The main problem tonight

[kingyubbo]

Poor kicking and possession cost as well as no forward structure. I like Tippett and Maric in the ruck. Maric looked very good around the packs and moves pretty well around the ground IMO. Burton had a shocker of a game, and I thought Gill showed some spark, but needs some time back in the AFL to really fire. Doughty and Vince were the best for mine. Both are constantly improving.

Sad to see Bassett's 200 go like that. He played a stellar game, not much can be said for half the others.

 

[WheresGroomgone]

Poor kicking and possession cost as well as no forward structure. I like Tippett and Maric in the ruck. Maric looked very good around the packs and moves pretty well around the ground IMO. Burton had a shocker of a game, and I thought Gill showed some spark, but needs some time back in the AFL to really fire. Doughty and Vince were the best for mine. Both are constantly improving.

Sad to see Bassett's 200 go like that. He played a stellar game, not much can be said for half the others.

Mate I stated my love for him earlier but there is no way he played a stellar game, at times he was good however as well he was terrible.

 

[Mad Dog]

LEAVE ANDREW ALONE...

ALL OF YOU......

Tonight's game required physical contact and accountablity during this century, and you know that is not his go..........so please......leave him alone.

 

[NSWCROW]

If only ALL crows showed the heart FREDDY did tonight.

 

[Brett_Burton_#24]

3 Problems Tonight

1:The selected senior Players were a problem tonight and they were proudly lead tonight by Simon Goodwin whom has played s**t for a few weeks now he was lazy, uncommitted, was only captain in name tonight and tried to make his stats look better by going in the Half Back flank in the last 5mins. Others to be included Tyson 'I'm getting too old for this s**t' Edwards, Andrew 'must be Injured' McLeod and Brett ' I'll try to do everything my own way if it doesn't turn out I'll just sulk in the Forward Pocket all night' Burton.

2:Turnovers as Craigy will probably say in his Press Conference "Our skills let us down tonight" and they certainly did the number of times our players kicked and handballed the ball either straight to a opposition player or to a teammate under pressure was absolutely disgraceful. Don't like to name names but Nathan van Berlo - main culprit, Chris Knights, Brent Reilly and Scotty Stevens all had their moments of madness.

3: Here it comes again can hear and smell it, it's our bad Gameplan rearing its ugly head again. Yes, our gameplan the one that was supposedly destroyed at the end of last year only a few seconds after 'Buddy Love' kicked that goal at the TD was back tonight with vengeance and the Brisbane Lions must of thought that they were on holidays after being demolished last week by the Bullies attacking gameplan they came up against our conservative, wait for our opportunities, switch gameplan which does not even resemble that of what we saw only a mere 11 weeks ago against the Weagles.

 

[TheLeftFist8]

LEAVE ANDREW ALONE...

ALL OF YOU......

Tonight's game required physical contact and accountablity during this century, and you know that is not his go..........so please......leave him alone.

Ouch.

True though.

IF Brown's bump on him in the Nightmare game has caused an injury we don't know about thus causing him to be the softest player out there then get out of the side and fix your injury.

If there is no injury to protect then he needs to take a very hard look at himself.

 

[Klug]

Main problems tonight:

- Goodwin - what is going on with him? He must be carrying an injury, how else can you explain the way he is playing? Slow to the contest, poor kicking, dropped marks

- McLeod's desire to get the hard ball - pulled up a couple of times as he neared the contest to tackle or seize the footy

- Knights disposal - think I counted 5 clanger kicks, 2 clanger handballs, which resulted in 2 goals to Brisbane. He finds the footy well, but he (along with Symes) has poor disposal which really hurts the team.

- Crap chip chip go along the boundary style of footy. Could we be any more indirect? After the first few rounds of this year, we have gone back to our bad old 2007 ways of never taking risks, kicking backwards when in doubt.

- Delivery to our forwards. Kicking it on their heads an expecting miracle marks is just kick and hope. No wonder Burton was getting frustrated.

 

[WheresGroomgone]

I am so over that backward chip game, yes I realise it's a skill but F'Me it is an ordinary game to watch. Richmond did it today against that other team and it nearly cost them a win, tonight we did it when we should of been all out attack against an undermaned Brisbane. Where's the flair Neil where's the flair? Guys like Mcleod, Johncock Goodwin and Porps must hate it as much as us, let them run free smash the lines kick long play with pace...aaaahhhh I'm so over the chip backwards at one stage tonight we went from a potential shot at goal to back to beyond the half back line...poor!

 

[Vince Van Mackay]

I'm sorry, I had to.

5 fake dollars if you get it.

Note: Just a joke, Neil Craig is a great coach and I wouldn't have anyone else coaching.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

I am so over that backward chip game, yes I realise it's a skill but F'Me it is an ordinary game to watch. Richmond did it today against that other team and it nearly cost them a win, tonight we did it when we should of been all out attack against an undermaned Brisbane. Where's the flair Neil where's the flair? Guys like Mcleod, Johncock Goodwin and Porps must hate it as much as us, let them run free smash the lines kick long play with pace...aaaahhhh I'm so over the chip backwards at one stage tonight we went from a potential shot at goal to back to beyond the half back line...poor!

I'm so over the bloody zoning.

 

[TheLeftFist8]

I'm so over the bloody zoning.

Defensively we are very good at it, though if there is a turnover (which there has been so many of lately) we are screwed...especially as its often still in our defensive half due to our slow crab-like style.

Going forward, it has to be beaten with speed and skill...neither of which we are doing.

A while ago Phil Smyth and Ross Aloisi were discussing zoning on the news, and they said you must take it on quickly. Once you move the ball slowly and indecisively the zone has beaten you.

I don't mind the odd crab sideways if it opens up space for a quick transition, but the way we do it is so slow as we zigzag our way forward.

Back to the chess board Craigy.

 

[kingyubbo]

Mate I stated my love for him earlier but there is no way he played a stellar game, at times he was good however as well he was terrible.

I think comparing it with his previous performances this season, this would be classed as 'stellar'.

I agree with Knights. He's not accurate enough to be chipping it around down back IMO. Can kick it long... but that's about it.

 

[macca23]

Knights was directly (directly) responsible for 3 Brisbane goals, Basset gave him a spray, Knights deserved it. Very relaxed kicking by Knights tonight.

Relaxed wasn't the word I was using while watching.

You are 100% correct. We lost by 13 points and Knights' disposal led directly to 3 goals (18 points).

On the plus side, I thought he showed a return to form in the 2nd half and won plenty of hard ball with far less disposal errors.

Lat's hope he never again gives so many charities away like he did tonight.

 

[Stiffy_18]

shirley was unbelievably good on black.

douglas didn't get near it when he went into the middle, which is a shame. I said earlier he has tricks about him, and I love that - but would like to see him win more when he gets his chance in the middle.

loved doughty's tackle on brown, when scopped the ball back under brown

Shirl's first half on Black was nothing short of sensational IMHO.

However, I thought in the 3rd quarter Black was the instigator of a lot of Brisbane's movement because he was unbelievable with some of his clearence handballs. I thought Shirley did everything right in those circumstances but Black was getting a silver service from his ruckman, which evidently was the time when Maric came off the ground.

To me, despite all the turnovers and despite all other deficiencies, Brisbane got on top when Maric went down and never looked back. Just goes to show how imporant Maric is becoming to us at a rapid rate.

 

[beartoo]

Just watched the Dons/Blues match. Both sides--but especially Essendon--moved the ball forward quickly. It was an old-fashioned game of footy where players were prepared to occasionally kick to a contest so they could get the ball forward. Sometimes it came off and sometimes not, but at least it was positive football. No one was chipping sideways or backwards looking for the perfect way forward. There were no chains of a dozen or 15 hand passes inside the opposition' 50, just direct footy. The passing skills to the player on the lead were good. The little blokes were crumbing the packs effectively instead of everyone trying to pull down the pack mark. What percentage of marks are taken in packs? I reckon maybe 8%. We need crumbers, especially in the forward line. It was bloody good to watch and I thought the final scoreline flattered the Dons a bit as it seemed a fairly even game by two side committed to winning the ball and playing positive footy. More of that in our game plan and stop this chipping nonsense up the wings.
There are times in football when you simply have to trust the blokes further up the field to win the contested footy. Move it quickly and beat the flood. At present our movement forward is so predictably slow that by the time the ball arrives in our 50, the entire opposition side is camped in there. There is no way we can get the ball into the corridor under these circumstances.
And there ends my Sunday sermon.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

The main problems tonight were:

1. Too many passengers & not enough of an even contribution due to players being down on form/lacking match fitness/carrying injuries.

2. Using the more defensive '07 game plan rather than our earlier season more attacking game plan. Somtimes it is OK to quickly play on & go direct, rather than always doing the chip across HB.

 

[crowsup]

Just watched the Dons/Blues match. Both sides--but especially Essendon--moved the ball forward quickly. It was an old-fashioned game of footy where players were prepared to occasionally kick to a contest so they could get the ball forward. Sometimes it came off and sometimes not, but at least it was positive football. No one was chipping sideways or backwards looking for the perfect way forward. There were no chains of a dozen or 15 hand passes inside the opposition' 50, just direct footy. The passing skills to the player on the lead were good. The little blokes were crumbing the packs effectively instead of everyone trying to pull down the pack mark. What percentage of marks are taken in packs? I reckon maybe 8%. We need crumbers, especially in the forward line. It was bloody good to watch and I thought the final scoreline flattered the Dons a bit as it seemed a fairly even game by two side committed to winning the ball and playing positive footy. More of that in our game plan and stop this chipping nonsense up the wings.
There are times in football when you simply have to trust the blokes further up the field to win the contested footy. Move it quickly and beat the flood. At present our movement forward is so predictably slow that by the time the ball arrives in our 50, the entire opposition side is camped in there. There is no way we can get the ball into the corridor under these circumstances.
And there ends my Sunday sermon.

On paper, the above points appear to be valid. The only point I would like to make is: Would we be better off if we played the same type of footy? And, if so, why are Essendon and Carlton not above us?
I agree that last night's game left a lot to be desired. We were too slow on playing on, but if the accuracy had been a bit better, we WOULD have won the game regardless.
I don't believe that it is all gloom and doom. The improvement we need is not that much and we could be up with the big boys.
So lets have an optimistic view instead of all the ' lets replace the whole team bar 4 or 5 players ' view.

 

[Nige_Bix]

Just watched the Dons/Blues match. Both sides--but especially Essendon--moved the ball forward quickly. It was an old-fashioned game of footy where players were prepared to occasionally kick to a contest so they could get the ball forward. Sometimes it came off and sometimes not, but at least it was positive football. No one was chipping sideways or backwards looking for the perfect way forward. There were no chains of a dozen or 15 hand passes inside the opposition' 50, just direct footy. The passing skills to the player on the lead were good. The little blokes were crumbing the packs effectively instead of everyone trying to pull down the pack mark. What percentage of marks are taken in packs? I reckon maybe 8%. We need crumbers, especially in the forward line. It was bloody good to watch and I thought the final scoreline flattered the Dons a bit as it seemed a fairly even game by two side committed to winning the ball and playing positive footy. More of that in our game plan and stop this chipping nonsense up the wings.
There are times in football when you simply have to trust the blokes further up the field to win the contested footy. Move it quickly and beat the flood. At present our movement forward is so predictably slow that by the time the ball arrives in our 50, the entire opposition side is camped in there. There is no way we can get the ball into the corridor under these circumstances.
And there ends my Sunday sermon.

Exactly what I was about to post - add the Pies/Dogs game too - great viewing - footy as you want to see it played - take risks/ back yourself , dont be frightened of a contest, kick to the hot spot, plenty of desparation -all that we didnt see in our game and the saints game as well - two of the worst games I have watched for ages.

I hate it when the MAJOR option at the moment in defence is to kick backwards and sideways - and going forwards wait till you can spot a clear lead - otherwise turn 180 and belt it back the way it came -I hate it. I'm not talking about he last minute or two to save a game - I can understand that. I can accept a loss (in time!!) if we competed well and it was a good contest. I dont like to lose and feel embarrassed about the way we played.

 

[jenny61_99]

The main problem tonight was not the efforts by our younger players, they played well as did some of our senior players in Basset, Doughty and Shirley.

The main problem was the lazy efforts by some other senior players, the main culprit and I have thought this all year is Andrew Mcleod, I know he is a protected species, but it seems there are a number of players in the team that are just a little too comfortable in their positions.

I'm not saying that the laziness of one or two players is the reason we lost, but it does send a very, very poor message to the rest of the playing group if your superstars are lumbering to the ball at a walking pace.

Now I understand you can't just drop all the senior players and I don't suggest that, what I suggest is that maybe one of them gets dropped for a change, just to show the others that lazy efforts won't be tolerated, because Neil Craig saying there is no excuse and that all players are expected to perform is only worth anything if you back it up with actions, not just talk.

If being young isn't an excuse for not performing to 100% of your ability, then being senior shouldn't be, some of our players need to take a long hard look at the way guys like Nick Gill and Doughty go about it and pull their own fingers out.

I haven't read the rest of this thread but just wanted you to know Macca and Goody are both playing injured. Macca's right knee was enormous this morning (three times the size of the other one) and Goody was off to the Dr's for a back injection. So for them to even take the field is a minor miracle. If both of them were not on the ground, I reckon you could add another 30 or so points to the loss.

 

[BunjiMac]

Hmm that explans a fair bit Jenny, maybe Maccas bone on bone knee has finally given out, i hope not though. He's been playing with no menisci and silicon injectoins in that knee for quite a few years now, that cannot be healthy and cannot last and it is destined for major arthritis in years to come.

It also explains why Goody didn't look like he was bending over and picking the ball up that well.

 

[Crow-mo]

I haven't read the rest of this thread but just wanted you to know Macca and Goody are both playing injured. Macca's right knee was enormous this morning (three times the size of the other one) and Goody was off to the Dr's for a back injection. So for them to even take the field is a minor miracle. If both of them were not on the ground, I reckon you could add another 30 or so points to the loss.

unacceptable.
them taking the field that is.

if they're injured, don't play 'em.

 

[Southerntakeover]

unacceptable.
them taking the field that is.

if they're injured, don't play 'em.

Certainly wouldnt have happened under Blighty. One of his rules... never play injured players.

 

[jenny61_99]

unacceptable.
them taking the field that is.

if they're injured, don't play 'em.

Crow-Mo I think this is more a case of injury management. These are not injuries that can be fixed, rather they are being managed in the best way possible. Only way to stop them from hurting is for both players to retire. It just seems to me that both players are at that "maintenance" stage with their injuries - Andy needs a scrape and clean and perhaps some silicon (and some rest) and Goodie needs a top up for them both to keep going at a level we all expect from them (and they from themselves).

 

[Markthirtytwo]

Just watched the Dons/Blues match. Both sides--but especially Essendon--moved the ball forward quickly. It was an old-fashioned game of footy where players were prepared to occasionally kick to a contest so they could get the ball forward. Sometimes it came off and sometimes not, but at least it was positive football. No one was chipping sideways or backwards looking for the perfect way forward. There were no chains of a dozen or 15 hand passes inside the opposition' 50, just direct footy. The passing skills to the player on the lead were good. The little blokes were crumbing the packs effectively instead of everyone trying to pull down the pack mark. What percentage of marks are taken in packs? I reckon maybe 8%. We need crumbers, especially in the forward line. It was bloody good to watch and I thought the final scoreline flattered the Dons a bit as it seemed a fairly even game by two side committed to winning the ball and playing positive footy. More of that in our game plan and stop this chipping nonsense up the wings.
There are times in football when you simply have to trust the blokes further up the field to win the contested footy. Move it quickly and beat the flood. At present our movement forward is so predictably slow that by the time the ball arrives in our 50, the entire opposition side is camped in there. There is no way we can get the ball into the corridor under these circumstances.
And there ends my Sunday sermon.

But for some reason other clubs want to try and strangle us and we have no choice but to play defensive on most occasions. It's only when the opposition club's coaches have the guts to play us man on man.

For heaven sake one would have thought that the talent that Hawks have they would have but no there they were most behind the ball.

 

[Markthirtytwo]

Certainly wouldnt have happened under Blighty. One of his rules... never play injured players.

Whilst they take the opposition's better defenders, who do we put in their place. The cupboard isn't that big.