praha

Sydney supporters cheering our goal lol

Delivery getting worse as the game progresses.

Why is Vanders on Jetta?

Roos' credibility is on the line. I don't think he's been a very good coach the last two weeks. Our gameplan is shot and choices have been questionable. As a club we can't afford to simply be testing the waters anymore. We need to play to win. The club doesn't have the flexibility or strength to survive performances like this over a long period. We're at the brink as a club and no one seems to care. Is Jackson's plan to revive the club in line with the brand of football Roos wants us to play? Because it's hideous.

Swans are 2 players down and are coming off a slog.last week. They are destroying us. But it's also a matter of us playing awful, accountable, selfish and lazy football. Swans will win by 10 goals. At least.

Seriously, are our players slow in the head?

When's the draft?

Tyson looks like he doesn't want to be here.

This is worse than last week. They'll win by 15 goals.

Worst team in the comp. Deplorable. They actually play like they expect to lose.

Thank christ for our backline. Our midfield is shocking.

No one is flying the flag. Garlett had his head turned off and no one even went over to him. This team has gone back into its shell.

How many inside 50s? 2?

Same team. Zero improvement.

Our team has the combined football iq of an under 10s player.

I'd be very disappointed if we lost by more than 4 goals tonight. Anything less than a crack and some venom would be disastrous. This club needs to turn a corner. Tonight can be that corner. I'm not expecting much, though. I actually predict an 8-10 goal loss. We still can't score and our midfield is inept. If it rains, we might be a chance. Dogs looked flat in the 2nd half today. But Swans are as well drilled as you get.

The Dogs had a great win in a slog against the Swans at the SCG. They were flat in the 2nd half today. Had to be expected that the Saints would come back in some capacity, sure, not necessarily win, but definitely cut the margin. Saints should have won last week against Essendon. We can't win at Etihad, can't beat the Saints, can't win in Perth, can't win in Sydney, can't beat top 8 teams. Saying they've both "gone past us" is completely fair. What have we done to say otherwise? Beat a divided GC at the MCG, and an unsurprisingly fickle Richmond? Get real! Tonight is our test. We need to have a "turnaround" game. Nothing has really suggested the "turnaround" the club needs has happened.

Great win by the Saints. Leaped over us now. Better percentage. If we lose tonight our % could fall to 70% range.

Saints and Bulldogs have both overtaken us. Obviously the Doggies have, but the Saints have shown plenty this year. Last two weeks they've been great.

Cross walking would not be good. He's been an immense help down back and also in the middle. He's tired and limited but he's reliable and committed. Until our depth improves we need the likes of Cross to hang around as long as possible.

GWS needs to start getting people to their games before they start championing the "success" call. Even a premiership this year wouldn't get people to their games. I'm still convinced they'd have been better off going to Canberra and staying there.

It's really not rocket science: play good football and the people will come and watch. Part of Collingwood getting a loaded fixture during an era where media exposure is so important is because they have been good for going on a decade. Geelong, Hawthorn are no different. Carlton was shocking in the 00s and it took them 2-3 years of consistent footy to get back in the limelight. I imagine that this year will be the last that they get so many Friday night games. If Collingwood was in the same situation I can assure you no amount of membership numbers would gift them primetime games and fixturing. It's a myth to suggest that only the "big" team get the benefit of fixturing and exposure. It's the "good" teams, nothing more, nothing less. If the AFL could have predicted how the season would be after 6 rounds, don't you think Footscray would have been on Friday night the past 5 weeks instead of Carlton? A big support base is important. If you play attractive, good, successful football, the fans will come. If the fans don't come you don't get money and can't build a team worthy of playing good, attractive, successful football. What comes first: the chicken or the egg? Melbourne has had a coach and administration handed to it by the AFL. I'm unconvinced that the league's charity helps those at the bottom end of the ladder, both on-field and off. I personally find "equalisation methods" to be nothing more than a PR exercise. The league imo should be more punishing to those clubs with poor administration. I say that because Melbourne has been an indictment on the league for the past four seasons and the turnaround is still a long, long way away. And by "punishing" I mean not directly getting involved. Because Melbourne has been receiving league funds for decades and imo that's created a culture of dependence. It's like when you start a blog: you don't ask, "How can I make money from my blog?" You ask first, "What do I have to do to get an audience? What do I have to provide?" In AFL terms, that answer is good football. Melbourne hasn't had any less access than any of the top teams when it comes to talent. They've just been run by amateurs. No amount of "equalisation" has countered that.

I wonder how people would feel if Melbourne were at the top and raking in the money? Don't forget that Richmond was smothered by debt only a few years ago. Collingwood finished last and was on the brink in 99 until Eddie took over. No amount of big supporter base was helping them at the time. Good management and hard work = success. I completely sympathise with him that big clubs are punished for the ineptness of those at the bottom. Is Melbourne a "minnow" club because it has a small support base, or because it's been run by amateurs? Let's get real, here. I'm not entirely against equalisation but I don't believe in the "throw money at clubs" idea. Hawthorn was on the brink of a merger in 96 and look at where they are now, compared to us. Small clubs don't have an excuse anymore. The audience and support is there.

In Round 1, this was "the strongest team we've fielded in years". In Round 6, we're suddenly "not a very strong team". Jamar is 30+ years old. We need to prepare for life after Jamar. Spencer and Gawn *need* to play and find a place in AFL football. We don't have another choice. Jamar has been dropped. He hasn't been rested. What does he do that's any better than what Spencer can do? Let's not pretend like Jamar has ever been a turning point in a match for us. We need to find a way to get experience into our ruckmen. Spencer has played 5 seasons. Let's compare him to Jamar's first 5 seasons. Hitouts: Jamar - 11.3, 7.3, 7.5, 10.2, 9.7 Spencer - 12, 20.1, 26.6, 28.6 (didn't play in 2011) Disposals: Jamar - 6, 4.7, 3.4, 4.4, 6.2 Spencer - 7.5, 9.3, 10, 8 Spencer undoubtedly needs time in the AFL now. He is Jamar's replacement. Deal with it. Jamar's inclusion in the team isn't going to help us win games. What have we got to lose then? Spencer is the player we drafted to replace White, not Jamar. He's taken long to come on but his time is now. I am encouraged by him being in the side. Spencer isn't great, but Jamar is worse imo seeing as how average he has for a a player with 13 years experience.