B2B Shh! Don't say it!

[Sanecow]

What is to stop B2B Premierships? In approximate order:

1. Ball missing. Ball is the only one of the retirees who had any impact in 2005. Our ruckmen have to step up.

2. Injuries. We had a good run in 2005. Even though there were injured players in September, the vital players could still play. Hopefully it was good management and not just good fortune.

3. Old players on the downturn. Which players are aging / chronically injured that they might be on the downward trend? We have to expect that Williams and Magic are on the slow downhill run.

4. Tactics. I don't think Roos did anything that the opposition were surprised by in 2005 and we still managed to win finals.

5. Poor kicking for goal. We were killed by this sometimes in 2005, notably against Adelaide.

6. JF's leadership. Must be willing to travel to away games.

If Roos can get most of the Swans' seniors to improve slightly this year, we can have a run.

[motorace_182]

It will make a massive difference if blokes like Vogels, Malceski and Moore can step and really press hard for a game every week and demand a spot. If they can continue to do this then it will just put pressure on the other blokes to get the best out of em. The major changes will come from the young guys charging through the ranks. WIll be interesting to see how they go.

[Destructive]

Kicking for goals is a very important factor.

[OldE]

If we lose Ryano, we'll only have 20 of our premiership 22, and that could cause a problem.

[ScottH]

Re: B2B Shh! Don't say it!

Originally posted by Sanecow
6. JF's leadership. Must be willing to travel to away games.

Maybe Cow should lift his game next year!!!

[giant]

I've been thinking about this a lot lately (like a lot of us tragics I imagine). I see the wild cards as threefold:

1. Injuries - but that goes for any team in the competition & we might be able to argue that we can get our players on the paddock better than others
2. Other teams stepping up - very likely to happen - there are number of teams that will be desperate to beat the "premiership clock". But that's always the clase & at least we know how to actually win it
3. Desire - this is the big one for me. We know how gruelling it was for this team to win a flag - their personnel and game plan meant it was a tough slog most weeks. As a supporter, I barely know if I've got the ticker to go thru it again - I can't imagine what it's like for the players.

Can they find the "eye of the tiger"? [Cue Survivor] Well, without getting all sooky they're a pretty remarkable bunch of guys - I've certainly never seen a bunch of footballers as committed and team oriented as this mob, so, sure, why not?

Hope so.

[Jeffers1984]

4. No more footy bikkies as they are now retired. They were undefeated at games. Can we do it without them?

[OldE]

Originally posted by Jeffers1984
4. No more footy bikkies as they are now retired. They were undefeated at games. Can we do it without them?

Perhaps not. Stay tuned for further updates.

[woo]

Originally posted by eirinn
If we lose Ryano, we'll only have 20 of our premiership 22, and that could cause a problem.

any updates on ryan????

[mocaholic]

We need to be better than we were this year, with all the stars aligned again.

And we need to maintain the hunger.

[Lucky Knickers]

7. If my lucky knickers lose their elastic we are in BIG trouble..

Re

4. Tactics. I don't think Roos did anything that the opposition were surprised by in 2005 and we still managed to win finals.

Are you saying Roos isn't a wily, imaginative tactician or that the opposition couldn't understand our tactics and effectively negate them - I'm a bit confused!

[Sanecow]

Originally posted by singaporeswan
Are you saying Roos isn't a wily, imaginative tactician or that the opposition couldn't understand our tactics and effectively negate them - I'm a bit confused!

I'm saying that his strategies were quite straightforward:

- fast, running footy when your hot, slower more methodical use of the ball when the opposition is hot.

- each player was set a list of tasks to achieve. A lot of the players said it but none gave details. I imagine it was something like: LRT: Be a muppet and crash packs. Bucky: Run head first into any tackler. Leapin': dart around like crazy, take a speccie if you can. Magic: remember the seven point play. BBBH: punch guys in the guts. Simple stuff.

I'm sure the opposition understood the style of footy but it is hard to beat 1. Tadhg and co. running from defense when the Swans are hot or 2. BBBH and ROK taking uncontested marks on the wing when the Swans are cold.

Roos' game day match ups and use of ruckmen and bench were sometimes wily though.

[goswannie14]

Originally posted by eirinn
If we lose Ryano, we'll only have 20 of our premiership 22, and that could cause a problem.

On the Ted Richards thread averyone is wondering where to fit him into the team, he wants to play forward. Whilst losing RyanO would be a blow, Ted may be the perfect replacement...but once we know what's happening with Ryano then we can continue to worry where Ted will play

[Xie Shan]

Originally posted by Jeffers1984
4. No more footy bikkies as they are now retired. They were undefeated at games. Can we do it without them?

Sure we can!

You should have more confidence in the team, Jeffers.

And I wish people would stop worrying about losing O'Keefe. I bet he's already re-signed and we've all somehow missed it.