Time to show what we’re made of - it’s a game against a team that’s almost on the canvas. Do we put them away or let them off the hook on their own home turf?

No way Port are a 0-3 team, they are better than that and playing at home will come at us.

 

Still, expect us to take their best and then win.

Dreading the news that someone is a late withdrawal ...

40 minutes ago, bing181 said:

Dreading the news that someone is a late withdrawal ...

Is that factual ?

Lever in a big in for us. He will keep the ship steady

Port's season is teetering already. Go 0-4 and they are done for the year. I expect them to go hard. As long as we're prepared to match them however (which i'm sure we will) then we win

It won't be pretty and i'm sure there'll be some nervy moments but i expect a regulation 4-5 goal win

Go Dees

It would be shocking if Port don't come hard.

Leaving aside the threat of going down 4 zip, imagine their week living in Adelaide after last week's debacle.

If they don't I reckon hinkley is gone.

But even if they do come out firing, how far can a desire to crack in take them? 

Their defensive system is all over the shop. Alir out has an outsize importance as their defensive system is structured around him and his ability to intercept. With him out they don't have another pure interceptor  to cover him (McKenzie is not bad, but more a lock down defender).

And they simply don't have the height down back to cover our three genuine talls. Hopefully the umpires will call frees for the inevitable grappling and blocking they will have to resort to.

They have not been able to stop teams transitioning from their defensive 50, which speaks to players not doing the work required for all team defence.

Perhaps they will address that this week, but effort and application are hard things to just switch on, particularly if they didnt work hard enough in preseason to build an elite fitness base and as a result don't have the tank to play full tilt right to the end of each quarter.

Their forward line is built around Dixon bringing it ground and again they don't really have someone able to play that role in his absence.

Gray is a huge out - arguably still their best player (I know wines is terrific), and one of their few true match winners.

Their midfield is pretty strong, but let's be honest nowhere near our level

And players like rozee, georgiatis and Marshall should almost be coming into their prime, but have seemingly not taken the next step.

And on top of all of that is they are a team that likes to thrive on emotion and crowd energy. Tickets sales are apparently slow so unless they are on top they may not have any crowd energy to draw on.

I predict we will come out in full surge mode and look to dominate the first quarter.

Maybe we will carry that surge into the second

We'll get a four to five goal lead, slow the game down and hold them at arms length for the rest of the match.

Edited April 6, 20223 yr by binman

We play well at AO.

Port are still shell shocked from the Prelim and being 0-3.  No Aliir Aliir.  No Dixon.  Spine is broken.

No evidence they can rope in ops momentum so we get a few early goals and I doubt they can come back.  A few early goals will silence any Port supporters that venture out AO.

Dees by 35 points.

Greedily I would love us to crush this team, realistically I think we will scrape by with a narrow win. Don’t think we are anywhere near our best yet but still winning

As long as Jake Bowey is playing….

Edited April 6, 20223 yr by In Harmes Way

I can’t remember anything like our opening rounds fixtures where we played our first four games on a Wednesday night, Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday night. I could get used to the perks of being good.

39 minutes ago, binman said:

They have not been able to stop teams transitioning from their defensive 50, which speaks to players not doing the work required for all team defence.

Perhaps they will address thay this week, but effort and application are hard things to just switch on, particularly if they didnt work hard enough in preseason to build an elite bade and don't have the tank to go the journey.

I watched the last quarter of the showdown. Maybe it was fatigue, but when Adelaide had the ball, the Port guys seemed to be literally walking around the field. They just didn't play with urgency. Maybe they'd put the cue in the rack.

On the other hand, fatigue does not bode well for them.

They are a decent stoppage side but at the minute they have a misfiring backline and a misfiring forward line.

I reckon it will be a scrambly game of chaos ball for the first half and then they'll run out of puff.

43 minutes ago, binman said:

And on top of all of that is they ate a team that likes to thrive on emotion and crowd energy.

Protein loading?

We are a 10 goal better team on paper, and I expect something similar to play out on Adelaide Oval tonight.

Very surprised Smith is out, if it is covid related fair enough but just sounds to convenient.Will still win easy

5 minutes ago, Mazer Rackham said:

I watched the last quarter of the showdown. Maybe it was fatigue, but when Adelaide had the ball, the Port guys seemed to be literally walking around the field. They just didn't play with urgency. Maybe they'd put the cue in the rack.

On the other hand, fatigue does not bode well for them.

 

I watched the second half too (or much of it( and totally agree - they looked spent.

Which is why I thought the crows might get up given Burgess is their fitness guy.

I don't think they put the cue in the rack, but even if they were more fatigued they still should have won easily. 

Us dees fans have a fair bit experience with coaches losing their players. I saw some familiar signs in their loss to the hawks and crows.

And even in their loss to the lions, whilst they put in a pretty good performance, they folded up pretty badly in the last quarter.

Not great signs for Kenny.

Just now, forever demons said:

Very surprised Smith is out, if it is covid related fair enough but just sounds to convenient.Will still win easy

Oh please, why would goody bother with any subterfuge in relation to dropping Smith.

I mean, it's not his mo and even if it was why would he bother with a fringe player?

1 minute ago, forever demons said:

Very surprised Smith is out, if it is covid related fair enough but just sounds to convenient.Will still win easy

Can't imagine the club would mess with anything to do with covid rules.  There is no reason for 'convenience'. 

Someone had to give way for Lever and its a high chance it would have been Smith.

"Love will tear us apart" not sure it is going to be love tonight

 

Maybe Tracca will tear us apart, or Oliver,  but I am hoping Weideman 

29 minutes ago, In Harmes Way said:

As long as Jake Bowey is playing….

💪🤣

They'll come hard. Let's hope we withstand it and prosper. 

 

We have a brilliant track record at Adelaide Oval, let’s hope it continues. 
 

Oliver to have 35 and kick 2 and Kozzie for 4 snags.

Go Dees!

13 minutes ago, forever demons said:

Very surprised Smith is out, if it is covid related fair enough but just sounds to convenient.Will still win easy

More surprised BBB has been overlooked over an out of form T Mac

1 hour ago, binman said:

It would be shocking if Port don't come hard.

Leaving aside the threat of going down 4 zip, imagine their week living in Adelaide after last week's debacle.

If they don't I reckon hinkley is gone.

But even if they do come out firing, how far can a desire to crack in take them? 

Their defensive system is all over the shop. Alir out has an outsize importance as their defensive system is structured around him and his ability to intercept. With him out they don't have another pure interceptor  to cover him (McKenzie is not bad, but more a lock down defender).

And they simply don't have the height down back to cover our three genuine talls. Hopefully the umpires will call frees for the inevitable grappling and blocking they will have to resort to.

They have not been able to stop teams transitioning from their defensive 50, which speaks to players not doing the work required for all team defence.

Perhaps they will address that this week, but effort and application are hard things to just switch on, particularly if they didnt work hard enough in preseason to build an elite fitness base and as a result don't have the tank to play full tilt right to the end of each quarter.

Their forward line is built around Dixon bringing it ground and again they don't really have someone able to play that role in his absence.

Gray is a huge out - arguably still their best player (I know wines is terrific), and one of their few true match winners.

Their midfield is pretty strong, but let's be honest nowhere near our level

And players like rozee, georgiatis and Marshall should almost be coming into their prime, but have seemingly not taken the next step.

And on top of all of that is they are a team that likes to thrive on emotion and crowd energy. Tickets sales are apparently slow so unless they are on top they may not have any crowd energy to draw on.

I predict we will come out in full surge mode and look to dominate the first quarter.

Maybe we will carry that surge into the second

We'll get a four to five goal lead, slow the game down and hold them at arms length for the rest of the match.

Really good summary.

With Lever back in, I can't see their forwards penetrating our defence system too easily. We are no way near our best and therefore vulnerable to players like Boak and Wines, but they don't have too many others to threaten us at the moment. Port are young, a bit thin on talent, and a whole lot thin on endeavour and effort.

I now Burgess has moved to Port, and I remember the Dees struggling at times early on in his reign. Port possibly fatigued by their new fitness regime?

Dees by 18, in another ugly win. I don't reckon our best footy will emerge until round 8 or later.

Edited April 6, 20223 yr by Maldonboy38

3 minutes ago, picket fence said:

More surprised BBB has been overlooked over an out of form T Mac

I am annoyed the club isnt more transparent about these types of things ,is BBB still covid affected and when was smith covid effected also is Mitch Brown concussed

 

5 minutes ago, forever demons said:

I am annoyed the club isnt more transparent about these types of things ,is BBB still covid affected and when was smith covid effected also is Mitch Brown concussed

Injury report from Tuesday said he'd be available, so you'd assume not COVID affected.

 

Goody's presser earlier in the week he said they'd weigh up whether he should come in after a week without training, so reasonably safe to assume that's the reason.