titan_uranus

Even if Essendon were at fault for the COVID test (and they weren't), the subsequent fixturing has nothing to do with them. There's no possible link between it and the venues we're being sent to and shuffled between, the four-day breaks, the lack of stability or other sides getting the opposite.

We have certainly copped a difficult fixture. This week is our fifth straight game at a different venue to the last (Adelaide-Gabba-Metricon-Alice Springs-Cairns). Our "bye" was in Round 3, one game after a three month break. Everyone else (other than Essendon) gets a bye during one of the two compressed fixture phases. Other clubs get repeat games at the same venue - we currently haven't played more than two games at any particular venue and will finish the year having played at 9 venues across six states/territories. We have undoubtedly had a much tougher fixture than most, and in a season like this, these sorts of differences can be magnified in importance.

Yep, a tough stretch for West Coast away from Perth and missing some players. The key issue for us is that if they drop either of the Dogs/Saints games they will be helping those sides get to 10 wins. If the Eagles win both, it keeps alive the possibility that we can qualify for finals on 9 wins.

Essendon's beaten Collingwood and the bottom 5. They do, however, get Geelong off a bye - Geelong are on a 0-8 streak in games played after byes during the home and away season and I believe on a 1-12 streak including finals.

He's played one game since 5 August, a month ago. Maybe, if the rest is necessary, it will come in the Fremantle game 4 days after the Sydney game.

This game certainly isn't over. Ball has spent the entire quarter in Essendon's forward half. West Coast are just trying to eat up time but aren't getting the ball forward. Dam wall could break at some point.

If they lose tonight they can still make it but would have to win all three and get in on 9.5 If they win they will jump up into 8th tonight.

Is this weekly article really that accurate as to who we choose to bring in?

This is just before @Clint Bizkit's screenshot Raises both arms, as if he's trying to block Kent from kicking. Which led me to panic, even if he was able to follow Steele.

He's clearly trying to impact Kent's kick though, hence why I freaked out at the time.

Remind me again why we got fined $500,000?

If Essendon beats West Coast, things will get bad for two reasons: Essendon will be challenging for finals Essendon supporters will come even further out of the woodwork Away from Perth, no Kennedy, no Cripps...who knows.

This is fair, and I agree. But what we can aim for, and what we need, is consistency defensively as well as output offensively. It's important for us to be able to win games off the back of defence, but where we can get better is to take this level of defence and then ensure that the players we've got in those mid/small forward roles are hurting our opponent the other way.

The other issue with weekly nominations is that if there is no objectively good performance in a round, someone nevertheless has to get the nomination. Conversely, you might get two stellar games in the same round, but can only nominate one of them.

Greene did get a fine. Still, the system is broken. Lynch and Greene receiving nothing but fines for blatant, non-football dog acts, is a joke. Both should have been suspended to remind the league that punching players and smacking their heads into the turf is not what you should be doing.

Adelaide Oval? Traeger Park? We struggled at Metricon vs the Dogs. Not sure of its dimensions but if it's wide, we probably won't want to play there if there are narrower grounds available.

Viney gets very, very, close to the protected zone on Kent's kick. I freaked out, I must admit.

Not sure about his comparison to ANB. Averages 9.7 disposals a game to ANB's 9.3. ANB averages 1 goal a game to Kent's 0.9, and 2.3 tackles per game to Kent's 2.0. ANB has higher disposal efficiency and fewer turnovers, but Kent has more metres gained and inside 50s. Looks relatively even to me. Statistically Kent's got Hannan covered, but I'm not sure that's an argument in favour of Kent. As to Frost, why? Do you see him slotting into our side as a running player? We tried him in the OMac/Tomlinson role as the third defender - if this year has taught me anything, it's that we strived for, and succeeded with, reliability in the backline. Frost was not reliable.

I wish people would cut out this argument. If we restricted commentary to those who had "played the position at an elite level of competition", Demonland wouldn't exist. @Cheesy D. Pun was fairly, and rightfully, pointing out that there may be a lot Pickett is doing that you simply cannot see on TV.

I'm assuming you're happy with the win, @old dee?

For St Kilda to get to 10 they have to beat one of West Coast or GWS (whilst beating Hawthorn). If they beat GWS, that means GWS has to win its other three games (Carlton, Adelaide, and us). That means we have to beat Essendon as well as Fremantle/Sydney. Whilst that's all possible, I think it's more likely that GWS will beat St Kilda, meaning the Saints finish on 9 wins. I also think the Dogs will finish on 9 wins too (beating Hawthorn and Fremantle but losing to West Coast). At this point I see Collingwood getting to 9.5 (beating GC), St Kilda and the Dogs getting to 9, and GWS getting to 10 without beating us. I also see Essendon losing at least two of its final four, meaning it will finish on 8.5 at most. If all that is correct, then if we beat both Fremantle and Sydney, we'll also be on 9, and will just need to rely on percentage to finish above St Kilda and the Dogs and take 8th spot. We're currently 11.6% in front of the Dogs but 1.6% behind St Kilda. So that's a scenario in which we could finish on 9 wins and make it (need to bridge the 1.6% gap to St Kilda). But that leaves both the GWS and Essendon games as losses - win either of those and we're in for sure in this scenario.

In theory Watts at his best could find a spot in our best 22, but his best is probably well past him now. Tyson's career looks done, and those two games Dunn played a couple of weeks ago suggest he should have retired at the end of last year. You know Hawthorn's in the bottom 4 right?

I expect us to lose to GWS as well. But then again, I expected us to lose to St Kilda. You're right about Collingwood - they just need to beat GC to get to 9.5 and that should be enough.

Whoops, St Kilda should actually be 11th on 2-3.

Formline for each club's last five games (i.e. ignoring byes. Also ignores percentages because I don't have that data right here, and might well mean we're not 2nd...): Geelong - 5-0 Melbourne - 4-1 Richmond - 4-1 West Coast - 4-1 Brisbane - 4-1 Port Adelaide - 4-1 Collingwood - 4-1 St Kilda - 3-2 GWS - 3-2 Fremantle - 3-2 Bulldogs - 2-3 Carlton - 2-3 Gold Coast - 1-1-3 Essendon - 1-1-3 Hawthorn - 1-4 Sydney - 1-4 North Melbourne - 0-5 Adelaide - 0-5