Do we still play "Lock-down" Footy?

[Swandering]

The media and commentators keep banging on about our lock-down style of footy.

Is it still true?? Or is it a hangover from years ago?? I can't tell the difference any more.

[illiards]

The media and commentators keep banging on about our lock-down style of footy.

Is it still true?? Or is it a hangover from years ago?? I can't tell the difference any more.

I think we do but the difference is that we now use it as one tactic in our arsenal. Not our only tactic.

[Go Swannies]

I heard Roos in an interview a couple of weeks ago say that, when he became coach, he and Horse studied the earlier successful teams and the only common factor was the strength of the team defence. So they built the team on that. So it will always be there. But so is the Cats' game - they are like a solid wall when the ball is coming in then they stream out of defence. I think we have the defence tag in the media because of our "tempo" footy that destroys the momentum of the other team. It must be soul destroying for them so no wonder it's hated. But we can afford to do it less (or not at all) when we are dominating a game - or even when it's a shootout.

BTW don't you prefer a hard man-on-man game with great tackles rather than a loose "who can get to the other end and kick a goal?" non-defensive shoot out?

[Big Al]

BTW don't you prefer a hard man-on-man game with great tackles rather than a loose "who can get to the other end and kick a goal?" non-defensive shoot out?

Like most things it's all about moderation. I don't like purely defensive struggles where the ball rarely moves and I also don't like basketball type games where there is no defense whatsover. A little bit from Column A and a little bit from Column B makes the perfect game. It's why the Cats are so good because the are adept at both styles and can adapt accordingly.

[Hartijon]

Even in our worst lock down displays we always had the potential to break out and run the ball down the corridor.I have distant memories of Leo Barry attacking from Fullback,zig zagging confusing everybody ,including himself,then passing to Tiger who ran up the guts and in no time it was a goal.We could both choke them and out run them. Geelong has perfected this style and attack on every line ,and moving the ball around from one to another until someone is free and breaks out. I really don't think,except once against St Kilda, we won too many games by being one dimensional defensive. It was the biggest arrow in our bow,but as Big Al says you need a bit from each column to play the perfect game.We ground some teams down but then we had to beat them on the scoreboard to win.That requires attack.

[Primmy]

Even in our worst lock down displays we always had the potential to break out and run the ball down the corridor.I have distant memories of Leo Barry attacking from Fullback,zig zagging confusing everybody ,including himself,then passing to Tiger who ran up the guts and in no time it was a goal.We could both choke them and out run them. Geelong has perfected this style and attack on every line ,and moving the ball around from one to another until someone is free and breaks out. I really don't think,except once against St Kilda, we won too many games by being one dimensional defensive. It was the biggest arrow in our bow,but as Big Al says you need a bit from each column to play the perfect game.We ground some teams down but then we had to beat them on the scoreboard to win.That requires attack.

Its this very little nugget that has me rubbing my hands while watching Uncle Byron practice this tactic.
We may well see it again. Not like Leo though, I have a feeling Uncle knows what he is doing....

[dimelb]

Even in our worst lock down displays we always had the potential to break out and run the ball down the corridor.I have distant memories of Leo Barry attacking from Fullback,zig zagging confusing everybody ,including himself,then passing to Tiger who ran up the guts and in no time it was a goal.We could both choke them and out run them. Geelong has perfected this style and attack on every line ,and moving the ball around from one to another until someone is free and breaks out. I really don't think,except once against St Kilda, we won too many games by being one dimensional defensive. It was the biggest arrow in our bow,but as Big Al says you need a bit from each column to play the perfect game.We ground some teams down but then we had to beat them on the scoreboard to win.That requires attack.

I agree with this and I think that's what "tempo footy" meant: control of the game whether in attack or defence. Mick Malthouse once said (before we won in '05) that "Sydney plays finals football every week", and Collingwood was one of the main models Roos had in mind (the other was Brisbane). The best teams all do this to a degree, depending on skill levels and available talent. Geelong has had the best talent in the last couple of years, but ours is getting there. I think Collingwood at present has developed its talent further than we have. These two deserve to be the favourites. But anything can happen on the day!

[johnno]

We do play a lock down style of footy......BUT SO DOES EVERY-BLOODY-ONE ELSE IN THE AFL!!!!!!!!

[Nich]

It's a line for every commentator who has got nothing else to say about the Swans. Which pretty much covers all of them.

[Hartijon]

We do play a lock down style of footy......BUT SO DOES EVERY-BLOODY-ONE ELSE IN THE AFL!!!!!!!!

Yeah,I think your right to the extent that they have to be able to play like this to get anywhere. Port Power tried to go back to the old kick long to a tall forward 70's style at one stage and got hammered. Some other teams just don't have the skill or gutsy players to be any good at lock down and suffer on the Premiership table because of it. The Cats are so good at possession football you can't get the ball off them except by getting them to kick a point. They lock up possession,denying the opposition use of the ball and winning the game as a result.I have often wondered about a tactic to force Geelong wide as it enters its forward 50 and make it kick points often..just to get the ball back??

[johnno]

The following is just my opinion.....

Every single team in the AFL tries to do 3 basic things in a game of Football better than their opposition on any given gameday:

1: Win the contested ball around the stopages.

2: Have a strong defence/backline which is very good at not conceding too many goals/points to the opposition.

3: Have multiple options in the forward line.

That really is all AFL teams are trying to do week in week out, sounds simple doesn't it? Its just that some teams are better at doing than others....thats all.

[AnnieH]

Its this very little nugget that has me rubbing my hands while watching Uncle Byron practice this tactic.
We may well see it again. Not like Leo though, I have a feeling Uncle knows what he is doing....

Oh Primmy.
Just because Leo had the decision making skills of a junkie (my favourite line of commentary ever) doesn't mean he didn't know what he was doing!!
I'd have him back in a flash.

[aardvark]

We do play a lock down style of footy......BUT SO DOES EVERY-BLOODY-ONE ELSE IN THE AFL!!!!!!!!

Except Essendon.....

[johnno]

Except Essendon.....

Yeh....pay that one.

[Nich]

Oh Primmy.
Just because Leo had the decision making skills of a junkie (my favourite line of commentary ever).

Not to make light of Junkies - but that line is VERY funny.