Round 4 v West Coast

[crackedactor 01]

100% agree with this. I feel we are one of the few teams that doesn't have a decent intercept marking defender. Tom can do it a little, but he's definitely not elite in that area, and it has become a major weapon in the modern game to have intercept defender's to build an attack from.

It's an area we need to try and improve upon, and maybe Hamling might be someone that can do this? It's definitely worth a shot IMO.

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How good Hamling is still remains a mystery. He took 13 marks in his last VFL game and a few people have mentioned how good he was in late season playing for East Perth. However in the WA grand final they say he was woeful. Our backline is still a worry. Too many easy goals against the Eagles.

[SwanSand]

Great to see that two weeks in a row that we did not get it our way but the boys stuck to it. One loss and one win when the going was tough is Ok.
But agree that the defence all around the ground needs to be better. Are too many boys running forward of the contest is the question that we need to check?. We are not so good in the back and unless we defend well in the middle we are going to look poor.
Especially some great forwards up to come - Geelong, Suns, GWS, Carlton, Port Adelaide. We need to shore up the defence all around the ground

[Kafka's Ghost]

Pyke is the CEO. He really shouldn't be getting involved in the coaching.

Besides, putting pressure on the opposition is hardly a great innovation. Its AFL 101. I think the question is why WC don't do it more often. They have no excuses for how soft they've been for the opening month of the season. Last year they maybe had something of an "out" because of their injuries. But with the senior players they've had available all this year, the effort they showed today really should be the expectation every week.

Agree with WC not being quite the easybeats they were last year, given the senior players they now have available. Their pressure was good, and if they stay relatively healthy they’ll cause a few upsets. Just glad we got our game going after half time and weren’t one of them. Harley Reid reminds me of a younger Matt Rowell.


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[Ruck'n'Roll]

I get a bit annoyed at people’s assertions about the “Wicks situation”. We know nothing, in spite of some on here who claim to have inside knowledge.

A strongly put, but not an unreasonable point to make.

And I’d say whatever happened has probably had zero impact on the team’s performances. Wicks is a fringe player at best and he doesn’t appear from other players’ reactions on the field as being the most loved bloke on the list. I suspect his omission last week was poor form more than anything else.

You tick off 'captain' for making what you suggest are unfounded assertions then rattle off a string of your own - sounds just a tiny little bit inconsistent.

[KTigers]

I get a bit annoyed at people’s assertions about the “Wicks situation”. We know nothing, in spite of some on here who claim to have inside knowledge. And I’d say whatever happened has probably had zero impact on the team’s performances. Wicks is a fringe player at best and he doesn’t appear from other players’ reactions on the field as being the most loved bloke on the list. I suspect his omission last week was poor form more than anything else.

I think I'm with you. Aren't we all middle aged (and older) adult people on here? ie a bit old to be ruminating about a 20-something's
footballers love life (or lack of it). It's sort of kids' stuff, isn't it? I don't mind Wicksy as a player. Whenever he is out there he has a go
to the best of his (moderate) abilities. He often strikes me as one of those guys who probably should go to a weaker team, a North
Melbourne for instance, where he is good enough to get a game every week.

[Trever]

Sometimes you watch a game of sport and the highlight is that you get mesmerised by an opposition player.

Harley Reid mesmerised me. Watching him he looked a combination of Chad and Dusty with his pace, power and ability to fend off. He’s 19 and was already overpowerering AFL mature players. Also showed some attitude by giving it to J-Mac.

[longmile]

While McCartin was out of form the last few weeks I think people are forgetting that he has played some great games were he has taken lots of intercept marks and possessions. I think he reads the ball really well. Perhaps we need to rejig the backline a bit so he can play a bit freer?

[Kafka's Ghost]

While McCartin was out of form the last few weeks I think people are forgetting that he has played some great games were he has taken lots of intercept marks and possessions. I think he reads the ball really well. Perhaps we need to rejig the backline a bit so he can play a bit freer?

I think he also feels a bit more pressure when Rampe isn’t there to assist. He actually wins the ball pretty well, but his disposal the last couple of weeks has been right off.


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[MattW]

Sometimes you watch a game of sport and the highlight is that you get mesmerised by an opposition player.

Harley Reid mesmerised me. Watching him he looked a combination of Chad and Dusty with his pace, power and ability to fend off. He’s 19 and was already overpowerering AFL mature players. Also showed some attitude by giving it to J-Mac.

He was very impressive. He'll be very hard to stop soon and then for a long time.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

I was a bit surprised that Fox didn't go back to fill the Rampe type hole.
I know the Lizard can now be relied upon to take a tall when neccessary, but doing so might impede his chaos causing a bit.

[MattW]

I think he also feels a bit more pressure when Rampe isn’t there to assist. He actually wins the ball pretty well, but his disposal the last couple of weeks has been right off.


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We are really feeling Rampe's absence. If he's not fit in two weeks, I think we need Francis or Hamling to give us more of an aerial presence.

[liz]

While McCartin was out of form the last few weeks I think people are forgetting that he has played some great games were he has taken lots of intercept marks and possessions. I think he reads the ball really well. Perhaps we need to rejig the backline a bit so he can play a bit freer?

He's our best one-on-one tall defender, notwithstanding that Melican has been OK so far, and he's probably potentially our best interceptor. I wonder if sometimes he gets caught trying to do both, with the result he doesn't do either to his full capacity.

Someone like Taylor, at the Giants, is very good in both departments. But he may have more confidence in the rest of the defensive crew around him. Ditto Steven May.

Players like Sicily, Stewart, Aliir, even McGovern, are very rarely asked to be responsible for an upper echelon key forward. Indeed, Aliir's form last year when he was the only tall in Port's defence, trying to do both, wasn't great. That's why they went out and recruited Ratugolea and Zerk-Thatcher during the off-season.

We tried to get a good one-on-one defender too, but weren't able to really secure one.

[i'm-uninformed2]

Sometimes you watch a game of sport and the highlight is that you get mesmerised by an opposition player.

Harley Reid mesmerised me. Watching him he looked a combination of Chad and Dusty with his pace, power and ability to fend off. He’s 19 and was already overpowerering AFL mature players. Also showed some attitude by giving it to J-Mac.

I remember watching him tear the under 18 final apart as an underager. He’s a star. It was one thing to fob off a Paps or a Campbell, but he then went Heeney, Grundy and Rowbottom - hardly weaklings or poor tacklers.

[Auntie.Gerald]

Agree

H Reid is game breaker in his multiple roles he can play at almost an elite level already.

The Draft working !

…….

Back to us.

I’m happy.

West Coast have some seriously dangerous players and they attacked with gusto. Defended smartly and no doubt some good intel would have been shared via The Don and Simo.

[MattW]

I think I'm with you. Aren't we all middle aged (and older) adult people on here? ie a bit old to be ruminating about a 20-something's
footballers love life (or lack of it). It's sort of kids' stuff, isn't it? I don't mind Wicksy as a player. Whenever he is out there he has a go
to the best of his (moderate) abilities. He often strikes me as one of those guys who probably should go to a weaker team, a North
Melbourne for instance, where he is good enough to get a game every week.

I originally understood Wicks' omission to be performance related and thought that was fair enough. I do think we're missing a goal sneak / forward pressure player in the forward 50. I haven't seen Konstanty recently, but am encouraged by his selection as an emergency last week.

(I have nothing to say re the off-field business.)