NAB Cup v Hawthorn @ Launceston

[robamiee]

i dont think yuo can really judge the game plan at all yesterday..
It was really giving yng guys a go and see who has the potential to step up if needed with injuries etc.
Personally i like the look of our yng stock, not brillant but most worked hard which is a good sign.

Some i think have the potential to step up this year.

Also you cant blame the swans for going to the boundary line if the hawks clog the corridor..we used the corridor well when we were able to rebound efficiantly..and you have to remember we were pretty yng and considering how well we did against a more experienced Hawks squad...
If i was a hawks fan i would be worried this year.
i was happy with how they went

[connolly]

That's my prognostications, but will any of it materialise?

Doubtful. Thornton for Bevo is a shock

[liz]

So there are 3 additions that I believe would improve our side and even though Jack worked hard to get the footy his disposal was very poor indeed. Liz and I disagree on Jack but I am happy to get on his bandwagon if he can show much more poise when in possession and better disposal and decision making. Unless he does he is just another small with crap disposal and prone to turnover. Mind you I reckon I would take him ahead of McVeigh purely on endeveour and heart.

That's my prognostications, but will any of it materialise?

We do, indeed, and I think the gulf is widening.

His disposal wasn't crap yesterday - it was mixed. I reckon he delivered the kick of the day when he found Davis lurking at the back of a couple of defenders and weighted his pass to perfection. Some of the rest were good, some poor, but I struggle to see how you can applaud Brabazon and knock Jack for disposals based on what the two dished up yesterday.

[swansrule100]

Came back from Launnie on the same plane as not only the Hawks team but Craig Ellis Dermie Jeff Kennett & Huddo. Despite the result & the sickening injury to Eski, it was a positive exercise for the club. The flight to Sydney OldRoyboy was on left 30 minutes beforehand. Eski was on crutches obviously. Evryone else looked it decent enough spirits though. Goodes looks to have lost a bit of weight; maybe he could have had a run in the NAB Cup?

The thing that was the biggest surprise was the support we had in the stands. Considering "the Tassie Hawks" are supposed to be the defacto Tassie team these days, we'd have had over 60% of the support yesterday. All this even though we never take the NAB Cup seriously & had a bad end to our season last year. Two girls behind me, all decked out in Swans regalia, were watching their first ever live footy game. I'm sure several other Swans fans there were in the same boat.

Can't say I'm a fan of Aurora Stadium. Besides the main Gunn St on the players entry side, the rest of the stands in the ground were made of very temporary scaffolding-style seating with wooden boarding as floors. In the last quarter the ball went between the two stands & a kid went under the & ran off off with the ball out the back. Where we were there were people walking in front of you all match which got annoying, especially during the last quarter. On the outer wing the stands there were really a long way from the action. There was a walkway, a miniature hill, then what can be described as a pool fence, then a walkway up in the stand, then the actual seating. To say the atmosphere was awful goes without saying. As Simon said to me during the game, Tassie sports crowds are generally very quiet, as many aren't brought up on the week-in week-out barracking culture. Still, it had cover from the sun, something many grounds don't have for GA ticket holders. We had 120 seats held for us behind the goals, but nobody knew about it at either the gate nor at the Swans office. Incredibly the woman at the gate to the ground said that the left-of screen grandstand if 'demand called for it'. We walk in & the gates to the stand were already open & people were sitting there. Welcome to footy in Launceston folks! No bloody idea!

You could see the endeavour in the players' eyes as they ran out. But that youthful exuberance also led to the Hawks waiting for our errors & catching us on the break. The fact that could kick supergoals & we'd still look to pass it off around 50 was the reason we lost. We had several opportunities to get it forward better in the last term, but players panicked & kicked it OOBOTF. The O'Dwyer one on the outer win proved crucial, but he like the others are only young, so clangers are to be expected I guess.

To me LRT & Mattner looked great. I have said LRT should be our 2nd ruckman all along, but we still seriously lack height in defence so we need to keep him there. He is very underrated because he looks so awkward when he has the ball. I'm expecting a big season from him to be honest. We'll definitely be a better team for having him there punching the ball to safety in the backline. am not sold on Grundy as a backman, yet. Will be following his fortunes with interest this year.

Had Eski not gotten injured, we'd be raving about yesterday. Unfortunately his injury has put a major dampener on things. But we just have to move on I guess.

JF

told u the ground isnt much chop, the surface is nice looking but they put up all those terraces like 5 years ago for the one hawks game that year and the plan was the stand would go all the way around like the gunns i think, but next thing they put some shelter on the temps and they are terraces apparently.

People walking around at aurora is sooooooooooooooooo annoying isnt it and they get in ur way and the view from the terraces is pathetic. Why waste money on the lights when the stands arent right.

[Nico]

We do, indeed, and I think the gulf is widening.

His disposal wasn't crap yesterday - it was mixed. I reckon he delivered the kick of the day when he found Davis lurking at the back of a couple of defenders and weighted his pass to perfection. Some of the rest were good, some poor, but I struggle to see how you can applaud Brabazon and knock Jack for disposals based on what the two dished up yesterday.

Of course his disposal for much of the game was crap. You conveniently forget his running into an open goal miles clear of an opposition player that dribbled into the behind post I believe, and the kick out on the full when trying to kick it round the corner that almost cleared the stand.

Mixed indeed, a convenient fence sitting opinion on someone you can't hear a constructive word about. Matthews and Bevan are capable of getting the odd pass spot on in a game.

You missed my point. That being I think he has ball getting talent but needs a lot of work on his disposal and decision making.

Granted Brabazon kicked a couple in succession out on the full which is inexcusable, but his ability to work back hard then run to position to take passes far outweighed a couple of poor disposals, and he has genuine penetration with his kicks. But then again you have never, from my recollection, been much if any of a rap for Brabazon.

But, hey we can't all be right all of the time can we.

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

told u the ground isnt much chop, the surface is nice looking but they put up all those terraces like 5 years ago for the one hawks game that year and the plan was the stand would go all the way around like the gunns i think, but next thing they put some shelter on the temps and they are terraces apparently.

People walking around at aurora is sooooooooooooooooo annoying isnt it and they get in ur way and the view from the terraces is pathetic. Why waste money on the lights when the stands arent right.

I suppose they are just cost cutting. It is not like the ground is being used every week. But that outer wing grandstand is just stupid. So much space between the field and the fans in the seats high up in a small ground is just idiotic to be honest.

Bet the place would be bloody cold in winter too.

JF

[Cher]

Ansett ceased to exist last century. Catch up or be left behind with the bogans.

Be careful, she might throw her Mocco's at you!

[liz]

Of course his disposal for much of the game was crap. You conveniently forget his running into an open goal miles clear of an opposition player that dribbled into the behind post I believe, and the kick out on the full when trying to kick it round the corner that almost cleared the stand.

Mixed indeed, a convenient fence sitting opinion on someone you can't hear a constructive word about. Matthews and Bevan are capable of getting the odd pass spot on in a game.

You missed my point. That being I think he has ball getting talent but needs a lot of work on his disposal and decision making.

Granted Brabazon kicked a couple in succession out on the full which is inexcusable, but his ability to work back hard then run to position to take passes far outweighed a couple of poor disposals, and he has genuine penetration with his kicks. But then again you have never, from my recollection, been much if any of a rap for Brabazon.

But, hey we can't all be right all of the time can we.

If "constructive criticism" is saying he's a small bloke with crap disposal, then you're right, I'm not interested. But that's not my definition of constructive.

I don't see how "mixed" is sitting on the fence. He clearly made some mistakes. But he also delivered some very nice ball. Hence it was "mixed".

The thing that I see in Jack that I don't in Brabazon (and this is based on far more than yesterday's game, though I think it was also evident yesterday) is that he has genuine line breaking ability. You don't need 22 of those on the team but you do need a sprinkling and it's something the Swans have been lacking, especially since the retirements of Williams and Maxfield, and the succumbing to injury of Crouch. He has genuine leg speed, he's becoming more and more aware of the right time to use it, and his good kicks have genuine penetration. He is, when he composes himself, capable of pinpointing passes. He's not even close to Malceski's class but he's better in this department than a fair few senior players.

You're right that Bevan and Mathews occasionally get a pass right. Indeed, they do it far more than occasionally, but then I'm not as anti-them as some others on this board. Bevan is actually capable of the odd beauty but they are so few and far between that I suspect there's a bit of luck involved. Jack's ratio is a bit better but still with room for improvement. But with him I think he has the technique - it's more of a case of composing himself and understanding when he's not under as much pressure as he thinks.

Mathews isn't that bad a kick. But he usually plays it safe. He certainly doesn't take many risks or seem to have great vision.

And yes, you're right that I'm not overly keen on Brabazon. Sure, he has great endurance but I don't think that's enough. I've said before that I hope I'm wrong about him because his work ethic looks to be good. But my money would be on Jack playing a whole heap more senior football this year (and in the future) than Brabazon. I didn't see anything yesterday in Brabazon's game to make me reconsider. I don't see the penetration in his kicking that you talk of, and that's based on watching him kick under far less pressure than yesterday. I certainly rate him far far behind Jack in that department.

But as we've discussed before, we're going to have to agree to disagree on the relative merits of these two until fate (or the Swans coaching staff) sort out the argument for us!

[Old Royboy]

I'm enjoying this debate between Nico and Liz over Braba v Cracker. Both kids have a something to offer.

Braba's is best as an outside midfielder, but put him in traffic and thus far he has been hopeless - poor decision making and execution to the fore. Get him running free, he looks great. Yesterday he showed improvement on chasing and acountability. But, no coincidence that so far he has starred when the opposition is tired or not good enough. I thught he was pretty lucky to avoid the sword last year because outside midfielders are basically parasites, and they need to be better than good to justify their inclusion. Reckon he survived because he is a natural leader, get in a ressies huddle and he is the bloke talking it up.

Contrast Cracker Jack, disposal not as good as Braba, but on every other measure better. Better reader and winner of the ball in traffic, better tackler, better at the quick decision or 1%er. Also just as quick and elusive when on the run.

I think Keiren will be a 200 gamer. I'm not so sure about Braba.

[Bas]

I've been on the Jack bandwagon since day 1 quietly. His side step yesterday would have made Senior Jack very proud. Senior jack was an outstanding fullback in league and running hard and breaking defensive lines was his forte.

I do hope Keiren can be a 200 game and create his own history. Brabazon has the ability, it's a matter of time. Perhaps a running role out of defence might better suit him.

[Bas]

Probem with big Mocca now is trying to work out where he is best suited; he can play KPP either end or in the ruck. Whatever, the kid has a future. Either he's had another growth spurt or has done a lot of fitness work, because he certainly seems a lot trimmer than last year.

Is Mocca, White? Jesse that is. I just think I set myself up for creative responses.

If it is I'm surprised he was not playing full forward like last year.

[Old Royboy]

Bas, I call Jessie "Mocca" because this time last year I ran into his old man at Manuka. He said that the family has called hm that since day one. It was around the time that RWO was debating what would be a good nickname for him.Seemed to me that if he already had a nickname, why change it.

[elroy67]

Ansett ceased to exist last century. Catch up or be left behind with the bogans.

Whilst slipping into my moccasins preparing for a big night driving up and down the main street in my torana, I seem to recall that the Ansett cup was last won by Port Adelaide in 2001.

[ben.carbonaro]

Was anyone else impressed with the performance of Aaron Bruce?

[stellation]

Aaron Bruce went 0/8 and Baylor lost to #11 Texas, I don't think his performane was overly impressive.