Saturday Talking Point: The NAB Challenge

[Cards13 9,117]

GWS look incredibly fit, fast and lots of tackling pressure. Could be a cracking game if we are up and firing.

[Wiseblood 24,636]

17 minutes ago, rjay said:

If we need an injury to an opposition player to swing a game then we haven't really improved much if at all.

Let's play their full team and win with no excuses.

Fair point rjay. 

However, a win to kick off the season and to give us some momentum going in to face the drug cheats is what I'm after at this stage. Going 2-0 would be a superb way to get our season rolling and I'll take it any way we can. 

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

11 hours ago, Ted Fidge said:

A Shaw playing for Melbourne? I wouldn't be able to handle it. The bloodlines. Urgh.

Heater or The Prince coming off half back....let me think about that one....

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

51 minutes ago, rjay said:

If we need an injury to an opposition player to swing a game then we haven't really improved much if at all.

Let's play their full team and win with no excuses.

Exactly, for me it's in the same category  as the milestone game garbage or the Bombers reunion for rd 2. Good teams come to play every week and have the belief they can win.

[Fork 'em 6,527]

40 minutes ago, Wiseblood said:

Fair point rjay. 

However, a win to kick off the season and to give us some momentum going in to face the drug cheats is what I'm after at this stage. Going 2-0 would be a superb way to get our season rolling and I'll take it any way we can. 

 2 wins under our belt would have us playing like millionaires and a certain loss.
Reality check for the gun jumpers , we'll get flogged by GWS.

 

[Redleg 37,747]

1 hour ago, rjay said:

 

Let's play their full team and win with no excuses.

I know this is only the NAB challenge and at this time of year, I agree with you.

But to be honest, we have been down so long, that during the real season, I couldn't care less if we play the other clubs' worst sides, if it would get us into the finals.

No one cares how you get there and we need the momentum.

In other words I will gladly accept every break that can come our way, because we seem to have had the reverse over the last nearly 10 years.

No one cares that we had injured players etc, when you look back at the season.

We need everything going our way. Now if I can just control the bounce of the ball.

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

6 minutes ago, Fork 'em said:

 2 wins under our belt would have us playing like millionaires and a certain loss.
Reality check for the gun jumpers , we'll get flogged by GWS.

 

Flogged? I'm taking the game each way in a number of multis. I'm not confident but a flogging would be more than disappointing.

[Fork 'em 6,527]

Damn right BA.
Buts thats how we roll.

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

Just got an email regarding the "pledge per win".

This year they can get stuffed....again. They cost me big $$$$ with their insipid efforts against Carlton and Essendon. This is my 13th consecutive year as a premium member and until they show they can play for an entire season as a team they get nothing else from me.

[Fork 'em 6,527]

That's the spirit  

 

Edited March 4, 2016 by Fork 'em

[Wiseblood 24,636]

11 minutes ago, Fork 'em said:

 2 wins under our belt would have us playing like millionaires and a certain loss.
Reality check for the gun jumpers , we'll get flogged by GWS.

 

Who are the gun jumpers?  All I said was that the opportunity to win our first 2 games is not out of the realms of possibility, and no potentially no Mumford helps in that regard.

[Fork 'em 6,527]

Not specifically referring to you WB but there seems to a fair few here that have pencilled in the 1st 2 games with a W.
Amazing what a win in a meaningless practice match does for the confidence of supporters.

 

[Wiseblood 24,636]

Just now, Fork 'em said:

Not specifically referring to you WB but there seems to a fair few here that have pencilled in the 1st 2 games with a W.
Amazing what a win in a meaningless practice match does for the confidence of supporters.

 

That always happens though - if you read through that game thread you had the usual suspects going overboard with how bad we are.  There is rarely anything in between - we either suck completely or we're looking absolutely sensational.

GWS looked terrific last night and I'm not overly confident, but, the game is on our home turf and (touch wood) we are pretty close to full strength ourselves at the moment.  If we can keep that up then we are every chance.

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

7 minutes ago, Fork 'em said:

Not specifically referring to you WB but there seems to a fair few here that have pencilled in the 1st 2 games with a W.
Amazing what a win in a meaningless practice match does for the confidence of supporters.

 

By "fair few" do you mean the same "fair few" that stated prior to our first NAB game that it was irrelevant and they had little to no interest?

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

14 minutes ago, Fork 'em said:

That's the spirit  

 

Just trying to think of another profession where you can perform once of have potential than go on to do nothing yet get constantly rewarded for it. 

[Fork 'em 6,527]

Models get paid for being genetically blessed.

 

[Biffen 12,343]

On 6 February 2016 at 10:55 AM, Ron Burgundy said:

The half back line is the area that most interests me.

Will be interesting to see who is selected to generate the run off the half back line, and how we structure the rebounding play.

This has simply been a massive weakness for us for a very long time.

 

We don't really have a half back line. We have Tom Mac.

Grimes and Lamunba provide us with the metres gained with their run. Unfortunately sideways run is not terribly productive.

[Bombay Airconditioning 5,941]

1 hour ago, Fork 'em said:

Models get paid for being genetically blessed.

 

Left foot, right foot, right foot oh [censored] left foot....

 

Bruno.

[1964nowMORE 449]

GWS looked very very impressive, just liked you'd expect of a team choc full of talent now 4-5 years into the afl routine. Their young gun draft picks from last year will struggle for game time, that gives you insight to how far they have come. The midfield is scary good, Ward sublime and tough, but Shiel looks deadly.

I believe they will play finals this year, and go past quite a few teams, including the Bulldogs, Pies and Kangas.

Round 1 might just be an 8 point game early in the season. Should be a ripper.

Some signs of a slowdown from Sydney, can't see them dropping too far, but not expecting  top 4.

Either way we beat Essendon round 2.

[Whispering_Jack 28,009]

After the excitement of today's matches, we can only wait in hope and expectation for tomorrow's NAB Challenge blockbuster v the Doggies to see where we're headed as far as our ladder position is concerned:-

Fremantle 2 - - 159 97 163.9 8

Collingwood 2 - - 216 200 108.0 8

Adelaide 1 1 - 215 117 183.8 4

Geelong 1 1 - 234 155 151.0 4

Western Bulldogs 1 - - 104 73 142.5 4

Melbourne 1 - - 95 76 125.0 4

Gold Coast Suns 1 1 - 120 98 122.9 4

North Melbourne 1 1 - 194 158 122.8 4

Richmond 1 1 - 134 123 108.9 4

GWS Giants 1 1 - 167 164 101.8 4

Sydney 1 1 - 141 154 91.5 4

Essendon 1 1 - 119 146 81.5 4

Hawthorn 1 1 - 86 136 63.2 4

West Coast 1 1 - 103 200 51.5 4

Port Adelaide - 2 - 136 176 77.3 0

Brisbane Lions - 1 - 43 68 63.2 0

St Kilda - 1 - 73 117 62.4 0

Carlton - 2 - 67 148 45.3 0

[chook fowler 18,316]

6 hours ago, 1964nowMORE said:

GWS looked very very impressive, just liked you'd expect of a team choc full of talent now 4-5 years into the afl routine. Their young gun draft picks from last year will struggle for game time, that gives you insight to how far they have come. The midfield is scary good, Ward sublime and tough, but Shiel looks deadly.

I believe they will play finals this year, and go past quite a few teams, including the Bulldogs, Pies and Kangas.

Round 1 might just be an 8 point game early in the season. Should be a ripper.

Some signs of a slowdown from Sydney, can't see them dropping too far, but not expecting  top 4.

Either way we beat Essendon round 2.

Well coached too. Leon Cameron is no fool,

[Wiseblood 24,636]

7 hours ago, Biffen said:

We don't really have a half back line. We have Tom Mac.

Grimes and Lamunba provide us with the metres gained with their run. Unfortunately sideways run is not terribly productive.

Salem?

[Ron Burgundy 8,584]

GWS look very good.

 

[beelzebub 22,225]

9 hours ago, Bombay Airconditioning said:

By "fair few" do you mean the same "fair few" that stated prior to our first NAB game that it was irrelevant and they had little to no interest?

Touche

And acknowledge the inherent irony 

[bing181 8,172]

Our opening series of games are going to be challenging. Could easily be 1-4 by the time we get to St Kilda. North have had it over us for years, and both GWS and Collingwood are starting to look the goods. The only unknown amongst those, as always, would be Richmond.