AFL Autopsy Round 3: 21 point loss to Bulldogs

[eth-dog]

Missed most of the game today, gladly by the scores, reaction etc. On a small side note, do we have a torpedo bloke as such? Do we try this? Especially kickouts, which seem to be a problem.

Hartley.

 

[JDavey]

Got completely out coached. Same as last week. We were beaten up front by their run out of defence. We didn't absolutely nothing to stop it. Again.

It seriously is that easy to beat us right now.

Yeah we're easy to beat because we kicked more balls out on the full to each other and Stewart and Daniher gave up goals. You fix our skills and the players make some better decisions and we win that game. Nothing to do with coaching

 

[BOMBERS 4 LIFE!!!!]

Wish our players would work harder to create options rather than just waltz around or stand still. Forces us to kick to contests too often while the opposition bust their arses to take uncontested marks.

You look at Richmond and all their players come charging in a swarm to the player with the ball our guys just stand the mark gaurding space not good enough

 

[Doss]

Ok how much longer are you prepared for him to underperform and allow the rest of the team the knowledge that its ok. one week, two weeks or the rest of the year. its this mentality that makes us a weak club.
It is harsh but not an overreaction. We have high standards and should expect that every week from Zach, he underperformed all pre season and has now so far this season underperformed. send him back and make him earn it. I will guarantee that the rest of the playing group change their attitude pretty quick.

It is a massive overreaction.

Zach has more credits in the bank than most and you don’t drop someone of his quality off the back of basically two and a bit games - one where he was returning from concussion to boot.

 

[Seb78]

We'll beat Port now.

This is what frustrates the **** out of me. Its exactly what will happen cause its a game we have no business winning.

Put us up against winnable teams and we turn to shit.

 

[JT_the_Man]

Would like to see big changes next week.

Doubt we will get them.

 

[Turnover]

Hartley.

Ok. Haven’t seen it much. Reckon it should be used more around the field as well, unpredictable and would advantage Joe Daniher I think.

 

[Tiimmbo]

Catch anything?

Small shark and a snapper

 

[yodellinhank]

Small shark and a snapper

Love snapper, good decision.

 

[BOMBERS 4 LIFE!!!!]

Would like to see big changes next week.

Doubt we will get them.

Worsfold did mention in his post match that if players don't start doing what the coaches ask them then thier spot will be in jeporady reckon Worsfold is another 1 or 2 bad losses from completely blowing a gasket.

 

[ant555]

Not sure how you go from getting the structure right in round 1 to the dismal shit we have dished up in the last 2 weeks. I know the Crows had a few out but in that game we set up well. The midfield defended the middle well and we forced them to have a lot of possessions in their back half that where not damaging. Now we have gone back to our old crap.

Obviously the first issue is turnovers and the really simple turnovers from poor foot skills in the back half. You can not give up 6.4 from simple skill errors when not under pressure and expect to win too many games. Now there is an issue that is causing some of the under pressure turnovers out of defence and that is we do not lead at the ball or into space. Too many times we have to kick to stationary targets up the field that are easy to pick off. Our tall players other than Stewart do not lead at the ball. They stand 80 meters away waving their arms around but then easily get beaten to the contest and they play from behind. There is no run and spread from the midfield and the speed in our half back line is in the last line of defence a lot of the time.

Marking! we are a very poor marking side. Being able to take a mark is a massive advantage but we do not take them. As I have said we do not lead up at the ball and play from behind and that puts us out of the contest. On top of that we set up too deep on kick ins and have no real blocking plan that allows our blokes to run at the footy. Most of the time the tall players set up 90 meters away in different areas without leading up and then wonder why the ball gets chopped off. I have no real idea what the kick in plan is but it is complete rubbish at the moment.

Midfield defence. It is keystone cops out there. Parish , Merrett , Zaka , Smith, Stringer and Myers take a bow. The Australian batting in the last 2 tests was a better performance than their efforts to defend **** me while we are wondering around and pointing here and there the opposition has gone. FFS just pick someone up. There is not time to work out who is in what spot or you go here and i go there. When the whistle blows or the opposition marks find the closest man and ****ing man him up. It is not about hard tags or anything like that and it does not always work but it should be a basic instinct. The other issue is zoning off 10 meters away thinking I have it covered. Well you don't you brain dead ****wits. Obviously it is too hard to sacrifice a small part of ones game for the team

This leads me into playing a role and team sacrifice . How many do we have that are willing to play a certain role outside their normal game for even short periods of time. Or physical pressure. We have players who will go hard for the ball or tackle hard and not shirk it which is good but how many are prepared to draw a line in the sand and protect a team mate ? The young players are getting bashed and we do not seem to care. It is not until someone gets knocked out like Merritt before anyone gets remotely angry. Now I am not saying we play dirty and hit behind the play but we need to show we are not just a bunch of , well , marsh mellows for want of a better word. Other sides think we are soft. I know this as I have contacts withing the systems of other clubs. We go hard at the first contest but then drop off and do not take the fight up when our team mates are getting a physical beating within the rules.

Now this leads into our leadership or lack of. Apart from the captain busting a gut playing a role he is not suited to as the smash in bulldozer all day long how many of our other leaders are performing? or leading by example ? They are not and have not for a long while. Too many running their own race. Not prepared to work a bit harder or go out of the bounds they feel comfortable with.

Superstaritis come on down. Know for a fact that a few of the younger players strut around like the are the ducks guts now they are getting a regular game. Problem is they are well short of where they think they are and need a good kick up the ring but no one can tell them that.

It is up to the big names to get us going. There is no point pointing the finger at Hartley or Brown or Begually or Green or even Begley which I have done a little. These guys are the 16th to 24th type players. They are not the reason we look so bad. Joe Daniher , Cale Hooker , Zak Merrett , David Zaharakis , Brendan Goddard , Tom Bellchambers , Dave Myers and Orazio Fantasia Micheal Hurley. You are the players on good money who need to be leading the way.
Daniher and Hooker lead up at the bloody ball for ****s sake. Do not stand 80 meters back and wave your arms. Play in front.
T Bell going ok but any chance you may crash a pack or play in front to stop a young quicker ruck leading you to the ball. Body contact would be good.
Myers and Raz get a let off this week as neither have played a lot of footy but then that calls into question selection off the back of zero games in 4 or 5 weeks.
Hurls , take some bloody marks.
Zaka stop sooking it up when someone comes near you and use you pace to work in and out and provide a lead.
Merrett Z stop chasing easy back half kicks an use your smarts to get on the outside.
Shit it is basic footy stuff.

Jake Stringer. Jake is trying hard but he just does not have the engine to play midfield. He gets gassed in the first quarter and then struggles to have an impact. We need to forget the midfield for him. It is not going to work. That leads us onto the next issue and that is how would the forward line function. I have been a fan of the 3 tall 3 small set up and of Hooker being forward but it will only work if Daniher and Hooker are prepared to lead up at the footy , play in front, have second and third efforts and do the basic forward things. Right now this has not happened all season. So something will have to give. The obvious is Hooker back but in reality how many match ups has he got in the form he is in ? I struggle to find tonight's match up if he went back from the start.

This side has ability. It has outside pace. It does lack a Hawthorn or Sydney type leadership that is uncompromising from the top and a general mean streak. We lack that power inside midfielder as well but what we lack the most is players who are prepared to play a role for the side. I said at the start of the year we have the players on the list that should make the 8. Nothing has changed there but my 1 concern apart from being a midfielder or two short was how we improve in the mental approach. So far it seems not a lot. Until we get this right we will remain that mid table side who can play some exciting footy from time to time but fall apart under real pressure.

It is not all doom and gloom but it is bloody frustrating when we play like under 12 level.

 

[MarkG]

Positives
------------
Hooker when he went back gave us a taste of how good he is at reading the play and taking strong intercept marks. Leave him there.

Fantasia was underdone but was all class

Tippa did some good things and looks like he is on the up

Green continues to play well

Zaharakis played reasonably well and is having a good season

Negatives
------------
Soft - crumble under pressure and easily bullied

Make kids starting out look like champions against us

Continually run back into trouble

Continually do NOT look where we are kicking the ball and it goes straight to the opposition

Have speed to burn, but it is only used to chase the opposition around the ball park in circles while they play keepings off

Opposition is 100% aware of our game plan but we are clueless on their game plans

Opposition tags our best players to make them ineffective but we let their best players run free

 

[ant555]

Should also mention staying switched on while the opposition have the ball. Too many players taking a breather and not focusing and getting burnt when their man runs off and we have to react. Take a breather by leaning on him and taking his concentration away! Stop standing 5 meters away in a day dream.

 

[jaguaress]

 

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

Not sure how you go from getting the structure right in round 1 to the dismal shit we have dished up in the last 2 weeks. I know the Crows had a few out but in that game we set up well. The midfield defended the middle well and we forced them to have a lot of possessions in their back half that where not damaging. Now we have gone back to our old crap.

Look, I wasn't going to say anything but I think it's my fault. I was at the Adelaide game; in fact, almost every game I go to we seem to win.

I didn't go today.

 

[yodellinhank]

Worsfold did mention in his post match that if players don't start doing what the coaches ask them then thier spot will be in jeporady reckon Worsfold is another 1 or 2 bad losses from completely blowing a gasket.

He seems pretty quick to shift the blame each loss.

 

[Doss]

He seems pretty quick to shift the blame each loss.

By the same token, the coaches can't do everything.

I certainly have concerns about how slow they seem to be change things when they aren't working; but coaches also can't really be blamed when you have monumental stuff ups like the Daniher/Green one.

That's on the player/s.

 

[sameolds33]

I don't think you understand that if you can't hit the fat side of the barn then coaching adjustments dont make much of a difference. Coaching has nothing to do with turning over 6 kick ins in succession.

except when it does - players seemed to be playing (poorly) to a plan rather than what they saw before them as the best option. And mistakes were made and then made again and built on and our confidence was damaged and theirs grew. Changing it up even for a short time could have unsettled them when they were missing on goal. Coaching is about building confidence - didn't see that today.

 

[ScrappyCoCo]

Beat Jacobs. There is no better option

Drop Belly as he only dominates one in three or four...play Joey soley in the ruck. As when Joe is out of form our forward line does not function well... Stewart and Hooker as talls... And Stringer more forward than mid with 3 smalls forward. Maybe thats a better option? Who knows... Just floating the idea

 

[Mootsy]

Worst in the competition for clearances and marks. We also play KP players out of their strongest areas.

Clearly the midfield/defence isn’t working right currently. It’s literally at VFL level. Fumbly, bad footskills.

But yet again, we still scored 83 points.

 

[Runk]

How Tom Bellchambers got taken to the cleaners by a second gamer......unacceptable.

Sums up the entire effort across the board.

We will not beat Port or anyone else if we keep this shit up.

Such a horrible day footywise. One of the worst in years.

 

[BOMBERS 4 LIFE!!!!]

He seems pretty quick to shift the blame each loss.

Hope not but maybe he's starting to lose the players.

 

[ant555]

Look, I wasn't going to say anything but I think it's my fault. I was at the Adelaide game; in fact, almost every game I go to we seem to win.

I didn't go today.

 

[BOMBERS 4 LIFE!!!!]

How Tom Bellchambers got taken to the cleaners by a second gamer......unacceptable.

ffs this pissed me off Belcho should have ragged dolled him I bet Gawn wouldn't let a 2nd gamer take him to the cleaners

 

[Cold Sober]

Ordinary is what ordinary is, sorry Forrest, they keep telling you you're wrong.
The look on Zakkas face said it all, these idiots I'm playing with are on drugs, 'no idea, brain dead, no effort drugs'.
PLEASE, someone tell me otherwise.
Coach gets extension, joke.
Bellchambers top class match winning ruckman for the last 8 years,joke.
Captain who spends half his game pointing to places he can't get to. joke. [ good footballer, I'm a fan, but.]
Drop or don't play young blokes for Baggers, joke.
Tell me I'm wrong, then you're joking yourselves.
REPEAT, REPEAT, REPEAT, ordinary is what ordinary is.