Embrace it

[Ted Lasso 19,521]

I'm not sure I can emotionally handle us playing in a final. I get so angry watching normal games

[Guest]

Am bricking myself to be honest. It all feels so unreal.

I was just watching highlights of the Sydney clash in 2010 and Bruce cooing about how we were 'going to be something'.

I'm not sure I could take another false dawn.

[Deestroy All 14,266]

I'm already camped out waiting for grand final tickets. Bit chilly, need someone to be the big spoon, pm me. 

[Dappa Dan 2,188]

I'm embracing it. We've won 12 games. We're ahead of .500 for the first time in ever. 

[JAG007 164]

16 hours ago, Call Me What You Will said:

I lived through '87 and as I've posted in a number of forums getting to the finals was the most exciting, all embracing sporting 6 weeks of my life. It had been 23 years, there was the Robbie factor, it was a final 5, not an 8, it was skin of the teeth every nail biting week in those 6 weeks - any loss meant the dream was over. No one really expected us to make it. Then the extraordinary events of Round 22 happened and everything fell into place. (If you can, check out a Tim Lane's "live" coverage of the events of Round  22 on the Winners on ABC - still sends goosebumps up my back). Then, there was was the Finals - I agree I have never seen any side, in any era, play any better than Dees did in week 1 or 2 of the 87 finals. Then there was the tragedy at Waverley and it was all over.

2017 for me is a bit different. If we do not make it will not because we did not dare to dream, it will because we had a golden opportunity to do something special and we just dropped the ball a couple of times (Norf x 2, Freo, Hawthorn). 

Go dees versus the mortal enemy, and if that fails, for god sake, go Crows.

 

[Bring-Back-Powell 14,851]

18 hours ago, Macca said:

Not necessarily disagreeing with you FD but my memory of '87 is that the form we showed in the finals was far superior to the form we showed going into the finals. 

We barely scraped into the finals and then went gang-busters against North and then Sydney.  We smashed North Melbourne in that Elimination final but were rank outsiders going into that game.  

Even in the last round of the season we weren't expected to beat Footscray at their ground.  The Bulldogs were ahead of us on the ladder going into that last game and also had a lot to play for.

We were actually 7th going into that last round and also needed Geelong to lose to make it. 

For the record our last 5 games of 1987:

Brisbane (5 wins -12 losses at the time) - 54 pt win

Richmond (4-14) - 19 point win

Collingwood (6-13) - 55 point win

West Coast (10-10) 61 point win

Bulldogs (11-9-1) 15 point win

A much better form line compared to our patchy end to this year.

 

EDIT - didn't notice the table above already had a summary of our 1987 season.

Edited August 22, 2017 by Bring-Back-Powell

[PaulRB 6,389]

With the bye before finals I figure I'll have two weeks to become obsessive, delusional and anxious, so shall wait till we beat the Pies. 

Mind you, was daydreaming about taking a road trip to Sydney for the elimination, and wondering where I'll celebrate the remarkable win... 

oh no, it's started... 

[Macca 16,982]

2 hours ago, Bring-Back-Powell said:

For the record our last 5 games of 1987:

Brisbane (5 wins -12 losses at the time) - 54 pt win

Richmond (4-14) - 19 point win

Collingwood (6-13) - 55 point win

West Coast (10-10) 61 point win

Bulldogs (11-9-1) 15 point win

A much better form line compared to our patchy end to this year.

 

EDIT - didn't notice the table above already had a summary of our 1987 season.

The difference this season is we've got a few decent scalps up during the season as compared to '87.  However, both that '87 team and this year's team dropped games that should have been victories. 

Where as we made a late run from obscurity in '87 we have been in the finals mix for most of this season with this year's team.  Low expectations vs reasonable expectations (?)

The angst of another 'forgettable' season in '87 was replaced with euphoria but that euphoria only really kicked in after round 21 of that '87 season.  Ditto for 1976 except we fell agonisingly short.

I distinctly remember believing that we were a real chance for finals with 5 or 6 rounds to go in both of those seasons ('76 & '87)  On both occasions the run-in wasn't all that difficult.  That's how I remember it all.

As for this season, finals became a realistic possibility after the win in Adelaide in round 8.

Anyway, we beat the Pies on Saturday and we're in and if we do make it anything is possible. 

Our best footy is more than decent.

Edited August 22, 2017 by Macca