of? or a mixture of that and some run & carry?

I'm hopeful that a huge pre-season from Addison can given him a new found confidence & self belief in both his body and skills that can see him vastly improve his decision making.

Given Everitts glandular fever it may not be until the second half of the season that he hits stride

[The Pie Man]

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3 words to describe how you feel about the 2009 WB Season

I'm cautiously optimistic

Up to round 15 last season was a freak - the top 3 opened up such a gap on 4th down that I can't see being repeated in 09/ever again. The draw really opened up for us in 08, the win in Johno's 300th was crucial to our momentum. Travelling to Freo round 1 isn't ideal, nor is going back there 3 weeks later to face what could be a resurgent West Coast outfit.

Supremely confident of making the finals (I doubt anyone thinks we won't make them) but I'm not covinced we'll make top 4. Play to our potential and we should get there. I don't see a flag this year, still too short up forward and the solutions moving forward (sh_t pun) are in their footballing infancy.

Par Score:

Top 8 Finish

Expectation:

Top 4 Finish

Last game for 2009:

Prelim I hope (well I clearly would love a GF appearance)

Members:

29,000

BnF

Ryan Griffen

Retirees:
Aker, Welsh, Eagleton

Guys that need a really big year:

Wight & Skipper - it won't happen. Welsh (to avoid playing at Willy often, hoping he has a good start to the year)

Pups/Debuts:

Grant 5 Games
Cordy VFL - though I think he can play a few games at FF in the 1's
Roughead under 5 Games
Reid - 10 Games
Ward - 10-15 games if in form
Williams all seson if fit
Andrejs all season if fit/in form for round 1
O'Keefe likely VFL
Stack VFL
Jones VFL
Boumann 1-5 games would be a bonus

3 Players to Watch

Griffen
Higgins
Harbrow

[bulldogtragic]

It seems the par score from most of us was the pre-lim. With expectations of one more week.

Interesting to document our expectations and come back to them about players, game time etc.