Thoughts on where we are after 9 weeks of footy

[CURVE]

I like where we are going. Not 100% convinced but that will come with finals wins.

Our kick ins are atrocious. Would love to see some Mastermind stats but we would have t be the worst kick in side for 10 years or so.

Inside Foootball had those stats a month or two ago and McMahon was one of the more efficient players in the league, hitting a North target over 95% (under 30metres) and about 90% (over 40metres).

I know there are some people who don't like him, but I think our backline has looked very suspect without McMahon in the line up. He is one of our senior backmen, reads the play well, is strong mark and is one of our more efficient kickers in the backline. He has his defiencies, but everyone does, it's how you make the most of abilities that count, and he does very well in my opinion.

As for how I think we are travelling, I'm still not convinced we have the depth of talent to compete with the top teams or even play finals this season or next. We have a lot of young players who have shown some signs that they can compete, but still require a couple of years before they can compete consistantly over 4 quarters for 22+ games a season. There are signs of a bright future ahead, but not as bright as some have been proclaiming.

 

[Gabbie]

When we are good, we are very very good, but when we are bad we are shocking.

I was all fired up early in the season but there have been some games that if I had a gun I would have shot someone. Back to the old, take the foot off the pedal and the other mob over run us. sheeesh.

Put it this way, I'm in no hurry to find a dog sitter should I want to visit Melbourne late September. I'm in a WTF North, pull your finger out mode.

Will try to be a bit more positive, hopefully by tomorrow, but there are times during my long association with the , over 30 years, I know why I drink and smoke.

 

[Roo-Boy]

We need to play every week like we did against Geelong. At the moment we are shit

 

[Radical Roo]

we r definitely doing it right this time. During laidley's era, we've always had a team that could reguarly challenge and beat top teams but really lacking class and polish when it mattered.

Now we have clubbed together a team of class and polish with consistency the issue and in due time when the consistency comes, the result will exponentially go upwards. Currently, despite our position, we have nearly scored over 1000 point. So even with all the negatives our scoring is very good and that will only get better.

And the improvement will come from the full court defensive game and that is built on team work and continuity of the team. Attack u only need one person, to defend u need a whole team.

 

[Radical Roo]

Is it time for us to rest petrie for a few games to allow hansen and black apply their trade

 

[CharlieMortdecai]

Is it time for us to rest petrie for a few games to allow hansen and black apply their trade

Well no, given that Hansen is currently serving a VFL suspension that is going to drag on for god knows how long given all the frigging byes and shit at this time of year.

 

[Radical Roo]

ah damn, he got suspended at the worst time possible didn't he.

 

[Snoochems]

I know it says "Western Sydney" over there <---------- but my first team was the Kangaroo's. I left Victoria about 13 years ago, so that is the main reason why I've jumped ship to a more "local" team. I guess I'm trying to say this isn't meant to be a troll but...

If the Tigers and the Kangaroo's swapped jumpers, all would seem right in the world of AFL. The Kanga's seem to be in danger of constantly disappointing fans and not living up to expectations. They've been mostly terrible all year, especially for a team supposedly "on the rise". Skill errors, poor decision making, and bad match up's seem to be far too common. I didn't even tune in last week as I can't find anything exciting about the team at the moment.

Hopefully, something just clicks soon.

 

[king of the road]

11th...

 

[Kenny Kangaroo]

We are 1st for Goals scored and 15th for Tackles
After 3 weeks of hard running, fast transition footy, North went to Sydney and failed to match the early sustained intensity. And hasn't since.
That's the simplistic version of events and mostly it's true
But there were lapses in our run against Essendon, GWS and Geelong as well.
All three got run-ons like every team we have played this year.
On last years form we should be two games further ahead of where we are now..
So what went wrong?
The Loss of Rawlings(ret) , McMahon(inj) and Hansen(form?) has turned the back six very, very green. Macmillan, Atley and the Delaneys are all tremendously promising. But promising doesn't cut it for 4 quarters every week.
The midfield has the same problem. Awesomely promising but still just
promising
The form of Ziebell , Godstein and Bastinac has been a long way down from
last year and Greenwood has struggled to get a game. Only Adams and
Swallow have been able to perform consistently.
The real problem this year has been Wells, Petrie and Harvey
Wells is back to his pre-2011 consistency and no longer seems capable of
burning off a tag. Perhaps that will change as the season progresses
Petite has struggled until two weeks ago but seemed to have turned the corner
Harvey has declined. Last year he was an inconsistent champion but this year he has been relegated to a cameo player.
He is rarely able to impose himself on games and then only if the opposition coach doesn't put a hard tag on him. Sad.
Edwards also seems to have lost his mojo.
So what has gone right? (we are 4-5 not 2-7 like this time last year)
Swallow , Thompson , Firrito have all been consistent
As has Thomas. He is much-maligned for his set shot goal kicking but
all the other elements of his game have clicked - courage, defensive pressure, assists, marking , goals from general play. I think its bizarre that he has been
dropped for fitness reasons
Wright, Harper and now Black are providers of class and promise in the
forward 50. Wright has arguably arrived as a forward and a defender

The game plan has been criticised but I like it. Scotts game plan is basically Run n Carry footy which transforms into a press once it's forward.
Has it been working? No because the team has been lacking the mobility to
implement it since round 4.
That doesn't mean it's a shit game plan. It just means that this young group
lacks sustained running power ATM
The alternatives are Tempo(Laidleyesque footy) and Bomb to the
Contest(Paganesque footy) and those styles also require sustained running
power to be successful.
What I like about the game plan is the way we are able to quickly open up opposition teams when the work rate is there.
When it's working, the opposition doesn't touch the ball while we score goal after goal after goal. It seems to me that a 2014 version of this group will
have the ability to completely destroy teams in a quarter of footy.
Scott has shown weaknesses on match day and at the selection table but the
quality on the list is there and he has until the end of 2013 to produce.
The eagles in 2010 were a lot worse than we are ATM as was Richmond and
Adelaide last year.
Goldy and Petrie have returned to form at last and there is still a ton of upside
to Ziebell , Wells and Bastinac.
If these three hit their straps, they will create holes in opposition structures
that Harvey will be able to slip through. His cameos can still be parlayed into game breaking bursts.
Adding Wright, Harper , Thomas and Black provides takes the forward line class level into the White Hot zone
We are different team when Goldy is up and running.
This will be an up and down year but it's certainly not a disaster.
Becoming consistent is a process
We need elite Scalps to replace points lost to Footscray and Port

 

[Woodson]

As Tas bought up the fact North haven't been smashed yet, fades are just killing the season progress. North keep shooting themselves in the foot too damn often. Complacency is more about having a great pay and the runs on the board, why work hard when half the team doesn't pull their weight? They know who they are.

Goes without saying, North have every chance to make the eight if they truly want to, most posts in this thread have pointed out how and why. Great posting.

I see the cup half full. Talent is there. Use it Or Lose it. Laziness is also there in abundance!!!!
Doesn't take much to work out the problem.
There is no such thing as playing above yourself.
Whoever believes that doesn't have a clue about going all the way and winning it all. The AFL media love to belittle and that's the nature of their business.

Players should take such slurs as personal insults. Not enough hunger in this North team from the first nine weeks. Hopefully the team shakes out the 'lapses' and less passengers playing each week.

 

[DJ Dupree]

I believe we have many positives to work with.

First in the league for goals. That's fantastic. For how many years have we been enduring gritty slogs, where a bunch of C-Graders played out of their skins to match it with a similarly placed opposition? We now have attacking power. We can be exciting, and that's great.

We have new faces in the side that have not only shown 'something', but shown they belong at the highest level. Luke and Cameron Delaney for starters, when our midfield stops the speed at which the ball is going the other way, will shine. Harper and Atley have been more than solid (while not new faces, they are establishing themselves now).

I believe that when the midfield is completely fixed, our backline will pretty much be sorted. The Delaneys, Grima (back in good form), Thompson and McMahon round out a backline I have full confidence in. Firrito is still prone to brainfades and turnovers, and I don't think this will ever change. But, glass half full, he runs, he creates and tries to make something happen. I would prefer to see that than a timid deer in the headlights.

The forward line with Wright in it already, to me, looks 100% better. Wright, Harper, Petrie, Black, Adams and factor Boomer in there in the future, and it overflows with class. As the youngsters get some more games under their belt, they will combine well with Petrie and Harvey who, as they hit their mid 30's, I don't think will be any less valuable as goalkicking forwards. Harvey and Petrie will still be around, and still be valuable, to see the kids develop and realise their potential also.

I prefer the midfield with one specialist ruckman (Goldstein), and a fair bit of grunt and lockdown there as well. For that reason, I would keep Greenwood in as he is Shinboner 200%, would perhaps rotate Adams through there as Ziebells' fitness increases, and really concentrate on being able to lock the game down when momentum goes the other way. The class and polish is somewhat there - after years of wondering, we can rely on Wells delivering excellence in most games, we always know what Swallow brings to the table, and guys like Bastinac and Cunnington can grow with good support.

Left field, but at some stage I've even thought of Hansen coming into the side as a utility to back up Goldy and/or rotate through the forward line with Petrie. Not as plan A obviously, but he might need something to bring him into the game - in the middle might be it. He can take marks around the ground and is agile. Where it would leave H I don't know, but it's a thought.

Some stupid losses and fade-outs, I thought by now we'd be 6-3, but this is all part of a bigger picture of getting better. The tools are all there, and it's above the shoulders now. I hope (and I'm confident) that they will learn from mistakes, not get ahead of themselves, live in the moment and know what it takes to win.

We can kick a winning score easily, now we just need to defend it. We are not a wreck all over the ground, we just need to fix this one side and add a string to our bow. I think we can.