Crows in the Finals.

[Rise_up_Stiffy]

I see us playing either Sydney or Hawthorn in week 1. I think the pies will finish 2nd or 3rd so will be on the other side of the draw. I am confident that we can beat both of those teams at home.

 

[Deaneus!]

He's right.

And I'll be sure to file away his concerns in my mental filing cabinet between the folders labelled "travelling interstate every other week" and "Perth in the final round, every year". We got a great draw and we made the most of it so far, but we've still beaten every team bar Collingwood, Hawthorn and Norf (?!), lots of people whinging about our draw seem to forget that. I'm sure we'll pay for it next year by the way the draw is divided between sections of the ladder.

From memory we were top-4, but not top-2, which I believe is a fair reckoning of where we really stand.

I'd think of all the teams this year, we'd be the third best, having beaten Sydney at their home ground.

 

[mulz]

im hoping we get collingwood week 1, at home.

the time has come to knock them off, this time it WILL happen.

 

[Vader]

I'd think of all the teams this year, we'd be the third best, having beaten Sydney at their home ground.

Which is in the top-4, but not top-2, yes? I have us in the 3-5 range.

 

[Emperoar]

Beating the Hawks or Pies in the 1st week will work wonders for confidence and belief on our side. Talk as much as you want but come September, anything can happen between the first and final siren. Rewind 12 months ago and no one could have contemplated a 1st or 2nd finish on the ladder even if we have been given the easiest draw. That's the same kind of unf we'll be taking into the finals and hopefully it'll get us through that last match in September.

I'm already believing

 

[Geoffa32]

The only team I have a genuine concern about not being able to beat is Collingwood.

I feel we can beat Hawthorn, particularly here. Our game against them this year is so long ago we are a different side.

Geelong we always match up well against. Had Jacobs played, Talia not been hurt, and it played at the G or Footy Park we would have won. Kardinia Park is a genuine home ground.

WCE are limping into finals, we should be able to beat them

Sydney are our bitches.

The rest meh.


We are playing ugly footy at the moment, but winning. Finals can be ugly, tight and contested. Which is how our wins of late have come. Any of the top four sides can win it this year. Us included.

 

[BigLefty]

He's right.

From memory we were top-4, but not top-2, which I believe is a fair reckoning of where we really stand.

he's wrong.

we deserve to sit 2nd right now, because we've won equally the most games in the league. and we defeated the side that's actually top.

you can say we arent one of the top 2 chances to win the flag, but you can dispute we deserve to be top 2 right now. it's a different argument.

 

[eastcoastcrow]

There isn't a great deal of difference.

End of the day, who thought Adelaide would be top 8, let alone top 2? You certainly didn't call it Vader.

Top 2 or not, we will need to beat a strong side in Melbourne to win the premiership. If we win it, it's legitimate. No two ways about it.

As was outline earlier, it is possible for us to win the flag and NOT play a Vic team! Priceless.

 

[eastcoastcrow]

Which is in the top-4, but not top-2, yes? I have us in the 3-5 range.

Definitely correct.

However we have taken our chances and deserve to be minor premiers.

The Pies play the majority of games at the G, play cellar dwellers in Tigers and Blues for years twice yet they have been minor premiers just the once from my recollection.

What about the times when we deserved to play a home final in the 90s and had to play the game in Victoria???

 

[A FEW GOOD MEN]

Definitely correct.

However we have taken our chances and deserve to be minor premiers.

The Pies play the majority of games at the G, play cellar dwellers in Tigers and Blues for years twice yet they have been minor premiers just the once from my recollection.

What about the times when we deserved to play a home final in the 90s and had to play the game in Victoria???

That wasn't in the 1990's, that was in 2002. Port Power beat Brisbane by 6 points in Round 22 to finish top. We finished third so instead of a Super Showdown we had to play the Lions at the Gabba and lost by 12 goals. We then played our "home" final against Melbourne at the MCG. After a great come from behind win, we should have played a Super Dooper Showdown against Port Power in the prelim but despite 20,000 years of tradition they lost to Collingwood in the QF and subsequently lost the prelim at the Gabba by 9 goals.

We looked the goods in the first half at the G against Collingwood and then along came Big Brother Cloke. Now we want to pay a fortune to his baby brother. I think not.

 

[eastcoastcrow]

Thanks for the heads up on that.

You pointed out how we have been shafted many a time by the AFL, heaven forbid we have a "soft draw".

FYI for all those anti-crows out there.

Here is a little breakdown.

Saints, Lions, Roos - played GC twice

Swans & Roos play GWS twice.

The Roos have a soft draw? GWS, GC and Dogs TWICE!!!! Yet they sit in 6th position. Play 13 games at the Dome and play 8 games outside of Victoria in which if I am not mistaken have sold those games to Tassie.


Secondly a few people in the media throw the Power in the mix. Here is a simple fact though the Power have beaten St Kilda, Carlton and North Melbourne this year!

I dont consider playing the Power twice a soft draw.

Every club has played GWS and GC, so in essence we have only played an extra two games against those teams.

 

[Glenno23]

As i have posted in other threads

Lets theoretically drop our double up games vs the expansion clubs. We play the 1 each

We then get double ups against any 2 of Dogs/ Lions or Demons. All around or above us on last years ladder.

What result do we get on 2012 form?

 

[daniel_4tw]

This is our year.

There seems to be very little belief on this forum. People saying we should be happy to just have made finals, and a prelim is a pass etc etc.

Seem to remember something similar about a 0-4 thread...

As it stands, we are going to be guaranteed two home finals. We will be three wins away from a flag come September.

In the past, I would have said we were a mentally weak team. Lost the close ones, couldn't hold a lead et al. But this year we have shown we can win the tight ones when the pressure is on (Swans, Essendon, St Kilda) and we've been able to come back after looking out of the game (Essendon again, Richmond).

We have players that seem to kick those clutch goals and stand up when needed (Dangerfield, Sloane, Walker). Have a look at how many games Geelong have won thanks to individual efforts like Hawkins and Bartel...

Our game plan of contested footy is perfect for finals. I honestly think Hawks are overrated and will be found out come September. Their cute pin point kicks are great when they're versing teams that apply zero pressure (GWS, Port, North when they were shit), and these performances have made them more feared then they deserve to be. When they played Sydney they got smashed because of the pressure. Clarksons game plan hasn't changed a whole lot since, and since 2008 it has failed come finals time and time again.

Come finals, at AAMI, I'd give us even money to beat the Hawks - think how we came out against Carlton. And beating the Hawks in a final would be brilliant.

We have a chance to rest our players leading into finals, get the body's right and nurse a few stars back in. I have full faith in Sando getting the boys up to play their best footy when it counts.

Enough with this loser mentality. We are in it this season to win it, and we are as good a chance as Sydney, Hawks or Collingwood. Not saying we're a lock, but I sure as hope the players aren't already thinking that our window opens next year. See Carlton for reference.

This is it. This is our premiership window. The next 2 months. Winning the flag when BigFooty believes we barely should be in the 8... Nothing would be sweeter.

 

[Thylacinus]

With regards to meeting Collingwood I remember the saying often expressed in drought times 'every day it doesn't rain is a day closer to the day when it will rain'. If we remember the big drought of the mid/late 2000's we have had some bumper seasons since then. Colliingwood's day will come....and when drought breaks in Australia, it often does so with a vengence

 

[FR0GGY]

What will be important is to get an absolute full house, 50k+ to both home finals no exception, none of this ill wait for next week or the prelim and go then. We need to make it as inhospitable for whoever comes here. Need to make the most of the home ground advantage.

 

[Hell Boy6669]

If there is any chance of us winning a flag this year, we have to win our qualifying final here. I know its stating the obvious but this importance of this match is huge, getting a home prelim as opposed to an away is the difference between making a GF and getting bundled out in a prelim and giving media/ opposition supporters the satisfaction of "knew the crows weren't that good"

Funnily enough I would probably rather play Hawks/Collingwood in the first week, got a feeling that it has come the time where Sydney will beat us

 

[amer]

This is our year.

There seems to be very little belief on this forum. People saying we should be happy to just have made finals, and a prelim is a pass etc etc.

Seem to remember something similar about a 0-4 thread...

As it stands, we are going to be guaranteed two home finals. We will be three wins away from a flag come September.

In the past, I would have said we were a mentally weak team. Lost the close ones, couldn't hold a lead et al. But this year we have shown we can win the tight ones when the pressure is on (Swans, Essendon, St Kilda) and we've been able to come back after looking out of the game (Essendon again, Richmond).

We have players that seem to kick those clutch goals and stand up when needed (Dangerfield, Sloane, Walker). Have a look at how many games Geelong have won thanks to individual efforts like Hawkins and Bartel...

Our game plan of contested footy is perfect for finals. I honestly think Hawks are overrated and will be found out come September. Their cute pin point kicks are great when they're versing teams that apply zero pressure (GWS, Port, North when they were shit), and these performances have made them more feared then they deserve to be. When they played Sydney they got smashed because of the pressure. Clarksons game plan hasn't changed a whole lot since, and since 2008 it has failed come finals time and time again.

Come finals, at AAMI, I'd give us even money to beat the Hawks - think how we came out against Carlton. And beating the Hawks in a final would be brilliant.

We have a chance to rest our players leading into finals, get the body's right and nurse a few stars back in. I have full faith in Sando getting the boys up to play their best footy when it counts.

Enough with this loser mentality. We are in it this season to win it, and we are as good a chance as Sydney, Hawks or Collingwood. Not saying we're a lock, but I sure as hope the players aren't already thinking that our window opens next year. See Carlton for reference.

This is it. This is our premiership window. The next 2 months. Winning the flag when BigFooty believes we barely should be in the 8... Nothing would be sweeter.

Most BigFooty posters are depressed and/or insecure. It is why they are here. It is what keeps the popular forums in orbit, giving people a sense of position and meaning, where otherwise there is none but fear for them. The freedom to act without accountability. They will remain negative because they feed on the feeling of having a grasp on something, having a voice with it, and to compromise is to (in their minds) threaten that position.

Here's hoping they are with you, and get positive. It makes things better. Of course the crows are a chance, they're top 2!

 

[Geoffa32]

There is too much fear in getting something wrong, and in being made to look "silly" if you suggest we will the flag and don't.

We can and we are in a great position to win it, but there are four other clubs (Syd, Haw, Coll, Geel) out there who can lay claims to it as well.

Embrace the idea we can win it, and if we don't look ahead to next year.

 

[Smoooothy]

i'm really not looking forward to the meltdown of this board should we lose a knockout final - you can almost guarantee it..

if we were really smart, we'd open up a betting market as to who the first post will come from!

 

[Marty64]

My money would be on east coast crow just after the lead changes.

 

[Smoooothy]

My money would be on east coast crow just after the lead changes.

he's only in it for the money, i'm pretty sure i read on the punting board he doesn't follow the crows that much..

 

[RocknRoll]

I am predicting straights sets losses and much wailing and gnashing of teeth - Why did we hire NC Mk II? etc.
IMHO Crows midfield is not up to it and will be exposed heavily in finals games.

 

[jackster83]

What will be important is to get an absolute full house, 50k+ to both home finals no exception, none of this ill wait for next week or the prelim and go then. We need to make it as inhospitable for whoever comes here. Need to make the most of the home ground advantage.

We need to emulate the ferociousness that the West Coast crowd showed on Friday night. After all that's what we'll no doubt cop if we have to play Collingwood or Hawthorn at the MCG.

 

[J_Crow]

the time has come to knock them off, this time it WILL happen.

The finals - particularly if the result is elimination, or indeed the 'big dance' - would be a beautiful time to break the hoodoo.

Keep telling Pies supporters that are on other forums that it has to happen one day!

 

[gunner_vine]

Meh. Everyone should be excited.

I didn't expect to be here and now I'm genuinely excited to see how we go. If we aren't quite there yet then I'll just look forward to next year because I can see further improvement within the players.