Pre Match: Pies v. Cats - all comments please

[Lazza]

[Joel]

People calling for Presti's inclusion baffle me.

How is Presti supposed to impress you when the opposition scores nearly 100 points less? Difficult task.

He is good enough to come straight back in - many years of loyal service have shown us that.

[Akos]

In (if fit) Wellingham, Medhurst, Fraser, Presti
Out O'Bree, Anthony, Wood and N.Brown.

I stand by my call that Jaxon Barham will not play another senior game for Collingwood. If he does I will eat his game day socks.

haha, that's a brave call, though - there's so much to like about him. and a lot of ppl have liked his form recently, although i havent seen any VFL games.

How's Barham's kicking been this year?

[jimbeam]

Barhams kicking has looked fine, but not sure when under the pace and pressure of AFL...

[mudlark]

A lot of people have knocked Barhams disposal ,but if anyone cared to have a CLOSE look at McCaffers kicking on friday you might be asking,"Where the hells Barham???"

[John Wren]

A lot of people have knocked Barhams disposal ,but if anyone cared to have a CLOSE look at McCaffers kicking on friday you might be asking,"Where the hells Barham???"

barham is coming from a lot further back than caff. caff's kicking is usually very good.

[Lazza]

Hard to justify any changes but assuming there are no injuries then Wellers & Medhurst should get a recall. Fraser is close (according to MM). Who to omit is the major issue and in the scheme of things you'd almost assume a player in for his replacement which would end up being something like:

Fraser - Wood
Medhurst - Anthony
Wellingham - O'Bree.

Not advocating that any of these changes is necessary, just possible, and the logical change.

People calling for Presti's inclusion baffle me. Thought his game against Frankston was only so-so, particularly in light of the oposition. (Admitedly, that is only the perspective drawn from watching the match on TV and that can sometimes cloud your assessment.) Therefore you'd have to be suggesting that he's getting promoted purely on reputation and I'm not sure that's such a good thing when there is so much competition for senior places. And I am a long time huge supporter of Presti.

For all that, I'm just glad I'm not on the selection committee.

Should be horses for course Daz. Presti is good against the big forwards and I think his body positioning is better because of his years of experience than say someone like a Nathan Brown or Reid. Having said that I'm very glad to, a) have the incredible array of cast talent available to provide active choices and, b) to leave it up to the selection committee to do their job the way they see fit.

[jackcass]

whoops, double post!

[jackcass]

People calling for Presti's inclusion baffle me.

How is Presti supposed to impress you when the opposition scores nearly 100 points less? Difficult task.

He is good enough to come straight back in - many years of loyal service have shown us that.

Didn't say it wasn't a tough assignment to impress against that sort of rabble, just that he didn't. Neither am I doubting how good Presti is. I've never waivered in my support for Presti.

Just playing devil's advocate and suggesting that he's not necessarily an automatic inclusion any more, particularly as MM has openly stated that he wants to get game time into Brown & Reid. Football experience doesn't come much better than taking on the best team in the comp!

I also think that Reid, Brown, & Maxwell can more than hold their own against Hawkins, Mooney, and Pods. SJ, the defence, and the midfield are much more concerning. Geelong's forward line over the last decade, for all their dominance, has not been that great, especially without Ottens.

[uuuuu..... The LoneSTAR]

What a game we have here on our hands this Friday night people!!!!
I'm already nervous!

Agree with most here that our best team at the moment includes Medders & Wellers.

IMHO a fit Presti should also be an inclusion in case we need to throw a blanket over one of mooney, hawkins or pods. Let's face it, he is still our best key position defensive unit & each of those 3 could present problems inside 50m.

Having said that, what an opportunity for N.Brown/Ried should they get the nod! We know what Presti is capable of - MM might want to know what the youngsters can deliver before we get into the business end of the season!

That $5K inner santum membership would be worth every penny for a seat at this weeks selection meetings,.... but not my money!

[HAL]

I don't have any plans yet.

[swoop42]

Likely Geelong lineup for this week?


B: Andrew Mackie, Matthew Scarlett, Josh Hunt
HB: Corey Enright, Harry Taylor, Darren Milburn
C: James Kelly, Cameron Ling, Jimmy Bartel
HF: Steve Johnson, Cameron Mooney, Travis Varcoe
F: Mathew Stokes, James Podsiadly, Paul Chapman
Foll: Mark Blake, Joel Selwood, Gary Ablett
I/C: Shannon Byrnes, Simon Hogan, Tom Hawkins, David Wojcinski

Emg: Mitchell Duncan, Dawson Simpson, Tom Lonergan

In: James Kelly, James Podsiadly

Out:Mitchell Duncan, Tom Lonergan

[Pied Piper]

I watched the Cats smash the Lions at the Gabba and it was hard not to be left in awe at times. They didn't have great opposition, but it wouldn't have mattered much; such was the depth of skill and talent, they just blew the home team off the park.

This will be a fascinating match-up, though, because Collingwood are starting to look a bit like a younger version of Geelong in some respects: a wide spread of goal-kicking options; depth through the midfield; exceptional half-back line, slightly flakey key forwards but top-notch flankers.

Look through the lists, and there's no doubt Geelong's is still superior. They have superstars on every line, not unlike Brisbane at their peak. All of them were exceptional on Saturday: Ablett, Bartel (most unassuming Brownlow medallist ever?), Selwood, Chapman, Scarlett. On top of that Mooney and Hawkins were excellent also and Shannon Byrnes is a big improver.

Strength will be a factor in the midfield. Ablett, Bartel, the freakish Selwood, Ling and Chapman are all built like tanks. Selwood aside, they all have 50-80+ games on their opponents. Don't lose sight of this fact. That's why they virtually threw our boys out of the arena last year.

Like others I am not especially concerned if we lose on Friday. Geelong will want to make a big statement that they are still the top Cats, as it were. But it's important that Collingwood show how much ground has been made up - and that the gap will have closed by September. That said, if we play our best high-intensity, hard-tackling, high-rotation, play-on brand of football we can win.

But it's also vital that the boys show more maturity and leadership than they did against the Saints. Like Leigh Matthews, I'd put the poor performance that night down to being overly pumped up for the occasion, leading to the nerves in front of goal. They'll have learned from that, and this time, I expect them to be more in control of their emotions.

I would:

* Bring back Prestigiacomo to play on Podsiadly. As much as I also think it's important to pump games into Brown and Reid, the fact is we're right in the frame for the flag this year on current form. Should it come to the big dance, we'll need Presti's experience and shut-down ability. The question of who to drop is hard, but Reid has offered more rebound than Brown.

* Medhurst has to come in for Anthony if fit. There can't be any doubt now that Collingwood's forward line is functioning a heck of a lot better for Chris Dawes' presence and new-found belief that he belongs, which leaves Anthony needing to find another string to his bow. Medhurst is a far more flexible player.

* Bring in Wellingham, again if fit, for Macaffer. Tough call, because Caff has offered something in every game without dominating: he's tough, has a great size, and is a tackling machine. I think he's got a future. But Wellingham's form has been irresistible this year. (I couldn't drop O'Bree on the strength of his recent form since coming back into the side.)

* The Wood/Fraser query is the toughest selection dilemma. Fraser is still the better player; Wood is the future and needs to show what he can do when the stakes are high. He was pretty good against Freo, kicking a couple of goals and being robbed of another, and I think that gives him the right to the spot on form. He needs confidence, so there's nothing to be gained by taking that away from him after a serviceable game.

* Play Harry O'Brien on Stevie J. Harry talked earlier in the year about taking the next step in his game: from just getting selected, to playing well individually, to just doing what needs to be done for the team. This will be a test for him. Harry has played some magnificent individual games this year and some selfless ones, where he doesn't hit the stats sheet as hard but nullifies his opponent. We need a selfless game from him this Friday.

I think we CAN win, but Geelong are an incredible side and will start clear favourites. The most important thing is that our boys are breathing down their necks the whole way.

[Pied Piper]

Leon doesn't look 100% ATM. He looks like he needs a rest probably carrying some niggle.

I initially agreed, however Leon has been playing a far better defensive role this year, perhaps thats a factor as well. But if he isnt 100% then for sure he shoould be rested, getting older is our Leon!

I also thought Leon was quite good against the Dockers actually.

Leon's been playing purely as a forward pocket, where he started his career. I wouldn't mind seeing him get a few more runs in the middle to get him more involved and to use his lethal field kicking skills. But he's doing a job down there, and putting a lot of pressure on.

[swoop42]

Likely Geelong lineup for this week?


B: Andrew Mackie, Matthew Scarlett, Josh Hunt
HB: Corey Enright, Harry Taylor, Darren Milburn
C: James Kelly, Cameron Ling, Jimmy Bartel
HF: Steve Johnson, Cameron Mooney, Travis Varcoe
F: Mathew Stokes, James Podsiadly, Paul Chapman
Foll: Mark Blake, Joel Selwood, Gary Ablett
I/C: Shannon Byrnes, Simon Hogan, Tom Hawkins, David Wojcinski

Emg: Mitchell Duncan, Dawson Simpson, Tom Lonergan

In: James Kelly, James Podsiadly

Out:Mitchell Duncan, Tom Lonergan

I've made my decision, these are my ins and outs for this week.

Out:Reid
In:Prestigiacomo
*A have chosen the stronger N.Brown over Ben for this week.

Out:Wood
In:Fraser
*Flip of the coin decision.

Out:O'Bree
In:Wellingham
*Sharrod offers more.

Out:Anthony
In:Medhurst
*Jack is unlucky.

If Medhurst doesn't come up then either Anthony or Reid stays.

If Sharrod misses again I'd seriously consider replacing O'Bree with Barham for an injection of pace at the stoppages.

Macaffer remains as his strong body and assured decision making and skills will be vital against the cats.