Woeful

[Go Swannies]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
So the wind is a perfect excuse for us to play like idiots for half a game!?!

No excuse but a factor. Seriously, I think the competition is very even this year (with the Aints the only exception) so there are no easy wins. If you had tipped home teams this weekend and last you would have got 14 out of 16 right. That's even! After Port caved two weeks ago you've stopped hearing how they can't miss out on a top 4. The Loins have less fit players than us. The Dees are having a great run with injury, the Wobbles and Crows are off the pace but everyone else is in the mix. We could win 5 of our next 6 games.

We didn't "play like idiots" for half the game - if we did we would have been thrashed by around 100 points as lots of teams that don't play like idiots have been this season. We have discipline but we need to set the pace instead of playing a purely reactive game. The only time I think we've done that was against the Roos (and, maybe the Lions but what an ugly game plan). If we play to win instead of playing to beat the opposition then we could give the Aints a fright. But I think we'll need to score a win over the Doggies first to be in the right mindset.

[penga]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
So the wind is a perfect excuse for us to play like idiots for half a game!?!

no, it would be a factor for our inaccurate goal kicking

[SXP]

I hope that some of that confidence, as lizz suggested in her reply, realy comes to reality this week on Saturday, when I'll be in Sydney watching Swans playing Bulldogs.

[dendol]

There was hardly any wind!! the flags were blowing but you cant say it was a massive factor. When you look at the tape, which I hae now for the first half, you will see that the goals were scored from our mistakes and lack of ability to convert.

Some games you will see a "scoring end" emerge. It certainly doesnt explain how we kicked 4-0 in Q1, and them kicking 5 - 1 in Q2. You cant really say the wind was worth 4 goals to the side kicking with it. It was more like a 1, or at most, 2 goal wind - if anything at all.

[Go Swannies]

It's easy to pick a scoring end - it's always at the opposite end to me.

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by penga
no, it would be a factor for our inaccurate goal kicking

Didn't seem to affect Hawthorn a great deal.

[Go Swannies]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
Didn't seem to affect Hawthorn a great deal.

They just got less chances to stuff up. Both captains should consider themselves lucky for their goals.

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by Go Swannies
No excuse but a factor. Seriously, I think the competition is very even this year (with the Aints the only exception) so there are no easy wins.

There are no easy wins is true, but I think citing the wind as a major factor is a cop out.

We did play like idiots for nearly half a game - 1 goal against 9.

And the reason wasn't because of the wind.

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by Go Swannies
They just got less chances to stuff up. Both captains should consider themselves lucky for their goals.

I don't understand what you're getting at here on either point.

[Go Swannies]

I always tell overseas friends that the true genius of AFL is that the game is so long that no team can play at full intersity for the whole game. So if the worst team is playing the best team there will be a time when the worst team is playing better than the best team. We see the waves of intensity and they often fit a set pattern. This year the Swans often start well, fade in the second and third and come back strong in the fourth. That was the pattern last year as we ran a lot and were fitter than other teams. This year we're being more bottled up so we don't stretch the opposition as much for fitness.

It may have been chance but today the team playing to the Randwick end did all the scoring. In the last quarter I was wondering if kicking into the glare was the difference?

But I would much rather battle on to contain damage in the final quarter and eke out a win - as we did today and did vs Port in the QF last year than make a big run from behind in the final quarter and fall short - as we did against the Bombers.

And I stick to my point - playing like idiots gives the opposition so many unanswered goals that we lose all hope of winning. We haven't done that this season. Yes, skills levels are down but that's not dropping our bundle.

[NMWBloods]

I agree that you can't play with intensity for the full game (80 minutes these days - used to be play for the whole 100 minutes) but the critical thing is making the most of the times when you are up and limiting the damage when you are down.

The Swans' record on this has been a bit mixed this year.

However, I thought our efforts when we were down weren't really that good, particularly when we were playing a team that has been struggling and playing some very poor football, and looked completely lost in the first qtr.

We really should have blown them away in the first qtr, held them better in the second qtr, and had a comfortable lead going into half time.

[dendol]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
I agree that you can't play with intensity for the full game (80 minutes these days - used to be play for the whole 100 minutes) but the critical thing is making the most of the times when you are up and limiting the damage when you are down.

The Swans' record on this has been a bit mixed this year.

However, I thought our efforts when we were down weren't really that good, particularly when we were playing a team that has been struggling and playing some very poor football, and looked completely lost in the first qtr.

We really should have blown them away in the first qtr, held them better in the second qtr, and had a comfortable lead going into half time.

agree. It was something like 16 - 4 I50's to the Swans in the first quarter. I sometimes think that we dont know how to slow down opposition momentum and teams can get a roll on us.

[Go Swannies]

I think this is my 500th post. Whoo Hoo.

Yes, I would have preferred that we had come on strong in Q2 and taken a big lead to the half time break, even if it meant we faded in the second half. However, we weren't making the most of our chances. Our forwards weren't kicking well and there was a major breakdown from the centre into our forward 50. I know Roos says that opposition are guarding the centre too well against us but I think I'd prefer to go down the guts to a contested mark than along the sideline where the ball going out is a very likely result.

I think we need to develop stronger killer instinct. Today was a good opportunity gone missing but there's alwasy next week. We'll need it for following the Port and Aints games.

[Go Swannies]

Nope - it was only 499.

[dendol]

Originally posted by Go Swannies
I think this is my 500th post. Whoo Hoo.

I think we need to develop stronger killer instinct. Today was a good opportunity gone missing but there's alwasy next week. We'll need it for following the Port and Aints games.

I doubt we'll get a chance to "kill off" the Saints or Port@Aami before the 4th quarter. At least this result gives us confidence to know that we can win the close ones, even after the opposition has taken the lead from us.

And congrats on the 500 milestone!