Game Day 2nd Semi Final - Geelong vs GWS

[winty]

It's game day folks. Here's hoping our season doesn't end here and we live to fight another day (or two).

 

[Chinacats]

Sav really needs to clunk a few. Just to repay the faith that Scott has had in him. Scott has backed him in big time over the course of the year. Not sure others on the MC have had the same confidence?

 

[catempire]

Picking up @fpm84’s post from the preview, if we can’t win comfortably with these changes (as well as no Greene) there’s something quite wrong.

 

[Chinacats]

How's Tommy gonna play Taylor tonight? Got a bath last time... Needs a big one to support Jez who will be under pressure against his old mob and the 3 first rounders thing....

 

[cats_09]

Hope we see plenty of goal celebrations between these 2 tonight

 

[cat_fanatic]

Picking up @fpm84’s post from the preview, if we can’t win comfortably with these changes there’s something quite wrong.

View attachment 1224763

Wowsers

That's huge.

 

[Sticksman]

Go Cats!

 

[cat_fanatic]

How's Tommy gonna play Taylor tonight? Got a bath last time... Needs a big one to support Jez who will be under pressure against his old mob and the 3 first rounders thing....

I reckon Hawkins might come out angry and teach the young lad about physicality.

Port were aggressive last week and showed how finals should be played. I hope that's rubbed off on us, within the rules, ofc

 

[JohnZ]

Wowsers

That's huge.

GWS were undermanned that night, but we weren't at all

 

[JohnZ]

I reckon Hawkins might come out angry and teach the young lad about physicality.

Port were aggressive last week and showed how finals should be played. I hope that's rubbed off on us, within the rules, ofc

I hope so, but generally that leads to Hulkins which is what lost us the 2019 prelim.

 

[cats_09]

Speaking of which, I’m a little bit worried about second-up blues from Duncan.

This was his efforts from earlier this year, and there's a few similarities between his first up match against the Hawks & his efforts last week agains Port

I get he was a little down against Melbourne in his second week back, but it's still not a bad return if we see something like that from him tonight 2nd match back

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Family is primed , scarves are hanging ready to go , tickets stored in the i phone , South Melbourne Dim Sims at the ground(WTF?) , leaving work early to catch the 4.30 train
Most importantly my daughter who has a 100% success rate when attending Cats games is sitting next to me
Thinking of those in lockdown , good luck to all , will be barracking bloody loud - will probably bust a foofer valve......

 

[xtatik222k]

I hope so, but generally that leads to Hulkins which is what lost us the 2019 prelim.

Maybe with Cameron, this time we could cover a Hawkins suspension? Sacrificial lamb incoming?

 

[cats_09]

Wonder if thats the logic in bringing in Sav. If you have Esava in the goal square, Hawkins out to a pocket that favors his kick, and Cameron in the opposite pocket, you have Close and Rohan as your pressure forwards due to their speed and tackling abilities, and you stretch teams that way. 3 talls who can mark overhead means if you see someone dropping off Esava to Hawkins, you go to Esava.

Last time we played GWS we didn't have issues getting the ball i50. We had issues kicking it and GWS taking intercept marks. You stop this by having a guy like Esava and telling him to smash into Taylor and Haynes at EVERY single contest they are in. Knee in the back, go for MOTY every ******* contest. Give away a few free kicks and make them think twice.
Port did that to us last week. So many free kicks. Late bumps. Late pushes in the back. Holding tackles. And by the third we were jumping at shadows when under no pressure.

There will be a lot of i50s, and we took a lot of marks too. We need to convert and we need to make sure they don't smash us on rebound 50s which means no shallow entries and no easy intercept marks.

Disagree that we want to see that from Ratugolea at every single contest or for him to be mindlessly doing that because if that's his whole approach tonight then not sure it's a good one or one that's good for his teammates

Ratugolea needs to read the ball & understand the situation, he needs to learn & understand when it's his turn to go and to "crash" a marking pack and when he needs stay out of the contest & keep his opponent out of the contest because him going in is only going to disadvantage a teammate

If it's a high bomb into the forward line with no method or clear target, then yes that's the times for him to be going to those contests. But there's also hopefully going to be plenty of times that the ball is kicked to a teammates advantage - those are when he needs to clear out, not take his man to the contest or get involved in the contest when it may disadvantage his opponent

This is where people talk about having football or forward nous - being able to read the flight of the ball and understanding when it's your turn to impact the contest compared with staying out of the contest

We've seen on a few occasions this year that guys like Hawkins & Cameron have got easy goals because they read the play, they stayed out of the contest & allowed defenders to spoil each other with the ball coming over the back - we don't get easy goals like that if the focus is just crashing packs

 

[foodles05]

How's Tommy gonna play Taylor tonight? Got a bath last time... Needs a big one to support Jez who will be under pressure against his old mob and the 3 first rounders thing....

Can't play from behind hoping to get it continually over the back. Sometimes falls into that trap against good defenders and in finals when the ball is unlikely to be coming in clean all the time he needs to be in front.

 

[Shadow89]

Picking up @fpm84’s post from the preview, if we can’t win comfortably with these changes (as well as no Greene) there’s something quite wrong.

View attachment 1224763

Wow, if you cancel Stewart out with Cameron in terms of talent/value to the team, you get:

Duncan in for Higgins
I. Smith in for Clark
Miers in for Dahl
Holmes in for Narkle
Atkins in for Zuthrie
Hendo in for Kreuger

+ Danger, Rohan and Tuohy for (hopefully) a full match. Serious differences there

 

[Strange Cat]

We should win tonight but we all know what this team is like with expectations like that:..I feel the real test will be next week should we make it

 

[Overhang]

We've been here many times before, semi finals after a QF loss aren't much to look forward to, you are expected to win and if not you become the Monday meme for a straight sets exit.

GWS of late are a thorn in our side, they love playing 1 on 1 and providing no space yet they have elite ball users who can carve you up when in possession. With Cameron, Rat, Hawkins, Rohan, Stanley and Danger I hope we are more inclined to kick long down the line and play the territory game than trying to be too cute with short passes and switches. Stanley needs to run Mummy all around the ground, he has no tank so use that to our advantage.

 

[Mad_Hatter]

Struggling with tonights game. I think largely due to the disappointment of last week (and the continued disappointment over the last several years) and the expectation of a typical "Cats finals series", of poor loss - good win - poor loss.
No doubt closer to game time I'll pick up and get excited but right now I'm struggling.

 

[catman14]

Where has the talk of Dahlhaus retiring and asking to be dropped come from?

 

[Strange Cat]

Struggling with tonights game. I think largely due to the disappointment of last week (and the continued disappointment over the last several years) and the expectation of a typical "Cats finals series", of poor loss - good win - poor loss.
No doubt closer to game time I'll pick up and get excited but right now I'm struggling.

You’re not alone usually I’m pretty nervous or hyped for a final game , but today I feel nothing imo

 

[catpremier 07]

Hope we see plenty of goal celebrations between these 2 tonight

Any goals to celebrate tonight would be a welcome change to last week

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

Picking up @fpm84’s post from the preview, if we can’t win comfortably with these changes (as well as no Greene) there’s something quite wrong.

View attachment 1224763

Some pretty significant inclusions.

 

[ourgameplandoesntwork]

I feel nothing.
Expected to win. If we lose it’s an embarrassment. If we win I see us getting beaten easily next week.
I hope the players aren’t thinking the same as me!

 

[you pick one]

Rata needs to get a run at the marking contest when up forward this is where teams try to stifle him by not allowing that to happen,he needs to counter with bullocking hard work force the the defenders to offend by holding on or taking their eyes off the ball and hopefully the umpires do their job.He simply must be on the move if he becomes flatfooted he's ineffective.