Pates

Seeing Jetta limping a bit at the end of the Adelaide match made me wonder if we might pull him out of the match.

Just a quick positive that surprisingly hasn’t really been mentioned. Cracked 100 points this game, remember in 2018 we did it more than anyone, last year it happened 3 times.

Definitely agree with pretty much agree with all of that. I see him playing about 12 games and probably contributing a couple of goals most games. He’s definitely not the answer to our forward prayers but I think he will be a solid contributor.

Very interesting with no leadership group, I suppose it’s the less is more approach. Gawn captain and Viney as vice is a good choice, fwiw I think Jack will embrace it. I think it’ll sting for a bit but I hope he will also see the opportunity that it provides for him to focus on his game. Congrats big Max, he is the best example of perseverance and change in attitude turning him into the player he is today. What an example to set for the young brigade.

I wouldn’t say I completely disagree with most of your points but I’ll look at these two in particular. TMac looked completely off the pace in the first half, he didn’t seem to know when to make leads or hold back for the long ball. Some of this can be attributed to 2019ish forward entries, neither he nor Brown were given good delivery during that half. Second half though Tom seemed to come into the game more, he clunked some good marks, got hit up on the lead and nailed the goals (most importantly). 3 goals is a decent return for the day given he was absent in the first half. Browns goals you can call them junk time but first quarter he looked like our only forward capable of hitting the scoreboard. Should’ve had 3 for the quarter. For the rest of the day he competed and brought the ball to ground, it wasn’t a starring performance but a decent start to his time in red and blue. We looked particularly scratchy in the first half, our on ballers were consistently second to the ball (missing Gawn) and our field kicking was at times diabolical. I don’t think anyone would be clearing their September schedule off the back of it but a win is a win.

I wouldn’t say he had a great year, but by the very fact he finished 3rd in our B&F you can’t say he had a bad year. He would probably be the first to say he didn’t meet his standards, but to totally dismiss his placing in the B&F suggests that you aren’t seeing things that the coach and match committee rate highly.

I don’t know about anybody else but I was blown away by a number of things. Firstly Burgess and Donahue should be employed by the PLA if they want to employ some torture techniques, wow the boys were absolutely put through some next level fitness stuff that was exhausting to watch! Secondly it was significant looking at the body language when the boys were stuffed, that was a clear improvement on that first session when Darren told them not to fall to the ground with exhaustion, instead they stayed on their feet and got around those that looked to be struggling. The fitness levels are definitely improved at this stage as well. Finally I challenge any dees fan to look and not smile at that part with Kozzie struggling and the boys helping him get through it, and then massively getting around him afterwards. There is a genuine connection between everyone.

Compare the two between him and May Last year, really the only difference is that Oliver was able to continue unaffected aside from a little blood in the mouth (blood lip/cheek perhaps?). One week is fair, as it should’ve been for May but from memory he got two, so Crouch should as well.

Totally agree, I think Trac’s agent might be wanting him to hold off and back him in for a big year to get a bigger return but it would be more settled for him and the team to have it sorted before the start of the year.

So yesterday was the first win I’ve watched in person for at least 5 years, I think possibly 6 years. So from that point of view it was absolutely worth me going out to Casey and I’m really happy for the boys. A lot from the first half that the coaches can dissect for analysis, and some good positives from the second half they can use for positive reinforcement. For me the major highlight was obviously Petracca, there was a lot of talk and hype about him in the summer and yes it was only the first pre-season game but if he’s able to most of what he did on a regular basis then he will be a super quality asset for us this year. His speckie was right in front of me and he set himself really well. Even better he finished the job, as he lined up I said to my mum that this has been a big issue in the past and he nailed it. TMac had a quiet first half (in fact I was say he looked a little lost) but much better in the second, 3 goals is a very promising return and will surely give him a boost. His partner for the day Brown looked comfortable in his position, he competed well and I think is making a strong claim to be in contention for round one. I was absolutely stoked for Jones that he kicked those 3 goals but for me he looked solid all day. I think no captaincy is going to help him. I’m not saying he’s going to be incredible, I still picture at some stage through the year he will lose his spot but he has to earn it and he knows it. Quick positives were Lever and AvB getting though and looking good. Kozzie showing he’s going to be a forward pressure specialist. LJ leaping high in the ruck (and looking solid in there). General increase in pressure acts lifted the team, Viney was especially good at that. Some little concerns, we still look vulnerable when the ball gets out. I feel like two way running was something we were meant to be focusing on and the first half we still looked exposed. First half we were STILL not looking at where the forward entries were going, on a gusty day we were not giving our forwards their best chance to mark it, we weren’t even putting them in a position that advanced them. Ball use and movement still was messy at times, Adelaide used the ball more efficiently and were controlling. I suspect we are still going with a chaotic style we had in 2018, regardless the ball use still has to be good and some usual offenders were making life difficult. Melksham was one in particular hat butchered the ball, I could name a few more but really it seemed to be common. Overall we came away with a solid win, we did most of the damage in one quarter and pressed on against the wind in the final quarter which is good signs for our fitness. Importantly no serious injuries! Good start to the year.

I’ll be happy with Max going solo duties on captaincy. Viney had an average year last year but still managed 3rd in the B&F, his game has to go up a level though, he can’t just rely on doing tough things. Still I rate him and I think he’ll be looking to prove a lot of doubters wrong. Particularly not having to worry about the role of captain.

Totally agree, we’ve had pretty bullish talk from the club and Adelaide are probably in more of a rebuild mode than challenging. I’ve been living in London for the last 3 years and worked a lot of weekends before that I honestly can’t imagine when my last “live” win was. I know it’s pre-season, but I really want to watch a win with my own eyes. I was also lucky enough to see 2 weeks of the season proper in 2018, somehow managed to get two of our worst weeks of the year in Hawks and Tigers.

Thanks for the tips! I think we’ll work of a timeframe along those lines, now 4WD available though so I’m thankful for it not being a wet day!

To those who have been to these pre-season matches at Casey what’s the recommended time to allow before the match to get in and find a park? Also is there much likelihood of a lock out or will rocking up with a membership be fine?

What I’d like: Captain: Gawn Vice: Viney LG: Harmes, May, Jetta What I expect is they’ll go with a group close to that with Gawn and Viney Co-Captains.

The squad is (on paper) a lot stronger than I expected this week. I was expecting TMac, AvB, and a couple of others showing niggles to be given this game off but this could well be a part of the injury management plan in that some may only play a half this week. I mentioned it in another thread that our 2018 success started with some good pre-season wins. Let’s get back a winning mentality! my only game for the year, can’t wait!

I honestly sometimes wonder whether our run of good luck will ever come. Maybe tigers fans were thinking the same thing only 4-5 years ago, but I’m so sick of seeing teams getting to have their best team available while we have to dig deep into the shallow barrel.

Strangely one of the players I’m most keen to see this week is Brown, given our depth issues with KPF and TMac going slowly right now I feel like this is a big opportunity for him to show his worth to the club. Gawn being injured also will probably mean we have to rotate himself, LJ, and Weids through the ruck throughout the match. Bit annoying to see the line that Adelaide has a close to full list to choose from. I just wish we’d get some luck for once.

Aren't Hawthorn looking to move from their current location?

Interesting that he mentioned Bennell at half dozen games being the hope this year, I think it's what most on here had imagined anyway but clearly he and the board have been briefed on what the fitness staff hope from Harley this year. Imagine if those games come from round 17-18 onwards and we are in finals/top 4 contention, it'd be like getting a brand new player at the end of the year.

Let's fly under the radar, bugger em! Clarry definitely should be in the best of the rest FFS though. Well done to Nev, hope he gets through unscathed and represents the club well.

Depends on how this game is being viewed, if it's only an exhibition game that is a bit of fun then sure put in a more even spread of players from teams, but if it's meant to be a showcase of the skill and talent from the best players (which is what SOO is all about aside from rivalry) then yeah it's what they are doing by getting more of the best in there. Not gonna lie, if a few GWS and WC players pick up some cheeky little injuries going into the main season from this I might just have a little rye grin.

I don't necessarily disagree with you and @rjay but the other point is that there have been premiership winners from outside the top 4 in recent season. We should definitely be aiming for top 4, if we're not aiming for the best then I'd be questioning the mentality of the club. But I'm also a realist, and again continuing the analogy I would say that we jumped from crawling to junning and tripped ourselves up, perhaps in order to get to the pinacle we will have to be content this year with walking in preparation for the sprint to the top.

So for curiousity's sake I had a look back at our JLT series in 2018, I couldn't recall how we went. For those that can't remember we thumped North by 53 points and then had a 26 point win over the Saints (3 quarters of good footy but let them back in the game in the 3rd quarter by taking the foot off/throwing players around). A few things stood out from what I read, first off our team for the first JLT was not too far off our best 22. Sadly that won't be the case this coming weekend. TMac and Hogan played together and played well. The following week we were again not too far off a best 22 with noticable outs being Viney, Lewis, and ANB. I guess my point being that the same team that played the week before were able to gain a little cohesion from playing together again. Overall we also had two good wins to start off our year, which I feel set us up with confidence for a good year. Now I'm not saying that winning these upcoming pre-season matches are the be all end all, but I really think that getting any kind of win on the board early will help restore some of the confience we lost last year. it's also important getting match fitness into key players. So it looks like this week we might be a bit light on the troops vs Adelaide; May, Gawn, and TMac being particularly big outs (in both being large KPP and important to the team). Also Brayshaw, though I'm less worried about him because he's still able to maintain his fitness. I think we have to get a minimum of one win from our "official" practice matches for the boys to go into the year with something positive to build on and I really hope those I named just above are able to get in at least one of the official games before the start of the season.

It's ambitious but if we're not striving to be the best then what's the point? Aim high, go for it.