We need to change our game

[Blood]

My biggest worry from the game on Saturday was now many times we handed the ball over from kick outs after a behind.

If we can't get the ball past our halfback line ... we're in a lot deeper @@@@ than you all think.

Yep.

Other teams play the zone, usually (but not always) giving us a charity kick on the first but putting us under immense pressure on the second kick (or are we doing it to ourselves?). It's becoming a major problem.

[AnnieH]

My biggest worry from the game on Saturday was now many times we handed the ball over from kick outs after a behind.

If we can't get the ball past our halfback line ... we're in a lot deeper @@@@ than you all think.

[swans_premiers]

couple of years ago i can recall countless time where commentators would say we were prob the most skillful team in the competition. Being able to easily hit up targets in our forward 50.

Roos has always said when the pressure and intensity is right up there this takes care of itself...however when you play a team like Geelong where their pressure, intensity n just sheer intimidation of losing 3 games in about 3 seasons ofcourse it's going to affect your skills. There's so much pressure to hit the target and make the most of every opportunity when you play geelong and when you have a lot of young players in the side like we do ofcourse we are going to struggle.

It's not the end of the world...we lost to the cats in geelong. Haven't won there since 1999...big deal.

[IrishSwanPerth]

I was at a training session and I was watching Grundy practing his kicking at goal and it was terrible to watch.
Same session I was watching Jack try to pass a ball, I stood beside Paul Morwood and I think both of us had our heads hanging.
There must be rook men in Australia, I cant believe we have to bring in a rugby player from Canada and teach him the game at 24 years of age, that I struggle to take in.
Regarding Jacks kicking if you want to compete your midfielders need to be able to pass the ball.
I dont think LRT has a football brain, when I see some of his decision making, Geelong have more leaders and football brains. They know how to play for penaultys and make the right decisions, within that 1 second to think under pressure. Football will get a lot more skillful and Sydneys game plan wont work, they will be outplayed.
I felt sorry for Bevan because he is a good player with a lot of heart
On a positive Goodes was great today, O' Keefe is getting better

[BSA5]

Taggers still need to have an impact on offense mate. Kane Cornes and Brady Rawlings are both taggers, but they still win a lot of their own ball and deliver it well most of the time.

Kieran couldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat atm.

My point was that, just like Kirk, Jack is a tagger. Even if his offensive game is off, he still adds to the team. I didn't say tagging was his only job, but it is his main job. You said Kieran doesn't bring anything else to the table, and that is plainly not true.

[Robbo]

It's not really because we are under pressure. There were times against Freo a couple of weeks ago that Buchanan butchered it when he was all on his own.

[JF_Bay22_SCG]

Buchanan's skills are not AFL standard either.

Every pre season we are told that there has been an emphasis on skills but it never seems to materialise during the season.

The butchering of the ball by foot and sometimes hand today was by far the most frustrating part for me. You'd hate to be a Swans forward the way we deliver it inside 50.

By why is the ball butchered so often? Because of the constant willynilly handballing out of defence that is part of our game plan. Ok when it works we look pretty as anything (bar Essendon on song), but against a team who know we'll play like this (Geelong, Collingwood, Adelaide) we will not only be placed under pressure with our handpassing, there will be clangers left right & centre.

The way we nearly ALWAYS go wide & to the boundary in our attacks is so frustrating. We nearly ever go down the guts. At the after-match the other week Ryan O'Keefe mentioned that teams flood the area straight down the guts at kick-outs. Further to than the Swans use the huddle tactic with their kick outs as well. But when the constant wish is to go wide ALL THE BLOODY time you have to start asking yourself why.

We had a lot of the ball in the 1st half. Early/mid-way through the 2nd quarter the Cats WERE worried as we were dominated around the ground./ But we did not make them pay & the Cats pulled away by simply hitting targets and giving their forwards space to run into. Unlike us their kicks generally hit their targets as well. The amount of scrubbed kicks by the likes of Jude & Amon today were a complete joke.

Still I can't say I'm surprised how the way today went.

JF

[dimelb]

Very harsh on Grundy. I reckon he's actually a very good kick. Also, I still don't get peoples' obsession with LRT's kicking. It's not that bad at all. Really, it's actually quite good. Just because he looks awkward when he lopes across the ground, and USED to get caught out and be forced to kick under immense pressure on occasions, doesn't mean his footskills are bad. He hits his target far more often than not.

I agree on both counts. The more I see of Reg in the firsts the more I think he belongs there. At present a very good third target, and will get better. And LRT is a good kick - people who think otherwise should try watching the game instead of parroting RWO myths (see earlier thread).

[Robbo]

Kieran does. He's a tagger. Him getting the ball and using it is secondary (not to say it's unimportant, but it's not the only facet of his game).

Taggers still need to have an impact on offense mate. Kane Cornes and Brady Rawlings are both taggers, but they still win a lot of their own ball and deliver it well most of the time.

Kieran couldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat atm.

[Playsmart]

Been saying this for a while.

Rooseys inability to conjure up a plan B when needed is a major weakness IMO.

Agree. Plan B was missing.

We started well in first quarter keeping the score difference to the minimum.
We kicked long and not allowing them to recover from their runs to the forwards. We match them well.

In the following quarters, somehow they lost confidence.
They appeared to tense up, and started to make more mistakes.

I felt that they questioned themselves the right to play well against a team that they are supposed to get a beating, fueled from the talk-up of opponents by coach and our own player.

Contests to balls all over the ground has gone mostly missing again, as it has for recent games now. Our experienced Jolly counts very little against his opponent with alot less experience. The count against us must be shocking. Clear coach failures, beside the absence of Plan B at the forward and other areas.

[BSA5]

Buchanan and Jack really need to improve their kicking. It's diabolical most of the time.

Kirk can get away with it because he brings a lot to the table in other areas. Amon and Kieran don't.

Kieran does. He's a tagger. Him getting the ball and using it is secondary (not to say it's unimportant, but it's not the only facet of his game).

[Robbo]

Buchanan and Jack really need to improve their kicking. It's diabolical most of the time.

Kirk can get away with it because he brings a lot to the table in other areas. Amon and Kieran don't.

[Triple B]

...I have a feeling it's going to be another 6th-place-and-honourable-loss-in-2nd-week-of-the-finals kind of year.

Yes please, I'll take that at this stage.

[BSA5]

Very harsh on Grundy. I reckon he's actually a very good kick. Also, I still don't get peoples' obsession with LRT's kicking. It's not that bad at all. Really, it's actually quite good. Just because he looks awkward when he lopes across the ground, and USED to get caught out and be forced to kick under immense pressure on occasions, doesn't mean his footskills are bad. He hits his target far more often than not.

[Xie Shan]

last time we lost by this much was what....middle of 2005 against the saints??? hmmmmm....

Stop. Right. There.

Not. Going. To. Happen.



I think we actually played worse in that game than we did today (though the margin was 40-odd) but it would be a MASSIVE shock if we did that again this year, I don't think we're quite the team we were then...I have a feeling it's going to be another 6th-place-and-honourable-loss-in-2nd-week-of-the-finals kind of year.

2005 was special.