Go the Biff

Good to see some getting on board the G-train. G for Greg.
 

Stafford has been taking money under false pretences for years. Even when we won a flag we did it spite of our forward structure & methodology rather than because of it.

I understand Stafford has to work withing the parameters of the overall game plan but his area of the ground is dysfunctional. And while I’m not a Goodwin basher by any means, he and his merry men on the coaching panel need to realise that “contest & clearance” are all very well but that only gets you the ball. The name of the game is to maximise the opportunities that “contest & clearance” create and get the bloody ball through the big sticks.

The only appreciable shift from 2021 is that our tall forwards now clump together in the goal square rather than the left pocket.

A direct result of this clumping is that it draws in opposition defenders en masse and leaves them having to defend an area roughly the size of a picnic blanket. We are an opposition Defensive coach’s dream. It’s like Stafford has drawn up a plan and showed it to Chaplin for approval. “Ooh yes I like that” says Chappy. Forgets to tell him why though.

Supporters often wail about our “bombing into 50” but the reality is that often they have no other realistic option. And that’s on our forward structure and method. Further to this I’m often infuriated by Trac’s long mongrel punts into F50 from the midfield but I suspect this is under instruction. We are far more concerned with being out-marked inside F50 than we are with actually marking the ball ourselves. So we kick long floating mungs in the hope of bringing it to ground and causing a stoppage than we are with forwards marking the ball.

Too often :

We press up too high leaving the “over the top” play the only way of scoring

We lead as a pack to the same spot or worse again, congregate at the same spot

We fail to get any separation which gives our forwards a chance at a one on one contest

We fail to have a small front & square of contests – and when we do they’re usually too close to the contest resulting them being tackled immediately on taking possession

We fail to lead towards the ball carrier

We try to take the back shoulder position on opposing defenders which allows them to control the contest. Rule 101 for forwards has always been play in front.

So – to the players.

I’m of the view that BBB is pretty much done. Not his fault but his body has packed it in. Watching him at Casey is almost sad. So barring a miracle knee regeneration, I’ve dismissed him from 2023 calculations. Likewise TMac. History shows that he takes a long time to find consistent form post injury & he’s no spring chicken either.

JVR has a ton of upside but he desperately needs support from another key forward. Not a ruckman masquerading as a KPF. You can’t rely on pack marks in an area that looks like Myers front door at opening time on Boxing Day. It’s not sustainable. We will kill this kid if we don’t stop asking him to play like the second coming of Doug Wade. He needs to be able to rotate out to CHF and sometimes HFF to get some space and some easier possessions. He also needs to pick his moments and lead rather than being a one trick pony.

Petty looks like he’s our best CHB but also our best CHF. He is rarely out marked and can take them as well. He was showing signs of understanding when to work up the ground as a connector before being injured. I’d persevere with he & JVR in the key posts.

Max should not come inside 40 from goal unless it’s for a ruck contest. We become too Max-centric when he’s deep & continually dump it on his head. He takes the occasional goal square mark but not enough to justify him being there. He also draws in opposing rucks and defenders, adding further to the cluster……

ANB has his role but he’s heavily flawed. He needs to do the basics well and for most of this season, his skill level has been poor and this undoes all the good work he performs. While he’s important to the way we play, he’s regressing to his old ways of being a chain of possession breaker. His last quarter on KB was superb. We need more of that from him.

Spargo had a bright start to the season but has been abysmal post concussion. Casey beckons

Chandler is bereft of confidence. Takes an age to make a decision with ball in hand. He also gets lost a lot. I believe his role needs clarifying to assist his positioning and a decent forward coach should be able to do that. In form, there’s a place for him and he can be damaging

Kozzie……has been out of form but showed some glimpses tonight. He’s another who needs his role clarified IMO. He’s trying to be too many things. I also think he needs to be released into the midfield when he’s “cold” down forward. He seems to lift the more he is around the ball and he’s one of our best users up the ground.

Smith is not a KPF’s backside. Anyone who claims he is on the basis of that pre season game where he kicked 4 clearly has never watched the game, just looked at the stat sheet. Tom Stewart tore him to shreds tonight by exposing his lack of forward craft. That said, he does have some characteristics that could be more than useful if we dispense with the “Spargo” role. I’m one who believes we have too many small forwards. Smith could do worse than to study (can’t believe I’m typing this) Garry Rohan’s game tonight. Smith has some similar attributes that we could build into a role that makes him an aerial threat while making the most of his speed and tackling.

Fritta while not without his flaws which many are quick to jump on has been a shining light. How he’s managed to maintain the level of productivity he has in this forward line is remarkable. Love to know what he’d be capable of in a decent set up. For a bloke who could sleep in the shade of a crowbar, he’s asked to do a lot of the heavy lifting. We’ve used a bit more of his delivery inside 50 this season which has been encouraging. I’d like to see him in a 3 way rotation system between the gaol square & the flank with JVR & perhaps Smith.

All of our forward woes are fixable and fixable in season. But it’s a bit like having issues with gambling or drinking. You have to admit you have a problem before you can effectively face it and deal with it. We seem to still be in the denial stage.

Apologies for the long-winded rant but it’s been bubbling for a few years now. Believe it or not I reduced this by about a third before posting. Don’t know how the likes of Binman & DeeSpencer etc keep pumping out those long posts. This has done me in !

Thought it might be cathartic but I’m probably more hacked off than I was when I started typing !

11 minutes ago, The heart beats true said:

Isn’t every one just thrilled that we gave up a home game to travel interstate?

Geelong got momentum from their crowd and played to their strengths at home. We gave this game up.

I absolutely hate it. Melbourne homes games at the G only. If we want to be taken seriously start acting that way.

We can bring it back to Melbourne but it will end up at Marvel. We won't get another game at the G

Max is a fantastic captain but there have been times when he's needed to forget the umpires and man the hell up.

This is one of them 

17 minutes ago, Sideshow Bob said:

Don't like dropping Tomlinson at all

Absolutely the wrong message. Play well get dropped cos we have favourites. [censored].

Play well and we play well = making the most of your opportunities and staying in.

Guessing he'll find a home elsewhere and play week in week out as he should

Not favourites.  Match ups and conditions.

Embrace the squad mentality Bob.

5 minutes ago, Garbo said:

Or more serious than they let on

There was some training vision early in the week and Clarrie was feeling the back of his hammy. Suspect it's still NQR. Missing rehabilitation while in hospital would not have helped 

Suns have wound the clock back 10 years in this quarter 😒 

23 minutes ago, DeeSpencer said:

I’d use Hibbo and Rivers on Cameron interchangeably. Hibbo when close to goal, Rivers when he goes up. Just need some talk and handovers. 

The half backs on Miers have to play him tight that’s for sure and our deeper defenders have to be aware that he’s consistently looking for the around the body short. Don’t sag off your man, force him to kick longer. I suspect they’ll try to get him and Close losing Lever up the ground and turning him around. Lever hopefully is moving better than he was at the end of the Pies game where we had 2022 hobbly Jake make a comeback. 

The Cats forwards are so smart, well coaches, cohesive and organised. They can be getting out played but keep scoring

I'm really interested in who McVee gets assigned to. 

1 hour ago, Gorgoroth said:

Only one I’ve heard say anything about how dumb it was is David King. As he said, why? It’s 50 meters off the ball and we are one of the few sports that allow that sort of contact anywhere away from the ball.

King was critical of Murphy, not Fritsch and said the free kick was there.  Dunstall concurred.

The diving comments initially came from Taylor on the Channel 7 telecast, supported by Watson. BT is so far past it that it's got beyond a joke. The day he's pensioned off will be a blessing for the entire footy community 

1 hour ago, Redleg said:

In hospital and would have to be doubtful.

Geelong advises cracked rib and partially collapsed lung. Returning by road rather than flying 

3 minutes ago, roy11 said:

Did he hit the post once or twice on KBD? Getting closer at least

Twice I think.  One from a set shot first quarter.  One from a snap in the last 

Just now, Engorged Onion said:

I hear you , and do you recall that if it wasn't for injury he would have played in the GF - so clearly the FD see something that we don't :)

Same could be said of Jayden Hunt who I suspect would have been selected ahead of JS. Anyway, I'm not advocating dropping him. Just moving him (on Petty's return) to a position where I think the two of them might give us a competitive advantage.

I should have also mentioned in my post that this notion is also dependent on Smith not breaking various parts of himself or knocking himself out !!!

2 hours ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

I’ve been getting texts from friends (mainly neutrals) saying how impressively loud we were. I thought as much during the match but didn’t know if that was just from where I sit. Our DA WhatsApp is going nuts today with everyone claiming the same thing. I mean, who’da thunk we could ever hope to drown out Collingwood supporters?! Melbourne fans absolutely brought the noise, it’s something of which we should all be proud af.

Incidentally, Mrs Frittata left her seat to grab something to eat and didn’t see Fritta’s first goal. Of course I was de facto mum and waved his giant head like a fan possessed. She was kicking herself for missing it so for his subsequent goals she ramped it up a notch or 10. I reckon she alone accounted for a huge chunk of the noise. 🤣

Also incidentally, that’s the meekest we’ve ever seen their cheer squad. They were lacklustre compared to usual and weren’t a bigger spectacle than us as is usually the case.

Fun Fact: Ooze’s niece is a Magpie Army member. Was chatting to her in the race and she said how he’s super happy with how we’re going. And that was BEFORE we beat them. ❤️💙

At the end of the sports report on Channel 7 news last night, Tim Watson said he'd been to loads of big games at the MCG but had never heard it louder than what it was yesterday. Deafening.

20 hours ago, titan_uranus said:

I said this in the post-match but I am hopeful that the decision to sub Spargo off, and the lack of impact having one fewer small forward had on us, is a sign that we're thinking now about dropping one small forward and adding a midfielder.

IMO it should be Oliver for Spargo. We lose little forward of the ball and don't have anyone else to drop who is more worthy.

I love Hibberd and have loved his season, and I think right now he holds his spot over Bowey. I'm not sure there's a spot for Bowey anywhere else right now, other than perhaps as sub.

If Petty's fit, I think he gets a run at Casey first. JVR and Smith are doing enough right now. I think we have to reward them and let Petty convince us that he is a forward.

So for me it's Oliver for Spargo and that's all.

I agree with a fair bit of this but I'd be intrigued to see another tweak to our set-up forward of centre once Petty returns - unlikely as that is for the Geelong game.

The main drivers behind this are 1) Spargo's best is great but he's been poor since he managed to get himself knocked out. 2) I don't have faith in Smith as a KPF, especially going into September.

So, I'm wondering how it would look if we replaced Spargo with Smith. We lose a bit on footy smarts, ground ball gets & ball distribution (not losing a lot on Charlie's recent output) but we retain tackling pressure & speed with Smith. He can also push up to perform the connecting role from defence that Charlie sometimes does. Additionally he can give us an aerial option that Spargo can't. As well as that, he could be switched to a negating forward option should an opposing intercept defender (e.g. Tom Stewart) get off the chain so this gives us some strategic versatility as well.

This obviously depends on a couple of other things going right. First, Petty has to continue to develop. He's our best CHB but I think he'll end up being our best CHF as well. Tomo also has to hold his form. The "two talls plus Hibbo" was trialled and in my view made our defence less effective. Old mate Tomo has gone from cast-off to critical in a matter of days !

53 minutes ago, Deebymistake said:

Monkey see monkey do   Collingwood fans should be banned from bringing  (having)  kids.  I have thought this for years.  Or perhaps just ban them from breeding altogether!

Tidied it up for you

Just now, WERRIDEE said:

So the only change for Monday is Hibberd in for Bowey. If Hibberd hasn't got up it could be Disco playing, that's why he may not be named in the team, just guessing.

Disco injured apparently 

Just now, BDA said:

Looked a perfect shepard to me. Bad call

I'm normally happy if the Doggies get stiffed on a free kick but jeez that was harsh 😳 

Some sort of pick-up and goal from Horne-Francis 

1 minute ago, Demonstone said:

His best known nickname of course was 'Conan'.  His inclusion in the Thugs side was a surprise to me.

Shouldn't be on that list.  Bloke was a star and played fair. Conan was his in club nickname as I recall. 

Robbie wore glasses at U19 level.  Not sure about reserves. He'd replaced them with contacts by the time he made his senior debut 

46 minutes ago, titan_uranus said:

I'm guessing you're saying he's not playing well?

2.1 from 8 touches, 3 marks, with 1 tackle, reads pretty standard I'd have thought?

Better than Smith's full game stats last week which somehow got him promoted 🤔 

Wouldn't mind seeing Lachey continue his Ben Brown succession plan. 

Would also be happy to see Darcy Moore emulate his old man's career path. 

23 minutes ago, Demon Dynasty said:

Call me crazy but i've been wondering  do we roll the die this week and rest big Maxy in prep for KB?

Freshen him up, get him super primed and ready to rumble on the big stage.

Just run with Grundy mostly in ruck with a few chop outs from Rooh at CBs & forward 50 stoppages.

He will also get the buy after to freshen up for a big tilt at the 2nd half of season.

Why would you do that  ? Kings Birthday gets massively overrated on here.  It's one game worth 4 points just like any other. 

I'd much prefer to beat those black and white bastids in September rather than June. 

9 minutes ago, Bring-Back-Powell said:

I’m the opposite.

Just give them the flag now and everyone else can take their holidays early. They will beat Brisbane or Port by 50+ points in a GF.

They are scary good and they’d be delighted that Geelong are nearly out of the race. They were the one club that could’ve troubled them.

Hah ! I was raised on Collingwood dominating home and away seasons only to [censored] it up in grand finals.  It's a long established tradition and I hope its due  for a return 

4 minutes ago, dees189227 said:

Put on Sen after the game and hear the Carlton fans go nuts

Would be more enjoyable than watching this game 

If there's any booing I hope it's from Fremantle fans because Jacko is stinking it up.

Perhaps we get a sign saying "We Want Our Teeth Back"  😁