We have to many dumb footballers. It has been this way for the past 6 years we continually make bad decisions on the footy field. This was highlighted on the week end our players took the wrong option made silly mistakes just dumb football. On Saturday Magner was good but the only player that created something everytime they got the footy was Watts.

It is Dumb when midfielders play like under 9 footballers, we don't need 3 players going to the footy or for a tackle we need 1. This has been going one for 6 years we get sucked into the contest all our players are flat footed around the contest all it takes is for the ball to spill out and we are gone. Stick our tackles, we don't need 2-3 players tackling 1 player its not rugby we get sucked in again we don't hold our position we get stuck between the contest and the next contest.

Our Backiline is dumb, Rivers, Frawley, Garland and Bartram seems to always make bad decisions

It is dumb to kick to the members wing on all occasions, great I sit on that side of the ground but the other side can be used as well

It is Dumb to long kick to the forward pocket, if you kick long into the forward line kick to 15m out directly in front and not to the point post

It is dumb to handpass the footy back towards your opponents goal line when you are under pressure

It is dumb to constantly drop the footy when you are tackled, you don't need to do this if you haven't had prior opportunity

Finally it is dumb to play slow stop start football, take risks but smart risks and that is the problem we have to many dumb footballers to take the smart options.

Reminds me of a Mark Mclure comment a couple of seasons ago after another poor Melbourne performance, "Moloney and Silvia are dumb footballers". Looks like you have added a few more to the list.

Reminds me of a Mark Mclure comment a couple of seasons ago after another poor Melbourne performance, "Moloney and Silvia are dumb footballers". Looks like you have added a few more to the list.

I don't think Moloney & Sylvia are members of Mensa in their spare time either.

I rate Garland, but he doesn't have a football brain. I have said this for a few years.

I wouldn't say "dumb", just not a football brain.

you know what is really really dumb, to be awarded a free kick and and hand the ball straight of by hand to a guy standing next to you who is flat footed. Jamar constantly does it. No awareness, no thought to look around first. Almost as if no player wants responsibility of fooking things up. It drives me nuts.

I rate Garland, but he doesn't have a football brain. I have said this for a few years.

I wouldn't say "dumb", just not a football brain.

was one of the worst on Saturday , no doubt

have to agree about dumb football

has been my biggest gripe for the last 10 years.....drives me crazy

Agreed.

On Saturday, ignoring the fact we bombed, we never had anyone done when we did bomb. Playing Green on the forward line, he should realise that when you have Clark, Martin and Howe all going to fly, your job is keep your feet on the ground. Dumb

Hit the nail on the head with thread.

Was saying this on Saturday. So many times we had 3 blokes go in for the pill, win it the have no way to pass it inn under pressure.

Just looked like amateur hour, at one stage we had 5 players with no lions player within 20 meters and turned it over by throwing the ball to a teammates right next to them. Just circa 2007 stuff.

Malt house commentated on this last year. We played the eagles and were beating them then started to get sucked into the contest whilst opponents got in dangerous positions. He was saying this before we started losing the game or turning it over!!!

Point is this does rely on players tackling well and having decent extractors and top defensive pressure.

This is why I am loathe to bring in Morton and bennel who spread well but let us down in this area.

Tapscott petterd mcdonald davis are the options

I've been using the term "dumb football" ever since last season. I don't think I'd ever used it beforehand.

Really, really dumb football. It defined us last season.

The mids for the Lions showed how it should be done. They backed the ability of 1-2 players to get the hard ball whilst 3 Melbourne players got sucked in to the one person. They would squeeze a handball out to a free man, he would handball back to a free player at the back of the pack, then they would kick it forward to players on the spread. We were constantly caught out during the second half and did not even learn!!

Hopefully in the match review this is picked up and the same mistakes are not made this week

Is it also dumb to consistently follow the coaches instructions?

I cant believe the bomb long into the F50 was not a direction. Execution was not good but I am sure it looked an instruction.

Before we cast off on a players dumbness we might just want to understand what they were instructed to.

Is it also dumb to consistently follow the coaches instructions?

I cant believe the bomb long into the F50 was not a direction. Execution was not good but I am sure it looked an instruction.

Before we cast off on a players dumbness we might just want to understand what they were instructed to.

Rhino, Didn't Brad Green mention yesterday that the long bomb was meant to be the last option not the first. The long kick into our forward line can work but don't kick it to the pockets as a defender you just punch to the boundary side nice and easy. Kick it 15m out in front of goal the defender has to make a decision on his action, the boundary line is not an option to far and if roved there wil be space, if he punches straight down the goals open up, does he try to out mark, we need to make defenders think.

The long bomb was caused by our slow ball movement we gave time for Brisbane to get inside our forward 50m arc.

To me our players took no risks and you may be correct this could be a direction, if so we are in for an extremely long year.

All great posts on this thread cant add anything but hope that some coaches or advisers are making these same ppoints to players.

Interesting the comment that Watts doesnt do the dumb thing and this was also what the commentators were saying

I always thought that last previously Watts was alittle slow because he was trying to choose the best option and his instinstive option wasnt available. Maybe a little better awareness by others around him can exploit his play to achieve better results?

But WOw 3 up for amark spoiling each other 3 tackling 1 NOt what youd call smart

One of my pet hates is a tackled player handballing to advantage of an opposition player when they could hand ball over their shoulder in to the face of the player tackling them.

Same deal when need you are in possesion and need to avoid a deliverate out of bounds free kick: hand ball in to the face of the opposing player putting pressure on you.

Another alternative is to handball it as high in the air as you can to make it a 50/50 contested ball.

The most concerning thing for me for in reference to this was the lack of support behind packs (ie. a release handball backwards at a stoppage, then across, and then you're away), which is Footy 101.

But what made me sore was - if you don't have support on the defensive side of the pack, then you should be heavily marking the offensive side of the pack so that the opposition doesn't have the advantage.

Alas, we didn't have either tactic employed and it is worrying because it is so simple and common to do either tactic.

Either they are stupid, or our mids just don't care. And I think it may be the latter.

One of my pet hates is a tackled player handballing to advantage of an opposition player when they could hand ball over their shoulder in to the face of the player tackling them.

Same deal when need you are in possesion and need to avoid a deliverate out of bounds free kick: hand ball in to the face of the opposing player putting pressure on you.

got a laugh out of this post

It is Dumb when midfielders play like under 9 footballers, we don't need 3 players going to the footy or for a tackle we need 1. This has been going one for 6 years we get sucked into the contest all our players are flat footed around the contest all it takes is for the ball to spill out and we are gone. Stick our tackles, we don't need 2-3 players tackling 1 player its not rugby we get sucked in again we don't hold our position we get stuck between the contest and the next contest.

It is Dumb to long kick to the forward pocket, if you kick long into the forward line kick to 15m out directly in front and not to the point post

All good points but these 2 are great points! In a contest of 4v4 we will have all 4 of ours commit to the ball whilst 1-2 opposition players commit, leaving the rest to gather the ball when it spills and run off. It happens so often and it shows a complete lack of understanding what is around you. Its the junior footy 'see ball, get ball' mentality and we've done it for a few years now.

Kicking it to the pocket is also dumb. Even if some does mark it, they are highly unlikely to kick the goal! Can't remember 1 time when we used space inside 50m and kicked it to the 'fat side' on Saturday.

The Jamar point someone has made is also frustrating. Everyone at the ground, including the opposition players, knows he's going to handball to a player standing still next to him without even looking. We are so bloody predictable.

It is dumb when we have more than one player going up for a mark in the forward line and we NEVER seem to have players roving the pack or crumbing the spill. We recruited Clark to make a contest, and if he can't take the mark at least bring the ball to ground. how come we never have players to pounce on the ball!? Except we have howe and clark trying to take speccies at the same time... dumb football.

Dumb, lazy and mentally weak. And it's getting worse.

The most concerning thing for me for in reference to this was the lack of support behind packs (ie. a release handball backwards at a stoppage, then across, and then you're away), which is Footy 101.

But what made me sore was - if you don't have support on the defensive side of the pack, then you should be heavily marking the offensive side of the pack so that the opposition doesn't have the advantage.

Alas, we didn't have either tactic employed and it is worrying because it is so simple and common to do either tactic.

Either they are stupid, or our mids just don't care. And I think it may be the latter.

I think you could be correct, but it's the ones who have grown too big for their boots.

Mental children enjoying playing at being an AFL player, without the required commitment or nous. Doing the easy things and unwilling to do those that come hard.

Resisting change because they are very comfortable in their position as a "star" of the MFC.

I'm confident it will be corrected with time, and the ones that go will be replaced by those who are willing to comply.

Moloney, Sylvia, Davey, Jones, Green, Jamar... I don't care who it is.

If they don't care, they can go. None are irreplaceable.

I think you could be correct, but it's the ones who have grown too big for their boots.

Mental children enjoying playing at being an AFL player, without the required commitment or nous. Doing the easy things and unwilling to do those that come hard.

Resisting change because they are very comfortable in their position as a "star" of the MFC.

I'm confident it will be corrected with time, and the ones that go will be replaced by those who are willing to comply.

Moloney, Sylvia, Davey, Jones, Green, Jamar... I don't care who it is.

If they don't care, they can go. None are irreplaceable.

How you can include Jones in that list is beyond me; he is one of the few who is showing any real commitment at the moment and has been possibly our most consistent performer for the past couple of seasons.

How you can include Jones in that list is beyond me; he is one of the few who is showing any real commitment at the moment and has been possibly our most consistent performer for the past couple of seasons.

I just listed a handful of mids, plus others.

I don't think he really belongs in that group.

I really do think Neeld could make chunk into a star.

To me our players took no risks and you may be correct this could be a direction ...

Or a lack of confidence, or experience or even understanding. Once again, we need(ed) the leaders to stand up and show the way.

People here lament the lack of elite players at MFC. Sure, but a handful of reliable, experienced, workmanlike, do-what's-needed players wouldn't go astray either, and it's just as much that that's hurting us. 4 or 5 Nathan Jones's in that side, spread across forwards/mids (especially) would make a world of difference.

I don't really regret letting Junior go, but interesting to hear his response to his report for GWS, that he was just trying to put some pressure on to stop the Swans getting easy clearances out of the middle. You see what has to be done, you do it.

Not too sure about some of the other comments here. Still feel that the players were shell-shocked and drained after the preceding week. Big emotional roller-coaster, and these are still young men, don't know how much experience most of them would have had of death and funerals. It knocks you, badly.

Still, a week's a long time in footy, let's see what Perth brings us.

The dumbest thing for mine is the kick ins.

I just can't understand why you would have your 6 ft 4" strong, aggressive full back taking the kick ins almost every time.

With Frawley kicking it in, and Rivers standing at the 50 with his hands on his hips like the insipid senior player he is, it leaves Jamar as the only option.

Have anyone else kick it in so that Frawley can stand on the opposite side to Jamar and provide a second option.