"Judge us after 5 rounds"

[The Reverend 1,736]

I think you're confusing floods and deserts. It was 40 years that Moses spent in the desert; 40 days and nights that Noah spent in the ark while it rained (plus another 40, just to be sure).

No wonder nobody takes me seriously. I don't think I've got another forty years in me. I promise I will stand in the rain at every opportunity from now on though.

[old dee 24,001]

I might have to head out for another 40 days and nights in the desert to seek clarification, cos the Mick thing has shaken my belief just a tad. As for the bombers, I believe it will have an outcome by mid year. Whilst I don't particularly wish ill on anybody, it would be pleasing to see some justice handed out.

At this stage OD, if I give up hope all I've got is whisky and Tony Abbott is probably going to take that away from me before long.

Not suggesting for one moment you give up Reverend after all if you give up I will know there is no hope.

I noticed after the Carlton game that the Single Malt actually tasted better.

As for Tony To hell with him I refuse to let him spoil my day.

[old dee 24,001]

No wonder nobody takes me seriously. I don't think I've got another forty years in me. I promise I will stand in the rain at every opportunity from now on though.

I do!

[P-man 13,366]

I can say in all sincerity that I enjoyed the Sydney game. Non-Melbourne fans wouldn't understand the excitement of watching your team apply real defensive pressure when you have been starved of it for so long. Whenever a Swans player got the ball he was mobbed. With a couple of noted exceptions, the players worked extremely hard to pressure the opposition all over the ground. It was fantastic.

I can see the foundations being laid now. The talk about standards being set is just starting to become visible on the field. All the rest will come with greater confidence and new blood coming in, but it is the foundations of defense that you build successful teams upon, certainly in the modern era. Neeld knew that too but couldn't get them out of first gear. Roos is a different beast altogether.

Edited April 30, 2014 by P-man

[nutbean 8,838]

Roos talked about our percentage representing our improvement but so far Stuie we have played majority bottom half sides and our percentage sits at 69.3% so you have no facts to back you up. What C&B says is true you just don't want to accept that.

Interesting you talk about facts - and facts dont back Stuie up.

You do know what a fact is ? You point to percentages.

Fact one - roos said we would improve our percentage it wouldnt be 54.1%

Fact two - it is 69.3%

Tell me exactly what fact you draw from fact one and two.

[old dee 24,001]

I can say in all sincerity that I enjoyed the Sydney game. Non-Melbourne fans wouldn't understand the excitement of watching your team apply real defensive pressure when you have been starved of it for so long. Whenever a Swans player got the ball he was mobbed. With a couple of noted exceptions, the players worked extremely hard to pressure the opposition all over the ground. It was fantastic.

I can see the foundations being laid now. The talk about standards being set is just starting to become visible on the field. All the rest will come with greater confidence and new blood coming in, but it is the foundations of defense that you build successful teams upon, certainly in the modern era. Neeld knew that too but couldn't get them out of first gear. Roos is a different beast altogether.

I understand your argument above P-Man.

It appears to me that we have been so very bad for so long that now the slightest improvement seems like heaven.

It is amazing that just getting something as basic as defensive pressure right fills us with glee.

The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant.

It truly is amazing the low level we were in at the start 2014

Edited April 30, 2014 by old dee

[nutbean 8,838]

I understand your argument above P-Man.

It appears to me that we have been so very bad for so long that now the slightest improvement seems like heaven.

It is amazing that just getting something as basic as defensive pressure right feels us with glee.

The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant.

It truly is amazing the low level we were in at the start 2014

The basis for any good side is the ability to run both ways - but importantly - good defense is the first and most important building block

[Juicebox 629]

I must admit, I definitely reassessed my expectations after the first round or two. Fair to say we've had some pretty awful moments this year, (injuries, west coast game).

But now that I have a more realistic understanding of where the team is at, I'm pleased with the improvements we're seeing.

Stats are clearly showing us to be a harder team to score against. It might be ugly to watch at times, but nowhere near as ugly as watching the opposition kick 20-25 goals each game.

Without looking at any statistics it's fair to say our disposal count would be waaaay higher than last year. We're seeing the side try and control possession of the footy and tempo of the game. 'Try' being the operative word...

Overall I'm quite pleased with the effect Paul Roos has had on the team. There is a long way to go just yet, but after 5 rounds I'm pretty confident in saying he is no doubt, the right man for the job. Despite being an understatement, It's been almost a decade since I've said that with such confidence.

[stuie 7,374]

Interesting you talk about facts - and facts dont back Stuie up.

You do know what a fact is ? You point to percentages.

Fact one - roos said we would improve our percentage it wouldnt be 54.1%

Fact two - it is 69.3%

Tell me exactly what fact you draw from fact one and two.

Huh?

[titan_uranus 25,174]

I understand your argument above P-Man.

It appears to me that we have been so very bad for so long that now the slightest improvement seems like heaven.

It is amazing that just getting something as basic as defensive pressure right feels us with glee.

The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant.

It truly is amazing the low level we were in at the start 2014

Who's saying that?

FFS, I'm really not enjoying the negative people who, at the slightest sight of someone noting something that has improved or is a positive so far this year, bleat 'but we're so bad anyway, what's the difference?'.

No one thinks this is 'heaven'. No one thinks this is sufficient improvement. But some people are, rightly, aware that we are a different, improved, better side so far this year than we were in 2012-2013, and that is a positive.

The fact that we are coming from such a low base does not change the fact that we're improving, and the fact we're improving is a positive thing. Why can't you (and so many others) accept that?

[rpfc 28,906]

If this is heaven, I won't bother recanting my Atheism on my deathbed...

[P-man 13,366]

I Interpreted OD's post as acknowledging the improvement, whilst bemoaning the fact we are coming from so far back.

For the record, it wasn't anything close to heaven. We still lost. But I can see signs now. Real signs.

[titan_uranus 25,174]

I Interpreted OD's post as acknowledging the improvement, whilst bemoaning the fact we are coming from so far back.

For the record, it wasn't anything close to heaven. We still lost. But I can see signs now. Real signs.

Possibly, but with the references to 'heaven' and that apparently we were never a chance of winning, it comes across as yet another of those negative, 'I won't say we're improving until we win a premiership' type of posts.

[old dee 24,001]

I Interpreted OD's post as acknowledging the improvement, whilst bemoaning the fact we are coming from so far back.

For the record, it wasn't anything close to heaven. We still lost. But I can see signs now. Real signs.

I am glad someone got the right idea P-Man

[old dee 24,001]

Possibly, but with the references to 'heaven' and that apparently we were never a chance of winning, it comes across as yet another of those negative, 'I won't say we're improving until we win a premiership' type of posts.

Now here is a suggestion tu.

How about considering a post before you jump down the authors throat.

I was simply agree with P-Man and noting the poor position we have come from as he said.

Mate slow up not everyone is out to offend you.

[titan_uranus 25,174]

Now here is a suggestion tu.

How about considering a post before you jump down the authors throat.

I was simply agree with P-Man and noting the poor position we have come from as he said.

Mate slow up not everyone is out to offend you.

I'm not offended. As I said above, I'm just not enjoying the negativity, and your post read to me as another one of those. Seems like it wasn't, so sorry for that, but regardless there are still a lot of people on here who aren't, or cannot, acknowledge that we are improving this year. So when you said 'The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant' (which, by the way, I don't agree with), it read to me like you were one of those people who won't accept we're improving unless we win games.

[old dee 24,001]

I'm not offended. As I said above, I'm just not enjoying the negativity, and your post read to me as another one of those. Seems like it wasn't, so sorry for that, but regardless there are still a lot of people on here who aren't, or cannot, acknowledge that we are improving this year. So when you said 'The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant' (which, by the way, I don't agree with), it read to me like you were one of those people who won't accept we're improving unless we win games.

tu I have a fairly thick skin so lets forget that element.

Perhaps It was not written as well as it could have been however I was honestly just trying to agree with P-Man

[Bitter but optimistic 22,289]

My daughter is 10 and still loves going to the footy to see the Demons, a couple of times last year l said, "thats it, i've had enough" but she would say l haven't and would continue to love the club and say she was going to keep supporting them even if l didn't. Of course l was never going to stop, afraid l've been a Demon since the day l was born, love the club. Anyway my point is she has shown me the way and is very much like l was when l was a kid. She just loves the mighty red and blue, end of story.

Buy her a new (bike, barbie doll .... ) whatever she wants!

[Bitter but optimistic 22,289]

I'm not offended. As I said above, I'm just not enjoying the negativity, and your post read to me as another one of those. Seems like it wasn't, so sorry for that, but regardless there are still a lot of people on here who aren't, or cannot, acknowledge that we are improving this year. So when you said 'The fact that we were never a remote chance of winning seems unimportant' (which, by the way, I don't agree with), it read to me like you were one of those people who won't accept we're improving unless we win games.

Well anus you'd have to admit there is something rather compelling in the thought of winning more games. I suppose you can say we're now getting flogged by smaller margins and see that as an improvement. But it doesn't really do it for me. A bit like saying I'm a better man because I only bash my wife once a fortnight.

[La Dee-vina Comedia 17,015]

Well anus you'd have to admit there is something rather compelling in the thought of winning more games. I suppose you can say we're now getting flogged by smaller margins and see that as an improvement. But it doesn't really do it for me. A bit like saying I'm a better man because I only bash my wife once a fortnight.

You have a wife?

[P-man 13,366]

You have a wife?

A "wife".

[Bitter but optimistic 22,289]

You have a wife?

A "wife".

No one would have got the message had I said "bash your alpacas once a fortnight" !

[Undeeterred 3,127]

Interesting you talk about facts - and facts dont back Stuie up.

You do know what a fact is ? You point to percentages.

Fact one - roos said we would improve our percentage it wouldnt be 54.1%

Fact two - it is 69.3%

Tell me exactly what fact you draw from fact one and two.

That a 2 win season with a percentage of 69.3% is just as depressing as a 2 win season with 54.1%.

[deanox 10,045]

Last year we had a percentage of 54.1.

We are 1-5 with a percentage of 67.3. (13% better than last year)

Take out the WCE match and we have 1-4 with a percentage of 90.7. (36% better than last year)

I'll say that again. 90.7%

For statistical sake, remove the outliers and take out both our worst game (WCE) and our best game (Carlton):

0-3 with a percentage of 70.8. (thats 16% better than last year)

I am not un happy with our start. Had the dice roll been in our favour Dawes would have been available round 1, and Tom McDonald (of all people) would not have been injured. In that case I would have backed us to beat the saints and with some momentum I reckon we may have beaten one of GWS or GC. Maybe.

The only facts are, apart from the WCE game this year, we have scored an average of less than 10% than our opponent across 4 games. I will take a seasons of close losses over the last 2 years any day. And you know what? Next year we'll get even better. We'll start to learn how to win, and it will become a habbit. I hate to say it, but it will never be a quick fix. But we are well on our way.

Edited May 2, 2014 by deanox

[sue 9,193]

Well said Deanox. But you'll never convince those who wallow in being as negative as possible.