Autopsy Round 24, 2024 - Saints defeat Boos

[Verdun66]

Carlton missing quite a few. Which to some cheapens our win. But as Ross pointed out in his Press Conference, their midfield was pretty intact. And handy. Minus Cerra. Although I’m not sure about him.

But we have a few out too. The much maligned King. I still think if fit he’s a gun. Henry has been a game breaker for us. We’ve missed Crouch all year. Windhager and Caminiti are in our main team most of the time.

They have greater depth than us due to years of higher draft picks. And how good would we be with a Cripps? What a player. Pick 13 I think he was…..

 

[snails13]

Hard to know - does our 8 push out to 9 off back of academy /FS at all ? Do you know what we will actually end up with?
If it’s 9 and someone else likes him my tip is we won’t get a say yeah ?

Same players are available to us even if we drop out to 9 with FS and NGA kids

 

[bergholt]

Aaaaahhhh Carlscum…

What have they won since they couldn’t buy flags?

Nothing.

They are a filthy arrogant cesspit of a club that deserve nothing less than total destruction of their club and the rampant genocide of their entire supporter base.

Throw them and every Injectington player and fan into a huge pit and throw weapons in… tell them the victors get a reprieve… when the survivors of the massacre climb out, shoot ‘em.

F#%k ‘em. Now and forever.

I still like Acres tho

 

[bergholt]

Our results this year by ladder position:

1st Sydney - W by 2 points
2nd Port Adelaide - L by 10 points, L by 2 points
3rd Geelong - W by 18 points, L by 8 points
4th GWS - L by 1 point
5th Brisbane - L by 20 points, L by 85 points
6th Western Bulldogs - L by 60 points
7th Hawthorn - L by 5 points
8th Carlton - W by 2 points

9th Collingwood - W by 15 points
10th Fremantle - L by 17 points
11th Essendon - W by 53 points, L by 4 points
13th Gold Coast - W by 3 points
14th Melbourne - L by 38 points
15th Adelaide - L by 32 points
16th West Coast - W by 72 points, W by 14 points
17th North Melbourne - W by 38 points
18th Richmond - W by 48 points, W by 7 points

I don't think those results stack up too badly tbh.

Basically we were very competitive against every finals side except Brisbane and the Dogs, both of which smashed us in midfield every time. So that's an obviousy area for improvement.

And we got the job done against basically everyone outside the 8 except our two most disappointing losses for the year, against Melbourne and Adelaide, and a loss away to Freo when they were going pretty well.

If we were to improve by two goals net next year, we bank 6 more wins and finish on top. Obviously it's nowhere near that simple but I think it goes to show that it's very fine margins.

I think the game plan is basically fine, and the coaching staff are getting enough out of the players. Here's what we'll need to play finals next year:

• More luck with injuries for players like Henry, King, Dow, Clark
• A step up from players like Wilson, Garcia, Owens, Windhager, Caminiti
• Continued natural improvement from players like Phillipou, Wanganeen-Milera, Henry, Byrnes, Sharman, Stocker

If a majority of that happens then I think we're feeling optimistic. Fingers crossed but there are reasons for positivity.

 

[beside the seaside]

There is also a huge difference between actual tanking, and just not trying for the last 5 minutes of the final game when the team had already shown more than enough heart the previous 2 months.

The team isn't going to stop trying for the last five minutes. That's just a ridiculous suggestion.

 

[PoppedCorn]

Have I entered the matrix…?

 

[Grav]

Me personally, I much prefer watching the Saints win games of football, screaming out their names & jumping about with exhilaration as they do after the game, than watching some unknown being called out at the draft.

 

[Diehard Saint]

Not sure I’m enjoying reading Saints fans squabble about whether it was a good thing or not to beat Carlton.

I was coveting a high draft pick (or picks) when our season looked lost. But the last few weeks have convinced me that winning and getting our culture and team spirit going is more important. Game style has developed. Many players have improved.

And the difference in a couple of picks is negligible. All the players look set in order now, but in 5 years there will be quite a change. Always is. Pick 40 might end up the gun player. Just hope we pick competitive players.

We look lovingly at the top 5 as it stands, but I bet some players lower down will end up rated higher. We just have to pick well. Easier said than done. Very happy that Essendon looked past Pou last year. Extremely happy that Darcy Wilson fell to us. What was NWM?

The team spirit at the end of that game was sky high. They go into next preseason with some real purpose and passion. Can’t be sad about that.

Oh. And I hate Carlton. Good to beat the buggers.

100%

What’s done is done. We all wanted a very good draft pick, but at the end of the day we should be rapt about winning. The team and club certainly showed they are.

And 100% again about Carlton. Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of supporters and club.

 

[Diehard Saint]

That’s good to hear Tony and absolutely no pressure to nail this years draft picks now

Silly statement.
There’s pressure every year.
Remember our pick 1 a few years back?

 

[beside the seaside]

We have an epic win with ten seconds to go and there's about 20 pages of a so called supporter sooking it up that we should have lost?

If that's how you feel fine you're a muppet post it once but do you really need to bang on about it for pages and pages.

Especially in this draft where there doesn't even seem to be a clear top ten.

 

[Teflon]

if we lost to Geelong and Carlton, bugger it, we should have thrown the Essendon game as well, PICK 4 is ours. where's the culture then?

you're trying to measure two things that can't be measured

Yes cause that’s what’s been suggested but carry on
Honestly just shrill nonsense - no one’s saying lose every game but anyhow we beat a weak blues to drop back 2 places in the draft!
Thank god our culture is now bullet proof though !!

 

[Off Stump 89]

Cal Wilkie a chance for AA? Probably not, but his stat's and durability seem to stack up pretty well against Weitering who seems to be the universal pick

On SM-S918B using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Teflon]

Silly statement.
There’s pressure every year.
Remember our pick 1 a few years back?

Of course there is but with Tassie on the horizon I’d wager its heightened now
And if there is pressure every year why is that a silly statement?
Bizarre

 

[dudeintheswamp]

No I’m 12

Sounds about right.

 

[Teflon]

In the play that ended with Higgo kicking the winning goal, Hunter went through that pack and created a bit of a gap. He jostled Walsh through past the ball when Walsh might have killed or cleared it. No stat. But so important. And possibly unseen.

Yep saw that he does it a lot - little deft tap ons to advantage and not afraid to put his head over it is Hunter
Get him fitter and he is a real point of difference for mine

 

[Teflon]

Sounds about right.

Terrible picking on kids

 

[Diehard Saint]

Of course there is but with Tassie on the horizon I’d wager its heightened now
And if there is pressure every year why is that a silly statement?
Bizarre

As I said above….
It’s a silly statement because there’s pressure EVERY year to get it right.
Not like we’re gifted F/S all the time.

We’re long time supporters, we all know what happens when you stuff up draft picks. This year is no different from any other year.

 

[Diehard Saint]

That aged well.

Uh nah.
Those first 2 lines are still correct.


We don’t exactly have any control over Freo. Here’s another prediction though - enjoy being unceremoniously bundled out by the Lions xx

 

[Teflon]

As I said above….
It’s a silly statement because there’s pressure EVERY year to get it right.
Not like we’re gifted F/S all the time.

We’re long time supporters, we all know what happens when you stuff up draft picks. This year is no different from any other year.

Except we have a new team coming in over the next few years and we all know what the AFL does in that situation
To suggest any draft between now and then for sides rebuilding (to maximise their benefit) is silly misses that important point
Nothing silly about that - pretending it is won’t make it less so

 

[Barrels]

I still like Acres tho

Get in the pit.

 

[Darrian Barnett]

How do you know the player/a we pick won't be better than 5&6

Didn't you know that every draft is perfectly in order of talent? Pick #1 is always the best player and #50 is always the 50th best player

 

[Parkysp]

The Carlton supporters around me were saying it was the umpires not the injuries. You see, I've become fluent in their language over 45 years of sitting near them. It's not a pretty language but they talk it with great gusto. The Mighty Boos!

 

[Diehard Saint]

Except we have a new team coming in over the next few years and we all know what the AFL does in that situation
To suggest any draft between now and then for sides rebuilding (to maximise their benefit) is silly misses that important point
Nothing silly about that - pretending it is won’t make it less so

It can’t get more pressured than pressured.

 

[CaptainRisky]

I think he will too.

He’s grown up being a part of something that finally looks like it is starting to blossom. He is walking away from that.

No amount of money will compensate him if he misses out on a Saints Flag. Even if he has success at Hawthorn he will be just another Premiership player. They have heaps of them.

He will have denied himself the opportunity to have been a part of something more special.

His loss.

I think your reading a bit too much into it , your just seeing this through your eyes

 

[Teflon]

It can’t get more pressured than pressured.

Oh you’ve not seen the famous pressure rating ??
Of course you can