Make the 8 and anything can happen

[Jarman3]

Port have an interesting run home.

Probably lose the next two against Carlton (away) and Sydney (home).

They should then beat Melbourne.

If they beat us and Fremantle they make it. If they win 1 it’s 50/50 depending on other results.

Fremantle v Port is hopefully last game of the round to decide Port making finals and Fremantle making top 4.

It may fall to us to take one for the team (or the league) and throw the Showdown to make sure Port scrape into the finals.

#saveken

 

[AFC979810]

We played a couple of inexplicably shit (even by our standards) games last year around the middle of the season.

I not heard, over the last couple of seasons at least, anyone from the club say we've got a bout of flu going thru the club. Can anyone else recall a club rep saying it? Other clubs have said it this season.

So either we haven't had any flu or covid go thru the team in the last two year (impossible) or we have but were never told.

That's my guess as to why we had those two bad patches.

Fair.

Its all starting to add up.

2017 -2019 we won 39 games.

COVID hits.

Now we have won only 36 games from almost 5 full seasons.

Nicks doesn't suck. We have just had long covid.

 

[daniel_4tw]

It may fall to us to take one for the team (or the league) and throw the Showdown to make sure Port scrape into the finals.

#saveken

Finals or not, Kenny is gone next year (whether it’s 3/4s through or at end of year will depend how they’re going). Nothing but a premiership will save him now but Port will need to run out the contract ala West Coast since they can’t afford to pay him out.

Given they don’t have a first round pick, lower they finish the better to make their trades last year even more hilarious.

 

[rabidcrow]

That month is 100% on Nicks. Sickens me to see him bask in the glow of the performances of the young players, those same players he refused to play earlier because he was so wedded to has been's and never will be's. Nicks has no judgement and no idea!

I miss the point on this quite often so please explain the “has beens” Nicks played early in the year that shouldn’t have played and are NOW not playing? Seems to me all the older players started the year and are still playing excluding Crouch?

The never will be’s - I get McHenry, Jones perhaps although he came off a good year prior to injury last year, the Thilthorpe replacement? Not sure any of “the kids” were playing that role though


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com

 

[daniel_4tw]

This is completely possible if we win out.

No finals in Victoria week 1 (lol)

Dream final for us

Sydney GWS Derby

Prelim rematch Carlton and Brisbane

Fremantle and Geelong seem to have a mini rivalry


Make it happen.

 

[Interloperer]

I haven't checked the rest of the schedule. But the only team in the 8 Adelaide can overtake is the Bulldogs, with Hawthorn equal on points in 9th. North Melbourne's last two matches are against the Bulldogs and Hawthorn.

 

[AFC979810]

I haven't checked the rest of the schedule. But the only team in the 8 Adelaide can overtake is the Bulldogs, with Hawthorn equal on points in 9th. North Melbourne's last two matches are against the Bulldogs and Hawthorn.

We are still a mathematical chance of the 8.

 

[kirky]

We are still a mathematical chance of the 8.

Oh dear, I can imagine Nicks saying we have 0.01% chance of making the eight.

Thankfully, it will be put to rest this weekend.

We have had the 5th hardest draw this year and will be the 3rd hardest for the last four rounds. Well next year it will easier for boofhead to screw it up.

 

[Interloperer]

We are still a mathematical chance of the 8.

There's even enough slack in the system for Essendon to sneak a draw, or even an extra win based on percentage!

 

[GROTTO]

A Dogs or Hawks win this round, will mathematically end our 2024 season.

 

[skam85]

A Dogs or Hawks win this round, will mathematically end our 2024 season.

I reckon there's at least 16 more threads you could post this in

 

[GROTTO]

I reckon there's at least 16 more threads you could post this in

Ive got 3. Im trying to spread the good news in as many as possible.

Anything that brings us closer to losing Nicks is a positive.

 

[El Doederino]

This guy gets it.

The difference between aiming for a premiership and aiming to make finals. Aiming for a premiership means finishing top 8 is just a milestone, not the end. For us its the end, and when you understand that, it all makes sense.

Matthew Nicks

Matthew Nicks

Age

49

Ht

187cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

13.6

3star

K

9.4

4star

HB

4.2

3star

M

4.1

4star

T

1.7

4star

G

0.7

4star

No current season stats available

D

6.6

2star

K

4.4

2star

HB

2.2

2star

M

2.2

3star

T

1.4

4star

G

0.4

3star

is the right coach for us .... if we aim to make the 8. I believe Nicks can get us to finals.

We don't need Neil Balme's advice, guidance and strategy ..... if we aim to make the 8. Silvers, Kelly etc are capable of doing this.

The players are good enough ..... if we aim to make the 8. I have full confidence that with a good run of injuries, our current playing list can replicate the achievements of St Kilda last year, Richmond in 2022, Essendon in 2021 and West Coast in 2020.

It's why wins against Essendon are celebrated like it means something. Its why we go with unchanged line ups after the most rudimentary of victories. Its why good honest blokes continue to get games.

If making the 8 is our goal, it will be our peak. Our peak should be a premiership and no one from the club has ever mentioned the 'p' word. Currently, many factors at our club are not of a 'p' word standard. The coach. The list. The football program. The assistant coaches. And it shows. And its why the likes of Hawthorn are overtaking us, and West Coast, Richmond and others will eventually too. Loser clubs like us, Essendon, St Kilda, North, Gold Coast will continue to fluff about, making the 8 every now and again (except Gold Coast) and pop the champagne to celebrate.

 

[1970crow]

This guy gets it.

The difference between aiming for a premiership and aiming to make finals. Aiming for a premiership means finishing top 8 is just a milestone, not the end. For us its the end, and when you understand that, it all makes sense.

Matthew Nicks is the right coach for us .... if we aim to make the 8. I believe Nicks can get us to finals.

We don't need Neil Balme's advice, guidance and strategy ..... if we aim to make the 8. Silvers, Kelly etc are capable of doing this.

The players are good enough ..... if we aim to make the 8. I have full confidence that with a good run of injuries, our current playing list can replicate the achievements of St Kilda last year, Richmond in 2022, Essendon in 2021 and West Coast in 2020.

It's why wins against Essendon are celebrated like it means something. Its why we go with unchanged line ups after the most rudimentary of victories. Its why good honest blokes continue to get games.

If making the 8 is our goal, it will be our peak. Our peak should be a premiership and no one from the club has ever mentioned the 'p' word. Currently, many factors at our club are not of a 'p' word standard. The coach. The list. The football program. The assistant coaches. And it shows. And its why the likes of Hawthorn are overtaking us, and West Coast, Richmond and others will eventually too. Loser clubs like us, Essendon, St Kilda, North, Gold Coast will continue to fluff about, making the 8 every now and again (except Gold Coast) and pop the champagne to celebrate.

I've been posting exactly this since our version of a rebuild started in 2021. Our strategy was not to develop a premiership competing list but rather to return to competing for the 8 as soon as possible. The rebuild has been completed for 2-3 seasons.

 

[SugarShane]

Nice little surprise when logging into Sportsbet, with our mathematical elimination they have now paid out on my bet on us to miss the 8.

 

[GROTTO]

Nice little surprise when logging into Sportsbet, with our mathematical elimination they have now paid out on my bet on us to miss the 8.

Over the years, Sportsbet have been known to pay out early winners, even when a team/player/bet has not necessarily even won.

Sportsbet loses millions after paying out early on shortest favourite since Phar Lap

Bookmaker’s brutal $5 million backfire as Melbourne Cup favourite stunned

www.foxsports.com.au

Anyone who has backed Chris Judd to win the 2011 Brownlow medal with sportsbet.com.au can collect now

Bookies pay out on Judd Brownlow

www.foxsports.com.au

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

Nice little surprise when logging into Sportsbet, with our mathematical elimination they have now paid out on my bet on us to miss the 8.

Can you please let Nicks know as he's still going for the 0.01%...

 

[FR0GGY]

Matthew Nicks is the right coach for us .... if we aim to make the 8. I believe Nicks can get us to finals.

He’s not even the right coach for us the make the 8…

 

[El Doederino]

He’s not even the right coach for us the make the 8…

A nutless monkey could coach us to the 8. Its not hard.

 

[Jarman3]

Can you please let Nicks know as he's still going for the 0.01%...

Gotta be ready in case one (or probably several) of the other teams gets done for a widespread doping scandal or plays unregistered players or something of that ilk. If they get docked premiership points then the door is blown wide open again, baby.

SportsBet will sure have egg on their face then for paying out too early on that bet.

 

[SugarShane]

Had this bookmarked to revisit at the end of the season, after many in here confidently declared that the top 8 was "set" after Round 10.

The ladder after Rd 10
1 Syd - Finished 1
2 Geel - Finished 3
3 Ess - Finished 11
4 Melb - Finished 14
5 GWS - Finished 4
6 PA - Finished 2
7 Carl - Finished 8
8 Coll - Finished 9
---
11 WB - Finished 6
13 BL - Finished 5
15 Haw - Finished 7

So 3 teams dropped out after the ladder was "set" and got replaced by some that really came from the clouds including two of the form teams of the comp. And we were a bee's dick away from Carlton and Freo swapping too.

That's why we don't play finals in May.

 

[arrowman]

ad this bookmarked to revisit at the end of the season, after many in here confidently declared that the top 8 was "set" after Round 10.

IMO / IIRC it's more like round 12 most years - if not 100% set, very close to it.

Edit: Round 15, when everyone had played 14 games - Freo, Collingwood & Essendon were still in it. That's got to be unusual.

So after all that, it was still 13 wins to make it.

 

[Pugsley]

Make 8 what?

 

[Dangerousfield]

IMO / IIRC it's more like round 12 most years - if not 100% set, very close to it.

Edit: Round 15, when everyone had played 14 games - Freo, Collingwood & Essendon were still in it. That's got to be unusual.

So after all that, it was still 13 wins to make it.

13 wins and good (110) percentage.

So if we'd won five more games we would have qualified. Missed it by just that little amount.

Note that 7th was 14 wins and a big percentage so likely next year 14 wins will be the target to make the eight.

Getting to play Richmond, Norf & WC twice will be a huge advantage to us, will only need 11 more wins from 17 games, very doable, if we don't play Murphy

 

[Cap]

Make 8 what?

Bottom 8!

Look pick 4 !!