Boys are clearly down on confidence. Comes back in bursts of scoring, but yeah, fumbles and poor decision-making. And to be fair, Freo and Swans brought the heat - their tackling was impressive last night - no room.

Hunt back to HBF, Hibbo back, May back - starts to look a lot better. Tomlinson stays in if Petty too banged up.

BBB stays in with Mitch Brown. Gus back to wing. 
 

walking back to the city last night the Swans fans were shocking - gloating. I don’t mind celebration, anthem singing, what have you, but after a game, we all go home without getting stuck in to oppo supporters. Very poor.

looking forward to this team getting its groove back.

 

 

I think we need to start thinking outside of the box with our forward problems.  I'd like to see Tomlinson play forward. At least try it. Not much to lose as we're not getting much from Mitch or Weideman anyway.

1 hour ago, demon3165 said:

Part of the problem is they like to play one side of the ground all the time, going to the city end they go the Southern Stand side, going to the punt road end members stand side they do not switch it around, quite a few times last night ball on HFF line players calling for it across the ground free but we just bomb it into pockets, and again I will say this BB got his majority of his goals at north on the lead bit hard to lead if that's where the pack is.  Sides have worked it out against us lets see what the coaching staff come up with.

Not making excuses but we looked a little slow and I am just wondering if they are being loaded up before the break.

 

Happened all night demon3165! Blind freddy could see it! I wonder at the coaching sometimes- are our players unable to see it?

If we are spare on the otherside then no wonder that there is congestion at the pack continually

Our forward line was full and theirs was open 

 

Sydney had a superior game plan and the worked much harder than us!!

3 minutes ago, one_demon said:

I think we need to start thinking outside of the box with our forward problems.  I'd like to see Tomlinson play forward. At least try it. Not much to lose as we're not getting much from Mitch or Weideman anyway.

I'd prefer to see Tomo remain, taking the 2nd best forward when May returns.  Assuming Petty isn't right i'd like to see him swung forward and see how we go.

Subject to Petty getting up...

Ins:  May, Hibbo & Bedford

Outs:  BB, Hunt & Sparrow

1 hour ago, demon3165 said:

Part of the problem is they like to play one side of the ground all the time, going to the city end they go the Southern Stand side, going to the punt road end members stand side they do not switch it around, quite a few times last night ball on HFF line players calling for it across the ground free but we just bomb it into pockets, and again I will say this BB got his majority of his goals at north on the lead bit hard to lead if that's where the pack is.  Sides have worked it out against us lets see what the coaching staff come up with.

Not making excuses but we looked a little slow and I am just wondering if they are being loaded up before the break.

 

Bumping this excellent point as well.

SO predictable and teams just load up to the side we are bringing the ball to.  And we mostly bomb it there from hard on the boundary or not far away.  Too easy to defend.  Switch across if at all possible and attempt to change up the angle and/or allow time for a forward to push back then lead into some space (BB and/or Mitch to the fat side!!??).  From memory i can only recall one such delivery to Fritsch from Mitch (apologies!).  A lovely weighted kick from Mitch that resulted in a Fritsch goal.

Outside of maybe North & the Eagles surely we are presently one of the worst teams for ball use & smarts coming inside 50? 

Edited June 5, 20223 yr by Demon Dynasty

Has anyone thaught about the filths forward line when considering changes. Apart from Mihocek the only other tall they have is that imported gorilla Cox who pretends to be a ruckman. May has to come in and Tomlinson must be dropped. He is not up to  it. I would leave the rest as is but Hibberd showed some form in the reserves.

The forward line is another matter. BBB has to go. He is paralyzed with inactivity. I suppose the only other option is the weed but that is like for like. If petty gets a role down forward then I would bring in Turner to play back. No need for weed so the changes would be Tomlinson and BBB out and May and Turner in.

12 hours ago, titan_uranus said:

Hibberd into the backline for some height to help out. We're just a touch too small with Bowey, Salem, Hunt and Brayshaw back there.

Hibberd is shorter than Hunt and Brayshaw and 1cm taller than Salem so he will not solve the height problem.

When talking height tbh I am thinking 195-200cm and the list is bare.

10 minutes ago, dl4e said:

Has anyone thaught about the filths forward line when considering changes. Apart from Mihocek the only other tall they have is that imported gorilla Cox who pretends to be a ruckman. May has to come in and Tomlinson must be dropped. He is not up to  it. I would leave the rest as is but Hibberd showed some form in the reserves.

The forward line is another matter. BBB has to go. He is paralyzed with inactivity. I suppose the only other option is the weed but that is like for like. If petty gets a role down forward then I would bring in Turner to play back. No need for weed so the changes would be Tomlinson and BBB out and May and Turner in.

Turner for Tomo is also an option.  In our best players at Casey last two weeks.  One week in for Tomo and straight out would be pretty harsh though?

1 hour ago, Lord Nev said:

Aside from personnel changes, also think we'd benefit from Gus getting back to the wing (Rivers or Hibberd in), and Kozzy attending a few centre bounces again. Reckon we need to shake up the clearance setup a bit.

I'm not against the Brayshaw move. I like him in the backline, but I've been thinking about whether we're better off with Hibberd and/or Rivers in Brayshaw's spot, Brayshaw in Jordon's spot and Jordon in Sparrow's spot (dropping Sparrow).

1 hour ago, Webber said:

Watched the whole Casey game at the ground yesterday. Hibberd played a basically flawless game. If he’s fit enough, he absolutely comes in, for Hunt I presume. 

From what I saw of Hibberd he looked good, but then again most of what I saw was when Casey was dominating in the second half.

19 minutes ago, Jontee said:

Hibberd is shorter than Hunt and Brayshaw and 1cm taller than Salem so he will not solve the height problem.

When talking height tbh I am thinking 195-200cm and the list is bare.

I mentioned this earlier, but I don't think there's much doubt that Hibberd is capable of playing taller than his height, whereas Hunt, Brayshaw and Salem aren't (nor are Bowey or Rivers).

We don't need another 195cm+ defender, we'll be rolling with May, Lever and Petty/Tomlinson next week and that combination is fine. But Hibberd is more flexible than all of our other defenders when it comes to height match ups. It's something worth considering IMO.

2 hours ago, wisedog said:

The greatest relief is the timing. We know the bones of the side are the best in the league. We have 10 weeks to find the right combination and for key players to find form. If I were an opposition supporter, I’d be annoyed this slump occurred now and not later in the season.

The forward line is a big concern. We badly need Ben Brown to perform as he did at the end of 2020 - the question is whether you allow him to find form at Melbourne or Casey. This time last season, Weidemann and Brown were trading places and it looks like the same thing is happening. If McDonald is a longterm injury the equation is different and I wonder if Weidemann would play more freely if he knew his place in the side wasn’t so vulnerable. (Obviously, not the ideal mindset for an elite athlete).

Petty seemed to drift to CHF last night and seemed comfortable: Perhaps not the answer but worth experimenting with in the same way we did with Tom McDonald 4-5 years ago.

IN: Weidemann, May, Hibberd

OUT: B Brown, M Brown, Hunt

 

BBB is currently trying to mark in the middle of a moshpit.

In: Rivers, May

Out: Tomlinson, ?

13 hours ago, adonski said:

Sparrow is Weid 2.0

A good finals series but ultimately not AFL standard

That’s absurd

Ben Brown has had just 20 possessions, 8 marks and 2 goals in the last 4 games. Weideman is catching the ball much better at the moment and will give us more aggression in the air. 

May for Tomlinson is obvious.

I am not in favour of shifting Brayshaw out of defence, who was excellent again last night. Jordon was also good on the wing.

Hibberd for Hunt is possible, but Pig has only had one full VFL game and is coming off soft tissue injuries.

Bedford or Chandler for Spargo is possible but Charlie has a few credits in the bank and the difference between these three is minimal.

Can Rivers or Brayshaw play forward? 

Edited June 5, 20223 yr by Roost it far

1 hour ago, one_demon said:

I think we need to start thinking outside of the box with our forward problems.  I'd like to see Tomlinson play forward. At least try it. Not much to lose as we're not getting much from Mitch or Weideman anyway.

Keep Tomlinson down back and put petty up fwd he showed in 2019 I think he can kick goals

Edited June 5, 20223 yr by Garbo

9 minutes ago, Garbo said:

Keep Tomlinson down back and put petty up fwd he showed in 2019 I think he can kick goals

Makes our backline miles too short

2 hours ago, Queanbeyan Demon said:

FWIW . . . with a few exceptions that continually get exposed as dumb footballers, individual players are not the problem. The comp has broken down our game style. Freeo and Swans, because they are well coached and have good players, perfected interrumpere stilus. 

I'm not an expert by any means, but I would have thought our style flaws are relatively easily addressed. For example, let's focus on sticking tackles and handling the ball cleanly under pressure. Improvements in these two areas will go a long way to fixing our forward line woes. BBB has lost form for sure, but he's not going to regain it in a substandard second tier comp, nor in our senior team with the ball being bombed into the arms of McCartin all night long either.

 

“example, let's focus on sticking tackles and handling the ball cleanly under pressure. Improvements in these two areas will go a long way to fixing our forward line woes. BBB has lost form for sure, but he's not going to regain it in a substandard second tier comp, nor in our senior team with the ball being bombed into the arms of McCartin all night long either”

queanbeyan - you’ve nailed it !!! 

 

 

We've always lacked finesse and skill as a side when an oppo bring heat. 

And I'd say in general our midfield don't have a great blend and balance of attributes. 

Our forwardline is a shamozzel at the moment too. But jesus it'd be nice to possess some players who can consistently kick to the space of a leading player. Mitch Brown's kick was the perfect example of how we should be entering when our pocket kicks aren't working. 

I get we have a system and kicking to pockets is part of that. But when our key forwards aren't marking and we're having enormous trouble keeping the ball inside 50 then there needs to be a shift and for two weeks now we haven't done that. And oppo teams will be more and more confident  coming up against us if we continue to be rolled in the manner we are. 

If supporters believe Steven May not playing is the reason for our problems then they're delusional. We have a few more pressing issues. 

15 hours ago, ElDiablo14 said:

Enough is enough, bring Van Rooyen.

Don't know who goes out, don't care.

Also please stop using Hunt as full back he is clueless.

May makes all backline players better. With May in the team, he knows when to hang back, and be last line of defence, so we don’t expose players like Hunt. 

Hunt is an important cog in a well functioning backline (with May in), due to his ability to tie down a small fwd. he clearly got exposed, partly due to the lack of backline cohesion last night. 

Having said all that, if an oppo doesn’t have a quality small fwd, maybe Hibbo or Rivers are better options 

Put Gus back on a wing please and get Jordon off the wing and back into a rotation. 

1 hour ago, one_demon said:

I think we need to start thinking outside of the box with our forward problems.  I'd like to see Tomlinson play forward. At least try it. Not much to lose as we're not getting much from Mitch or Weideman anyway.

Absolute no chance of this happening mate. Tommo has not one attribute that would suggest he could make a positive impact up forward. He barely does as a backman.

1 hour ago, titan_uranus said:

We don't need another 195cm+ defender, we'll be rolling with May, Lever and Petty/Tomlinson next week and that combination is fine.

We only have 1 195cm+ defender and that is Petty - hopefully he will be ok for the next game.  Tommo cant jump - he has no leap.  Lever is playing poorly.  I think we need another quality tall.

I don’t know who we have but the last two weeks we have been comprehensively outmarked both in defence and up forward.  
Turner is listed at 194 cm but how is his spoil and leap?  If so could he relieve Petty to go forward for either Brown. 
 

And can someone list the players who missed with covid a month or 6 weeks back?  As I recall Bbb and Jackson were amongst them - have they fully recovered?  

 

Surely Petty will be needed in defence to play on Cox. Who else has the height to do so? Our backline will also look better, whoever is playing, if the forwards and onballers improve their pressure. Hunt was exposed last night not just because May's not there but because the ball was coming in regularly under minimal pressure.

Brayshaw has been excellent in defence. He's probably (with Gawn and Oliver) been in our best three players all year. But I wonder now that Salem is back whether we can make better use of Brayshaw back in the midfield in place of Sparrow. (I'd keep Jordon on the wing. He's doing fine.) Rivers could be added back there.

If McDonald is out for the longer term, I would bring in Weideman for M Brown. If we're to be any chance at the end of the season (assuming McDonald doesn't return) we need to have B Brown and Weideman as our key forwards. Therefore, they need to be playing together as much as possible to ensure they gel. If McDonald is not out for long, then I'm in favour of B Brown being dropped to get some form and confidence back at Casey.

I have a controversial call, Tommlinson to CHF, in his underage years i rated him as a forward, due to his endurance running, i think he could play the Tmac role. 

I'd like to see Hibbo back in as well for another experienced head. 

Outs probably Mitch Brown and while he's stiff, Jayden Hunt