Preview Round 2 v Port MCG Sunday 24th March 4pm

[sante]

4 or 5 goal loss coming up. As much as I’d like to think we can win, Port are quality

 

[Muddiemoose]

Don’t think we will see Mcauliffe yet
Prestia went down early and our midfield still looked fine so don’t know if we will see a like for like replacement

Clarke, Sonsie (Playing forward/half forward and Bolton/Dusty more mid time) or even bringing in all 3 of Brown, Miller and Trezise is more likely imo

 

[beema limapep]

This week we front up against a Port side that looked quite good in dismantling WCE. The game is a milestone one for them with Boak becoming the first Power player to 350 games, while Hinkley coaches game 250. We have a history of ruining big milestone games for Port, so here's hoping we can do it again.

In saying that it won't be easy, Port have a very good midfield group who have a mix of ball winning and speed that can open sides up, their back line is quite solid and their forward line has multiple options to attack through.

We are still a work in progress and while we made amends for the Opening Round debacle against Carlton, we're going to need to step it up another notch against Port.

Nankervis and Lynch will be better again after blowing out the cobwebs against Carlton, but our backline is going to be restructured with Gibcus out for the year and Young also missing. That would suggest that Miller comes in, with Yze stating he wants to keep Balta forward at present, which means possibly Brown or Koschitzke coming in to help fill the void down back. If Balta does go to the backline then you'd expect Ryan or Koschitzke to partner Lynch up forward.

In the middle we'll need to find a replacement for Prestia who suffered yet another soft tissue injury, with young McAuliffe a chance at debating, or we could see Sonsie return to the senior line up now that his suspension is finished. Another possibility is Judson Clarke who has been in good form during the VFL practice matches.

For mine I'd like to see Miller Brown and McAuliffe coming in for Gibcus Young and Prestia, with Mansell moving into the starting 22 and more of Martin in the middle as he was only used 26% of the time at centre bounces on Thursday night. What was interesting though was Bolton was used more than double Martin despite Yze saying he wants to play him more forward. Maybe it was a case of easing Martin through the first game. As I mentioned above Port has a very good midfield so we're going to need our very best to try and break even.

Down back we'll need to have a solid game plan as Dixon looked powerful against the Eagles having the better of Barrass, while Marshall and Finlayson provided lead up options that allowed Charlie to work in space and not be double/triple teamed by dragging McGovern away. That is where they might decide to move Balta back, however listening to Yze speak Friday afternoon it appears that longer term vision is more important to him than short term pain.

Up forward Lynch and Balta should be a tougher test for the Port backline than Allen and Darling presented although we could possibly use another mobile marking option to try and spread the Port defenders in Allir Esava & Zerk-Thatcher instead of allowing one of them to sit back and help double team Lynch or Balta. Neither Ryan or Koschitzke looked good against the Suns, but we could bring one of them back this week to try and stop that happening but I think Yze liked the balance of the team Thursday night with the extra runner. So maybe they deploy Pickett forward again to play that 3rd marking option.

Predicted Line Up
B: Grimes Miller Broad
HB: Short Vlastuin D. Rioli
C: McIntosh Taranto Ross
HF: Mansell Baker Bolton
F: Balta Martin Lynch
R: Nankervis Hopper Dow
INT: Pickett Campbell Brown McAuliffe M.Rioli

Game Prediction:
We'll be in the game early but Port is a better team than us at the moment and given the way the dismantled WCE it should see them win by 4-6 goals.

Good write up but for mine it lost points due to no mention of the previous atrocious umpiring towards us when we play Port.

As Groupie said, the game is basically an umpiring simulation (on a bad day).

8/10.

Thank you.

 

[Andyy]

What's the bet Soldo smashes us and Nank either gets hurt or taps 40 straight to their mids

 

[tiger_tough]

Don’t think we will see Mcauliffe yet
Prestia went down early and our midfield still looked fine so don’t know if we will see a like for like replacement

Clarke, Sonsie (Playing forward/half forward and Bolton/Dusty more mid time) or even bringing in all 3 of Brown, Miller and Trezise is more likely imo

That would be a mistake IMO. McAuliffe has been the standout in the reserves, you have to reward good form. Plus it's not really like for like other than both being midfielders. If only one of Sonsie or McAuliffe come in it should be Kane as Sonsie hasn't played the last 2 practice matches.

 

[Groupie_]

Don’t think we will see Mcauliffe yet
Prestia went down early and our midfield still looked fine so don’t know if we will see a like for like replacement

Clarke, Sonsie (Playing forward/half forward and Bolton/Dusty more mid time) or even bringing in all 3 of Brown, Miller and Trezise is more likely imo

we dont need sonsie hes no good

 

[RobsJourney]

We're a sneaky chance this week I reckon, just a pity we won't get much of a home crowd to support us at 4pm on a Sunday vs an Interstate side.

OUT: Gibcus, Young, Prestia, MRJ, Pickett, Dow

IN: Miller, Brown, Mansell, Sonsie, McAuliffe, Clarke

Broad, Miller, Brown
Vlastuin, Grimes, Short
McIntosh, Hopper, Ross
Baker, Balta, Mansell
Bolton, Lynch, Campbell
Nankervis, Martin, Taranto
D. Rioli, Sonsie, McAuliffe, Clarke


How was Dow?

 

[Karp3_dm]

Don’t think we will see Mcauliffe yet
Prestia went down early and our midfield still looked fine so don’t know if we will see a like for like replacement

Clarke, Sonsie (Playing forward/half forward and Bolton/Dusty more mid time) or even bringing in all 3 of Brown, Miller and Trezise is more likely imo

Controversial call from Muddie the Mod… Muddying the waters… pun intended

I like it

 

[Rubber Hips]

Feel sad for Prestia…poor guy has had to put up with injuries over years

Shame …bloody good player

 

[Muddiemoose]

Controversial call from Muddie the Mod… Muddying the waters… pun intended

I like it

Another name that came to mind when thinking about who could be brought in to facilitate some extra mid time for Bolton was that Cumbo kid
But I know you wouldn’t be a fan of that kind of move

 

[guruisatiger]

we dont need sonsie hes no good

Didn't you know the match committee act exactly opposite to what you say

 

[Coach_Required]

OUT: Gibcus, Young, Prestia

IN: Miller, Brown, Clarke

Only 3 changes this week IMO, they won't be rushing Sonsie and I don't believe they will play McAuliffe either, even though I reckon he should be getting a crack.

The club will be happy with how our midfield went last week so will probably bring in Clarke as another running small forward option.

 

[Karp3_dm]

Another name that came to mind when thinking about who could be brought in to facilitate some extra mid time for Bolton was that Cumbo kid
But I know you wouldn’t be a fan of that kind of move

 

[prodigy]

All I wanna see is...
In: Sonsie, McAuliffe

 

[_RT_]

The team will be wearing black armbands Sunday after the passing of Kevin Bartletts wife Denise.

 

[Nostradumbass]

how many frees will boak get as gifts in his 350th ?

Remember when he asked if Cotchin was enjoying his season then Cotchin captained 3 flags?

 

[Nostradumbass]

The team will be wearing black armbands Sunday after the passing of Kevin Bartletts wife Denise.

Oh, when did she pass away?

 

[_RT_]

Oh, when did she pass away?

Yesterday as Gale tweeted about it first thing this morning

 

[Lsta062]

Mildly interesting stats. Port Adelaide hasn't scored 100 points or more against Richmond in a decade (since 2014). We stand alone in that period, with Port Adelaide scoring 110 points or above at least once against every other club.

Just posting this now in case this streak shatters on the weekend.

As a side note regarding the other clubs, Gold Coast hasn't ever scored above 100 points, while Essendon and Fremantle haven't scored 100 points or above since 2014 like Port. Carlton (101 points in 2022) and Bulldogs (126 points in 2023) only managed to do it once in that timeframe, while Collingwood only managed this twice (Exactly 100 points in 2015, and 110 points in 2019). Even Geelong (surprising), St Kilda, West Coast, and Melbourne have only done it twice in that timeframe. Hawthorn only did it twice too, but both occasions were in 2016. North Melbourne has done it twice, but like Hawthorn, they haven't done it since 2016.

Meanwhile, Sydney, GWS, Brisbane, and Adelaide can GAGF.

Let's see how many of these we can keep up this year.

 

[Rubber Hips]

This guy is amazing…need him to predict the future

 

[Foley#41]

We are doomed!!



Also - easy four points.

 

[Waca Jr]

The Mitch Farmer

Mitch Farmer

Age

35

Ht

181cm

Wt

82kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

12.1

3star

K

6.6

3star

HB

5.5

4star

M

3.0

3star

T

2.2

4star

No current season stats available

D

10.4

3star

K

5.4

2star

HB

5.0

4star

M

2.2

3star

T

1.4

4star

/John Rombotis Cup gets me excited every year

 

[Daka]

Hopefully we can spoil Boak's 350th like we did with Kane Cornes 300th...

 

[Groupie_]

This guy is amazing…need him to predict the future

totally not staged

 

[_RT_]

VFL report for the AFL listed players last Thursday night.

Miller Clarke Ralphsmith Brown & Trezise pretty good write ups. McAuliffe seems to be more of a work in progress by the report, but still mighty impressive. Really pleased to see Noahs game was built on defensive work rather than hitting the scoreboard. Also pleased to see that both Koschitzke and Ryan worked hard in difficult circumstances to still have an impact, something that both need to learn to do consistently moving forward. The rest all seem to be playing their roles and building some consistent form, that hopefully leads them to opportunities as the year unfolds.

Ben Miller (23 disposals, 10 marks, nine rebound-50s)

"Probably the best game I've seen Ben play. I thought he was an outstanding leader of our back six. He won the ball back for us, he took three contested marks, he had an impact with his big spoils and I thought he used the ball well. Really pleased for Ben and looking forward to seeing that on a consistent basis."

Judson Clarke (17 disposals, seven inside-50s, four marks, two goals)

"After an interrupted preparation for the season after surgery on his shoulder, he has started to hit some red-hot form. His last month of footy has been outstanding, and Thursday's game was no different."

Hugo Ralphsmith (11 disposals, seven marks, five inside-50s)

"His run and carry once again stood out, and I thought his ball use was excellent. I think he's got a great balance between offence and defence at the moment, and he's in some really good form."

Tom Brown (17 disposals, five marks, four rebound-50s)

"He came back after being an AFL carryover the previous week, and he acquitted himself extremely well. He looks so composed and calm with the footy down back and won the ball back for us consistently on the day."

James Trezise (16 disposals, four marks, one rebound-50)

"James is in some really good form. He continues to win the ball back for us and he used the ball particularly well on Thursday. He is ready, should the opportunity arise at the next level."

Kane McAuliffe (20 disposals, five clearances, four tackles, two goals)

"Kicked one of the better goals you'll see from a midfielder from outside 50 on the boundary. He's coming along really well for a first-year player, and certainly doesn't look out of place at VFL level. I'm sure that he'll continue to build in the coming weeks."

Matthew Coulthard (12 disposals, six marks, three inside-50s, one goal)

"His defensive pressure has been outstanding in the last couple of weeks. I'm really enjoying that aspect of his game and it was nice to see him get more involved on the weekend offensively."

Noah Cumberland (10 disposals, four tackles, two inside-50s)

"It was an interesting day for Noah. Whilst he didn't hit the scoreboard, I was absolutely thrilled with his defensive output. I thought he made our team and those around him better on the day, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of that from him."

Jacob Koschitzke (nine disposals, seven marks, one goal)

"He was blanketed for most of the day and found it difficult in the first half. I thought he worked his way into the contest nicely in the second half with a couple of really critical contests against multiple opponents that he was able to bring to the ground, and we were able to benefit from.

Samson Ryan (13 disposals, seven marks, two inside-50s, one goal)

"I thought Samson fought his backside off. It was a great test for him up against an experienced ruckman in Pittonet. He was able to hit the scoreboard late."

Oliver Hayes-Brown (three disposals, two tackles)

"A tough match up against a very experienced ruckman. He showed some forward craft and is continuing to improve. Great to see him get a holding the ball decision with a big crunching tackle on the wing."

Sam Banks (11 disposals, two clearances, two inside-50s)

"Sam only played a half, but I thought he had a huge impact and used the ball well. He ran hard both offensively and defensively on that wing that he knows so well."

Mykelti Lefau (eight disposals, three tackles, two goals)

"He's in outstanding form. He's bringing his training form to games and competing really well in the air, but also putting pressure on at ground level. He kicked a beautiful snap goal in the first half."

Steely Green (six disposals, two tackles, one goal)

"Didn't get much of a footy, but I'm really proud of the way that he is going about his footy. I thought he had a huge impact on the game with his defensive pressure and his selfless running patterns to help the team. We really value the fact that he is putting the team before his own performance, and he'll get rewarded for doing so no doubt."