Doyle probably; Davis not yet

[barry]

Originally posted by Matt79
With ND out of the team we have 1L and 3W and the loss was to WC in Perth by 2 points so we cannot say put him back in because we are losing.

I think many would say with ND in the team we'd be 4W, 0L, and sitting more comfortably in top 4.

[i'm-uninformed2]

Originally posted by hammo
I agree with Roos on the point you don't want to make too many changes at once.

However if Phillips continues to get a game ahead of Davo then the match committee must be smoking some weird stuff in those selection meetings.

I can help with that

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by Matt79
With ND out of the team we have 1L and 3W and the loss was to WC in Perth by 2 points so we cannot say put him back in because we are losing.

He may have been the difference in Perth where we basically couldn't score for a half and the three wins have been over some pretty crap sides, so doesn't really mean a lot either way.

If they wanted to drop him and get him back into fitness and form, they should have done so for the three 'easy' games and then put him back in against Melbourne.

[Matt79]

Originally posted by barry
I think many would say with ND in the team we'd be 4W, 0L, and sitting more comfortably in top 4.

Some may say that it was a wake up call to the team to get their act together and we may have been 0W and 4L. It is all heresay I guess.

[liz]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
However, without Davis we quite simply would not have won and would not have the 2005 premiership. There are not too many players in our side you can say that about!

I don't think anyone disputes that we wouldn't have won the Geleong game without Davis' brilliance. But you'd think he was the only player who produced matchwinning performances the way this is focussed on.

Would we have beaten St Kilda in the PF without O'Keefe's BOG performance or Schneider kick-starting the goal spree in the final term.

Would we have finished anywhere near the top 4 without the superb midfield performances of Jude Bolton in the first third of the season when the rest of the team (Davis included) was struggling with injury, form or fitness. Or how about Hall who kicked more than twice as many goals as any other Swan and was clearly the difference in many games.

How about Buchanan's superb final quarter of the GF (including kicking the winning goal) or LRT's great first quarter, where he was instrumental in keeping the Eagles to a lowish score even though they dominated possession in the early part of that match?

Davis performance deserves to be lauded, to become "legendary" in the history of the club, up there alongside 'Plugger's Point'. But while it might have been an important step along the way to the premiership, there were many other individual and team efforts that were equally as important.

[stellation]

Originally posted by Matt79

IMO his form back in the reserves has not been outstanding as a player of his class should reflect. I think he should be kicking more than 3 goals in these types of matches and getting more possies but that is my opinion.

Disposals
I think he has still picked up around 30 touches each game in the magoos. His time in the midfield is spent primarly as an outside midfielder, he was making perfect position at stoppages in those games but carrying a heavy tag (with others concious of him and blocking his run to the ball) and our inside midfielders (including current first teamer Tim Schmidt) were not able to get the ball to him. In the last game against Ainslie, for example, his tag on a number of occassions refused to leave Nick to go to a man running freely with the ball, it happened that often that it looked to have been a specific coaching instruction... if you want to count stats, he was denied quite a few of the opportunities to pad stats, that others would normally get, simply because of the other teams not wanting Nick Davis to have a day out on them.
Goals
He has missed one absolute sitter, so that should have been plus one goal (and I am sure he would acknowledge that as he does think pretty highly of his own goal kicking). Apart from that he has given off a large number of shots on goals to his reserves teammates; if you watch the magoos the guys who thump a fair few goals from the midfield do it on a day where they have decided to ping away at everything, I am yet to see Nick do that.

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by liz
I don't think anyone disputes that we wouldn't have won the Geleong game without Davis' brilliance. But you'd think he was the only player who produced matchwinning performances the way this is focussed on.

Would we have beaten St Kilda in the PF without O'Keefe's BOG performance or Schneider kick-starting the goal spree in the final term.

Would we have finished anywhere near the top 4 without the superb midfield performances of Jude Bolton in the first third of the season when the rest of the team (Davis included) was struggling with injury, form or fitness. Or how about Hall who kicked more than twice as many goals as any other Swan and was clearly the difference in many games.

How about Buchanan's superb final quarter of the GF (including kicking the winning goal) or LRT's great first quarter, where he was instrumental in keeping the Eagles to a lowish score even though they dominated possession in the early part of that match?

Davis performance deserves to be lauded, to become "legendary" in the history of the club, up there alongside 'Plugger's Point'. But while it might have been an important step along the way to the premiership, there were many other individual and team efforts that were equally as important.

I think you're missing the point.

They were all great performances and most required for us to be in contention. In some cases perhaps someone else may have stepped up or something else may have happened. Perhaps in some of those cases it would not have made much difference.

In the Davis case, it was do or die. There was no one else. It is a single obvious example where a player wins a game through sheer brilliance that no one else in the side was capable of doing.

Without that single effort 2005 was another wasted year. Can we say that about any other single individual performance last year.

[Country Member]

Good to see some logical, thoughtful comments on this subject - well done Liz as usual.
NMW - you are either taking the p1ss or are deluded: do you honestly think you (whoever the hell you are) know more about the situation, facts and circumstances of this matter than the man who took us to the Premiership. Give it a break.

[Sanecow]

Originally posted by Country Member
NMW - do you honestly think you (whoever the hell you are) know more about the situation, facts and circumstances of this matter than the man who took us to the Premiership.

Of course Davis knows the full story somewhat better than NMWBloods.

[Country Member]

Typical response from another of the usual suspects, that is, a first class whinger, know-all and knocker: the personification of the culture that had the Club in the wilderness for 73 years.

[liz]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
I think you're missing the point.

...

Can we say that about any other single individual performance last year.

In my opinion yes - including the examples I provided. All just as important, if not as dramatic, as Davis' contribution.

It was brilliant. It was crucial to the premiership. But it wasn't on its lonesome.

[Sanecow]

Originally posted by Country Member
Typical response from another of the usual suspects, that is, a first class whinger, know-all and knocker: the personification of the culture that had the Club in the wilderness for 73 years.

73 years you say?

[hammo]

2005: No Davis = no flag.

2006: No Davis = ??????

Free Nick Davis

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by Country Member
Good to see some logical, thoughtful comments on this subject - well done Liz as usual.
NMW - you are either taking the p1ss or are deluded: do you honestly think you (whoever the hell you are) know more about the situation, facts and circumstances of this matter than the man who took us to the Premiership. Give it a break.

If you have nothing to add but personal attacks then don't bother commenting.

We're all entitled to a view without it becoming personal.

[sydneyswans1989]

Originally posted by NMWBloods
If you have nothing to add but personal attacks then don't bother commenting.

We're all entitled to a view without it becoming personal.

A person coming up to 10,000th posts truly deserves thier own opinion