It makes you want to pull your hair out doesn’t it? Both of our sides do everything right at stoppage, mids work so hard, then shoot ourselves in the foot going forward.
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Coach Luke Beveridge & the Dogs - is his time up? Where are they at?
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It makes you want to pull your hair out doesn’t it? Both of our sides do everything right at stoppage, mids work so hard, then shoot ourselves in the foot going forward.
- Apr 18, 2005
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Well, yes, but we also have a low IQ midfield at times. If you watch Oliver at stoppages he’ll often get held but we will constantly tap to him regardless. The forward line stuff is very frustrating. Van Rooyen will be a very good player, but without a decent stop gap then we are exposed. Need a lot more from our medium forwards.
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We're gone a fair way to fixing that, with the exception of goal kicking which is going backwards.
Marra was a beautiful set shot when he joined us and his accuracy has gone backwards at an alarming rate
You may also be mentally fragile.
Melbourne have bullied you in recent times for very little resistance.
You have had games there for the taking and it's been your leaders who have come up short in crunch time.
Also, why Beveridge keeps picking some of those spuds on a weekly basis is beyond me.
Gardner is a shocking footballer!
If you're Port Adelaide this week, you are hoping he holds his spot.
Geelong don't get rid of too many players who were on their list if they saw something worth persisting with.
If we had of won on the weekend, we’d be % out of the top 4 and nobody would be saying anything.
We’re getting a lot right. If we can work on our forward entries and getting the forward line working better, we’ll be hard to beat.
Gardner has had some good games for us, yes he’s out of form right now but he certainly isn’t our main issue at present. I’d personally prefer Keath.
If anything, I think Bevo should be criticised for playing Lobb on the wing and not being able to get a functional forward line for a long time.
Playing Lobb on the wing is definitely 'crazy Bevo' energy.
He doesn't seem to be able to accept the 'bland', and play players in their natural position - it's actually quite crazy.
For Bevo:
- Caleb Daniel is an AA level backman - not a mid
- Rory Lobb is a 30+ goal a year ruck forward - not a winger
- Bontempelli is a pure mid, not a forward
- Macrae is a pure mid, not a forward or winger
- Libba is a pure mid, not a forward
- Bailey Smith is a winger/mid, not a forward
- Treloar is a mid/forward, not a half back
- McNeill, O'Donnell, Scott, T. O'Brien, Gardener and McComb are not AFL level footballers, and should not have played at the expense of much better players the last 2 years
- Vandermeer, R. Smith, R. West, T. McLean, Keath (despite some of his flaws he's still better than Gardener and O'Brien) and Sam Darcy are
- Stop recruiting players for the sake of it, and then putting them somewhere else/pushing better players out of their best positions in order to do so
- Accept that moving magnets does not make you a good coach - getting the best out of your playing group does
For mine, this is the ideal setup (when all players are fit) given the talent at Bevo's disposal:
B: Daniel, S. Darcy, Dale
HB: JJ, L. Jones, E. Richards
C: B. Williams, Bont, B. Smith
FO: English, Libba, Macrae
HF: Treloar, Naughton, JUH
F: Weightman, Lobb, A. Jones
INT: O. Baker, Vandermeer, R. West, Duryea
Sub: T. McLean
EMG: Keath, R. Smith, Sweet
He doesn't seem to be able to accept the 'bland', and play players in their natural position - it's actually quite crazy.
For Bevo:
- Caleb Daniel is an AA level backman - not a mid
- Rory Lobb is a 30+ goal a year ruck forward - not a winger
- Bontempelli is a pure mid, not a forward
- Macrae is a pure mid, not a forward or winger
- Libba is a pure mid, not a forward
- Bailey Smith is a winger/mid, not a forward
- Treloar is a mid/forward, not a half back
- McNeill, O'Donnell, Scott, T. O'Brien, Gardener and McComb are not AFL level footballers, and should not have played at the expense of much better players the last 2 years
- Vandermeer, R. Smith, R. West, T. McLean, Keath (despite some of his flaws he's still better than Gardener and O'Brien) and Sam Darcy are
- Stop recruiting players for the sake of it, and then putting them somewhere else/pushing better players out of their best positions in order to do so
- Accept that moving magnets does not make you a good coach - getting the best out of your playing group does
For mine, this is the ideal setup (when all players are fit) given the talent at Bevo's disposal:
B: Daniel, S. Darcy, Dale
HB: JJ, L. Jones, E. Richards
C: B. Williams, Bont, B. Smith
FO: English, Libba, Macrae
HF: Treloar, Naughton, JUH
F: Weightman, Lobb, A. Jones
INT: O. Baker, Vandermeer, R. West, Duryea
Sub: T. McLean
EMG: Keath, R. Smith, Sweet
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McLean is cooked after two acls and has no movement
Vandermeer is injury prone and probably wont make it.
Darcy would likely get bullied at FB/CHB at his current muscle strength I think. Would have to be the interceptor that Wood left behind if played defence right now.
Other than that, not wrong.
Ahhh right, didn't know about McLean.
Gee, I wasn't far off was I, with this week's ins?
Wonder if Bevo reads BF...
Bulldogs have some of the most exciting youth in the comp, but it's weird how their midfield is absolutely primed for a flag while their forward line still needs a few years of development, and their back line is just one stick short of a bundle. The recruitment of Lobb struck everybody as a bizarre choice, and the fact he's now on a wing 12 games in probably says it all.
I don't think Beveridge's time is up, but the Bulldogs just need to start finishing top 4. Despite a generational player in Bontempelli, and some real top shelf players in Naughton, Smith and English, they really don't inspire as much fear in the opposition as they should.
I don't think Beveridge's time is up, but the Bulldogs just need to start finishing top 4. Despite a generational player in Bontempelli, and some real top shelf players in Naughton, Smith and English, they really don't inspire as much fear in the opposition as they should.
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Ahhh right, didn't know about McLean.
Gee, I wasn't far off was I, with this week's ins?
Wonder if Bevo reads BF...
Vandermeer got signed for a few years too, which was suprising given his injuries alone.
He might be reading. Got rid of Gardner and Obrien for Keath and Bruce along with bringing West in which our own Dog board wanted too.
Bruce and Keath are VFL standard.
I mean Bruce was barely hanging on when he was in his prime at St Kilda.
Why is O'Donnell getting games? Is it the famous father who has the final say because he looks way off it at the moment.
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Bruce did his ACL after a very good 2021 as a forward. Clearly cooked now but had to be tried.
Harsh on Keath but he has declined a bit and is still better than Obrien and Gardner.
Busslinger would be to early on as well. Not much options.
When is that actually going to happen though? Our list is ****ed. Will be years before we make top 4 again.
There's nothing to stop you winning games from here and making top 4. All between the ears, your best football is good enough. We just don't see it regularly.
- Oct 3, 2008
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The fact they have so much talent, a good draw and should really be in the top 4 but are just throwing in down the toilet makes the short answer yes.
However he still has time to turn it around.
Starting next week.
However he still has time to turn it around.
Starting next week.
And why do you think we are so inconsistent?
There's a softness to the Dogs.
Can't quite put my finger on it specifically.
Is it the staging and flopping that makes them seem soft?
Does it stem from the times GWS beat them up and they didn't respond?
Is it because they kind of look like a bunch of 1980's aerobics instructors?
Is it because their coach is a bit emotionally fragile? Does this flow through?
Is the Bont too 'nice'?
Is it their game style?
Not sure, but they just seem to give off soft underbelly vibes as a team.
Can't quite put my finger on it specifically.
Is it the staging and flopping that makes them seem soft?
Does it stem from the times GWS beat them up and they didn't respond?
Is it because they kind of look like a bunch of 1980's aerobics instructors?
Is it because their coach is a bit emotionally fragile? Does this flow through?
Is the Bont too 'nice'?
Is it their game style?
Not sure, but they just seem to give off soft underbelly vibes as a team.
The softness starts with English. He is close to the best ruck in the game but when he comes up against a physical bully of an opposition ruck he's half the player. Not the first time Lycett has won the points v English.
And come finals and GFs you need a tough ruck who doesnt dissapear when your opponent starts roughing you up.
English is both a key player for the dogs but also a key weakness opposition can exploit if they have the right man to exploit it.
Mid/Fwd connection is your major issue. Mids f*cking around with it rather than just getting it in there, is another
Our top mids aren’t fast enough outside of Treloar. We have no young mids from the draft since we elected to bring in JUH and Darcy instead. Our defence is slower than a wet wick and our forward line is poorly coached. Add in the fact that we have the worst bottom 6-8 players in the league (besides North and I guess West Coast) and there’s your answer.
Yes and no. Bailey Smith ain't slow, and should be playing more inside mid/mixed with wing, IMO. He's also the same age as Rozee and Butters, given they're from the same draft. Macrae is an elite user of the ball, and should be starting at all centre bounces. Same with Bont. Libba is your tough nut. So essentially rotating Smith and Treloar betwen half forward/bench/wing, and keeping the others as your perma mids.
You look at the last two weeks, and both us and Port didn't have particularly 'quick' mids. Butters is speedy, but Rozee is more agile. Boak is average, and Wines and Drew are slower than a wet week. For us, we had Blicavs, Bruhn, Atkins and O'Connor- none of which are particularly fast either. We also both played defensively at stoppages if needed, whereas your mids only seem to play attacking footy (which leaves guys like Butters and Rozee to do whatever they want).
Your problem isn't speed. Your problem is your forwards not knowing when to lead/your mids not knowing when to release. Too soon, and your forwards are out of position, and it's an easy kill/intercept. Too slow, and it's a flooded backline and a high up and under ball.
It's about having the right people to kick the ball at all times, into your forward 50. Daniel, Bont, Macrae, Dale etc. These are the guys you want getting it inside 50. Similar to us with Jez, Tuohy, Miers, Stewart, Duncan when he's fit etc. We always share it around to the more dangerous inside 50 kicks, if we can. It's why you've conceded 60+ points from turnover the last 2 weeks, because teams actually score easily from your shoddy inside 50 kicks.
If you improve that connection, you'll get shots in more advantageous positions, and therefore kick straighter. It's not a hard fix, but because Bevo is always moving the magnets, no-one is settled in their role and no-one knows where they should be at all times. It's a mess.
100% agree with you on the bottom players though. O'Donnell continually getting a game is absolutely mindboggling to me.
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Pleasedonot
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Bevo is just a stubborn **** really. For a bloke who helped get them to a premiership and GF he really does make some baffling decisions with selection and game style. That said, and even with their current shit form, they will no doubt pump Essendon like they do every year.
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You know the cliche, with Bevo it’s bullshit baffles brains. There’s always a spin that next week things will change, we’re not that far off etc.
Yet these Masterclass examples of Lobb on the wing and O’Donnell getting games. He clearly knows something we all don’t
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