Opinion 07-11 vs 22 teams

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Phipppppa

Phipppppa

Club Legend
Jan 8, 2022
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Geelong
AFL Club
Geelong
Been thinking about this a lot last few hours.

If you had to pick one of the 07-11 premiership sides to play 22, which one would it be? And who would win?

This year has brought some of the best footy I’ve seen the cats play since those glory days of 07-11. But it was a different strategy.

So, who wins?

I’m going 09 vs 22 and saying 09 would win as it was a very tough competition that season.
 
Geez it's a tough one.

You could argue the 22 side has the worst midfield of the four - but the late season renaissance of Danger and Selwood's solid season makes that debatable.

I think the 09 and 11 sides were tougher. Our game plan this year, which had elements of Richmond's "territory over posession" and Hawthorn's precision kicking meant we weren't fully tested in the areas of hard ball gets and contested marking around the ground.

This side would run those sides off their feet. But if played with older rules, those sides could force more contests and win them with harder bodies and a much better ruckman. Johnson and Chapman don't have the run of Close and Miers but both could crumb AND take a contested mark better.

I think our old backline had better rebound capability, just. Hunt and Mackie had good kicks, Wojo, Mackie had the pace, Scarlett had them all organised and great upfield vision.


It's a cliche but it would come down to who could get the game on their terms, and I date say the difference in rules and interpretations of each seat would make a big difference.
 

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Going to end up with about 7 or 8 hall of famers from that 07-11 group.

Dangerfield and Cameron quite possibly could be the only two from our 2022 team unless you count Sel and Hawk in both groups.
 
Sky said:
Going to end up with about 7 or 8 hall of famers from that 07-11 group.

Dangerfield and Cameron quite possibly could be the only two from our 2022 team unless you count Sel and Hawk in both groups.
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Geelong Hall of Fame?

Guthrie and Blicavs are already in.

Duncan will surely follow. Stewart as well.

Club legends might be what you mean. Those are rarer, around 25 odd inducted so far.
 
Mr Meow said:
Geelong Hall of Fame?

Guthrie and Blicavs are already in.

Duncan will surely follow. Stewart as well.

Club legends might be what you mean. Those are rarer, around 25 odd inducted so far.
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AFL HOF. Believe that 07-11 dynasty will have the most in there of any other dynasty one day.

I’ll give you Stewart but don’t see Duncan in the AFL HOF
 
Sky said:
AFL HOF. Believe that 07-11 dynasty will have the most in there of any other dynasty one day.

I’ll give you Stewart but don’t see Duncan in the AFL HOF
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Oh right, AFL wise it's of course a lot more exclusive so you might be right.

He's still a chance of 300 games, if he has two more seasons at this level of play (maybe snag another flag) maybe he's a smokey. But he's always been an underrated player and the lack of AA representation would go against him.
 
Mr Meow said:
Oh right, AFL wise it's of course a lot more exclusive so you might be right.

He's still a chance of 300 games, if he has two more seasons at this level of play (maybe snag another flag) maybe he's a smokey. But he's always been an underrated player and the lack of AA representation would go against him.
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A bit like Milburn only getting one AA when Enright and Scarlett rate him higher than anyone else does.
 
Definitely an interesting debate. Two very different teams in the way they were built. Our 07-11 side was predominantly built through the draft (including access to some high draft picks and very good F/Ss) with the odd traded player to fill needs, whilst our 22 team moreso from shrewd trading/FA and later picks. The 07-11 midfield were at the peak of their powers, whereas I feel as though the 22 forward line is far superior. Team 22 was much more even with solid contributors on every line and probably had the better ‘bottom 4-6 players’. Obviously our 07-11 team wins here overall, but if this team wins another premiership or 2 then it’ll be very close.
 
jim boy said:
The 22 side - 90% of the guys in the 7-11 squad are past it now.
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Love it. Reminds me of a famous line from the great Don Bradman:

"An apocryphal story goes that a journalist asked Sir Donald Bradman, at a time when the Australian batsmen were giving the hapless England bowlers a particularly torrid time, how he thought he would have fared against that crop of bowlers? After some thought, Bradman opined that he would average around 60. Stunned, the incredulous journalist continued, but Sir Donald, you averaged 99 in your career, why only 60 against this lot? Well, responded the great man with a cheeky grin, I am in my 80s you know!"
 
The obvious area of strength of the current team is key forwards.

I will be forever grateful to Cameron Mooney for playing the role he did in those teams of 07-09, and he WAS better than average but he was a huge step below 2022 Hawkins and Cameron.
 

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The ferocity of this 22 team is ahead of any team I have seen at Geelong. Recency bias is difficult to avoid.

Blicavs is a unique freak of a player that is almost unmatchable.
He assists Stanley in ruck, allows Hawk to take forward ruck contests, allows Stanley to assist in defence, and takes on elite mids.

22 Forward line is Close to winning that battle- Older Hawk, Cameron, Close, Stengle, Rohan, Miers v Mooney, Young Hawkins, Stevie J, Chappy, Stokes, Byrnes/Varcoe. Difficult, but SJ/Chappy did it for a long while.

Our unheralded 22 MF , with Danger, Selwood, Atkins, Guthrie, Parfitt, and Blicavs, and then wingers in Holmes , Smith, Duncan is very effective, and that's omitting Menegola.

To take on GAJ, Bartel, Selwood, Kelly, Corey, Ling, Rooke, is not easy but who knows- that ferocity again on Saturday was top shelf.

Defences- Scarlett, Harley, Milburn, Enright, Hunt, Taylor, Mackie, Wojo, (Lonergan) v DK, Henry, Bews, Kolo, Tuohy, Stewart...

Maybe if we could do the "impossible" and go BTB, I would go this team.
 
Smedts_2 said:
All of the 7 - 11 teams are more talented but the 2022 team wouldn’t have lost to Hawthorn in 2008 so… line ball I guess
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We can't know that until 12 m time
We look unbeatable, as Joel said today, but in 08, fatigue, injuries, and playing lame players in the GF was our undoing
We saw Demons this year after a 10-0 start, and many on this board thought they were unbeatable. Injuries and fatigue stopped them.
If in 12 m time, we are still as ferocious, hungry, and primed, and we succeed in btb, then this team takes the cake
 
Sky said:
Going to end up with about 7 or 8 hall of famers from that 07-11 group.

Dangerfield and Cameron quite possibly could be the only two from our 2022 team unless you count Sel and Hawk in both groups.
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Tom stewart will be hall of fame. 4 all australians in 6 seasons is seriously freakish.

ty stengle might end up being a star. possibly dekonning as well. We just dont know on the younger players
 
Vdubs said:
The ferocity of this 22 team is ahead of any team I have seen at Geelong. Recency bias is difficult to avoid.

Blicavs is a unique freak of a player that is almost unmatchable.
He assists Stanley in ruck, allows Hawk to take forward ruck contests, allows Stanley to assist in defence, and takes on elite mids.

22 Forward line is Close to winning that battle- Older Hawk, Cameron, Close, Stengle, Rohan, Miers v Mooney, Young Hawkins, Stevie J, Chappy, Stokes, Byrnes/Varcoe. Difficult, but SJ/Chappy did it for a long while.

Our unheralded 22 MF , with Danger, Selwood, Atkins, Guthrie, Parfitt, and Blicavs, and then wingers in Holmes , Smith, Duncan is very effective, and that's omitting Menegola.

To take on GAJ, Bartel, Selwood, Kelly, Corey, Ling, Rooke, is not easy but who knows- that ferocity again on Saturday was top shelf.

Defences- Scarlett, Harley, Milburn, Enright, Hunt, Taylor, Mackie, Wojo, (Lonergan) v DK, Henry, Bews, Kolo, Tuohy, Stewart...

Maybe if we could do the "impossible" and go BTB, I would go this team.
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I agree with this.

The 07-11 team was full of so much talent. An unbelievable team.

If we go back to back (unlikely) then the discussion really is on.
 
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Lana said:
Under tactics of the day the 22 team would murder the 07-11 team.

The 07-11 team with a 22 style pre-season would murder the 22 team.
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I like to think which 07-11 players would thrive in the current set up and who would flounder.

I think most of the backline would be pretty good, Mackie Enright Scarlett Taylor. Even Hunt and Wojo with their long kicks and line breaking would do fine in some aspect. Harley would be the worst I reckon.

Our midfield would be good maybe needed a bit more speed.

Forward line is interesting. Similar to the midfield just need more speed to apply pressure. Byrnes becomes a Miers type which would have been nice for his career (although his disposal was ehhhh)
 
2008 was the best single-season side I have ever seen, of any club, anywhere. Utterly brilliant players on every line.

2022 is a well-oiled and well-drilled machine with a lot of good players, playing well-defined roles, in a way that fitted together beautifully.

If you were to pick a full side from the two GF teams, I'd pick:

B: Enright, Scarlett, Tuohy
HB: Milburn, Taylor, Stewart
C: 2008 Selwood, Ling, Dangerfield
HF: Chapman, Cameron, Johnson
F: Stengle, Hawkins, Stokes
R: Ottens, GAJ, Bartel
INT: Blicavs, Duncan, Guthrie, Mackie
 
Lana said:
Under tactics of the day the 22 team would murder the 07-11 team.

The 07-11 team with a 22 style pre-season would murder the 22 team.
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Do we really think the fitness of the teams was any different? I dont. this isnt like comparing sides to the semi professional era of the nineties. Both eras were equally fit. And there has been no dramatic change in tactics either. There was all sorts of weird defensive strategies back in the 07-11 era.
 
iameviljez said:
2008 was the best single-season side I have ever seen, of any club, anywhere. Utterly brilliant players on every line.

2022 is a well-oiled and well-drilled machine with a lot of good players, playing well-defined roles, in a way that fitted together beautifully.

If you were to pick a full side from the two GF teams, I'd pick:

B: Enright, Scarlett, Tuohy
HB: Milburn, Taylor, Stewart
C: 2008 Selwood, Ling, Dangerfield
HF: Chapman, Cameron, Johnson
F: Stengle, Hawkins, Stokes
R: Ottens, GAJ, Bartel
INT: Blicavs, Duncan, Guthrie, Mackie
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Stokes struggled to get in the 07-11 gf teams. He was emergency once and player 20-22 picked in the other flag Sides. In 2008 gf he was worst on ground by a long way. How about playing mooney As second tall. Camerons basically a flanker anyway.
 
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Seeds said:
Stokes struggled to get in the 07-11 gf teams. He was emergency once and player 20-22 picked in the other flag Sides. In 2008 gf he was worst on ground by a long way. How about playing mooney As second tall. Camerons basically a flanker anyway.
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Yeah, you could probably make that argument. Stokes' best years did come after 07/08.
 
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