Preview Round 8, 2019: Hawthorn v GWS Giants, 12 May 2019, 3.20pm @ MCG

[StillAtLarge]

I don't feel too sorry for rough- he'll dominate at box hill and be back in the seniors soon

 

[Gralin]

I can't recall you or anyone else here belittling Ruff, I am not sure where the OTC rant came from, really bizarre. I wasn't intending going Sunday but may go earlier to watch the big man in he VFL, would love to see him help lead and develop some of the kids in the VFL, I do however feel it's best we hand the reigns over to Mitchy Lewis for the remainder of the season, it's time for better or worst that Ruff moves on.

Tone doesn't come across in the written word. So we add our own intepretation of tone when reading a post.

A post proclaiming finally the premiership credits have run out can read rather poorly to people who have just found out that Rough has been dropped.

People might be getting excited about what they see as a philosophical change at selection, but it's written with no apparent sympathy for the bloke on the receiving end and can look like gloating.

I don't see Rough being dropped as Clarko making a statement to the senior blokes that they need to pull their finger out or else. I think it's more about Rough not being part of the plan next year and Clarko wanting to get a look at other combinations to see if they are.

Whatever the reason it's a sad day, and while there shouldn't be sentiment in team selection there is room for it among supporters discussing that selection but some don't seem to have it

 

[KOLOKOTRONIS]

Rough will be back very soon. He has a strong competitive character. He will be better for this. The timing is right also.

Disappointed to lose wingard as he provides hope and excitement. Needs the conditioning clearly.

It will be a very very long day.

Just hoping for a strong contest. Easier said than done.

KOLOKOTRONIS

 

[Satchel]

I'm a bit surprised by the Rough dropping

Thought he has been better than he was last year to be honest

 

[Teamwork Talks]

How the **** does Poppy survive the chop.

I reckon Poppy is on notice to improve or be dropped.

 

[MrPremiership]

Rough looked very very flat during that interview.

 

[StillAtLarge]

How the **** does Poppy survive the chop.

Ah... by being our most consistent forward? He'd be the first one picked inside 50 every week. Averaging 20% more tackles in front of goal than anyone else in the comp

 

[A Cut Above]

I'm a bit surprised by the Rough dropping

Thought he has been better than he was last year to be honest

Same here. Admittedly he was quiet against Melbourne but he was just as quiet in many games last season and his form has generally been an improvement. I suspect Clarko is sending a message to under performing senior players, but also conceding we're a long way off the pace.

The question is who replaces Roughy up front. Schoenmakers is surely finished except as a depth player, TOB & Sicily look much better in defense, Ceglar has never had consistent impact as a forward, and Koschitzke surely isn't ready. Which leaves Nash who seems to have athleticism and not much else. Perhaps Clarko wants as many weeks to find a forward combo without Roughy that works so we won't feel pressured to trade for a KPF this year. That's assuming this isn't a one-off with Clarko planning to bring Roughy back next week.

 

[burner1]

Rough has the character to cop the dropping - am also sure he realises the end is near.

Would be a number of players anxious to find out final team at 6pm today - smith in particular. However, our depth is threadbare - there’s a limit to the changes possible.

While you can applaud the stand - it’s a pity the reality check didn’t hit AC before the trade period.

 

[lickmerocks]

I'm a bit surprised by the Rough dropping

Thought he has been better than he was last year to be honest

I agree with this. I feel his first qtr against St Kilda was as good a qtr he has played in 3-4 seasons. He was mobile, winning the ball in tight, hitting targets and providing a real contest for us.

As I mentioned earlier there are some in the age bracket 25-28 that really should be playing a lot better than they are

 

[OhhhhhCyril]

I don’t have a problem with Ruff being dropped, at least we are a club that is prepared to make the tough decisions, have done so before and will do it again. I expect him to get a few touches down at box hill and get a bit of confidence back. Hopefully a few other players... looking at you Smith take a bit of notice and pull their fingers out.

I don’t expect us to win on Sunday, however I really hope we are a bit more competitive and show a little more grunt and desperation around the ball and hopefully tidy up our average ball use.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am confident we are moving forward as a club, and excited by the future. Imagine if you followed a team like Melbourne, Carlton North ect who have been terrible for years and haven’t shown a damn thing.

 

[Jables]

Same here. Admittedly he was quiet against Melbourne but he was just as quiet in many games last season and his form has generally been an improvement. I suspect Clarko is sending a message to under performing senior players, but also conceding we're a long way off the pace.

The question is who replaces Roughy up front. Schoenmakers is surely finished except as a depth player, TOB & Sicily look much better in defense, Ceglar has never had consistent impact as a forward, and Koschitzke surely isn't ready. Which leaves Nash who seems to have athleticism and not much else. Perhaps Clarko wants as many weeks to find a forward combo without Roughy that works so we won't feel pressured to trade for a KPF this year. That's assuming this isn't a one-off with Clarko planning to bring Roughy back next week.

There quite simply is no Roughead replacement. I suspect his form was just at the level where they could justify dropping him to keep a kid in the team, internally I mean. His structural importance compared to Poppy is actually a negative for Rough going forward.

 

[TylerDurden]

Unconfirmed rumour. Smith dropped.

 

[KermitJagger]

Unconfirmed rumour. Smith dropped.

Would not be a surprise. Not often he's relegated to the interchange spot.

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

Unconfirmed rumour. Smith dropped.

 

[KermitJagger]

View attachment 670723

If it is true, it's honestly a team management decision I'm most comfortable with. We expect these guys in for leadership and to stand up when they need to, in close games. If Smith has not been doing that, his role in the structure isn't overly difficult to replace.

Harry is a good runner, smart running patterns and gets to the right spots - if he performs, Smith might feel the pinch in regards to his position and up the ante.

Geelong have not been backwards about playing some of their historically better and more experienced guys in the VFL this year, and it hasn't hurt them. Good clubs should be able to make those decisions no matter how many runs on the board players have from previous seasons.

 

[Off The Couch]

Dropped or injured
Didn’t he leave the field early last week

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

Clarko full rebuild mode.

Buckle up buttercups

 

[MrPremiership]

So, we might end up getting Anderson after all

 

[TylerDurden]

So, we might end up getting Anderson after all

He's burning the boats as we speak.

 

[JoeHawk]

Rough looked very very flat during that interview.

As we’d expect

 

[bradburygold]

Rough is a broken man and watching him struggle to talk on the footy show about being dropped is heartbreaking

He deserves our ******* respect and those who have revelled in his being dropped and I’m looking at you SA HAWK and others, you are ******* campaigners and not fit to support this club.

This man has given you four premierships and cancer has fast tracked the end of a great career so he doesn’t get the opportunity that his mate Taz, Mitch and Hodge got, so to read some of the posts on here about him makes me sick and you campaigners should be ******* hanging your heads in shame

anyone have a video of Rough speaking? have not seen this

 

[Gene Simmons]

Unconfirmed rumour. Smith dropped.

May be the kick up the bum he needs to wake up... Speaking of which, At his current rate Stratton could be the 1st captain to get dropped since Gary Ayres in 1993...

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

Sounds like clarko has had enough. That presser was quite eye opening

 

[Gene Simmons]

Look's like "catastrophic change" is finally here....