Why Can't I get Excited?

[Lach72]

We will win the flag this year. I don't know why, but I think this will be our year.

Burn him, he's a witch

 

[anti.]

i dont think its the fact that you've won 1/4 preseason games (which doesnt matter anyway), its more the way they've gone about it.

played great against west coast, went hard and beat us everywhere.
started ok against crows then looked like the worst team of all time.
played some pretty average footy against the roos
then got flogged by port

its not like you rested a mass of players either...maybe they just didnt really care, they didnt find it hard getting the ball they just couldnt use it.

pre-season means nothing anyway.

i'd wait until the real stuff starts until i judge fremantle.

 

[chook2734]

i dont think its the fact that you've won 1/4 preseason games (which doesnt matter anyway), its more the way they've gone about it.

played great against west coast, went hard and beat us everywhere.
started ok against crows then looked like the worst team of all time.
played some pretty average footy against the roos
then got flogged by port

its not like you rested a mass of players either...maybe they just didnt really care, they didnt find it hard getting the ball they just couldnt use it.

pre-season means nothing anyway.

i'd wait until the real stuff starts until i judge fremantle.

Be sure to let us know anti - we're all waiting with bated breath on your judgement of our team

 

[dockers_bengals]

i would rather be suprised that dissappointed. I don't think we are going to have a break out year - i think we will finish just inside the 8. That is my assessment of where we are at - we could go better, and if we do, i will be very happy.

Then I'll be surprised.
I too am not as excited(still excited thou) due to not knowing what to expect.
The preseason went as I would of expected and I'm happy that we didn't bust a gut against Port in that heat,you can lose a lot of conditioning in it.

 

[pinkus maximus]

i dont think its the fact that you've won 1/4 preseason games (which doesnt matter anyway), its more the way they've gone about it.

played great against west coast, went hard and beat us everywhere.
started ok against crows then looked like the worst team of all time.
played some pretty average footy against the roos
then got flogged by port

its not like you rested a mass of players either...maybe they just didnt really care, they didnt find it hard getting the ball they just couldnt use it.

pre-season means nothing anyway.

i'd wait until the real stuff starts until i judge fremantle.

the crows performance was not as bad as you suggest

we rested half our team agains the roos and stuck with them until 3Q time

the only real dissapointment for me was the port match

 

[Bradesmaen]

Which was in the harshest conditions at a crappy non-AFL standard oval (almost non-SANFL standard)

 

[anti.]

Be sure to let us know anti - we're all waiting with bated breath on your judgement of our team

ok, you guys are shithouse.

fremantle = pavlich

your midfield is shit and your forward line is over rated. and your so called solid backline is very shakey. mcpharlin is the only one who is really reliable.

you have some of the worst young players in the competition and you have a squad full of past their use by date old slow hacks from other clubs.

you want to be essendon, everything is essendon. why? why cant fremantle be fremantle and do their own thing?

<other random negative fremantle talk>

happy now?

 

[The Night Shift]

You sound like your using the West Australian sports journalists book of Freo' insults there anti...

 

[DockerNJL]

hmmm way to go anti,
Thx for a typical west coast version of our team.
Wouldn't expect you guys to think any different.

 

[anti.]

i've never heard them say you're forward line is over rated.
nor have i read about your shaky backline.

im original.

 

[SupersonicDocker]

How can you say our forward line is shaky anti? And hello, Eagles = Cox... Now go back to the crack nest and leave us be

But onto more important discussion,

I think some of us are lacking excitement because our loyalty is getting the way of our realism all to often. But maybe the realism is starting to finally creep in.

MIDFIELD: We will never win a flag with Schammer in our team (unless his disposal improves big time)

Mcmanus and Peake (mcmanus i hate to say it but he just doesnt help us win anymore, Peake i know he has alot of fans on here but come on people just because he wears yellow boots and runs away from danger doesnt mean hes quick and needed... running sideways doesnt win games)

Matt Carr... I hate to say this but im thinking mattys body just cant do it anymore, at least find him a position not in such a critical area as the middle... Finally Ryan Crowley...put up or gone, for too long crowley has looked like just a footballer with nothing unique to offer

Its time we develop youngsters

Mayne/Hinkley/Foster/Palmer/Ibbotson... if they arent all playing in 2 years something is wrong big time because ive watched them all and they are all talented and quick

 

[SupersonicDocker]

There just my opinions but...

Oh and i think the reason we keep trying to experiment with Johnson and Mundy in the middle is obvious

Because as it stands today they are class footballers a massive cut above Schammer/Peake/M.Carr/Crowley/Mcmanus... and the middle is the most important to success so why wouldnt you try and get them in there and hope it works

 

[anti.]

How can you say our forward line is shaky anti? And hello, Eagles = Cox... Now go back to the crack nest and leave us be

1. i said your forward line is overated and your backline is shaky, theres a difference..
2. first it was Eagles = Cousins...then Eagles = Judd...now its Eagles = Cox..make up your mind. personally i would say Glass is right up there in terms of importance to the team. also, that Kerr guy, he isnt that bad.
3. someone asked for my opinion and said that he was waiting with bated breath. so since i realise that my opinion is so vital to dockers fans, i had to get it out in the open.

 

[DockerNJL]

There just my opinions but...

Oh and i think the reason we keep trying to experiment with Johnson and Mundy in the middle is obvious

Because as it stands today they are class footballers a massive cut above Schammer/Peake/M.Carr/Crowley/Mcmanus... and the middle is the most important to success so why wouldnt you try and get them in there and hope it works

I think it's a little harsh on Peake + Schammer there,
Bit of perspecive both are coming back from a derailed season last year so lets give this time, I think along with Crowley these are almost there last years to have a crack at it + i personally think they will too.

I dont know about the Johnson + Mundy experiment either but its worth a go in the pre-season, which i think so far hasn't yeilded results.
I think Gilmore has to have 3-4 games at the start of the season to make this big bodied midfielder role his own, wheather he gets that chance remains to be seen.

I do however agree totally that Macca + M.Carr should not warrent a game to start but with good form in the WAFL could see these guys come back.
Also you point to the young exciting brigade that are in the wing's + i too like what i see.
I would love to see atleast 2 of these guys play every week rotating it around to get the learning curve happening now.

 

[dominguez]

You're scrambling a bit now by setting an arbitrary figure of "four goals every four games" as the benchmark for taking pressure off Pav. That would equate to about 24 for the season. Tarrant kicked 30+ goals for the season, set up a shitload more, and Pav had his best ever tally. Seems pretty clear that he took the pressure off Pav.

Obviously I didn't mean for Tarrant to kick 4 goals, go missing for 3 weeks, then kick 4 goals, then go missing for 3 weeks etc etc. If he can get his 8 marks and 15 possessions and kick a goal or two most weeks, then have a really impressive game infront of goal once a month opposition coaches will stand up and take notice. Then he'll be taking the pressure off Pav.

Sure expectation is linked the previous year, but you laid the blame for last years result squarely on the coach. You admit to being less confident now even though our "coaching flaw" is apparently now fixed. Strange.

Seems like deep down you don't have any real strength to your convictions, hence the lowering of the bar for season 08.

There were many factors which contributed to last season, Connolly's inability to get the most from his players was certainly one of them.

If my lower expectations compared to 12 months ago validates your on going support of a coach who in the end didn't even have the support of his best mate then good luck to you.

 

[dominguez]

He took the load off Pavlich because our players actually kicked to him, whereas when Murphy/Sandilands would play they rarely threatened to become a serious target. Farmer doesn't take the pressure off Pavlich because his role is spectacularly different. He does put the "scoring threat" pressure on the opposition though, assuming he bothers to get a game this year. Tarrant was 1) coming off surgery 2) playing in a new team and role in which he had no pre-season to acclimatise 3) adapting to a new state with fortnightly travel (he would have travelled more last year than in his entire career with the Pies). Despite this he had an okay year and would have earned a pass mark. The bar will be higher this year for him.

The scoring threat is the key. If Pavlich, Tarrant and Farmer are all kicking goals it creates headaches for opposition coaches. When Tarrant is taking marks 80 metres from goal and when Farmer is out of the line up most of the oppositions focus will be on Pav.

I would feel more confident going into the year with an experienced coach, even Connolly, than another rookie, even the most experienced rookie on the market. Having said that, the club is thinking beyond this year, and I hope Harvey's learning curve is a short one. But it is a big gamble at a critical time for our list.

See I don't understand that logic. Over the last 4 years we have been mediocre apart from a 9 week period. It's obvious that Connolly couldn't get the most from the players on a consistent basis so why would you suggest that we'd be better off in 2008 if he was still there?

 

[dominguez]

"Taking the pressure of Pav" was always the key reason for Tarrant's recruitment, and Pavlich's "tally" seems one of the best indicators of whether the move was a success or not. Add into that the complete failure of Murphy as a forward last year, and the recruitment is totally justified, and for me the only real discussion poin regarding tarrant is the price we paid. I would be stunned if Tarrant does not improve his personal contribution this season.

I would have thought that Tarrant was recruited to help us win games of footy.

 

[chook2734]

I would have thought that Tarrant was recruited to help us win games of footy.

And he would have dom, had every thing that possibly could have gone wrong not gone wrong. He eases the pressure on Pav enormously and frees Pav up to do what he does best - maybe he might even find some time this year to head up towards the midfield Unless Murphy or Campbell figure out how to become an AFL forward, we need Taz out there.

 

[dominguez]

- maybe he might even find some time this year to head up towards the midfield

Now we're singing from the same song sheet!

In all seriousness though, that would have been the logical reason to get Tarrant. The midfield was and still is our weakness, recruiting a 150 game All Australian tall forward to release Pav to the middle would have made a lot of sense to me.

Unless Murphy or Campbell figure out how to become an AFL forward, we need Taz out there.

We certainly need him out there and playing well now that he's here, but at the time my preference would have been to trade for a midfielder or even better, to retain the first round pick.

 

[freoextra]

Talking about Tarrent. Did anyone else notice that he is being far more deliberate and patient with his shots for goal now. I mean not looking around as much for someone to pass to and accepting the responsibility to have the shot. His kicking has been better and even the misses have been close instead of missing by a country mile. God I hope it continues!! Mind you if he can survive the Collingwood game with his confidence intact he might just be on his way, he was a fair footballer only a short time ago.