Preliminary Final - StKVs Bull

[St DAC]

Please don't discuss me in a post, or inaccurately compare me to others. There was nothing in my post that should have led you to do that, and anybody that does that is added to my ignore list. I'm only interested in discussing a topic, but if you're not, then I'm not interested in reading your posts.I've always felt that Preliminary Final weekend is when upsets can occur.

You should expect a bit of heat when you post as you do. You spent a fair bit of last week telling us we couldn't play at the 'G' because we lost there in 2008, yet were nowhere to be seen when it turned out we actually could play at the 'G'.

Any game can be an upset; at this stage of the year all the sides still in it are decent. There are no certainties in footy.

 

[wolfpup]

the game should be a ripper and it will be close. this will be the 3rd game between the teams this year and rocket will have to try a new approach or would have learnt something from the previous games.

its the saints 4th prelim in the last what 6 years and i certainly am not over confident.

the good thing about the game at least one of the teams has the oppurtunity to double their premiership count.

certainly hoping its st.kilda!!

 

[mysainters]

What is also irrelavant is that Murphy and Higgins both went off injured in the 3rd qtr and missed the entire last qtr. Another irrelevant fact is that Welsh and Johnson both received pretty heavy knocks during the game, knocks that were deemed heavy enough by our medico's to force them to sit the game out, but were forced to stay on the ground.

Gee I love irrelevant facts.

You may have gone down a couple, but it's not like we were missing anyone significant that night?

Kosi and Gardiner will be handy in's from last time we played!

 

[Jacky Too]

This thread is awful. So much disrespect. How can a Melbourne supporter slag any other team?

Geelong have been the best side over the last three years. They took the game to a new level and the side will be remembered for a long time. They have the opportunity to become legendary.

St.Kilda have won the right to be confident, even cocky, going in to the finals. They have been the best side over the year. They have beaten everyone, and done everything they have needed to. A truly formidable opponent.

It is very ordinary to bag either of these sides, and twits should be brought to justice.

The dogs have earned a right to challenge for a spot in the GF. 12 other sides weren't good enough.

The top 4 sides could be celebrating the seasons they've had, rather than stabbing each other in the neck.

Very poor form.

 

[g_TRAIN]

We have to be at our best, they can beat us but hopefully won't and in my opinion if we're at our best won't.

Nothing is a given like some people in this thread are suggesting.

And doggies supporters have every right to be pissed off with some of the comments I'm seeing.

May the best team win.

 

[weagles_fan]

Bulldogs have absolutely no chance at winning this. 0%. Get a forward above 6 foot and they would have a chance.

 

[P-MONEY]

I think most people have it correct here..

Dogs are no chance..

Anyway we like being underdogs it suits us just fine.
But won't a lot of people in here look like pindiks if they are wrong!

 

[Sedat!]

Bulldogs have absolutely no chance at winning this. 0%. Get a forward above 6 foot and they would have a chance.

You mean like Brown and Bradshaw?

 

[weagles_fan]

You mean like Brown and Bradshaw?

I know what you are saying but Brisbane is no where near the best team so you wont be able to beat the best team or 2nd best team without a Brown or Bradshaw type player.

 

[Hard Ball Get]

All these people who are saying that the Saints are licking their lips after watching last nights error ridden match must not live in Melbourne.

It was extremely windy and the players actually did quite well all things considered. It is not a traditional cross breeze at the G. It swirls and is different in all parts of the ground.

A bash and crash game actually helped them because they played uncontested footy against the Pies 2 weeks earlier and last week didn't turn up against the Cats.

Griffen is the only injury out of the game and he should be ok.... Saints deserve to be favourites however I think people are getting carried away.

 

[Alpha Male]

I've said before every game that I wont feel we have it won until the final siren goes.

I tipped the Lions last night, not because I wanted to play them, I just honestly thought that they would win and wow was I wrong. It was the Doggies midfield that demolished the Lions in the first half and allowed them to kick away in the second however, I don't think they will be given the same chances against the Saints.

The St. Kilda defence won't let themselves get dragged up the ground and play man on man like the Lions did. Fisher, Gilbert, Goddard, Blake will all zone off at times and make it hard to play that quick, Pagans Paddock style that works well for the Dogs. They will change opponents as needed. Dawson will take Welsh or a ruckman when they are forward otherwise he will play fairly loose. Baker on Akermanis.

Lake to Kosi and Morris to Riewoldt would be expected but they will need all the help they can get from Hargrave, Welsh and the two ruckman dropping back to cover the long ball in. Riewoldt can't be double teamed most of the time because he takes so many marks on the lead rather than in a contest. The Saints also have 2 very good crumbers in Milne and Schnieder that will be hard to match up on. McQualter to tag Gilbee.

In the middle King and Gardiner are well above Minson and Hudson in both thier ruckwork and around the ground influence. The Doggies will hope that they can push forward and snag a couple goals to keep the Saints accountable. Cross to Hayes. Ball to Boyd. Jones on Cooney. Dal Santo and Giansiracusa. Picken on Montagna. Gram and Eagleton. Goddard on Griffen. I have it 3-2 St. Kilda's way (Hayes/Montagna/Dal Santo vs Cooney/Boyd) with 2 that could go either way. We also have to take into account Murphy and Higgins for the Dogs and Ray and Schnieder for the Saints.

The keys to this game for the Saints:

1. Close checking on Johnson and Aker in the forward line. Gilbert and Baker to get the jobs.
2. Playing defensive side of the contest. The Dogs love to handball forward and the Saints need to be ready for this.
3. Loose in defense. St. Kilda must engineer Fisher/Blake/Gilbert to get loose at times and stop the fast entries of the Dogs.

Keys for the Dogs:

1. Push Hudson/Minson/Griffen/Cooney forward at all cost. The Dogs must keep a contested ball winner deep forward to counter the Saints zone.
2. Eagle to fly. When he is up and going Eagleton can get very dangerous (last night a perfect example) The big names will all be checked so the pressure must be put on Eagleton to perform again.
3. Lake must play on Kosi. The Pies made the mistake of putting their best defender on Riewoldt. The Dogs must avoid this mistake. Roo will drag any opponent up the ground and render him useless. Lake must play full back so that he can zone off.

All up it's going to be a very tough game for either team to win. I won't believe it until I see it but I'll tip the Saints to get up by less than 3 goals.

 

[saintsrule]

St.Kilda will try to make it boring by chipping sideways and backwards as they often do to maintain possession. It was very frustrating and disappointing that Collingwood failed to man-up last week to create a contest at every opportunity, but if the Bulldogs do that next week, then they can win.Well Adelaide are resting Van Berlo and Bock for later in the finals, so they already think they have won. If Adelaide plays as they did the last two weeks, and if Collingwood plays as they did the last two weeks (last week was Collingwood's worst performance of the season), then it's only a matter of the margin.

I'll tell you something for free Stef old chap and that is that a team only plays as well as the opposition lets them. For years we have suffered your contrived naivety and reduction of any simple logic to kindergarten mush. Collingwood had a reasonable year, but you know what? They have fallen apart and all the kings horses and all the kings men can't put the pies back together again.

Crows will win.
And Saints will beat the Dogs for the third time this year.

 

[The_Flying_Egg]

gallant dogs will fall to an honourable loss and will not be taken to task by the media. exactly the same as last year.

Why would the media have taken us to task last year when we jumped from 13th to 3rd????

 

[Scruba]

Saints by 87. Doggies are now and have been for five years...hopeless. I am much happier with our list than their supporters should be with theirs. I guarantee we make a Grand Final before them. Feel free to quote that. Richmond are a fair chance but I won't guarantee that.

404 football knowledge not found

 

[Armitage2Riewoldt]

Kinda like last year I guess. We were hopeful of beating the Hawks, but it was always going to be a tough ask.

Hoping for a good contest, a pushover of a prelim either way probably isn't a good thing.

 

[winty]

What a silly comment, pressure is equal across the board, for eg, how much pressure would the best performed team over 3 seasons Geelong be under this year? how much pressure would the one flag doggies be under ? The woods and crows under no pressure ?
Who ever loses here on out their season will be a failure....are you Robert Walls ?

Why would Geelong be under pressure? Everyone's been writing us off over the last six to eight weeks.

 

[Murraj1966]

Kinda like last year I guess. We were hopeful of beating the Hawks, but it was always going to be a tough ask.

Hoping for a good contest, a pushover of a prelim either way probably isn't a good thing.

If its under 30 points, I won't stop crapping myself till that final siren goes... My mind is scarred from Prelim finals prior... If it's 40 ish points with a minute or so to go... then I might start thinking Grand Final

 

[vinum coupe]

You mean like Brown and Bradshaw?

If he is he'd be talking about premiership players.............

 

[Plugger35]

We should win if we play at our best. Can see it being a really tough scrap though, as most prelims are. Both teams will be desperate to win as they have both been thereabouts in finals the past few years and are yet to make a GF.

Hopefully we're the team in front at the end, it will be very tough on whoever loses though. Shame it has to be either us or the Dogs really as both sides supporters are deserving of a GF and a premiership.

 

[Presley]

Saints aren't boring. They are a hard working class outfit. Bulldogs, well, if you watched tonights game you'd be pretty confident. I will never get bored of wacthing the Dogs lose finals. Good playing, well-coached, hard-running...fourth place getters!

Your a loser just like your team

 

[shaolinmastah]

If we can kick over 100 points we will win

 

[Teak_Pies]

If we can kick over 100 points we will win

I don't think Bulldogs stand a chance

 

[StevieG]

Kinda like last year I guess. We were hopeful of beating the Hawks, but it was always going to be a tough ask.

Hoping for a good contest, a pushover of a prelim either way probably isn't a good thing.

Not really in that you got smashed in the QF last year and we didn't take our opportunites this year. Don't get fooled by the Saints beating us convincingly twice this year. I'll give them the first one where we were outplayed but we had all the momentum going into the last quarter in Rd 17 but had Murphy and Higgins (two of our important players) unable to take the field and then Welsh had a brainfade and heads dropped and all momentum was lost. That and Milne kicking 5 (which he won't repeat in a final) leads to the Doggies being in this PF right up to our ears. And to the supporters of the 11 teams who aren't still alive enjoy the 5 contenders going about their business because jealousy is a curse.

 

[ishka29]

Since when did St Kilda become boring?? Are we supposed to be like Sydney of 05, if we are I haven't seen any flooding this year?

 

[Bollox]

From a neutral perspective i just dont want any upsets to get in the way of a Saints v Geelong GF.
They're the two best teams and evenly matched...would be a cracker and most wouldnt mind who got over the line.

Last thing i wanna see is some spud like a Mitch Hahn for instance have his biannual big game and suddenly kick 6 to win them the game...coz then they'd still just get absolutely murdered in the GF and ruin the party.

Maybe its best they just dont turn up