Preview Round 12, 2024: West Coast v St.Kilda - Optus Stadium - Saturday 1st June, 4.35pm AEST

[tomjoad]

My point was....it may not matter who is mates with who.

Nor should it. It's a professional gig (supposedly)

 

[Dr Spaceman]

My point was....it may not matter who is mates with who.

Of cause it makes a difference,that is why Clark wanted to get to North when we shopped him

It clearly makes a difference, the only question is how much of a difference.

However even if it’s only a minute difference then we need to take it because as we’ve known for a long time, and the media is now reminding us almost daily, we have virtually no chance against the big clubs when it comes to attracting quality players.

 

[RBW_007]

I disagree entirely....
That we have a chance to win.
Eagles are turning that place back into the fortress.

We haven't seen any rain here until this week and it also hasn't been as cold as it will be either. Looks like the rain will stay away but with the drenching we've had the past few days I imagine the ground conditions might be different to what West Coast are used to.
Not saying it advantages us but it might affect them enough to give us a better chance than we would have had had it been dry and 25+.

edit...
Just looking at all their home game temps and they've been 29, 27, 30 and 27.

 

[Yawkey way]

They have a decent team in, this will be close but I fancy our chances so saints by 2 goals.

 

[seasonedsainter]

So bookies have West coast as favourites coming of a 99 point loss....

I don't know how to read that

I'm led to believe our game plan is problematic but with a few tweaks we could see some blue.skies.

What you can read into that is we've been pathetic, we have a leadership vacuum on-field and the Weaglets are invigorated on their home deck.

 

[SaintsSeptember]

What you can read into that is we've been pathetic, we have a leadership vacuum on-field and the Weaglets are invigorated on their home deck.

All true, but also most StKilda supporters who bet on the Saints, went broke years ago, while Weagles supporters are probably still cashed up from the mining industry.

 

[seasonedsainter]

Clark, going nowhere as his best mate LDU is seriously looking at coming to us.


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com

Well that would be brilliant.

And personally I think Clark still has a lot to offer. He's not without his faults but he can extract the ball, sweep handballs out to our runners and kick it off both feet in traffic or general play.

 

[The Cobra]

Good changes. Hopefully Membrey and Clark can bring their VFL form with them.

Butler probably rushed back but given the predicted rain, it could be worth the risk. Or maybe easing him in as the sub based off the others named on the bench?

Probably had to rush Butts back as unfortunately Lance showed nothing.

 

[The Punter]

I would have thought Crouch after 2 VFL games was a better bet than Butler after 1 VFL game based on past history.

Hopefully Butler has a great game and we win by 1000 points.

 

[PJays]

Crouch with 38 and 33 disposals in the VFL the last two weeks, and no selection!? How many VFL games does someone need after 6 weeks off?

 

[Browny2Carlisle]

Crouch with 38 and 33 disposals in the VFL the last two weeks, and no selection!? How many VFL games does someone need after 6 weeks off?

Shhh we are going full tank

 

[L_W_P]

Shhh we are going full tank

For who?

Surely we dont get a top 3 pick for Smith, O'Sullivan or Smillie?

Lalor maybe?

Doesn't seem like an obvious top 5 guy that we simply HAVE to get this year.

 

[pebblesofsand]

Crouch with 38 and 33 disposals in the VFL the last two weeks, and no selection!? How many VFL games does someone need after 6 weeks off?

Must be going with some with some weird gps fitness algorithm - despite continually finding the ball, the algo reckoned he didn't run far enough or fast enough to warrant selection.

 

[The Punter]

For who?

Surely we dont get a top 3 pick for Smith, O'Sullivan or Smillie?

Lalor maybe?

Doesn't seem like an obvious top 5 guy that we simply HAVE to get this year.

What if that top 5 guy is simply not available this upcoming trade/draft period? What then?

 

[Broski]

Everyone needs to calm down about Crouch's non-selection. The bloke could barely run at the start of the year and had to get more surgery to fix what seems like a buggered knee.

Given he's missed plenty of football, I have no problem with him playing one extra VFL game and missing a long flight to WA to play in potentially horrible conditions. Let's be honest, if he was selected this week and got re-injured, plenty of people in this forum would be crying "Not again! This club has an injury curse!".

We aren't playing finals this year, so lets get our players right and then try and build some momentum for the second-half of the year. I don't care if we end up finishing 11th, building a culture of winning is more important than getting Pick 3. We have invested heavily in our list management team, so I have confidence they will maximise our draft hand regardless of the picks we have.

Let's get a win against the Eagles, who play well at home, and then progress to another winnable game next week, the Suns at Marvel. Wins can do wonders for confidence. Go Saints.

 

[The Punter]

Everyone needs to calm down about Crouch's non-selection. The bloke could barely run at the start of the year and had to get more surgery to fix what seems like a buggered knee.

Given he's missed plenty of football, I have no problem with him playing one extra VFL game and missing a long flight to WA to play in potentially horrible conditions. Let's be honest, if he was selected this week and got re-injured, plenty of people in this forum would be crying "Not again! This club has an injury curse!".

We aren't playing finals this year, so lets get our players right and then try and build some momentum for the second-half of the year. I don't care if we end up finishing 11th, building a culture of winning is more important than getting Pick 3. We have invested heavily in our list management team, so I have confidence they will maximise our draft hand regardless of the picks we have.

Let's get a win against the Eagles, who play well at home, and then progress to another winnable game next week, the Suns at Marvel. Wins can do wonders for confidence. Go Saints.

I agree with everything you said - for the record, it was the juxtaposition of playing Dan Butler after 1 VFL game, when Butler has clearly shown over his entire time at St Kilda that he needs multiple games to hit his best form. That was the issue I had.

 

[seasonedsainter]

For who?

Surely we dont get a top 3 pick for Smith, O'Sullivan or Smillie?

Lalor maybe?

Doesn't seem like an obvious top 5 guy that we simply HAVE to get this year.

All this talk of a weak top-end to the draft really rams it home to me that I should just give up following football.

 

[The Punter]

All this talk of a weak top-end to the draft really rams it home to me that it's the job of the people who are already at the footy club to fix it.

EFA.

 

[beside the seaside]

They're probably liking having Crouch in the VFL side, as a bit of a leader for the young mids there. So he's not totally wasted in the 2s.

 

[seasonedsainter]

EFA.

Haha yes well we have the team in place now you'd hope and I do agree 100% with building a winning culture. But jeez wouldn't a crack at a top 3 mid be nice.

 

[Broski]

I agree with everything you said - for the record, it was the juxtaposition of playing Dan Butler after 1 VFL game, when Butler has clearly shown over his entire time at St Kilda that he needs multiple games to hit his best form. That was the issue I had.

Sorry, wasn't directed at anyone in particular haha. I do agree with your position on Butler's inclusion, especially with the injury issues he's experienced. I can only assume he will be used as the sub? No idea though.

 

[PJays]

Everyone needs to calm down about Crouch's non-selection.

building a culture of winning is more important than getting Pick 3.

You do realise these two statements are completely contradictory yeah?

We're talking about our best midfielder from last year, who's dominated the VFL the last two weeks. We're playing West Coast which is a winnable game (albeit we aren't starting favourites).

If we want a "winning culture" we need to pick our best team and win every winnable game.

 

[Broski]

You do realise these two statements are completely contradictory yeah?

We're talking about our best midfielder from last year, who's dominated the VFL the last two weeks. We're playing West Coast which is a winnable game (albeit we aren't starting favourites).

If we want a "winning culture" we need to pick our best team and win every winnable game.

I completely understand what you are trying to say, but I feel like it's not as simple as it's been presented.

If this week's game was a 'crucial/must win', then Crouch absolutely plays. The key detail is that this game has a very low value in the context of this season and potentially the trajectory of the club going forward. If waiting one more week ensures Crouch returns to his 2023 level, then I am letting him play at Sandy. Crouch playing 10+ quality games in the back-end of the year could/should improve our midfield, making us more competitive, and potentially winning games... creating that culture. It's far from that simple, but you get what I am trying to say.

Of course playing your best team is incredibly important. However, is Crouch the difference between us winning tomorrow's game? Probably not. If the selected team plays anywhere to its capability, we should win. There's enough young talent and experience there to win against a team that is currently on our level.

 

[Saintbloke]

You do realise these two statements are completely contradictory yeah?

We're talking about our best midfielder from last year, who's dominated the VFL the last two weeks. We're playing West Coast which is a winnable game (albeit we aren't starting favourites).

If we want a "winning culture" we need to pick our best team and win every winnable game.

He has had a lot of possessions and played ok at VFL level, but not really dominated. I suspect there is still a question of how his knee will hold up when taken to the next level where the run is harder and the pressure greater, and like the first game against Geelong, that extra physical pressure caused his knee to blow up, so safety first.

 

[TheJackal]

Sinclair was brought in as a stable pony for Billings but then Sinclair became the AA thoroughbred and Billings was the stable pony

I always joked about that from day 1 but there's a genuine consideration that a guy who was with Billings since school days might be a bit disillusioned with the way we treated him. I know it's a professional environment etc etc but these guys are human too, very much doubt it to be the case but it's worthy of consideration.

Sinclair was always just a nearly midfielder before he moved to half back, where he became All Australian. He can hold his own in there now, but he is a weapon across half back.

So play him in the mids and he can be just another mid, or play him hbf and have the best hbf in the AFL in your side.