mo64

Yeah, many posters did mention the weather being a factor. I'm at the stage where I prefer a win against an under strength Dogs than an honourable loss against a full strength Dogs. Consecutive games where we've come from behind to win will hopefully instill some belief in the team, regardless of whether they're NAB Cup or season proper.

I actually think that Frost is a worse kick than T Mac. A good team can work around a good defender who is a poor kick (Dunkley, Dawson). The problem with T Mac is twofold. He's not surrounded by skillful ball users (Salem excluded), and in the 2nd half of last year, he was beaten too regularly by his opponent. I said last week that our backline wasn't structured with the right personnel if we intend to be a more attacking team. Dunn (good kick but little run) T Mac (run but poor kick) Garland (not sure what he offers) Jetta (there are many more creative small defenders in the AFL). On their day, they can shut down their opponents, but we need them to do more.

He's been off since the first 6-7 games last season, when he was touted as an All Australian. And it's not just his poor disposal. He's been getting beaten regularly. Needs to lift big time.

Further proof that you can't make an assessment of a person's mental wellness from afar. It seems to affect people that you'd never expect. Febes opening up will help many people out there, not just sportsmen.

Because Frost is so ineffectual when we've got the ball and a deplorable kick for goal. Opposition teams will zone of him and double/triple team Hogan. Pedersen can hit the scoreboard so has to be manned up. I can't think of a key position forward with fewer strings to his bow than Frost.

His stats from last season beg to differ. In the 5 games where he had more than 60% game time, he averaged 15 disposals and 7 marks. He had 18 tackles in 7 games. Dawes on the other hand averaged 12 disposals and 4 marks and only kicked 11 goals in 14 games. Dawes only had 21 tackles for the year. Pedersen's numbers are pretty good, and would be a decent foil for Hogan at this stage.

Agree. Didn't have much game time, but wasn't overawed. Looks like a good kick, which is something lacking in our back half.

In what way does he gel well with the other defenders? As a group, our backline was poor against Port. Our dominance around the stoppages painted over the cracks in our backline. And can you give me examples of when Garland has locked down a small forward recently? It's an urban myth if you ask me.

What was worse was his insipid attempt to spoil as a 3rd man up in the 1st quarter. He's not a reliable lockdown defender and has little creative skill. Just don't see what he offers.

I think the same will apply with Frost.

Exactly. All the scorecards I looked at either had Extras True for both teams or Extras False for both teams. Still doesn't answer Bobby's question.

The "B" that you are refering to is Byes, but I've got no idea what the "true" and "false" relate to. Never noticed it before.

Based on our last 2 meaningful games Rd 23 v GWS and NAB Cup v P.Adel., I can't see how Harmes isn't a lock for best 22. He should be ahead of Kennedy, Bugg and Oliver.

WJ should invoice the club for Brayshaw's medical consultation in absentia.

Players should be taught/told to pin the arms then go down to your knees. That prevents the "push in the back/driving tackle" scenario. Port were guilty of poor technique quite often on Saturday.

I agree with nut. The sling tackle is like the bump. You can't control how much damage it will inflict, so you run the gauntlet of the MRP by using it. And it actually wasn't a great tackle because he allowed Young to free his arms and potentially dispose of the ball. With the stricter interpretation of holding the ball and incorrect disposal, pinning the players arms is what players should be taught.

Watts played well and took a ripper contested mark on the wing. But I don't think that this game demonstrated any additional hardness at the contest. I was disappointed with a couple of marking efforts near the goal square, when he had the perfect sit to take the grab on each occasion. He misjudged the 1st which went over his head, and didn't attack the ball hard enough at the 2nd. Kicking a couple of goals would have capped off a good game, and we need Watts to be a goal kicker.

Watched a replay for a 2nd time, and agree that Grimes actually played ok. Despite being under pressure, the 2 OOFs were avoidable with greater awareness. I just don't know what position Grimes can play with our best 26 available. I don't want him down back. Here's not a clearance player to be a mid, and he's not skillful or quick enough to play wing or up forward. I'm hoping that the intensity of our forwards was aided by Goodwin's forward and midfield structures. If you allow the opposition easy outlets from their backline, it's hard to apply pressure. In the 1st quarter we got caught out the back by Port because we were applying a high press. I'm ok with that structure, because it means that we have a greater intent to score. It fell down because our backs played poorly. I'm interested to see if we can replicate the forward pressure with restricted interchange.

I think the OP is getting ahead of himself with our performance against Port. There is still a lot to work on, and Gawn, Hogan and Salem are pivotal to our structures and gameplan. Players can get injured doing match sim at training, so I don't see the point of putting players in cotton wool at this time of the season. With extended benches in the NAB Cup, gametime will be reduced anyway.

But Port were playing their 2nd NAB cup game, so that can't be right. Doubt that you would have different rules for both teams.

Didn't see the game live, but just watched the replay, and totally agree. Our key backs didn't play well, and none of them looked comfortable with the ball in the air or on the ground. They were fortunate that we were so dominant around the clearances in the 2nd half. When Port did attack in the 2nd half, I thought that Wagner was probably our best defender. As for Frost, he's not a forward, and never will be. Can't ever imagine him kicking more than 15 goals in a season, whereas Pedersen could kick 25 plus. Frost has to play as a backman but with Dunn, Garland and T. Mac, there is no obvious position, unless one gets injured or dropped for form. Just on that, T. Mac is starting to look like Alisitair Nicholson. He really isn't a smart footballer. But a lot to be happy about with the game. Gawn and Viney playing at a level that many of us are expecting. If VDB, Kent and Salem can remain fit all season, that would be a huge plus. We need some goals from VDB and Kent, and run off the backline by Salem. Oliver looked at home at the clearances. Downside was our backline. Didn't see much run or creativity. Jetta got a bit of it but isn't damaging. If VDB, Oliver and Petracca can play some midfield minutes rotating through half forward, I'd like to see Vince and Brayshaw rotating off half back and midfield. We need some class down back to go along with Salem.

No it's not. If that was the case, you would have seen mass exodus out of clubs like Geelong and Hawthorn, where players stayed for success rather than chasing their max contract (Ablett and Franklin excluded). It's only conjecture because Hogan hasn't committed. There's nothing stopping Hogan/Manager committing to the club, and sorting out the financial arrangements at season's end. That will stop the conjecture.

That's beyond absurd. You really think that any sporting club would willingly screw a star player who shows good faith? Hogan will always have the negotiating power, even if he verbally commits. And anyone who believes the Roos line of " the club also thought it best to postpone talks until end of season " are either gullible or stupid. The club would be doing cartwheels if Hogan re-signed this week or even mid year.

Spot on. The argument that his management is waiting till the salary cap increase goes through is bogus. Based on that logic, no player will extend their contracts early, yet just this week, Sidebottom and Talia have extended their contracts long term. The fact that the club admitted that they sat down with Hogan and his management to outline our onfield ambitions is concerning. If a player was content, why the need to give them a reassurance? My concern is that Hogan may love living in Melbourne, and clubs other than Freo may come into play.

My point is that if Gawn goes down, play Frost as the 1st ruck and Pedersen as the 2nd ruckman. That's on the proviso that Frost can actually compete as a clearance ruckman at an adequate level, even if it's slightly inferior to Spencer.