Where will we be????

[titan_uranus 22,366]

Not sure about belting from Crows, only reason being they have no fwd line of note. They struggle to kick goals.

A forward line of Tippett, Porplyzia, Dangerfield, Burton, Knights and others is much, much better than anything we'll have this year. And it worked for them last year.

0-6 If Miller plays.

3-3 If he doesn't.

It's been said already, but that's a ridiculous post.

[RalphiusMaximus 5,993]

I would like to add to the line about not reading too much into the NAB cup games.

You need to remember that different teams come at the pre-season comp in different ways. The Swans went nearly a decade without winning a match. Geelong lost to Richmond last week. Meanwhile the Hawks and Dogs went at each other with almost full strength lineups. It all depends on what the club is looking for out of these games. Clearly teams like the Bulldogs, hawks and Saints are looking to finetune their top teams and get hte ball rolling early. That's fine. It's equally clear that sides like Geelong are just messing around and trying out new things and different players. Then there's the sides who did badly last year. North and Freo went in all guns blazing trying to earn some respect. We however did no such thing.

If you actually look at what we've been doing the last couple of weeks, there is no way we were going to win those games. We've been playing 5 guys who've never played in an AFL side before. Another has only played a quarter (and missed part of that due to injury). We haven't been trying to win games, but to get game time into the guys who need it most and to see how close they are to being ready. I agree that our forwards have lacked punch, but that is only to be expected when you look at who we've had playing. The addition of a few more experienced and capable players to the mix will make a big difference.

If you're going to rate our performances in the pre-season, you need to keep in mind who we've been putting on the field and what we've been trying to achieve with them. We haven't yet put a team out that is in any way likely to win against even a poor AFL side. Rather than looking at the results, try looking at how the young guys are developing. Give them a few more months and the wins will start coming. Think of West Coast last year. In the second half they put a real run on and beat some very good sides. Before that people thought they might challenge us for a PP. We are going to see some very ordinary performances towards the start of the season, but the benefits will come at the end.

[2014-Flag 0]

Having watched the intra-club prac. match and the Essendon match live, and the Freo match on Foxtel, I can safely say you are wrong.

These games have given me a lot of hope, and I question what you think the aim of these matches is?

Some people seem to look at these NAB Cup/Challenge matches and think the sole aim is to chalk up a win as if they were a part of the home and away season.

This is a short-sighted view and you would be wrong.

Frankly, I do not put much importance on WINNING these games. I was more talking about what I saw on the field, and what I saw on the field in both games to put it mildly was a worry. We have gone backwards from last year, and i'm not talking about our youth. The areas we should expect improvement in (3-6 year players) are simply not stepping up with a few exceptions (eg Jamar, Grimes,Frawley, Pettard). The others are going backwards (Miller, Jones, Maloney, Morton, Jurrah,Bell, Cheney,Maric, Warnock) and the reasons they are going backwards is that their skill levels aren't improving. Missing targets, running, pressure, kicking for goal were all appauling in those two games, and unfortunately the middle tier were the major culprits.

I'm also becoming increasingly worried about the young brigade. I cannot remember in the last 30 years watching the Demons closely when our side was knocked out of the game so easily. We simply got brushed aside in both games with no fight or spirit. You can blame young bodies to some extent, although you might expect them to chase which in the main they did not,and certainly when they got the ball they seemed to have very little idea how to use it, with the singular exception of Trengove who will be a star. Scully was a real disappointment - constantly getting caught, missing targets most of the time, and kicking either off target or simply not long enough for a first grade footballer. His goal kicking from set shots is particularly weak.

Hopefully Jack Watts will correct some of this because from what we hear things outstanding in his game are his skills and his smarts - the two things singularly lacking in the sides I have seen coached by Bailey.

I hope I am wrong in all this. I too was greatly looking forward to the Demon new area. Unfortunately I think it will be more Barrasi like than Daniher like

[Cards13 9,117]

http://www.afc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/4417/newsid/89939/default.aspx

Adelaide's once formidable forward line has been the hardest hit.

The Crows have included second-round draft pick Jack Gunston in the team to take on Collingwood in Alice Springs on Friday night and Craig said he would continue to experiment with forward line options over the next three weeks.

"We know Patrick Dangerfield can play up forward. He did that last year, so that always remains an option and we know Scott Thompson can go forward," he said.

A forward line of Tippett, Porplyzia, Dangerfield, Burton, Knights and others is much, much better than anything we'll have this year. And it worked for them last year.

.....

[RalphiusMaximus 5,993]

Frankly, I do not put much importance on WINNING these games. I was more talking about what I saw on the field, and what I saw on the field in both games to put it mildly was a worry. We have gone backwards from last year, and i'm not talking about our youth. The areas we should expect improvement in (3-6 year players) are simply not stepping up with a few exceptions (eg Jamar, Grimes,Frawley, Pettard). The others are going backwards (Miller, Jones, Maloney, Morton, Jurrah,Bell, Cheney,Maric, Warnock) and the reasons they are going backwards is that their skill levels aren't improving. Missing targets, running, pressure, kicking for goal were all appauling in those two games, and unfortunately the middle tier were the major culprits.

You do realise that many of those mid tier 3-6 year players you listed aren't right? Several of those that are have had long injury layoffs too, so you really have to knock a year off for guys like Petterd and Grimes. Forget about Miller, he's a write-off. Warnock is fine. He'll sit on the gorillas this year and let the other backs do the running and kicking. The others are all very junior players. Even Moloney is only mid-tier as far as experience goes. Not even 100 games yet. Jones is 22, Jurrah is just about to start his second season. The others are younger still. There is absolutely no need to panic with this group. There's plenty of improvement left in them.

[jayceebee31 669]

Mr Negative strikes again! I suppose we will be 0 and 22 by seasons end, the club will have lost $500,000 and we only managed to get 25000 members. All because we lost the first two pre-season games. Doomed we are..... Fair dinkum

No we will win 7 matches overall and has been my believe since before Xmas.We will get close to the budgeted amount of 31000 by close of membership end of December. However, our NAB cup results make it very doubtful that we will get 30000 before season starts- that is 7000 more in less than 4 weeks.This is what Jimma is aiming for. Now is this being realistic and not negative,and one whom calls their favourite player as J.Brown is that positive as a supporter of the club.Get with it [censored] and you call me Mr Negative.You maybe known as this-- having a favourite player outside your so called team you claim you barrack for.

Edited March 4, 2010 by jayceebee31

[Demon Stalwart 255]

Anyone want to review their posts???

After the "Bad" run of Injuries and our lack of Forward depth seems even I may have been to hopeful

Oh and how long of is Jack Watts before he plays a game? Just Curious.

[Hulett Packard III 166]

0-6 63.5%

[Hellaintabadplacetobe 4,089]

I stated I`d be stoked if we were 2 and 4, because I doubt very much we will be.

[Bring-Back-Powell 13,211]

My 0-7 prediction is looking good - unfortunetly.

Infact I can't see us winning more than 2 games for the year. Richmond and some other rubbish side we play the G.

What a horrible pre-season, both injuries and results wise

[jayceebee31 669]

Had we been asked this question before we played Freo we would have received a much more positive response. The fact that so many put so much faith in one NAB performance makes me think that a lot of you live in a fishbowl. We'll easily beat Richmond, Roll Brisbane and most likely beat one of North or Hawthorn. Don't over rate the Hawks their backline is about as good as our current forward line. It'll be a close game.

Agree- it will be a close game, actually I think we can win. However I do not live in a fishbowel and don't lie down like you did earlier today.

[Hellaintabadplacetobe 4,089]

Agree- it will be a close game, actually I think we can win. However I do not live in a fishbowel and don't lie down like you did earlier today.

After some of today`s reports, this might not be a bad place to be for us Demon fans. Gees it`d be a squeeze though!

[Dappa Dan 2,188]

Just a thought. Of the injuries we have seen, how many are season ending? The really hard to stomach ones are for the most part players that'll be back by mid season, or a lot earlier.

Given teh difficulty of our first six games, I think many predicted we'd end up being 1-5... with the Toigs being our only win.

I reckon even with our injuries, a win against them is still doable. So in terms of injuries causing losses, we may well end up exactly where we were going to be at round 6.

Also, we have a marginally better run in the last 7 rounds, with games against North, Toiges, Port and Freo. By that stage many of the terrible outs will (hopefully) be back in, and you would think would by that stage be match fit.

I'm not saying it's good news, but like many I want us to avoid a wooden spoon this year at ALL costs, and assuming we need 6+ wins, I think the fact these injuries are not season ending may make things just a fraction easier on us in terms of getting those few precious wins.

[Gorgoroth 12,325]

I think the richmond game is the game we will win, could sneak another but with the injuries highly doubtful.

But as Dappa says, then you slot the others back in midseason and we will do better,

How much better.... I have no freakin idea anymore.

[Dappa Dan 2,188]

How much better.... I have no freakin idea anymore.

That's the overwhelming feeling here, and I don't think we're alone. I have been walking around today, and I have no idea how to read this side. I thought I had a SMALL amount of perspecive in the haze of sub-par footballers, horribly poor skills, and lack of endeavour.

But now? We could get those few names back. A Jurrah here, a Morton there... and we might even welcome back a mature body like Belly, and give these guys 4 weeks, we might find them match-fit and finding form together. But what then?

The end of last season most people here took solace in the fact that we apparently "could" have beaten the Saints, Toigs and a few other sides had we not been tanking. But they forget that these sides rarely got out of second gear ANYWAY. Just because we are capable of escalating our efforts, they probably can too. Add to that the fact that there's no attraction to tanking for ANYONE, and that there may be more mature players playing all the way up to round 22, then we may find it hard to get 6 wins at all.

I remember thinking in 2007 that I was looking forward to 2010, because many of the players we had in the years 2007-2009 would not be there anymore when we started climbing off the canvas. Now that these players are here, I'm still completely confused about what I'm supposed to be excited about. And mostly because they never seem to take the field together.

I'm not losing it just yet, but only because this has only been the pre-season. If we get into the H&A season and all this continues, I'm going to find it hard not to agree with the rabid fans calling for heads.

[Dane 3]

I have lowered my expectations after our run of injuries and poor preseason form, was expecting 9 wins this year, now only expecting 5. The first six games we should be 1-5 Richmond is the only probable win I think. Expect to start the season with a couple of thrashings from the Hawks and Pies. Will have to wait till next year until we improve noticeably. May make the finals again in 2012.

[praha 10,281]

3-19 season, 0-6 to start. And we can't sack our coach because we just signed him to a 2 year contract. Woohoo for rewarding mediocrity.

[jayceebee31 669]

I have lowered my expectations after our run of injuries and poor preseason form, was expecting 9 wins this year, now only expecting 5. The first six games we should be 1-5 Richmond is the only probable win I think. Expect to start the season with a couple of thrashings from the Hawks and Pies. Will have to wait till next year until we improve noticeably. May make the finals again in 2012.

I see your point- quite valid. I just think we are tanking at the start of the year and or just developing more like we did last year. Also I think that we ar setting ourselves for a huge end of the year fling-culminating in our inaugural win in China and setting us up for a big 2011 & beyond.I hope so anyhow because our start of 2010 is just deplorable.

[2014-Flag 0]

I think what most Demon supporters are looking for is not only a competitive team, but glimpses of play that will show us how we will be play winning football in the future. Football with flair, aggression,great skill and relentless uncompromising running. That is probably all we can ask for at this stage, and over time those glimpses will expand in extended periods of play, then in to winning games, then consequative games, then finals footy....

My problem is that i'm not seeing any of those glimpses. Certainly not against the Dons, nor yesterday, possibly against the Crows although I wasn't there. Can anyone give me hope that there have been any more than endless turnovers, missing targets, both at players and goals, and any more than static, conventional play?

Edited March 14, 2010 by 2014-Flag

[45HG 1,539]

My problem is that i'm not seeing any of those glimpses. Certainly not against the Dons, nor yesterday, possibly against the Crows although I wasn't there.

I think you're joking if you say you didn't see glimpses in the Essendon game.

Aside from their run on in the first quarter and a bit of a fade out in the last (after a 5 day break) we controlled much of the game I thought. A lack of a forward structure killed us but our midfield was on top and the players were generally backing themselves when they had the footy.