Rd 19 vs Adelaide Crows @ SCG

[NeonBible]

Is the Lizard the most watchable player in the AFL?? Interestingly, his toughest competition may come from his own teammates - Isaac is such a wonderful one-touch player, & The Chad continues to go from strength to strength. Today was a quieter one for him by his recent standards but boy wasn't his impact great?

Clarke didn't quite get the feather in his cap of being able to say he nullified Dawson - but forcing them to move Dawson forward was already a win!

I won't lie.. I checked the stats sheet and saw that Rowbottom had passed the 25 disposal threshold and came on here immediately to see the fuss. You all did not disappoint. Though, if i am being frank in my assessment, I thought he was generally quite poor in this game.

Young Dylan is taking his game to another level. Wilbur, Papley, Buddy and Fox also highlights. Mills & Parker ferocious and unwavering in their on-field leadership, as usual.

Top 4 now feels a very real chance, but one week at a time!!

CHEER CHEER

[707]

Longmire suggesting very strongly that Josh is a definite part of the plans maybe as soon as next week.
“I’m sure there is a role for him. I can’t tell you what it is now other than the fact we are really confident he has played two games now and he’ll be confident in himself to play what we need him to do,”

Note to coaches - do not mess with the back six, they are going very well, Fox has been excellent.

[707]

Who is the 22nd player in our side now? It's probably Clarke who is mainly there as a negator.

So if JPK is coming back in this week, it will be at Clarke's expense who will go to the sub position.

[Faunac8]

AFL player ratings had career best performances by Dylan and Will and a season best performance from Tom P.
Plenty of other players played above their usual 2 year average levels so overall you could say it was an above average performance by the team .
For those wondering about the performance of Berry for the Cows he had a career best performance and rated 4 times his expected average so not really anything that could have been foreseen and planned for.
Laird had a season best performance as well so it’s not surprising that the game was tougher than many might have hoped. I am happy that we banked the four points at home without any injuries.

[dejavoodoo44]

Note to coaches - do not mess with the back six, they are going very well, Fox has been excellent.

Yes, at this time of the year, I'm sure it would be an advantage to have minimal team changes; in the hope of building an increasingly cohesive unit, who are developing a strong understanding of each other's skill sets.

[dejavoodoo44]

AFL player ratings had career best performances by Dylan and Will and a season best performance from Tom P.
Plenty of other players played above their usual 2 year average levels so overall you could say it was an above average performance by the team .
For those wondering about the performance of Berry for the Cows he had a career best performance and rated 4 times his expected average so not really anything that could have been foreseen and planned for.
Laird had a season best performance as well so it’s not surprising that the game was tougher than many might have hoped. I am happy that we banked the four points at home without any injuries.

I do like those ratings. I think they give a better understanding of a player's game, than fantasy points.

I also think that Hayward has been excellent lately and been encouraged by the improvement of Stephens. His woeful kicking in a couple of VFL games, had me contemplating a trade for him, where he was the set of steak knives, included in some sort of trade that we actually wanted to do.

[Agent 86]

25 touches at 76% efficiency ! His job is to win it on the outside and run and carry , he did that . He is a star !

More like has star potential, but not quite there yet. Still so young and with so much upside will almost certainly get there. Seems to be lacking a little confidence to take the game on - which was a highlight in the earlier games of his career so far - but JMac will be back!

[Markwebbos]

This headline seems spot on

Ex-Swans skipper Josh Kennedy stuns, gives coach a headache, Swans Vs Crows

[Faunac8]

Who is the 22nd player in our side now? It's probably Clarke who is mainly there as a negator.

So if JPK is coming back in this week, it will be at Clarke's expense who will go to the sub position.

It’s a small sample size but we are unbeaten this season with Ryan playing , we dropped him against Essendon and Hind who he probably would have played on was almost best on ground.
I want to see Josh back and it sounds like John does as well but to do so someone is going to be unlucky.
Wicks is the obvious to be dropped as the medi sub but who is the best option to assume that role moving forward?
Of course the current use of the medi sub appears to be fairly flexible now, calf tightness was one reason in one of the games yesterday so maybe as Ludwig has proposed Josh is used with the view that if required one of the mids suffers a “ rolled ankle or similar “

[MattW]

It’s a small sample size but we are unbeaten this season with Ryan playing , we dropped him against Essendon and Hind who he probably would have played on was almost best on ground.
I want to see Josh back and it sounds like John does as well but to do so someone is going to be unlucky.
Wicks is the obvious to be dropped as the medi sub but who is the best option to assume that role moving forward?
Of course the current use of the medi sub appears to be fairly flexible now, calf tightness was one reason in one of the games yesterday so maybe as Ludwig has proposed Josh is used with the view that if required one of the mids suffers a “ rolled ankle or similar “

I agree that Josh is likely to be sub this week.

The Swans would not be 'flexible' with the injury sub - genuine injuries only.

[wolftone57]

So Joey comes in next week, as seems likely. Who gets the flick from today's team?

Like for like in the midfield it should be Rowbottom. It has happened before! But is Rowbottom now an important cog in the midfield wheel?

If half-back, Fox or Florent. Fox is accustomed to being relegated to make way for others! Florent is the only other possibility there if Fox stays in.

Then there is Amartey who is not secure up forward but if Hickey is still hobbling and Ladhams is not ready to take his place next week, Amartey is a useful back up for Hickey and Reid in the ruck, as he was today.

The place of Stephens in the team, like Amartey is vulnerable. However, if the coaches believe he is going to be an important player at the Swans in the future, right now is probably not a good time to relegate him.

If not Stephens then McInerney probably plays a similar role and I agree with Maltopia that some of his game today was somewhat underwhelming.

There is of course one more player under consideration, that is Clarke. Like Fox he has a history of being in and out of the team and like Fox he seems to be able bounce back and fit in as required.

I am so glad I am not a selector!

I think McInerney has been a bit down lately. Maybe he comes out for either of these; Kennedy, Cunningham, Roberts, Sheldrick

Do we rest a few players? I mean the Giants are certainly playing more like rabbits than big boys. But you never know with that one. I think we should probably give McInernet a game in the twos to get consistent form back. Then maybe Hickey needs to rest after getting hit yet again in the knee. Ramps to rest and Gould to come in.

[wolftone57]

So Joey comes in next week, as seems likely. Who gets the flick from today's team?

Like for like in the midfield it should be Rowbottom. It has happened before! But is Rowbottom now an important cog in the midfield wheel?

If half-back, Fox or Florent. Fox is accustomed to being relegated to make way for others! Florent is the only other possibility there if Fox stays in.

Then there is Amartey who is not secure up forward but if Hickey is still hobbling and Ladhams is not ready to take his place next week, Amartey is a useful back up for Hickey and Reid in the ruck, as he was today.

The place of Stephens in the team, like Amartey is vulnerable. However, if the coaches believe he is going to be an important player at the Swans in the future, right now is probably not a good time to relegate him.

If not Stephens then McInerney probably plays a similar role and I agree with Maltopia that some of his game today was somewhat underwhelming.

There is of course one more player under consideration, that is Clarke. Like Fox he has a history of being in and out of the team and like Fox he seems to be able bounce back and fit in as required.

I am so glad I am not a selector!

There is no way Stephens goes out. He has been very good the last 3 weeks. This week was exceptional. Macca, I think, is a little down on form and needs to go back to the reserves to gain some consistent form. Rowbottom was pivotal yesterday. His pressure was enormous. Hickey did not do badly around the ground and he managed 4 clearances and 22 HO. riley O'Brien is an underrated ruck. Fox & Clarke were both good. Fox got 24 disposals and he doesn't even kick in. Amartey has been playing his role. The weather was not suited to big pack marks yesterday. Ball was a bit slippery after the rain in the first half.

[stevoswan]

Didnt say anything about speed . Nothing to do with speed . Basic manning up . But dont need to worry about it if you are winning the ball instead . Then they are on the chase and we are away

Oh, just give it up TB.....you did mention speed. Go back and read your bloody post. Here, I'll do it myself "No one could get near Laird or that Berry kid , who is a fantastic defensive mid and we couldnt even go with him." Sure you didn't actually use the word speed but it's all over that statement.

I give up!

[stevoswan]

Wasn’t that Callum Sinclair?

I think it might have been.

- - - Updated - - -

The man holds the AFL all time records for clearances and contested possessions. He still has something to offer this side and I have faith he will deliver.

Sent from my SM-G998B using Tapatalk

I think we all 'hope' he can deliver......not sure a lot of us are confident. We have faith but it's out of love and respect.....not actual reality. I am happy to be proven wrong of course.....but he's not the player he was anymore.

[Markwebbos]

I wonder if they’ll give Hickey a week off and bring in MacDonald? How far away is Ladhams?