Autopsy Embarrassing Dogs smashed by Collingwood

[BrunswickDog]

Our night was completely shot when Sam Lloyd sh!t himself going for a mark at the top of the 50 at the end of the second quarter.

Summed up our whole game: soft, scared and not committed.

Lets see what happens next week.

 

[Braybrook Son]

Anyone have a link to press conferences? AFL site getting worse

 

[Virgin Dog]

It has to be the methodology mate (coach).

If it isn't then blokes from that midfield should be dropped next week, regardless of reputation, because they suffocated the dogs forwards to the point where they could not get in the game.

Poor Josh Bruce & Aaron Naughton should be tested for contagious diseases after tonight's game. How are they expected to hit the scoreboard with that amount of opportunity?

We seriously suffered missing the better and smarter ball users in Lipinski and Richards. Too many of our mids are "see ball, get ball" types who don't give enough thought into what to do next (Hunter, Macrae the big accumulators).

Naughton looks so underdone. Would have been better if he was given a few more weeks to get his fitness back. Rushed him back, and he looked cooked.

No idea what happened today. The team selection was a bit off (too tall and slow) and the mids were way too forward-running with no defensive mindset whatsoever. We NEVER get so utterly decimated in the midfield like that. Ever. Whether it was down to our stoppages coaching, players being unfit, a new gameplan we haven't quite nailed down; I don't know. But Jesus our mids were bad today

 

[Virgin Dog]

Not sure I agree with much of that.

Looks like they picked the "Best" from the stat sheet. Suckling and Hunter were far from the worst, but definitely not in our best. Caleb Daniel and Bailey Williams both far better than those two today. Mitch Wallis, outside of one or two dodgy kick, was better too.

 

[Proffessor]

Our match committee either aren't intellectually up to it or they simply don't take these sorts of games seriously enough. Some changes are definitely needed in the coaching team but regrettably are unlikely to come.

We made the same stupid selection errors that we have been making for the last three years, and most notably in last year's elimination final.

We simply had too many underdone and inexperienced players in the side. This left way too much to too few. It was like playing 17 (or even less) vs 18 for the whole match, and was all so sadly predictable.

Naughton, English, Bruce and probably a few others have had interrupted preseasons and clearly weren't ripe for this game.
Throw in an AFL debutant in Cavarra, a couple of very inexperienced fringe players in Young and Gardner, two mature AFL recruits playing their first game for the club, remember that we are a generally young side anyway, and it all adds up to a very unsettled line up going into a tough match against a strong opponent in very strange circumstances.

Apart from the obvious selection mistakes, I was also really disappointed in the way English was mentally beaten by Grundy before the first bounce, both he and whoever our ruck coach is need to spend a long week reflecting on an abysmal performance. If Bev wanted someone to debut in this game, it should have been Sweet.

I was also disappointed at how few players stood up to be counted when things were going wrong. A small number of players stood up although it was nice to see Keath and Bailey Williams in that group. It was also good to see Wood start the game so strongly before being overwhelmed by superior numbers.

Credit to Collingwood they set up well and played smart football. A great shame they were also helped so much by the terribly biased umpiring that they were still infuriating to watch. They wouldn't have gotten away with it so easy in front of a home Bulldog crowd.

Gardner had no business being selected for tonight's game and he played like he knew it.
Young is slowly improving but still a bit behind other key position players and needs to show more confidence and resolve when he gets his chances at senior level.
Cavarra certainly didn't embarrass himself but didn't necessarily do enough to put him ahead of other similar players either. It is hard to judge debutants in bad losses but I was hoping to see a bit more pace in him.

Sweet, Mclean, Richards, Dickson and Schache should all come into consideration for selection next week.

I expect that Naughton will be much bettor for the run, and hopefully our other high profile players will approach our next match with a better attitude whenever it occurs.

 

[Anja_Nees]

English worst on ground. 4 years in the system and still a sissy.

Sissy may be a little harsh but he’s certainly a bit ‘nice’. Plenty of times he could crunch someone or let a mid know he’s there and he doesn’t take it.

 

[footyfan000001]

I feel as if Bevo has been wanting to play a tall side. Just doesn’t suit our best footy though. Plus our talls aren’t A graders.

 

[Shacf501]

Dear Bevo, stop being there dad and start being a coach! The lack of effort and intensity in that performance tonight was a kick in the gut. It's not even about winning or losing, it's about effort and that was disgusting.

Cavarra and Gardener really?????

Trengrove has to be full back, Cordy is too short and and when poor young is is thrown down there he just isn't ready physically.

LLYOD, YOU WUSSED IT IN A CONTEST!!!!!! SHOULD HAVE BEEN DRAGGED IMMEDIATELY!!

Midfield, regardless of whether English is winning the ruck or getting smashed thats as a pathetic effort...bont, you included! It hurts me to say that!!

Bailey Smith, not your best performance, but geez you tried!!

 

[Anja_Nees]

Our match committee either aren't intellectually up to it or they simply don't take these sorts of games seriously enough. Some changes are definitely needed in the coaching team but regrettably are unlikely to come.

We made the same stupid selection errors that we have been making for the last three years, and most notably in last year's elimination final.

We simply had too many underdone and inexperienced players in the side. This left way too much to too few. It was like playing 17 (or even less) vs 18 for the whole match, and was all so sadly predictable.

Naughton, English, Bruce and probably a few others have had interrupted preseasons and clearly weren't ripe for this game.
Throw in an AFL debutant in Cavarra, a couple of very inexperienced fringe players in Young and Gardner, two mature AFL recruits playing their first game for the club, remember that we are a generally young side anyway, and it all adds up to a very unsettled line up going into a tough match against a strong opponent in very strange circumstances.

Apart from the obvious selection mistakes, I was also really disappointed in the way English was mentally beaten by Grundy before the first bounce, both he and whoever our ruck coach is need to spend a long week reflecting on an abysmal performance. If Bev wanted someone to debut in this game, it should have been Sweet.

I was also disappointed at how few players stood up to be counted when things were going wrong. A small number of players stood up although it was nice to see Keath and Bailey Williams in that group. It was also good to see Wood start the game so strongly before being overwhelmed by superior numbers.

Credit to Collingwood they set up well and played smart football. A great shame they were also helped so much by the terribly biased umpiring that they were still infuriating to watch. They wouldn't have gotten away with it so easy in front of a home Bulldog crowd.

Gardner had no business being selected for tonight's game and he played like he knew it.
Young is slowly improving but still a bit behind other key position players and needs to show more confidence and resolve when he gets his chances at senior level.
Cavarra certainly didn't embarrass himself but didn't necessarily do enough to put him ahead of other similar players either. It is hard to judge debutants in bad losses but I was hoping to see a bit more pace in him.

Sweet, Mclean, Richards, Dickson and Schache should all come into consideration for selection next week.

I expect that Naughton will be much bettor for the run, and hopefully our other high profile players will approach our next match with a better attitude whenever it occurs.

Naughton was a massive risk given he’s missed most of the preseason and both Marsh games. It showed - couldn’t get beat it.

I’m sure Bevo has his reasons but honestly Trengove gives a good account of himself in the ruck and is a tough back man. Having him there means there’s a genuine alternative if English gets pantsed, rather than Young who looked out of place.

Can understand one of Young and Gardner getting a go but not both at once.

 

[dogwatch]

Anyone have a link to press conferences? AFL site getting worse

Yes it is. Everyone said it couldn't be done but they've managed it.
Nothing on the WB website apart from a fairly subdued interview with Caleb who was honest enough to say "we just didn't have the appetite for the contest". Pretty damning really.

Look, I wouldn't even bother trying to find the Bevo press conference. He said nothing and clearly wanted to be elsewhere. Can't blame him either.

 

[dogwatch]

Looks like they picked the "Best" from the stat sheet. Suckling and Hunter were far from the worst, but definitely not in our best. Caleb Daniel and Bailey Williams both far better than those two today. Mitch Wallis, outside of one or two dodgy kick, was better too.

They always do. Ignore. Just lazy journalism.

 

[Braybrook Son]

We seriously suffered missing the better and smarter ball users in Lipinski and Richards. Too many of our mids are "see ball, get ball" types who don't give enough thought into what to do next (Hunter, Macrae the big accumulators).

Naughton looks so underdone. Would have been better if he was given a few more weeks to get his fitness back. Rushed him back, and he looked cooked.

No idea what happened today. The team selection was a bit off (too tall and slow) and the mids were way too forward-running with no defensive mindset whatsoever. We NEVER get so utterly decimated in the midfield like that. Ever. Whether it was down to our stoppages coaching, players being unfit, a new gameplan we haven't quite nailed down; I don't know. But Jesus our mids were bad today

You obviously didn’t watch our final last year?

 

[Sentinel]

Felt a bit like watching an exhibition game tonight. I wonder if the players, across all games this weekend, feel similar.

 

[Whoyagot]

What a train wreck of a game. Bevo needs to sort this shit out ASAP. Getting round 1 2018 vibes and if this season ends up like 2018 I hope it’s cancelled.

mids have been so dissapointing in the elimination final and now a huge round 1 clash. Couple more of these and the mental demons will be hard to shake. Sad times.

 

[TMoney22]

We could have Carey Ablett Jackovic Scarlett in that team and we would have lost. Mids were disgusting who usually match up well with Collingwood.

You would think we would be playing differently with the forward line we have right now. With the current situation every game is probably worth more than usual, only us don't think so.

 

[WBD76]

Not sure what is a worse feeling at the moment. Waiting for seeing what is going to happen to the Dow Jones index for a lead into the ASX on Monday given there is no time frame for covid 19 and its final impact on the economy and social cohesion or watching the Doggies deliver that. Time for a wine and a bex

On SM-G975F using BigFooty.com mobile app

Finally a realistic perspective. Come flu season, Australian society may possibly be subject to martial law
, with food rationing & troops on the streets to maintain order. Personally, I'm just happy that the boys are being allowed to play.

 

[Proffessor]

Yes it is. Everyone said it couldn't be done but they've managed it.
Nothing on the WB website apart from a fairly subdued interview with Caleb who was honest enough to say "we just didn't have the appetite for the contest". Pretty damning really.

Look, I wouldn't even bother trying to find the Bevo press conference. He said nothing and clearly wanted to be elsewhere. Can't blame him either.

Glad to hear others saying that Dogwatch, means it's not just me!
Over the summer the AFL website seems to have gone from being reasonable, although a bit slow at times, to being absolutely horrendous.

 

[Oliver G]

Surely they’re taking the piss? Macrae and Suckling were two of the worst on ground

AFL Media put the best as...

Macrae, Smith, Keath, Suckling, Hunter

Don't agree with Suckling and Hunter, but Macrae, Smith and Keath certainly deserve to be there. Personally my best would be...

Smith, Macrae, Crozier, Keath

They at least seemed that they wanted to be out there and used the ball well going at over 80% efficiency.

 

[Braybrook Son]

AFL Media put the best as...

Macrae, Smith, Keath, Suckling, Hunter

Don't agree with Suckling and Hunter, but Macrae, Smith and Keath certainly deserve to be there. Personally my best would be...

Smith, Macrae, Crozier, Keath

They at least seemed that they wanted to be out there and used the ball well going at over 80% efficiency.

5-8 mins of the 3rd qtr, we had a run of going forward, but Macrae stuffed up about 4 possessions in a row, resulting in a poor turn over goal, that gave Collingwood back the momentum. He needs to fix his disposal by hand and foot, Hunter too

 

[dogwatch]

Full press conference video is up on the WB website now, although it strangely cuts out in mid-sentence at the end - did Bevo say something he wasn't meant to?

Anyway, on reflection I think the match circumstances got to our boys. Collingwood probably managed their players in this regard better than we did. Or else their general maturity helped them through it.

The reason I say that is because Bevo outlined all the little things that had to be in the pre-match "messaging" like no high-5s, no huddles, no getting around players after a goal, no team song tight circle, keeping distance from umpires and interviewers (yes I know a couple of these went by the board). These things may seem trivial but they can be a distraction and undermine a player's match focus.

We've probably all played seriously competitive sport at some time in our lives. If you have you'll know the importance of playing in the moment, playing instinctively, staying focussed on your routines and what you know, sticking to prearranged game plans, maintaining concentration. These mental aspects are particularly important at the highest levels of sport where the competition is fierce and very even. So a drop off in mental edge of a mere 5% can have dramatic results. IMO that's how a lot of "upset" results occur in top level sport.

While a lot of analysis after tonight will be around whether we "had the appetite for the contest", whether we fumbled too much, whether we let players slip through tackles, etc those things might be largely the visible manifestations of the mental state our players were in. That is: uncertain, thinking too much about the wrong things, not switched on.

Now I'm not saying we would have beaten the Pies in other circumstances but this would certainly help explain the horrific dip in competitiveness tonight. It was precipitous and it seems that neither coach was expecting it.

The challenge is to get that mental preparation and single-minded focus right for next week. No doubt that will occupy the coaching staff for the coming days.

We should also take note of the players who did handle the challenge well - Smith, Williams, Keath, Wood, Crozier, Daniel - and those who came up short tonight (and here I must emphasise there could have been multiple reasons for that, such as youth, inexperience, injury, match fitness, etc). I'm not writing those players off by any means but it could give us a small insight into the mental resilience of a few of our players.

Let's see how they hit the ground next week. The first 10 minutes should give us a fair indication, as it did tonight.

 

[BIG_BONTS]

The risk of catching COVID is 100x playing football would be at the back of my mind... Wonder if that was a contributing factor to our softness.

Bring on next week!

 

[dergert]

I just dont get what happened?

No defensive pressure at all

 

[American Doggie]

Here's a relatively newbie-to-the-game question; how are Rucks developed? Are they drafted as Rucks and specifically trained or are tall forwards or defenders moved there and if they're good, they stay.

Certainly there has to be an option on the ground other than English who would be more effective at the position, right?

 

[mattwa]

I cannot put any blame on our forwards last night as they literally got nothing all night. And when we did get it in forward some of the kicks forward horrible. Mids got smashed and jeez they looked slow too. Collingwoods leg speed was a massive difference in the game.

We normally handle Richmond and there quickness well cause we smash them at the clearances but with Grundy dominating that puts us at a double disadvantage.

Deep breaths everyone it's round one Richmond got smashed by the pies in round two last year too and this could be a kick up the ass we need that our rise needs to be earnt it won't be given to us

 

[Dazb86]

That really was the perfect storm of all of our weaknesses on show at once. Poor key backs, midfielders who aren't damaging when Bont isn't going well and an inexperienced ruck getting mauled.

Collingwood were very good. They shut down any run we had off half back whatsoever which stopped us in our tracks and forced us to go long with rushed kicks to nobody. Their pressure was very high and skills were very good.

The midfield was terrible. Got absolutely pantsed. Dunkley and Bont were non factors and Hunter did more damage than good with his kicking. Worst game I've seen from this midfield group.

The pro's are Keith looked good and Williams/Smith played pretty well.

I don't think we could have been worse