Akum

"Careless" is the weasel word there. MRP too gutless to call a spade a spade.

Nailed it. I think the effort was there, they just wanted to set up the "perfect" entry into 50, rather than just getting it in there quickly. Played right into their hands. Need to see more smart-intensity and less stupid-intensity.

Astute coaches (Hardwick, Lyon, Clarko) are now playing the same way against us. They have not just one spare in defence, but 2 or 3. They know we're such a good contested-ball & clearance team, but the one place where they can reliably win the ball against us is from our horrible delivery into our 50. Their extra numbers not only win them the ball, they allow them to run it through our ultra-high press in a breakaway. Goody et al simply have to work out what to do when there are 8 or 9 defenders against 5 forwards, because bombing it on Hogan's head ain't ever gonna work when he's triple-teamed. And it seems we're more comfortable with brave losses than actual wins. It could be argued that we've outplayed the other side in every game (certainly statistically we have). We're the kings of outplaying but losing, and that's a real concern, because it means that other sides don't have to outplay us to beat us.

Dogs absolutely smashed them in general play for 3 quarters, just couldn't put it on the board. And whoever thought up that ridiculous tactic of playing Lin Jong in the ruck should be put in stocks outside Footscray Market and pelted with rotten fruit and veggies the whole week. Richmond play a bludger's game - super-flood their defence, then attack via breakaways. Their fans call it "rope-a-dope" because it relies heavily on the other side playing stupid and not thinking it through. It's the way you play when you got nothin'. Once they get worked out, like Port did in 2014 (?), they'll reach their true level.

We still should have beaten them. We certainly outplayed them.

Dogs are really making the Tiges look much better than they are. Some of the Dogs' decision making in the last half has been terrible.

Rance is actually lousy one-on-one. Which is why Hogan and Watts have killed him when they are able to go one-on-one with him. He's only good when he can be spare man, or third man up. His main skill is reading the flight of the ball. And Richmond set up their defence to leave him as the spare. That's why he gets so [censored] off when his lack of contested ball skill gets shown up. He's a massive fraud. I can't remember seeing a more over-rated player in over 50 years of watching footy.

He wasn't just bombing it into the clouds this week, he was kicking low & hard especially into the forward line. I'm not a big Viney fan but he was very good after half time.

Yeah, sounds about right to me. My best mate's favourite player was Alves, was shattered when he left, then it was Wells, was shattered again. A very tough period. Gary Hardeman was another absolute A-grader, I can't remember him ever being beaten at CHB, although he played on some great CHFs. He was one of the few who could compete on equal terms with the likes of Royce Hart.

Was it Alves, Wells & Flower across the centre? Surely one of the best centrelines of all time.

You could say that Elliott was the first effective tagger, although he was much more than a tagger (pure taggers don't get 40 possessions). My Grade 6 teacher was Bob Murray, the St Kilda full-back in the 60s & 70s (remember Mike Williamson's "Hit the boundary son!" in the '66 GF?), and we used to go & watch him play, so I had a bit of a soft spot for the Saints at the time, and knew their players. He played in the centre, against some of the absolute stars of the game, and would just play them one-on-one, and absolutely smash them. He'd hold them to a handful of possessions & get 25-30 himself. He was slow, an average kick, not a great mark, but just got the job done week after week. I think he got a knee injury just before he came across to us, and only played a season or so before injuring his knee again.

Is he OK Drunk'n? Is there some sort of curse on tall players at MFC this year? Should we blame Col Garland for starting it off??

Glenn Elliott - another one of my favourite players. I liked him at the Saints and loved it when he crossed over. Used to work with my mum, she couldn't speak highly enough of him as a person.

This game (Norf vs Suns) sets the high water mark for how many dubious frees can be paid in a team's forward line. If Hogan ever gets as much help from umpires in a game as Ben Brown, he'll kick 10.

Is the VFL in that much trouble that they have to suck up to Richmond supporters?

I suppose it's less disorientating having the old Old Dee back. But I also kinda liked that other sunny guy that was around for a month or two.

In your last few posts you've got the JKH / Stretch / Kent equation absolutely right. And this is only for this week, when off a 5-6-day break and without a recognised ruckman, we play a team that likes to attack fast off its HB line. It certainly doesn't mean that it's the way it's going to be in every game.

They can adjudicate however they like, as long as it's consistent over the course of a game. If they're tough on deliberates for one team early in the game, they have to carry that through the game. If they were at least consistent, it would be much less of a problem.

... as do the Dogs. So what?

Do we have a no-DH clause? GWS obviously don't.

Dogs definitely have their measure though.

Seemed to give Patton a heap of time too. No way was he taking a shot at goal from where he was. Should have been six seconds.

Umps will get the Pixies across the line from here.

This team gets everything handed to them on a plate. Makes me sick.

Who wants Toby Greene now? Most cowardly thing I've seen for decades. He thought he'd blindsided the umpire. What a ...