Great Teams

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Johnny Member
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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685570Post Johnny Member »

tony74 wrote:Continually get up for games like tonight. Stating the obvious we're not a great team yet. But rather than follow the majority on here it's not purely talent. So much of it is between the ears. Anyone ( and there might be someone on this forum) who was in the rooms or even at training this week would have sensed it. Not that they got in front of themselves, just there wasn't the desire from the previous few weeks. I hear you say--- that's the coaches jobs. It ain't that simple. It takes the core of a great team, and that's what we're working on.
Very poor effort and result tonight but I can ASSURE you we're finding out who has the goods for the following years. Unfortunately we were a spent team both physically and mentally before we ran out tonight. Sport psychologists get paid a lot, let's hope they earn their money next week. Keep the faith.
P.S. Battle will make it.
But 'between the ears' is a major part of talent.


It's why I think Hodge is the best footballer ever. Ever.

Not because of his skill level or because how high he jumped at draft camp or because of how many meters gained he gets - but because he's the whole package. He uses it incredibly well. He's brave. He's tough. He plays well when he needs to. He plays well when he doesn't need to do. His decision making is elite. He kicks goals when he needs to. He lifts his team when he needs to.

To me, that's talent. Between the ears as you say, is probably the most important part. Billings nailing a set shot from 40m against weak opposition when the heat isn't really on, is great. But missing them against good opposition in a hot game when the team needs it, is the difference between a champion player and an Ok player that fans will oohh and ahh at every second week - but will never be part of a champion team.


That's where the gap in talent is for us in my opinion. Newnes is a classic example. Tough as, fit, looks polished. Reliable in the sense that he plays every week and can find the ball - but his decision making under pressure, and even when not under pressure is sub-standard.

Joey is a panicker too. But he's not alone. We're littered with blokes that wilt under the pressure and as a result, we're just not good enough.

So I have an issue with the talent of our cattle. We're not good enough.


But, I also have an issue with our strategy. It's too heavy on being 'strong' and 'solid' and basically killing yourself defensively for little reward - and what appears to be a severe neglect of offense. We can't be flogged by 10 goals every time a team is more intense than us. Sure, you'll lose most when you're out-pressured - but we capitulate. We have nothing else.

The problem really is, that we have nothing else - but we're not great at our Plan A.


In my opinion, we need more talent (defined above), and we need to be smarter in our offensively strategy. Seriously, bombing it to the hot spot is just idiotic. Fair dinkum, Hurley had about 20 intercetps last night. Every single person watching on the ground, at the ground and even on TV knew exactly where we were going to put the ball every time we went forward.

It's just mid boggling to think that the 5 or 6 times it works each week is going to be enough for us to kick a winning score.


To bust your arse so hard defensively, then to simply hand it back to your opposition in the 'hot spot' every time your go forward must be demoralising for them. And phyiscally exhausting too.


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685579Post spert »

I'm sure some time in the next 40 years we will get the right combination and challenge for another flag


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685586Post Life Long Saint »

Players with poor disposal will continually get found out under pressure.
We were found out again last night.
Number 43 for Essendon must be carrying knives because everytime he got near one of our blokes they thought their life was in danger the way they panicked. Sprayed kicks and missed targets by hand. It was embarrassing.
Whilst I feel sorry for Gilbert's injury, I am not disappointed he is not playing. His disposal time and time again is poor and gives the ball straight back to the opposition. Geary used to be the same but his last two seasons have been a major improvement.
Acres has surely done his time and must come back in.
Hickey showed last night what happens when you linger in two's for too long. He was seriously out of touch last night. But we know he is much better than that. Last year was a case of Billy Who so good was Hickey's form. If you keep playing senior players in the reserves then they become great reserve grade footballers and not good senior footballers.
Our next month is horrendous and we need to put last night behind us and do the work required to play high pressure football if we're to contend for finals.


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685588Post Jacks Back »

Some people are saying two 6 day breaks didn't help us. Well the dopers also came off two 6 day breaks (albeit no interstate travel like we did to Freo).

If people reckon we didn't lift for Maddies Match then their kidding themselves.

The positivity on here last week was so over the top that you could just see yet another crap effort coming.

Our losses are still bad - Over 40+ points in four games now and the Geelong blow out (was it 36 points or something)?

If we are going to be a good side then when we lose (and every team loses) we have to be competitive and not lose by big margins.

Pathetic Saints!


As ex-president Peter Summers said:
“If we are going to be a contender, we may as well plan to win the bloody thing.”


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685593Post spert »

I feel we are in a groundhog day situation with the Saints- we seem to be going over the same scenarios in the last few years..win a few encouraging wins then get thrashed- no mifddle ground. It is looking like a trend under Richo and I think we are lucky to be where we are on the ladder due to the topsy turvy form of so many teams this season.


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685606Post freely »

I agree with this stuff about Maddie's match - it wasn't wrong that the team lifted to support Roo. They played amazingly - but you can't do that week in week out. Look at our 2010 GFs. Were we a crap team because we couldn't come up the second week? No - we'd already given it all the week before. For mine, this is a bit of an argument against the 'marquee' games. We'd be much better off with a full season of regular games with nothing on the line but the 4 points.

We're a work in progress. Let's see what happens next week before we start sacking the coach, the development staff and the boot strappers.


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685607Post Zed »

its been a slow rebuild since Richo took over, and we have improved bit by bit. 12 wins in 2016, and unlikely to surpass that number this year. Not enough top end talent and too many guys who cant use the ball effectively under pressure. I really cant see us making a GF during this cycle, unless we can find some serious talent in the next draft.
Last edited by Zed on Sat 15 Jul 2017 8:26pm, edited 1 time in total.


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1685611Post whiskers3614 »

All Richardson's fault!
Why not devise a game plan that requires 7 small forwards and can overcome a lack of leg-speed and accuracy.

Not much to ask!


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Re: Great Teams

Post: # 1750697Post rodgerfox »

Johnny Member wrote: Sat 15 Jul 2017 12:14pm
tony74 wrote:Continually get up for games like tonight. Stating the obvious we're not a great team yet. But rather than follow the majority on here it's not purely talent. So much of it is between the ears. Anyone ( and there might be someone on this forum) who was in the rooms or even at training this week would have sensed it. Not that they got in front of themselves, just there wasn't the desire from the previous few weeks. I hear you say--- that's the coaches jobs. It ain't that simple. It takes the core of a great team, and that's what we're working on.
Very poor effort and result tonight but I can ASSURE you we're finding out who has the goods for the following years. Unfortunately we were a spent team both physically and mentally before we ran out tonight. Sport psychologists get paid a lot, let's hope they earn their money next week. Keep the faith.
P.S. Battle will make it.
But 'between the ears' is a major part of talent.


It's why I think Hodge is the best footballer ever. Ever.

Not because of his skill level or because how high he jumped at draft camp or because of how many meters gained he gets - but because he's the whole package. He uses it incredibly well. He's brave. He's tough. He plays well when he needs to. He plays well when he doesn't need to do. His decision making is elite. He kicks goals when he needs to. He lifts his team when he needs to.

To me, that's talent. Between the ears as you say, is probably the most important part. Billings nailing a set shot from 40m against weak opposition when the heat isn't really on, is great. But missing them against good opposition in a hot game when the team needs it, is the difference between a champion player and an Ok player that fans will oohh and ahh at every second week - but will never be part of a champion team.


That's where the gap in talent is for us in my opinion. Newnes is a classic example. Tough as, fit, looks polished. Reliable in the sense that he plays every week and can find the ball - but his decision making under pressure, and even when not under pressure is sub-standard.

Joey is a panicker too. But he's not alone. We're littered with blokes that wilt under the pressure and as a result, we're just not good enough.

So I have an issue with the talent of our cattle. We're not good enough.


But, I also have an issue with our strategy. It's too heavy on being 'strong' and 'solid' and basically killing yourself defensively for little reward - and what appears to be a severe neglect of offense. We can't be flogged by 10 goals every time a team is more intense than us. Sure, you'll lose most when you're out-pressured - but we capitulate. We have nothing else.

The problem really is, that we have nothing else - but we're not great at our Plan A.


In my opinion, we need more talent (defined above), and we need to be smarter in our offensively strategy. Seriously, bombing it to the hot spot is just idiotic. Fair dinkum, Hurley had about 20 intercetps last night. Every single person watching on the ground, at the ground and even on TV knew exactly where we were going to put the ball every time we went forward.

It's just mid boggling to think that the 5 or 6 times it works each week is going to be enough for us to kick a winning score.


To bust your arse so hard defensively, then to simply hand it back to your opposition in the 'hot spot' every time your go forward must be demoralising for them. And phyiscally exhausting too.
Interesting post. 18 months on, I agree.


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