KozzyCan

It's an issue but I don't think the club can really sit on their hands if the current form continues through to the middle of the year. Collingwood lost their president prior to the 2021 season but they managed to remove Buckley and start looking for their next coach despite facing a board challenge from both fans and Jeff Browne.

Reckon the whole 'choose your own adventure' training regime deserves a bit of blame here.

The players being in two minds about where to move the ball says to me they're getting conflicting information rather than straightforward instructions. Was similar under Neeld, we'd always hear about how the players were still learning the gameplan. I think it's [censored], it's footy not rocket surgery. Keep it simple so players know what they're doing and what to expect from their teammates.

The fact that we've had so many of our best players with a foot out the door over the past few years should be enough to get Goodwin sacked on its own.

I simply don't agree that this side can't play a different style that is competitive with the modern game. This labourious chip kick control game where we slowly move the ball around until we finally bomb it to the goal square ain't it though.

All these examples weren't even about the ball use but the decision making.

Don't know that the turn around in the third quarter was really anything to do with coaching specifically. All our gun players just went to another level and we started walking out the front of clearance and nailing every shot at goal at the same time the Dogs were hitting a wall.

2021 we were second for inside 50s averaging 56.3 and second for marks inside 50 with 12.7. We were also 1st for shots on goal averaging 28.4 but fourth for goals kicked at 12.9. So still some conversion issues there but generally much better in those areas. 2022 we were third for inside 50s but with a higher average of 56.5 but marks inside 50 dropped a bit down to 11.3. Importantly marks inside 50 shot way up this year with Geelong ranked 1st with a whopping average of 15. We were ranked 8th in this area. We also dropped off on shots on goal, ranked 6th with 26.6 and 6th again for goals kicked averaging 12.5. The highest scoring teams this year were Richmond, Geelong and Brisbane who all averaged over 14 goals a game. I think this year was really the canary in the coal mine that the game was moving in a different direction from our contest/defence forward half style. 2023 we were first for inside 50s with an average of 58.4. 6th for marks inside 50 with 12.8, 4th for shots on goal with 26.7 but 6th for goals again with 12.8. I believe this is the year you were talking about where we successfully locked it into our forward half but couldn't really improve our scoring off the back of it. 2024 we fall off a cliff for inside 50s, ranked 15th with an average of only 49. 14th for marks inside 50 with an average of 11, 15th for shots on goal with 22.9 and 14th for goals with an average of 11.3. And as I pointed out in my previous post we're significantly worse in these areas this year. It's interesting to me that we weren't much worse in 22 or 23 in regards to our forward entries or scoring capability but the competition drastically improved in those areas and went past us. Some might say that it's a fools errand for us to try and emulate football styles our list wasn't built for but it's clear that going back to the well that won us a flag in 2021 wasn't going to get it done again. We had to change and we waited far too long to actually pull the trigger. Now we're trying to change but so far Goodwin has not shown that he can transform this side into one that can play the modern game.

Reckon both are pretty ordinary. Oliver looks like he's just going through the motions, Petracca looks like he's genuinely miserable to be playing here. Wonder what the young players are thinking seeing a senior player carry on like that.

Our inside 50 entries have actually gotten far worse. We're 15th for inside 50s averaging 50.5 a game. This is surprisingly up from last year where we averaged only 49 inside 50s per game. These are pretty average numbers for inside 50s per game over the past few years so not a massive issue on its own. Here's where the problems really start. We are dead last for scores, averaging 8.5 goals per game and 11 behinds. Meaning we are getting 19.5 scoring shots per game. That's as bad as richmond last year. We're 16th for tackles inside 50 averaging 7.8 a game down from 10.7 last year. But even worse we are equal last for marks inside 50 and a dismal 7.5 a game down from 11 last year. For reference Richmond were the worst in this area last year with an average of 9.5. It's really just appalling how bad we continue to be in this area and unforgivable that we've gotten significantly worse.

Reckon Rowell stays at the Suns if they're pushing for finals.

It's pretty rare to see a team as disconnected as we are. Something is really off this year.

Seems like we'd just be replacing one limited player for another

Dwayne would offer him a prize but he can't get a word in.

I feel like we have enough players of his type. Are we just looking at him because he's in the bargain bin?

The club is so bloody out of touch.

Why?

I think there are ways to play competitive football and be attacking. We've played far too defensively for years, putting no trust in our forwards to take a mark on a lead and never willing to give up anything from the backline to put something on the scoreboard. Whatever it is we're doing now is not the answer. We've traded one defensive gameplan for another and we're not even good at the one we're trying to do.

Getting good at this soccer thing. Even put up a Soccer score on the weekend!

Bloke could talk underwater.

Is there any reason we couldn't move into Waverley Park as a temporary measure until we get Caufield? At least the club would be under one roof immediately but you don't need to consider it a permanent solution.

Think he talks Dwayne Russel's ear off on a regular basis.

Even if this is true isn't it still on the coaches for going down that path? Goodwin went back to the old contest/defence well in the second half of last year and admitted it was a mistake to do so. Personally I believe that we did need to change but find the gamestyle we've gone with incredibly strange. We still play incredibly defensively but just try to play keepings off with chip kicking rather than actually trying to attack and cause damage. Friday night was one of the more cowardly coaching performances I've seen. Reminded me of Brendan Bolton parking the bus towards the end of his time at Carlton.

Sharp is just the new Daniel Nicholson.

I alluded to this in the other thread but this is probably the better spot for it. These quotes really don't bode well for Goodwin "The purpose of the review was to identify opportunities for the AFL Football program to return to finals in 2025." "Our Playing List: The review identified strong confidence within the playing group and football staff that we can play finals next season. We have a very strong core group of players, but fast-tracking the development of our talented young players will be essential." "Members may have noted our commitment during the trade period to secure an additional top 10 selection ensuring we have two early picks in this year’s draft. This aligns with our decision to continue bringing in high-end young talent to complement our core group and return to AFL finals next year." "Game Style: The review emphasised the need to refine our method of play, focusing on all facets of the game— with the ball, without the ball and in the contest. During the pre-season, our coaches will work on evolving our game style to maximise the strengths of our playing group, aiming for a style that not only propels us back into the finals but withstands the pressures of finals football. As a competitive measure, specific details of our game style remain confidential. " "Our path forward relies on collective effort. With the reviews complete, our players and coaches are ready to put in the work needed to return to the finals in 2025 and we ask that they feel the support and energy from you, the Demon faithful, as we prepare for the 2025 season." melbournefc.com.auLetter from Brad Green | Football and Board UpdatesPresident Brad Green has written to members to share updates regarding both the AFL Football and Board reviews.