Can the Bulldogs' sexy football win a flag?

[BulldogBelle]

PETER HANLON
July 14, 2010
The Age

WHEN the Western Bulldogs were at their most irresistible on Sunday night, sweeping the ball from one end of Etihad Stadium to the other as if the newly laid strip of turf was a goal-to-goal conveyor belt, David Parkin made a telling observation in the ABC radio box. ''This is breathtaking football,'' Parkin said. ''But it won't win you a grand final.''

Alongside him, Chris Grant turned and nodded. That no revelations wrapped in red, white and blue would spring from smacking Carlton was evident even to less-credentialled watchers than the national broadcaster's special comments men.


http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/can-the-bulldogs-sexy-football-win-a-flag-20100713-109hp.html

[mjp]

David Parkin is wrong.

The reason we CAN win the grand final is that we have developed (over the year) a very effective defensive group/structure to go with the running and gunning. Two years ago we lost those shoot-out games to Carlton, last year we lost them to West Coast because we couldn't stop the opposition scoring on the turnover. This year we do - and the oppositions obsession with Lake (or rather avoiding Lake) is paralysing them.

Geelong will hold their nerve going forward ('cos that is what they do) and Hawthorn will win enough contested ball to make it interesting...but if we play with the adventure shown over the past two weeks against the Saints they will not be able to go with us. Nor will Collingwood.

It is Geelong, Hawthorn or us who will win it. And the only way we are in that group is because of that willingness to run and create.

[Desipura]

I think we need to attach the very large picture of DaDruids face as it appears in the Age newspaper. It took up half my screen!
Oh, I just saw it in another thread.

[LostDoggy]

David Parkin is wrong.

The reason we CAN win the grand final is that we have developed (over the year) a very effective defensive group/structure to go with the running and gunning. Two years ago we lost those shoot-out games to Carlton, last year we lost them to West Coast because we couldn't stop the opposition scoring on the turnover. This year we do - and the oppositions obsession with Lake (or rather avoiding Lake) is paralysing them.

Geelong will hold their nerve going forward ('cos that is what they do) and Hawthorn will win enough contested ball to make it interesting...but if we play with the adventure shown over the past two weeks against the Saints they will not be able to go with us. Nor will Collingwood.

It is Geelong, Hawthorn or us who will win it. And the only way we are in that group is because of that willingness to run and create.

Absolutely agree PROVIDING we do not use our nerve. That is the big risk with this group. It comes back to Eade's stated inferiority complex.

I truly hope this is a thing of the past.

[Ghost Dog]

It comes back to Eade's stated inferiority complex.


Sorry, I must have missed that. What do you mean there EJ?

Predictions might come back to haunt Mr Parkin. Ask Robert Walls.

Wikipedia

Walls has been involved in a feud with Sydney Swans coach Paul Roos, after Walls stated that "the Swans can't possibly win the AFL Premiership with Paul Roos' style of coaching". In 2005 the Sydney Swans went on to win the flag and Roos refused to accept Walls apology.

[LostDoggy]

Sorry, I must have missed that. What do you mean there EJ?

.

Sorry, I might have put that better -

When Rocket arrived at the club he mentioned, on a number of occasions, that the playing group suffered from an inferiority complex which he felt restricted them from attacking the game.

His view of this has not changed a lot over his time in the position.

[Ghost Dog]

Sorry, I might have put that better -

When Rocket arrived at the club he mentioned, on a number of occasions, that the playing group suffered from an inferiority complex which he felt restricted them from attacking the game.

His view of this has not changed a lot over his time in the position.

Thanks for that. I remember that now. He still feels that? Must be much less for sure!
Barry Hall has the inferiority complex of a charging bull. :D
Let's hope the ghosts of Whitten Oval are proven a myth once and for all in 2010.

I'm not really sure of Parkin's argument. Free flowing play can beat the lock down style, and all top four sides have been beaten or come within a kick of being beaten by free flowing teams this season. Sure, the more conservative teams like Saints do well. But they have been beaten too.

It's a bit of a big call for him to make and I hope we prove him wrong.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

It's a bit of a big call for him to make and I hope we prove him wrong.

It's a stupid call.

mjp is on the money. We have the intensity to match (and beat) the likes of Geelong, Hawthorn, Collingwood and St. Kilda. We've improved our defensive game a lot and if we can show more of the run and create v Carlton, we'll be a very dangerous proposition. On paper, we have a better side than Hawthorn, St. Kilda and Collingwood. It's the mentality and execution that will define this season. We've failed in the past, but there's time to turn it around.

Blight is right. Football is a simple game; be in front when the final siren ends. All this talk about 'how' you need to play is rubbish. Geelong (although exceptional) don't play St. Kilda footy. West Coast didn't either. Hell - St. Kilda haven't even won a Grand Final yet, but you'd think judging by all these articles they're the ones who have won two of the last three.

No doubting we have a lot of work to do and we need quite a few things to go right for us. However, we've probably got the second best list in the AFL and our intensity is fine. We just need to get better at thinking our way through games (stoppages etc) and not cracking under pressure like we have v Saints and v Hawks this year.

The media still thinks we play like we did in 2005. Fools.

[Sedat]

We have the intensity to match (and beat) the likes of Geelong, Hawthorn, Collingwood and St. Kilda. We've improved our defensive game a lot and if we can show more of the run and create v Carlton, we'll be a very dangerous proposition. On paper, we have a better side than Hawthorn, St. Kilda and Collingwood. It's the mentality and execution that will define this season. We've failed in the past, but there's time to turn it around.
Agree with this, except that we haven't consistently been able to win genuinely tight games against such quality opposition with the exception of Round 21 v Geelong last season. St Kilda has pipped us twice by a kick, Hawthorn once, Geelong once and the Pies a couple of times. I have no doubts whatsoever that our team can match the intensity of any opponent in the competition, but when things are tight in the last qtr, I'm not sure we have the necessary star power within the team to help get us over the line - unfortunately the recent pattern of close losses against the best teams in the competition is compelling proof that we generally can't find that extra gear under such circumstances.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Agree with this, except that we haven't consistently been able to win genuinely tight games against such quality opposition with the exception of Round 21 v Geelong last season. St Kilda has pipped us twice by a kick, Hawthorn once, Geelong once and the Pies a couple of times. I have no doubts whatsoever that our team can match the intensity of any opponent in the competition, but when things are tight in the last qtr, I'm not sure we have the necessary star power within the team to help get us over the line - unfortunately the recent pattern of close losses against the best teams in the competition is compelling proof that we generally can't find that extra gear under such circumstances.

Yep - completely right.

I probably didn't word it right. When I said we have the intensity to match and beat those sides, I was referring more to our ability to compete. We beat Hawthorn in a few of the key indicators, such as contested ball. There's no problem in this area - it's as you say, getting over the line and/or having the star power to be the difference. This is where Boyd, Cross, Picken and co must work very hard to create and block for Cooney, Griffen, Harbrow etc.

[Mantis]

Yep - completely right.

I probably didn't word it right. When I said we have the intensity to match and beat those sides, I was referring more to our ability to compete. We beat Hawthorn in a few of the key indicators, such as contested ball. There's no problem in this area - it's as you say, getting over the line and/or having the star power to be the difference. This is where Boyd, Cross, Picken and co must work very hard to create and block for Cooney, Griffen, Harbrow etc.

And vice versa.

Our players with the 'star power' also need to do the little things well. Too often if Griff & Coon in particular aren't having good games they are non-factors, but have to learn to contribute in other ways .ie. tackling, blocking, etc..

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Yep - completely right.

I probably didn't word it right. When I said we have the intensity to match and beat those sides, I was referring more to our ability to compete. We beat Hawthorn in a few of the key indicators, such as contested ball. There's no problem in this area - it's as you say, getting over the line and/or having the star power to be the difference. This is where Boyd, Cross, Picken and co must work very hard to create and block for Cooney, Griffen, Harbrow etc.

By my reckoning looking at season 2010 we would have at best 13 quality players in Lake, Boyd, Hall, Harbrow, Morris, Cross, Hudson, Picken, Griffen, Cooney, Gilbee and now Murphy that he has recovered from injury and Grant. This is why we continue to struggle to beat the big three in Geelong, St. Kilda and Collingwood. We have just one big man in Lake that can consistently compete overhead.It is this lack of depth that sees us struggle to match the better sides.

[chef]

David Parkin is wrong.

The reason we CAN win the grand final is that we have developed (over the year) a very effective defensive group/structure to go with the running and gunning. Two years ago we lost those shoot-out games to Carlton, last year we lost them to West Coast because we couldn't stop the opposition scoring on the turnover. This year we do - and the oppositions obsession with Lake (or rather avoiding Lake) is paralysing them.

Geelong will hold their nerve going forward ('cos that is what they do) and Hawthorn will win enough contested ball to make it interesting...but if we play with the adventure shown over the past two weeks against the Saints they will not be able to go with us. Nor will Collingwood.

It is Geelong, Hawthorn or us who will win it. And the only way we are in that group is because of that willingness to run and create.

Especially when he plays on the oppositions best tall forward every week.

[Remi Moses]

Agree with this, except that we haven't consistently been able to win genuinely tight games against such quality opposition with the exception of Round 21 v Geelong last season. St Kilda has pipped us twice by a kick, Hawthorn once, Geelong once and the Pies a couple of times. I have no doubts whatsoever that our team can match the intensity of any opponent in the competition, but when things are tight in the last qtr, I'm not sure we have the necessary star power within the team to help get us over the line - unfortunately the recent pattern of close losses against the best teams in the competition is compelling proof that we generally can't find that extra gear under such circumstances.

I agree until we win an arm wrestle against the big boys the perception will be always there.