Macca

Pointing out the errors of one particular player when all our players make the same sort of errors (or perceived errors) is poor, overall analysis Collectively we made close to 80 clangers against Gerlong yet many here only want to see the perceived mistakes by one player Besides which, players need to take risks and use the corridor and we have many players who give up on the contest when they have to work hard to at least halve a contest You want lace-out passing on a wintry rainy night, you're dreaming. And if supporters want safe boundary hugging footy, you will lose I'll say it again ... the 2 Brayshaw turnovers were the fault of the recipients not Brayshaw The first involving Rivers saw Rivers not put his body on the line as he allowed the Geelong player into the marking contest and the 2nd involving Petty saw Petty give no effort at all. Petty couldn't be bothered Viney, Petracca & Oliver consistently turn the ball over in the same way on a constant basis yet they never cop any heat Viney, Petracca, Sparrow & Hunter had 22 clangers between them against the Cats. Where's all that talk? Fritsch got caught playing from behind at least a half a dozen times against the Cats but cops no heat. Scoring opportunities wasted time after time Our forwards give up numerous scoring opportunities simply by not playing in front. Time & time again Can we talk about that stuff as well? Because, to be fair, that needs to be talked about So why is it always Brayshaw only? And why can't people here also talk about all his good footy? Why does all his good work get completely ignored? If people are fair, right across the board and noted all the errors by all our players then so be it. But that needs to happen - fairness And if we are going to be fair, every single mistake or error has to be counted. Nothing can be left out as highlighted by our forwards often playing from behind (which directly effects a scoring opportunity on each occasion)

Yes and you mentioned that you were going to compile a list of unforgivable errors Do that but you might get questioned about your criteria For me a forward trailing his defender to the ball is a huge error ... but are those types of errors recorded? Probably not Another is a player calling for the ball and then making a half-assed effort if the kick to him isn't lace out. Soft Players not making a contest when they are out of the marking dual? I see that happen all the time Smith missing from 10 metres out at the start of the game was unforgivable ... just turn at the goals and kick it over the goal umpires head for pete's sake (whilst taking contact) Instead of that he tries some unrealistic elaborate hook kick that missed. A Coach killer

Fair enough @Demon Dynasty Often feel that permanent forwards need to get their hands on the ball early just to get them into the swing of things Especially the KPF's but the small forwards can go cold if they aren't getting opportunities By the way, the game had 142 clangers last night. A game riddled with errors & mistakes As previously stated, if we were to highlight all the mistakes made by all the players in great detail (instead of just highlighting the errors made by one particular player) the thread would go on forever

Yet we defeated the Pies without Oliver

That's right and we can only cover for Oliver for so long before his absence gets exploited

Yeah the reason why the obvious needs to be said is that too many want to focus on inconsequential subject matter like a player here or there making the odd error Big picture says that the connection from the mids to the forwards needs to be addressed

We really missed Oliver last night after Viney was so very good against the Pies And Oliver is a real last quarter crunch-time player ... he plays and we're at least closer Can't have an elite player like him out for too long as when you play the better teams they will exploit his absence The unanswered question is why Kozzie isn't being used in the middle for that x-factor or to just change things up. Get him into the play to get his numbers up I say. Just hands on the ball with a receive-and-go would help

Even with all the outs we outplayed the Pies with our all-over defensive game The forwards kept the ball in and we functioned well all over the ground It was our best game for an age and we proved that we've still got it. However, the Pies didn't pressure our mids enough where as other teams have done The margin should have been far greater, all the same We are a bit Jeckyl & Hyde this season and that can often happen to premiership teams but usually the following season If we can somehow sort out our forward line we are in with a big chance as we have a stellar defence along with an excellent midfield 2 major strengths and a not so good one The rucking and the pairing of Gawn & Grundy is still a work in progress but if we can get that working well that's another big plus

I'd be happy with 1 or 2 of them Neitz and either Schwarz or Farmer. Robbo flew from behind a bit but he took a stack of marks on the lead Just give me Neitz and then all the rest of our current crop play better as a result

I still believe we can win it all but we need to bring our best (see the Pies match) At issue in the Collingwood game was our kicking for goal ... midfield delivery was quite good and our forwards competed well Our structures were very very good Against the Cats in the wet last night, we didn't perform Our run home should see us secure a top 4 spot. It's not a tough draw from here on in

Good points I also reckon that certain teams know what our Achilles heel is so they flood back even more or force us wide on entries (or both) They know our defence is stellar and our midfield is very good but they pressure our midfielders with our inside 50 entries knowing that our forwards don't work hard enough

Maybe they don't trust him yet or maybe Smith leading was too much of a shock for them!! I'm not being serious as that is a good observation of yours. Our midfielders do spray it forward a bit but again, all our forwards small and tall should be making multiple leads on a constant basis The bit I observe is that our forwards don't anticipate the ball coming in ... often left flat-footed Oh for the days of Neitz, Schwartz, Farmer & Robbo They'd be handy now

The season isn't over yet

Fingers crossed we get either Brown or T-Mac back but both players need to prove their fitness and then they might be rusty Petty forward with Tomlinson to go back. I like Smith's eagerness and he competes ok. Not sure he is a forward though (that can be a go-to player on September JVR is still just a raw talent who needs more time. That time could come quick though. At the moment he gets caught playing from behind too much and I reckon that's due to his inexperience. The rest of our forwards should know better I don't understand why they don't make multiple leads. Has to be related to how they are coached (but not coaching alone)

Also believe that if we are going to highlight player errors, we here have an obligation to talk about the good play from those said players (ANB, Brayshaw, T-Mac are 3 players where often only their errors are talked about) Errors are related to risks. No risk, no reward. Pies & Port take chances constantly ... sitting 1 & 2 on the ladder But our forwards are not adhering to the fundamentals. Not being visible is a huge issue for midfielders ... if they look up and can't see a Demon jumper leading towards them, what are they supposed to do?

If you are referring to the kicks to Petty & Rivers, both recipients were at fault Besides which, all the players turned the ball over last night so why single out one player? How about we lay the blame everywhere? (Taking into account that it [censored] down all evening and there are going to be turnovers) And I like players taking chances and taking on the corridor If you don't like that go back and watch our boring boundary hugging football in 2012/2013 You don't win not taking risks

In 2021 our forwards were on the move especially during the finals. Therefore the ball was kicked to those forwards Result - Premiership Now our forwards are like statues Back in 2021 Brown led up and nearly always played in front. T-Mac the same and he constantly created separation What have we got now? If you can't see the difference I can't help you

Gawn needs to create seperation and lead up to the ball carrier If he does that the midfielders will kick it to him. Forward line play 101

It's not 2 spearing passes to the opposition every week. Didn't happen last night at all, for instance The Rivers one was Rivers' fault as was the Petty one (Petty's fault) ... as for Smith, how does a player miss from 10 metres out directly in front? That was pathetic and is a far bigger issue Like T-Mac when he played back, those disposals ending up with the opposition instances are exaggerated. Then group-think takes over and before you know it, players are labelled as turnover machines And no, I'm not a Brayshaw super-fan. Just a fair-minded individual So go and watch the game again and point out the 2 x 40 metre spearing passes to the opposition.

I don't like to see the shoosh anytime. Just don't do it should be the instruction Getting your mind on your role should be the message. Over-celebrating makes me cringe Must be a millennium thing

The midfielders delivery is dependant on forwards creating separation and leading up to the ball carrier We don't do that so the midfielders (under pressure) often has no other choice but to kick long to deep forward We need 2 key forwards who can lead the way (JVR needs time and he is not guaranteed to be a success)

I don't like the shoosh. Arrogant and entitled. Needs to go. Now And Brayshaw takes chances which is required. Go down the line Neeld-style and the Cats will simply punch it out of bounds and we lose possession As previously stated, you call for the ball, you get it. Rivers & Petty both gave up when the ball was kicked their way from Brayshaw. And they both called for the ball (by default by simply making position) But it's our forward line that continually lets us down. They don't step up when it gets hard Midfielders delivery can be better but we don't offer multiple leads up forward. We are lazy and need it gilt-edged Our best forward in terms of leading patterns and making position is a midget (Spargo) ... but that doesn't work because he is too small

You're looking in the wrong area when our real issues are up forward and have been for an age Our forwards like it on their own terms and haven't been able to step up when our midfield and/or our defence is not at their best Every loss we have sees the same glaring issue - forward line How can you not see that? Are you watching the game properly?

Ha ha! No just someone who obviously sees the whole game better than you do Try watching without anyone in the gun one time. You might then see what our overall issues are Your Brayshaw bashing is churlish & childish

We are too reliant on our backline & midfield. Forward line collectively is hit and miss