RalphiusMaximus

Brilliant move by the club. Not only in building the culture of the club and showing respect for a long-serving former captain, but also in setting up a PR bonanza when they trot him out for his 300th next year. Assuming we're allowed at games by then, the members will come out of the woodwork to cheer him on. Plus it will be a solid coaching internship for him.

I guess he plays some ok football, but he's absolutely killing it in the WAG stakes.

Interesting that Melbourne have three of the top ten on that rating.

I saw a very interesting interview with Oliver either early this year or last year. He talked a lot about how he doesn't like changing things and how settled he is at the club. He has his routine, he comes in on his days off and works out in his gym on his machines etc. The overriding impression I got was of someone who doesn't like changing things and had pretty much grown roots where he was. I really don't see him wanting to leave.

Just in isolation for COVID. It'll be back soon.

So for once the MFC is setting the example for the rest of the sides?

That's hilarious given the number of frees they failed to pay to us, not to mention a clear mark that they called touched then paid two identical marks to the bombers in the next couple of minutes. For my two cents' worth: I think Brown was up for it today to show his old side what they had lost and it was great to see. A huge game from him. Fritta needs to be put in the hands of a seriously good kicking coach to sort out his set shots. He should have had five today. Also a good gym program. If he can put on a little muscle and improve his fitness he'll be a great player. Baker is starting to look like he fits at this level. Has great pace and neat disposal. If he can improve his positioning to get more of the ball we're on to a good thing. I agree that Smith is not worth a spot in the side right now. He is a physical beast, but nothing much else. Overall, we basically played one quarter and trod water for a half and still won the game. You can say that we were ok or that the bombers were terrible. Possibly both.

More to the point is the number of people leaving Brown out of their votes! 20 disposals and 13 marks as a high half forward/CHF. He had a huge game.

Well, Pert was talking about playing a recognisable brand of footy... This is ours right here. We dominate the play but don't put the opposition away, then have a five to ten minute lapse where the opposition score heavily to snatch the lead off us.

WTF was that? Seriously. Against a side like that, we played the most defensive set-up we've seen all year and concede the entire back half of the ground to them so they can chip it around and rack up the uncontested stats. IF ever there was an occasion to attack the game, today was it. That was just tactically backwards from Goodwin. Horrible tactics, horrible skills, terrible game all around. There were only a few who actually put an effort in.

Bring on the Yze. He's highly rated, he's had a long apprenticeship under Clarkson and he was an exceptional kick. Just what we need.

One big wrap for Smith. He took on three or four opponents for a ground ball and managed to force a ball-up. It was his one shining moment, but it was something the rest of the team lacked for most of the day. If he had the skills and football smarts to match his power and athleticism he'd win a Brownlow.

I just have a really hard time accepting those missed shots. Unprofessional, horrible basic skills, choking under pressure... Good sides don't do that.

Can we get Jack Watts back?

He worked hard, he got lots of ball and lots of ground, but in terms of the scoreboard, his contribution is basically the winning margin for the Swans. His man kicked two goals (from uncontested marks) and set up two others. Langdon missed two set shots, one of which resulted in a goal to the swans, and had no assists. He's not alone in that by any means. Jones cost us two goals and plenty of other people missed easy shots, but I do factor it into my assessment of his game.

The problem is he's now seen as our most dangerous forward. Coaches are putting extra time and effort into stopping him, which means he's getting a lot of extra attention from defenders who are significantly bigger and stronger than him. To make matters worse, for a period there Goodwin was sending him up a creek without a paddle by clearing out the forward 50 and making him play as the sole FF against multiple opponents because we didn't have any other in-form forwards. Basically, he's been asked to shoulder too much of the forward-line's load and needs the other, bigger forwards to step up and occupy the defence so he can get on his bike and play his game.

I'm surprised at the love for Langdon. His man got away from him in their 50 repeatedly and in return he missed his chances in attack for us.

I'd like to see Bennell play a few more games, especially given his winning % for the team, but if he doesn't that's cool. He's still not there with his body. Needs to put on a bit more muscle and get more miles into his legs. The fat that he's been playing as much as he has this year is a great sign. Also, His physicality and defensive pressure is a complete non-issue for me. Sure, it would be great if he was a tackling machine, but that's not what he was drafted for and it's not what we need him for. He's on the list because he's a great ball-user and a smooth outside runner. He's the creative cog we're missing. Why try to make him into something he's not? Just use the player he is.

The two guys who missed set shots from inside 20m in the last. Both of those misses went down the other end and ended in goals to the Swans. They are responsible for 23 points in Sydney's favour from two shanked kicks.

Give it time. I think Picket has shown us enough to think he'll be pretty good when he gets his strength and fitness up to the level we need.

Someone hire Yze to coach the team.

Well, that was certainly a throwback to the worst of Melbourne. Those directionless bombs forward just killed us. Poor kicking all over the field, bad decision-making, tackles not sticking... All the good stuff. One thing I feel the need to point out. Whether it's a good thing or a damning indictment? Maybe both? Anyway, those two sitters missed by Gawn and Langdon both resulted in the Swans taking the ball down the ground and scoring goals. Obviously it's a flawed bit of thinking, but if we were to add those missing 10 points to our score and delete the 13 points the Swans got from them, it's another narrow win to us. Obviously those weren't the only goals we missed today, but they were probably the worst. More importantly, the top sides don't miss those shots. It's just a fact of life. If a Geelong mid has a set shot from 45m directly in front, you're going to back them to put it through the middle. If they have a set shot from 25-20 out, you'd more or less put your house on it. With us it's always a coin toss and today more of those tosses went the wrong way. The same with West Coast. Maybe not Hawthorn any more, but certainly before they started to slide. It's such a basic. fundamental part of the game and getting it wrong is unforgivable. It's the same thing my old squash coach used to say. Serving a fault is completely unacceptable. The serve is the only shot in the game where you are in complete control. You can put that ball anywhere you want without your opponent influencing it in any way. The same holds true for a basic set shot. You are in complete control of what you do with the ball. Nobody can tackle or push you. It is completely unacceptable for these players to not be able to convert such basic chances and it's something that no professional player should ever mess up. </rant>

He did have a pretty crap game. Only nine disposals is way below par for him.

Much as I love his pressure, I think it's time for Pickett to have a break. I'd be thrilled if Bedford got a game in his place, but that's pretty unlikely. Much more likely to see ANB back in the side in his place. Hannan was pretty bad today. There are only so many turnover merchants we can cope with in the side and he didn't give us anything in attack. I think he's going to struggle to keep his spot and probably goes out for Fritsch. I'd love to see Harmes go back in as the defensive mid/tagger. He was so damaging in that role and for some reason they decided to change things up. Unlike many, I don't mind OMac. I think he's useful structure-wise. His defensive mindset helps balance out May and Lever and allows them to attack when they need to. Wagner on the other hand has to go. He was slow, fumbly and his kicking isn't great. Sadly, I suspect Hibbo will also be out. Lockhart comes in for him. So where does that leave us? OUT: Pickett, Hannan, Wagner, Hibberd IN: ANB, Harmes, Lockhart, Fritsch. Looks about right to me.

Funny thing. If you look at the young core group they are all getting up around that 100 game mark now. Salem, Harmes, Petracca, Gus and Clarry are all right around that mark. You'd almost think this whole idea of bringing together a core of quality players and getting them to their prime at the same time is working.