Has anything you've seen in the pre-season changed your view of a team?

[Dry Rot]

I've seen bugger all pre-season games so I'm wondering if anything you've seen in the last few weeks has changed your view about the prospects of any team this season?

All I've seen is that the Cats are as good as ever and the Swans might do better than expected with this new rolling defensive zone.

[Ozza]

My main point of contention at the moment is that every man and is dog is convinced that Carlton will not only finish in the 8 - but that they'll finish top 4. Yes, Judd is firing, yes their midfield looks great - but two things haven't changed - their backline is ordinary - particularly with regard to tall defenders. And they don't have a secondary goal kicker to Fev.

Betts only kicked about 25 goals last year, and Fisher kicked about 22 - if Fev gets shut down - they will lose more often than not. For them to be 3rd favourite for the flag is absurd.

[LostDoggy]

I am more concerned with our own team.

Major injuries/repairs to a number of players has resulted in them having a very restricted pre-season and this must impact on their individual and the team's performance.

Cooney, Murphy, Williams, Lake and Hahn head the list with Acker and Welsh not far advanced on them.

Without the benefit of the workload endured by the rest of the team (and the opposition) it will be difficult for us to have a start to the season anywhere near that of last year.

Pre-season started much earlier last year with the result that come Round 1 we were flying. I can't see that happening this year.

[Go_Dogs]

I am more concerned with our own team.

Major injuries/repairs to a number of players has resulted in them having a very restricted pre-season and this must impact on their individual and the team's performance.

Cooney, Murphy, Williams, Lake and Hahn head the list with Acker and Welsh not far advanced on them.

Without the benefit of the workload endured by the rest of the team (and the opposition) it will be difficult for us to have a start to the season anywhere near that of last year.

Pre-season started much earlier last year with the result that come Round 1 we were flying. I can't see that happening this year.

I tend to agree, but I'm not too worried. For the blokes coming back from injury, they'll start slowly but they can build up slowly too, and hopefully won't get hampered by injuries/soreness towards the business end of the season like they did last year.

All this means is that guys who have had a full pre-season, like Griff and Higgins, need to stay injury free and become our prime movers. We have enough quality to get through the first part of the year and finish strongly. We don't need to win every game, just make top 4, and from there, anything can happen.

I honestly would not be surprised if we went 2-3 to start the season.

[LostDoggy]

I haven't watched any pre season games, because to me, the pre season means nothing.
Round 1 is when I'll start analysing and talking serious footy.

[Scorlibo]

I have seen the Port Power play twice this pre-season and I am very impressed. They are fluent with their ball movement, their midfield is top-notch and have guys like Nathan Krakeur coming through and really blossoming.

[Sockeye Salmon]

I am more concerned with our own team.

Major injuries/repairs to a number of players has resulted in them having a very restricted pre-season and this must impact on their individual and the team's performance.

Cooney, Murphy, Williams, Lake and Hahn head the list with Acker and Welsh not far advanced on them.

Without the benefit of the workload endured by the rest of the team (and the opposition) it will be difficult for us to have a start to the season anywhere near that of last year.

Pre-season started much earlier last year with the result that come Round 1 we were flying. I can't see that happening this year.

I agree with all of this. I expect us to have a much worse year than last year and may not make the finals.


Watch the knives come out then.

[Bulldog Revolution]

I agree with all of this. I expect us to have a much worse year than last year and may not make the finals.

Watch the knives come out then.

I was feeling like this earlier but I've turned the corner away my Danny from Droop St alter ego

Guys like Boyd, Morris and Cross leave me full of confidence that their teammates have not been bludging all summer.

We've really only had 1 preseason hitout, which was against Melbourne. Before that we had so many senior players missing that it was bound to be a bit ragged.

[The Adelaide Connection]

I have seen the Port Power play twice this pre-season and I am very impressed. They are fluent with their ball movement, their midfield is top-notch and have guys like Nathan Krakeur coming through and really blossoming.

Totally agree. They were obviously fighting out of their division when they made the grand final two years ago but I'd expect them to turn it around from last year and make the eight comfortably. This is coming straight from the fingers of a Port hater.

Their ability to keep unearthing football smart, ball magnet, speedster Aboriginals with freakish skills (who are quickly AFL ready) is down right infuriating. Throw Wade Thompson in your dreamteam lads.

[KT31]

I agree with all of this. I expect us to have a much worse year than last year and may not make the finals.


Watch the knives come out then.

I remember 97 first game against Freo and you writ us off.
Yea have little hope ,I'm not saying we will win the flag but we are a better unit than most sides which gives us a good chance.

[BulldogBelle]

I tend to agree, but I'm not too worried. For the blokes coming back from injury, they'll start slowly but they can build up slowly too, and hopefully won't get hampered by injuries/soreness towards the business end of the season like they did last year.

All this means is that guys who have had a full pre-season, like Griff and Higgins, need to stay injury free and become our prime movers. We have enough quality to get through the first part of the year and finish strongly. We don't need to win every game, just make top 4, and from there, anything can happen.

I honestly would not be surprised if we went 2-3 to start the season.

l totally agree.

l think we will have a bit of a slow start to the year. They have the fitness but not the ball skills yet which will come over the first few games.

If all goes well with injuries etc we should hopefully finish the year off well.

[LostDoggy]

I remember 97 first game against Freo and you writ us off.
Yea have little hope ,I'm not saying we will win the flag but we are a better unit than most sides which gives us a good chance.

I AM saying we'll win the flag. Well, we'll give it a good shake anyway.

Yet again I am on the high-expectations side of the ledger. Sure, the Dogs haven't had a fantastic pre-season form wise, but nothing I have seen of the other teams have convinced me that they're in any better shape going into this year anyway. Hawthorn will slide, Geelong will do a bit, Dogs will be thereabouts, Brisbane is a threat.

There are those putting Collingwood and Carlton in the Top 4. If they are supposed to be in the best four teams in the league, the Dogs are playing in a different competition. Carlton won't make the eight, and Collingwood are trying to do this rolling zone rubbish that will take them the best part of half a season to figure out is next to useless when you don't know what the heck you're doing. It's the usual media hacks who are talking up glamour teams that have barely proven themselves. How can a team that didn't even make the 8 last year logically be considered a better prospect than a top 3 team that made the preliminary final?

The thing that gives me the most hope is that Rocket is just a lot smarter than 80 - 90% of the make-weights masquerading as AFL coaches these days, and has a solid (if slightly underdone) list to work with.

[KT31]

I AM saying we'll win the flag. Well, we'll give it a good shake anyway.

.

Love the positive outlook and hope you are one hundred percent right.

[craigsahibee]

Richmond are still shite.

[Dry Rot]

What about the Saints after Friday night? IMO they appear to have gone up a step.

[comrade]

Without having seen us play today, I think the first few rounds have shown that a number of teams are genuine contenders for at least top 4. If we are able to maintain form, and injuries go our way - we're in it up to our eyeballs.

Geelong looks flat and have lost Ottens for an extended period. Hawthorn clearly don't have the depth they thought they did, as they were smashed with guys like Hodge, Buddy, Roughead, Mitchell, Bateman, Rioli, Brown all playing.

Still very very early days, but Hawthorn showed last year that if you can hold form and go alright on the injury front, good things can happen.

[azabob]

What about the Saints after Friday night? IMO they appear to have gone up a step.

Saints looked very good on Friday night. Especially in the 50 / 50 contests and when Adelaide had possesion of the footy they were able to smother / intercept quite a lot of handballs or kicks then maintain possesion themselves.

And then having Reiwolt and Kossi down forward.

Hate to say it they looked good.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Might have been different if the Saints played a team that didn't think they were playing round & round the mulberry bush. Fair dinkum the number of times Adelaide players propped, stopped & cropped before going backwards & sidewards was astounding, especially Goodwin & Kinights when pushed onto their right side, worse than the bald eagle!

Agreed.

I found myself pretty furstrated and I don't even support Adelaide! They played real dumb footy, although the Saints did look OK. Still not quite convinced though.

[LostDoggy]

Saints looked very good on Friday night. Especially in the 50 / 50 contests and when Adelaide had possesion of the footy they were able to smother / intercept quite a lot of handballs or kicks then maintain possesion themselves.

And then having Reiwolt and Kossi down forward.

Hate to say it they looked good.

The Saints look good early every year. I'm sure we all remember their flying start to 2007 and then going 40-odd points up against the Dogs in game 4 or 5 and commentators calling them flag favourites only for the Dogs to claw their way back and win by 40-odd points and they never recovered their season after that. Great frontrunners, but no great spirit when behind.

This Saints team only needs one bad loss to go to water again.

[hujsh]

The Saints look good early every year. I'm sure we all remember their flying start to 2007 and then going 40-odd points up against the Dogs in game 4 or 5 and commentators calling them flag favourites only for the Dogs to claw their way back and win by 40-odd points and they never recovered their season after that. Great frontrunners, but no great spirit when behind.

This Saints team only needs one bad loss to go to water again.

I remember it was 04 when they had a great start but lost to Port in the Prelim after dropping off during the year.

They finished they year well in 05 after starting pretty average but injuries and Hall's fist stopped them.

06 would've been the year they lost to Melb who lost to Freo who made the Prelim (Who'd believe that was only 3 years ago?) Then Thomas was sacked.

We didn't beat them in 07 I'm pretty sure. They didn't play finals though

Then last was when year we came back to beat them from 40 points behind and they made a prelim again. It wasn't a rgeat start though. They only won the 1st two in a row after winning the NAB cup.


I must be a secret St.Kilda fan cause that was off the top of my head.