A good win tonight can really set the tone going into the pointy end of the season

Edited June 22, 20232 yr by david_neitz_is_my_dad

9 minutes ago, Gorgoroth said:

I’m in the Geelong Social Club area tonight. It’s either going to be a fun night or horrific.

Short trip for you tonight! Enjoy. 

Kudos to the demons fans travelling down tonight. there's no way I could make it down there.

Again not sure our foward line can kick a winning score and Stewart down there dominating van Rooyen and Smith will make it hard but then again I said the same thing leading into the pies game. 

If gawn can produce a great game and he and Grundy dominate the ruck and Viney can have that same form as the previous game then I'm confident.

We just need to win and get out of that place 

12 minutes ago, Gorgoroth said:

I’m in the Geelong Social Club area tonight. It’s either going to be a fun night or horrific.

Givem hell

Wouldn’t matter if Geelong was bottom 4, GMHBA is a fortress for them. Probably an unfair advantage on the comp as I think they’re the only team that train and play at their home ground?

Anyway, with the weather forecasted I think it’ll be really close and could go either way. My biggest concern is that if Geelong get on top of clearances and trap it in their forward half, it’ll be very difficult to transition the ball out of their D50. They are also the best in the comp for lowest inside 50s against. If we don’t win the territory battle I feel it might be a bit like the Port game but unfortunately, Hawkins, Rohan, Cameron will nail their set shots.

4 minutes ago, dees189227 said:

Kudos to the demons fans travelling down tonight. there's no way I could make it down there.

Again not sure our foward line can kick a winning score and Stewart down there dominating van Rooyen and Smith will make it hard but then again I said the same thing leading into the pies game. 

If gawn can produce a great game and he and Grundy dominate the ruck and Viney can have that same form as the previous game then I'm confident.

We just need to win and get out of that place 

Hit some good points here. Need some more leadership again.

If we kicked accurately KB, we probably would have hit 100.

11 minutes ago, Deestiny Awaits said:

Bowey isn’t even listed as an emergency even though he has been cleared to play. Do we think he comes back through the 2s or are they just thinking he’s not best 26? 

Bowey's best 22 imo. They name a range of players in the emergencies to cover all positions so my take at worst is that he's not best 23 rather than 26. I can only think they're being extra cautious following the concussion and wanted to give JJ a full game. Dropping 2 small forwards to accomodate Bowey may have been a stretch. I's be surprised if he played for Casey because that would throw my extra-cautious theory out the window (but I've been wrong lots of times before 😀).

I’m expecting a tough grind in the wet, but I’m quietly confident the traits of guts, grit and determination that we have shown over the last few weeks, combined with our trademark pressure, team defence and winning the contested ball, will get us over the line by a couple of goals.  
In short, if we play the ‘Melbourne Way’ we will win.

7 minutes ago, Sydney_Demon said:

 Dropping 2 small forwards to accomodate Bowey may have been a stretch. I's be surprised if he played for Casey because that would throw my extra-cautious theory out the window (but I've been wrong lots of times before 😀).

No it wouldn't - in fact quite the contrary.

I thought (and wrote on DL) exactly the same thing about spargo a few weeks back when he wasn't selected after he had completed the concussion protocols - ie they were giving him another week off to make sure he was right.

He was then selected for Casey. And I wrote words to the effect of, well there goes that theory.

Spargs was selected in the ones the following week. In the lead up to that game, goody was asked about spargo coming back via the twos.

Paraphrasing, goody said they wanted to be extra cautious and the vfl is lower intensity and less risk, so a better option to manage his return.

 

I just want to enjoy an entire weekend. Is that too much to ask? Get it done Dees.

2 minutes ago, binman said:

No it wouldn't - in fact quite the contrary.

I thought (and wrote on DL) exactly the same thing about spargo a few weeks back when he wasn't selected after he had completed the concussion protocols - ie they were giving him another week off to make sure he was right.

He was then selected for Casey. And I wrote words to the effect of, well there goes that theory.

Spargs was selected in the ones the following week. In the lead up to that game, goody was asked about spargo coming back via the twos.

Paraphrasing, goody said they wanted to be extra cautious and the vfl is lower intensity and less risk, so a better option to manage his return.

 

Thanks for that. I was thinking that if you're being coutious about a head-knock you don't play at all but if it's part of the conditioning process at a lower-intensity level I guess it makes sense.

Thinking slightly longer-term it will be interesting to see how they re-integrate Bowey & Oliver (& Spargo?) back into the team. JJ back to sub, Woewodin out of the 23 (I'm hoping he's sub tonight), but still 2 more players to be dropped/rotated out of the side. I'd also love to see Howes, Laurie, and 1 or 2 others given an opportunity sometime later in 2023.
 

On criticisms of our selection this week, I think it's worth noting that at this point in the season last year, there were MANY posters who were strident in their criticism of our selection policy.

The key criticisms were that goody was too rigid, too stubborn, should be taking a squad mentality, should pick a team for the conditions and opposition and should be more creative.

Seems to me those criticisms are not valid this season, and certainly not this week.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

1 hour ago, DeelightfullyInsightful said:

Good luck to Brodie Grundy in his Kardinia Park debut 😄

Look, I feel like this post needs a requote so the magnificence of its subversiveness does not go unnoticed.

 

Chapeau mon ami, chapeau.

8 minutes ago, Superunknown said:

Look, I feel like this post needs a requote so the magnificence of its subversiveness does not go unnoticed.

 

Chapeau mon ami, chapeau.

How good is subtle humour!

4 minutes ago, binman said:

On criticisms of our selection this week, I think it's worth noting that at this point in the season last year, there were MANY posters who were strident in their criticism of our selection policy.

The key criticisms were that goody was too rigid, too stubborn, should be taking a squad mentality, should pick a team for the conditions and opposition and should be more creative.

Seems to me those criticisms are not valid this season, and certainly not this week.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Most of the criticisms I think were directed at the unfairness of Tommo being dropped but not necessarily looking at equally unpaltable alternatives (like the unfairness of Smith being dropped, or Petty staying out of the side for another week and coming back via Casey).

The swap of Spargo for JJ is an interesting one. Is it part of a possible longer term strategy, part-warning to other small forwards (Kosi, Chin), squad mentality, reward for JJ/Taj, all of the preceding? 

I hate Geelong.

14 minutes ago, binman said:

On criticisms of our selection this week, I think it's worth noting that at this point in the season last year, there were MANY posters who were strident in their criticism of our selection policy.

The key criticisms were that goody was too rigid, too stubborn, should be taking a squad mentality, should pick a team for the conditions and opposition and should be more creative.

Seems to me those criticisms are not valid this season, and certainly not this week.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

Don’t think MANY criticised the decision to drop Tomlinson, just that he was stiff. He played particularly well last week and is unlucky to miss this week although you may disagree.
I think MOST here are can understand the horses for courses/wet weather/match up logic but still can feel some sympathy for him

2 minutes ago, dl4e said:

I hate Geelong.

6 minutes ago, dl4e said:

I hate Geelong.

A bit harsh! It's an excellent place to bypass.

10 minutes ago, Sydney_Demon said:

The swap of Spargo for JJ is an interesting one. Is it part of a possible longer term strategy, part-warning to other small forwards (Kosi, Chin), squad mentality, reward for JJ/Taj, all of the preceding? 

Load management (for both Spargo and JJ) would be my guess

Edited June 22, 20232 yr by binman

Geelong at Geelong always a challenge, funny shaped ground and crowd 95% Cats supporters influencing the blind mice - even if four now rather than three!

The big difference from last year at Geelong is Selwood, Dangerfield and Guthrie not in the middle. This should enable Demons to win this battle, even without Oliver, plus we are also stronger in the ruck with Grundy in the team.

Expecting to win but always a bit nervous at the cattery!

16 minutes ago, FarNorthernD said:

Don’t think MANY criticised the decision to drop Tomlinson, just that he was stiff. He played particularly well last week and is unlucky to miss this week although you may disagree.
I think MOST here are can understand the horses for courses/wet weather/match up logic but still can feel some sympathy for him

No, i 100% agree Tomo is very unlucky to be dropped.

I think he had his best game at the club last week, and if i was giving Brownlow votes i would have given him a vote. 

My guess is he will come back in for the Giants game next week. 

 

Edited June 22, 20232 yr by binman

7 hours ago, RedLegs23 said:

Yeah the only thing keeping this tight will be the wet conditions. Confident, otherwise. 

Dees by 15 points.

🔴🔵

no rain here so far today , bit of blue sky hope it stays that way  but we  gotta kick straight do that and we got this 

i find this game really hard to predict due it being at Geelong and the wet weather, hope we've taken learnings from the Port game. Think we should win but how many times have we said that before.

4 minutes ago, BarnDee said:

no rain here so far today , bit of blue sky hope it stays that way  but we  gotta kick straight do that and we got this 

Geelong and Surf Coast area

Cloudy. Very high chance of showers, most likely late this afternoon and evening. Light winds becoming northeasterly 15 to 25 km/h in the morning.

25% chance of at least 7mm