vs Melbourne match thread

[Matt80]

Who do you manage Matt80? If we rested Kennedy and Jack tonight we probably would have got rolled.

True Goods78. Kennedy and Jack were vital.

Jetta could probably do with a spell, and is listed as having a calf injury. Garry Rohan could be a speedy replacement.

K. Jack has been having concerns with those ribs for a number of weeks. He is a highly competitive person and would not want a break. If those ribs need a rest then Tom Mitchell could come in.

McVeigh looks like he is struggling with his lower leg, but you can't have both McVeigh and Jack out at the same time.

[Ludwig]

Our kicking is woeful. Awful game between two non contenders. Agree with most of what Goods78 had to say. Melbourne applied a lot of pressure, but any decent kicking team could have scored 150 points, and waltzed through their defence.

We need better disposal and some more pace. I don't care if we don't have a second ruckman; JPK can ruck, or bring in Nankervis. We need to get rid of Derickx and LRT; they give us so little at the moment.

If we used Lloyd and Cunningham more, I think we would move the ball better. Both showed good skills.

[MattW]

Excellent games Hannebery and Rampe. Kennedy, Jack, Parker, Smith, and Shaw good enough. Laidler tried hard. I thought Jetta was pretty good; hope his calf/shin is OK. Great to have Goodesy back. McVeigh carrying a calf injury?

I am not sure what role LRT is playing. Just four touches, none telling. I don't think he'll survive the Reid/Tippett return.

Pretty flat, scrappy game. Still lacking intensity and desire.

[Big Al]

That was a sort of game that got better with each beer.

[Meg]

I think LRT hurt his knee again early in the match. He took a long time to get up and moving again. I feared the worst for a while. While he played out the match I suspect that was the reason he was so subdued.

[Meg]

As others have said it was just lovely to see Adam Goodes run on to the field and immediately look as if he had never missed a beat.

[Melbourne_Blood]

Worst. Game. Ever.

[liz]

While I agree it was a fairly lacklustre affair, I don't think it was as bad as some on here. We created a lot of scoring opportunities in the corridor, shots that should have been converted. In the second half, the goal kicking radar of a few players was terribly off - Parker and McGlynn the worst. Kick three or four of those and the scoreline better reflects the actual game.

Although the team looked a little flat - maybe last week took a lot out of them? - I thought the tackling intensity was still pretty good. And plenty of players were prepared to run hard to position.

I am looking forward to Cunningham learning how to get more into the game, because when he gets the ball his disposal is terrific. Lloyd looks like he fits, albeit without any standout features that indicate he's a 100 game player. Certainly handy depth.

Very glad to see Hanners return to his hard running best, and he was also one of the better users of the ball. He was my BOG by some distance. Terrific effort from Jack too, given he is clearly playing under duress. It's going to be a busy week for the medicos / recovery team this week, with lots of players looking sore.

Did anyone catch Hanners' comment when he was interviewed after the game. Asked about Buddy, he commented how good he'd been around the club during the down period, noting that Buddy had been driving a lot of players...Please no!@!

[Meg]

Also it was a very cold night in Melbourne so the grass was dewy resulting in a very slippery ball. That was the reason for a lot of the ball handling errors by both teams.

[ernie koala]

Did anyone catch Hanners' comment when he was interviewed after the game. Asked about Buddy, he commented how good he'd been around the club during the down period, noting that Buddy had been driving a lot of players...Please no!@!

I'm not trying to be the party pooper here, but he was talking about Goodsey not Buddy.

[Bazman]

Great support from us Melbourne based supporter pity about the game been so crap even the replay.

[mcs]

Great support from us Melbourne based supporter pity about the game been so crap even the replay.

Can't believe you managed to sit through a replay of it .... for that! I was almost going to come down to Melbourne for this one, but am doing the Bombers game instead (hoping its a better contest and performance under the roof!

[liz]

I'm not trying to be the party pooper here, but he was talking about Goodsey not Buddy.

You're right. I just checked. But I prefer the version I originally interpreted!

[R-1]

I thought the game was entertaining and just defensive rather than sloppy. Melbourne were competitive, people aren't giving their improved whole field defence enough credit this season. They are literally ten goals a game better compared to last year in terms of what they concede. They've mostly lost this year because they don't have a forward line yet and because they're still learning. Watch them claim a couple of scalps later in the year.

So I think there's a bit too much wrist-slitting here for a five goal win.

We got the job done. Could have won by more but missed a lot of shots in the second half.

[Meg]

Great support from us Melbourne based supporter.

I agree. I came down from Sydney for the match and was really delighted by the strong support the Swans received. Even the Melbourne friends I went with, who are Demons' members, commented on it.