Swans v Suns: Round 6.

[TheBloods]

2-3 weeks.

Cant come back soon enough. Defence is shambles

[waswan]

Dont worry about Rampes, we just got a lesson in why you cant be 10% off going into any game.


Ressies too, how does that team lose a VFL game to GC.

Hard at the contest and hit targets the rest you can blame on the coaches

[mcs]

Yes, I also thought we missed Rampe a lot. Not really for his defending, more for his drive. He's excellent for making decisions quickly, launching attacks and getting the overlap run going. We also didn't seem to do much at full pace today. I suspect that onfield, Rampe might have something of a manic sheepdog personality, which compels those around him to push harder.

Yep definitely missing his leadership as much as his defending. The drive out of defence was awful today in general - just couldn't get anything flowing. And when we did, more often than not turned it over through poor ball use.

[Legs Akimbo]

Watching The Game on Amazon has really made me realise how much of each week happens inside players heads. Coaches, threaten, cajole, encourage, support, yell, implore to get players to switch on and give 100 percent. That last 1 percent is often the difference between success and failure.

Today we never checked in. The boys didn't turn up to play, mentally. It was evident in the poor disposal, lack of intensity, poor second efforts, lazy decision making and windmill tackling. Yes Suns applied pressure. They checked in and came to play. We pretended to.

I will out single out Lloyd. I've never been a huge fan. This week and last week he has damaged our team. The scrub kicks, kicks to disadvantage, turnovers lack of pressure and lateral ball movement. At his best he can link well. He is far from his best. Honestly deserves demotion on today's effort.

And horse, do not play injured players again. It never works. Play the kids as we did in the early rounds. Back them in. Get them to believe. Get the confidence back.

[dejavoodoo44]

I thought we came out and tried to play the game style from our first 3 games. The Suns also were playing the same style. We just couldn't match their intensity and started to fall away. It may well have been our poor decision making kicking into the forward line and our poor skills under pressure that sapped out energy. The Suns were always that half step ahead up us. They were able to close us down, while they seemed to just manage to break from the pressure and hit targets when required.

Although it looked really bad today, we were not quite as bad as it looked. We just came up against a better side on the day. Too bad for us.

Geelong blew away the Eagles. So I expect that we will come out and crush the Cats next week.

Yes, some of our worst clangers today, were from switching into the corridor and missing the target. It looks terrible when the opposition intercept the kick and score, but it's the game plan that most posters claim that they want us to play.

While I was disappointed with our constantly missing targets and our incoherent forward entries, what disappointed me the most, was that the Suns applied much more chase down pressure than us. Too much trailing along behind, rather than attacking the ball carrier, and very little shepherding the Gold Coast chasers, or even, letting our ball carriers know that they were hot.

[i'm-uninformed2]

There's one poster that is as interesting as a Milli Vanilli record. Just ignore him.

What I will say about today is that was dreadful decision making and kicking, by senior and junior players. Of course other sides take time to digest what we're doing and counter it. But when blokes are 10m in the clear, and you miss them by 5m, it ain't gonna be your day. Plus, they looked very tired.

We're still working it out as a side, and that's ok. But today was poop. Something the coaches will work out how to use.

[waswan]

Missing kicks was one thing but i reckon we missed our first 10 handballs around the packs

No excuses, couldnt handle pressure, weak as p8ss

[Blood Fever]

You thought today’s effort was acceptable then?

We were poor today and they were on fire. It happens. How come we hardly ever hear from you when we play well and win? It's like clockwork

[longmile]

Any updates on injuries?

Obviously Hewett misses a week and you'd imagine Isaac should too, but Brand and Blakey I'm not sure about

[rojo]

The bubble was always going to burst but it was fun while it lasted.

Even with Rampe and Hickey in we were going to be challenged by teams working out our new game plan and were going to have to be able to be flexible in adapting. Maybe we didn't practise a plan B in pre-season, unless our old plan is plan B! And we were over-depending too on the skill and flair of our first year players who were always going to come under pressure and/or run out of steam. Today, as with last year, our middle tier players are not good enough to take up the slack when our key players are out. So it all just becomes a bit too difficult. Joey and Parks can play their hearts out but they alone cannot drag all the inexperienced ones with them. Sam Reid and Lloyd do not seem to provide any leadership at all and Sinclair is struggling. Today was just one of those days, Heeney and Rowie playing but not match fit, and Hewett and Blakey going down. On reflection it was a recipe for the mini-disaster that it was.

It is possible that the next game will be even more challenging personnel-wise. Until we get Rampe and Hickey back and match fit we are facing an uphill battle. Here's hoping that Brand and Blakey pull up okay. If Stevens is not yet fully match fit or ready for it I hope he continues on in the VFL side until he is, ditto Gould.

[Blood Fever]

Any updates on injuries?

Obviously Hewett misses a week and you'd imagine Isaac should too, but Brand and Blakey I'm not sure about

Papley looks sore to me. May need a rest

[Nico]

Hayward is the bad luck omen. Every time, well most of the time he plays Swans lose.

I was at the game and he seemed to aimlessly walk around the forward line. Has a very small tank and had hands on hips a lot of the time. Not AFL standard and I am aghast at why they signed Melican for another 3 years. The disposal by the following was appalling: Melican, Florent, Dawson, Lloyd. Dawson puzzles me why he chips and pulls his kicks and misses targets consistently. Why in the heck doesn't he roost it most on the time.

The big plus for me was Chad Warner. He worked hard all game and most of the time was clean with his disposal. Has a massive tank.

I watched the last 3 quarters of the 2's and if Joel Amartey isn't promoted to the seniors next week then the club is not serious. He was very good, is a big unit, clean with the footy, takes a good grab and very mobile. Has to replace McLean. Stephens had a top last quarter so should come in. When he lifted the team lifted.

Our best player in the reserves; Paddy McCartin. Read the play very well and is a very good and composed kick. Lets hope we can pick him up in the mid season draft.

[Ralph Dawg]

Amazing how such a promising start to the season has turned around so quickly in 2 weeks.

Injuries have really hobbled us, in particular Hickey. The man was everywhere for us, disposing of the ball so cleanly and even kicking goals. His absence has hurt us not only at the stoppages and the middle of the ground but at both ends where he seem to be just when needed.

But the biggest issue has been our inability to execute under pressure. We were given a free run by the opposition in the first 3 rounds. But now the opposition is marking up on us much more tightly and are also aware of the short kicks and movement into the corridor. Essendon effectively provided the blue print to stop us, GWS executed it better and GC really took us to the sword.

The next few weeks are going to be a challenge. They will effectively determine if we are legitimate top 8 material or whether the first 3 weeks were a flash in the pan.

[Mel_C]

You think we’ve come to play today? ????????????

I was responding to your comment that under Longmire we don't consistently come to play which is incorrect.

My posts in this thread have shown my disappointment in the way we played today. No arguments there.

[Mel_C]

Missing kicks was one thing but i reckon we missed our first 10 handballs around the packs

No excuses, couldnt handle pressure, weak as p8ss

I agree we missed too many targets with handballs throughout the whole game. And I thought we over handballed and put teammates under pressure.