Player Review vs Fremantle

[Checkside35]

The 'no gameplan' posters need to give us a better one. Can you?

 

[Duggy31]

Beams numbers were fantastic, however his skills were terrible. What was he doing when he got the ball in heavy traffic in the 3rd quarter, and he just stood there like a muppet, waiting for I think it was Mayne or Mundy to tackle him. I didn't put Beams in my best tonight.

I think people are being a bit harsh on Harry L tonight, he was one of 5 players tonight who had a real crack at getting his team back into the game. The other 4 were Pendlebury, Langdon, Young, and Sinclair.

Constantly we would get into space and kick directly to a white and purple jersey. We haven't had a Fremantle player on our team since Medhurst was at the club, how can we be so confused by our jumper colours?

I thought Goldy tried hard and earned his spot. I also think Clarke did some good things. Maxwell, Brown, and Toovey are all premiership players, and they let their men run riot in the forward line. Brown is very lucky Pavlich didn't kick 5.

Grundy and Witts I thought were serviceable against a man mountain, when Witts learns to kick for goal the way he does in the VFL, he is going to be a very dangerous prospect. It wasn't about what Grundy did with the ball tonight, it was about hat he was doing without it. I'm surprised I didn't see some brown stains on the shorts of the Fremantle smalls when Grundy decided it was his turn to tackle, coz he wanted to hurt them.

All I want is Buckleys attacking game plan, but with Micks defensive pressure. We were out Malthoused in the pressure department tonight. And when are we going to learn how to hit a target.

In living memory I can't remember a game we have played poorer than this.

Best: Pendlebury, Langdon, Lumumba, Young.

 

[MarkT2]

Game went as I suspected.
Fact is Freo are a good side and we are an average side.
That we are an average side is distressing. How we got to be an average side is the issue.

 

[MarkT2]

The 'no gameplan' posters need to give us a better one. Can you?

It's very simple. Not enough developed talent on the list.

 

[Mick98]

It's about time Sidebottom copped his on this forum.

Frontrunner of the highest degree.

Not a truer word said.

 

[doodles98]

The 'no gameplan' posters need to give us a better one. Can you?

that'd be the coaching staff's job.. they actually get paid to come up with one.... still waiting though

 

[TheWoodsOf72]

Maxwell
Clarke
Lumumba
Elliot
Goldsack

aren't AFL level players anymore. I'm especially disappointed with Elliot who was worst on ground tonight for mine. He was solid last season and you'd expect a player his age to improve on that however across the preseason he's fumbled too much, kicked poorly and generally made poor decisions.

Also out midfield gets a big F. Playing midfield these days is not about racking up high possessions anymore, it's about cleanliness and distributing the ball to runner who aren't under perceived pressure. Just from watching the two midfields tonight it was painful to see ho better drilled Fremantle were than us. They don't fumble and at first opportunity handball to wide runners under no pressure which gives them an advantage kicking to the forward line especially when it's 1v1. Our midfield, on the other hand, fumbles too much and when we do get the ball in tight throw it onto the boat too often rather than look to throw out the handball to a runner. It becomes even worse when you consider that we were allowing them to play a loose man in defence.

Finally a great and honest summary. Lumumba was mvp5 last year. Him and the others you named can go

 

[legendstatus]

Wow was expecting a reaction like this. One game down heaps of better players to come in still , hang tight everyone the world is not falling apart!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[bucksisbest]

I thought Grundy was quite good considering, particularly when others for us were picking Sandilands out.

Beams tried hard but very fumbly and poor execution.
Everyone except Collingwood coaching staff know Marty Clarke is one of the worst footballers on an AFL list.

Quite a few people felt they had Sidebottom pegged in a thread on him recently, so it's not a major secret.

Watching them go straight down the guts three times from a kick out and kick a goal before we blinked showed the difference in spread, structure, coaching, skills and smarter players.

We are structured and play like an under 10s side, just kick and hope, get sucked in to useless areas and clog all our dangerous space.

 

[Checkside35]

that'd be the coaching staff's job.. they actually get paid to come up with one.... still waiting though

The execution of the gameplan is what is suffering. I can see what they are trying to do. If people can't see one, they aren't watching. Either that or they don't know what a gameplan is.

 

[soreplums]

Didn't think Sinclair gave us enough run from the back line, I wouldn't mind him as a forward again with Kennedy. He is smart enough to get to the right spots and I think his kicking has improved.

Thoughts of caff in the back line?

 

[Pera]

Dont want to bash the side considering its Round 1. But, gee, what to say?

Posititves
Langdon very impressive on debut. Looks like a good talent. Unfortunately the only positive I can find.

Negatives
Fitness is still a MAJOR issue. Lack any defensive run and sides are getting us on the rebound.
Gameplan, or style of play, well, I see nothing different from 2013....yet. Wont bash it yet as it is only round 1.
Entry inside forward 50 is ABYSMAL! Its a hail Mary with the same result time after time.

Ugly
Ben Kennedy as the sub...... AGAIN! Absolutely terrible move making the kid who showed the most form in the NAB Challenge games the #22 man.
The fumbling and third/fourth touch football killed us. Freo's pressure immense and sustained over four quarters.

 

[Mick98]

What an unforgettable year this is shaping up to be.

 

[THATSGOLD]

Can people really say Pendles and swan were ok tonight? We know what they are capable of, and that was well below it.

I'm worried about Swans future. He looks like he on the decline now. Pendlebury is carrying the midfield now and even his kicking was poor at times.

 

[HFF]

Didn't think Sinclair gave us enough run from the back line, I wouldn't mind him as a forward again with Kennedy. He is smart enough to get to the right spots and I think his kicking has improved.

Thoughts of caff in the back line?

Caff to the backline? He is slower than nay ruckman in the league and he has the turning circle of the queen mary. He would get torched on a crafty forward.

As for Sinclair, no he didn't give us much run out of defence but I'd put it down to having to play too much of a defensive game rather than finding the right balance.

I believe he has improved as a player and he is definitely worth persisting with.

 

[SApies]

Negatives:
Clarke - How he hasn't been delisted yet is beyond me. Disgusting.
Cloke - Can't blame him completely.
Goldsack - I think he'll struggle to hold a spot down.
Brown - Seemed slow and weak at times, too easily beaten.
Elliot - Poor game, think he copped a knock to the knee early in the 1st
Adams - Expected much more tbh.
Sidebottom - *sigh*
Maxwell - Love and respect maxy but I think VFL could be best for him.

Positives:
Beams: Class player, injury free makes me very happy.
Langdon: Showed superb composure, and lovely raking kick. Great find.
Frost: Unfairly copping it I feel. Though he played a decent game!
Sinclair: Same as Frost, unfairly judged, didn't get involved until late thought.
Grundy: Thought he was going to get rolled tonight, didn't do too bad I feel, will be better for the experience.
Toovey: Not for his game, but the fact he got through injury free!
Swan+Pendels: Usual solid games by two legends.

Pretty shit way to start the season for sure. Not many real positive besides Langdon and Beams.
Some vital players will come back and make a difference.
So for all the 'supporters' calling for Bucks' head, just take a big deep breath and relax.

 

[The Royal Sampler]

Shit start to the season. Will hold judgement for another fortnight.

 

[Checkside35]

It's very simple. Not enough developed talent on the list.

In order to properly develop the talent, there needs to be a certain level of experience playing in the same line on game day. E.g. You play a kid in the back line, you'd want at least three or four others that have a bucket load of experience playing along side him. So put a kid in any of Hawthorn's lines over the last two years and its a vastly different scenario to the one we have seen. Unsettled sides with keys missing will struggle to develop youth. Just playing them and exposing them to the game is not enough.

 

[look at him goooo!]

Some of you have no idea about football. Beams is just about our hardest defensive running midfielder. After an opposition clearance most of the time he is the fastest midfielder pushing back to help the defence. And the times he's not leading the way back its because he is picking himself up from the bottom of a pack. He spends just as much time at the bottom of packs as Luke Ball does and doesnt get nearly enough credit for the grunt work and defensive work he does in our midfield.

Those saying Sidebottom is also front runner also need to reassess life a bit. He was played out of position as a deep forward for most of the night. He is a wingman/high half forward and given the opportunity he will run from forward pocket to back pocket all day long. Thats not to say he doesnt go missing but he is a far harder worker than some of you are suggesting.

Langdon was very impressive tonight while Frost did some good things. Pendles sacrificed his game tonight at times and did well. Witts and Grundy were always going to struggle against Sandilands but did what was expected. O'Brien, Maxwell and Clarke were terrible and are not up to it, especially the latter two.

 

[mike123]

IMO the worst player was Goldsack. I didn't see much of him in the first quarter and he failed to be an option up forward and keep someone like Johnson accountable.

 

[Nicco_jj]

Everyone.... Please remember that swanny doesn't try until round 5 each year.

..... But still somehow continues to almost win the brown low each year.

 

[Bugglz]

As others have said, I really liked the look of Langdon, you couldn't ask for a better debut, screams future leader as well, great pick up! I also liked Frost's game, you have to remember he's only played a handful of games and he didn't look out of place at all. Same goes for the ruck's, Witts and Grundy, although both beaten, both showed plenty of promise and did a lot of nice things.
Brown was the most disappointing for me, Pav is a quality player but he beat Brown a little too easily tonight. Brown really needs to add more rebound to his game, he has started doing so the last couple of years but only when he's onto of his man, if he is being beaten he offers us nothing what-so-ever, I just want to see him get a bit more involved in the game when things aren't going his way.
Other then that things went as expected, Freo are a quality side and will do this to a few teams this year (for what its worth I picked Freo to win the flag at the start of last season ). We seem to lack structure at the moment, hopefully Reid and White back as well as a few more games into our younger brigade will help to solve that. I do worry about Buckley tho, I find it hard to judge coaches but I can't remember any games over the last two years that we have won by purely by out-coaching the opposition...

 

[doodles98]

The execution of the gameplan is what is suffering. I can see what they are trying to do. If people can't see one, they aren't watching. Either that or they don't know what a gameplan is.

enlighten us the oh wise one

 

[Checkside35]

enlighten us the oh wise one

No need for that.

 

[Masked Magician]

The fwd line structure was awful tonight without reid/white...

and how we set up after we kick a point is disgraceful... the space beyond the first contest is alarming