Its a Big Test - Geelong, can we win?

[bornadog]

We have won 5 in a row and it could easily have been 8 in a row except for the Hawthorn loss by 3 points. On the other hand Geelong have lost 3 of their last 8.

Last year we played Geelong three times and won one, lost one by 2 points and lost the QF by 14 points. I think its going to be a close game, but I have a feeling we will win this.

Thoughts?

[Mofra]

I'm worried about how we pull up from such a tough game, with a full day less than Geelong to prepare. If we play on and take risks we can beat them.

[ledge]

Rather lose and beat them in a final
Sides like Collingwood and Geelong you only beat once a year, lets make it in the finals.

[AndrewP6]

I'm hoping it'll be close, but I think they'll have too many aces for us :( Too many inconsistent performances this season (regardless of the roll we've been on lately), which will hurt against the Cats.

Jeez I'm crossing everything that I'm wrong.

[DOG GOD]

Really have to break even in the midfield and try to get Lonegan one out. Whoever he is on we need to isolate him and his opponent. Put a hard tag on Enright (has really struggled with a tag over the last month). Need to curb Stokes and Varcoe as well.

The hard slog today could be a concern but we just have to make the most of any opportunities and TACKLE and PRESSURE HARD!!!!

[Greystache]

I think we'll struggle this week given the short break, interstate travel, and the conditions we played in this week, but that doesn't mean we can't beat them in the finals.

[LostDoggy]

Rather lose and beat them in a final
Sides like Collingwood and Geelong you only beat once a year, lets make it in the finals.

Brilliant post Ledge, absolutely would have agreed with you last year but this is a new year and the lid is off and we are coming hard real hard and the leash is off!!!

[LostDoggy]

I guess if we lose it shows how important the win against the Crows was. Fremantle are playing Sydney at Subiaco so even if we lose and Freo win we will still be on equal points and have the percentage in our favour!

[LostDoggy]

Yeah, tough game in bad conditions interstate and a short turn around but we have some talent to come back. Beat them by a significant margin and we leapfrog them. Go dogs, we are coming hard.

[LostDoggy]

Rather lose and beat them in a final
Sides like Collingwood and Geelong you only beat once a year, lets make it in the finals.

Says who?
I'd rather take it on with all we've got next Saturday night, and if we play them in finals, then try and do the same thing.

[Murphy'sLore]

Yes, we'll be tired after today's game but Geelong should be pretty knackered after last night's effort too. Of course every game against the Pies is like a GF, isn't it??:D

Here's hoping the players who return for us will inject some fresh energy into the side.

[mjp]

More worried about how we play at this point - the final result doesn't concern me too much this week. Want to see us match them for contested footy and play with a bit of adventure going forward.

I want their rebounding defenders - Mackie and Enright especially - to be in two minds about attacking us going into September.

[LostDoggy]

More worried about how we play at this point - the final result doesn't concern me too much this week. Want to see us match them for contested footy and play with a bit of adventure going forward.

I want their rebounding defenders - Mackie and Enright especially - to be in two minds about attacking us going into September.

Exactly. The win today cannot be underestimated . Allows us to rest a couple of players next week if need be.

[Sedat]

I want their rebounding defenders - Mackie and Enright especially - to be in two minds about attacking us going into September.
You can add Scarlett and Milburn to that list. I want to see the Geelong defenders made to be held accountable this Saturday. We've given their back 6 carte blanche to roam free and dictate the play in recent seasons.

[LostDoggy]

We just need to hurt them on the scoreboard when we get the chance. I don't want to see many, if any soft misses.

[ReLoad]

The answer is:

Yes we can win! no question, but let me focus on the opposite outcome.

The reality says otherwise:

The boys are sick, and i mean really sick, the vast majority of our backline, Gilbee, Morris and co were vomiting multiple times during the game and after, this will seriously affect their ability to recover.

Given the cats have an extra days break, have no list management issues to worry about, their players have and are being cycled through for rests, i would suggest that we are all up against it.

Half a dozen of our players need a rest, this is only exacerbated by the extra load they had to shoulder yesterday, as their teammates were clearly suffering. (I know it makes the win against the crows even more special but its going to hurt us this week)

Geelong have shown they have some chinks in their armour, no doubt, they are not the side they were a couple of years ago, they have real issues around their forward line and structure of their tall players, so much so that they are almost dysfunctional at times. (I am not talking as a whole only during periods of games)

So I would suggest that this game has a distinct advantage to the cats before the first bounce. The game is all about recovery and the cats will have a better one than us.

Just my .02 Peoples Republic of West Footscray Roubles.

[Desipura]

If Eade brings in 4 (Higgins, Murphy, Harbrow & Ward) it will enable 4 to have a rest.

[stefoid]

Collingwood has shown an ability to defeat Geelong on occasion, even when they probably shouldnt have - not when it really matters yet, but still, they are doing something right.

Collingwood had 92 tackles against the Cats when they beat them and they had 63 tackles against the cats when they didnt. They tend to play a very tight man on man game, and I think this is what can bring the cats undone - they move the ball through chains of handballs, riding the tackle, but this breaks down if the recipient of the tackle has a man right next to him. Chain eventually breaks and a turnover results.

Our forward line currently has more tall talent in it than Ive seen since... um, anytime really. Maybe this can make a difference for us - all the top 4 teams have great defenders who can pick off the long ball, working as a team. Easy to do against us when the focal point is Johno or Hill or Hall by himself, but if Jones and Grant and Lake on occasion can spread the defence by offering multiple long targets? Thats what Eade is currently experimenting with.

[Mofra]

Rather lose and beat them in a final
Sides like Collingwood and Geelong you only beat once a year, lets make it in the finals.
Didn't go well against the Saints last year.

We should aim to win every game we can.

[Curly5]

If Eade brings in 4 (Higgins, Murphy, Harbrow & Ward) it will enable 4 to have a rest.

Let's hope they are fully recovered then. Who gets the rest? Out - Hill... Jones... not Eagle please, he was great, and arguably in better form than Higgins, but will probably go :( - who else? I know, Moles and Everitt.

If the boys are not fully recovered, and after only a 6-day break, we might go down. However, I've got a feeling that Geelong are playing on memory of past glory. They are still good but the edge seems not to be there. I reckon they are vulnerable to any side with greater desire.

[johnnycoop]

I think Rocket will be tapering the training now as we have had some blistering running games and the West Lakes rain over the last few weeks. Eags has to stay, Higgs in for Jonesy (unfortunate but he will play alot of footy for us in the coming years). We have to make Geelong chase us for a change, it will be hard but we have to get that running game on, with multiple long targets to split the defence. Would be nice to knock 'em off.

[LostDoggy]

I think we can win - yes, we are coming off a hard slog in the wet, but Geelong had a pretty tough game too. I saw Dale Morris looking like he was going to vomit after the game but didn't realise how many of them were sick - is it just a bug - do we know what's going on with them?

[1eyedog]

Of course we can win, but we need to be at our best. Tackling and contested possession is the key. We need to tackle hard and consistently through the game as Geelong (anyone really) will falter under the pressure and turn the ball over. Geelong love dinky little kicks out of the back line and love loads of handballs until a player is free to hit up a target by foot, usually through the centre of the ground. They are bold. They are suspect when they are put under pressure in their defensive 50. They are also masters of the contested ball, we will need to match them here.

[Go_Dogs]

I hope none of the players/coaches read overly much into the outcome of this game. Geelong are coming off a hiding and will be very keen to atone. We're coming off a tough game in Adelaide, against opposition, who despite their ladder position, made us work pretty hard yesterday.


We won the corresponding fixture late last year against Geelong, and it was a great win, but at the end of the season it didn't count for jack. It'd be nice to win...but I'm not fussed either way - September is where we have the opportunity to prove ourselves and make it count.

[Doc26]

Yes we can win it and with gusto just so long as the boys don't read on Woof how tired they are and how desperately they need to put their feet up.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

It's important to give a good account of ourselves and I wouldn't mind playing all of Everitt, Jones, Moles and Hill to see if they can offer anything in high pressured games. Obviously in Jones' case, it's reward for effort - he had a good game against Adelaide and should hold his spot on form alone.

Agree with others that Hudson and Grant should be both rested. Also a good opportunity to give Minson a run.

I really think it's imperative to know who we can (and can't) rely on come week 1 of the finals. I'll be disappointed if Everitt or Hill are dropped especially.

[Ghost Dog]

The virus thing going through the kennel is a bit of a worry. Geelong EG Ling, look a bit slow at the moment. I reckon we have the speed advantage.

[Flamethrower]

The answer is:

Given the cats have an extra days break, have no list management issues to worry about, their players have and are being cycled through for rests, i would suggest that we are all up against it.


Geelong have quite a few players who are well down on fitness and form at the moment.
- Bartel has a serious elbow injury that will require surgery post season.
- Hawkins is really struggling to regain fitness after his serious foot injury.
- Harry Taylor copped a bad knock to the shoulder and must be in doubt for Saturday.
- Joel Corey, Ottens and Scarlett lack match fitness.
- Podsiadly has gone right off the boil.

[LostDoggy]

Geelong have quite a few players who are well down on fitness and form at the moment.
- Bartel has a serious elbow injury that will require surgery post season.
- Hawkins is really struggling to regain fitness after his serious foot injury.
- Harry Taylor copped a bad knock to the shoulder and must be in doubt for Saturday.
- Joel Corey, Ottens and Scarlett lack match fitness.
- Podsiadly has gone right off the boil.

Really, if we are to beat the Cats, it's now!

[boydogs]

It's important to give a good account of ourselves and I wouldn't mind playing all of Everitt, Jones, Moles and Hill to see if they can offer anything in high pressured games. Obviously in Jones' case, it's reward for effort - he had a good game against Adelaide and should hold his spot on form alone.

Agree with others that Hudson and Grant should be both rested. Also a good opportunity to give Minson a run.

I really think it's imperative to know who we can (and can't) rely on come week 1 of the finals. I'll be disappointed if Everitt or Hill are dropped especially.

TBB, I think you are a great poster, but I can't follow your argument here
You want us to give a good account of ourselves, but you want to keep Harbrow, Murphy & Higgins out in order to test out the young guys? Plus you want to rest guys? That's what you do when you don't much care about the result, not the opposite.

I think Hill was purely a substitute - he didn't earn his spot, and didn't work to keep it either - I can live with the others staying in, but not Hill.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

TBB, I think you are a great poster, but I can't follow your argument here
You want us to give a good account of ourselves, but you want to keep Harbrow, Murphy & Higgins out in order to test out the young guys? Plus you want to rest guys? That's what you do when you don't much care about the result, not the opposite.

I think Hill was purely a substitute - he didn't earn his spot, and didn't work to keep it either - I can live with the others staying in, but not Hill.

I certainly won't lose sleep if we lose, but naturally I hope we play well. We beat them in Round 21 last year and we all thought we had their measure heading into the first week of the finals. We were never really in the game, despite the result only being 14 points in the end. This Saturday Night won't determine whether or not we can beat the top sides - the finals will.

I'd bring Harbrow and Murphy back - not Higgins. He can't run - I watched him closely v North Melbourne and he struggled to cover the ground. Both Higgins and Ward should at least play a week at Williamstown IMO.

Moles doesn't offer us much as I've explained already. He's not bad in a contested situation but he doesn't get enough of it and uses it poorly. Hill was poor - but I'd like to see him given a chance on a dry track against good opposition before discarding him from season 2010. Despite his bad year, he's still kicked quite a few goals and is one of our few players who can take a mark overhead.

I care more about the processes and finding out which of our younger/fringe players can 'stand up', as opposed to winning with a full strength side and getting ahead of ourselves.