Autopsy Cats lose to Freo by 7 points.

[kickazz]

Love Hawkins but geez I wish he could find a way to halve a few more contests where the delivery is not the best.

Surely playing hurt ?

 

[Zouz Kitty]

Very annoyed I'm currently taking medication that prevents me from drinking alcohol.

Need to down a whole bottle of wine to get through that s**t.....

Hope you recover fully + quickly
Illness + no alcohol
I’ve had perhaps one bottle in total since 18 May, actually can’t face it. I’m like: “I must be REALLY ill!”
Overcome by today’s frustrating game

 

[Footy_Fan2007]

Love Hawkins but geez I wish he could find a way to halve a few more contests where the delivery is not the best.

Surely playing hurt ?

I thought he played well behind Pearce today and Pearce has an absolute field day.

 

[Stocks_go_Up]

What are we going to do about our midfield? Cameron and Stewart we know have it, our midfield on the other hand might just not be good enough to compete against good teams.

 

[TheCatStevensExperience]

Maybe Stewart shouldn't have given Stanley a spray - not sure he had too many positives after that effort and it was likely his worse game in the Hoops

If the captaincy decision was down to Dangerfield & Stewart, it's hard to argue the right decision wasn't made

Prior to his injury, Dangerfield was close to the best player in the comp and leading from the front in our midfield

I'm not sure what would have made Stewart a better choice, and watching games like today I'm not sure he presented a good case

Stepping into the captaincy role after Selwood was never going to be easy, and Dangerfield has looked the right choice throughout the season


As for who makes good captains - Selwood is one of our greatest captains and not sure he meets either off your criteria

Yes, agree Selwood doesn't meet the criteria, but Harley and Ling do.

And plenty of 'standard issue' football players have done incredibly well in the position.

If Stanley and the midfield group had performed better, Stewart wouldn't have been dealing with so much coming down his way. Well within his rights to tell them to lift their game. It's where the game was lost..

 

[catsfootyfan89]

But the thing that really irks me is Jeremy Cameron 's football.

His kicking today was atrocious, his marking contests lacked conviction and his defensive game is non-existent. He's been a liability for weeks.

There are a lot of people who don't want the truth you're serving up.

Cameron is an amazing footballer. But he's not running both ways at the moment. The club hasn't got its money's worth from him this year. He's failed the club when we've needed him to perform.

 

[ourgameplandoesntwork]

Geelong 2023 = Australia Ashes 2023
Painful to watch.
Blow winning positions.

 

[geelong_crazy26]

Yeah. We’ve been poor all season, but a few bright glimpses (mostly against crap teams) and Chris Scott’s optimism has kept us all thinking that we are actually a good team. The reality is that we’re a bottom 10 team and have been all year.

Exactly. Like most post premiership era sides we still have good talent lurking around that can give good teams a headache on a given day. But in terms of a genuine flag threat? We have been well off the pace.

I am honestly very ok with it. I you can’t complain with the ride we have had and fresh off a flag last year.

I am keen to see us reset, bring in possibly a few players off season, holmes/bruhn get massive pre seasons into, get the elders fit and playing a role.. we may bounce back quicker than some think.

I think it is far from affirmed we are in a dive. I can see us rebuilding on the run again.

 

[kickazz]

Considering last year’s depth, you’d expect our injuries to only affect us a bit

Know what you mean about last year's depth, but we have been truly savaged by injury this year. I can't remember a worse year, honestly.

Even having a fit and reasonably in form Parfitt and Menegola this year would have been a massive help.

 

[TheCatStevensExperience]

We need two quality mids so probably trade route. We need a bigger body bull and an accumulator. We need someone who can get 30 odd a week and another who can give us proper clearances. We don't have an accumulator and when you do it means you keep control of the ball, something we have struggled to do all season. Bring 2 good mids in, all of a sudden you have Danger and Atkins as the second string mids like last season where they should be at this point.
Clark, Knevitt and Bruhn are years away from being top quality, and we can't rely next year on the older players we currently have.
Not sure there's any free agents that fit our needs that aren't likely to re-sign with their clubs, and we don't really have the trade currency.

When is our mid-season draft pick up going to get a run? Looks ready made in the big body midfielder department and has hunger to earn his spot

 

[BlakeyNoFlakey]

Full credit to Freo. They bought their A-game today, and the Cats were again found wanting in the midfield. Tom Atkins

30

Tom Atkins

Age

28

Ht

180cm

Wt

86kg

Pos.

D/M

Career

Season

Last 5

D

11.5

3star

K

5.0

2star

HB

6.5

4star

M

1.4

2star

T

4.3

5star

MG

123.5

2star

D

6.5

1star

K

3.0

1star

HB

3.5

2star

M

0.8

1star

T

1.5

2star

MG

100.0

2star

D

11.6

3star

K

5.0

2star

HB

6.6

4star

M

2.0

3star

T

4.8

5star

MG

130.0

3star

, Duncan, & Stewart were the only players in our side I could applaud for the game. The rest crumbled under the pressure Freo brought. I can't see the Cats making the eight at this stage.

 

[PzBlinky]

I didn't expect this kind of game but am not surprised by it. Watching the first three quarters live at the ground last week meant watching some of the most turgid, disorganised, error-ridden football by the Cats in years. The last quarter comeback (still riddled with fumbles and poor decision making) felt almost like an afterthought.

And so it carried on into this week.

* There's felt like a lack of energy around the team. Outside of the Bombers, it doesn't feel like we've really been "up" for any game in recent times (let's be honest, the Kangas game was a free pass). I love the fact it's a team that fights hard when things don't go their way, but that seems to be have been the way all year, barring that 5-win streak earlier.

* Duncan, Tuohy, Smith. It's probably too early to talk like this, but one of these have to retire and the other two resign themselves to playing no more than 10-12 senior games in 2024. They've been amazing for the club, but time marches on, and if all three are a mainstay in the 2024 Cats, this year may look good by comparison.

* Cameron... WTF? Has to be playing injured, but is also out of form, low on confidence, and not getting anything close to the silver service delivery of 2022. Same with Hawk, who's battled bravely this year but was completely outplayed by Pearce today.

* Midfield. Let's be fair, we have a bottom 6 mid group. An aging champion who's probably got one more year, a couple of promising but not-there youngsters, an up-and-down ruckman, and a couple of B-grade (at best) support actors in Blicavs and Atkins. Guthrie would've changed the mix for sure, but not much point playing past hypotheticals. Expect to see us drafting / trying a lot of different and new midfielders over the next 2-3 years.

* Don't know what to make of our backline. Thought they were champions last week against unrelenting Brisbane entries, but this week they were fumbly, hesitant, and prone to gifting goals to the Dockers. Stewart seemed to go colourblind at one point, picking out purple jumpers at will. I still feel this is probably our strongest part of the ground (sadly) and they've got reasons for their consistency (e.g. lack of midfield pressure making oppo entries more effective, injuries) but they're still well short of any Top 4 defence.

* Injuries have not been kind to us this year, as Blicav's hamstring reminded everyone, but I think two of the most important ones have been largely overlooked: Conway and Clark. These guys will be absolutely key if we're going anywhere from 2025 onwards, but setbacks this year have robbed them of valuable experience. I expect both of them to get senior time in 2024, but it's kind of playing catch-up to an extent.

* Rohan in the ruck. Bizarre idea, and actually looked good. He seemed to be one of the few players giving us run in the middle and with Blicavs out for the rest of the season (probably), I hope we see this over the last few weeks.

Finally, while I as a fan am absolutely writing 2023 off, I hope the club isn't thinking the same thing. My position is an emotional one and the club needs to stay rational and professional. Throwing young players into the mix at this point to give them experience is pointless - unless we want to give them experience on how to lose AFL games (as opposed to losing VFL games! OK, enough cynicism...). Let's give the older players a "farewell tour" a la 2015 and assess what needs to push us back to the pointy end of the ladder over the next 2-3 years.

 

[Footy_Fan2007]

What are we going to do about our midfield? Cameron and Stewart we know have it, our midfield on the other hand might just not be good enough to compete against good teams.

The finger must be pointed at Danger for todays midfield performance. 15 touches…. He’s supposed to be leading by example in there.

 

[51niwstac]

Do we throw the cheque book at Darcy Parish?

Games like the past two weeks are certainly a compelling case to do so.

It's clear where our recruitment focus needs to be this off season.

Just throw the cheque book at Scott for a payout. The first year he was there, it was the players and Brenton Sanderson and the ghost of Bomber that won 2011. Incredible talent acquisitions occurred in the following 11 years, apart from any that involved Chris Scott's influence...you know the ones. He is a pretender with the gift of the gab, a charlatan, or if you really want to dig, a pseudo mate of the players that doesn't offer anything in the way of mental fortitude building or maintenance, because he expects the players to manage that themselves at all times, in other words, that's not my fking job. With a plethora of coaches to do everything for players, possibly how to crap effectively, what exactly is his job?

 

[catsfootyfan89]

Just throw the cheque book at Scott for a payout. The first year he was there, it was the players and Brenton Sanderson and the ghost of Bomber that won 2011. Incredible talent acquisitions occurred in the following 11 years, apart from any that involved Chris Scott's influence...you know the ones. He is a pretender with the gift of the gab, a charlatan, or if you really want to dig, a pseudo mate of the players that doesn't offer anything in the way of mental fortitude building or maintenance, because he expects the players to manage that themselves at all times, in other words, that's not my fking job. With a plethora of coaches to do everything for players, possibly how to crap effectively, what exactly is his job?

This is not your best work.

 

[CHAWKTS]

I

I wouldn't play them in the next 2. The senior players can cop their medicine in those games. I would then be playing Neale, Knevitt, Mullin & Dempsey in the final two games.

agree. But think the kids are going to have to wait until 2024.

They will bring bews and gola back in front of the future…and rush Guthrie back for sure.

And even if we lose the next two against port and collingwood they will still have a chance for the 8 against at Kilda and bulldogs so they will play the older players hoping for them to be dangerous!

Maybe if we lose next 3 and are definitely out they might shuffle. But then I reckon they play the older players as a fair well game. So kids lose out all around

 

[David the Cat]

I'd throw SDK in the ruck again. Worked really well during our 5 week winning block earlier in the year. Run Stanley and SDK in the ruck and Esava in defense.

Not for me...SDK was good today down back..one of the few.

Leave him where he is. He's a mile in front of Sav

 

[Vdubs]

He had an absolute shocker, easily our worst for the day.

Disagree. If he can score 2 goals a week, and he's heading that way, given his first season with us, and we are having a poor season, that description is not accurate.

 

[Cataholic]

So many moving parts out of sync, out of form, and injured, with wavering intensity.

Today has been a reality check.

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

He had an absolute shocker, easily our worst for the day.

Mark O'Connor was our worst.

You're usually spot on with what you post but this take is ordinary. Henry kicked just under a quarter of our goals.

 

[FredLeDeux]

This is not your best work.

I rather think it is.

 

[PzBlinky]

When is our mid-season draft pick up going to get a run? Looks ready made in the big body midfielder department and has hunger to earn his spot

I would choose Knevitt over Hardie based on recent VFL performances. He's been good this year and he lifts his game next year, he'll be starting 22.

 

[TheCatStevensExperience]

Miers played another good game but gee I'd like to see him take a shot more often.

Had space 30m out and tried to pass it to Hawkins who was (surprise surprise) behind his player. Could have just put it through.

 

[TheCatStevensExperience]

Not for me...SDK was good today down back..one of the few.

Leave him where he is. He's a mile in front of Sav

Sav's out the door anyway, I feel. Get the games into the players who'll be there in 2025 and beyond

 

[CHAWKTS]

Love Hawkins but geez I wish he could find a way to halve a few more contests where the delivery is not the best.

Surely playing hurt ?

I think reality is playing old. He has just lost that step.

I back him in a wrestle or where he can use his smarts. But he gets beaten athleticly most weeks now.