West Coast - are they gaaaawn.

[bunsen burner]

West Coast are very poor today. Wouldn't be able to beat Carlton on a bad day.

The reason they are losing to Port? Not hard enough at the ball and not gelling as a team. Prime examples being Brett Jones being caught running out of defence where in better times he would have had absolute confidence his team mates (McKenzie in this instance) would have shepherded for him.

Second on the ladder and loss to a decent team away from home? Wouldn't usually be a problem, but it runs much deeper than that.

The reason why the Eagles aren't hard enough at the ball and aren't gelling as a team? Priddis, Rosa, McKenzie, McKinley, Morton, and Judd, Stenglein, Kerr, Hansen, Wirrapanda, Fletcher, and Armstrong, R.Jones.

The simple fact of the matter is the team they have on the park isn't good enough. Average players play good in good teams. Now that a heap of top line players are out, these average players get exposed. Have a look at our midfield - Judd, Rosa, Priddis, Braun, Morton, Jones, Selwood, Hurn. It is not a strong midfield. It's not even close to Geelong or Hawthorn, or for that matter, Port's.

And then there's Judd. Opposition midfields can gang bang him because they know there is no Kerr or Cousins or some ther midfielder who is playing better than he is because his company. And he must be injured.

So the Eagles season comes down to what team that can put on the park and that comes down to injury. Some may think that the Eagles have all these stars coming back and will click before the finals. Possible, but here is the truth:

It's so hard to get your form back when players are to-ing and fro-ing into and out of the team. It's had to get settled. It's hard to get a run long enough to get everyone match fit. And these young players have been brought down to earth - can they get their confidence back?

And then there's Judd. He's playing injured and I believe he will play injured for the rest of the year. If his injury was curable short term he wouldn't play. If he could have an operation and come back in 4 he would. The most likely conclusion is he needs a season ending op and the Eages have decided to play him injured for the rest of the season.

I think it will be hard to get their best team on the paddock and firing. They may be 2nd before today's game but don't be mistaken - they are in serious trouble.

 

[Hap Hapablap]

agreed. the state we are in especially today is awful and 2001sque. even if we get our players back on the park this will hurt. i have never doubted my side in a very long time and today has been the indication. judd is injured badly and im extremely worried about his well being. priddis rosa and rowan jones are continually turning over the ball and armstrong shouldnt even be in the team but thats what injuries do and brings the 2nd tier in. hopefully next week we will bounce back but we will have to go on a roll before i gain faith back in the side. judd shouldve been rested today no doubt about it.

 

[SOSBenny]

Mate of course we're in trouble!
But wouldn't Sydney be in the same boat if Kirk, Hall, Jolly and Goodes we're missing. And what about Geelong, I'd like to see them carve it up with Mooney, Chapman, Bartel and Ling out and Jesus playing with a dodgy groin at 70% fit!
That's football mate. No one team has greater depth than the other...and at the moment the eagles are gettin found out by injuries, just like Essendon last year, just like Geelong last year!

As for Judd I agree, get him into hospital now!!!!

 

[Father Jack]

I've downgraded our premiership chances from Our Godgiven Right to Not Quite A Foregone Conclusion.

 

[Duskfire]

just like Geelong last year!

We didn't have that many injuries last year. We just had a bad attitude and played like crap Wouldn't blame that on injuries. As for WCE, while the injuries are taking a toll, they have performed well with some of their best players out before. They are just playing low on confidence, and Judd having to play injured means his teammates know he is playing injured, which is never a good thing for confidence either.

 

[The Zebra]

So reliant on Judd and Kerr playing and in form. Without them, their midfield is exposed as average. With only one of them, you can apply a hard tag and shut the team down. But with both back and playing well they are still a massive chance.

If Judd has the operation they are most definitely gaaaawn.

 

[bunsen burner]

But wouldn't Sydney be in the same boat if Kirk, Hall, Jolly and Goodes we're missing.

You're missing the point.

This is not an excuse thread. This is not a "hey we only failed because we had injuries so we're not as bad as it seems". It's a simple analysis of where the Eagles are at and why this loss has so many future repercussions.

And what about Geelong, I'd like to see them carve it up with Mooney, Chapman, Bartel and Ling out and Jesus playing with a dodgy groin at 70% fit!

That's football mate.

 

[RW]

The scary thing is, assuming Sydney beat Carlton tomorrow, given the dent in the Eagles' percentage after today's hiding from Port, we could actually be AHEAD of them on % if we win next week's game at Subi.

 

[greennick]

I've downgraded our premiership chances from Our Godgiven Right to Not Quite A Foregone Conclusion.

I've gone down to Not Likely But Still A Chance, but I was never at Our Godgiven Right. I think I started at Who Else Is Going To Challenge.


But seriously, I agree with everything bunsen burner said there. We are ****ed unless the team manages to start working for each other. The big stars coming back may make a difference, but they need to find form fast for us to have any chance. Judd is playing injured and season ending surgery is required. West Coast will play him till he breaks, because an injured, but serviceable, Judd is still in our best 22.

 

[SOSBenny]

I dunno Bunsen, I think I misunderstood your post...
But so sum it up and make sense of it, we are well and truly in trouble, but hey...who wouldn't be with only 25 fit players...look at the Saints 5 or 6 weeks ago...they were toast!
Confidence down, which leads to playing incoherant and crap football

 

[bunsen burner]

So reliant on Judd and Kerr playing and in form. Without them, their midfield is exposed as average. With only one of them, you can apply a hard tag and shut the team down. But with both back and playing well they are still a massive chance.

Stenglein and Hansen make a big difference too.

If Judd has the operation they are most definitely gaaaawn.

I don't think they're a one man team. They won 6 in a row without Cousins. But even if Cousins and all those players cam back I don't think they're be able get everyone fit and settled before September. Too many players coming in who need match fitness whilst confidence is very low. It's more a combo of the two that would pretty much sink the Eagles.

 

[Cuzz09]

West Coast Eagles Season 2007 = OVER!

 

[kane249]

Pure and simple, we're struggling to find cattle at the moment, and the cattle we do have aren't putting in the effort thats required. There are players playing today who don't deserve a game today and are only playing because we don't have people to replace them with.

We can only get better from here as players returning from injury force those in the team either out of the squad or to perform better if they want to stay in the team

 

[onezzz]

WEST COAST wont make top 4!

said it before the season started, and still saying it

 

[ClintEastwood]

The reason they are losing to Port? Not hard enough at the ball and not gelling as a team.

They are not losing to Port. They are being demolished by Port.

 

[Fred]

Shows how important it is to have a settled team with most of your main players on the field.

 

[Rob]

Judd is not even remotely close to being fit. Only the club knows if that's likely to change, but if it's not, they'd be better off sending him in for surgery now.

 

[Duskfire]

Thats the thing; the demolishing that Port is giving the Eagles injuries alone doesn't excuse. The team itself just doesn't seem to want to be out there. There is no fighting, no spirit, no passion - I saw more passion from Richmond in the game against Cats earlier then I am from WCE. The Eagles aren't neccessarily gone - they might be able to fight back in the next coming weeks, but there has to be a drastic improvement.

 

[Mastablingbling]

Fear us if we have our best 22 on the field with 3 rounds to go.

Don't fear us if we have the same team that played today with 3 rounds to go.

 

[onezzz]

They are not losing to Port. They are being demolished by Port.

hahahaha

WEST CHOKERS

 

[bunsen burner]

They are not losing to Port. They are being demolished by Port.

Thanks for that Captain Obvious.

 

[kane249]

To all the West Coast doom predictors

Yes we are playing bad, but we are only a few games away from returning to form. It's better to be out of form and experience our bad run of injuries now then at the end of the season.

To come back into this team we have:
Kerr
Cousins
Hansen
Fletcher
Stenglein
Wirrapanda
Butler
Graham
Nicoski
Staker

Those are guys who are either in or around our best 22 and will lift what is currently a struggling outfit.

There might be one heck of a storm cloud over us at the moment, but there is also one heck of a silver lining to come as well.

Say what your like nay sayers, we are far from dusted in season 2007 just yet.

 

[Tas]

Should never have played half-fit players, should back the young players.

 

[bunsen burner]

Judd is not even remotely close to being fit. Only the club knows if that's likely to change, but if it's not, they'd be better off sending him in for surgery now.

I agree - I think it's bad for team morale to be playing injured payers. I remember McIntosh in his ast season or two was in and out with injury al year - but just to bite the bullet and relieve that uncertainty in the player's heads. Port covered for Francou and Eagles covered for COusins - much easy when it's cut and dried and everyone knows that the players is definitely out.

 

[bunsen burner]

hahahaha

WEST CHOKERS

Don't wreck a good thread by being a tool.