Game Day - Bulldogs vs Crows

[GVGjr]

This is the discussion thread for this afternoons clash against the a Crows outfit determined for a win.

My predictions today are:
The Dogs by 25 points
BOG for Lake
Johnson for the first goal

[The Underdog]

Dogs by 13 points
Griffen BOG
Johnno first goal

[KT31]

Dogs by 7 in a close one.
Griff best on ground.
First goal the Eagle.

[Stevo]

Very hard to got past our form and our record over at AAMI.

Crows by 29, Gia the best player and Hill for the first goal.

[Dogs 24/7]

Dogs by a single point
Hahn kicking the first goal
Gilbee to shake of the tag and be our best player

[Dogs 24/7]

Anyone else nervous about how big this game is to us?
We have Melbourne next week and the Geelong the following so a win today is just about critical.

[Mantis]

Dogs by 14.

Expecting a big lift across the board.

Griffen BOG

Higgins 1st goal.

[BulldogBelle]

On paper comparing the sides; we should win by 5 goals.

Dogs 30 points.
Griffen BOG
1st goal; Akermanis.

[Max469]

Dogs by 4 pts

Hill - 1st goal

Boyd - BOG

[LostDoggy]

Dogs by 31 pts
Minson 1st goal
Cross bog

[DOG GOD]

Crows by 18 pts (coz of our record over there)

Hill 1st goal

Boyd bog.

[Bulldog4life]

Doggies by 20 points.
Higgins BOG
First goal Higgins.

[LostDoggy]

Tough one think it'll go either way by 2-4 goals..how we are favourites doesn't make sense..

Dogs by 15pts
Joshy Hill first goal
Cross to find good form and BOG

[bornadog]

Dogs by 27

Hahn first goal

Cooney BOG - yes he will be back today

[BulldogBelle]

Dogs by 18 points
Eagleton to kick the first goal
BOG - Daniel Cross

[angelopetraglia]

Dogs by 26 points.

Gia 1st goal.

Cross BOG.

[LostDoggy]

My heart says:

Dogs by 20 points
First Goal Johnno
BOG: Griffen


My brain says:

Crows by 15
First Goal the Porsche (Porplyzia)
BOG: Brent Reilly.

[boydogs]

Dogs by 40 points
Lake first goal :D
Cooney BOG

[LostDoggy]

Dogs by 8
First goal Johno
BOG: Cooney

[1eyedog]

Still no direction going forward, Cross been good opening 15 mins.

[AndrewP6]

Just got home from Mum's place for Mothers day.. Dogs up by a point at half time...courtesy of a goal from the unfairly maligned EAGLETON!!! Received via a midfield kickfrom Johnno

I see my man WELSH is in... :)

[mighty_west]

Thank god for Eagleton!!!!

Very important goal just before the siren, Adelaide seem to be dominating yet we find ourselves in front going into half time.

Gia, LIFT SON!!!!!

[AndrewP6]

Thank god for Eagleton!!!!

Very important goal just before the siren, Adelaide seem to be dominating yet we find ourselves in front going into half time.

Gia, LIFT SON!!!!!

Not many here say that!

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Gia and Hahn are re-paying Rocket's faith. :rolleyes:

Why they're playing I'll never know.

[boydogs]

Playing better than last week - improved performance from Gilbee, Hahn, Eagleton, Johnson, Cooney and Griffen. Mids still not putting enough pressure on the ball carrier defensively but look good going forward

[becmatty]

can anyone tell me a link to watch the game online???????

[AndrewP6]

Accuracy an issue... but at least the chances are there... who would have thought that accuracy would be a problem for us? Have our misses been gettable?

[LostDoggy]

Accuracy an issue for both teams.

[boydogs]

Accuracy an issue... but at least the chances are there... who would have thought that accuracy would be a problem for us? Have our misses been gettable?

Should be around 8-7 not 5-10 - no wind - same for Crows though

[AndrewP6]

]Accuracy an issue for both teams[/B].

that's probably a relief!

[bornadog]

We still insist on bombing the ball long into the forward line, instead of hitting a target.

I am finding this game so frustrating to watch, but thank god we are one point up at half time. Need a big third quarter.

[LostDoggy]

I'd say the crows have had more "gettable" goals than the dogs, several set shot misses from not far out.

[LostDoggy]

Tom Williams getting touched up again. When was his last half decent game? Has he played one?

[boydogs]

can anyone tell me a link to watch the game online???????

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/footy-net
Sign Up top right
Password sirengate
My first time with this today - FYI has used around 120MB download in the first half

[AndrewP6]

I'd say the crows have had more "gettable" goals than the dogs, several set shot misses from not far out.

I think I made up a new word... :D

[AndrewP6]

Carn The Dogs!

[AndrewP6]

sensational goal to Aker...midfield seem much more polished...

[becmatty]

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/footy-net
Sign Up top right
Password sirengate
My first time with this today - FYI has used around 120MB download in the first half

Legend!!!

[boydogs]

MINNOWWWWWWWWWW!!!
Aker and Cooney are playing like the Brownlow medallists they are

[LostDoggy]

Gee Tommy Williams awareness is very poor. I have doubt's over his future.

[The Pie Man]

Great 10 minutes of footy from us - Eagleton then on he wing was terrific, Cooney & Aker having a real influence, nice two grabber from Minson (bout time he built on his possession tally :) )

I missed most of the first half but listened in the car, hardly heard Gia's name mentioned, he's looked ok in the 3rd though.

Keep it up lads

[AndrewP6]

MITCH HAAAAAAAAAAHN! That's what I'm talkin about!:)

[LostDoggy]

Must..not...say...anything.....cause...I...may...jinx...it.

[AndrewP6]

Eagle you little ripper!

[The Pie Man]

MITCH HAAAAAAAAAAHN! That's what I'm talkin about!:)

I was at the Essendon Hawthorn game on Friday and heard an Essendon fan yell that out on the way out of the ground, had to laugh.

Yes it was nice from Mitch, 7 goals up is like a dream. How good was Welsh on the left? I didn't think he'd fly this year?

[The Pie Man]

Picken's a beauty

[LostDoggy]

Brad Johnson has been a great lead up target - IMHO close to BOG.

[AndrewP6]

I was at the Essendon Hawthorn game on Friday and heard an Essendon fan yell that out on the way out of the ground, had to laugh.

Yes it was nice from Mitch, 7 goals up is like a dream. How good was Welsh on the left? I didn't think he'd fly this year?

I'm rapt to see Welsh back up and running...

[bornadog]

Need a big third quarter.

Best quarter we have played for a long long long time.

Aker, what a star!!!!!

[AndrewP6]

Brad Johnson has been a great lead up target - IMHO close to BOG.

yep, from what i've seen he's been good... played a well controlled game...

[LostDoggy]

Go dogs!

[Super 27]

Carn' Dogs lets finish them!!

[AndrewP6]

We've got to be better than to let them get 3 in a row... not good enough... put the knife in, DOGS!

[Dry Rot]

Listening to the radio - what's the deal with 5AA? Is it broadcast from an insane asylum?

[AndrewP6]

great to see a winning score, but the good teams don't just play a good quarter...FINISH THE BLOODY JOB... well done Hilly!

[LostDoggy]

100 points - raise the bat.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Fought back well.

Very impressive third quarter, back to their best.

Last quarter was a little disappointing, Lake/Williams/Everitt were very ordinary IMHO.

Hill put on a few tricks, Murphy was great in the second half, Aker and Cooney very good, Minson a good second half and Johnson played his best game for the year.

Much needed win.

[LostDoggy]

We should be third - where we belong:cool: This was a 8 point game guys, make no mistake. Hopefully we have turned the corner. Good to hear that Murphy and Cooney had a say in the game.:)

[alwaysadog]

Listening to the radio - what's the deal with 5AA? Is it broadcast from an insane asylum?

Very hard to know; they are Crow supporters after all.

[bornadog]

& Eagleton BOG! ;)

Pretty close to BOG.

[mighty_west]

Pretty close to BOG.

Eagle along with Johnno, easily our 2 best, i'll probably just give the chockies to our captain, but a great performance from the Bald one!

[AndrewP6]

Only saw just over half...but I'd say great performances from Johnno and Eagle...should keep the wolves at bay for a week at least...I thought Gilbee was good too, got a lot of ball, and showed some good run out of th back half...Murphy provided a good lead in the forward line, and Coon is getting back to his Brownlow-winning self...

[Dazza]

Good effort today. Harbrow was great I thought. Couple of players still down in form though but the main thing was the return of Cooney and Murphy.

[angelopetraglia]

What a difference Murphy makes to our forward line when he is up an running.

Also great to see Cooney collect a lazy 29 touches and find a bit of form too.

[strebla]

I am stuck at WORK !! I am really keen to get hame and watch it sounds like a good all over game.
GO DOGS !!!

[AndrewP6]

Terrific to leave Moron Park with a win...hasn't it been about 8 years? A return to form for some key players... Murphy makes a big difference to our look, Cooney is coming good, along with Griffen. I thought Gilbee ran well.

One difference I noticed, our running game is coming back. I thought we worked harder today, and our defensive pressure was improved. Disposal seemed much more efficient, and we finally put some points on the board. Disappointing finish I thought, we need to keep the pedal down and really blow games out... but a win over there is great...

Go Dogs!

[BornInDroopSt'54]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I couldn't watch or listen. Your comments are better than listening to the Adelaide radio any day.

[LostDoggy]

Was great to see a mixture of run and overlapping hanballs with the usual Cooney, Cross, Eagleton etc combinations.
we're back!!

[LostDoggy]

also...by Aker's form the past few games, could he play next year?
He's a star!!

[BulldogBelle]

alsoo...by aker's form the past few games, could he play next year?
He's a star!!

He was excellent and I really hope he goes on next year.

[LostDoggy]

Good effort today. Harbrow was great I thought.
Don't say that, people wanted him dropped.
He had a good game considering how bad his shorts looked.

[alwaysadog]

Pretty close to BOG.

No! No! it can't happen. Haven't you been following the information threads? Have you been in some state of suspended animation?

We all know for a fact... because it has been stated so often on this board, that The Bald Eagle can't play at all and only keeps his spot because he is the only player who has less hair than the coach... and it's a team rule to not make Rocket a victim of tonsure deprivation. Otherwise he would have been delisted aeons ago.

Now I have a serious question, which do you think would taste worse having to eat humble pie or to eat humble crow?

[alwaysadog]

Was great to see a mixture of run and overlapping hanballs with the usual Cooney, Cross, Eagleton etc combinations.
we're back!!

In the same way one swallow doesn't make a summer, so one crow doesn't make a season.

We were better, could we have been worse, but we got them when even the mad crow eaters were questioning their chances and lack of hardness.

It'll take a couple of games against hot sides for me to be convinced.

[Jasper]

Listening to the radio - what's the deal with 5AA? Is it broadcast from an insane asylum?
I listened to them a bit as well and they take a bit of getting used to.

[Jasper]

In the same way one swallow doesn't make a summer, so one crow doesn't make a season.

We were better, could we have been worse, but we got them when even the mad crow eaters were questioning their chances and lack of hardness.

It'll take a couple of games against hot sides for me to be convinced.

We have Melbourne next week and then the true yardstick in the Cats the following so we don't have a lot of time to run some more players back into form.

We need a good showing against the Cats for me to say we are back.

[LostDoggy]

How good is that Taylor Walker? Wouldn't you love to have him on our list?

[LostDoggy]

The Good:

Much needed win and great to see players such as:

Hahn (8 tackles, most tackles for both teams), Guido (18 possies and a goal) and Eagleton (29 possies, 86% efficiency and two goals) lift their game. Same could be said about Gilbee (27 possies)

Adam Cooney (lead the team in clearances - 6) was near back to his best, with second and third efforts and took on the man for a couple of runs.

Great to see Scotty Welsh back - of course still a bit rusty - missed a couple of set shot goals that he would normally kick.


The elastic man looks like he's running in to some good touch.

Aker was just awesome could easily have kicked a couple more goals.

Matty Boyd great shut down on Scott Thompson after rampant first half.
26 possies first half, 8 possies second half. Dale Morris is the Glove, which means, Matty Boyd is The Human Clamp.

Liam Picken - another scalp - kept Mcleod to 19 possies but he was no where near his damaging self.

Will Minson after a big donut in possessions in the first quarter, fought back with some sublime centre bounce taps which launched several forward 50 entries.

The Glove was his usual solid self, it wasn't his fault that the Porche is just a gun - what a goal from the boundary line!


Special shout out to Brad Johnson - when the heat was on, his work rate to just keep presenting and keep pumping the ball forward was just unbelievable - 9 inside 50's lead both teams. Who says he's finished?!

The overall skills shown were 100% better than what had been dished up by the dogs the past three weeks - just have to maintain that standard to be a Premiership contender.


The Bad:

Decision making - still some iffy decision making, to easily players just decided to give up and just bomb the ball forward when the Crows had flooded the entire forward 50.

Ryan Griffen with a bad hip? I hope it's not too serious.


The Ugly:

The first half of some players were very unconvincing, the back six were under the pump as the Crows just continually got the ball into their forward 50.

Lake, Everitt, Williams were getting the run around from the crows forwards - especially Williams by Walker. Tom got a spray from Rocket and fought back for the remainder of the game.

Minson's first half would be something he would like to forget - gave away free kicks and didn't get a possession. His second half probably saved his spot from a Skipper 2009 debut.

The hoodoo - It's over, yes, the dogs have won at AAMI stadium, thought I'd never see it happen, will give the dogs tremendous confidence.

The Demons:

On this form - the dogs should win and win easily, counting the Subi curse as well.

Changes:
I don' think there should be any unforced changes - why break something that's just starting to jell? I would say that if the Griffen does not come up then that would be the only change.


The tips: So far in this round (not counting Dees Vs Weagles) , I have only tipped one winner:(


GO THE DOGGIES!

[AndrewP6]

How good is that Taylor Walker? Wouldn't you love to have him on our list?

He was great today, but I happen to like our list...lets see him back it up again....

[becmatty]

Higgins to return next week and we will have a full strength team. For me, Everitt will make way for Higgo.

[AndrewP6]

Higgins to return next week and we will have a full strength team. For me, Everitt will make way for Higgo.

what was wrong with Higgo?

[LostDoggy]

How good is that Taylor Walker? Wouldn't you love to have him on our list?

I agree but we defended very poorly against him.

Andrew Mcleod was a great player but he is finished.

[LostDoggy]

Has anyone noticed though that every match this year, we start off slow kicking a few behinds and slowly get into the game?
At half time we're usually more behinds than goals, then as we start the 3rd term we run out of the blocks and get goals from our scoring shots.
anyone know why this is??....

[LostDoggy]

Minson's first half would be something he would like to forget - gave away free kicks and didn't get a possession. His second half probably saved his spot from a Skipper 2009 debut.

Thats BS, Minson was never in danger of being dropped.
The frees that he gave away were for crap umpiring not poor discipline and he got some back.
I don't care if he doesn't get a possession if he rucks well, tackles hards and uses his weight like he did all game.

[hujsh]

I felt we were on top in the 1st half. Maybe it was just me but the guys like Coon and Murph looked in good touch again and I felt we'd run away with it in time

[LostDoggy]

Thats BS, Minson was never in danger of being dropped.
The frees that he gave away were for crap umpiring not poor discipline and he got some back.
I don't care if he doesn't get a possession if he rucks well, tackles hards and uses his weight like he did all game.

Dammit, I thought I didn't make any mistakes this time!

[The Coon Dog]

Gia and Hahn are re-paying Rocket's faith. :rolleyes:

Why they're playing I'll never know.

What a difference an hour makes, thought they both improved significantly in the second half & they needed to, too.

[bornadog]

The tips: So far in this round (not counting Dees Vs Weagles) , I have only tipped one winner:

I hope that was the dogs;)

[The Coon Dog]

Still reckon those white jumpers are easy on the eye.

[strebla]

I hope that was the dogs;)

I have 3 and am a liitle peeved about both results last night i am 2 behind the leader on triplem.I am with you Coon Dog they are the second best jumper we have ever had.

[bornadog]

Still reckon those white jumpers are easy on the eye.

TCD, its a matter of taste, I find them awful, but each to his own.

[azabob]

How good is that Taylor Walker? Wouldn't you love to have him on our list?

He has done quite well especially since he was a NSW scholarship player.

[azabob]

He was great today, but I happen to like our list...lets see him back it up again....

For what its worth Taylor Walker has a fairly good and conistant start for the year.

[AndrewP6]

For what its worth Taylor Walker has a fairly good and conistant start for the year.

fair enough...still like our list!

[LostDoggy]

What a great game! So glad that I went!

It was good to see the boys up and running - especially Coon and Murph. Thought Eagleton and Aker played a brilliant 3rd quarter (actually Eagleton was good all game!).

[The Adelaide Connection]

I agree but we defended very poorly against him.

Andrew Mcleod was a great player but he is finished.

Finished? You may want to watch the vision of all the crows games this year before making that call. He is far from their worst and a bit like Aker, maybe he is not 'on' as much as a few years ago but when he is he still turns the game on its head.

[mighty_west]

Still reckon those white jumpers are easy on the eye.

I'm a massive fan of them as well, i reckon they even make the boys look a little larger as well, white can do that, which is a positive.

Thank goodness we don't have to ever wear those Origin Ochre shockers!!!

[lemmon]

Thats BS, Minson was never in danger of being dropped.
The frees that he gave away were for crap umpiring not poor discipline and he got some back.
I don't care if he doesn't get a possession if he rucks well, tackles hards and uses his weight like he did all game.

Not sure he did ruck well in the first half. Minson and Hudson were absolutely smashed in the first half by the two young adelaide boys. Good on him though for fighting back and along with Aker he led our third quarter revival.

[LostDoggy]

I'm a massive fan of them as well, i reckon they even make the boys look a little larger as well, white can do that, which is a positive.

Thank goodness we don't have to ever wear those Origin Ochre shockers!!!

Anyone know what our win / loss ratio is when wearing the away guernsey versus the home strip over the same period? Seems to me that we do well when we are in it... as others have said, easy on the eye, maybe for the spectators as well as the team trying to spot up someone?

[BulldogBelle]

Think our run and gun style suits grounds like Football Park, MCG, Subi etc rather than at the Dome

Positives
We had superior numbers to most contests
The number of bounces we took today would have been much higher than previous weeks, shows that we were confident to run into space, and protect the ball carrier
We broke their zone very well, by bouncing, running, handballing accuratelly and with better kicking efficiancy
Our skills defintely are improving, in previous weeks the focus was probably on fitness given the 2 WA trips
Very impressed with Welsh in his first game back, its obvious we need a target who presents well, and the deeper into the forward line he gets the better is, he will only get better, providing a good run with injuries
Our two most important players, both with injury interupted pre seasons, Murph and Coon, are getting back their best


Negatives
Lake, Williams and Everitt were a little bit ordinary at times, and beaten in contest you would normally expect them to win but we have to remember than the later 2 are juniors themselves
Hudson was beaten in the ruck, but its understanding given the way Adelaide switch their ruckmen somewhat frequently, and Huddo is 29 or 30

[BulldogBelle]

Rocket and co need to be careful with Cooney, Murph, Welsh etc and all of the guys who didnt have full preseason and are coming off injuries

I'm sure all the guys want to run for '5' quarters but its probably in their best interest to ease them back into full fitness rather than flogging them

[Rance Fan]

Good to see the team found some of that bulldog spirit, Hope they go on with it now. The intensity was far better this week.

[LostDoggy]

I thought our one percenters were the difference this week - even in a tight first quarter, the smother by Minson in the defensive end and the chase down by Everitt showed that we were much more on it this week. This was refelected by the pressure on the turnover and the number of smothers that resulted in the turn and some led to majors being scored.

[LostDoggy]

Great to see Cooney up and running - he is great to watch when, his reading of the ball and that early spurt of speed to create the seperation. Much more precise with his diposal today (horrible turnover in the third quarter though).

[Go_Dogs]

Tom Williams getting touched up again. When was his last half decent game? Has he played one?

Tom really struggled today against Walker, who is a very smart forward. Walker toweled up Everitt too though a few times, completely losing him.

At this stage Williams is definitely going to struggle against the more natural forwards, the more he plays though the better he'll get at reading the play and be more instinctive rather than reactive.

[LostDoggy]

I was thinking about Tom today, i feel he will only get better & better with every game he plays. Because in game terms, he has only played just over a years worth of footy.

[AndrewP6]

Tom Williams getting touched up again. When was his last half decent game? Has he played one?

Yep, he's added a lot to our backline... cut him some slack, the guy is basically a new player, what with all the time he's been out injured...

[Go_Dogs]

Was a good team performance today, managed to stick it out early when the Crows were really controlling the tempo/style of game.

The 3rd qtr was just brilliant, Cooney, Akermanis and Eagleton all did some very good things.

Cross played a better game, still a few handballs to stationary targets but one very creative handball that set Boyd off on the edge of the F50.

Griffen was pretty well held, but the majority of touches he had were clean and good.

Harbrow looked very quick today, played well.

Hill didn't have his strongest outing but still bobs up even on the quieter days with a few nice pieces of play to make sure he still contributes. Some of his chasing efforts, (40+m runs out of the F50) were very good.

Boy Welsh makes a difference. Didn't manage to get on the end of any today, but boy he helps the structure and is about our best forward for aggressive chasing/tackling pressure in the F50.

A fit Murphy is also very helpful, still not quite back to his best, but played a very important role today and we directed quite a lot of play through him. At times need to get back behind the mark a bit quicker and weight up his options rather than just turning blind and playing on with nothing on ahead.



Overall pleasing game, good to see some players back to their best. We really need to consolidate a few more wins over the next few weeks and hopefully separate ourselves a bit from the pack of potential finalists.

[LostDoggy]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I couldn't watch or listen. Your comments are better than listening to the Adelaide radio any day.

Yes, same here, didn't get to see the game and only heard a little. Reading your posts gives me a alot of insight into the game, and is better than the fairly biased commentators in SA!!! Yippee, I love beating the Crows, especially on their home turf :D:D

[LostDoggy]

Finished? You may want to watch the vision of all the crows games this year before making that call. He is far from their worst and a bit like Aker, maybe he is not 'on' as much as a few years ago but when he is he still turns the game on its head.

There is no doubt he is a shadow of his former self. Little or no influence today. Picken played him well but its not all Picken's work.

[LostDoggy]

There is no doubt he is a shadow of his former self. Little or no influence today. Picken played him well but its not all Picken's work.

I thought Picken closed him down really well, early on I thought McLeod might do some real damage.

[bornadog]

Was a good team performance today, managed to stick it out early when the Crows were really controlling the tempo/style of game.

The 3rd qtr was just brilliant, Cooney, Akermanis and Eagleton all did some very good things.

Cross played a better game, still a few handballs to stationary targets but one very creative handball that set Boyd off on the edge of the F50.

Griffen was pretty well held, but the majority of touches he had were clean and good.

Harbrow looked very quick today, played well.

Hill didn't have his strongest outing but still bobs up even on the quieter days with a few nice pieces of play to make sure he still contributes. Some of his chasing efforts, (40+m runs out of the F50) were very good.

Boy Welsh makes a difference. Didn't manage to get on the end of any today, but boy he helps the structure and is about our best forward for aggressive chasing/tackling pressure in the F50.

A fit Murphy is also very helpful, still not quite back to his best, but played a very important role today and we directed quite a lot of play through him. At times need to get back behind the mark a bit quicker and weight up his options rather than just turning blind and playing on with nothing on ahead.



Overall pleasing game, good to see some players back to their best. We really need to consolidate a few more wins over the next few weeks and hopefully separate ourselves a bit from the pack of potential finalists.

All enjoyed sipping Chardonnay in the corporate box:D

[The Adelaide Connection]

There is no doubt he is a shadow of his former self. Little or no influence today. Picken played him well but its not all Picken's work.

Lets give Picken a little more credit here, McLeod may have been a little down today but you are talking about a kid that has taken some pretty impressive scalps in the last few weeks. Lets put a massively positive spin on it!

I seriously doubted whether McLeod could have a good year around dreamteam setup time and then watched as he tore Collingwood a new O ring in Round 1. He ended up with about 30 disposals and had to be BOG.

I agree that he is past his best and I think that he has also suffered from the extra attention of a tagger that he has received since the Collingwood game. But similarly I think Aker is past his best and similarly Aker still has the ability to do things that inspire, often against the flow, and is rarely wasteful.

Is there a spot in their best 22 for him? Yes. Will there be next year? Well, I dont think so. But that'll all depend on his body.

[Go_Dogs]

There is no doubt he is a shadow of his former self. Little or no influence today. Picken played him well but its not all Picken's work.

I think there is no doubt he had a bad bout of the flu, or is injured. Yes, he's not as good as he was in his prime, but he is still a very good performer and has played some important roles for them this year.

[Sleeve1970]

Picken done a fantastic job on McLeod, Picken is still a kid and has had some major roles this year. McLeod maybe off the boil a little but give Picken some credit, he is a future leader of the club and is learning the art of football playing on the best of the best week in week out and doing a great job.

[Desipura]

Tom Williams getting touched up again. When was his last half decent game? Has he played one?
Do you remember when he got nominated to a rising star?:rolleyes:

[Desipura]

I was thinking about Tom today, i feel he will only get better & better with every game he plays. Because in game terms, he has only played just over a years worth of footy.
And a total of 2 years of total matches played. Those like Jerry who have doubts about a quick mobile strong kpp after only 25 games really need to understand that talls need at least 75 -100 games before they are fully mature as players. Kouta was being talked about at being trade bait when he was 22yo and had not reached his potential, ludicrous!

[ledge]

I see Picken very much the Morris of a 4-5 years ago, off the rookie list and straight into a tagging role, is this a trend Eade has or is it just how it panned out?

Picken and Morris are similar in someways, difference is Picken tags the runners and Morris tended to tag in a back pocket, although the last 2 years he has copped the main forward, which sometimes i find hard to understand because of the height factor.

Both players i love and are very endearing to supporters because even if they do make an error you know they were trying their best and appreciate the chance as older players to get a go at AFL level.

[The Coon Dog]

Both players i love and are very endearing to supporters because even if they do make an error you know they were trying their best and appreciate the chance as older players to get a go at AFL level.

Very much so. I think we all accept that rookies (include Matthew Boyd) have had to work that bit harder to a) get onto an AFL list & b) remain there.

[Stefcep]

No-ones said much about Aker, IMHO the guy is in our top 3 players at the club, beacsue he has that rare ability to step up when it really matters, like the third quarter when the game was still in the balance. And i think the kids around him improve by 10-15% just beacsue he is there. Love or hate him, should go down as one of the greats of the game,alongside Buckley, and Voss, from his era. I hope he goes on next year, he adds so much quality to the forward line

[Stefcep]

Picken and Morris are similar in someways, difference is Picken tags the runners and Morris tended to tag in a back pocket, although the last 2 years he has copped the main forward, which sometimes i find hard to understand because of the height factor.



Like Reiwoldt

[LostDoggy]

Like Reiwoldt

This has been mentioned several times since the St Kilda game, but it's just wisdom by hindsight, and is becoming tiresome. Dale Morris has owned Nick Riewoldt for close to 3 years now to the point where he was almost seen as his bunny, and The Glove is widely acknowledged as one of the best in the business on roving medium talls.

A player the class of Riewoldt was always going to hit back at some stage, especially in his current form where any defender would struggle to play on him, especially when his team is delivering the ball pretty well.

To insinuate that the Morris on Riewoldt match-up was a Rocket stuff-up is to be ignorant of your football (recent) history.

[LostDoggy]

No-ones said much about Aker, IMHO the guy is in our top 3 players at the club, beacsue he has that rare ability to step up when it really matters, like the third quarter when the game was still in the balance. And i think the kids around him improve by 10-15% just beacsue he is there. Love or hate him, should go down as one of the greats of the game,alongside Buckley, and Voss, from his era. I hope he goes on next year, he adds so much quality to the forward line

Aker is a gun, and with his Brownlow, 3 (hopefully 4) premierships, and highlight reels populating YouTube, his legend will only grow once he's retired.

[Stefcep]

This has been mentioned several times since the St Kilda game, but it's just wisdom by hindsight, and is becoming tiresome. Dale Morris has owned Nick Riewoldt for close to 3 years now to the point where he was almost seen as his bunny, and The Glove is widely acknowledged as one of the best in the business on roving medium talls.

A player the class of Riewoldt was always going to hit back at some stage, especially in his current form where any defender would struggle to play on him, especially when his team is delivering the ball pretty well.

To insinuate that the Morris on Riewoldt match-up was a Rocket stuff-up is to be ignorant of your football (recent) history.


It was a stuff up because Eade took too long to move Morris. If Reiwoldt kicked straight, we'd have been down by 10 goals at half time. Game over. The coach can't wait that long to make the moves.

Fact is, tall forwards like Riewoldt, kozzie, Franklin, Lloyd, Fev are dependent on their midfielders firing: witness Franklin's performance in the Prelim against us ( Morris had him too, from memory, and Fev-Morris again, i think last year when they came from behind), and then Reiwoldt 1 week ago. If their midfield is firing Morris struggles, we need someone taller than Morris to go with the Reiwoldts. the Franklins and the Fevolas ie Lake. If our midfield is on top, Morris is the man.

[LostDoggy]

And a total of 2 years of total matches played. Those like Jerry who have doubts about a quick mobile strong kpp after only 25 games really need to understand that talls need at least 75 -100 games before they are fully mature as players. Kouta was being talked about at being trade bait when he was 22yo and had not reached his potential, ludicrous!

Top post, spot on.

[LostDoggy]

It was a stuff up because Eade took too long to move Morris. If Reiwoldt kicked straight, we'd have been down by 10 goals at half time. Game over. The coach can't wait that long to make the moves.

Fact is, tall forwards like Riewoldt, kozzie, Franklin, Lloyd, Fev are dependent on their midfielders firing: witness Franklin's performance in the Prelim against us ( Morris had him too, from memory, and Fev-Morris again, i think last year when they came from behind), and then Reiwoldt 1 week ago. If their midfield is firing Morris struggles, we need someone taller than Morris to go with the Reiwoldts. the Franklins and the Fevolas ie Lake. If our midfield is on top, Morris is the man.

Isn't it the case of a team's backline is only as good as their midfield?

If the backline is being bombarded with forward 50 entries from the opposition, they may have a 50% chance of rebounding the ball out of there.

Any backline will struggle if their midfield fails to win the ball or causes turnovers after the backline has stopped an attack.

Lake can only struggle - he got spanked last year by Mooney and Barry Hall kicked a few goals on him too in a final last year.

[bornadog]

And a total of 2 years of total matches played. Those like Jerry who have doubts about a quick mobile strong kpp after only 25 games really need to understand that talls need at least 75 -100 games before they are fully mature as players. Kouta was being talked about at being trade bait when he was 22yo and had not reached his potential, ludicrous!

Besides Lake and Williams, all the rest of our potential KPPs are 20 or younger, including Everitt. ( I don't include Minson and Skipper as they are rucks)

[always right]

It was a stuff up because Eade took too long to move Morris. If Reiwoldt kicked straight, we'd have been down by 10 goals at half time. Game over. The coach can't wait that long to make the moves.

Fact is, tall forwards like Riewoldt, kozzie, Franklin, Lloyd, Fev are dependent on their midfielders firing: witness Franklin's performance in the Prelim against us ( Morris had him too, from memory, and Fev-Morris again, i think last year when they came from behind), and then Reiwoldt 1 week ago. If their midfield is firing Morris struggles, we need someone taller than Morris to go with the Reiwoldts. the Franklins and the Fevolas ie Lake. If our midfield is on top, Morris is the man.

Morris was fine on Fevola.

I suspect the reason Eade took so long to move Morris off Riewoldt is because Morris is one bloke capable of fighting his way back on top. Never drops his head, never concedes it isn't his day. His consistency of effort never changes. With St Kilda's midfield so much on top, no-one else was going to stop Riewoldt. Morris was the best bet and he will be when we play St Kilda again.

[Stefcep]

Isn't it the case of a team's backline is only as good as their midfield?

If the backline is being bombarded with forward 50 entries from the opposition, they may have a 50% chance of rebounding the ball out of there.

Any backline will struggle if their midfield fails to win the ball or causes turnovers after the backline has stopped an attack.

Lake can only struggle - he got spanked last year by Mooney and Barry Hall kicked a few goals on him too in a final last year.

I wouldn't go as far as that, but I agree that if your midfield is struggling, the defense's job is that much harder. One thing that happens is that the forwards and the defender get isolated one-on-one, or the forward can mark on the lead. A defenders lack of height will then be exposed. Thats why i think Eade should moved Morris earlier, it was clear to everyone at the ground that on that day, Morris was in a mismatch.

[Stefcep]

Just another point: the fade out in the last quarter, when Adelaide got 3-4 goals in a row. Sure the game was as good as won, but with so many teams on 3 and 4 wins I would have thought percentage would have been stressed to the players at 3/4 time.

[Happy Days]

Just another point: the fade out in the last quarter, when Adelaide got 3-4 goals in a row. Sure the game was as good as won, but with so many teams on 3 and 4 wins I would have thought percentage would have been stressed to the players at 3/4 time.

Hardly a fade out, more us taking the foot off the pedal. The game was over half-way through the third quarter.

[Go_Dogs]

Hardly a fade out, more us taking the foot off the pedal. The game was over half-way through the third quarter.

Agreed. Plus when you get smashed 8 goals to 1 in a 1/4 of football, you tend to come out a bit harder the next 1/4.

Thankfully Hill was able to mark and goal, because I admit I was starting to get sweaty palms when they had their little run on in the last.

[Mantis]

Just finished watching the game, I had an offer to good to refuse yesterday. (My avatar might have something to do with where I was)

Couple of notes I took while watching the game:

* Our young tall defenders either over-committed or got caught out of position once too many times. Hopefully Peter Dean can help with this in the review process.

* Work-rate was much much better, worked hard chasing, worked hard to receive the ball and worked hard to assist. Good signs.

* Doesn't Adam Cooney being able to run make a difference. He looked great.

* Absolutely astounded that they didn't try and man up on Gilbee & Eagleton, they just let them run free and they paid the price. Both worked much harder and were rewarded for their efforts.

* Murphy looked better again which is promising, still a bit off his best, but he is getting there.

* Defensive pressure & tackling was good.

* Adelaide were pretty ordinary, yeah we played some good football in the 3rd qtr, but I don't think they are much chop.

Definitely a game we can build from.

[AndrewP6]

Just finished watching the game, I had an offer to good to refuse yesterday. (My avatar might have something to do with where I was)

* Our young tall offenders either over-committed or got caught out of position once too many times. Hopefully Peter Dean can help with this in the review process.
.

GOLF?? Better than the Dogs?? You've gotta be kidding...

Do you mean "young DEfenders"?

[Mantis]

GOLF?? Better than the Dogs?? You've gotta be kidding...


But you don't get an invitation to play at one Australia's best courses everyday.

Fixed the other stuff up.

[AndrewP6]

But you don't get an invitation to play at one Australia's best courses everyday.

Fixed the other stuff up.

No, and if I did I'd still go for the Dogs...golf just doesn't do much for me...:p

Hope it didn't look like I was nitpicking...I am a teacher (in the middle of report writing time!) after all.