binman

There is also a good chance we won't finish 4th.

X

Such a weird coincidence. Was just about to post almost exactly the same explanation.

Just to be clear. Titan_uranus did not say YOU were insane. Titan_uranus said, and I quote 'I really find this view point insane.' I trust you understand the difference.

Second.

In breaking news, dockers fans showing signs of fatigue. Conversely dees fans get a pep in their step with every game freo lose.

I found it helpful to watch that video at 2x speed. Clarry looks ready to roll.

Too right. How good is it to only have an academic interest in the whole wild card round discussion.

This is genuinely funny post. Comedy Gold. Serious question - obviously an effort to troll, but were you going for laughs or more trying to wind people up? If the former, well played. If the latter, well rita panhini you ain't.

In isolation maybe. But if part of the bigger picture in terms of managing bb's fitness program and readiness for finals then perhaps not. It's about winning the war, not the battles (and it's worth noting in that context that despite that loss, with 5 games to go we are 2 games and percentage clear of 5th and a top 4 lock, so the loss was not a big deal in the scheme of things).

Mmm, i wondered about that. But you're right, if I include fritter, Lever and kiz as A graders, viney is def one too. But if you use AA selection as the metric for A graders, only May, Gawn, Tracc, Lever and Oliver make the list

And i'd add that, even if you argue our CURRENT list is the best in the AFL (and some would no doubt disagree with that assessment), it's not like he's had a list chock a block with A grade talent all his coaching career (unlike say Scott who inherited a flag winning team at the Cats). When goody took over from Roos as senior coach in 2017, this was the team that ran out in round one of that season (from the backline): Alex Neal-Bullen, Oscar McDonald, Billy Stretch Jayden Hunt, Tom McDonald, Jake Melksham Clayton Oliver, Nathan Jones, Bernie Vince Christian Petracca, Joel Smith, Sam Weideman Mitch Hannan, Jesse Hogan, Jeff Garlett Max Gawn, Jordan Lewis, Jack Viney Christian Salem, Jack Watts, Angus Brayshaw, Neville Jetta If you include Salo as an A grader (as i do), the players in that team who are A grade NOW are Salo, Gawn, Tracc, and Oliver. But not one of those four players were A grade in 2017 (or 2018 either for that matter). Gawn was at least a couple of seasons away from being close to the force he is now. Tracc was in his second season, after his first was wiped out by an ACL. Oliver was in his second season, and whilst obviously very good still had a way to go before he could be considered elite. Salo was probably the closest to being an A grader, given it was his fourth season, but his first few seasons were impacted by his thyroid issues so he was a fair way off what his level is now. I think in our current team you could also argue Lever, May, Koz and Fritter are also A graders. But Lever didn't join the dees until 2018. Fritter started his career in 2018, and of course took a few seasons to become the gun he is now. May joined the dees in 2019 (and had a big part of that season wiped out with his hammy issues) And Koz didn't debut until the 2020 season. Maybe if we don't win another flag in the next in five years time you could argue Goody hasn't got the most out our current list, but given the list at his disposal over the seven years he has coached us in TOTALITY, his record is phenomenal.

It never ceases to amaze me the subjective assessment of some dees 'fans' about where we sit relative to other teams is so wildly different to objective fact. By any objective measure we are the strongest, best, most successful team of the last three seasons, inclusive of this season. Assuming the cats don't wn the flag, that will remain true even if we don't win the flag this season (if the lions win it this year they might have a case). Facts are facts. This team is the most successful dees team since the 1955-60 unit. So, the most successful dees team in most dees fan's lifetime We will end this home and away season in the top 4. That will be the third season in a row we have finished top 4 (the last time that happened for the dees was 1957-60). We have been in the top 4, if not every week since the start of the 2021 season, it can't be more than one or two weeks not top 4. Three full seasons of being in the top 4 every week is a phenomenal record, one probably only port and the lions come anywhere near matching - and it's worth noting both enjoy a huge home ground advantage. Finished top of the ladder in 2021 and second in 2022. We will finish at least 4th, but possibly as high as 2nd, in 2023. A flag in 2021. Finals in 2022, albeit it out in straight sets. Finals in 2023. I mean c'mon, there isn't another club that comes close to matching our record in the last 3 years. And of course that includes Collingwood, who have a great home and away record for one and a half seasons. And that's it. Yet for some, we are an average team (a good team doesn’t get beaten by - insert any team outside the top 6 here - !), full of fatal flaws with a coach that infuriates them (he plays favorites!, he is so stubborn!) and a team full of bog ordinary players. Beggars belief. The 'what did the Romans ever do for us' skit in Life of Brian comes to mind.

So much easier draw than 2021 and 2022 - particularly 2022

That's partly true. But i reckon a big factor in the pies run in close game is opponents thinking the pies will run over them. They have won so many games where their opponent has been well on top and essentially chocked. Just this season alone, off the top of my head I can think of the crows game at the g, Port this round just gone and the saints.

Snap.

100% agree we are still experimenting with our line up and method and managing players. In fact i think this touches on perhaps the two biggest changes to how we have gone about things this season - way more experimentation (positional, personnel, fitness program, prep for games eg staying in Geelong - and most of all method) and taking a squad metaility (and the related managing of players and dropping them to Casey - being dropped is not the death knell to a player's chances of returning to the ones it was in 2021 or 2022). But I actually think we need to have our best 23, and the method we want to run with in the finals locked in by the blues game, so we have three games to get it all working how we want it to (i was thinking even the previous week, but that's against the roos and it's in Tassie, so it will be strange game and not really one conducive to practicing the systems and method we want to use in the finals). I don't think one game is enough to bed down systems and method and have the best 23 build synergy. On the best 23, assuming the players are not injured, this is my best guess at Goody will run with come finals (as opposed to what i think should be the lineup): FB Lever May McVee HB Rivers Petty Salem Centre Hunter Oliver Langdon HFF Neale-Bullen Brown Spargo FF Pickett Fritsch Chandler FOLL Gawn Viney Petracca INT Grundy Bowey Sparrow Brayshaw SUB Smith The obvious player missing out in that team is JVR. It would be a big call, but atm, for all the excitement he brings, he is not impacting games enough and he's still a fair way off being able to hold down a key tall forward role in the heat of, say, a prelim final. Which by the way is perfectly fine - he has only just turned 20 and he is at least 3 or 4 seasons away from being the finished product. If Brown isn't where he needs to be come finals in terms of fitness, strength etc then JVR comes in.

I might well be wrong, but i think it does factor in pressure.

That's interesting. I hadn't seen the expected scores, but my guess would have been they were head on expected scores. I don't know what the half time expected score was, but going on this half time info from from the timeline on the AFL app, surely the Crows must have been up at half time on expected scores The accuracy of Melbourne has separated these teams in the first half. Adelaide has scored 0.6 from shots at goal in the 30-50 metre range and Melbourne has scored 4.1 from equivalent shots at goal. The Crows lead 14-10 in shots at goal (including misses)

Yeah, rankin out has certainly dinted my confidence in a crows win a bit. And to be honest I had forgotten about rachelle (geez he would have made a difference yesterday with his class around goals - I'd be filthy with him if I was a crows fan). But I'm still confident they'll roll them. And the reason why is the same reason they really tested us yesterday - their ball movement, clearly modelled on they of the pies, really exposes defensive systems and i reckon Port's defence is their biggest weakness. And I reckon the crows have a good defensive system, which is very much modelled on ours. And they will do good job of negating port's offence.

Agree with all of the above. Not suggesting you are saying the pies are a dynastic team, but the ridiculous hyperbole around the pies has created this equally ridiculous expectation the flag is theirs for the taking. Yes, they are an exceptional team, as evidenced by their brilliant home and away record this season and last. But are they a great team? Not even close. Great teams have a body of work and results they can point to as evidence of greatness. The pies might become a great team, but facts are facts. There are three other serious contenders for the flag. They have only beaten one of them (by way of contrast we have beaten two, including the pies). They have played three finals and lost two. The best you could say in terms of evidence of greatness is, after a dominant home and away season, they will finish top this year and will have back to back top 4 finishes. I'm not saying we are a great team, but we have much better claims to greatness. A flag in 2021, second after the home and away season in 2022 and top 4 again in 2023 (and I think a real chance to finish second again if the crows beat port). And on dynastic teams, the 2018 tigers provide an interesting comparison. The 2018 tigers team also had a dominant season, losing only four games for the season and finishing well on top. The pies will likely lose even fewer games, which is very impressive, and they deserve enormous credit for their consistently high level of performance. Impressive. The difference is the tigers were the reigning premiers, so actually had a claim to greatness. And as we all know that team DID become a great team, a dynastic team, going on to win the 2019 and 2020 flags to add to their 2017 flag. But despite their dominance, and being hailed as all but unbeatable come finals (they 1.70 to win the flag right before the finals commenced), they didn't win the 2018 flag. They didn't even make the GF! In 2018, the two teams that did contest the flag, the Eagles and ironically the pies, finished the home and away season 2nd and 3rd on the ladder having won two and three fewer games respectively than the tigers. By the by, an interesting stat from that year is despite winning two more games than any other team, the tigers only had the second most points for - 2143. Who had the most that season? The dees with 2239 points for. And that despite winning four less games than the mighty tigers. That was goody's second season as senior coach and is a good reminder of his attacking instincts. I actually see a lot of similarities between the 2018 dees team and the crows this season. High scoring, aggressive team who can do damage.

Indeed. A team well and truly on the up who you can see consider themselves contenders. They have the players, game plan, sytem and fitness to be one too. I loved Nicks' comments about how they love playing at the g because of its dimensions, jokingly suggesting he is going to ask them to increase the size of Adelaide oval. My take on those comments was nicks was making a point about their running power and fitness levels. A point he was even more explicit about when he said he expected them to run the game out and come at us. Mark my words, they'll beat port next week.

And here I was thinking I'm pretty laconic. Got that wrong.

Sorry.

I really rate jj, but i reckon he gets lost a bit when resting forward. Just doesn't look comfortable as a half forward. Which isnt a problem if he is a full time mid. But he cant be a full time mid if/when koz gets decent midfield minutes because he had to go forward to cover koz - or at least he did today (i guess he could also go to the wing to cover bench time for langers and hunter). When clarry comes back in it may well be at jj's expense, and I'm starting to think he might struggle to cement a spot in the starting 22 this season.