Review Round 20, 2024 - Gold Coast vs. Brisbane Lions

[irel]

No one, I think, is saying drop Ashcroft.

What people are identifying is areas of his game that at the moment are not up to the level. Yes we all know he is coming back from an ACL, he is young and only played limited games, but what people are witnessing are some areas needing improvement.

We, including myself have hithched to the Ashcroft wagon long term. I expect he has the potential to be our prime midfielder post Neale. I expect Wash to surpass his father's achievements with our club and to lead our team at some future point.

 

[Fluke]

Shout out to the group singing country roads towards the end of the third quarter I think it was. Could hear it loud and clear on the broadcast.

 

[Section 5]

Ashcroft raw numbers are on a par with his first year.
But i agree with some posters he is not getting team value out of his disposals like last year.
His field kicking needs improvement both when under pressure and not under pressure.
Disposal efficiency down on last year most likely he is rushing things a bit.
It will take time for improvement and later in the season or next year he should be getting back confidence and better form.
No one in the VFL will be taking his place in the side this year so no point playing VFL.
His 5 disposals games from R16 being 18, 21, 15, 20, 21
Things are looking pretty good midfield wise when Ashcroft is at present our weak link.
Below from footywire

 

[BrisVegasDru]

Watching replay again atm, what is the point of that stupid trumpeter at the Suns game is always there and detracts greatly from the viewing experience

 

[Scubaveg]

He's doing damn well given what he's coming back from. Defensive transition is probably the area he needs to work on most, but confident his disposal will keep improving and he'll keep having more and more impact. Come week 1 of finals, we will be thanking Fagan for getting him in underdone.

Could be the role, feel he's a little on the outside and perhaps lacking a bit of confidence in the body atm.


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[janty]

Have a feeling our victory may get underrated by Vic media. The pressure Suns were putting on us when they got it to 8 points in the 4th was quite ferocious.

 

[Darren Downunder]

Henry's shown good signs up forward and in the ruck in both games. He's 21, just finished growing. Has come on quite a bit this year. He'll keep improving at this level. 2nd week was big improvement on the first. Keep him going get him comfortable, we need options in the suitcase if something happens to Oscar.


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Interesting. I’m not disagreeing with your assessment of Smith, but are you suggesting we keep him in the side when Harris comes back, next week?

If so, who would you drop?

 

[mpal6]

Have a feeling our victory may get underrated by Vic media. The pressure Suns were putting on us when they got it to 8 points in the 4th was quite ferocious.

They have Essendon failure, Melbourne last gasp loss, Freo vs Eagles recap to worry about.

It's good actually, happy to get as far as possible without any spotlight.

 

[mpal6]

Interesting. I’m not disagreeing with your assessment of Smith, but are you suggesting we keep him in the side when Harris comes back, next week?

If so, who would you drop?

Bring Harris back in and make Prior sub. Prior would be break the glass if defense needs cover.

But since Marvel is a fast deck and Saints play a single ruck in Rowan Marshall, we might go with just Big O. Andrews for Henry.

 

[Darren Downunder]

Bring Harris back in and make Prior sub.
Prior would be break the glass if defense needs cover.

And keep Hipwood in defence?

Ok… interesting plan. I wouldn’t do it, but then what do I know?

Interesting to see what the MC does.

 

[Jubair]

We need to be a bit easier on Ashcroft. The guy has come back from a very serious injury which had him out for nearly a year! He's only 5 games in. Let him play and get his confidence back slowly. Anyone that has played footy and suffered a long time injury, would be aware of how much both the physical and mental side of the game impacts your ability to perform and that takes time. Cut him some slack and give him time to play. We don't always need to find a whipping boy.

 

[Kernel Kurtz]

Hard to say we might not be better with Linc out there somewhere though. But I don’t know where he fits in now unless we decide to two talls.

Despise that whole "big brother, little brother" crap. They're not our "little brother." They're a club who will not amount to anything & should never have been brought into the league.

The set up was wrong from the start
K hunt as a market tool
How about getting afl players in for a start
Then the senior players they bought in questionable
Unfortunately the longer it goes without finals the harder for membership drive
I think there is a place for them

 

[DERRINALPHIL]

View attachment 2061135
Ryan Lester, soars to take a clutch intercept mark deep in the last quarter against the Suns. A fantastic contested intercept mark. The football world has finally caught on. Ryan Lester is a genuine talent and he is pivotal to our defence. He and Harris Andrews are our two leading talls. Lester is our most reliable decision maker in defence, clearly the best defender when the ball is on the deck, he is our strongest tackler and he is prepared to take possession and take the hit in order to force stoppages. No defender in our team handles extreme pressure better. I wish we had TWO RYAN LESTERS!

Then you could set the topic 'Compare and Contrast the Two Lesters' every week

 

[T Rick]

On performance he would be stiff to be dropped, however Andrews and potentially Joyce will be back. Who goes out?

If I heard right, Zorko said that Joyce broke his jaw in the first minute of the game against the Swans.

 

[T Rick]

Ashcroft will come good, he's putting in the work, just needs more time

Massive injury to come back from

He will get back to his best but it usually takes 12 months. In that last big tackle he took, you could almost read the anxiety on his face. Almost no penetration on his kick for goal. I have no doubt that Will would be finding his form very frustrating. We and he just have to be patient.

 

[WheildonTheAxe]

I keep looking at the ladder and smiling

 

[Perrip]

Despise that whole "big brother, little brother" crap. They're not our "little brother." They're a club who will not amount to anything & should never have been brought into the league.

They're already doing what the AFL wants them to do. Grow the game.

It's why the League wants to see them to succeed more than other clubs.

 

[Gadzorks]

We need to be a bit easier on Ashcroft. The guy has come back from a very serious injury which had him out for nearly a year! He's only 5 games in. Let him play and get his confidence back slowly. Anyone that has played footy and suffered a long time injury, would be aware of how much both the physical and mental side of the game impacts your ability to perform and that takes time. Cut him some slack and give him time to play. We don't always need to find a whipping boy.

Totally agree. My knee surgery was minor cf acl and took 9 months to feel 'normal' and to be able to just do stuff without being aware of it. Changes how you move. Obviously they are younger, heal faster etc but it's still the same process.

Every player who comes back from acl cops rubbish talk. Eventually people might work out they need to hold their opinion for a few months. Or not. It is bigfooty after all.

 

[Tassie4ever]

Despise that whole "big brother, little brother" crap. They're not our "little brother." They're a club who will not amount to anything & should never have been brought into the league.

Tassie should've gotten the nod. Although even now with all systems go in my home State I'm not altogether certain it's a done deal. The green nutters have a real hold on the place.

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[Hollow Knight]

In terms of guiding Brisbane to QClash victories, Stewart Dew notched up his 10th coaching win yesterday, for only one loss, equating to a 91% success rate.

An outstanding record for this wonderful club servant.

 

[mpal6]

I keep looking at the ladder and smiling

I know right? Usually I'll be looking at the fixture dreadfully and worrying "what if we drop this game, or that one.. or the other one" etc. This time we faced that adversity in the first half of the season and now riding on a high. I feel so happy and I'm sure the players are feeling it too, you can tell based on how they are playing for each other and cheering each other up.

 

[mpal6]

Honestly his reaction after that had serious Trump ear shot off vibes.

One thing that has really improved us this year has been his leadership in the back half. Directs traffic and his enthusiasm is infectious.

On the contrary, I absolutely loved when he went about celebrating that spoil. He has no business being anywhere near King let alone making a spoil without giving away a free, in the back or chopping arms etc. If that was me I'll be running as fast as Papley celebrating after a goal around the ground.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Watching replay again atm, what is the point of that stupid trumpeter at the Suns game is always there and detracts greatly from the viewing experience

Just needs better material.

 

[beatnik]

Ashcroft should not be beyond some constructive criticism. At the moment he is being carried in the team.

Butchered kicks, hospital handballs, turn overs are correctable deficiencies. The more he plays the more confident he will become with his body and he will work on these issues. However his lack of desire for two way running and his neglect of defensive duties, need attitude adjustment. We know Fagan will be loyal and supportive. If anyone can do it Fages can.

We need Ashcroft at his near best in the finals. He has few more games to work on his game.

Agree, no player is beyond constructive criticism but, similarly, none of that criticism is beyond constructive criticism either

So I’m ok with calling out the poor kicks and hand passes but the attitude stuff seems an overreach to me…there’s evidence of the former but the latter is subjective and doesn’t fit with my observations of the kid (hence demonstrating the subjectivity)

Personally I think a young kid trying to catch up on a pre-season and 2/3 of a season in 4-5 games is going to look sloppy…especially one returning in a season as even and as high-intensity as this one - every game is almost played at finals pace

Regardless, you’re right that Fagan will get him in top form…he invests in talent and backs them to the hilt and it’s worked so far

 

[BrainOfMorbius]

I hate coming on here and seeing posts questioning the Suns' right to exist; wasn't that long ago the same thing was being asked about our club. A bit of empathy wouldn't go astray IMO. We can enjoy our victory without taking this path surely