Gerard on 360 Tonight

[Zondor]

Bomber Thompson said, "North are inconsistent. Mmmmm. But they're still young and developing. Mmmmmm. Fans need to be patient. Mmmmm. But the Suns were very good yesterday. Mmmmm. North will be back. Mmmmm."

LOL. Funny Shit That. :stern look

 

[Shermanator]

This is now my favourite gif Gaso!

 

[Shermanator]

Not sure if Thompson, or wise afl yoda

 

[Gasometer]

look at it anyway you like, personally i think we are good, and the Suns are just Better.

and they wont be going backwards untill the talent they have assembled start wanting some more coin and the salary cap comes into play.

I think I posted on here during the game the sheer disbelief of the penny dropping that what the AFL has created with the Suns & GWS is that come the end of the decade they will be running around at the top end of town whilst the rest have missed out on a series of drafts that have set them back a decade.

Manufactured success at the expense of what?

 

[Jay-Z]

Thanks GR. I love GRTV and all the great work you do

Pretty spot on summary really. We have shown in the last 12 months that our best is good enough to match it with the best. The last few question marks on this (Sydney, Freo, On the road, in the wet) have been answered this year. Now consistency is the last piece of the puzzle and once we get that, we'll be a real contender. I think Whately's last line summed it up perfectly - we'd love them to be there now, but they're not.

I hate to use a Ross Lyon-ism but good teams will take on anyone, anywhere at anytime. So far we seem to have come on in leaps and bounds in the anyone and anywhere stakes in the last 2 years (need I remind people that the Buddy 13!! disaster was less than 2 years ago) but we've still got a level of maturing to do to get that anytime bit. Hopefully that will come together in the second half of the year

 

[Daz]

23 or under with 70 games or less:

North: 21
Richmond: 20
Essendon: 23
Hawthorn: 23
Freo: 19
Geelong: 30
Collingwood: 23
Port: 26
Carlton: 18
Adelaide: 23
Sydney: 22

Not much covering these teams, except for the Cats who have pushed youth whilst still having a number of senior players running around. It's hardly that big an issue when the balance can be seriously addressed in one draft and that we have Anthony, McMahon, Tippett and Nahas as older back up players.

We fielded the 5th oldest team and the 6th most experienced on the weekend. Overall, our list is the 3rd oldest and 4th most experienced.

At the end of 2016 we're every chance to lose Harvey (if he makes it that far), Petrie, Dal Santo and Wells. If we don't win a flag by then, we won't win one for another 5+ years.

I'm also concerned about the lack of talent in our reserves.

The time for this group to be hitting their peak is right now. There are absolutely no excuses.

 

[chubbspeterson]

That's why its crucial we get games into Wood, Garner, Daw, Harper, Dumont, McKenzie and LMac, we'll be left behind, there has to be a group that comes through with ziebs, cunners, atley etc.

 

[Mr. Blonde]

We fielded the 5th oldest team and the 6th most experienced on the weekend. Overall, our list is the 3rd oldest and 4th most experienced.

At the end of 2016 we're every chance to lose Harvey (if he makes it that far), Petrie, Dal Santo and Wells. If we don't win a flag by then, we won't win one for another 5+ years.

I'm also concerned about the lack of talent in our reserves.

The time for this group to be hitting their peak is right now. There are absolutely no excuses.

Would you agree that we are in the first year of a really strong 5 years?

 

[Daz]

Would you agree that we are in the first year of a really strong 5 years?

First of a really good 2-3 years I think.

 

[Hearts to hearts]

We fielded the 5th oldest team and the 6th most experienced on the weekend. Overall, our list is the 3rd oldest and 4th most experienced.

At the end of 2016 we're every chance to lose Harvey (if he makes it that far), Petrie, Dal Santo and Wells. If we don't win a flag by then, we won't win one for another 5+ years.

I'm also concerned about the lack of talent in our reserves.

The time for this group to be hitting their peak is right now. There are absolutely no excuses.

Averages on age are pointless stats, especially on lists rather than teams playing senior football. The differences are small and one or two players at either end skew them beyond meaning. No excuses, but the core - which has shown enough to get us all excited at various times - is still young so there's no need for an arbitrary deadline.

 

[RoyalBlue]

GW's point is extremely valid. **** I am angry though.

 

[Daz]

Averages on age are pointless stats, especially on lists rather than teams playing senior football. The differences are small and one or two players at either end skew them beyond meaning. No excuses, but the core - which has shown enough to get us all excited at various times - is still young so there's no need for an arbitrary deadline.

The top 4 are Hawthorn, Sydney, Fremantle and Geelong. The differences might seem small but they are not. A one year age gap is very significant.

 

[Jay-Z]

First of a really good 2-3 years I think.

I think it is impossible (or at least unrealistic) to sit here and say we've only got 2-3 years and then we're screwed. Think about the difference in the competition between the end of 2008 and the end of 2013. Technically the same team are reigning premiers but in reality they are a completely different side. Hell, they are barely playing the same sport

Having said that, we still should be aiming for top 6 and a finals victory this year and top 4 next year.

 

[Tander]

Having said that, we still should be aiming for top 6 and a finals victory this year and top 4 next year.

Thats still the pass mark for me as well.

 

[La Flama Blanca]

Gerard is usually spot on, but I'm not buying that as excuse to get smashed at home by a club playing its 73rd game.

 

[Kenny Kangaroo]

I think it is impossible (or at least unrealistic) to sit here and say we've only got 2-3 years and then we're screwed. Think about the difference in the competition between the end of 2008 and the end of 2013. Technically the same team are reigning premiers but in reality they are a completely different side. Hell, they are barely playing the same sport

Having said that, we still should be aiming for top 6 and a finals victory this year and top 4 next year.

I think this is about right. Top 6 this year. Top 4 next and 2016. After that I don't know. Petrie Harvey Wells and Dal santo all finish or become shadows after that.
No problem with the new core: Cunnington Ziebell Bastinac Black McMillan Atley but most will be not in the same league as the afore-mentioned veterans and ,while LMAC is a big talent, the recruiting in 2010 11 12 13 sharply declined on the efforts of 2006 07 08 09 in both quality and quantity.
I fear we are facing a similar black hole to the one we went through in 2000 to 2005 which placed us in the wilderness we have occupied for the last 5-7 years.
So a 2-3 window of excellence may well be all we get. The recruiting from this point better be simply awesome if we are to avoid a dramatic collapse in 2017.
I'm not concerned about this years inconsistency. We have had a lot of senior contributors either well down on the best (wells Thomas Petrie Bastinac black Hansen Goldstein Adams) and some not there at all( Tarrant Swallow and now wells)
Our fitness has improved and so has our ability to control space. The poor skills and crappy decision making continues to hurt us. The lack of cohesive scoring power is a concern. As is our inability to stop teams who are playing their best footy. Our pressure is hugely improved but if this doesn't cause the opposition to wilt, we tend to wilt ourselves. So we remain one-trick ponies(it's just a different trick to 2012-13 when we were heavy scoring downhill skiers)
We have a coach who lacks match day nous and also one who has failed to recruit or develop either elite taggers or destructive crumbers. So personnel is a problem despite the overall improvement. Our best kids are awesome but the depth of talent in the youth brigade has been over-estimated and not good enough to cover the veterans when they go.
I remain hopeful that 2-3 tremendous years await us. The talent is mostly there. Mostly.
We have played only two teams outside the eight in 7 rounds and still sit 4-3 with wins over Port , Sydney(in Sydney) and Freo(in Perth). The suns were sensational on the weekend but if we are their only scalp then forgive me if I don't get too excited about their 5-2 start.
We will no doubt improve and they will tire(and face better opposition than us) this year. They are the future.
For me the question is not whether we will challenge this year(we won't) or whether we are building an elite team(we are) but whether our consistent best in 2015-17 will be good enough to snatch a flag away from the emerging juggernauts like Port and the Suns.
Gerard is right. The consistency will come in the next couple of years. It will be exhilarating
But I just can't see this era lasting very long.

 

[Tander]

But I just can't see this era lasting very long.

Hope it lasts longer than St Kildas era...

 

[The Other Dean]

Although I do reckon this GC match was just a blimp.

Good call.

I pretty much just sat there muttering "Oh the humanity" for 4 Quarters.

 

[Kenny Kangaroo]

Hope it lasts longer than St Kildas era...

Me too but the saints were good enough to be back2back premiers 2009-10.
They'd have taken that.
If we win the 2015-16 flags then promptly collapse, there's not a person on this board who won't be happy to take that too.
The fact is, no matter how long or short your window might be, flags are bloody hard to win and we would be happy with whatever ultimate success that happens to come our way.

 

[DJ Dupree]

The last thing we need is a (mostly) respected media personality also buying us time. Like we don't get enough of that internally, now the analysts have been mesmerised by the spin.

I ain't buying it.

 

[Jay-Z]

Hope it lasts longer than St Kildas era...

I can't even predict the football results for this weekend with a great deal of accuracy so i think anyone who makes long term (3+ year) predictions about where a football team will be is crazy (ala all the GC/GWS will share the next 10 flags hysteria) BUT, I can say that the shortness St Kilda era was largely a result of two things - Ross Lyon's coaching and Ross Lyon's recruiting. Neither problem we share.

 

[Ry009]

I can't even predict the football results for this weekend with a great deal of accuracy so i think anyone who makes long term (3+ year) predictions about where a football team will be is crazy (ala all the GC/GWS will share the next 10 flags histeria) BUT, I can say that the shortness St Kilda era was largely a result of two things - Ross Lyon's coaching and Ross Lyon's recruiting. Neither problem we share.

Bang on, long term list management is they key to remaining successful, not squeezing every ounce of footy out of a list, then start from the bottom. Blooding young players while you have a successful team is excellent for development and doesn't put the weight of expectation on young kids to carry them into a new era. More reason why people should stop calling for the End of Days with GC. They could end up like Carlton and plateau at a certain point, and we all know how Melbourne are travelling.

Geelong and StKilda are on complete opposite sides of the list management spectrum.

Medium to long term I think we are ok, Maj is promising and Black will be fine. Our core midfield is still young in footy terms. Only area of concern for mine is defence. Think we should look at drafting a mobile KPD that can play one on one. Scooter plays taller than he does, and Tippet/Grima are better suited to clearing the ball in contested situations. We already have Lachie doing very well sweeping across the backs, will become and even bigger weapon if he can add more strings to his bow in that regard. Need to pump games into Keys Jnr ASAP too. TLDR off topic stern look:

 

[Tander]

The last thing we need is a (mostly) respected media personality also buying us time. Like we don't get enough of that internally, now the analysts have been mesmerised by the spin.

I ain't buying it.

180 flip on 360...pardon...Mike Sheehan said...On the couch...

"North are flaky, to the point of being brittle. Seems when they are smug about the acheivement of one week, they are complacent the next. No excuses for North."

Its a shared opinion indeed. The after game function at Patersons had Blacky and Levi come in for a chat (Thanks to the W.A supporters group for organising what was a great night after the game) where Aaron said that they would head back to the hotel and enjoy a couple quiet frothies. Nothing wrong with that at all...it should happen more...but as we discussed just because you beat Fremantle in Perth doesnt mean its job over..next week will look after itself. Its to be treated like getting home from work on a Monday night where you just need a couple quiet ones to help thinking about the next 4 days to come, but you get up on Tuesday and go straight back to work...On time.

Im still on Gerards comments but as for finals this year....No excuses.

 

[Jay-Z]

180 flip on 360...pardon...Mike Sheehan said...On the couch...

"North are flaky, to the point of being brittle. Seems when they are smug about the acheivement of one week, they are complacent the next. No excuses for North."

That doesn't surprise me. Mike always praises us after a win and hammers us after a loss. It's his default setting

 

[TennisPlayerAndy]

That doesn't surprise me. Mike always praises us after a win and hammers us after a loss. It's his default setting

I still get a laugh out of his anger when he tipped us to beat Geelong in Geelong a few years ago.

Flip and flop.