Unofficial Preview Round 1, 2024: Bombers v Hawks, MCG 1:10pm Sat 16th March

[threesixpio]

Gunston will play.

He is Gunner

 

[The Spirit of Cricket]

Surely we can't play as garbage against them as we did this season?

All that talk of our decent finish to the season will be put to the test. Will we dish up the same slops we have early in each of the last few seasons, despite finishing the seasons prior reasonably well, or will we actually hit the ground running?

We were good to start 2022 and 2020 from memory, but the rest were pretty putrid. Hopefully we can take the momentum and bring it onto next season to at least be competitive, even if we are still ultimately a bottom 6-8 side.

That said, our march to 22-0 (23-0? 24-0? How the **** does the AFL Premiership season work these days) begins here

 

[TylerDurden]

No excuses for a slow start this year.

Two years under Sam to learn his game style, a very healthy list (touch wood) and a mediocre opposition first game up.

We need to put average teams like Essendon to the sword, if we can't do that then we haven't progressed as a team TBH.

Ran us off our feet last time. Looked way fitter.

 

[grumbleguts]

Danger game.

 

[HedgeFund]

What’s the team going to look like?

Sexy

 

[kirbatron]

Ran us off our feet last time. Looked way fitter.

which is embarrassing when we hear of the shit standards off field pre season essendon had...

we were flat & didn't defend. they spread the ground well. what we do when we're up n about. there'll be 75k there. 85k if the wiz is playing

 

[TylerDurden]

which is embarrassing when we hear of the s**t standards off field pre season essendon had...

we were flat & didn't defend. they spread the ground well. what we do when we're up n about. there'll be 75k there. 85k if the wiz is playing

Their half backs ran riot. Red dog kicked 2 from 50m on the run and brought the house down.
Ridley kicked the only goal of his career.
From memory we had Meek, Greene, Kosi and Chad offering absolutely nothing defensively in our fwd line. That's the first area that would need to change to win this time.

 

[lyger]

Their half backs ran riot. Red dog kicked 2 from 50m on the run and brought the house down.
Ridley kicked the only goal of his career.
From memory we had Meek, Greene, Kosi and Chad offering absolutely nothing defensively in our fwd line. That's the first area that would need to change to win this time.

Meek, Greene, Kosi -> Lewis, Chol, Gunners.

Still early, but should be able to inflict a lot more damage.

And our midfield group has vastly improved since then.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

A lot has changed with us since Round 1 last year.

 

[Brishawk]

A lot has changed with us since Round 1 last year.

No more kosi

 

[hawkman]

Lewis to kick 10 on McKay

 

[peetoo]

Chol v mckay

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Their half backs ran riot. Red dog kicked 2 from 50m on the run and brought the house down.
Ridley kicked the only goal of his career.
From memory we had Meek, Greene, Kosi and Chad offering absolutely nothing defensively in our fwd line. That's the first area that would need to change to win this time.

Ginnivan, Breust, Chol, Lewis, MacDonald and Gunston (if he plays) offer very little forward pressure. We have not addressed that issue, we are going to have to make some tactical changes to lock it in.

 

[threesixpio]

Sexy

Who wouldn’t want to be tagged by Finn?

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

Chol v mckay

Laverde to Lewis.

 

[Changa10]

View attachment 1853479

Who wouldn’t want to be tagged by Finn?

Zach Merrett?

 

[Mitchell Madness]

Nice of the league to give essendon a family friendly game time for round 1

 

[Leather Poisoning]

Love the first game of the season - absolutely random in terms of what the outcome is going to be.

We could win by 10 goals or lose by 10 goals and both outcomes would make total sense.

I'm so keen to see all the new players. Ginni, Chol, d'Ambrosario and all whichever draftees are match ready.
Really looking forward to the huge cheers of Gunners first goal back in hawk colours, and the first goal kicked by Chol and Ginni when it happens for either of them.

 

[FB19]

Only concern is forward half pressure. Think butler has to play. Thinking of their side
Hardwick Blanck Mitchell
Impey Sicily scrimshaw
Mackenzie Newk Amon
Moore Lewis Cmac
Ginnivan Chol Breust
Reeves Day Worpel
Ward Nash Gunston Butler Weddle

 

[Yardie]

Their half backs ran riot. Red dog kicked 2 from 50m on the run and brought the house down.
Ridley kicked the only goal of his career.
From memory we had Meek, Greene, Kosi and Chad offering absolutely nothing defensively in our fwd line. That's the first area that would need to change to win this time.

We let an unfit McDonald-Tipungwuti kick a goal. Was embarrassing.

 

[KermitJagger]

which is embarrassing when we hear of the s**t standards off field pre season essendon had...

we were flat & didn't defend. they spread the ground well. what we do when we're up n about. there'll be 75k there. 85k if the wiz is playing

Fitness is one element of footy. We were one of the fittest teams in the AFL in terms of our running ability, but unfortunately as a younger team it took a while to be physically ready. Running is one thing, having the maturity to run, bump, tackle and repeat is entirely different.

 

[grumbleguts]

Only concern is forward half pressure. Think butler has to play. Thinking of their side
Hardwick Blanck Mitchell
Impey Sicily scrimshaw
Mackenzie Newk Amon
Moore Lewis Cmac
Ginnivan Chol Breust
Reeves Day Worpel
Ward Nash Gunston Butler Weddle

Where is Finn? It's hard to win games of football when you entire team gets three disposals between them.

 

[PT Bar None]

Bloody Essendon have a habit of starting the season a house'o'fire, plus being up when facing us. And we don't seem to get fixtured against them after their season's wheels have inevitably fallen off.

Even though they've "upgraded" a few positions, I'm not expecting much from them in '24. If we've improved as much as I think we have, this is the sort of game we should be able to bank.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Bloody Essendon have a habit of starting the season a house'o'fire, plus being up when facing us. And we don't seem to get fixtured against them after their season's wheels have inevitably fallen off.

Even though they've "upgraded" a few positions, I'm not expecting much from them in '24. If we've improved as much as I think we have, this is the sort of game we should be able to bank.

Comments like this were rife this time last season, then roll on to gameday and they totally embarrassed us.

They've upgraded their KPD stocks, and didn't have either Stringer or 2MP playing last time. They'll have McKay, Gresham and Duursma added to their side too, plus old man Goldy.

They effectively replace BZT, Davey, Tippa, Phillips, Menzie and Weideman. That's a big upgrade there.

We've added Lewis, Chol, Ginnivan, Gunston and presumably Watson to that R1 side that got flogged. They will replace the likes of Kosi, Wingard, Greene, Meek, Bramble and Frost.

It's fair to say both sides have improved on paper. Though I think most of our improvement will come from natural development and hopefully some tightening up of our gameplan.

Gresham - 2MP - Stringer
Hardwick - Blanck - Weddle

Perkins - Jones - Langford
CJ - Sicily - Scrimshaw

Draper - Parish - Zerrett
Reeves - Newcombe - Day

Martin - Shiel - Duursma
Amon - Nash - Ward

Redman - McKay - Ridley
Moore - Chol - MacDonald

McGrath - Laverde - Kelly
Ginnivan - Lewis - Breust

INT from - Hobbs, Hind, Caldwell, Setterfield, Heppell, Goldy, Durham, Weideman, Tsatas, Cox

INT from - Worpel, Impey, Mackenzie, Mitchell, Pick 4, Maginess, DGB, Gunston, Butler

Looks like a close matchup on paper. I'm really looking forward to seeing how Lewis, Chol, Ginnivan and hopefully Watson play together in particular.

 

[grumbleguts]

Comments like this were rife this time last season, then roll on to gameday and they totally embarrassed us.

They've upgraded their KPD stocks, and didn't have either Stringer or 2MP playing last time. They'll have McKay, Gresham and Duursma added to their side too, plus old man Goldy.

They effectively replace BZT, Davey, Tippa, Phillips, Menzie and Weideman. That's a big upgrade there.

We've added Lewis, Chol, Ginnivan, Gunston and presumably Watson to that R1 side that got flogged. They will replace the likes of Kosi, Wingard, Greene, Meek, Bramble and Frost.

It's fair to say both sides have improved on paper. Though I think most of our improvement will come from natural development and hopefully some tightening up of our gameplan.

Gresham - 2MP - Stringer
Hardwick - Blanck - Weddle

Perkins - Jones - Langford
CJ - Sicily - Scrimshaw

Draper - Parish - Zerrett
Reeves - Newcombe - Day

Martin - Shiel - Duursma
Amon - Nash - Ward

Redman - McKay - Ridley
Moore - Chol - MacDonald

McGrath - Laverde - Kelly
Ginnivan - Lewis - Breust

INT from - Hobbs, Hind, Caldwell, Setterfield, Heppell, Goldy, Durham, Weideman, Tsatas, Cox

INT from - Worpel, Impey, Mackenzie, Mitchell, Pick 4, Maginess, DGB, Gunston, Butler

Looks like a close matchup on paper. I'm really looking forward to seeing how Lewis, Chol, Ginnivan and hopefully Watson play together in particular.

Pretty sure Weddle didn't play in that game last year either.