As I entered the ground, I was hit with the daunting news that Steven May was a late withdrawal. Normally, losing one of our premier key defenders just before the first bounce would send a wave of panic through me. But instead of dread, I felt a quiet sense of reassurance knowing that Tommy McDonald—our very own rock of Gibraltar—was stepping in to fill the void. And didn’t he stand up? He was immense, reading the play well and holding his own against the Giants.

Then there was the ever-reliable Jakey Lever, our defensive general, once again showcasing his ability to intercept, direct traffic, and take charge in the air. His leadership and composure were critical, as always. And, of course, the sight of Harry Petty back in his natural defensive role was a welcome relief. He took strong marks, made his presence felt, and showed why his best footy is played in the back half.

So, our big men down back? They’re not the issue. Neither are our distributors coming out of defence; our ball movement from the back half from the likes of Windsor, Salem and Bowey was generally solid. The glaring problem, however, lies when the ball hits the deck. We struggle to contain the nimble, elusive small forwards who thrive on ground balls and chaos inside 50. Time and time again, we seemed a step behind in locking down those opportunistic goal-sneaks.

If we don’t address this weakness, it will be our Achilles' heel all season. Whether it’s a personnel issue, a structural flaw, or a lack of defensive cohesion at ground level, it’s something we need to fix and fast. Thoughts?

What did you think of the Irish jig after each goal?

Personally, I would have liked it one more time because that would have meant we won.

As crushing as it was to lose this one, knowing the magnitude this win would've garnered at the club -- I think its hard not to feel extremely buoyant about what we witnessed yesterday, even for perennial negs like Andy and George 😜 -- Whilst Binman I suspect enjoyed the fact we looked fit, as well as there being little in the bad/ugly front for his analysis this week.

Lots of learnings, inc the modern game where we need to know that ONLY way GWS win that game was to GIVE them the ball back, so someone needed to tell AJ to kick to the pocked if there wasn't an open mark to hit-up after taking his 30s, so that we could go to work to ice the game. There was plenty of luck involved in that transition for GWS, but we gave them the opportunity to take it coast-to-coast and that must be a key takeout for mine. The other being how well JEFFERSON competed, despite a member of this pod stating he couldn't possibly play due to being non-competitive!

Of all the exciting signs yest, I want to know which took your fancy most gents..

- Windsor looking like Tulip more and more in just his 2nd season Game 1

- Lindsay looking unlike ANY Demon i can ever recall on debut, in terms of his make-up: Toughness, composure and silky skills (if you can find a comparison great, cus I cant think of anyone he reminds me of apart form maybe a hybrid of a few different ones)

- How little we dumped the ball into our 50 with long bombs. Ball movement was excellent inc numerous tempo changes, use of angles etc despite missing 3 key pieces on that front in Kos, May, Judd..

 

Go Dees!!!!

Set shot kicking. I know this is a well worn tune but when Sparrow missed that one in the first couple of minutes, pretty much straight in front, it was a taste of things to come.

 

Edited March 17Mar 17 by Demonised
clarity

3 hours ago, Rossmillan said:

What did you think of Fritsch in his 150th?

Are you concerned with his recent form?

He’s a massive elephant in the Room.

@binman Using AFL tables these are his last 11 Home & Away Games.

Fritsch’s 

13- goals

11- tackles

9- 1%’s

3.3 Marks a game

(Only 9 of his 37 marks contested)

 

Absolute liability.

How good was that start to the third quarter? Within moments, we saw the kind of explosive, direct football that makes us so dangerous when we’re at our best. Twice in quick succession, we surged out of the centre with real intent, slicing through the Giants’ midfield pressure and turning clearance wins into scoreboard impact almost instantly.

First, there was the electric dash from Caleb Windsor off half-back, his speed and confidence to take the game on were outstanding. Watching a young player back himself and break lines like that was a real highlight. Then, moments later, it was the midfield brute force of Christian Petracca, who don't argued his way out of the middle and fed the ball to a charging Tom Sparrow, who made no mistake. Two quick goals, pure burst football, and suddenly the momentum was all ours.

This is exactly the kind of centre clearance dominance we need to see more often. When we win the ball at speed and surge forward with clean hands and aggressive running, we look almost unstoppable. The challenge, of course, is maintaining that level of intensity and execution consistently across four quarters.

So, what do we need to do to ensure this brand of football becomes the norm rather than just a glimpse?

Edited March 17Mar 17 by pewpewpew

Going to cut the questions off here. We now have more than enough to yap on about tonight? Hopefully my equipment doesn't fail me.

Podcast is LIVE!!!!

NO CHAT ROOM AT THE MOMENT SO POST HERE

21 hours ago, Demonland said:

Technically equal record.

 

Interesting. This is too simplistic but I hope we don't follow the trends of those above. After these matches Collingwood took 15.5 years to win the flag, Richmond 24.5. As for teams debuts some still haven't won an elusive flag and the most successful was Port 7.5 years later and the 'state team' Adelaide 6.5.

Edited March 17Mar 17 by Go Ds

Very enjoyable listening guys - both insightful and balanced.  Thank you!