Are we now a genuine Premiership threat?

[Ludwig]

David King and Nick Riedwolt are the king of football analysts

You meant to say the King and Queen of footy analysts. Right?

[stevoswan]

Im going to watch my tone as i truly dont intend to offend and i dont want this to become an argument . Would prefer to just discuss as when we dont listen to what eachother has to say and we assume the worst of eachother thats when things get out of hand. White flag up i come in peace.

. I say things from a place of tough love, every bloke who gets drafted to the red & white and puts on that cloth is a BLOOD and they are one of ours so it would be impossible to dislike any of them ! I might be hard on them because i want them to succeed and it gets bloody frustrating when they dont . That is something i have to work on , maybe taking a breather before i give my thoughts . But it is not from a place of hate or abuse . I dont know how many more times i can say that i like Rowbottom and think hes a good kid before you believe it ?

On his place specifically i reckon you're being too generous . Heard a lot about these 'niggles' he is carrying and how his knee injury is still effecting him . Yet he hasnt appeared in a single injury update or on the injury list once since coming back , and if he needed to be 'managed' they wouldnt have made him the sub where he might've had to play . He is obviously fine but just not playing well. I want him to play 200 games or more for this club , his best chance of doing that is as a small defender or as a full time tagger . We need to get real about his role at this club because if we continue under this idea that hes a young bull who just needs time then we will keep playing him in that role that hes just not good enough for and he will always be at risk of being dropped . I dont want that, do you ?

I don't think the worst of you TB and I also come in peace but sometimes my responses to what I believe you are implying may get 'lively'. I certainly do not believe that you 'hate' RB but at times it doesn't come across this way with your delivery. Yes, my nan used to advise me that if ever I was angry, just count to 10 and take a deep breath.....it was good advice.

As for his niggles, well no one is going to be on an injury list when they are being selected in the team are they? But when a player is listed as 'managed', it means they have either something of concern or are just tired....and the fact he was medical sub, ie: ready to come on if needed, I will admit does cast some doubt on the extent of any 'injury' he may have. However, while his 'highlights' and general stats this season are down the stats that indicate effort are up, ie: tackles and pressure acts....in fact, they're higher than Warner's. This does point to a vindication of the opinion that he might be more suited to run with roles or as a lockdown defender so you may well be right regarding what RB's best future position and role is. I agree that Warner has a better 'footy brain' than RB which explains why he has improved so much this season but even he has some things he needs to work on....ie: the aforementioned areas where RB is better than him.

Having said this, I still believe that when he is 100%, he will return to the midfield. I am not ready to consign him to a negative role (due to a supposed lack of talent) in our team just yet. If he fails to light it up in there, a negating role in defense (or as a midfield tagger) may be his best shot. Time will tell.....but IMO, we're not quite there yet. I'm sure the club are aware of his strengths and limitations and will find him his niche role. To me, he's still too good to not be in the team.....and he's still better than Bell (as much as he improved on the weekend).

Cheers mate.

[Vonsteinman]

Another derailment is threatening….

Can we make a new thread with a title such as “Rowbottom and what TB thinks and how others feel about that”?

Re premiership threat, I bumped it. Then Nick Riewoldt verbalised my thoughts.

I don’t think a loss this weekend means the Swans can’t win it. A non-competitive effort might be more meaningful, but the runs are on the board as things stand now.

Yes the Eagles were off on the weekend but good teams do what the Swans did, they smell death and make a kill.

They’ve been in with a chance against all other top eight sides, deep in the contest.

A fit list means serious competition for spots. It’s a hard 22 to break into so we are getting the best out of the group, which brings me back to my original opinion in this thread. If they stay fit, have a bit of luck, they are definitely a threat. Not a favourite necessarily, but in it up to the eyeballs.

[The Great One]

My prediction is Chamberlain, Stevic and Meredith (is he still going?).....should be enough to ensure a Doggies win.

I think Meridith has retired. Leave the first 2 in and replace Meredith with either Nicholls or Mollison and you are on the money with your prediction.

[cherub]

What surprises me is that in two of the games we were run over at the end, Fremantle and GWS, Hickey was injured early in the game,and this doesn't come up in discussion. Against Freo he hobbled on, but we were effectively at least half a player down. Against GWS he was subbed, but our structure and ability to win clearances /have a tall marking target was impacted. Hickey is vital to our chances, but, at least if Amartey is in the team, there is some backup. If we had won those games, we are in a top 4 discussion. (I know all teams have to cope with injuries, but Hickey has become such an important player).

[111431]

What surprises me is that in two of the games we were run over at the end, Fremantle and GWS, Hickey was injured early in the game,and this doesn't come up in discussion. Against Freo he hobbled on, but we were effectively at least half a player down. Against GWS he was subbed, but our structure and ability to win clearances /have a tall marking target was impacted. Hickey is vital to our chances, but, at least if Amartey is in the team, there is some backup. If we had won those games, we are in a top 4 discussion. (I know all teams have to cope with injuries, but Hickey has become such an important player).

Hickey is our most critical player. in the recent games we lost (hawks and port) he could barely jump which meant our clearance work was less effective and he becoming a marking option around the ground was limited. On Sunday he was back to his best winning clearances in his own right and also sneaking forward to become a marking option. If the Wild Thing can stay fit we will be very competitive

[stevoswan]

Talk about a dog with a bone!

If you really don't want to offend, just drop the messaging re Rowie.

It's not just the constant harping and then dancing away from it that bores people. it's also the monotonous nature of some posts..same..same..same.

If this post is against RWO rules, I apologise and will take my shot, but it needs to be said.

To be fair, TB was just replying to my post.

[Blood Fever]

To be fair, TB was just replying to my post.

Might be better if you two used Private Messages

[joeykanga]

Might be better if you two used Private Messages

I feel like they’re actually expressing themselves rather well in the last few posts and you get an understanding of both viewpoints…

[NeonBible]

No

Very nuanced and optimistic post as always heh.. I don't know if you meant for this to be comical or not TB, but i had a good chuckle at this

Only because i agree, I don't see us threatening for the premiership this year BUT... I think that could be a good thing .. leave some hunger burning in the gut for the squad next year!! Just making FINALS will make me very happy! And we are oh so close!

[Goal Sneak]

Can we make a new thread with a title such as “Rowbottom and what TB thinks and how others feel about that”?

Careful... Then every new thread would get merged into it, resulting in one singular super thread which would, i think, have far reaching consequences and should only be considered as a last resort. It could very well start an irreversible, eternally imploding, digital brain fart.

[Roadrunner]

TB is mellowing, and so we’re all grateful. He has an opinion on Rowey’s best position and he is fully entitled to that. Time will tell! So happy to hear your views on all our other players TB-apart from the Chad, of course- as I for one value your assessments.

As for the flag- what we have shown is that we can mix it with any team on a given day when we are all firing. But it is lot to expect from a young team to be consistent in intensity and execution. I think we still have a weakness in defence and the need for a tall marking forward- hopefully Amartey and Logan can fulfill this role soon, I’ll be very happy to make the finals this year and then really be in for the flag in 22.

[KTigers]

Very nuanced and optimistic post as always heh.. I don't know if you meant for this to be comical or not TB, but i had a good chuckle at this

I would like to expand on this, and say "probably not".

[bloodspirit]

I would like to expand on this, and say "probably not".

You're channelling The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy when it expanded its entry on Earth from 'Harmless' to 'Mostly harmless'.

[Vonsteinman]

Bump