Lake omission disgraceful

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

The pending decision to drop Brian Lake for the Sydney Swans encounter beggars belief.
In a defensive unit that now has only three class defenders in Murphy, Morris and Lake I find this likely decision extroadinary.
Have we ever had such an inept goal to goal line without Hall and Lake at either end that exists at the moment?
Since Lake arrived at the club he has always had a weakness in allowing key forwards to lead him to the ball. It didn't just happen for the first time last Sunday against Collingwood.
Lake's great strength however has been his ability to out muscle and outmark continually the opposition's best forward. If there was ever a time to retain Lake in the senior lineup then this is the moment. Could you ever imagine Essendon dropping Fletcher or Geelong, Scarlett in similar circumstances.
It is ironic that a non-contact player in Giansircusa comes into the side this week whilst one of our few stars in Lake languishes at Williamstown!
From a position of strength in making the previous three preliminary finals, on present indications we will struggle to make the final 8 in 2011.

[Desipura]

The pending decision to drop Brian Lake for the Sydney Swans encounter beggars belief.
In a defensive unit that now has only three class defenders in Murphy, Morris and Lake I find this likely decision extroadinary.
Have we ever had such an inept goal to goal line without Hall and Lake at either end that exists at the moment?
Since Lake arrived at the club he has always had a weakness in allowing key forwards to lead him to the ball. It didn't just happen for the first time last Sunday against Collingwood.
Lake's great strength however has been his ability to out muscle and outmark continually the opposition's best forward. If there was ever a time to retain Lake in the senior lineup then this is the moment. Could you ever imagine Essendon dropping Fletcher or Geelong, Scarlett in similar circumstances.
It is ironic that a non-contact player in Giansircusa comes into the side this week whilst one of our few stars in Lake languishes at Williamstown!
From a position of strength in making the previous three preliminary finals, on present indications we will struggle to make the final 8 in 2011.

The call was correct given that there is no real match up for him and he is sadly out of form.

[Mantis]

While your passion can't be denied N.B.P your opinions and views are off the mark.

I have it on pretty good authority that Brian himself was keen for this move to take place as he doen't feel his body is capable of playing the type of footy we expect of him at the minute.

Hopefully after a few weeks of conditioning and playing at a lower level he can return in good shape and start playing the type of footy we know know he can.

[Sockeye Salmon]

The pending decision to drop Brian Lake for the Sydney Swans encounter beggars belief.
In a defensive unit that now has only three class defenders in Murphy, Morris and Lake I find this likely decision extroadinary.
Have we ever had such an inept goal to goal line without Hall and Lake at either end that exists at the moment?
Since Lake arrived at the club he has always had a weakness in allowing key forwards to lead him to the ball. It didn't just happen for the first time last Sunday against Collingwood.
Lake's great strength however has been his ability to out muscle and outmark continually the opposition's best forward. If there was ever a time to retain Lake in the senior lineup then this is the moment. Could you ever imagine Essendon dropping Fletcher or Geelong, Scarlett in similar circumstances.
It is ironic that a non-contact player in Giansircusa comes into the side this week whilst one of our few stars in Lake languishes at Williamstown!
From a position of strength in making the previous three preliminary finals, on present indications we will struggle to make the final 8 in 2011.

If you're not fit you don't play.

Not that difficult a concept to understand, surely?

[Maddog37]

I do not like this move at all but for the life of me I cannot explain why.....

It is like running Phar Lap at the Hanging Rock Picnic races.

I hope he is a late call up.

[Cyberdoggie]

I do not like this move at all but for the life of me I cannot explain why.....

It is like running Phar Lap at the Hanging Rock Picnic races.

I hope he is a late call up.

Perhaps Phar Lap just needs a spell to get him right for the spring carnival. ;)

[Topdog]

I love the call. I hope and pray that this very simple concept is applied to all players.

Unfortunately I doubt it will be.

[The Coon Dog]

Does anyone really believe a decision to move Brian back to Williamstown wouldn't have occurred without a decent level of consultation?

I reckon the hardest thing for footy supporters is sometimes understanding why certain decisions are arrived at, principally because we aren't privy to the inner workings of the club.

If we were, I'm sure we'd probably agree with what happens much more than we do & I'm not suggesting for a minute we should be, just using it as a reason to demonstrate my point.

For what its worth I think the title of this thread could have been worded better too.

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

I do not like this move at all but for the life of me I cannot explain why.....

It is like running Phar Lap at the Hanging Rock Picnic races.

I hope he is a late call up.
Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

[G-Mo77]

Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

Have you ever thought Lake being down on form could have something to do with all the surgeries in the off-season? IMO he came back far too early and is paying for it. It's a long season, no need to run him into the ground this early, rest him up and bring him back when he's ready.

[Topdog]

Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

Words can't described how strongly I disagree with the bolded part.

[Maddog37]

The positives are obviously the improvement of Marko and Tommy which allows this decision to be made without a total meltdown from supporters.

I hope this not only benefits Brian but gives the whole team a wake up call. Quite a few times now Rocket has stated players were not following the team structures when we have lost.

[comrade]

Words can't described how strongly I disagree with the bolded part.

Seconded.

Ross Lyon dropped Steve Milne and Nick Dal Santo for not adhering to his game plan. That worked out ok.

[bornadog]

Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

His knee is still a little sore. Have a read the articles on him in todays Age newspaper. The club made a mistake returning him to play in round 3, but hey at the time they thought it was the right decision.

I would rather have Lake fully fit and ready for the second half of the season instead of risking him now.

[westdog54]

I'm glad that rational thought has been a running theme in this thread.

He's not just out of form, he's horribly out of form. He looks hampered and had a fraction of a pre-season.

Generally speaking it wouldn't be true, but with things they are at the moment, yes, Markovic and Williams are better options. Markovic has surprised a hell of a lot of people since he debuted and only seems to be getting better.

[choconmientay]

Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

Collingwood last season did this quite well. They dropped players regardless of their names when they weren't in form. We should enforce the same rules and rotate our players. No harm in sending players back to the VFL to find their form, to re-energise and to find the hunger for the game.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Collingwood last season did this quite well. They dropped players regardless of their names when they weren't in form. We should enforce the same rules and rotate our players. No harm in sending players back to the VFL to find their form, to re-energise and to find the hunger for the game.

They didn't really, they only dumped hacks like Fraser, Medhurst and O'Bree.

[Desipura]

They didn't really, they only dumped hacks like Fraser, Medhurst and O'Bree.
And Lockyer. They made tough calls on 200 game players in Fraser, O'Bree & Lockyer, not bad for a bunch of hacks!
Medhurst would have got a game for us last season.

[Lake Superior]

Thank you Maddog37, I thought I was running out of friends!
If Brian Lake is down on form then he has a few mates. You simply do not make an example of one of your better players. If we had been a better team then surely Lake should have been carried for a couple of weeks in the seniors to regain form.
Are we now suggesting that players like Williams and Markovic are better options?
Please give me a break!

Norm Smith(the greatest coach ever) said one of his best weapons to get the best out of his players was to make an example of the better players. He frequently targeted Barassi which caused other players to think that if Barassi was having a bad run I must be terrible.

I believe the dropping of Lake is just to send a message to the rest of the playing group that if you dont adhere to instructions your out.

[choconmientay]

They didn't really, they only dumped hacks like Fraser, Medhurst and O'Bree.

Added to that list ... Leon Davis, Travis Cloke, Ben Johnson, Simon Prestigiacomo all spent times in the VFL if I can recall correctly :)

[Mahama]

All this talk about form, dropping, dumping, omitting... Rodney himself has said this isn't the case.

From http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/drained-brian-lake-cops-a-month-in-reserves/story-e6frg7mf-1226050086470


Assistant coach Brett Montgomery confirmed yesterday that Lake would step back to the VFL this weekend, but senior coach Rodney Eade later said it would be the first of "several" weeks in the reserves, possibly the first of four.

"One week is unlikely to achieve what we all want and it would also suggest that we've dropped Brian, which isn't the case," Eade said. "This is the start of a course the medical and fitness staff, the coaches and Brian have set out to enable him to get some confidence back in his body, to improve his fitness and touch.

Sounds like a very good idea to me. Get him right now so we have one of the best players in the league fit and ready to go for the finals, rather than having him limp in with half his limbs about to fall off again.

[mjp]

Why the surprise? Rocket said on Monday 'On the Couch' that he would play at Williamstown...

[LostDoggy]

I like the fact we seem to be focusing on the end game, dropping unfit or out of form players(mostly just the unfit ones though). In this case they seem to have it right again, we need Lake at the pointy end of the season.

I just hope we make the pointy end of the season. If we lose against Sydney top four might be out of reach (not in a mathematical sense but in reality).

[Topdog]

Why the surprise? Rocket said on Monday 'On the Couch' that he would play at Williamstown...

He also frequently says we could make 4 or 5 changes and then an 18 y.o is dropped and a vet brought back in. This is a massive change from the norm.

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Does anyone really believe a decision to move Brian back to Williamstown wouldn't have occurred without a decent level of consultation?

I reckon the hardest thing for footy supporters is sometimes understanding why certain decisions are arrived at, principally because we aren't privy to the inner workings of the club.

If we were, I'm sure we'd probably agree with what happens much more than we do & I'm not suggesting for a minute we should be, just using it as a reason to demonstrate my point.

For what its worth I think the title of this thread could have been worded better too.
As an old Braybrook boy myself I understand your concerns about the wording as suggested in your last sentence. I also believe that their should be more consistency in the dropping of your so called better players. Two that come to mind are Giansircusa and Gilbee who can play a number of so so games but continued to be picked.
Given the lack of good big players in our team I am still not convinced that the demoting of Lake is the right way to go. Judging by the comments to date this thread has drawn a mixed reaction which is healthy I would have thought.

[SlimPickens]

Disagree with your sentiment N.B.P, the disgrace was bringing Brian back underdone and not after the bye. Love your passion tho!

[Sockeye Salmon]

Added to that list ... Leon Davis, Travis Cloke, Ben Johnson, Simon Prestigiacomo all spent times in the VFL if I can recall correctly :)

Cloke was never dropped and the rest were only ever average at their peek - which was years ago.

The blokes he dropped were hasbeens who had become a liability and most retired/got delisted.

[Greystache]

Cloke was never dropped and the rest were only ever average at their peek - which was years ago.

The blokes he dropped were hasbeens who had become a liability and most retired/got delisted.

Similar to Brad Johnson, Nathan Eagleton, Mitch Hahn, except they were selected for the prelim final.

[choconmientay]

Cloke was never dropped and the rest were only ever average at their peek - which was years ago.

The blokes he dropped were hasbeens who had become a liability and most retired/got delisted.


Counting through, it was still a lot of Collingwood players dropped/rested. My point is that you should be able to drop senior players if they are not in good form. Like I said before, there is no harm in going back to VFL to revitalize.

[Topdog]

Similar to Brad Johnson, Nathan Eagleton, Mitch Hahn, except they were selected for the prelim final.

Exactly! Add Welsh for the previous year.:(

[bornadog]

He also frequently says we could make 4 or 5 changes and then an 18 y.o is dropped and a vet brought back in. This is a massive change from the norm.


Similar to Brad Johnson, Nathan Eagleton, Mitch Hahn, except they were selected for the prelim final.


Exactly! Add Welsh for the previous year.:(

The trouble is the past few years we haven't had the cattle to replace these guys. Now we have guys like Markovic who can takle a full back role.

[Desipura]

The trouble is the past few years we haven't had the cattle to replace these guys. Now we have guys like Markovic who can takle a full back role.

How do you know that? We never backed in our youngsters like Collingwood did/do.

[bornadog]

How do you know that? We never backed in our youngsters like Collingwood did/do.

didn't have enough youngsters. We have given a go to all the young guys we could have in the past three years.

[Mantis]

didn't have enough youngsters. We have given a go to all the young guys we could have in the past three years.

Jones would have done no worse than Hahn in last years finals. Ditto with Moles over Eagleton.

[bornadog]

Jones would have done no worse than Hahn in last years finals. Ditto with Moles over Eagleton.

matter of opinion.

Anyway, we are discussing players being dropped and young guys given a go.

Last year we blooded Jones, Grant, Stack, Wood, Roughead and Hooper, plus Moles

Already this year we have Libba, Wallis, Markovic, DJ

Prior to 2010, Rocket has brought in Ward, Higgins, Reid, Hill, Harbrow

I think we have given all the young guys that have been ready for AFL a go. We haven't been able to drop certain players in the past because we just didn't have the back up.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Similar to Brad Johnson, Nathan Eagleton, Mitch Hahn, except they were selected for the prelim final.

Or Andrew Hooper?

[BulldogBelle]

Disagree with your sentiment N.B.P, the disgrace was bringing Brian back underdone and not after the bye. Love your passion tho!



Our old pal certainly disagrees with your perspective N.B.P.

I chuckled just a bit when I read this line...

"This was the whole time when I was getting the sack for basically nothing and this guy was causing so much dramas in the back end and now he’s still going on with it,” Akermanis said.





Jason Akermanis slams 'unprofessional' Bulldog Brian Lake Staff writer From: Herald Sun May 05, 2011 2:26PM

JASON Akermanis says Brian Lake is paying the price for going holiday instead of getting vital knee surgery at the end of last season.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/jason-akermanis-slams-unprofessional-bulldog-brian-lake/story-e6frf9jf-1226050532310

[soupman]

Given the lack of good big players in our team I am still not convinced that the demoting of Lake is the right way to go. Judging by the comments to date this thread has drawn a mixed reaction which is healthy I would have thought.

I think you are looking at this the wrong way.

Lake isn't neccessarily being dropped. Instead he is actually being assisted.

To me it appears that the club realises that due to physical and form reasons Lake isn't able to play to his ability at this point in time. The club obviously feels that these won't be rectified by continuing to play Lake in the seniors. By playing him for Williamstown he can be eased back and any negative performances he has aren't going to hurt our season.

Our lack of good big players isn't going to be rectified by keeping a horribly out of form and unfit Lake in the side for the months it may take for him to get himself right again at the AFL level. It might end up being more beneficial to play a Brennan Stack or Sam Reid in the side for however long it takes Lake to come back in as a good player than to carry bad Lake for six weeks.

[dogman]

Our old pal certainly disagrees with your perspective N.B.P.

I chuckled just a bit when I read this line...

"This was the whole time when I was getting the sack for basically nothing and this guy was causing so much dramas in the back end and now he’s still going on with it,” Akermanis said.





Jason Akermanis slams 'unprofessional' Bulldog Brian Lake Staff writer From: Herald Sun May 05, 2011 2:26PM

JASON Akermanis says Brian Lake is paying the price for going holiday instead of getting vital knee surgery at the end of last season.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/jason-akermanis-slams-unprofessional-bulldog-brian-lake/story-e6frf9jf-1226050532310

This is a common message I've heard from people within the club, I think they've had enough. If he wasn't so good on the field, he would of been gone 2 years ago.

[Greystache]

Or Andrew Hooper?

Because he played in the prelim.

No he sat on the sidelines with Liam Jones.

[Maddog37]

This is a common message I've heard from people within the club, I think they've had enough. If he wasn't so good on the field, he would of been gone 2 years ago.

lucky he is good on the field then.

[Doc26]

As has been mentioned earlier in this thread there may well have been a more collobarative discussion which lead to a mutual agreement with Brian being demoted this week. If that was the case I would've preferred Brian to back himself in to come good - to set himself a goal against the Swans.

I'm not convinced that after two weeks that 'simply' based on Brian's form that his demotion is warranted otherwise it does make a number of other MC decisions in 2010 look inconsistent such as with our perseverance throughout 2010 to select Shaun, Mitch and Brad that they might eventually come good. Possibly the action the MC has taken this week is an outcome from learnings taken from some ordinary calls last season.

Will be interesting to see whether Hawthorn take a similar line on Luke Hodge who like Brian is also struggling with form - being put down to an interrupted preseason and persistent achilles complaint. I suggest the call to demote Hodge will not be considered by their MC.

The issue I see the Club has with Brian this week may have more to do with the combination of form AND, in particular, in not adhering to Team structure / expected discipline where the two have morphed into one.

[bornadog]

Because he played in the prelim.

No he sat on the sidelines with Liam Jones.

Yeah Liam was playing so well that we would have won that Prelim

[Greystache]

Yeah Liam was playing so well that we would have won that Prelim

Irrelevant.

We were never going to win it, and to suggest he would've been a liabilty compared to the likes of Johnson or Hahn would also be rediculous. The difference is Jones is also playing this year, while Hahn is coaching and Johnson commentating. Experiencing the pressure of a prelim (or any final for that matter) would've been hugely beneficial for a young player that might be the backbone of our team in the future, rather than going with the tried, tested, and failed veterans and getting the usual result.

[bornadog]

Irrelevant.

We were never going to win it, and to suggest he would've been a liabilty compared to the likes of Johnson or Hahn would also be rediculous. The difference is Jones is also playing this year, while Hahn is coaching and Johnson commentating. Experiencing the pressure of a prelim (or any final for that matter) would've been hugely beneficial for a young player that might be the backbone of our team in the future, rather than going with the tried, tested, and failed veterans and getting the usual result.

Your missing the points in the discussion, however, I will comment. Jones hardly touched the ball in the H&A . He was avaerging 10 disposals, so how can we play him in the finals based on that?

Posters are critical that in the past we kept the old brigade in and didn't give any young guys a go, or dropped the young guys before we dropped the Gilbee's, Hahns, etc . What I am saying is at the time we didn't have much of a choice, however, where possible we blooded a lot of players.

Maybe we should have played some of them in the prelim, but I guess the players were not up to it. Sunday we played 10 players that were not even in the final versus Collingwood.

[The Pie Man]

Norm Smith(the greatest coach ever) said one of his best weapons to get the best out of his players was to make an example of the better players. He frequently targeted Barassi which caused other players to think that if Barassi was having a bad run I must be terrible.

I believe the dropping of Lake is just to send a message to the rest of the playing group that if you dont adhere to instructions your out.

And I believe Barass was big on this himself, often berating Malcolm Blight (who would go on to say he'd perform almost to spite him)

Maxwell spoke recently of how hard Malthouse has been on him (and that it took him a while to understand why)

Can you imagine how this would've gone down? Brian says to the club 'look I'm pretty sore, I don't think I can play ATM' and the club responds with 'tough, you're going to Manuka'?

You can't un-do things (like playing him too early - which is debatable, but anyway) but in recovery I feel we're doing the right thing

[LostDoggy]

As has been mentioned earlier in this thread there may well have been a more collobarative discussion which lead to a mutual agreement with Brian being demoted this week. If that was the case I would've preferred Brian to back himself in to come good - to set himself a goal against the Swans.

I'm not convinced that after two weeks that 'simply' based on Brian's form that his demotion is warranted otherwise it does make a number of other MC decisions in 2010 look inconsistent such as with our perseverance throughout 2010 to select Shaun, Mitch and Brad that they might eventually come good. Possibly the action the MC has taken this week is an outcome from learnings taken from some ordinary calls last season.

Will be interesting to see whether Hawthorn take a similar line on Luke Hodge who like Brian is also struggling with form - being put down to an interrupted preseason and persistent achilles complaint. I suggest the call to demote Hodge will not be considered by their MC.

The issue I see the Club has with Brian this week may have more to do with the combination of form AND, in particular, in not adhering to Team structure / expected discipline where the two have morphed into one.

The MC, Coaching Staff and Brian himself knew what had to happen when the last quarter unfolded against Collingwood , after being moved forward with Murphy and then rushed back when Brown moved forward , Brian looked spent , he knows that his match fitness must be up to a four quarter standard. Markovic and Williams will have to shoulder the load until Brian is completely ready, it has already been stated that they probably brought him in one or two weeks too early , and that if we want to be competitive come September then we need to manage Brian now or it will cost us later

.

[Remi Moses]

I just think it's an admission the club got it wrong.
Brian should have had a few more game at Willy, a fact they've conceded.

[westbulldog]

Brian Lake might lack some fitness but one would think that if he plays at Willy he isn't injured. I therefore would have selected him at full forward against the Swans.

[Desipura]

Irrelevant.

We were never going to win it, and to suggest he would've been a liabilty compared to the likes of Johnson or Hahn would also be rediculous. The difference is Jones is also playing this year, while Hahn is coaching and Johnson commentating. Experiencing the pressure of a prelim (or any final for that matter) would've been hugely beneficial for a young player that might be the backbone of our team in the future, rather than going with the tried, tested, and failed veterans and getting the usual result.

Agree 100 per cent. If we are lucky enough to make the top 4, I hope we do not make the same mistake.

[AndrewP6]

He's clearly not physically right, so he doesn't play. Simple.

[always right]

Brian Lake might lack some fitness but one would think that if he plays at Willy he isn't injured. I therefore would have selected him at full forward against the Swans.

Yeah....because a fully fit Lake has previously wreaked havoc up forward:rolleyes: This fanciful notion that Lake is a viable option up forward never goes away.

[bornadog]

Agree 100 per cent. If we are lucky enough to make the top 4, I hope we do not make the same mistake.

There was no one else putting up their hands to play, so I can't see it was a mistake.

[Flamethrower]

Finally the club gets it right. After all these years of not making a huge statement by actually omitting an underperforming senior player, Rocket and the MC bite the bullet and do the right thing. This could very well be a turning point in our underperforming history.

It had been clear since he came back that the current Brian Lake is a shadow of the All Australian full back that has served us so well the last few seasons. He is clearly not fit, is lacking confidence because of it, and is therefore woefully out of form. Hindsight is always 20/20 and it is obvious now he came back too early, but what's done is done, and all the team can do now is move forward. The best way to do that is give Brian a few weeks away from the pressure that is AFL football, and let him regain fitness, confidence and form on the training track and at Williamstown, with the aim of having our AA full back raring to go come the pointy end of the season.

[Topdog]

There was no one else putting up their hands to play, so I can't see it was a mistake.

Well Hahn, Johnno and Eagleton certainly didn't put their hands up.

[kruder]

He's clearly not physically right, so he doesn't play. Simple.

AND Cooney is??????????? Double standars?????

Brian is lenghts better than any player at the westernbulldogs. Id rather give him the benefit of the doubt rather than a player who has under performed for the past 2 years.

[LostDoggy]

According to Damien Barret on FS, Brian wanted to have a 4 week mini-preseason on his own and not play any matches at the VFL. Was talked about with the coaches and Brian, but he will be playing with Willy this week and for the next few by the looks of it

[Desipura]

There was no one else putting up their hands to play, so I can't see it was a mistake.

Is Skinner putting his hand up?
How about Roughy?

[LostDoggy]

He's clearly not physically right, so he doesn't play. Simple.

Is he mentally right?

Heard on SEN this morning that Eagleton had pending legal action towards Lake as a result of a business venture.

They were involved in that child care centre, also with Cooney IIRC, wern't they?

Could be two-fold - mental and physical

[LostDoggy]

Well Hahn, Johnno and Eagleton certainly didn't put their hands up.

I would have thought years of being able to do it is as much as putting up your hand.

[LostDoggy]

Good decision. Even Superman needs time to recover after a particularly bad dose of kryptonite.

[ratsmac]

Injured players shouldn't be playing if it hinders their form. I know every player has normally some sort of injury but if it causes you to play the way Lake has been playing, well they should be out there because it could possibly cause a 8 goal smashing in the last quarter. Not saying its Lakes fault that we got smashed in the last quarter against the pies but it looked like there was unfit players out there.

The MC have made the call and I think (hope) it is the right decision.

[LostDoggy]

Is he mentally right?

Heard on SEN this morning that Eagleton had pending legal action towards Lake as a result of a business venture.

They were involved in that child care centre, also with Cooney IIRC, wern't they?

Could be two-fold - mental and physical

Yep. Mrs. Eagleton released a statement saying that they are going through a legal process against Lake.

Also rumour that in 2010 Lake said he didn't want to play in the same team as Eagle in our game against Port in Darwin

[Desipura]

Yep. Mrs. Eagleton released a statement saying that they are going through a legal process against Lake.

Also rumour that in 2010 Lake said he didn't want to play in the same team as Eagle in our game against Port in Darwin

What is it with these Sth Aussies, first it was Edwards & MacLeod now Eagle and Harris.
Went to the playcentre recently, Lake's picture still up there even though they have sold the business.

[egan-kennedy-ford]

I'm adding my voice to those agreeing with the decision to rest Lake.

The MC have a supposed policy of not playing those who are not fully fit, so the real question is why was he picked to play in the first place??

It's easy in hindsight I know, but he (and the club) would be in much better shape now if he'd spent the last month thoroughly completing his rehabilitation and starting his year off with Willy around now.

The real plus in the whole scenario is that Markovic has stepped up to the point where we feel that we have adequate cover should Lake be less than 100%. Gee he's been impressive this year and some extra gametime with full key defender responsibilities will only further his development.

For years our backline has been stretched to cover a range of quality marking forwards, if we have a fully fit and firing Lake, Williams, Markovic and Morris to choose from coming into the finals this year it will be a great luxury.

[LostDoggy]

Finally the club gets it right. After all these years of not making a huge statement by actually omitting an underperforming senior player, Rocket and the MC bite the bullet and do the right thing. This could very well be a turning point in our underperforming history.


They've got it right if they are consistent with this new policy, otherwise its just as
bad as what we were doing last year .

edit - can anyone here honestly say cooney is 100%? if so why is he playing as a forward when we so clearly lack speed in the midfield.

[Ghost Dog]

Yep. Mrs. Eagleton released a statement saying that they are going through a legal process against Lake.

Also rumour that in 2010 Lake said he didn't want to play in the same team as Eagle in our game against Port in Darwin

I hate seeing our name in the papers for any reason other than doing well on field!

[bornadog]

Also rumour that in 2010 Lake said he didn't want to play in the same team as Eagle in our game against Port in Darwin

The real truth is Mantis refused to watch the game if Eagle was playing and wanted to fly back to Melbourne:D

[Scorlibo]

I don't mind the Lake decision, even if it is being extraordinarily misinterpreted by the media, but my question would be why have we not done the same thing with Cooney? Who is in just as poor form, undoubtedly due to his own limited pre-season, and he is somewhat more replaceable than Lake.

[Topdog]

I would have thought years of being able to do it is as much as putting up your hand.

I suppose we will have to agree to disagree about doing it in important games.

[bornadog]

Is Skinner putting his hand up?
How about Roughy?

Skinner - maybe he is. I haven't seen him at Willi, but maybe he has that forward defensive pressure that the coach is looking for. Roughy had a go and now he is dropped. Last year we blooded plenty of kids but by the time round 22 came, many dropped away.

eg: Jones was hardly getting a touch.

[bornadog]

Well Hahn, Johnno and Eagleton certainly didn't put their hands up.

Well who should have played instead of those three? All three had periods out of the seniors but by the time year end came around, none of the younger players were putting their hand up.

[LostDoggy]

Does anyone really believe a decision to move Brian back to Williamstown wouldn't have occurred without a decent level of consultation?

I reckon the hardest thing for footy supporters is sometimes understanding why certain decisions are arrived at, principally because we aren't privy to the inner workings of the club.

If we were, I'm sure we'd probably agree with what happens much more than we do & I'm not suggesting for a minute we should be, just using it as a reason to demonstrate my point.

For what its worth I think the title of this thread could have been worded better too.
Dropping a player because he isn't fit is fine. The question is why was he good enough for three weeks and now he is not fit enough. Otherwise this is just internal politics. Looks like the tail is wagging the dog once again.

[azabob]

Dropping a player because he isn't fit is fine. The question is why was he good enough for three weeks and now he is not fit enough. Otherwise this is just internal politics. Looks like the tail is wagging the dog once again.

The club perhaps thought he could get fit by playing AFL. What do you mean by the tail wagging the dog?

[Desipura]

Skinner - maybe he is. I haven't seen him at Willi, but maybe he has that forward defensive pressure that the coach is looking for. Roughy had a go and now he is dropped. Last year we blooded plenty of kids but by the time round 22 came, many dropped away.

eg: Jones was hardly getting a touch.

Neither was Johnno and Hahn. This conversation is going around in circles

[AndrewP6]

AND Cooney is??????????? Double standars?????

Brian is lenghts better than any player at the westernbulldogs. Id rather give him the benefit of the doubt rather than a player who has under performed for the past 2 years.

I agree something seems amiss with Coons. From some reports, Brian himself indicated he needed some time.

I think the last sentence is a slight exaggeration.

[AndrewP6]

Is he mentally right?

Heard on SEN this morning that Eagleton had pending legal action towards Lake as a result of a business venture.

They were involved in that child care centre, also with Cooney IIRC, wern't they?

Could be two-fold - mental and physical

possibly not - and that could be more difficult to manage than a physical issue.