Post Match. Pies tie with Dees - all comments

[magpiefanatic]

Due to a family gathering, I havent seen the game as yet...only the result.

Reading the venting of collective spleens by Pies fans here, I can only imagine what F--kFace Walls will have to say tonight on 1 week at a time.

Guess 6 Brownlow votes will go to Dees players...

[Cam]

Melbourne understood that if they could withstand our first quarter fury with minimal impact on the scoreboard, that the game would open up and they would be able to get back in it if they were close.

Bombing into the forward line.. is that what Bucks is bringing us?

So the forwards kick it inside 50 do they?
Cheap shot at Bucks I guess? That's what you were after wasn't it?

Like ouch! That has to be the touchiest retort i've seen for sometime. Given that some of you think he is the messiah [he might be] i think its fair to question what our forward line has been up to the last month or so given the great man has the portfolio. After all, its quite the rage to say its all Malthouse's fault [it might be] but please a bit of discussion rather than just suggesting I'm cheap shotting Buckley after one game [it's many]. Do I have a history of that? [no.]

[magirl]

magpie fantastic, I think you are right on the money even though Swan was BOG by a country mile, in fact playing Melbourne slmost single handed at one stage.

[john b]

Went to wide when we went forward, not all doom and gloom. As long as that is the last time we see the current 25 play for us.

We should learn a bit from this, and the Maxwell injury hurt, hopefully his okay.

Medhurst still needs a couple o games to get into it.

However why do we go so FN wide into the forwar 50. Cant remmbr us doing that last week. Lockeyer did it a fair bit today.Thats what cost us four points in the end.

Anyway on the bright side, percentage isnt a factor now.

[David]

Player review:

1. Leon Davis: Offers very little to us when he has an off day. Today was another one of those. Not sure if he should be playing seniors at the moment. 2
5. Nick Maxwell: Would have been the difference if he hadn't been injured early on. In the end, we missed his experience in the back half dearly. Let's hope he's back on the field after the split round. 3
7. Paul Medhurst: Coming back from injury, perhaps, but should be in the VFL if he isn't 100%. Did some ok things, but a long way from his best. 4
8. Heritier O'Brien: Attacked the ball hard and was willing to run and carry, as usual. Liked his game, although he needs to work on his disposal. 7
10. Scott Pendlebury: I commented last week that I don't seem to notice his work around the ground. It was more obvious this week - great marking, great disposal, and showed composure under pressure. 9 marks and 9 tackles for the day. 8
13. Dale Thomas: Feisty, as usual. Has the consistent ability to make a difference in close games like this. 8
15. Leigh Brown: Great forward pressure early on, but had little else to offer us up forward. Probably still a better option than Dawes, but not kicking goals. 5
17. Dayne Beams: Tried hard. Can hold his head up high on that effort. 7
18. Darren Jolly: Our only serviceable ruckman. Did ok, but beaten. 5
20. Ben Reid: Decent job in defence, 22 touches. Quietly cementing his place back there. 6
21. Sharrod Wellingham: Provided some run at times, but largely ineffectual. Could have had a snap at goal in the dying seconds, but gave it up. 4
22. Steele Sidebottom: 23 touches and a goal. Did ok. 6
24. Tarkyn Lockyer: Good effort in his return, proving the importance of experienced heads when the team is under pressure. Good composure to kick the goal that gave us the 2 points. Still has a role in the side. 6
25. Josh Fraser: I'm not usually one to bag players, but we were better when he was on the bench. 1
30. Brent Macaffer: Tackled hard, but didn't get a lot of the ball. Bit of a passenger today. 5
32. Travis Cloke: Looked very good in the first quarter, but didn't capitalise on his opportunities and faded thereafter. Took a good contested mark or two, and provided an option, but is useless when the ball is on the ground. 6
33. Brad Dick: Despite not even being in the 25 announced on Thursday evening, played his first game of the season after playing in the VFL yesterday afternoon. The only player who could kick a goal for us for over a half of football, and did some great harassing work in the forward 50 as well. With 4 goals and 8 tackles, his comeback was a huge positive from this game. 8
34. Alan Toovey: Had some fantastic individual moments, but still makes the odd howler. If not for the latter, would have probably been in our best. 7
35. Simon Prestigiacomo: Dour as always, but age is starting to take its toll. We may not see too much more of him, sadly. 6
36. Dane Swan: 38 touches, and kept us in the contest right to the end. Probably his best game for 2010. 9
39. Heath Shaw: Cool under pressure as usual, but didn't get as much of the ball as he typically does. Our most important defender when Maxwell is off the ground. 7
43. Jaxson Barham: Had his moments, but more often looked terribly out of his depth. Hope he gets more chances, but he'll need to do better than that to justify his place in the side. 4

[magirl]

Cam is right. I love Bucks, but I too have concerns looking at the forward structure, lack of presenting, inability to take contested marks and poor kicking at goal

[piedys]

[quote="Monco Matt"]I feel your pain Dyso and I agree with all you've said... [quote]
Matt, us usual - you are right on the money. I don't think i've read anything of yours here, or in any other thread, that i've disagreed with.

I too am getting sick of guessing which Collingwood team turns up on the day: the red-hot one, or the lazy one.
Lowering ones' expectations of the teams performance seems logical though, particularly for ones sanity and blood pressure, yet when sitting 2nd-3rd on the table, these expectations naturally rise, and we expect to see a performance worthy of that ladder position.

Dyso

[Doc63]

We had 10 more scoring shots. We won the clearances, tackles & inside 50's. Yet we still couldn't win.

The forward line was a disgrace (apart from Dick), after a promising start.

I thought the backline stood up prett well, all things considered. And the midfield, other than Jolly & Fraser, were OK. Thought Swan & Pendles were very good.

Time for Leroy to go. I would rather be pumping games into Dawes. Geelong will win the flag by a mile anyway, so we may as well play these blokes, like Dawes JA & Wood (yes Wood - I'd rather him than Fraser now).

[scoobydoo]

No more excuses

and no more altitude training in Arizona. I have an idea.

Save the cost of going to Arizona and pass that on with reduced membership prices for us.

Then, have the players pick up a football and practice kicking for goal, and kicking to a leading forward.

Great idea you should be president and sultan can be coach with all his great 'ideas'

[jack_spain]

No more excuses

and no more altitude training in Arizona. I have an idea.

Save the cost of going to Arizona and pass that on with reduced membership prices for us.

Then, have the players pick up a football and practice kicking for goal, and kicking to a leading forward.

I agree .. both times.
Kicking for goal, basic skills - tackles that hold. This is stuff you don't need to spend $$$ on .... the modern game with guru's and fitness scientists to match every player on the pitch (the same twits who had both Pedders and Jolly off for the most vital 2.5 minutes of the game I moght add) - yet all we need is to stay back after school and kick a few hundred balls every day for a month.

They are twits for every team. I noticed at some critical times the Melbourne fitness staff had Jamar off as well. The most moronic thing of all is when a player kicks a goal and runs straight off. Whatever happened to momentum? In basketball you keep the hot players on.

Time to send ALL these fitness hacks packing back to the Olympics where they belong. I want footballers (like our living legend Dane Swan), not players who can run like the wind but can't kick to save their life (Action Jaxson).

F*** off fitness staff. Geelong turned their fortunes around when Bomber Thompson decided to sack his entire fitness crew at the start of 2006. If these idiots had their way Geelong wouldn't have picked up Jpod. They've have deemed him too old and incapable of good Beep test scores.

I hate fitness gurus. This is football not athletics!

[pietillidie]

if malthouse plays fraser again this year, im going to subscribe to jack spains news letter...

I LOL'd at that.

Poor old Josh is going to cop a pasting this week.

[Piesnchess]

Forwards were shithouse, and why the hell wasnt Dawes picked ?? We just looked sloppy today, we are in a major slump. Many of our guys need a long hard look at themselves, and i am afraid to say Barham is not a patch on his dad. Fraser way down of form, but he has a lot of mates, only daisy, swan, sidey, jolly, harry, and Lockyer deserved their pay tonight. Now we have a rest, and god we need it to reload and pick a better side with dawes in it. MM I have no comment on, I will leave it to others.

[woftam]

Melbourne understood that if they could withstand our first quarter fury with minimal impact on the scoreboard, that the game would open up and they would be able to get back in it if they were close.

Bombing into the forward line.. is that what Bucks is bringing us?

So the forwards kick it inside 50 do they?
Cheap shot at Bucks I guess? That's what you were after wasn't it?

Like ouch! That has to be the touchiest retort i've seen for sometime. Given that some of you think he is the messiah [he might be] i think its fair to question what our forward line has been up to the last month or so given the great man has the portfolio. After all, its quite the rage to say its all Malthouse's fault [it might be] but please a bit of discussion rather than just suggesting I'm cheap shotting Buckley after one game [it's many]. Do I have a history of that? [no.]

I don't care who coaches us next to be honest. I just don't want the same tripe year after year. Zone off and play around the boundary line garbage wont get it done.

[DaVe86]

Take our 2 points and run i reckon.

We were horrible. Skill level was atrocious...and we had a 2nd rate side out there. Too many guys just travelling at this point.

You can't kick 22 behinds and expect to win. To get 2 points was simply a bonus.

The split round has come at the most opportune time because we have been flat for a month.

Hopefully we get Dids, Ball and Johnson back...and Maxwell pulls up ok.


Dissapointing day, but 2 points is more than ew deserved

[Monco Matt]

I feel your pain Dyso and I agree with all you've said...

Matt, us usual - you are right on the money. I don't think i've read anything of yours here, or in any other thread, that i've disagreed with.

I too am getting sick of guessing which Collingwood team turns up on the day: the red-hot one, or the lazy one.
Lowering ones' expectations of the teams performance seems logical though, particularly for ones sanity and blood pressure, yet when sitting 2nd-3rd on the table, these expectations naturally rise, and we expect to see a performance worthy of that ladder position.

Dyso

That is also a good point. Until we consistently deliver Top 2 performances we cannot ever expect to stake a claim for it. It is pointless finishing 3rd or 4th if you have no idea how to beat the two sides above you. A Top 2 side needs to squash teams like Melbourne. Yeh, today was their Grand Final, but I dare say that if it was Geelong playing them today they would have put a quick end to Melbournes uprising before half time and crushed them in the 2nd half, just like they did to Essendon on Saturday night.

Time for this group to stop talking about being ruthless, stop talking about about winning a flag within 3 years blah blah blah and start walking the walk.