Preview Round 10 - Dreamtime at the G - Essendon FC vs Richmond FC - Saturday 20th May 7:40

[jdstorm]

Not going to be a naysayer. Going to need 11-12 wins to make the 8 and are primed to do so.

Have 4 wins already and 4 games against North/West Coast. Plus Essendon have already played most of the top teams.

That leaves only needing to go 3-4/11 against mid tier teams to make the 8.

It’s going to happen. The best thing this team can do is keep playing hard and learning to win.

 

[ant555]

Not going to be a naysayer. Going to need 11-12 wins to make the 8 and are primed to do so.

Have 4 wins already and 4 games against North/West Coast. Plus Essendon have already played most of the top teams.

That leaves only needing to go 3-4/11 against mid tier teams to make the 8.

It’s going to happen. The best thing this team can do is keep playing hard and learning to win.

There are 23 games this year not 22. 11 wins will not get you in. 12 may get you in. 13 could well be the number needed.

 

[Nifft]

Any chance we'll get a safe word before the spanking begins?

 

[imwinningagreatwall]

There is plenty I could say here about Richmond.. but I won't, cause f*ck em. Instead, I want to use this opener to show an appreciation for what indigenous Australians have brought to our game. I've no doubt for all of us, many of our strongest and fondest football memories are of Alwyn Davey, Walla, Long, Wanganeen, Ryder, Lovett, Lovett-Murray, Dean Rioli (Still the best field kicker I've ever seen), Cockatoo-Collins to name but a few.

It was sad to see our club's connection to indigenous wilt somewhat in the past few years. I'm happy that we as a club have begun to make amends, and excited to see what the future holds for Munkara, Alwyn Jr and Jayden and Wangeneen, and am still thrilled to have Walla back in the red and black.

---

The Round the Was

We knew going into the game versus Brisbane that victory was unlikely; Brisbane on paper has one of the best teams, and when they play well they are nigh unstoppable. Also it was their home game, and they had an extra day's break, and we had back-to-back interstate games. So what does fate hand Essendon FC. First, we lose our best defender miss thanks to an off-the-ball cheap shot, and we lose one of our consistent performers in Kelly. This is on top of losing one of our stronger body defenders in Laverde the week before. Half of our back six out! But as Tim Shaw would say; But Wait, There's More!.. Out goes our most consistent performer, Darcy Parish.

Despite this, we had a damn good first half, which ultimately led to the huge disappointment that the second half caused. I don't know what's worse; the spirited fightback once the game is done and the Dusters (Ala, Geelong game) or the win a half then fall over.... both suck actually... losing sucks... being a bog-average team for 20+ years sucks... on the plus side Carlton also loss... If misery loves company how come I still hate Carlton so much?

BRISBANE 2.2 2.7 7.11 12.15 (87)
ESSENDON 1.3 4.5 5.6 6.9 (45)

GOALS
Brisbane: Daniher 6, Bailey 2, McInerney, Hipwood, McCarthy, Rayner
Essendon: Langford 2, Stringer, Perkins, Menzie, McDonald-Tipungwuti

BEST (Afl.com.au - not mine - Though I will say Redman was really good!)
Brisbane: Daniher, Neale, Andrews, Ashcroft, Coleman, Zorko
Essendon: Redman, Merrett, McGrath, Langford, Hobbs, Setterfield

INJURIES
Brisbane: Nil
Essendon: Nil

LATE CHANGES
Brisbane: Nil
Essendon: Alwyn Davey jnr replaced in selected side by Massimo D’Ambrosio

SUBSTITUTES
Brisbane: Noah Answerth (replaced Dayne Zorko in the fourth quarter)
Essendon: Alwyn Davey jnr (replaced D'Ambrosio in the fourth quarter)

Crowd: 31,898 at the Gabba

Friday night (seriously why is every team we play at the moment getting an extra day's break; brutal scheduling), saw Richmond return to form with a quality win over a resurgent Geelong. The same Geelong that spanked us in 1 quarter of football and then teased us for the next 90 minutes... except it wasn't really the same Geelong; as Geelong was missing a lot of quality from their team.

RICHMOND 6.0 8.3 11.5 16.6 (102)
GEELONG 2.7 5.11 7.11 11.12 (78)

GOALS
Richmond: Martin 4, Cotchin 3, Mansell 2, Riewoldt 2, Graham, Rioli, Prestia, Bolton, Clarke
Geelong: Hawkins 3, Henry 2, Smith, Simpson, Duncan, Cameron, Bruhn, Blicavs

BEST
Richmond: Short, Rioli, Taranto, Balta, Martin, Baker
Geelong: Miers, Atkins, Duncan, Stewart, Cameron

INJURIES
Richmond: Rioli (left ankle), Hopper (left calf)
Geelong: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Richmond: Judson Clarke (replaced Jacob Hopper in the third quarter)
Geelong: Jhye Clark (replaced Oliver Dempsey in the third quarter)

Crowd: 58,141 at the MCG

---

Last time we met

What do you think happened? We lost. We always lose to these arseholes. Damn, I miss the Richmond of the 90s/00s. A loss this week will mean 10 years of losing to them.. a bloody decade.

ESSENDON 3.2 7.6 9.8 11.9 (75)
RICHMOND 6.3 10.7 16.10 21.15 (141)

GOALS
Essendon: Wright 3, D'Ambrosio 2, Draper, Heppell, Hurley, Menzie, Parish, Stringer
Richmond: Lynch 5, Cumberland 3, Edwards 3, Bolton, Cotchin, McIntosh, Miller, Pickett, Prestia, Riewoldt, Rioli, Ross, Sonsie

BEST
Essendon: Prestia, Lynch, Cotchin, Baker, Vlastuin, Short
Richmond: Merrett, Parish, Shiel, Martin, Wright

INJURIES
Essendon: Stringer (concussion)
Richmond: Lynch (hamstring/groin)

SUBSTITUTES
Essendon: Jye Menzie (replaced Stringer in the second quarter)
Richmond: Jason Castagna (replaced Lynch in the fourth quarter)

---

Possible Ins:
Ridley
Kelly
Wanganeen - has only been ok in the VFL, but would still be happy for him to get a game over Menzies for this week
Monty - One of the few in the team who seem capable taking a contested mark
Bryan - One of our best in a bad performance
Snelling - Good VFL form; could certainly replace Menzies

Possible Outs:
Menzies - He plays a tough position, but we need more
Hind - Just too many errors
Phillips - What the hell happened after quarter time?
Mass - Not a good enough defender, though I'd be happy for him to have a go up forward
Durham - Lacking confidence; fumbly and can't hit targets.

---

My Tip -

At this point in time, I just can't see us winning this. We saw the same old heads destroy us on Anzac Day in Sidebottom and Pendles, and expect the same from Edwards and Martin on Saturday.

This preview made me angry... a decade!

Edwards?

 

[silk]

Edwards?

Essendon fans are forever haunted by him, even after retirement.

 

[bombreys]

Who exactly should we have brought in?

Couple of sideways Bryan for Phillips or Wanganeen for Menzie type moves were the only real options.

And hard to figure that after losing comfortably to Brisbane in Brisbane due to Phillips and Menzie, without really in form replacements, is really going to stamp how strong and proud of a club we are just because we can say we made 3 changes instead of 1.

Apologies, don’t mean to be picking on you/singling you out, but the comments of “Why would we do this?” in any context without actually offering a logical suggestion of what we should’ve done really reminds me of the classic “Just kick the thing! Oh who was that to?!”

No need to apologise mate, just my personal opinion.

I think Bryan is a fairly big upgrade on Phillips - Flip's last 5 weeks have been deplorable.

And I wanted to see Montgomerie given a chance with all our injuries - if he's not getting a game now, he's almost certain to be delisted at the end of the year. Sort of seems a waste of a pick to not even give him a try, especially given his form.

 

[Wahooti Fandango]

Essendon fans are forever haunted by him, even after retirement.

I still have nightmares about him taking contested marks in their F50.

 

[jdstorm]

There are 23 games this year not 22. 11 wins will not get you in. 12 may get you in. 13 could well be the number needed.

11 and 12 were the numbers needed the last two years so that was a quick lookup.

I got my math wrong on that. Forgot the bye.

23 - 9 = 14 games remaining

Wins needed for finals ( 11-13)- Current wins (4) + Roos/Eagles (4) = 3-5

So that’s needing to win 3-5 games out of 10. Even if you pencil in Geelong and Collingwood as losses. That’s 3-5 wins out of 8 games against mid sides.

Should be very doable especially with Wright coming back.

Fully fit Halfback and Ruck seem the biggest issues but there’s a few options at each spot for selection pressure HB (Hind/Mass/Hep/Cox/Tsatas) and Ruck (Flip/Weed/Bryan)

 

[fairbump_playon]

11 and 12 were the numbers needed the last two years so that was a quick lookup.

I got my math wrong on that. Forgot the bye.

23 - 9 = 14 games remaining

Wins needed for finals ( 11-13)- Current wins (4) + Roos/Eagles (4) = 3-5

So that’s needing to win 3-5 games out of 10. Even if you pencil in Geelong and Collingwood as losses. That’s 3-5 wins out of 8 games against mid sides.

Should be very doable especially with Wright coming back.

Fully fit Halfback and Ruck seem the biggest issues but there’s a few options at each spot for selection pressure HB (Hind/Mass/Hep/Cox/Tsatas) and Ruck (Flip/Weed/Bryan)

Nah let’s tank

 

[nipst@r]

11 and 12 were the numbers needed the last two years so that was a quick lookup.

I got my math wrong on that. Forgot the bye.

23 - 9 = 14 games remaining

Wins needed for finals ( 11-13)- Current wins (4) + Roos/Eagles (4) = 3-5

So that’s needing to win 3-5 games out of 10. Even if you pencil in Geelong and Collingwood as losses. That’s 3-5 wins out of 8 games against mid sides.

Should be very doable especially with Wright coming back.

Fully fit Halfback and Ruck seem the biggest issues but there’s a few options at each spot for selection pressure HB (Hind/Mass/Hep/Cox/Tsatas) and Ruck (Flip/Weed/Bryan)

I think that put us in line for a finals loss and our usual first year coach spike followed by a disappointing year 2 with a tougher draw - mid pick.

Instead of another scrape into finals and get smashed I'd rather pump some games into younger players, really test the list and actually make the changes off field that are still needed in terms of dodo and Sheedy gone.

Doesn't sound it but actually optimistic of the path we are on one but just a little concerned a 8th 9th place finish might prevent the tough calls being made and we paper over cracks and again get stuck on the same old groundhog day/hamster wheel of the last twenty years.

 

[ant555]

11 and 12 were the numbers needed the last two years so that was a quick lookup.

I got my math wrong on that. Forgot the bye.

23 - 9 = 14 games remaining

Wins needed for finals ( 11-13)- Current wins (4) + Roos/Eagles (4) = 3-5

So that’s needing to win 3-5 games out of 10. Even if you pencil in Geelong and Collingwood as losses. That’s 3-5 wins out of 8 games against mid sides.

Should be very doable especially with Wright coming back.

Fully fit Halfback and Ruck seem the biggest issues but there’s a few options at each spot for selection pressure HB (Hind/Mass/Hep/Cox/Tsatas) and Ruck (Flip/Weed/Bryan)

Not arguing we can not do it but with the extra game this year 11 wins is not going to get you into finals. Have done 15 or so different ladder predictors and in some of them it was 13 wins and some 12 wins. 11 wins was the sides coming in 11th and lower.

 

[Lore]

 

[jdstorm]

I think that put us in line for a finals loss and our usual first year coach spike followed by a disappointing year 2 with a tougher draw - mid pick.

Instead of another scrape into finals and get smashed I'd rather pump some games into younger players, really test the list and actually make the changes off field that are still needed in terms of dodo and Sheedy gone.

Doesn't sound it but actually optimistic of the path we are on one but just a little concerned a 8th 9th place finish might prevent the tough calls being made and we paper over cracks and again get stuck on the same old groundhog day/hamster wheel of the last twenty years.

I understand the math behind tanking.
I also understand that being considerably under the salary cap makes it that you aren’t competing on a level playing field.

We’ve seen what one average player (Setterfield) can do to rebalance the list and raise the teams floor.

Spending up to the value of the cap in present day contracts, plugging the biggest holes and actually acting like a competent big club that should be a destination for talent is just as viable a path to success as tanking

The reality is the “tough call” is about the unemployment of a particular team administrator and that probably won’t happen either way

 

[Vass38]

Pumped for tonight - been out of Australia for a month just got back and can’t wait to go to the G for Dreamtime which is always a great spectacle. I think despite our injuries we are a real chance to win this - and I will be backing us at the $2.35 on offer. Feel like if a couple of players who haven’t been consistent this season - Hind and Tippa - can lift and play good games we are a big chance. Both have shown glimpses in games against top sides - Hind against the Demons and Tippa against Port - and at their best they are both top players - Hind with his run and Tippa his tacking pressure and goal sense.
Hoping we line up something like this;-

Baldwin Zerk McGrath
Redman Ridley Hind
Heppell Shiel Durham
Martin Stringer Perkins
Langford Weideman Tippa

Draper Caldwell Merrett

Bench: Hobbs Menzie Davey Phillips


Comon Bombers!


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[raskolnikov]

Season on the line tonight. 5-5 with our draw so far would be pretty decent. 4-6 will be almost season over.

Tigers by plenty.

 

[eth-dog]

Snelling not in the VFL side

 

[MiguelM]

Season on the line tonight. 5-5 with our draw so far would be pretty decent. 4-6 will be almost season over.

Tigers by plenty.

Not for me. This season was all about the evaluation of the list, getting player buy-in to game plan, training defensive mindset, being competitive for longer against the good sides, etc.

Nice to get some wins on the way but the measure of success is not win/loss, finals or ladder position IMO. Losses can sometimes be better to drive players to the next level and not be too comfortable.

At this stage there is a definite improvement in defensive mindset and the players seem to have bought into the Scott message. This is an improvement for sure.

 

[Lore]

Snelling not in the VFL side

Wasn’t named for VFL or AFL last week either, but swapped with Mass

 

[Call Me Cake]

Not going to be a naysayer. Going to need 11-12 wins to make the 8 and are primed to do so.

Have 4 wins already and 4 games against North/West Coast. Plus Essendon have already played most of the top teams.

That leaves only needing to go 3-4/11 against mid tier teams to make the 8.

It’s going to happen. The best thing this team can do is keep playing hard and learning to win.

Just what we need, getting into the finals so we can get pumped, hehehehe

The circle of life.

 

[Kyptastic]

Season on the line tonight. 5-5 with our draw so far would be pretty decent. 4-6 will be almost season over.

Tigers by plenty.

I think as long as we win one of Tigers or Carlton before the Bye we'll be on track for finals

 

[Lore]

So Yarra Park is closed for public parking, and there's bus replacements on the train line which become less frequent after 10.30pm (i.e. when all the footy patrons are trying to get home). Caulfield station (where the bus replacements end) has car park closures as well... so can't drive half-way either.

And all of this applies to both Dreamtime at the G, and tomorrow when Carlton plays Collingwood!

I suppose we are expected to grow wings and fly ourselves to the MCG?


If the AFL wants to be useful perhaps they could lobby the relevant organisations to ensure ticket holders can actually attend the match...

 

[Mr Bultitude]

Eddie Betts came in today for some take away food/coffee. Asked him who his money's on tonight and he said Bombers, then signed a kid's napkin, then left

 

[Call Me Cake]

How come other boards get their game day threads early and we get them like 2 minutes before the bounce

 

[Dave]

coz

 

[Dave]

Eddie Betts came in today for some take away food/coffee. Asked him who his money's on tonight and he said Bombers, then signed a kid's napkin, then left

One player I’ve always loved, no matter who he played for. Quality human being.