Review Cats down Bombers by 28 points - Tomma has 8

[DangerHere]

Before the game I was hoping for a win, very happy

Now I kind of wish we hadn’t have given up those late goals, and had just put the Bombres to the sword in the last Qtr

 

[catempire]

Controlling the game and coasting to a 5 goal win is a Good Thing. At some stage I’ll want to see us strangle a team like Essendon to score rather than conceding 100. Richmond is a good candidate.

 

[STPer18]

Despite spending 1/3 of the match on the bench Dangerfield was bullying the opposition mids again. A little unfair at times.

 

[Cursed Cat]

Solid hit-out.

Bowes injured early, Tuohy a late out, still without Stengle and Stanley, and Cam Guthrie convalescing - but as we saw today, we have the depth to cover these injuries.

Mitch Knevitt, Tanner Bruhn both contributed well, Ollie Henry continues to provide a spark up forward (although FredLeDeux is on the money about the defensive side of his game) and Sam Simpson

37

Sam Simpson

Age

26

Ht

183cm

Wt

75kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.7

3star

K

6.2

2star

HB

6.4

4star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.2

4star

CL

0.8

3star

D

17.0

4star

K

9.0

4star

HB

8.0

4star

M

3.3

3star

T

4.3

5star

CL

1.7

4star

D

11.2

3star

K

5.2

2star

HB

6.0

4star

M

2.4

3star

T

1.0

3star

CL

0.4

3star

played a great follow-up game to his comeback game last week - Simpson a very handy addition to our small forward collective.

Sam De Koning's time in the ruck is giving me palpatations, but he's made a reasonable fist of the role change. He was ok again today.

5 Patrick Dangerfield - commanding display in the middle, cleared the ball from the center with authority and set up our forwards time and again.
4 Tom Hawkins

26

Tom Hawkins

Age

35

Ht

197cm

Wt

105kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.2

3star

K

7.9

3star

HB

4.4

3star

M

5.5

5star

T

1.9

4star

G

2.1

5star

D

12.7

3star

K

8.6

3star

HB

4.1

3star

M

5.1

5star

T

2.1

3star

G

1.6

5star

D

7.8

2star

K

5.6

3star

HB

2.2

2star

M

4.2

4star

T

1.0

3star

G

2.2

5star

- career best goals at the ripe age of 34 is a fair effort. His first quarter was colossal.
3 Tom Stewart - measured game from the superstar half-back, provided rebound and timely intercepts with his usual elan.
2 Mark Blicavs

46

Mark Blicavs

Age

33

Ht

198cm

Wt

101kg

Pos.

M/R

Career

Season

Last 5

D

14.5

4star

K

6.6

3star

HB

7.9

5star

M

4.1

4star

T

4.2

5star

CL

1.7

4star

D

11.1

3star

K

7.1

3star

HB

4.0

3star

M

3.9

4star

T

1.9

3star

CL

0.1

2star

D

8.6

3star

K

2.0

1star

HB

6.6

4star

M

1.8

2star

T

1.6

4star

CL

2.0

4star

- competitive in the ruck against Essendon's talismanic Draper, then follow-up with highly effective centre clearance work.
1 Gryan Miers

32

Gryan Miers

Age

25

Ht

179cm

Wt

81kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

15.4

4star

K

9.1

4star

HB

6.3

4star

M

4.1

4star

T

1.8

4star

G

1.1

4star

D

15.3

4star

K

9.0

4star

HB

6.3

4star

M

4.6

4star

T

1.6

3star

G

0.9

4star

D

14.4

4star

K

8.4

4star

HB

6.0

4star

M

3.8

4star

T

2.2

4star

G

1.2

4star

- #1 goal assist player in the comp once again backed up his hard running with clean ball use.

 

[D BRIDGE]

Guthrie and Touhy return next week and Bowes, & Rohan/Knevitt go out of starting team?

Danger was amazing today.

Boy I'm hanging to play the Tiges in two weeks.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Strange game. Felt like we dominated when the going was hot, but the final margin not really reflective of that. Junk time goals pissed me off for some reason. Our percentage probably won't be an issue but we did let an opportunity slip to build on it there.

Stoked for the big Hawk to get 8. He is looking fantastic at the moment.

I think we're going to see a few of these games this year, in a similar vein to Cats '08.

This team knows how good they are, and they know that it only takes a quarter or two of their best footy to blow teams away.

It's a little frustrating as supporters, as we'll have quarters were we look asleep, but I can understand why.

Once you've achieved the penultimate, nothing compares until you get back there again. A lazy Sunday afternoon while being up by 5-8 goals isn't going to stimulate them.

I think we need games that build up like finals, like last week against the Swans to see our best footy.

Obviously the Swans are a shadow of that now, but the GF rematch will always get you up and about.

I'd expect us to come out breathing fire next week, particularly if the Crows get up today.

 

[PzBlinky]

Solid win and I'm generally happy with that. A few random observations...

* I don't care if I've said 100 times already, Miers is one of the major play-makers into F50. Good things happen when he gets the ball!

* Dangerfield was a collusus, but there's not much in the midfield cupboard outside of him.

* Not sure about SDK in the ruck. I reckon he could do it with a few months solid practice and experience, but we're not getting full value if he does. It just screams we don't want to use Ceglar under any condition, so fingers crossed Toby can get back ASAP and be ready for 2024.

* Ratugolea is 6 games into his 'new life' as a backman. Yeah, he's not great in 1-on-1s but not many people are with so little experience under his belt. His interception and pack spoils make him a worthy inclusion while he's getting experience.

* Simpson was good without getting a ton of the ball. Should've had 3 but that's two solid games as a Stengle replacement. Not sure where he fits though when Tyson comes back.

* Can someone tell Ollie he's allowed to kick more than 2 goals? That's 6 out of 7 games he's done that... though it's great to see him reliably chip in each week. I loved him getting more involved in field play this week, that's what he needs to take the next step.

* Not sold on Knevitt, but that's his 3rd(?) game so can't put a line through him yet. I think his timidity and hesitation feel like the biggest problems - if he can get past that, I'll be much more bullish with him.

* Hawkins - nuff said.

Can't complain about our attack over the last 4 weeks. Tighten up our defence and we'll be looking pretty damned good. Until then, hopefully we just keep banking wins and move towards hitting peak form late in the season.

 

[cats_09]

 

[BlakeyNoFlakey]

We jumped them in the first half, especially in the first quarter. Essendon won the second half.

Q1: Ess 2.0 Gee: 6.3
Q2: Ess 5.2 Gee: 8.1
Q3: Ess 4.4 Gee: 3.2
Q4: Ess 5.2 Gee: 3.6

MVP: Hawkins (BOG), Dangerfield, Stewart, Holmes, Blicavs, Miers

There was much to like about that game; the Cats are back. But it wasn't a perfect win, and at times, I felt the guys were getting caught off the ball in the wrong position, not sticking tackles, and not running hard enough in defense. So, a lot to work on going forward. But we'll bank the four points and move on. It's only round 7, and there's a long way to go in the season.

Sav got a lesson today. He's still got a lot to learn regarding one-on-one defending. Could it be that the club sees Sam De Koning as a future Blicavs-type player? If they could turn him into another Blicavs, that would be fantastic. Mitch Knevitt had some good moments, but he's got a long way to go in his development. Mitch Duncan didn't have a great game today but we can forgive him.

Credit to Brad Scott, though. It's amazing what a good coach can do with a half-decent list. The Bombers are going to be difficult to beat all year.

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

Essendon running handball game will worry a lot of teams and have them playing finals.
We shut that down completely in the first half and scored mercilessly off clearance and turnover.
Put that one in the memory bank and move on.
Second half was a bit of preservation and experimentation.
Season starting to build after a big ordinary start results wise.

 

[catpremier 07]

Miers is in all Australian form this year

 

[bulletproof]

Knevitt is going to furnish into a lovely player. He has some serious flaws, but just look at what Geelong has been able to do with Zac Guthrie. They will be ironed out.

He is going to really stretch teams with his height.

Look for him to play a lot more games than we (supporters) probably want him to over next 12 months.

Scott will love this kid.

 

[BotsMaster]

 

[The_Koulouriotis_Fan]

It was not a dominant performance. The Cats played one half of football again and Essendon ran rings around them in the last quarter.

It was a dominant performance, 8 goals up in the last and missed some sitters then bombers got some cheap goals out the back, Cats had all the answers when it it mattered and were experimenting in the last with Close playing on the ball.
Cats looking good mate, best team in the comp and just warming up! Start enjoying it

 

[AM]

I was a bit concerned about this one. The Bombers were very good for three quarters against the Pies and had a couple of very good "ins". Phew!

Who was it that said Hawk had gone on a year too long?

Not that comfortable when the opposition side kicks 100 + points though.

And to David "I was a failure as a coach" King who said we were "cooked" after two games - suck........it........up!

 

[The_Koulouriotis_Fan]

Essendon running handball game will worry a lot of teams and have them playing finals.
We shut that down completely in the first half and scored mercilessly off clearance and turnover.
Put that one in the memory bank and move on.
Second half was a bit of preservation and experimentation.
Season starting to build after a big ordinary start results wise.

The key for me was the way we responded when they challenged in the third, looked like they were in control and we responded beautifully. Bombers are a good side and won’t roll over. This is a really good win

 

[Sttew]

I’d prefer Cats to have trounced Bombers on the scoreboard, but still a great win against a quality team. Considering who is out of the Cats’ team, there is so much upside

 

[The_Koulouriotis_Fan]

Wouldn’t want to lose Danger, he is playing his best footy for years. Monstered them today.
Will need to trade for a quality mid at the end of the year, Holmes looks awesome but is still a couple of years away from being elite.

 

[allrighty]

It was not a dominant performance. The Cats played one half of football again and Essendon ran rings around them in the last quarter.

And won easily - what do you want? It is round 7 ffs

 

[allrighty]

Superb efficiency going forward. We would love another midfielder to emerge to have an impact. We have not even gone close to replacing Selwood the player.

Bruhn, Parfitt, Bowes, Clark…..can one have a big impact in a finals push? That is only missing piece, and the return of Jack Henry obviously.

I reckon Atkins struggles when given key role in there, he is best as burst impact player. Not in main rotation.

Just review how many times it is Atkins who gets the hard ball and takes the hard tackle to cause a ballup. Not a measured stat but it is an important one nonetheless.

 

[thejester]

Knevitt is going to furnish into a lovely player. He has some serious flaws, but just look at what Geelong has been able to do with Zac Guthrie. They will be ironed out.

He is going to really stretch teams with his height.

Look for him to play a lot more games than we (supporters) probably want him to over next 12 months.

Scott will love this kid.

Thought he was great today, took some strong marks and showed heaps of composure in traffic. Bizarre because he looks totally lost in the VFL.

 

[bulletproof]

Just review how many times it is Atkins who gets the hard ball and takes the hard tackle to cause a ballup. Not a measured stat but it is an important one nonetheless.

I am not saying he should be dropped, but I think should be running more midfielders through there. Atkins is an important role player, but I don’t think we have adequately replaced Selwood as a ball winner.

 

[Pollywaffle]

Dangerfield was a collusus, but there's not much in the midfield cupboard outside of him.

This * ( minus the spelling )
We need 2022 Guthrie back at very least. Or one of our newer guys to step up.
Have not given up completely on Parfitt but it’s not looking good for him. Seems to be a confidence player and right now he has zero.
Perhaps, if we can get more comfortably into the 8, give him a run of a few games to see whether he can redeem himself.
At this rate, without help, Dangerfield will be running on fumes at the pointy end

 

[Mr Meow]

Anyone thinking that wasn't a convincing win should speak to a Bomber fan. Sure, the second half was played in second gear by the Cats but if our season depended on it that would've been an 80 point belting.

 

[And_ROOS]

How can anyone say that wasn't a dominant performance?

It wasn't a four quarter performance, and it didn't need to be.

We put the foot down 100% for 2 quarters and 50% for 2 quarters and shit it in.

If Bowes wasn't injured you would put it down as a great match, because we won, got a percentage bump, no major injuries, the Bowes minor injury is the only negative, and the players cruised to the finish line.

At this stage of the season, you want wins, you don't want injuries, and you don't want games to be a slog. Saints and Pies the last few weeks have been in slogs. That catches up as the season goes on.