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We could miss finals with 13 wins

Bring-Back-Powell
in Melbourne Demons

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Who cares?

We will finish in the bottom half of the 8 and have an elimination final against someone like Adelaide, Hawthorn, Geelong, Collingwood or GWS, any of whom would smash us under finals pressure home or away.

I'd even be terrified of playing North in those circumstances, given our history.

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    2 minutes ago, Undeeterred said:

    Who cares?

    We will finish in the bottom half of the 8 and have an elimination final against someone like Adelaide, Hawthorn, Geelong, Collingwood or GWS, any of whom would smash us under finals pressure home or away.

    I'd even be terrified of playing North in those circumstances, given our history.

    As long as we go into the finals as underdogs.  If we go in with bath water dribbling down our chins we will be in trouble....

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    This is starting to look like some of those appaling records like the losing streaks against North or the Saints and the Etihad drought. We have to break the big game ice somehow. Soon we will be playing a crunch game that will make or break finals dreams that is certain. If we get over it we could  be flying high.

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    4 minutes ago, america de cali said:

    This is starting to look like some of those appaling records like the losing streaks against North or the Saints and the Etihad drought. We have to break the big game ice somehow. Soon we will be playing a crunch game that will make or break finals dreams that is certain. If we get over it we could  be flying high.

    Well we will get plenty of chances in the last 10 games to prove our credentials.

    We play games @ Port, @ Crows, @ Eagles and home games to Sydney and GWS.

    Sink or swim.

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    6 minutes ago, america de cali said:

    This is starting to look like some of those appaling records like the losing streaks against North or the Saints and the Etihad drought. We have to break the big game ice somehow. Soon we will be playing a crunch game that will make or break finals dreams that is certain. If we get over it we could  be flying high.

    We won on ANZAC Eve and Queen's Birthday last year.

    The "streak" is at two games.

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    Looking forward to the Darwin game in tropical conditions and the sapping of players energy in the most crucial part of the season.

    Great deal that is.

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    4 minutes ago, titan_uranus said:

    We won on ANZAC Eve and Queen's Birthday last year.

    The "streak" is at two games.

    QB was filling the bathtub game and we lost ANZAC eve.

    Edited by america de cali

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    44 minutes ago, titan_uranus said:

    We won on ANZAC Eve and Queen's Birthday last year.

    The "streak" is at two games.

    Not to mention rolling the Crows in Adelaide minus Hogan and Gawn and rolling the Eagles in Perth. Demon supporter memory can be painfully shallow at the best of times. 

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    1 hour ago, titan_uranus said:

    We won on ANZAC Eve and Queen's Birthday last year.

    The "streak" is at two games.

    .

    Edited by Dee Zephyr

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    I've lost all my belief after seeing us mauled at the coalface all game long. Every team in the comp has now been shown our Achilles heel, manic tackling pressure, a sprinkling of dash on the wings and some big bodies in the forward line. I'm very concerned about the backline now. We were pushing our luck with the number of lightly frsmed types running around against a hardened big body team like Collingwood. Fritsch, Spargo, Hannan, ANB all looked out of their depth on the big stage.

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    Untill we can beat a top 8 side we won’t play finals, if we can’t we will finish on 12 wins, this team reminds me of port Adelaide last year beat up on the bottom 6 can’t compete with the rest, so the port game will tell us a lot 

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    16 hours ago, lucifer said:

    Without stating the obvious, we need to knock off a Pt Adelaide or a Sydney otherwise even if we do make it, we are just going to be Pt Adelaide circa 2017 who were just making up numbers. Would I rather be making up numbers than 10th? Absolutely, but our worry is clearly that we haven't beaten a quality team all year (Adelaide and North Melbourne don't count IMO)

    Not to split hairs, but Port lost by two points in a tight elimination final to West Coast, a poor team on the road who then got smoked by GWS in what was a wide-open season. Port may well have been down-hill skiers, but I don't think you could say with confidence that any team has just been making up the numbers in the past couple years. Make the finals, and you're in with a shot. The Power, if you can recall, also beat West Coast during the year at Domain and had a close contest with Richmond.  

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    I used to post alot back in the Schwab/Scully/Neeld era when it seemed like every second week we were embroiled in a scandal of sorts. Demonland was good for picking up inside info or sharing views on that sort of stuff.

    Now that were a half decent side with little off field issues  i cant stand the hand wringing. Ffs, the season is only half way done, and people are assuming we cant improve or beat anyone above us. Luck with Injury and form can be fleeting.

    Long way to go to make the finals for most sides, not just us.

    Go dees

     

     

     

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    20 minutes ago, DemonWA said:

    I used to post alot back in the Schwab/Scully/Neeld era when it seemed like every second week we were embroiled in a scandal of sorts. Demonland was good for picking up inside info or sharing views on that sort of stuff.

    Now that were a half decent side with little off field issues  i cant stand the hand wringing. Ffs, the season is only half way done, and people are assuming we cant improve or beat anyone above us. Luck with Injury and form can be fleeting.

    Long way to go to make the finals for most sides, not just us.

    Go dees

     

     

     

    Is it the case, thus far,, the really good teams have proven more resilient in the face of manpower challenges or a bad game. Ie have Richmond eagles swans had blowouts like we keep doing (I view this as a really worrying pattern on a sample size of 4 losses). I think this is a rational and valid concern

    we lost 10% on the weekend and IIRC approx 40% (120% down to 80 ish?) courtesy of hawks and Richmond. My numbers might be slightly  off but the point stands 

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    6 minutes ago, timbo said:

    Ie have Richmond eagles swans had blowouts like we keep doing (I view this as a really worrying pattern on a sample size of 4 losses). I think this is a rational and valid concern 

    Richmond, Swans and Eagles are top 4 sides, no problem with that. But there are another 5 spots up for grabs in the finals. To say we wont improve over the second half of the season and start predicting a 9th place finish is pretty cynical imo 

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    The closest thing we have had to a 'Big Game' that we have won in the last few years was the StK game last year that snuffed out them and kept us going but that was snuffed out of existence as a big game when we were exposed against Coll a few weeks later, and when the players were revealed to be asking the Saints players where they were going for their September holidays - talk about drinking your own bath water... A 'Big Game' I want to see us win is a game that will show us to be more than just a team making up the numbers in this league.

    This next game is the first opportunity to arrive, I know they can do it, but I no reason to faith they will. And I won't until they do it and then do it again, and then do it again...

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    4 hours ago, DemonWA said:

    Richmond, Swans and Eagles are top 4 sides, no problem with that. But there are another 5 spots up for grabs in the finals. To say we wont improve over the second half of the season and start predicting a 9th place finish is pretty cynical imo 

    I didn't say we wouldn't.

    But based on Monday, we did not appear to learn or have counters in place for what occurred early in the season.

    Or, if we did, it was not evident.

    I'm basing 9th based on what I have seen thus far against quality opposition. You cannot deny the quality we will come up against from here on in.

    Therefore it is entirely reasonable, rational and not at all cynical, to say 9th based on the facts and evidence and observations to hand.

    Of course I hope this is not the case, but my level of confidence is not high.

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    44 minutes ago, rpfc said:

    The closest thing we have had to a 'Big Game' that we have won in the last few years was the StK game last year that snuffed out them and kept us going but that was snuffed out of existence as a big game when we were exposed against Coll a few weeks later, and when the players were revealed to be asking the Saints players where they were going for their September holidays - talk about drinking your own bath water... A 'Big Game' I want to see us win is a game that will show us to be more than just a team making up the numbers in this league.

    This next game is the first opportunity to arrive, I know they can do it, but I no reason to faith they will. And I won't until they do it and then do it again, and then do it again...

    When there is a big prize for the taking we are most likely to lose. Usually on the back of some easy wins which get us into striking distance. There is a pattern there. 

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    14 hours ago, america de cali said:

    QB was filling the bathtub game and we lost ANZAC eve.

    Anzac Eve DOES count last year. We were 13 points up at 3/4 time with no bench players left. Were always going to run out of legs.  A good effort in the circumstances.

    QB was an heroic effort as well on a big stage down to the wire.

    The games were are meant to win have usually been disasters, up to last year. This years 6 game streak now shows major mindset improvement.

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    11 hours ago, brendan said:

    Untill we can beat a top 8 side we won’t play finals, if we can’t we will finish on 12 wins, this team reminds me of port Adelaide last year beat up on the bottom 6 can’t compete with the rest, so the port game will tell us a lot 

    I can recall us beating both North and Adelaide.

    Why don’t they count?

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    21 hours ago, McQueen said:

    If we had won yesterday there'd be a thread about our impending top 2 finish.

    But alas, we lost and now there's a thread about potentially not making.

    Smash Port in Adelaide and everyone and thing will be as right as rain again.

    That's true. but the fact is we did lose to collingwood and we lost poorly. And we haven't beaten Port. And its a very tight season so of course if we win an upset win then it would really change things around but I can't see us getting within 50 of port adelaide the way we played against collingwood. 

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    Losing the clearances 47-28 against the Dogs was mostly swept aside at the time due to the dominance in other areas but in retrospect it was a warning sign. We have the best tap ruckman in the game and a wealth of talent on the iniside. We need to fix it up and quickly.

    I rarely subscribe to the “loss we had to have” theory, but if ever it was to be applied, this was the week. I get the impression our players are still prone to being very happy with themselves. This was a reality check that may not have come at a good time in terms of the occasion but came at a good time in terms of the season.

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    1 hour ago, P-man said:

    Losing the clearances 47-28 against the Dogs was mostly swept aside at the time due to the dominance in other areas but in retrospect it was a warning sign. We have the best tap ruckman in the game and a wealth of talent on the iniside. We need to fix it up and quickly.

    I rarely subscribe to the “loss we had to have” theory, but if ever it was to be applied, this was the week. I get the impression our players are still prone to being very happy with themselves. This was a reality check that may not have come at a good time in terms of the occasion but came at a good time in terms of the season.

    Regarding the midfield I can't believe the amount of times Collingwood players were allowed to insert themselves between our player and the ball. Basic junior footy, play in front, get in first.

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    41 minutes ago, loges said:

    Regarding the midfield I can't believe the amount of times Collingwood players were allowed to insert themselves between our player and the ball. Basic junior footy, play in front, get in first.

    From the first bounce too, nothing changed at all...

    What do all those coaches in the box actually do??

    Serious question, i can’t work it out. 

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    3 minutes ago, Sir Why You Little said:

    From the first bounce too, nothing changed at all...

    What do all those coaches in the box actually do??

    Serious question, i can’t work it out. 

    Yes, lack of intensity was alarming, will yourself to be first to the ball,it was a huge game ffs.

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