Post Match Discussion - Freo game

[mad saint guy]

Well you certainly can't complain about the players' effort tonight, but if it was against anyone but Freo (or Melbourne) we would have copped a spanking. Fremantle put in the most undisciplined, selfish, weak effort I have seen from any team in the past few years.

It was good to see some kids in at last, and they certainly did provide some spark to the team (which should have happened at the start of the season). The most noticeable difference was in the likes of Riewoldt, Goddard and Gram (who are the guys who woin the game for us) all seemed to go up a level with the responsibility of being role models for the younger players.

Gram - One of his best games for the year. He ran well and consistently broke the lines without getting into major trouble. Good to see him nailing some long-range shots at goal as well. That said, he did have one horrible passage of play in the last quarter that robbed us of a chance to put the match away. 7.5/10

King - Ok game. He was quite useful around the ground and reasonably competitive in the ruck. 6/10

McEvoy - He certainly looked nervous in the first half, but he settled down and did some good work around the ground in the second. I would like to see him stay in the team, but as a forward pinch hitting in the ruck rather than the other way around. He was well and truly dominated by Sandilands in the ruck. 4/10

Hayes - Played the best quarter I have seen from a midfielder in many years before going off with a hammy. Was on track to set a new supercoach record and get himself 3 brownlow votes before going off.

Hudghton - Pretty good game. Freo got 2 or 3 goals from ridiculous free kicks, so for a defence to only concede 5 honest goals is a good effort. Max had a few trademark brilliant spoils and had a bit of the footy. 6.5/10

Montagna - Still isn't hurting teams offensively like he should be, but 15 touches and 8 tackles is a decent effort. Was used as a run-with player for a lot of the game. 6.5/10

Riewoldt - Probably played the best game of his career. He was taking marks at the top of his leap, kicked well for goal and ran all day. Awsome effort. 10/10

Ball - Was fighting away in packs all day. His disposal was ordinary at times, but he did an excllent job of feeding it out to the runners. 7/10

Goddard - Great game. Attacked the footy with great intensity, kicked brilliantly and it was great to see him fly the flag after Warnock took Ball out with a cheap shot. He was bagged for having a go at his team mates at times, but his reactions after goals and the final siren shows that his emotions all stem from intense passion for the club. 8.5/10

Gilbert - He tried hard and made some good spoils, but his disposal was absolutely horrible. He is very lucky that we have no other defensive options. 4.5/10

Armitage - I was shocked to see that he only had 11 touches. He goes in hard, follows it up with second and third efforts and is quite damaging with the footy. Good game from Armo, even if the stats aren't impressive. 7/10

Dempster - I really don't know how he is still getting a game. He is beaten easily in one on one contests and is useless under pressure. It was just embarrassing when he was shoved out of the contest by the 172cm Peter Bell. People might point out that his opponent didn't get much of it, but it wouldn't be a hard job to keep your man quiet when you've got 17 team mates in your area. 4/10

S.Fisher - Yeah, Pav was the only reason Freo were in the game, but that happens most weeks. Fisher had a very good offensive game and wasn't too bad defensively. 7/10

Blake - Played a fair game. He had what was probably the stupidest free kick ever paid in any sport, ever go against him early in the game, but he made some good spoils and took some contested grabs. Earnt his spot. 6/10

Gardiner - Not up to it. We used him far, far too often. Leads into bad spots and is simply unreliable with his marking and disposal. Would much rather Allen or McEvoy play as the lead up half forward. 4/10

McQualter - He isn't the most damaging player around, but he is one of the most comitted. His attack on the ball and the man is superb and his second efforts are the best in the team. He won't hurt the opposition with the footy, but he won't turn it over either. He might not be good enough to play in a premiership side, but right now he's in our best 18. 6.5/10

Gwilt - Did a fair job. Had plenty of support, but his composure with the footy was much better than we've seen recently and he didn't let his opponent get away from him. Did well when taking the kick ins. 6.5/10

Harvey - Great game. Just vintage Harvey. I'm actually starting to think that he could go around again. He's not slowing down at all, and he seemed to relish playing in a team with some more enthusiasm. 9/10

Allen - Was a but shakey in the first quarter but it definitely a player for the future. Has good skills and is very smart. He should play most of the remainder of the season and be a permanent fixture in '09. 5.5/10

Jones - Did nothing of note. He's ok when he gets the ball in space but just whacks it on the boot with no target whenever he has it in a contested situation. Definitely shadowed by McQualter as a small tough nut. 4.5/10

Eddy - Looked very comfortable, but wasn't damaging. He can find the footy and his defensive pressure is very good, but doesn't really hurt the opposition. Will hold his spot though. 5/10

Geary - Didn't do much early, but was handy when played at half forward in the final quarter. Reads the ball very well and is good in the contest. Needs to get into the play more though. 4.5/10

[mad saint guy]

Assuming that Dal and Milney both put in good efforts for Casey on Sunday and that Lenny is ok, I'd think that Dempster and Jones would make way for the two ins. If Kosi it fit then Charlie goes out.

[matrix]

lenny wont play

[plugger66]

Assuming that Dal and Milney both put in good efforts for Casey on Sunday and that Lenny is ok, I'd think that Dempster and Jones would make way for the two ins. If Kosi it fit then Charlie goes out.

Lenny will miss at least one week and should be ok after the break.

[JeffDunne]

I reckon you're tough on Blake.

He was outstanding and for once looked like a senior player.

[mad saint guy]

Lenny looked to be walking with no trouble after the match and was hopeful for quite a while that he'd get back onto the ground after the injury. With 8 days between games I wouldn't be surprised to see him play.

[plugger66]

Lenny looked to be walking with no trouble after the match and was hopeful for quite a while that he'd get back onto the ground after the injury. With 8 days between games I wouldn't be surprised to see him play.

I would.

[Teflon]

hhmmm....I actually liked the fwd lu ne with SOME defensive pressure.....the longer hes out the harder it will be on Milne...

Dallays some tackles and competes he'll walk back in.

[plugger66]

hhmmm....I actually liked the fwd lu ne with SOME defensive pressure.....the longer hes out the harder it will be on Milne...

Dallays some tackles and competes he'll walk back in.

That may be right about pressure but against any other side apart from Melbourne we lose. We have to kick at least 13-15 a game against better sides and the side we had in tonight will not do that.

[Simon Templar]

Yeh, I reckon tough on Blake too, as we watched a passage of play in the last quarter involving a Blake spoil on Pav, which happened to be 10 seconds after a spoil he made on Tarrant.....sort of typified his effort tonight and we declared one could never bag such a warrior....again!

[bobmurray]

Lyon was saying post match that the medicos thought Hayes hamstring might be back related and that he might come up next week........

Not sure if was having a lend of the media or telling it as it is......

[Saints43]

I reckon you're tough on Blake.

He was outstanding and for once looked like a senior player.

I reckon you're being tough on his career.

Best minimum wage, seven year player in the league.

I love him.

[Teflon]

hhmmm....I actually liked the fwd lu ne with SOME defensive pressure.....the longer hes out the harder it will be on Milne...

Dallays some tackles and competes he'll walk back in.

That may be right about pressure but against any other side apart from Melbourne we lose. We have to kick at least 13-15 a game against better sides and the side we had in tonight will not do that.

agree the opposition wasnt flash but I still thought with the side we had in Freo shouldve rolled us - they have been quite close to sides over the last few weeks and were red hot favs.

Its hard to say...yes Milne kicks goals....but what do we lose on the rebound when he displays no defensive side to his game at all?

Interesting to hear on radio tonight Brereton talk about St Kilda needing to get the defensive pressure right BEFORE they start to worry bout the goals - he went on to cite finals/Premiership teams who have been built on this and said Milne AND Dal Santo at present offer us nothing in this regard.........our pressue WAS better tonight...it can still improve but it was better.

Id hate to see that drop off next week.

[mad saint guy]

hhmmm....I actually liked the fwd lu ne with SOME defensive pressure.....the longer hes out the harder it will be on Milne...

Dallays some tackles and competes he'll walk back in.

That may be right about pressure but against any other side apart from Melbourne we lose. We have to kick at least 13-15 a game against better sides and the side we had in tonight will not do that.

It's unfortunate, but true. While it was great to see the kids try their guts out, any decent team would have walked over us. We had no reliable avenue to goal, our skills were ordinary and we played a scrappy, defensive brand of footy after the first quarter (in which we kicked almost half our score).

[Jakes]

You are really harsh on Jones - He was one of our best ... Ran his guts out most of the night and always gave an option (No wonder he was spent at the end of the game) ... I did not rate him at all last season but he has had a very good season and is probably the most improved player on our list

[JeffDunne]

I reckon you're tough on Blake.

He was outstanding and for once looked like a senior player.

I reckon you're being tough on his career.

Best minimum wage, seven year player in the league.

I love him.

I meant 'senior' as in one of the team leaders.

Sorry, I didn't mean to sound like I was bagging the Blake.

[vacuous space]

I'd think that Dempster and Jones would make way for the two ins.

Dempster did an excellent job on Farmer. He may get Harvey or Grant next week. Jones played a decent game too - better than most of our youngsters. No chance either one gets dropped next week.

[MadSaintFan]

Thankyou Ross for finally rotating some inexperianced players through the team rather than the usual:
In: L. Fisher Birss etc.

For us to be any sort of chance in the next few years we must blood some young talent and tonight they were on display.

Rob Eddy showed that he will be a long term player.....excellent endurance and neat skills with hand and foot.

Jarryd Allen presented well and will only continue to improve.

McEvoy will only get better......to play ruck in your first year is a tough task. Dont forget Warnock for example has been in the system for 3 years.

Dont think we missed Milne tonight. In my opinion he's gone at the end of the year. Sounds tough since hes our leading goalscorer. But if your not willing to play defensively and commit to the blue-collar side of the game then I dont want you in a jumper. Dont care if he kicks 4 or 5 against bottom 4 teams.

[Saints43]

I reckon you're tough on Blake.

He was outstanding and for once looked like a senior player.

I reckon you're being tough on his career.

Best minimum wage, seven year player in the league.

I love him.

I meant 'senior' as in one of the team leaders.

Sorry, I didn't mean to sound like I was bagging the Blake.

I know. I didn't respond properly. Cheers.

[mad saint guy]

Dont think we missed Milne tonight. In my opinion he's gone at the end of the year. Sounds tough since hes our leading goalscorer. But if your not willing to play defensively and commit to the blue-collar side of the game then I dont want you in a jumper. Dont care if he kicks 4 or 5 against bottom 4 teams.

Surely a small forward averaging 13 disposals, 4 marks, 2 tackles and 2.2 goals per game is earning his spot on the list. Especially considering he's playing in a team where we rarely move the ball forward quickly and almost never kick to contests inside 50.

His defensive pressure isn't as bad as most make out. He does chase and harass, but it is true that far too many of his tackle don't stick. But he contributes 3 goals per game and he's our only real goalkicker other than Riewoldt. I expect him to be back in the side next week and stay there for the rest of the year.

[Otiman]

His defensive pressure isn't as bad as most make out. He does chase and harass, but it is true that far too many of his tackle don't stick. But he contributes 3 goals per game and he's our only real goalkicker other than Riewoldt. I expect him to be back in the side next week and stay there for the rest of the year.

Milne is a tough one to judge. He does not fit into this "100% accountable" side. In the game where we need 22 blokes who can run, mark, and present, he just isn't there.

We need to have a specific sidenote in the gameplan for Milne and his unique attributes. With the right coaching, he can continue to be a 50+ goal a year player, but is it a liability in the grand master plan of the team? I don't think so, but some (the powers that be) might.

[midas_touch]

Really harsh on CJ, what does he have to do in order for u not to have an antipathy towards him?

[Otiman]

Really harsh on CJ, what does he have to do in order for u not to have an antipathy towards him?

It's just one of those things. Just like Barks will always have a thing for Rix, MSG will always have a thing against Jones.

[pluggernaut]

I actually think Jones foot skills are improving! I've been telling all my mates that this Jones kid could be a really good player, but his kick is shithouse! But in the last 2 weeks I reckon his skills are geting better. Go Jonesy!

[StPeter]

CJ was excellent again tonight.

How can you possibly suggest that McQualter was the superior player.... I think we watching different games!