Docker Debacle

[48 Hour Detox]

48 Hour Detox - I believe that ECE lost 12 from their grand final side from last year and they still managed to beat you by over 200 points (and without one of their leading goal kickers.

One of the main reasons the Dockers are more often than not the target of pot shots is due to the amount of hype that was created by people who claimed to be from your club. Schmidt 60 odd touches in the ACTAFL, a bevy of ex-AFL stars, VFL gun forwards, etc, etc.

If you don't like what is written....log off and find something better to do than read pot shots from anonymous people.

12 from the GF side of 2009....yet how many have they recruited??? Dugmore, Vladlko, Beardsley....to name a few and I dare say, those three are as good as any they have lost. That was a silly post Gambler as you were comparing numbers lost from one season to another, compared to injuries of a current list. Take 13 of ECE best players from their 2010 list......thats the only way you can compare to what I am saying.

Speaking of fact, Schmidt did did 62 touches in a game in the ACTFL......go and research it, its fact. Balmain have recruited a guy who was a gun full foward in the VFl.....go and research it. Balmain do have a bunch of blokes who played AFL.......go and research it. The issue they have is injury and depth and NO ONE at Balmain is hiding from that. You can't turn a wooden spoon team (2 in 3 years) around in 6 months.

People from Balmain are excited about 2011 and beyond.....

[Junkyard Dog]

Balmain Premiers 2065! Buy a membership now and enjoy the ride. 48 Hr, you came on here earlier in the year and pumped them up delux. No one is saying that Balmain should be premiers this year. What people are saying is that Balmain are not even competitive. They are not getting themselves into positions to even look like winning games. Some of your recruits appear (body language) to be disinterested. My thoughts are that it is better for the competition for Balmain to be at least pointed in the right direction and from what I have seen so far that simply is not the case. I believe if they cannot sort themselves out their is a possibility of relegation and I think that would be really sad for a club with such history.

[stellation]

For the people questioning Davo's body language- are you honestly saying that you've never seen the Full Forward of a team that is on a hiding to nothing looking bored and disinterested?

[Mug Punter]

12 from the GF side of 2009....yet how many have they recruited??? Dugmore, Vladlko, Beardsley....to name a few and I dare say, those three are as good as any they have lost. That was a silly post Gambler as you were comparing numbers lost from one season to another, compared to injuries of a current list. Take 13 of ECE best players from their 2010 list......thats the only way you can compare to what I am saying.

Speaking of fact, Schmidt did did 62 touches in a game in the ACTFL......go and research it, its fact. Balmain have recruited a guy who was a gun full foward in the VFl.....go and research it. Balmain do have a bunch of blokes who played AFL.......go and research it. The issue they have is injury and depth and NO ONE at Balmain is hiding from that. You can't turn a wooden spoon team (2 in 3 years) around in 6 months.

People from Balmain are excited about 2011 and beyond.....

You posts are hilarious and delusional. What world do you live in dude?

Your injury excuse is starting to wear thin too by the way.

As for 2011, isn't that just getting a wee bit ahead of yourselves? At this rate there is no way Davo and co will be there next year and at this stage you'll be lucky to get two sides on the paddock by the end of the year.

Saturday will be a fair indicator I feel, anything over 250 points to the bad and you are goooooone.....

[bustamove]

if they tried keeping some players from last year maybe they would be a little more competitive?

[Mug Punter]

if they tried keeping some players from last year maybe they would be a little more competitive?

It's really hard to build a club when every year a shedload of yoru best players leave. They then go somewhere else and tell all the other players what a joke the place is and word gets around.

Why is dropping down a division seen as so terrible anyway? Especially if done as part of a long term plan.

Instead of spending five figure sums on has beens why not set up an acadamy style centre of excellence system based out of Drummoyne. Get the best junior coaches in the business in full-time, get your best players employed as development officers connecting with the community. Within 5 - 10 years you have a production line of talent that will sustain the club for years and years.

[Tom Wills]

Mug P - great post and an excellent long term "business" approach to using their financial assets to build a sustainable club.

Though from what I hear there are too many egos at Balmain focused on short term success (even 3 years is short term) and having their ego stroked by having high profile players around them.

My fear is that their finacial asset (that no other club has) will effectively be "pixxed up against the wall" when Balmain could be a key club in developing Sydney AFL Football. Everybody on this post loves AFL and would like to see the game developed... but I do not think Balmain will realise both their potential and their responsibility.

[Pace To Burn]

12 from the GF side of 2009....yet how many have they recruited??? Dugmore, Vladlko, Beardsley....to name a few and I dare say, those three are as good as any they have lost. That was a silly post Gambler as you were comparing numbers lost from one season to another, compared to injuries of a current list. Take 13 of ECE best players from their 2010 list......thats the only way you can compare to what I am saying.

Speaking of fact, Schmidt did did 62 touches in a game in the ACTFL......go and research it, its fact. Balmain have recruited a guy who was a gun full foward in the VFl.....go and research it. Balmain do have a bunch of blokes who played AFL.......go and research it. The issue they have is injury and depth and NO ONE at Balmain is hiding from that. You can't turn a wooden spoon team (2 in 3 years) around in 6 months.
People from Balmain are excited about 2011 and beyond.....

Actually we went from the spoon to win two flags in a row in 94/95

[smif]

It's really hard to build a club when every year a shedload of yoru best players leave. They then go somewhere else and tell all the other players what a joke the place is and word gets around.

Why is dropping down a division seen as so terrible anyway? Especially if done as part of a long term plan.

Instead of spending five figure sums on has beens why not set up an acadamy style centre of excellence system based out of Drummoyne. Get the best junior coaches in the business in full-time, get your best players employed as development officers connecting with the community. Within 5 - 10 years you have a production line of talent that will sustain the club for years and years.

Highly agree..the success of a club starts from the bottom up, jumiors all the way through to firsts, all about keeping players at the club.. Then success will follow

[Norris Lurker]

Why is dropping down a division seen as so terrible anyway? Especially if done as part of a long term plan.

Here's my 2.2c (inc GST) worth:

It worked for both NorWest Jets and Moorebank Sports; although in both cases they went down with a plan for how they could get back up. Balmain would probably be reluctant to drop down unless there was a mechanism to get back up again. In any case, it's not going to help them this year; the horse has already bolted.

When the divisional structure was brought in, I wasn't a fan of the idea of promotion and relegation automatically applying to Premier Division. A well-run club having a bad year on the field could be devastated by that. But given that it's now working across the other divisions, maybe it's time to revisit that for 2011.
Possibly the Club of the Year points system could be used - a threshold of points achieved would give the bottom club immunity from relegation. So a club that has a shocker on the field would survive in Premier Division as long as they did things right off the field. But if they didn't, it would create an opening for someone else to have a crack at Premier Division.

It's getting ahead of ourselves maybe - Balmain might lift their game, win some games and avoid the spoon. If they can get those 13 players back, they should.

[The Purse]

Further to this loss too it could of been worse. The first quarter only went for 22.5 mins on a running clock. as time added on wasnt happening, luckily at 2nd quarter time on and off was done properly.

[Matty]

if they tried keeping some players from last year maybe they would be a little more competitive?

It does seem like they lose a lot of players every year for some reason. Maybe they should focus on player retention while trying to bolster their stocks with big names...
Surely it is just a depth and consistency issue down there as im pretty sure for the last couple seasons they have rolled the previous years premiers quite convincingly.

QUOTE="How many of these players were actively targeted by ECE?? How many approached ECE could be a question too?? I would say ECE would be silly not to look at any player who wants to play for them."

Surely ECE cant be blamed for taking players that want to move onto a better club in a superier comp. They are clearly the benchmark both on and off the field in Sydney.

[Pekay]

Reality is, they have to bite the bullet, for the good of their club, and survival. Seeing results like last week, while only a one off (this far at least) would put any potential players off going there, be they experienced campaigners from around the country, or junior players from around the district. A young fella from North Ryde will weigh it all up and more than likely go with Mac Uni, closer to home, great facilities, well run club, and with the opportunity to play in development teams not limited exclusively to Prem Div clubs these days, the option almost chooses itself.
It saved our club, and Moorebank, and had it not been for the divisionalisation, Penriff would've been exploring the option themselves if they had the common sense to. Yes, its on a different scale, and with more at stake, but at the end of the day, you're only as good as your last game, and only as strong as your off-field allows.
If it were me, I'd-

Invest a tonne of cash, make it work for the club.

Drop back to Division 1 & 2, get some success on the board for a year or two.

Change back to the Tigers name and colours.

Recruit some proven players in Sydney first, but be sure to retain their loyal players foremost.

Set up an academy or scholarship as has been mentioned.

The culture can't change overnight, it takes time.

I hope to see them doing well, no-one likes to see a club struggle, it does nothing for the big picture of footy in Sydney.

[Mug Punter]

Reality is, they have to bite the bullet, for the good of their club, and survival. Seeing results like last week, while only a one off (this far at least) would put any potential players off going there, be they experienced campaigners from around the country, or junior players from around the district. A young fella from North Ryde will weigh it all up and more than likely go with Mac Uni, closer to home, great facilities, well run club, and with the opportunity to play in development teams not limited exclusively to Prem Div clubs these days, the option almost chooses itself.
It saved our club, and Moorebank, and had it not been for the divisionalisation, Penriff would've been exploring the option themselves if they had the common sense to. Yes, its on a different scale, and with more at stake, but at the end of the day, you're only as good as your last game, and only as strong as your off-field allows.
If it were me, I'd-

Invest a tonne of cash, make it work for the club.

Drop back to Division 1 & 2, get some success on the board for a year or two.

Change back to the Tigers name and colours.

Recruit some proven players in Sydney first, but be sure to retain their loyal players foremost.

Set up an academy or scholarship as has been mentioned.

The culture can't change overnight, it takes time.

I hope to see them doing well, no-one likes to see a club struggle, it does nothing for the big picture of footy in Sydney.

Spot on!

[Offal]

I hope to see them doing well, no-one likes to see a club struggle, it does nothing for the big picture of footy in Sydney.

Pekay - exactly what I am saying in my recent post. You're a visionary. We need more like you.