Time for home truths....

[wolftone57]

What is our game plan - Im not being sarcastic but just want someone to describe what they believe it is. I think our game style has become much less through the corridor as the season has gone on and as our confidence has gone down.

After half time we play the long bomb game. Before then we try to play labour intensive HB & short kick two way footy. so predictable. No wonder the smart opposition who have the cattle all line heaps of defenders loose in out full back line and then just run the ball out. Hawks & Eagles did it best, Bullies, GWS, Essendon in first half, Freo in first half, even Lions did it.

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I am wondering if our team, especially the leaders, and add Buddy to that, are losing or have lost confidence in the current 'game plan'. It sort of worked for the first quarter on Sunday and we failed to capitalise and then for part of the last quarter. The players are said to be guilty of playing inconsistent footy but it is such an uphill battle when every opposition has a worked out a way to counter 'the plan' - the best teams effectively do it for four quarters other teams for one two or three quarters. Our midfielders just cannot hold up for four quarters game after game.

When you have been playing the same game plan for 2.5 years then yes they have worked it out and everybody knows exactly what you get with Sydney. How often this season have you seen ex-players talking about how wasteful and easy to pick our game plan is? I have heard it every week.

[wolftone57]

I think newman will find a place in the 22 sooner rather than later - but more likely to be next year. There is a lot to like about his footy, but plenty to work on as well.

Agree here. Both Newman & Perris were recognisable because of their skills in an undermanned Reserves side on the weekend. Aliir used it well and kept his man to virtually nothing too. Hewett didn't play, probably due to injury. But most of the listed players did well. The toppies on the other hand were ordinary.

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I am wondering if our team, especially the leaders, and add Buddy to that, are losing or have lost confidence in the current 'game plan'. It sort of worked for the first quarter on Sunday and we failed to capitalise and then for part of the last quarter. The players are said to be guilty of playing inconsistent footy but it is such an uphill battle when every opposition has a worked out a way to counter 'the plan' - the best teams effectively do it for four quarters other teams for one two or three quarters. Our midfielders just cannot hold up for four quarters game after game.

a good indication they don't believe in the game plan is basic skill errors. They start to make mistakes because they don't believe it will make much difference. Psychologically speaking. You can ask them all and they all all say 'we just need to stick to the game plan' but subconsciously they don't believe a word. The Carlton players kept saying 'if we stick to the plan'. Get the drift.

[bloodspirit]

I have been saying for ages that game plans are overrated. If you have a game plan that you stick rigidly to you are restricting your team to only the game plan or plans you put in place. If the opposition is able to change it up and counter your game plan and go one better you are stuffed unless you have strategies to nullify their strategies. We don't have anything to nullify their strategies and we play an out of date style. Not only that we no longer play a style of game that suits our personnel.

For years we had that hard nut wall across half back and elite runners to back them. Shaw is almost finished and leaks scores. The rest have retired and Teddy is near to retirement. I'm sorry we have recruited players who play a certain style of game and then we are getting them to play the opposite to the style they play. for instance Tip & Bud are not huge pack marking forwards, they are leading forwards. They are being asked to play the former. Stupid seeing the only player vaguely good at contested marking is Tip and even he needs a run at it just like Reid. With tip & Bud out they tried to get Goodsie & Reid to play their roles so they wouldn't change the game plan.

THE GAME PLAN SUCKS JOHN CHUCK IT OUT WITH THE BATHWATER. THIS BABY IS BABY ALIEN AND DON'T CUT IT.

Bud should play on the flank or wing with Reid at CHF or FF. Bud can kick 70 so use that & drag his opponent into territory he won't like.

We need to look at the personnel and look at what they all as individuals bring to the table. Design a game plan and strategies that use their strengths instead of drafting players and then telling them you have to change to the way we play footy 'cos 'We got aGame Plan or Two. Don't ask about Three'. At the moment we are not using the players to their best skill set and not doing work on the track that enhances this. We have some pretty talented players but some are asked to do jobs they have absolutely no capacity to do. For instance asking Lloydy to play on Smith the West coast speedsters. Stupid he ain't capable. Work to his skill set and his abilities. He is great in and under. He is a really strong tackle. He is a very good user of the ball. He has no confidence ever since being put on players who are far too fast. Longmire is an idiot. We will lose this kid and he will end up playing in a premiership elsewhere while we struggle.

We have to look to use the combined skills and abilities of all our players and we can design strategies to do this. But it takes a few good coaches to sit around and get started on what they are and how to use them to the advantage of the team. If the game plan you have is not working and you don't have a clue then go away and let someone who does do the job. If you are incapable of developing fluid strategies that can win another premiership don't bother coming to the table.

The first sign the playing group is losing confidence in the game plan and by that they coaches is their skill level deteriorates. They start to lose confidence because they start to expect the same results if the plan/s are not working particularly well or they just don't believe in the plan. Players being played beyond their abilities or in positions or on players who's ability is far different from theirs lose confidence because they get towelled up. No good putting Lloyd on speedsters but it has happened all year. No good putting Jetts on strong body players it is not one of his skills sets. But it has happened often enough to be of concern. It seems to me the coaches are just blind to what our players actually bring to the table and expect them to be able to cope no matter what they ask them to do. That is crap. It is a stupid mind set as is the bombing to a pack forward entry. Longmire is trying to reinvent Pagan's paddock except there is one problem, defenders rarely play one on one like in Carey's day. That means we bomb into a three or more on one and the ball comes out faster then it went in. There can't be too many Swans players who have confidence in that. By the way I asked a few people to chech in a match when we first start bombing the ball into the forward line and don't pass off at all. We do it just before half time or just after half time and then we do it for the remainder of the match. It is a coach driven thing, a game plan not as Longmire has tried to suggest, players not following the game plan.

While I am not convinced by this instructive and detailed analysis, I really appreciate it just the same. Just thinking a little about what you have written helps me to understand the game better and think about some angles I may not have thought of before..

[mariachi]

Would the simplest tweak to start with be to leave 2,3,4 forwards goal side of the defensive 50? At least the defensive scrum would have someone to kick to if they win the contest. And that would stop oppositions setting up a wall with four players who just smash uncontested possessions straight back in. I'd rather we leaked contested snaps than be stuck with no players to use on the way out. In fact, who not leave someone inside forward 50 too?

[RogueSwan]

... I'd rather we leaked contested snaps than be stuck with no players to use on the way out. In fact, who not leave someone inside forward 50 too?

^This.

[wolftone57]

Would the simplest tweak to start with be to leave 2,3,4 forwards goal side of the defensive 50? At least the defensive scrum would have someone to kick to if they win the contest. And that would stop oppositions setting up a wall with four players who just smash uncontested possessions straight back in. I'd rather we leaked contested snaps than be stuck with no players to use on the way out. In fact, who not leave someone inside forward 50 too?

I agree.

[wolftone57]

i want to here give some praise to a young bloke who made some pretty basic errors in the first half but managed to claw his way back once he got the swing of the game. Xavier Richards was pretty awestruck in the first half, rabbit in the headlights comes to mind, but came out after half time and did a pretty solid job on Jack Darling. he also got us out of some tight spots deep in defence in the late third and last quarters. He could have just given up but he didn't he persevered. In the end he did a pretty good job with a terrible game plan that was making his and the other backs jobs almost impossible.

[Melbourne_Blood]

i want to here give some praise to a young bloke who made some pretty basic errors in the first half but managed to claw his way back once he got the swing of the game. Xavier Richards was pretty awestruck in the first half, rabbit in the headlights comes to mind, but came out after half time and did a pretty solid job on Jack Darling. he also got us out of some tight spots deep in defence in the late third and last quarters. He could have just given up but he didn't he persevered. In the end he did a pretty good job with a terrible game plan that was making his and the other backs jobs almost impossible.

I agree, X looked okay out there in pretty trying circumstances. Well done to the lad.

[DA_Swan]

Tigers applying the pressure that we no longer seem to be able to apply - nothing wrong with our game plan when we apply pressure - hopefully Benny McGlynn can come in and lift the rest of the team

[707]

There goes top 4! Looking like better ND picks coming our way.

In all honesty, tomorrow we are playing to stay in touch.