On the Couch: The game has moved on

[Sanecow]

Was it Walls who said that the game has moved on since the Swans won the Premiership? Did he accidentally make sense? Or was it Mike? I passed out soon after they made sense so it's a bit hazy.

I think we have failed to adjust.

1. The original gameplan has now been used until it no longer surprises anyone that the Swans tag, cause stoppages and run out of defense. With Tadhg out, they didn't even have to care about attempted runs out of defense anyway, Ironmonger could run down Leo these days.

2. It seems that the one trick that was worth keeping - controlling the tempo of the game - has been picked up by other teams and used less frequently and more inappropriately by Sydney.

3. When approaching the forward 50 the Swans stop and chip it around until the forward line is flooded with rebounding opposition players. The commentators still claim "they will work this around until someone is open" but more often than not they get called to play on and panic.

4. The umpires now focus on protecting "pure ball winners" and are vigilant for off the ball "hard tagging". This has hampered the midfield.

5. The "hand in the back" rule has murdered Hall. He used to get done more than he should have when it was a push in the back so this has completely beaten him. It has also made it tough for our undersized backline to be effective against the bigger forwards.

To bloody mindedly tag hard, chip around and have forwards and defenders playing from behind when those methods are no longer effective is getting hard to watch. I expect that we'll see another season of imbalanced free kicks and variable form before Roos walks off into the sunset with a cheery "I have always maintained that I am not a career coach."

[hammo]

Yes, the game has moved on.

While we play a stoppage-rich game, the AFL through its law changes and umpire interpretations is trying to rid the game of them.

You only had to see how hot they were on holding the ball decisions on Saturday night to realise we have no hope unless our midfielders develop a different style of play other than piling on top of a loose ball.

[thesting]

The game has definitely changed. When we kick the ball long it always seems to be a desperate attempt to just get the ball inside 50 rather than a palnned attacking move. Hall seems to play behind his opponent (or his opponent plays in fron of him...) which means he gets flogged with the hands in the back rule.

Because Hall's physicality has been removed to an extent I think he needs to be more of a leading forward, but I have lost count of the number of times I have seem the ball kicked over his head when he is on the lead. We are too focussed on him at times and it hurts us big time (especialy when he is out of form )

Our game plan needs adjustment. It is made to suit the strengths of our main players so a total overhual would probably be overdoing it, but I think we just need better plans B & C as a couple of years of success have allowed our opposition to catch up with our plan A.

[liz]

Had the game moved on this time last week when the Swans were coming off a 72 point hiding of semi-finalists Hawthorn?

[NMWBloods]

Had the game moved on this time last week when the Swans were coming off a 72 point hiding of semi-finalists Hawthorn?

That's what the game has moved to, but we saw the Swans play in that style only a couple of times for the year.

[Layby]

The game is an ever evolving journey.

I dont think we should over-analyse it, just enjoy it.

[Sanecow]

Had the game moved on this time last week when the Swans were coming off a 72 point hiding of semi-finalists Hawthorn?

Yes.

There were injuries to two Hawthorn players, Hall wasn't playing and the Hawks were coming off a week of intense media speculation. Besides which, we couldn't back the win up the next week; they shot their load early.

[Bas]

You wouldn't expect Roos to take notice of Walls or Sheahan. He will insist that the Swans will win the premiership in 2008 if no one gets injured, plays injured or is suspended for long periods of time.

In 2009, Roos is off and a re-building will commence.

[swantastic]

5. The "hand in the back" rule has murdered Hall. He used to get done more than he should have when it was a push in the back so this has completely beaten him. It has also made it tough for our undersized backline to be effective against the bigger forwards.

Shouldn't that be cheat.

[swantastic]

Had the game moved on this time last week when the Swans were coming off a 72 point hiding of semi-finalists Hawthorn?

Liz they weren't coming off a hiding they gave a hiding,and yes to your question its just that IMO the Swans played a more direct and fast style of football.

[swantastic]

The game is an ever evolving journey.

I dont think we should over-analyse it, just enjoy it.

Well what are you doing here then?

[liz]

So why weren't Walls and Sheahan saying the game had moved on a week ago when both nominated Sydney as a genuine premiership contender even from 7th position?

Walls, in particular, has two major shortcomings as a footy commentator.

Firstly he has the memory of a goldfish and proclaims long term trends based on the last game a team played. Remember this was the guy who roundly slammed not only the Swans' game style but also Roos' coaching motivations midway through 2005.

Secondly he is incapable of differentiating between a game style that is ineffective and a poor execution of aforementioned game style. Occasionally Healy tries to point that out to him but generally doesn't go in very hard, and at other times just lets Walls' comments pass.

Gary Lyon's take on the weekend's result was that Collingwood beat Sydney using exactly the same principles that Sydney have used to effect over the past few years - based around tackling, pressure and hard work off the ball. It's not a new observation. After almost every loss media types have been saying that team X out Sydneyed Sydney.

So maybe the current game plan has gone past the Swans - either temporarily because they were too worn out or didn't have the hunger to sustain it, or more long term because key players are too old to keep that level up.

But none of that is equivalent to the game having moved past the fundamentals that the Swans have implemented in seasons past.

Incidentally, if you believe what Malthouse says in the media, he's been an admirer of the Swans and how they've gone about things for several years, seeming to pick up on how they were achieving success while other coaches didn't seem to get it to the same degree. So maybe it is no surprise that he's the one that seems to have most comprehensively unravelled it with a playing group that, based on raw talent and experience, doesn't seem the most likely to have done so. And maybe why the Pies have been so focussed and disciplined in unravelling the Swans in the same season when they've lost to Richmond and been thumped by teams like the Lions.

[NMWBloods]

You're right on Walls.

However, my take on the 'out-Sydneying Sydney' is a reference to the pressure and tackling aspect of the game, ie: the defensive side.

Nobody tries to emulate Sydney's offensive plan because it's frequently non-existent.

The game plan now is a combination of pressuring the opposition man-on-man, and then moving the ball forward quickly before the opposition can do it back to you.

[stellation]

The leader is good, the leader is great.

[ROK Lobster]

The leader is good, the leader is great.

There is no leader, it is a leadership group. There is no centralised power here, please move on.