Tolstoys Nudge

Hallelujah! Exact points I was just making to a colleague — There’s time, it’s a long long year.. it ain’t over by a long shot! Sure we’re playing poorly, but our best is only a game away each week! Let’s all take a breath, and know even if we don’t find our form — we have the players, the weapons & the time to be a dynasty and then some yet.. need we go into our players under 50 games spiel? it could be a disaster year, like 2020 — we all know how the end of that year played out and what occurred following! But it could also be a year of turning it round when it matters and when it is most suited towards finals.. let’s see

I’m not disagreeing, it’s bloody horrific and aggravating but it is what it is — we should of beaten them in the finals and we DIDNT and nothing so we’ve every gonna change or rectify that in our bleeding hearts.. no names in ROLE PLAYER slots, not in important posts — Harrison has looked a player for weeks, as has several others they’ve brought in, like many WE have brought in — but their system execution was just far superior and they kicked goals from EVERYWHERE yet again.. why? Cus they’re CONFIDENT!!! u think it happens weekly by chance??? Go watch their last 200 goals, their goal-kicking is INCREDIBLE

Well you don’t fix it per se, you play through it & eventually it shifts! Im not optimistic, im purely basing this on fact that basically EVERY single team has a bad 3-5WK period across last 24m, and some longer than others — but without drastic list changes or new coach etc all of those sides have worked through it, inc Collingwood whom when healthy were 0-4! No they’re bagged up and WINNING! Cats, Blues, Lions, Swans, Dogs, Bombers You name it, sure the Freo loss was an outlier but that’s what can happen fast in modern footy when one team steamrolls another mid-game and has a run of conversion and luck, they’re able to compound and pile-on fast! Doesn’t mean we’ll 💯 turn it around but it does help offer perspective — with basic conv yest could’ve been a while diff game, not talking expected score, I’m talking purely based on if we’d taken some chances, Trac didn’t get a car-crash type injury, etc we might’ve gotten some confidence and made a run! Time will tell, but green-shoots WERE there to see yesterday that’s just a fact. I’m as angry and frustrated as anyone, but what other options have I got? Wallow? No thanks.

System? Today wasn’t about system as much for me — more about errors, confidence and hesitancy when we need to play with certainty

You don’t think combining took a step fwd today? You’d prefer your leader to fall into a heap would you and say we’re knackered? 🤔 — Jvr — i50 count — Contested possession— Nibbs — Clarry — Kossie flashes — Max — Windsor — May 2nd half ALL steps fwd don’t care what ANY of you say.. Sucks to be sure but forgive me if I’m glad he doesn’t look worried or broken.. that’s for some reason what many wanna see — bizarre!

Without reading any of the predictable responses I thought today was a side zapped or bereft of confidence that’s having their weaknesses exponentially exposed by that. If you look again at the incredible chances they took versus ones we didn’t it’s hard not to see players dropping their head & effort then becoming an issue which for me, despite goody saying it wasn’t, it was in patches. We can’t kill a single ball that’s deep d50 right now, we can’t make hand passes in-tight, we can’t convert easy basic chances — even posters alone today means it’s a diff game if they go thru. It really is a small margin league and unlike Collingwood we need our stars playing well always have or were in trouble so we’re feeling that right now & whilst I’m nowhere near giving up, I do see how easy it is for ppl to fall into trap of tho king it’s worse than it is. The in game swings are a major player in modern footy look at swans yest, nearly smashed but take chances and then our score cats by 12g like it’s nothing! Inside 50 conversion remains the issue but at least we got it in there today, and had a fwd show all he’s a bonafide STAR about to pop-off big time. Adding Lever and Trac helps, Kossie is close to really becoming the great he was always destined to be, but boy it’s tempting to only see the trees right now! But again it’s a small-margin game & I still have belief it’ll turn, our confidence is shot atm, we need a circuit breaker, energiser.. Clarry looked better too, don’t give up, be annoyed upset be livid but don’t fall into the trap it’s all lost.. cus that absolute easy and poisonous greed in my view.

This post at least feels like being solution focused for once! But it’s more than that — this is effort based, and that’s behind coaching or game plan. Recruiting will help, but we’ve gotta identify the cancer first

Yeah it’s garbage.. lol Not the players missing easy shots easy tackles etc it’s binmans positivity that you take umbrage at.. unreal

Let’s hope and be ready to relish that.. Max on MMM was quite soothing.. apart form his issue re recent games margins — was off by about 30 points in 3/4 games he mentioned but maybe that speaks to his feeling in those games and how bad he felt we were 😂

So we should’ve delayed the guy who’d been nothing but a loyal integral part of our squad, who’s contact has 5yrs to run, cus we thought his scan would come back and lead to retirement? How exactly would we have done that champ? Mamma Mia

A bust? Wowsers.. just.. wowwell down for quoting this with composure mate.. unreal

Thanks for making a factual, reasonably sensible argument re our midfield! Whilst I disagree that it’s a midfield issue, it’s a very good well-made point

Don’t anyone would see it that way.. anything less than a Prelim will bring immense dissection and inescapable scrutiny

Disagree — Gus and club were absolutely blindsided by the scan results, as it was first concussion in 5yrs! Club couldn’t act even if hey did know, as AFL still hasn’t fully finalised how his salary cap $$$ will be managed! SL that’s a totally inaccurate and flammable argument!

Not a bad point but I think with JVR back it’s unlikely — that’s more one for when/if we start going down the off-season surgery road by round 19 etc I think but who knows I guess it’s possible! I don’t think we’ll see wholesale changes but I do expect a debut.. AMW/Brown my guess, maybe Fullarton to give Max a chop-out and not have to have JVR ruck.. maybe Howes for Hunter, or Billings I suppose.. I think it’s wrong-round to debut a skinny key fwd! I'm gonna guess 3 changes max! Lord I hope I’m right & we respond, I still think the WCE game was worse — we packed this one in and they had all hail-Mary’s cashed.. we were flat as a tac etc but one thing is, we WILL find out either way!

You’ll need a bucket-load of condiments for that one amigo! I’d be going truffle oil and mayo.. but whatever it is, choose wisely!

Yes the body language is really poor that’s absolutely true & is a worry but then.. imagine playing in this.. wld you be up and about? don’t forget we lost 2 best 22 players before a game was played.. that we had no chance of replacing due to them being post-post-season! We’ve got holes but we’ve also got plenty of talent to re-load with even IF this year goes pair-shaped! Blues supporters were burning their memberships this time last what, LONG down and beaten, no evidence at all of it being darkest before the dawn.. GWS even More so — they had a new coach close to sacked.. how’s that work out? Mercy me why do some feel they have the privilege to just bash a club they allegedly support while others must suffer & grin and bear it? Have some civility & poise, that’s all I think the club would ask.. don’t be the blues fans that had to ask for a new membership card for finals tickets cus they ‘lost it’..

Hahahaha you’re surely kidding! Kick 5% straighter and we beat the pies you silly bugger! What an overtly ignorant comment.. but I feel your pain, It’s shizen it really is.. but it is also a one-off for the last 4yrs & that in-and-of-itself is a statement! I mean — Darcy looking like Gawns daddy is actually real you think is it? Amiss is far too good for May is he? Come on bud, you know it’s silly! This comp is just so even, things are always on knife-edge and if you’re off, you get belted!!! Tigers can barely field a side that’s above VFL quality, then lost their one decent player & yet if not for even more inj and some poor conversion they’d of been 60+ ahead of Geelong at the cattery — Such is footy! But why do you get to cheer the wins when you can’t take ONE belting? Tell me

To be perfectly honest, I’m maddest about not getting Sharp— A player we had interest in prev & that fits our needs so well! Can’t blv we didn’t try to snag him but who knows maybe there were red-flags re health long term or something.. I can’t help but remiss what Jackson/Gawn would’ve become as well! But then I’m reminded Jackson as a fwd is <Turner!!!

How about Confidence, Running-legs, Jolt-up-the-wazoo, JVR, Lever (after the bye), Laurie, Billings, Kolt, Hore (post-bye), Billings, Seston, Jeffo & AMW?!?!?! Nick-off - your pain doesn’t get abated by being sarcastically-dissident when it’s hailing! You’re better than that I’m sure of it mate. If it happens again next week, and after bye, sure I’ll worry the years a write-off — But then I’ll trust JT and Goody whom won is a FLAG for the first time since 1964!!!!!!

Cus we have a bye coming up, and to have a better set of legs come September! This is hilarious reading the mania.. it’s genuinely cheered me up — knowing how silly supporters get (me inc many times I’m sure in the past) from one game! If you can’t see there’s something desp right about one side and wrong with the other then you’re either blind or delirious.. Lets see how many of these same names bob-back-up in a few wks saying “it was the turning point” or it was “an outlier” result.. Sure, I may be 💯 wrong but this team right here has proven over and over they’re made of the right stuff and jumping-off to me seems to be the antithesis of an erudite Demon fan. Its awful, my 10yr old footy nut daughter — who is someone that lives and breathes footy (playing/supporting) is an absolute mess right now as she’s never seen this, has no reference for it at ALL.. So I’ll be dammed if I’m gonna encourage her to be a fire-weather supporter! Not saying anyone here is, but I’m saying we have a choice to go we react & im choosing to trust this group as that’s what their history has proven!

Have you ever played footy at an elite lvl and had an opponent steamroll you? It’s no fun & putting pressure on isn’t the issue that got us to this point, least of our worries in this game!

The funny thing is, it’s change we’re trying — we could go back to 22-23 Brand in no time but WHY? Do what you’ve always done and you’ll get same result.. how can no one else see this IS trying to change????? Goodness me.. I’d rather we don’t change and just kicked straighter (ly) but I also see we can’t keep getting to finals, dominating i50 and LOSING!!! We lost 4/4 finals — We have to try and transition our game and we will, it’s a bump in the road, just hope for no injuries & put it behind us!

Not something I didn’t consider.. but prob don’t need 100pt to ruin confidence entirely but hey — modern footy is week-by-week proposition that’s for dang sure

I think some peeps have been a bit spoiled.. I wish I could make it so that when you jump-off this quickly you can’t enjoy the high-rides but I know where you’re coming from and would’ve once felt similar but this is a perfect day for a team that’s choc-full of confidence and we’re barely there! Maybe this is a butt-smashing we need? No reason it can’t be.. I choose to keep faith, everything’s going right for them and it’s evident they’re chasing in. I can’t smash a team that’s given me so much resounding reasons to trust them.. I mean look at that Serong Goal for goodness sake off back if DARCY lucky goal and Frederick boundary goal, that’s just bananas & good on em! We’ll bounce back next week.. you don’t lose ability overnight for goodness sake! Harden up ppl, it’s a crappy day — move fwd.