My Round 2 preview and prediction

[CHF 2,743]

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

Edited March 25, 2021 by CHF
typo

[Pickett2Jackson 3,904]

26 minutes ago, CHF said:

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

st weekThis is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

 

Good read mate.  Would be very very nice to be 2-0.

[In Harmes Way 7,795]

I’ll have what he’s having

[Deestar9 1,635]

39 minutes ago, CHF said:

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

Great & positive analysis...so unusual for this site . Hopefully without the blustery wind at  the MCG not a factor ...we will kick a little better ...ours for the taking !

[CHF 2,743]

14 minutes ago, In Harmes Way said:

I’ll have what he’s having

It is called optimism. A heady brew.

[dworship 3,342]

1 hour ago, CHF said:

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

You had me at "a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy", .... purely in a MFC  supporter kind of way.

Seriously; I want to see us use our smarts and what I see as an advantage in "footy Intelligence" to break down their defence

[Docs Demons 1,792]

I believe it is all up to our Mids. They attack well when we have the ball BUT they MUST chase and harass the Saints when they have it to ensure haphazard delivery into their forwards. The Mids have to go hard both ways or else it could get ugly.

[DubDee 25,902]

1 hour ago, CHF said:

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

Love your positive attitude mate.

I love footy and I love the Demons. This game is 50-50 to me. and I love having zero idea of the outcome. could be an amazing night for us or a horrible one.  love it

I'm backing Trac to goes nuts and kick 4 goals with 30 touches

[DubDee 25,902]

Not to mention GWS next then Cats.

4-0.

time to rest Gawn the like for finals. ?

[CHF 2,743]

53 minutes ago, DubDee said:

Love your positive attitude mate.

I love footy and I love the Demons. This game is 50-50 to me. and I love having zero idea of the outcome. could be an amazing night for us or a horrible one.  love it

I'm backing Trac to goes nuts and kick 4 goals with 30 touches

I am based in Europe and last round started at 3.45 am for me. I woke at 4 and watched it from the start and ended up skipping the breaks and caught the last quarter live then had breakfast. This week the game starts at a more manageable 9.25am. Means that with a win I can crack  wine or two to celebrate.

Like you, I love the footy and love to see the Dees play. It is just that sometimes I really hate the result.

[Fanatique Demon 2,650]

I’m with you, CHB, both geographically and emotionally. Cheers!

[BDA 22,755]

8 hours ago, CHF said:

I am a ‘glass half full’ kind of guy. I find that it has helped me a lot over the years being a Demon supporter. I have seen so much ‘potential’ in our younger players turn into false dawns; I have seen so many potential champions had their time at the Dees ruined by injury that I even ask myself how I can maintain my rose-coloured outlook.

The answer is simple….. The alternative offers despair, depression and madness.

Which brings me firstly to the reactions of some supporters to the win last week against Freo. We win a Round 1 encounter for the first time in years and it is almost as if the ‘Half Empties’ are offended that we won. Amazing! We have 4 premiership points in the bank, a win on the board and are better placed that half of the competition. It makes me dizzy to think of what the future holds.

And so, to the Round 2 encounter with St. Kilda Saturday night at Marvel Stadium. Is it just me or do others look at the fixtures when they come out and think the Saints fixture is pencilled in as a win? For some reason I just do not take them seriously. Yeah, they have had some excellent players and some reasonable teams, but St. Kilda????? Nah.

The facts:

We are coming off a rusty win with an extra day of recovery while the Saints had a close slog in the wet interstate. Advantage us.

We were not very good. Advantage them.

The Saints last week were on the wrong side of every team stat but kicked accurately. Advantage them

Problem areas of the game for us:

Defence…. I know, I know … our defence last week were great. May, Lever and to a lesser extent Tomlinson and Rivers marked everything that was kicked into their space and Jetta won his game as a small defender. For me those strengths last week may be our weakness this week. The Saints forwards are a big step up from what they faced last week and if they compete in the air against our tall defenders and bring the ball to ground, we may find a fleet of small Saints forwards ready to make hay. Jetta, Rivers, Hunt and Salem do not inspire confidence to be able to defend in close and personal against an experienced small forward crew. Saints had 4 multi pule goal scorers last week with Membury kicking three. 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper.

I think our midfield man for man are better than the Saints but we need them to work together and for each other more. Now let us turn our attention to our forwards.

The good; we kicked a winning score last week.

The bad; it was not that many goals.

The ugly; the bad kicking for goal. 1-6 in the last quarter.

We have to forget about who is not there and look at what we do have available. TMac looks to have better form that he has shown in the last couple of years. Fristch is doing his thing which is presenting and kicking a couple. Max, Jackson and Petracca rotate through there at different times with varying effect. Spargo and Kossie are performing, running, tackling and snagging the odd goal. All you can ask really. I think for this game we need one more really good defensive forward to help lock it in. Not sure that Jones or Melksham are the answer to that question. Jones is a half a pace too slow, and I cannot remember the last time Melksham made a tackle that stuck.

So, after all this insightful analysis and deep thought, who is going to win and why? My rose coloured glass is half full at least so the Dees will win a hard fought encounter by our mids stepping up from last week, our forward expressing their confidence built up from last week and by outrunning the Saints in the last.

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

Great post. Plenty of time on your hands i guess.

What’s the vibe like over there. I’ve family in Ireland who are very fed-up with lock-downs and restrictions.

If you can’t be confident after a win then when can you be.

Our midfield will win the lions share of possession tonight. Reasonable I50 delivery and straight kicking will see us home.

Membrey is the danger man. I think he’s a job for Steven May. King is back this week for them but I reckon he’s under-done so perhaps Tomlinson can mind him.

Go Dees

[Clayton van Oliver 1,823]

6 hours ago, CHF said:

I am based in Europe and last round started at 3.45 am for me. I woke at 4 and watched it from the start and ended up skipping the breaks and caught the last quarter live then had breakfast. This week the game starts at a more manageable 9.25am. Means that with a win I can crack  wine or two to celebrate.

Like you, I love the footy and love to see the Dees play. It is just that sometimes I really hate the result.

This was exactly whwn and how I watched it. Worked beautifully. Love the optimism, go Dees

[Kent 2,911]

9 hours ago, Deestar9 said:

Great & positive analysis...so unusual for this site . Hopefully without the blustery wind at  the MCG not a factor ...we will kick a little better ...ours for the taking !

A lot of ifs and maybes in that analysis for me CHF

If they play the footy they are capable of for 4 quarters we win simple.Max hits to advantage we dont get thrashed in themiddle.We need to absolutely cover their small forwards 

Ohh and Membrey will kick at least 3 as he usually does no matter who we put on him

[BigFez 1,462]

2 minutes ago, Kent said:

A lot of ifs and maybes in that analysis for me CHF

If they play the footy they are capable of for 4 quarters we win simple.Max hits to advantage we dont get thrashed in themiddle.We need to absolutely cover their small forwards 

Ohh and Membrey will kick at least 3 as he usually does no matter who we put on him

Facts.  Always plays well against us.

Membrey's career averages: 46% win record, 1.75 goals per game (110 games played)
Against Melbourne: 60% win record, 2.7 goals per game (10 games played)

[Kent 2,911]

12 minutes ago, BigFez said:

Facts.  Always plays well against us.

Membrey's career averages: 46% win record, 1.75 goals per game (110 games played)
Against Melbourne: 60% win record, 2.7 goals per game (10 games played)

Thanks Fez

[BigFez 1,462]

13 minutes ago, Kent said:

Thanks Fez

Stolen from the Saints board.  Even Saints supporters are aware of it.

On the flip side, apparently Harmes is to St Kilda as Membrey is to Melbourne.  I was not aware of this.  His last 5 games vs the Saints.

21 disp, 2 goals, 1 Brownlow vote
25 disp, 1 goal
24 disp, 3 goals
21 disp, 1 goal
21 disp, 3 goals

[Demon17 5,188]

11 hours ago, CHF said:

 

This is my biggest concern in the game.

The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement.

 

Dees by 4 goals, 2-0 and 8 premiership points in the bank come late Saturday night and a pleasant Sunday.

Thanks CHF . Great read.

I agree with the above on midfield. But why would it be fixed in a week when the stats have highlighted for 2 years there is a problem. 

My hope is the Yze factor is working on it.  And Goody is listening and acting.

So on the last point, I too am a glass half full type like you.

[TRIGON 4,783]

1 hour ago, BigFez said:

Stolen from the Saints board.  Even Saints supporters are aware of it.

On the flip side, apparently Harmes is to St Kilda as Membrey is to Melbourne.  I was not aware of this.  His last 5 games vs the Saints.

21 disp, 2 goals, 1 Brownlow vote
25 disp, 1 goal
24 disp, 3 goals
21 disp, 1 goal
21 disp, 3 goals

Ahh yes. However, he is injured at the moment.

[loges 6,767]

9 minutes ago, Demon17 said:

Thanks CHF . Great read.

I agree with the above on midfield. But why would it be fixed in a week when the stats have highlighted for 2 years there is a problem. 

My hope is the Yze factor is working on it.  And Goody is listening and acting.

So on the last point, I too am a glass half full type like you.

Don't know if anyone else heard Jordan Lewis on SEN yesterday morning. Said that from what he had witnessed at training Melbourne's midfield had been unable to execute what they had been practising at training against Freo, and would be trying very hard to rectify that this week. Hopefully improvement follows.

[Deemania since 56 6,654]

11 hours ago, Deestar9 said:

Great & positive analysis...so unusual for this site . Hopefully without the blustery wind at  the MCG not a factor ...we will kick a little better ...ours for the taking !

At the least - we are stronger than what we presented in Round 1.

[watchtheeyes 1,420]

Quote: "The midfield will need to sort out the problems of last week with their cohesion with Max and each other. I am not asking for perfect, just an improvement. If they can exert proper pressure in the midfield and get some ascendancy, then that will greatly help defence. I also want to see them shut down any run through the corridor. Time and time again last week Freo ran down the corridor seemingly unopposed. We need to ensure that out transition from attack to defence in the midfield is much sharper."

Critical!

Our midfielders have to be accountable defensively. Put pressure on the ball and that will give Lever/May a chance to intercept. If we kick like we did last week however, and are caught on the wrong side of goal, we will get obliterated. They won't miss targets like Freo did.

If we lose, goals from turnover will be a telling stat. If that stat is comparatively low, we win.

[WA Demon Boy 966]

May vs Membrey will be great. Not often these days we get excited for a Key Defender vs Key Forward. 

Our mids vs theirs will be super interesting, if we can slow their pace down we can control the game. They don't have too many talls to mark the bail out kick so I'm expecting Max to cover this (plus he needs a big showing after he was pretty quiet last week). 

Finally - we need to see something from Luke "Dogga" Jackson. I get that he's only played 7 games but I'd like him to start hitting the scoreboard and seeing some real grunt from him. 

 

[Kent 2,911]

11 minutes ago, MF-C said:

May vs Membrey will be great. Not often these days we get excited for a Key Defender vs Key Forward. 

Our mids vs theirs will be super interesting, if we can slow their pace down we can control the game. They don't have too many talls to mark the bail out kick so I'm expecting Max to cover this (plus he needs a big showing after he was pretty quiet last week). 

Finally - we need to see something from Luke "Dogga" Jackson. I get that he's only played 7 games but I'd like him to start hitting the scoreboard and seeing some real grunt from him. 

 

Tomlinson will be on Membrey I think. May on King who he will slaughter.

Max would really help if he starts to tap to our mids' advantage something he failed completely to do last week> Come on Max!!

[Caligula's cohort 1,014]

Saints will be up for it this week as they honour the late Danny Frawley. This could be a very close contest indeed.