Round 18:
West Coast Vs Essendon Or:
Going in Far Too Early with Fraser McInnes
West Coast Vs Essendon Or:
Going in Far Too Early with Fraser McInnes
This was the worst game I went to last year.
Or, I mean, the one that took place in 2018. I had to sit in the freezing cold while literal drug cheats smashed us. Then we pegged it back a little, and it ended up being a 28 point loss.
Our twin towers were injured heading into the game, and LeGod stuffed up his wrist in an injury that effectively forced him into retirement. There were many, many horrible things from that match.
Fraser McInnes was supposed to be BOG that day, too. Five goals, that was what I was looking forward to, and he probably went the exact opposite way. 0.3 was all he could manage as our spearhead. I was honestly expecting a day out from him after the couple of games he played in 2018. Unfortunately, it just didn't eventuate.
I still love FMac, he's a deadset legend and top bloke - but I definitely went in far too early for that game. Or, maybe, a better expression would be "jumped the shark". I'm not sure what the right term is. All I know is that I was incredibly shortsighted and brass with that call.
Arrogant, even.
Anyway, the forces of evil had way too much run through the middle. In horrible conditions and with too much speed (and I don't just mean of the running variety), they killed us off the half back line with Saad and McKenna. Slyce missed from the goal line and Shuey kicked an absolute pearler in the last:
After ruining his goal after the siren against Port, Basil Zempilas was also
given the opportunity to tarnish this brilliant piece of Shuey vision.
That was the only good thing from that game.
And now we come up against peptides in the same circumstances. We had an embarrassing loss in our last game (we won against St Kilda, but there was similar uncertainty), we're coming off the bye, and it's going to be cold. I'll also have to miss ammo's training to go to this game, same as last year.
These aren't good omens.
However, when looking up the score, something interesting happened. I always forget this, but when you go into the "Fixtures" section of the AFL website, it always displays the last game of the season you select:
Clearly, it appears that we do have a destiny, and it is to go B2B
In all seriousness though, this should be a good game on our road to the 2019 premiership. HickGod will lay some campaigners out, our premiership captain and midfield beast are coming back, and Nic is finally getting some game time.
Selections:
Based on their changes thread, I think the Essendon will go in like this:
B: Ambrose - Hooker - Saad
HB: McKenna - Hurley - Redman
C: McGrath - Clarke - Merrett
HF: Begley - Lavarde - Fantasia
FF: McDonald-Tipungwuti - McKernan - Francis
R: Bellchambers - Shiel - Heppell
Int: Parish - Guelfi - Langford - Zaharakis
IN: Aaron Francis
OUT: Jake "THE PACKAGE" Stringer
That midfield looks so good on paper that it's basically made of paper. You got a poor, poor, poor man's Judd (Shiel), undeserved winner of the 2011 Rising Star Dyson Heppell, Jackson Merrett's younger brother and Tom Bellchambers. In all seriousness though, it definitely does have a lot of talent in there. Clarke has proven to be an incredibly effective tagger and when they click, they really do click. Zaharakis provides a good outlet when running through the middle, and they have plenty of options to spice things up. Their KPDs are as good as anyone in the comp - Hurley has been killing it for a while, and Hooker can do some damage if thrown forward.
Their biggest strength, though, are those halfbacks. Saad and McKenna murdered us last time, and they've kept it up well into 2019. A big part of beating the Dons is stopping that speed running through the middle - it has especially proven a weakness for us, so we'll hopefully have a plan to deal with. Overall, Essenscums's defence is actually one of their major strengths this year; our forwardline should have their hands full.
Their forwardline, though, is missing a big piece, and that is Joe Daniher. The man with the gross moustache is an essential part of Essendon's lineup, and they've had to make do with a pletherough of smalls and Shaun McKernan.
Before I forget, I should also mention they don't have Jake "THE MAN" Stringer, the next Gary Ablett Snr (according to the Herald Sun in 2015).
That's not to say it's bad, though. Certainly undermanned, but they do have quite a bit of firepower. Fantasia and Tippa are seriously dangerous when on.
However, with all this said, Essendon have been quite flakey this year. Many respected reporters, such as Robert Walls, tipped them to be a premiership contender with the team they've assembled. But they haven't found the momentum and consistency to get running, so they're currently sitting outside the eight.
The have found some recent form, though, so we have to be on our A game.
For us, I think we'll be going out like this:
B: Hurn - Schofield - Duggan
HB: Sheppard - McGovern - Jetta
C: Gaff - Yeo - Redden
HF: Cripps - Darling - Petrucelle
F: Allen - Kennedy - Ryan
R: HickGod - Sheed - Shuey
Int: Waterman - Hutchings - Ah Chee - Cole
IN: Yeo, Hurn, Allen, Ah Chee
OUT: Vardy (susp.), Rioli (susp.), Smith, Rotham
I think we'll get Ah Chee in, along with the players who were injured. Redden could be moved to wing, which he played fantastically well on last year, or Cripps could be shifted up. The balance of the side is pretty crucial, so I think we'll only bring in one tall (OAllen) to replace both Vardy and Rotham.
HickGod should ruck solo with help from OAllen and Darling.
Sheep should take either Tippa or Fantasia, while we should have Petrucelle making sticking with Saad, and McKenna should have his hands full with Ryan. I expect Hutchings to tag Merrett, while Clarke will go with Yeo, freeing Shuey up.
This game will be won and lost in the forwardline for us - I'd expect our midfield to get on top of theirs, we just have to shutdown Saad and McKenna, and limit the damage Redman could do.
Key Matchups:
* Josh Kennedy & Jack Darling Vs Cale Hooker & Micheal Hurley:
This will go a big way to deciding the match. If JK or JD can get off the leash, that'll go a long way to winning, but another important thing to note is that Hurley is in AA form, or somewhere close to it. His ability to accumulate the ball as a backman is pretty insane, so JD will have to keep an eye on him. Of the two, I'm certain Hooker will go to JK, so it should be a good one on one battle.
* Clarke Vs Yeo/Shuey:
Who Clarke tags will have a pretty big impact on the game. When you tag one, the other gets off the hook - it's played a large part in Shuey winning the Norm Smith, since Greenwood went to Yeo in the GF. Either way, one of them won't be getting as much attention as the other, and Essendon don't exactly have the midfield beast to go with either. One should get off the hook and have a big game.
* Petrucelle Vs Saad/McKenna:
Is Saad or McKenna faster than Petrol? I have absolutely no clue, but it would be pretty even. We have to keep a close eye on both. Petrucelle should be given the goal on Thursday of shutting down one of them to ensure they basically have no impact of the game. This has both the benefit of giving Petrol a single goal to focus on (he's been down on form recently), while also quelling their biggest advantage over us. This matchup will be decisive in the outcome of the game.
* Hutchings Vs Merrett/Shiel/Heppell:
Essendon have plenty have good of options in the middle, but I think Hutchings will head to Merrett. His skills of either foot and delivery into the forward 50 have been pretty important for Essendon in their good run of form lately, so Hutchings will hopefully shut him out of the game.
* HickGod Vs Bellchambers:
There will be no contest. Bellchambers has been missing for the past 4 days.
* Sheppard Vs ORRRRRAAAAZZZZIIIIOOOOO FFFAAAANNNNTTTTAAASSSSIIIAAA/Tippa:
Sheppard wants that goddamn flag. I've seen it in his eyes, and it's been evident in the way he's been playing. Shepp has been in fantastic form this year, and he'll probably go to BT's favourite name to butcher. He's been in a good run of form, Fantasia, so it should be an entertaining battle.
Prediction:
West Coast by 5 Fraser McInnes Ressies Goals
(Or after the siren)
Last edited:
