Mega Thread Port Forum General AFL Thread Part 29

[tribey]

It's what is the most frustrating is that we got up for one final because our backs were against the wall and we copped a week of deserved criticism but we then relaxed and it was job done despite a GF spot being up for grabs. It was bullshit and has supporters questioning the players motivation, surely there was more at stake than Daddy's job.

And the wider issue is, it’s not like this is a relatively recent phenomenon since Hinkley’s job became a constant mainstream talking point.

This has been the club’s stock and trade for over a decade, stretching back to when Hinkley had years of security up his sleeve and a near universal approval rating.

We can all point to the backs against the wall “nobody expected us…” type wins:

• Smashing Melbourne at the MCG to kick off the Hinkley Era in Round 1 2013;

• The upset home wins against Sydney and Collingwood that year, not to mention the Wingard Showdown;

• The 2013 Elimination Final against Collingwood at the MCG in which the young team was supposed to be no more than cannon fodder on the big stage;

• Coming back from 5 goals down against Freo at Subiaco in the 2014 Semi;

• Beating the threepeat-elect Hawks as $10 underdogs at Marvel in 2015;

• Beating the Swans in Sydney in Round 1 2017 for the first time in a decade;

• Beating the Dees at the MCG in Round 1 2019, which Hinkley called our greatest win ever;

• Beating the reigning premier Eagles by 50 points in Perth in 2019;

• Beating ladder-leaders Geelong at Adelaide Oval with an absurdly professional performance halfway through 2019;

• Smashing Brisbane at home in Round 1 2023 despite a laughably lopsided FK count;

• The Untenable Bowl in Sydney a few weeks later;

• Beating Geelong outside of Adelaide for the first time in the Hinkley Era halfway through 2024;

• The Hawthorn Semi, where we found ourselves underdogs at home against the 7th-placed team, which is a glaring indictment in itself;

And any number of additional ‘where are the Hinkley Haters now?!’ performances that I’ve forgotten.

But cheese louise, the flipside.

How many times have we gone into a game as handsome-to-red hot favourites, only to serve up a diabolically sh¡thouse performance with aspects of incompetence and mental weakness that defy all rational explanation beyond the obvious?

• All those big games at Adelaide Oval at night;

• More specifically, all those Showdowns against historically-terrible Crows teams we insist on making look like worldbeaters;

• And all those finals we not only conspired to lose, but got destroyed in by record margins;

• The diabolically poor losses to basement dwellers such as Carlton and Brisbane in 2015;

• “I’m uncomfortable with the favourites tag/We gotta long way to go to be like Richmond [missing their five best players]”;

• Getting obliterated by Rhyce Shaw’s soon to be Fitzroyesque North Melbourne team at the tail end of 2019, despite the Roos only managing to kick 1 goal the week before;

And on and on. Year on year on year.

All public propaganda and smiling denials aside, do Koch, Richardson, Davies, Hinkley and the senior players genuinely think it’s all just bad luck or random happenstance?

Is anybody of consequence tracking this painfully predictable cycle, and taking steps to finally break it beyond the copout of chalking it up to a talent issue/positional voids?

Even agnostics and optimists know what’s just around the corner when the team is up and about and people are daring to book September flights and accommodation.

Yet once again, we’re just re-rolling for Season 13 with zero indication of the learning/maturity/change required to not p¡ss another year away in comically familiar fashion.

If only there was some way we could host a Prelim, at noon, against Yze’s Richmond, as $5 underdogs — we’d be set (until the week after).

 

[Contested Marx]

And the wider issue is, it’s not like this is a relatively recent phenomenon since Hinkley’s job became a constant mainstream talking point.

This has been the club’s stock and trade for over a decade, stretching back to when Hinkley had years of security up his sleeve and a near universal approval rating.

We can all point to the backs against the wall “nobody expected us…” type wins:

• Smashing Melbourne at the MCG to kick off the Hinkley Era in Round 1 2013;

• The upset home wins against Sydney and Collingwood that year, not to mention the Wingard Showdown;

• The 2013 Elimination Final against Collingwood at the MCG in which the young team was supposed to be no more than cannon fodder on the big stage;

• Coming back from 5 goals down against Freo at Subiaco in the 2014 Semi;

• Beating the threepeat-elect Hawks as $10 underdogs at Marvel in 2015;

• Beating the Swans in Sydney in Round 1 2017 for the first time in a decade;

• Beating the Dees at the MCG in Round 1 2019, which Hinkley called our greatest win ever;

• Beating the reigning premier Eagles by 50 points in Perth in 2019;

• Beating ladder-leaders Geelong at Adelaide Oval with an absurdly professional performance halfway through 2019;

• Smashing Brisbane at home in Round 1 2023 despite a laughably lopsided FK count;

• The Untenable Bowl in Sydney a few weeks later;

• Beating Geelong outside of Adelaide for the first time in the Hinkley Era halfway through 2024;

• The Hawthorn Semi, where we found ourselves underdogs at home against the 7th-placed team, which is a glaring indictment in itself;

And any number of additional ‘where are the Hinkley Haters now?!’ performances that I’ve forgotten.

But cheese louise, the flipside.

How many times have we gone into a game as handsome-to-red hot favourites, only to serve up a diabolically sh¡thouse performance with aspects of incompetence and mental weakness that defy all rational explanation beyond the obvious?

• All those big games at Adelaide Oval at night;

• More specifically, all those Showdowns against historically-terrible Crows teams we insist on making look like worldbeaters;

• And all those finals we not only conspired to lose, but got destroyed in by record margins;

• The diabolically poor losses to basement dwellers such as Carlton and Brisbane in 2015;

• “I’m uncomfortable with the favourites tag/We gotta long way to go to be like Richmond [missing their five best players]”;

• Getting obliterated by Rhyce Shaw’s soon to be Fitzroyesque North Melbourne team at the tail end of 2019, despite the Roos only managing to kick 1 goal the week before;

And on and on. Year on year on year.

All public propaganda and smiling denials aside, do Koch, Richardson, Davies, Hinkley and the senior players genuinely think it’s all just bad luck or random happenstance?

Is anybody of consequence tracking this painfully predictable cycle, and taking steps to finally break it beyond the copout of chalking it up to a talent issue/positional voids?

Even agnostics and optimists know what’s just around the corner when the team is up and about and people are daring to book September flights and accommodation.

Yet once again, we’re just re-rolling for Season 13 with zero indication of the learning/maturity/change required to not p¡ss another year away in comically familiar fashion.

If only there was some way we could host a Prelim, at noon, against Yze’s Richmond, as $5 underdogs — we’d be set (until the week after).

Can't like this enough. Needs to be printed and distributed around Alberton (and beyond) like those pamphlets around London in the 17th century