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For what its worth I thought Fremantle were very average last night. I lost count how many marks Rory Lobb dropped last night and there did not seem a lot of system in their forward structure. I know its silly to be confident against a team that plays well in Sydney and finds a way to win the close ones, but I think the bookies have the odds about right for Sydney at $1.40 to $1.50.
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I do believe we are better organised.
I do believe we are harder at the ball.
I do believe we will start slow because of the week off. Hope NOT though.
I think there backs are good and train with some very quick players.
I think our mids are better.
Are we matched up down back.. maybe..
De gooey is a problem , Ginnivan is good.
The Swans play as a team now which is half the battle.
We will win because the Swans are a team-first this year.. they trust each other and have a plan and have brought into the Horse - Pike systems.
Go Swans.Comment
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I was at the Pies game last night and they were very impressive. They really should have won by a lot more.
The key to me was that the Collingwood defense was right on top most of the night. Freo, despite their pace and good midfield, were unable to generate any run and carry into the forward line. This meant their forward entries were slow and shallow.
The Pies looked far more threatening going forward as players like DeGoey and Crisp were able to break the lines.
Turning to next week, we will have to bring the heat - pressure, pressure, pressure. Make their key backs like Moore accountable, and neutralise players like De Goey and the Daicos boys. Our forward line is more dangerous than Freo and our defensive game is better. We are a good matchup to the Pies' game plan. We can win, and should win, provided we start well.Comment
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It will be interesting to see how the Pies change things after the last game against us.
We really strangled their ball movement in the same way we did against Melbourne. We moved the ball slowly and methodically keeping our defensive shape as we went so turnovers weren’t costly.
I’m expecting a big game from Heeney who I think is the matchup that will trouble their defence the most.
Mills to take De Goey, and I’d back him to do a similar job to the one he did on Dangerfield. Strong enough to handle him and a smart defender that will block his running patterns and curtail his dynamism.He ate more cheese, than time allowedComment
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I was really pissed off last night listening to SEN after midnight. A Collingwood supporter rang up and there was discussion about the huge crowd last night and then talk moved on to the crowd at the Prelim and the Collingwood supporter said we "have no soul". What a load of crap! I was so furious ????. He obviously watched their last game against us on mute. Same with the Qualifying Final.
I really really really hope we smash them and he sees what "souless" is like.Comment
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To be fair, the SCG has an over representation of brown shoe/collared shirt types with brand new Swans scarves who use the footy as an entree before a night out in Paddington or Surry Hills. Unfortunately the atmosphere is pretty tame and really only lifts in the last quarter if the scores are close. Whether this is a result of the brown shoe brigade or the booming music after goals is hard to say.
Being down in Melbourne for the game last Friday was awesome. THAT was an atmosphere and one that I would love the SCG to have consistently.
Love them or hate them, the Pies crowd create a brilliant atmosphere for their team, one we can only dream of.Comment
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Agree, it's hard to replicate the deep splintering MCG roar you get with Pies matches.
Ours is more of an ear-shattering scream, but only in moments, not the whole game. It's different. Imagine what that would be like for a full four quarters though.
One day. Our crowd engagement has been a lot better this year. I really noticed it against the Tigers in round 11 earlier this year.Captain, I am detecting large quantities of win in this sectorComment
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Not sure about your call on the odds, but totally agree about Freo - they looked like they came without a plan. Gave it a red hot crack for 10 mins and when that didn't work, threw in the towel. I reckon there were 5 teams outside of the 8 that would have given a better account of themselves than Freo did last night.
Pies were very good indeed, but their opposition was pretty much nothing from half way through the first quarter.Comment
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very true!
I think the odds are about right, despite us being heavy favourites (something I never feel comfortable about).
I thought Freo were very, very poor after the initial foray, and were only even a sniff really because the Pies didn't kick straight. But I also think it reveals the key chink in the Pies armour too - they simply don't score enough. They only kicked 11.13 last night. Yes, freo are decent defensively, but that game was a very one sided final as well. They haven't got past 100 since Rd 8 I think? I posted this elsewhere too, but Squiggle is a pretty reliable model in broad terms. On the basis of the whole season, there are only two teams left that profile anywhere near Premiership teams in the AFL era
Squiggle https://live.squiggle.com.au/
Collingwood has an attack about equal to ours in 2005 but a significant poorer defence. The profile just isn't there (neither is it for the Lions). That doesn't mean miracles/fairytales and outliers can't happen, but it makes it very unlikely. Especially when the recent miracle team (the year we do not speak about) had the right type of measure to win the flag - just not the ladder position usually needed.
As long as we don't let them get a massive jump on us, then I'm confident we will be too good for them. Within 3 goals at half time or better, and I think we will have too much for them.
It is going to be a long week!"You get the feeling that like Monty Python's Black Knight, the Swans would regard amputation as merely a flesh wound."Comment
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Do people think the week off will work in our favour?Comment
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Could a mod please add the game time (2:45 PM) to the thread title? Many thanks.Comment
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