- Mar 16, 2014
- 8,807
- 9,015
- AFL Club
- Collingwood
Building a premiership list is a bit like baking – a mix of science and art that requires instinct as well as analysis and knowledge. You can measure a player’s athletic abilities, for example, but that doesn’t tell you how good an actual footballer they will be. Multiply that dilemma by list size and you have a good idea of the difficulty. I didn’t think we had the list to challenge this year, and I’ve been proved wrong. Our list has a couple of weaknesses, the main one the lack of an elite key forward. Otherwise, we have everything.
Hawthorn chose to rebuild hard, and my respect to Mitchell when he outlined their plan, which included an assessment of who was rebuilding at the same time and in competition with them. They stripped back hard, got rid of older players, and are on their way. I think it’s smart but you’re in for some short-term pain.
Let’s take this week as an example. Hawthorn have good youth, but we have it over them all over the park.
Most of my life, the Hawks have been a brilliant team. All those flags in the 80s, 2000s. Sustained success. Enviable.
I can’t wait for the Pies to pummel them on Saturday. To budgeon them into submission. To concuss them and then like a Port Adelaide doctor to say, “Who? What? Oh they’ll be fine.”
I want them to hit the ground like Allir Allir’s body on the weekend – limp and lifeless.
And this week I am 100% certain that it’ll happen. I have no fear over this game. We had the loss we had to have. We can refocus on the basics of our game. Our forward line will be better for McStay there another week and maybe Howe up forward too.
Changes: Frampton in, Cox out. Howe forward. Bank the points. Move on.
The Washup
The Pies by 45 points, scorching the Hawthorn cake until it’s brown and black unconscious from the searing heat.
Hawthorn chose to rebuild hard, and my respect to Mitchell when he outlined their plan, which included an assessment of who was rebuilding at the same time and in competition with them. They stripped back hard, got rid of older players, and are on their way. I think it’s smart but you’re in for some short-term pain.
Let’s take this week as an example. Hawthorn have good youth, but we have it over them all over the park.
Most of my life, the Hawks have been a brilliant team. All those flags in the 80s, 2000s. Sustained success. Enviable.
I can’t wait for the Pies to pummel them on Saturday. To budgeon them into submission. To concuss them and then like a Port Adelaide doctor to say, “Who? What? Oh they’ll be fine.”
I want them to hit the ground like Allir Allir’s body on the weekend – limp and lifeless.
And this week I am 100% certain that it’ll happen. I have no fear over this game. We had the loss we had to have. We can refocus on the basics of our game. Our forward line will be better for McStay there another week and maybe Howe up forward too.
Changes: Frampton in, Cox out. Howe forward. Bank the points. Move on.
The Washup
The Pies by 45 points, scorching the Hawthorn cake until it’s brown and black unconscious from the searing heat.