Demon17

Great point QD. I thought the same looking at each from 50 downwards would each player displace a Dees member. Still haven't found one, primarily because each part of the Dees makes up the whole. Who else can gut run and apply pressure like ANB for example?. Not Bailey Smith thats for sure.

Agreed and I noted Scott was a very good coach for all your reasons above. But each year pencil in 9 home game wins and your on a roll. Its a matter of where you land in the 8, not, IF you make the 8. Transitory view of success showed out in the Prelim in an embarrassing manner

Right on all counts CW, but I reckon now the chickens have come home to roost and the cats false sense of entitlement over past lost decade, unsuccessful in GF terms, have left them nowehere to hide now and nowehere to go for next few years. I also suspect their idea of being a detsination club who plays finals won't cut it with top players . Jeremey Camerons ambiton for a flag disintegrated at the hands of the Dees publicly in the Prelim. Window shut that night.

The 'next Dangerfiedl' doesn't grow on trees. They and him had their turn/window and its over. We have the next Dangerfiel (arguably better IMO) - Trac, Oliver, Jackson, Sparow..... Other teams also are better placed in this regard

The above stats are often quoted but an unrealstic guide to the Cats ability . Each season they are 'guaranteed 8 or even 9 wins at home due to the draw not scheduling games against big teams in Geelong. Think Suns, Freo, sydney .... Threats such as Bombers, Tiges, Dogs, Pies rarely ever or never play there over the past decade. Their problem will be in 2022 if the Dees are to play down there. That's one loss coming up. Understandable given crowd size limts. But this skews the outcomes and almost locks in at least a top 8 finish each year, only needing to win 4 or 5 games away from home. Then when the heat is on at the end of the year , it shows. Scott is still a very good coach but its a whole-of-club problem they need to address. The ground dimensions don't help them away either. Their record is an outlier is all I'm saying and not a predictor of finals sucess at the prelim/GF level when they play serious opposition at the G -(or Optus in WA).

Surety the whole prelim finals record would be a signal to them that change is needed. Cats and media see this as a badge of honour. Sen callback yeyerday had plenty of calls about not renewing a membership etc. Unless change comes.

He opted for what he could get and the team he could get to for acceptable money and coming home. Dees were never ever a chance. A deal is 2-way and we had nothing to offer. Everyone's happy at Demonland (to quote Luke Dunstan and to watch the premiership celebrations) But Cerra will always think what might have been I guess. Good luck to him though.

Good call. Kane Cornes raised this issue yesterday. Cerra and Hewitt can't simply go to thr Blues and be nice players doing a role. They must become bona fide stars fro what they are on and what the Blues have given up. . I think he referenced some melb players in comparison, Trac and another, but I may be wrong. I have never seen so many A-graders in the one Dees team as we have now. Its incredible to contemplate 2022.

Thanks. I feel better and your post should be compulsory reading.

Wines actually said that in his brownlow interview. Brownlow or norm smith. ? No contest.

Thanks for this. Imagine the difference in culture and , as he hinted, happiness, compared to the Saints locker room. Got to be part of his thinking. The finals confirmed the potential dynasty next 4-5 years that everypne can see coming. Why not try and be a part of that in the back end of a career?

I trust Jason Taylor and the team for sure but I wonder what the young midfielders (potentially) see in this given they have proven themselves already. Dunstan is walking into a superlative team and I can't see how this makes us better. Depth is everything and we are down one with Nathan Jones gone so maybe its just that.

He can and he will. Proven premiership standard contributor.

Fantastic call DS. I felt that we needed to be 'on' from the start, being used to giving away big leads early in seasons past. Trac's goal said ' here we go', who says we'll be lethargic after 1 game in 28 days crap. and my nerves settlled from then on.

Reasonable transition period and smart management by Pert and others to identify the successor so far out. Burgess was great but he had whole -of- team buy in also, so should work out OK.

Not related to this thread but I was struck how poor a runner Bailey Smith was after half Time. No chasing even in the forward line. Noticed these sort of minor details after a dozen or so watches. Langdon, named by Kane Cornes today as the league's best gut runner, seemed to be on his own all last 1/4, and deep into 3rd.

Your'e right on Montagna 4th Ages. but in analysis he was strong on the ' how to stop lever ' theory as if that was the solution to beating the Dees. Not how good the talent was across the ground, and that nobody had really unlocked the ability to do it anyway.

The theme of his earlier comments was that Burgess was good but won't add anything special that others can't. And mentioned the Blues fitness coach as the best around. It was part of his commentary on the ' times up for delivery' and suspected they may not.

Sparrow is an unbelievable cheerleader on the ground. He jumps in the air and just loves seeing a team mate do something great. Watch his celebration after max's running goal in the Prelim I think.

This one by JTR. It had BT out of his tree and energised the team from any self-doubt. And it was fed of a Trac clearance signalling his intent to deliver. Then daylight. But i can think of 4 or 5 you could argue.

There are a number of media types now with seriously damaged analytical reputatiosn, or better known as wise-after-the-event types. One is NOT Matthew Lloyd. He has been usually on us this year and consistent into all finals against others on various panels he's on. The boys on Kayo/Fox have been very good/accurate too - Healy, Brown, Reiwoldt (and Lyon obviously) But those now on the fringe are IMO Ross Lyon, Kane Cornes, David King, Leigh Montagna, Brownless, Brereton, Kane Cornes gave it to Darren Burgess earlier this year claiming he was over-rated as the best fitness guy around and doesn't do anything special (on SEN around Feb/March) Sucked up nicely to him last week though.

Good call on this. This is the key take-out from the season and the GF Rjay. Just how do you stop the Dees now. Sure, shutting down Lever seems obvious, anyone could tip this (even King), but then what happens next? Lever's great, but not THE key. No-one is. Its the team defence 'stupid', as they say, to paraphrase Bill Clinton. That's the key. To your comments I would add how often do we see Neal-Bullen and even Spargo in the last line. Heaps. Same goes for forwards. Up to 1/2 time in the Prelim we had 8 separate goalkickers for the 9 goals. 2022 will be fascinating to watch how other teams now try to address the new standard to defeat the Dees given the huge self-belief the team will now have and their drive to do it again at the 'G'

Welcome and first post sure ignited some interest. I have never undetstood the INXS thing at port games. They are a perth band originally and the lyrics just pander to power's inadequacy and outdated us against them mentality. IMO. Leave it all down to the grand ol flag. And if the trumpeter ever resurfaces, as the great Terry Wallace said once "...I'll spew up..." and take out a restraining order.

4 frees for. 3 of those were for chopping the arms. Keath was out of his depth.

Of all the stats on here, this is one of the best, and thinking about it seems almost impossible. 24 possessions and 5 goals? BT mentioned another short period during tha game that Oliver and Petracca combined stats equalled the whole dogs team.