BE BRUTALLY HONEST - Where will your team finish in 2008?

[MrFabulous]

Top of the ladder

 

[Obeanie1]

1. Collingwood
2. Geelong
3. Freo
4. Hawthorn
5. West Coast
6. St Kilda
7. Port
8. Brisbane
9. Bulldogs
10. Richmond
11. Adelaide
12. Carlton
13. Kangaroos
14. Sydney
15. Essendon
16. Melbourne

 

[Hard Ball Get]

Top of the ladder

Since your club is unlisted maybe you should specify who you follow...

 

[acuguy]

Brisbane- 5th

 

[PAFC66]

4th to 6th.

If we have similar luck with injuries as we did last year and win most of our home games which we should we should challenge for another shot at the flag.

 

[JoondalupJ]

TOP EIGHT, Hawks that is.

 

[JoondalupJ]

We should win the premiership any other result would be deemed to be a failure!! with Clarkson Kennett and co with alot of questions to be answered!! after 3 seasons of constant improvement no more excuses!!! Regardless of injuries we have to keep winning 4 more games every year!!
e.g. 05 5 wins/ 06 9 wins/ 07 14 wins/ 08 17- 18 wins!!! WE MUST KEEP THE GRAPH UPWARDS LIKE AN AEROPLANE THAT JUST TOOK OFF!! WE HAVENT REACHED MAXIMUM ALTITUDE YET!!! WE MUST STAY ON COURSE WE MUST COMPLETE OUR MISSION!!

Sorry wrong. Hawks will be up there, but the flag? I don,t know? I think some more blooding will take place this year and some other "already blooded" newies will still be trying to improve .You can never pick a flag year but I suspect 2009 is a good year.

 

[Seth]

Sixth

 

[afl genius]

Okay, since I'm new to this forum I will do my best to get the majority of you off-side early, just to make an impact!

I am a bulldogs fan, as indicated by my team supported, and in all honesty we will struggle to make the top 8. We have a few gun older blokes and some real talent coming through although that does not equal a top 8 club, let alone a flag.

Now for the rest...

Adelaide: Still have a very small window of success with its ageing list although need to sort out their forwards especially after losing their potential century goalkicker!!! Could be anywhere from top 3 to 8th.

Brisbane: My real darkhorse this year. Don't worry about all this talk of bottoming out after a flag (let alone 3 and a runner-up), they have talent. Brown, Black, Power, Lappin, Johnstone, Bradshaw (returning), etc.. and their middle tier players are better than people realise. I'm confident Brisbane will make the 8 and could cause some damage in September.

Carlton: Well the old dark navy blues, I can honestly see some improvement from them, but even 7 wins may have you finish in 14th as the competition is becoming more even. Much like the bulldogs their midfield is blossoming with young talent, except of course the great man Judd, although key position players are a worry.

Collingwood: Very interesting, I thought they played well above themselves last year, especially in beating West Coast over there in the semi-final. Full credit to them though they were probably a kick from premiers (hurts doesn't it). They are obviously well up in the betting this year although I still can't place them any higher than about 5th or 6th (yes I'm sure this'll put many off-side). Good balanced team, based on no All-Australian selections, but yeh...

Essendon: I went to school with a plethera of Essendon supporters so they've had me disgruntled with them for years so I'll try my best to be unbiased. They no doubt have talent, ie. Lucas, Lloyd, Michael and Fletcher (no dramas with key position there) although on the other hand their midfield is ordinary. Yes bomber fans will tell you how great Stanton, Dyson, Davey, and Jetta are/can be, although they're way off the mark from the Brisbane's list above. Will struggle to make the 8.

Fremantle: Like many people I was very keen on the dockers in 2007 and since they cost my some dosh last year I am resigned to them losing every game this year... On paper they have talent to burn, although in reality they are pretenders and if they ever lose Pavlich they're screwed. I know I'll probably regret it and they'll bite me on the ass but I've got them at 7th-10th.

Geelong: Well can anyone get near them. Whether you followed Geelong or not in the Grand Final you must admit that they were very impressive. They've only lost fringe players so that wont hurt them (okay Nathan Ablett) so they will be tough to beat again. How do people compare them with the great Brisbane side and Bomber side of 2000? Definitely top 3 unless severe injury or lightning strikes their guns (all 10 of them).

Hawthorn: Another surprise packet last year. The real test is that now they're the hunted and not the hunter which can be a major hurdle when trying to back up a quality season. Full credit to them they played outstanding football and deserved their place. Where will the improvement come from though? Still very solid for a top 8 finish.

Kangaroos (Gold Coast): No I won't get you going with that, I've got enough Collingwood and Essendon supporters to worry about! Well done on last year. I too had them ranked very low last year similar to just about anyone other than a North (and I say North because they still should by North Melbourne and remain here) supporter, but they did extremely well. Their team is very well balanced and that's half your battle. The old saying "a champion team is better than a team of champions". Still not convinced but you have me watching. Anywhere from 6th to 12th.

Melbourne: These guys could be anything. They could be anywhere from 5th to 15th, yes of course injury plays a part but I guess at this stage of the year we're judging teams on their talent and perhaps recent form so at full strength they're okay. vary difficult to place, I may need a couple of games to decide.

Port Adelaide: Who really believes that they were the 2nd best team last year (yes I know wht Collingwood supporters think)? Sure they have talent ie. Cornes x 2, Burgoyne x 2, and Tredrea but really! I doubt whether they'll cause alot of damage this year. I'll stick my neck out and say that they may even miss the 8.

Richmond: The tiger army are getting excited but I think they may be getting ahead of themselves. Chances are thay'll win the NAB cup and their membership will rise to about 60,000 although to finish in the top 12 would be remarkable for them this year.

St.Kilda: Now St.Kilda is a differerent proposition. They probably should have had a couple more cups in the cabinet if not for the ex-coach. One of the best lists in the AFL and as much as I've pumped up Geelong the saints are my tip for this year's flag.
Why: King, Ball, Hayes, Harvey, Dal Santo, Riewoldt, Gehrig, Koschitzke, Goddard, Maguire and Sam Fisher = guns. Montagna, Fiora, Gram, Leigh Fisher, Xavier Clarke and Blake all big improvements last year. Plus Hudghton, Baker, Raphael Clarke and Milne, also the addition of Schneider, that's their 22. Very tough to beat.

Sydney: Still be very competitive, but depth is a worry. Hall, O'Loughlin, Barry, Kirk and Everitt aren't any younger and they're midfield is still a little shaky. Goodes is obviously the bench mark and with him they're capable of another prominent showing in September. But how far?

West Coast: I rate this team very highly. Yes we all know that Judd and Cousins are gone, but they have seen great improvement from Priddis, Rosa, Selwood, Brett Jones and Hurn to complement the midfield, which mind you still contains Embley, Kerr, Stenglein, Braun, Fletcher and of course the general Cox. Josh Kennedy is a great pick-up and with Hansen and Lynch they could have a very potent attack. I'm not game enough to write this Western Australian team off and I'll tip them for top 4.

So now that you've had your 4 coffee's and ready to fire back at me I'll leave you with my predicted ladder. Injuries will obviously alter this but here goes.

1. St Kilda - um no, have you seen their game plan not a premiership winning game plan - 5-7
2. Geelong - 1 to low
3. West Coast - really could finish anywhere from 2 - 9
4. Adelaide - you have got to be kidding me, around about 12th
5. Sydney - ha ha about 10th
6. Brisbane - might surprise a few and i reckon you have this spot on at about 6th
7. Collingwood - top 4 easily
8. Hawthorn - 3,4,5,6 one of those spots
---------------------------
9. Fremantle - yeh pretty much could see them slip as low as 14th though
10. Port Adelaide - about 7 or 8 for this mob, had a lucky year last year
11. Western Bulldogs - 11th, is being a tad nice
12. Kangaroos no way, they will be threating for the 8
13. Essendon - yep
14. Melbourne - yep
15. Carlton - between them or richmond for the spoon
16. Richmond - read above

I do believe however that there will probably be no more than 2 games separating 6th and 12th.

Okay bring it on......

you have got the bottom bit right but thats bout it

 

[JoondalupJ]

Ok I'm going to be totally brutal here......top 4.

Well Fireman I think your right!

 

[ssfc0203]

you have got the bottom bit right but thats bout it

If there was a raised eye emoticon i would have used it; in the meantime here's an embarassed one until you can justify why those teams fit where you say they do without using the useless analogy 'haha'.

.

 

[Quinz]

Brutally honest- Top eight easily, top 4 most likely. I am an eternal optimist, I can see us getting close to winning the flag next year, although i'm sure few will agree with me. Definately expect us to finish top 4 though.

And I think Freo will win the flag.

 

[DOCKER MAN]

With Freo the realistic range is probably from 14th-2nd you just don't know, however i will be disapointed with anything lower then a top 6 finish.

 

[CF]

I suspect Geelong will go top 4, but still early days yet. The loss of Nathan Ablett may upset the team balance a little. I hope Hawkins has a good year this year.

 

[eaglesnutcase]

good post jaxon BUUUuut adelaide on the skids.their stars are aging and the new crop looks pretty pedestrian.dont overate brissy.power black lappin aging a bit and i dont think the next wave is quite up to them.that said .home ground and brown should win them as many as thet lose.sydneys stars are aging and their style of play takes years off their longevity plus they lack big mobile players especially down back.im afraid it looks like a year of vic domination.oh yea melbourne.shit list.neitz should have retired years ago.richmond should line their talent scouts up in front of a firing squad.ditto melb.carlton top 10.if gardiner holds up beware st kilda.people tend to forget other than being a prize ******** he is a superstar and i dont use that word lightly.

 

[Gun Barrel Straight]

I think the Swans will finish around 4-6. We;ve got a good record with injury management, we were a bit inconsistant in 2007 and lost a few games we shouldn't have.

My tip for the flag is St Kilda, if, IF they stay relatively injury free. They have a great squad which will be hard to beat on their day. But Geelong will certainly be up there as well.

West Coast? bottom half of the 8 if they;re lucky

 

[West Coast 06]

I think the Swans will finish around 4-6. We;ve got a good record with injury management, we were a bit inconsistant in 2007 and lost a few games we shouldn't have.

My tip for the flag is St Kilda, if, IF they stay relatively injury free. They have a great squad which will be hard to beat on their day. But Geelong will certainly be up there as well.

West Coast? bottom half of the 8 if they;re lucky

Mate the OP is to be brutally honest, not what you hope in your dreams will happen!

There is no way Sydney will be top four, even with the dream draws they get year after year.

You had better hope you have good injury management too, with all your best players on the wrong side of 30.

Oh and West Coast > Sydney in 2008. I agree with West Coast in the bottom half of the eight though, but that just puts you out of it.

 

[HBF]

I'm expecting Carlton to finish in the 9th - 12th position in 2008.

 

[Wowser]

Saints to go between 3 and 6...the key being if we can manage injuries especially in the back half.

My top 4 would be Geelong, Collingwood, St Kilda and Brisbane.

 

[Jaxon]

you have got the bottom bit right but thats bout it

With a name like AFL GENIUS you'd want to get it right!!!

It's interesting to note that even the so-called pro media/ex-footballers predict their ladder each year and most of them are quite wrong so I guess everyone has their own view of each team and how they rate.

I believe the saints will go well, Adelaide will be okay for about 2 more years and likewise the swans, but again that's my view.

I wouldn't suggest the doggies will be any lower than 11th. They have some talent and could easily push the eight but won't go backwards. The bottom few teams will be those that are hit hard by injuries, as per any other year so that could be the likes of West Coast or Brisbane, time will tell.

The remainder of the teams (about 6-12) will be separated by only a couple of games and percentage.

I hope more people put in their predicted ladder and then we can spruke or hide come round 22.

Cheers all

 

[Fat Tony]

I can't help thinking about what happened the last time we had a preseason after a reasonably successful finals campaign. The same things were said "we won't finish below the 8 next year" and guess what in 2002 we finished 10th. If the players think its going to be easy then we will miss out again. Given the question is to be brutally honest i feel that because we have such a young/inexperienced side that this risk of "getting ahead of ourselves" is very likely.

So with that said i will say somewhere between 11-6

 

[The Snake]

Syd = I can see Sydney finishing anywhere from 6th to 10th depending on how we fare with injuries especially to a couple of key players.

Always seem to have the knack of losing those games against the lower sides that we should win.

Given a fit and healthy list and a top-8 finish, one, maybe two finals wins but thats about as high as my expectations are for '08

2009 could see the use of the "R" word, although a bad run with injuries early in the season could see it creep in in the latter half of this season. 34QUOTE32)

Boring! Your the anty-christ to the Showtime era

 

[surfsup]

Two spots above Fremantle.

If I supported a team that had only finished in the top eight twice in its existence, I wouldn't be taking shots at at team who had finished out of finals four times in 21 years.

Just because he supports Freo doesn't mean he can't comment on something related to the thread topic you tossser!

Using your thinking (if that's what you call it) you should be excluded from anything related to drugs, police, arrogance, humility, honesty and generally making a dick of yourself! Arseclown!

 

[Bring-Back-Powell]

Can i be brutally honest?



















This thread is a joke!

Why?

It's gone on for 10 pages, and it will be funny to drag this thread up at the end of the year to see who was on the money and those who made clowns of themselves.

 

[zero]

no handpicking there champ, just your last 'rebuilding phase' & seeming as you like averages your average finishing position was 10th

as to the rest of your post, keep hold of it tight, will give you something to cling to over the long season ahead...

a handpicked section of our most recent rebuilding phase gives us a finishing position of 10th, you mean, you think we werent building in 98, 99 or the years before that? or that its our only attempt at building a premiership team?

our stocks arent as desperately low as they were in 00 and 01. we are rebuilding again, and it probably be done from the bottom half of the 8, same as it was in seasons 02-04

thats just my opinion of where the eagles will end up, i could be wrong. bring on the season, i say