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This is one of our biggest issues if not the biggest. Slow indirect ball movement. It's actually a lazy way to play and reflects low work rate. Watching our congested forward line week in and out is so frustrating, particularly because when they move it quickly and direct with players leading at the ball and running in waves, we look just fine.
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He had observed that people who did lie were, on the whole, more resourceful and ambitious and successful than people who did not lie. -
Was listening to Tony Shaw and Matthew Lloyd on 3AW on Friday night talking about where the Swans are at. Both of them thought that it was time for Horse to move on citing that our style doesn't compete in today's game. Shaw also stated that we should look at moving Buddy on to free up cap space.
I agree with his comments about Horse but I don't see a need to move Buddy on. Hes the best kick in the team, we have plenty of room in our cap (just haven't been able to attract a big fish) and he brings in heaps of revenue. I believe that we already have a solid base of youth on our list, albeit we are lacking in young elite talent. That comes from not getting many high draft picks (hence why I'm happy to finish at the bottom of the ladder this year).Comment
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Our game style is changing and we utilised it against Carlton and for around 50% of Melbourne game. Need to be able to sustain it for longer. Same as every team. Will take time. Shaw and Lloyd provide a shallow analysis typical of Melbourne media's ignorant approach to non Vic teams. Irrelevant. Agree about not needing to make finals. In 2009 we were pretty ordinary with micky o, leo and crouch in their last year as well as Big Bad moving on. Rebounded in 2010 mainly with trading. May take longer this time around.Comment
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As if Buddy would be moved on at 1.2 million a year. Just a dumb analysis. He will see out his time with us whether playing or not. He is coming back from a groin injury and that takes time to find form. Maybe the operation has shortened his kicking range, so now play him FF. At least that means we have a permanent target.Comment
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Yeah, we are going to offload the best forward in the game, after the effort it took to get him here !
He may end his days like Micky O, prowling the goal square waiting for the chest mark and that's just fine with me.
Getting the ball to him (or anyone else) from the middle seems to be the bigger issue just now.Comment
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Agree, all this talk of Buddy being gone , ineffective etc is ridiculous. Even if we assume that the latest operation has shortened his kicking distance (and thats not conclusive from one game) , it just brings him back to the same level as the rest of the competition. Ill take that any day . Coupled with his field kicking still being elite and im happy to go with him.Comment
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Agree as well. Bob Murphy on SEN over the weekend had similar sentiments. He hypothesised if the Swans bottomed out next few years missing finals, that Buddy in his twilight years have option to move to a top 4 club like Collingwood to have another crack at winning a flag! Bob's notion is to see Buddy play out his days playing finals footy rather than just play H&A. He thinks it could be a win & win for both Buddy and the Swans in terms of trade, as apparently this happens in the NBA.
Players already have that option...it's called Free Agency! Buddy wasn't forced to sign 9 year deal with us, as it gave him long term financial security. Bob has also forgotten Buddy was bound by the AFL to see out his contract with us, as they imposed his contact will remain in our cap for the duration regardless if Buddy retired prematurely for whatever reason.Comment
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I actually wonder whether Buddy had a shoulder operation rather than a groin operation over summer. He seems always to be trying to mark with one arm and wrestle his opponent with the otherComment
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My expectation is that if Buddy were traded to another club, his salary would no longer be carried in the Swans' cap (though the excess might be, if a club took him on for a lower amount).
It's a daft concept IMO. Buddy primarily moved to the Swans because he wanted to live in Sydney where his wife is based. While I have little doubt she could organise her career living in a different state, presumably the pair want to live in Sydney, particularly because it is away from the intense spotlight of Melbourne, Perth or Adelaide.
From a Swans' perspective, even if we're not playing finals, Buddy is a huge drawcard for the crowds and an absolute delight to watch play. He also brings experience, craft and the will to win to our otherwise young forward line. Wouldn't you rather Blakey, Hayward, Papley et al continue to learn their craft with Buddy there, rather than without? So it makes zero sense for the Swans to even entertain a trade. (And while it's a secondary consideration, his trade value would be limited, given his age - he would hardly provide the bounty that some on here are fantasising about).
I also will be amazed if we "bottom out over the next few years missing finals". Maybe we'll miss the finals this year. Who knows. It is shaping up to be an even season and our form is only a smidgeon off where it needs to be. But even if we miss this year, I believe we have too much good and developing young talent to spend an extended period towards the bottom of the ladder. Unless we embark on a run of awful injury luck, at worst I expect us to spend the next few seasons fighting hard for a top eight spot, even if we don't always make it.Comment
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Buddy had a stinker on Thursday but he is the least of our problems on the field. He is always first targeted for a bad game by fans and the media, but it doesn't matter who you are, if your midfield is getting flogged its very difficult for a forward to have much influenceComment
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