binman

One thing i think tgat might be in our favour is that teams have generally stuggled after a bye thus year

Were you being deliberately 'condescending'?

Watched the replay. Pies were a bir unlucky in the ladt few minutes but i dont think any of the calls or non calls would have nessarily changed anything - at least not the ones related to the pies. How watts did not get a free against howe for dropping the ball in our goal square i will never know. I watched it a few times and in response to watts demanding to know why a free wasn't paid i think he said he just has to make an attempt to dispose of it. Huh? He dropped it! Cost us a goal. And my line bet! Would have put us 16 points up with only a few minutes to. I waz robbed!

He looked furious after the game. Im guessing at himself. Good call. Start him in the centre at the opening bounce. Or maybe running off tbe back of tbe square and through the contest

Great pick up. I saw it on the replay and replayed it a couple of times. No doubt he was directing oliver as he turned to look at lewis, moved position and yes got the clearance. Great for oliver to have somone oh lewis' experience to learn his craft from

Or for someone 'who can not read the ball in flight'. I watched the replay last night and focused on OMacs game looking for errors (in fact i ended up focusing on the errors of all the players, which was weird). As DA notes there were there were two errors from OMac in the first q from left foot clearing kicks. Funnily enough i had thought (and wrote) both lead to goals when in fact only the second did. The first went to a semi contest that Dunn easily marked - but it was closer to our HF than HB so a pretty standard clearing kick. On both sides i counted about 15 such kicks, including one from Hunt under no pressure who elected not go in board, not down the line and set up Sharenburg for an easy mark. One was from Lewis who had three possessions to half time and one was hack of the ground straight to a pies player. Salem did at least two, one directly causing a goal when he kicked it to a player 35 metres out 9Langdon?). The second did result in a goals and he was bagged by Whispers Watson. What was funny was the ball should not have been with OMac. Viney hacked kicked one from a contest that only went 15 metres and straight to Aish on the 50 metre line, who then pumped it back in. Watson criticized Salem and oMc for not handballing but i wonder if the direction from the coach is actually to try and clear the area with a kick such was the frequency players did such kicks rather than handball. It wouldn't be the first time Watson showed how clueless he is about the modern game. I actually wonder if OMacs harshest critics and/or those who think his first half was poor were watching the game on TV not live and were unduly influenced by the dingbat commentators ('the ball fell in his lap, he just put his hand out', 'you can't teach composure', 'he has to get better' etc etc) who know no more about OMac than they do about where Howe has played in the past, Those two bad kicks were OMacs only errors for the day that i saw - and i watched carefully. Two. His first quarter was actually better than i remembered. Lots of composed handballs and kicks that hit hit targets and a goal saving spoil that he followed up and earned a free kick. He was actually not that involved in the second, but made no mistakes and did his job and had a terrific second half. played well for the rest. He was on Moore for much of the game, however not on either occasion when he kicked his two goals OMac had a good game. Not great, but good. And a much better game than many of his teammates Compare his game to Salem who made at least 6 bad errors and cost us at least 4 goals with two within a minute. Or Lewis who had three possessions at the 10 minute mark of the 3rd, one of which was the aforementioned clanger. Or Hunt who continually kicked the ball to the opposition or helicopters into our forward line to the forward's disadvantage. Or Viney who only had 5 possession to half time, one of which was a clanger. Or ANB who twice missed players all alone in our forward line, Or Frost who twice got tackled trying to break lines, with the second resulting in pies game (which none the less earned praise from Whispers who said that's how he plays) and consistently mistimed his marking attempts.

I reckon ruck forward is perfect for him. Gawn will always need a chop out. Pedo will probably play that role now but as Pedo shows players who work hard and play their role get their chance. Dec can fill that spot nicely i reckon and will get his chance i the future. They won't delist him. Big guys who are mobile and can take a grab are just too valuable in today's footy where they only play one ruck. His time up back won't hurt either. Good education and gives him some flexibility, which s we have seen this year is crucial for big fellas.

I've said it before and ill say it again our biggest issue is our foot skills. Way too many kicks miss simple targets atm for us to go all the way. Perhaps it is handling the adrenaline of the starts of games rather than not being switched on. In this context it was interesting to read goody saying he was deliberately taking a low key approach to the the preparation for this game.

I was wondering who was 'chasing' wattsy. Then i listened to the last 5 mins 3aw call linked above (ta btw). It was adams. Succesful clubs have players who gut run and kick critical goals. Double dose of poetic justice.

Yet some would trade him at year's end. Go figure. He does not get enough credit for his fantastic gut running. There were a number of examples yesterday and that is despite him being treated for back spasms during the game and coming in with a dodgy ankle. There was the the obvious examples where he ended up being involved in the play (once where hit the post from a set shot, the winning goals and getting back to for winning touch on the line). But i have no doubt there were many other examples where he didn't end up with the ball. I say this because TV sucks for watching players and live his gut running is really evident when watching form the top of the Ponsford as i do when i go.

100% agree. Its funny how short term the the media is. A couple of weeks back i was watching a Port game and the commentators were raving about Ryder, gave Port such drive from the center and he was the best ruckman in the league. In the immortal quote fro Repo Man i cal [censored] on that. We will be 20% better with Gawn in the side.

Yes i know, just joshin. Nice to be joking about where we might finish in the 8!

Top 4 would be better!!

i hope not.

Funny you should say that i noticed that but also noticed harmes bounce the ball in similar fashion during his run and carry before passing to jack

Great post. I so wish i was there. Such moments are what make going to games so special. the noise on TV was unbelievable it must have been off the scale at the ground. A couple of things. In this video he said he looked for the options to cross to a an open dees player (of course he did!) but their defenders were shutting down the space (which you can see on the replay). In any case going for goals was the percentage play as he would have to have hit that target who in turn would have had to kick the goal - and one of the options was Bugg (ye gads) The second thing is that i don't reckon he was 'begging for a Pie player to approach him so he could give it off'or that he had a sudden realisation that 'it was he who had to do it. He had to kick the winner'. i reckon he wanted the pressure, wanted to to be the player to kick the winner. Just as he did against GC last year. Goody said as much in his post game presser.

Insert GIF of head exploding. FIRST HALF WAS NOT POOR!!!!!

You ignored two of my key points. Firstly, even with no Spencer they did not need to play him this week. They could have played Wagner who was dreadfully unlucky to be dropped. They only have one tall so no issue there. They didn't not because they had no option as some would like to believe but because he is in their best 22 and want him in the team not because of development but because they obviously think by having in the team it improved our chances of winning this critical match. And they played OMac all last season because.......

As i have been at pains to point out this is simply wrong. They didn't need him this week as they only have Moore and in any case Spencer was fit enough to play if they really felt OMac should not be playing. It also completely ignores the fact that at the start of the season when we had Hogan AND Gawn fit and playing he was selected, just as he was all last year. And next week Gawn or Spencer comes back so Tmac can go back with Pedo playing as the key forward as he did in the second half yesterday. Does anyone seriously think he will get dropped this week? Talk about damning with faint praise

Exactly. Two mistakes, both leading to a goal in the first quarter but did some other excellent things, including a fantastic goal saving spoil running back with the flight of the ball. Salem made a a couple of howlers, Frost twice ran himself into trouble and trac missed two dees players 30 metre out and kicked it straight to a pies player. All cost us goals. M Those two poor kicks were the only clangers he made all game. He saved a number of goals through great defensive efforts and helped set up the match winning goal. Played a big chunk of the second half injured.Salem made others and short armed a contest that cost us a goal. Frost was shaky at times and Hunt coughed up forward entries with really poor kicks all day. Meanwhile in that first half Lewis and Harmes might well have not played. As you say a good 4 Q game from Oscar.

FC ia all about bloody buck's future. Talk about tbe dees!!!!!

I'd love a job where i get paid more that a million a year like Tim Watson and still point out numerous times what a masterstroke it was putting Howe, who 'was a forward' up in the back line. Preparation must getting their mean make up done for the Channel 7 commentary crew. Embarrassing. And what about the producers? What do they get paid? Do you think one might send a message tot he ear piece that roos played him off the hb for a season and a half and that he went to the pies so he could play up forward? Sheesh

Great win. I have not missed seeing a QB match live for years but had to this weekend as i had to go away for a basketball tournament. Got back just in time to watch it on TV. I never go on DL during a match, usually because i'm at the game, but stupidly did so today at the end of the fist quarter, albeit very briefly. Predicable bagging of Omac for his two errors blind clearing the ball with rushed kicks from deep inside 50 (on his left foot both times interestingly). No mention at all of his other excellent defensive efforts in the quarter. An i wonder if there were comments about the defensive errors by Salem and Frost x 2 that cost us goals. Or the woeful kick inside 50 by Trac that cost us an easy goal. Or later in the game the three other times in the game we blindly kicked it from deep inside our 50 (Jones, Lewis and someone else) that didn't come back purely because of luck (one of those times because of a brilliant spoil from TMac halved a contest he should have lost) I had to laugh because at one point Omac took a defensive pack mark and one of the bone headed commentators said it 'fell it into his lap'. Not geez, he read it well, unlike the other players flying for it. I wondered if DL had somehow infiltrated the commentary box such was the obvious confirmation bias. Omac was excellent today. As i have said many times i acknowledge his weaknesses but some of the comments on this site about him not being up to AFL standard, wouldn't get a game in any other team, woeful, etc etc are so of the mark they border on weird. As i have also said many times the coaching team keep picking him and that can only mean one thing. They rate him. Actually two things. Those that say he should not be in the side because he is not up to it are wrong. Plain wrong. They had the opportunity to drop him this week by bringing in Spencer (or Wagner for that matter). Many argued they should have. A season defining game with a top 8 position on the line. With only one big forward in the magpie side. But they didn't. What does that say about how highly they rate OMac? And OMac repaid that faith and proved his knockers wrong. And by by the by may he miss next week because he hurt his abductor near the end of the 3rd or near the start of the last and played the rest of the game under severe duress.

Are you jason?

They might take that approach but if they do they will struggle to score enough to beat us. I reckon to beat us oppos will usuallt need at least 100 points given our attacking game plan