Review The good, the bad, the shat - vs Fremantle R3 2024

[Billy_01]

Need to have Soligo at every stoppage he’s our player who can get around tackles and take the ball from inside to outside. The rest are way too predictable, laird/crouch will handball, Dawson will slam it on the boot. Rankine/Rachele will look to run off their opponent. No wonder we can’t score.

 

[OccamsRazorRay]

Dawson currently rated as 5th worst in the competition for Turnovers, and 6th worst for Clangers.

Having a truly horrible season so far. The fish rots from the head!

 

[Faaarrk]

Keays has been the least of our worries this year. There have been more highly skilled players missing more targets than Keays.

I think in general we've got a decent skilled team.

Dawson, Rankine, Tex, Fogarty, Soligo, Michalaney, Milera, Jones, Rachele, Worrell, Sholl, Hinge and Keane are all from good to elite field kicks normally.

Laird and Crouch are okay knowing their limitations. Same with Borlase and Butts. So long as they stay within their limitations they're okay.

McHenry, Smith and Pedlar are hit and miss. Murphy average and Keays poor. I would be weeding out this group except for Pedlar.

That’s the whole point though. Players will have a slump, players like Keays need to step up but he is still as useless as ever.
To put it in perspective he has had 38 disposals this year and had 15 turnovers. Dawson has had 79 disposals and 19 turnovers.
Dawson is playing like shit, it would be nice if players he’s been carrying would help him out a bit. The amount of times Keays is not under pressure and delivers into the forward 50 only to miss the target by metres is embarrassing. While Spuds like Keays are in the side potential young guns aren’t.

 

[fuic08]

Carlton absolutely being set up to win. The VFL will love it. Feel good story of the year etc...

It's been so obvious watching their games, the free kicks paid to them compared even to other Vic clubs against them are wildly inconsistent.

 

[MRB37]

This is damming. This crap it’s our inexperience. Our senior players panic more than the kids.

Go in board you *ers.

The assumption though is guys in those clips are doing something wrong. Nearly every time it's go wide to get near the boundary line before going forward, that seems like clear coaching to me.

 

[StonesThrow]

The assumption though is guys in those clips are doing something wrong. Nearly every time it's go wide to get near the boundary line before going forward, that seems like clear coaching to me.

Kick to laird and Crouch is fine, but where has the run gone to get the handball receive? It was non existent. Something has seriously gone awry in the off-season

 

[MRB37]

Kick to laird and Crouch is fine, but where has the run gone to get the handball receive? It was non existent. Something has seriously gone awry in the off-season

Keeping numbers back in a defensive position of guess.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

So Keane was the only player this week to get coaches votes (1).

 

[King Elvis]

This is damming. This crap it’s our inexperience. Our senior players panic more than the kids.

Go in board you *ers.

Smith should be dropped on that first effort alone.

 

[Carmo]

fwiw I thought there was actually some good signs in that game against Freo.
For context, I didn't see any of it live and I only got to listen in on radio in the last term when they started belting us and so I listened for a few minutes and turned it off. When I saw my Crows mate on Sunday he said it was a horrendous game by us, one of our all time worst and so I watched it on the AFL website with that expectation in mind.

The good signs were things like we started with a lot more variety in how we exit from points, not 80% long to the right flank.
We also got a lot better at switching it up coming out of defense and that helped a lot.
There was a lot less of the ball getting over the back from aerial competitions which was another thing we have been terrible at.

In the first half we had a lot of control of the game. What killed us was the mistakes that you wouldn't expect amateur league D graders to make. So those should be pretty easy to fix. If we hadn't of done those we could have rightfully gone in at half time expecting to be at least three goals up, possibly as many as six.
Another problem is people trying to do too much instead of just using up free team mates. Rachele is the poster child for this, Laird and Crouch pretty bad too.

In the second half Freo were much more conscious of keeping a lot of players in our D50. What we needed to do was then get used to moving it around the arc, do a switch play like we were in defense, we need to do this because otherwise we're too predictable and they oppo defenders know the ball is going to come in from the spot where the kicker is, if we do the switch they never know if the next marker is gonna turn and switch or bring it in to the 50 and so this makes them more two minded.

There was some bad long kicking that was hurting us as well, Milera was one of the worst offenders, watch the replay, the amount of times he ignores a free shorter option for a long kick which looks at best 50/50 but I think we lost nearly all of them.

not saying we'll get a win, just saying that there were a lot of good signs, clean up a bit of the midfield exits and use a bit of variety around the contests and we'll be back playing an ok gameplan.

 

[conVINCEd]

The Lynch sub incident in 2021 was an indictment on the professionalism of this club, and it would appear we haven't learned anything.

I still don’t understand why people think that was a bad call.

Players get a jab to play every week. What’s the difference if a sub does it?

50,000 other things to have a go at the club over, that ain’t one.

 

[BigBoSS_Riot]

I still don’t understand why people think that was a bad call.

Players get a jab to play every week. What’s the difference if a sub does it?

50,000 other things to have a go at the club over, that ain’t one.

The fact it took ages (at least 10-20 minutes from memory) for him to get on the field after the decision had been made (in a game we lost by less than a goal).

Or maybe the fact he played horribly, was clearly injured, and had to get surgery four whole days later.

 

[Sanders]

I still don’t understand why people think that was a bad call.

Players get a jab to play every week. What’s the difference if a sub does it?

50,000 other things to have a go at the club over, that ain’t one.

The obvious answer is that you don’t know when to give a jab to the sub, because you don’t know when he’s needed

A guy who needs one to play is not suitable to be sub

 

[Interloperer]

I still don’t understand why people think that was a bad call.

Players get a jab to play every week. What’s the difference if a sub does it?

50,000 other things to have a go at the club over, that ain’t one.

One big reason is that painkiller injections insert a massive variable in the recovery process, possibly exacerbating an injury prolonging the recovery from it. It's normally not worth the risk early in the season.

If it's Grand Final day it doesn't matter if you wake up the next morning with your 1-week calf strain turned into a 4 week injury

 

[conVINCEd]

One big reason is that painkiller injections insert a massive variable in the recovery process, possibly exacerbating an injury prolonging the recovery from it. It's normally not worth the risk early in the season.

If it's Grand Final day it doesn't matter if you wake up the next morning with your 1-week calf strain turned into a 4 week injury

That’s an argument about jabbing at all though; not whether a player needing a jab to play should be the sub.

 

[conVINCEd]

The obvious answer is that you don’t know when to give a jab to the sub, because you don’t know when he’s needed

A guy who needs one to play is not suitable to be sub

He/she gets a jab and they come on a few minutes later.

Subs were only for injury back then too, so was a chance the sub didn’t play and we wasted a young guy sitting on the bench and missing a game entirely.

 

[Kane McGoodwin]

OK ....here's my feelings

Despite those who find a negative in anything and everything .....I have thoroughly enjoyed the rebuild .....by-n-large, the Club has done a great job

But as I've said, all PS .....the expectations in year 5 were of a completed rebuild, challenging ......not this shit !

Two weeks in a row now, I have switched off & watched a movie at half time .....I never do that, but the ineptness was truly clear to see B4 the half time break .....and my predictions came to fruition

The Coach have right royally stuffed up ! .....and it's more than simply team selection ....it's mindset, gameplan, and meek acceptance by Nicks

The first Qtr, clearly showed the gameplan intent, Dawson supreme, and all going well .....then we introduced the stats gathering machine, and from that point the wheels fell off !
Our midfield structure has been destroyed, simply because we want to fit X,Y,Z players in .....rather than structure determining which players are selected

Problem #1
3 x weeks in a row now, the statline for Gold Coast, Geelong, and Fremantle, have been extraordinary ......whilst we've accumulated low hurt disposals .....the opposition have feasted on our sorry carcasses

The statline is the same in all 3 matches ...

View attachment 1944036

Problem #2
Our backline of Hinge, Smith, and Milera, has been horrid .....and that's being polite

Hinge, has made poor decision after poor decision .....and then backed it up with just woeful disposal
But this is not new .....no, this was evidenced in the PS games as well

Smith allowed a 33 YO fringe player now, in Walters ....a bit player, to have 21 disposals ....and kick 2 goals 4

And what happened to getting the ball into the hands of our best distributor off HB, Milera .....we never looked for him at all
Every other Club, is getting the ball into the hands of MWM, Clarke, Houston, Whitfield ect

Problem #3
God help our FWD line, when Dawson is running at 58% DE ......and 9 turnovers in a match, and Crouch is dinking the ball all over the place

Player comments
Borlase ....simply has no engine to stay with repeat lead forwards ....he's had enough PS campaigns to fix

Pedlar .....what you sow, you reap ....send him to the SANFL, obviously lacked the commitment over the PS

Rachele ....I'll say it again, I just don't see the X-Factor ! ......He'll be a good player, but any comparison to Greene is frankly laughable
3rd season now, some of these match winning traits should be on full show now .....nope
He's still getting caught with a lack of awareness of who's around him .....and definitely not the player people have bought into and raved about

Wayne, after round 3... the coaches have royally stuffed up... including the game plan.

Once again, your memory after the game would be more accurate than your memory now.

 

[George Kramer]

Wayne, after round 3... the coaches have royally stuffed up... including the game plan.

Once again, your memory after the game would be more accurate than your memory now.

Good work Kane, well that’s actually underselling it, Gold Kane Gold.

Let’s see the mental gymnastics to get out of this one or will he just ignore it?

 

[FR0GGY]

Wayne, after round 3... the coaches have royally stuffed up... including the game plan.

Once again, your memory after the game would be more accurate than your memory now.

It’s ok they can change it in another 6 weeks.

 

[dogs105]

We should bring in Pedlar

 

[whattagun07]

Relax guys, it's only round 3. We aren't a bottom 4 side.

 

[spenze]

I watched those highlights, Crouch looks for the safest option where he can make it someone else's problem.

People over rate Crouch on this forum

 

[adelaidecrows]

I watched those highlights, Crouch looks for the safest option where he can make it someone else's problem.

People over rate Crouch on this forum

to be fair the whole team played like trash. it was the ultimate slow moving football where the team had no run or carry. Not sure what you want Crouch to do. Based on our first few weeks of the year and the defensive mindset of Nicks, id say the whole team was instructed to maintain possession which means a short chip and stop game plan and wait for the next safe option to occur.

 

[Firewalker]

Haha funny this game came up again, I was just thinking about all the crap that happened pre, during & post this particular match when I saw in the 2025 fixture that the Crows are playing Freo again on a Friday night @ Optus in 2025.

I remember it topped my ‘highlights (lowlights)’ for the 2024 season, if ever there was sign it was all going to sh*t in 2024 it all culminated that week; on-field it was a throwback to 2021 with so many backwards & sideways kicks, at one point when they somehow were in the game still the forward line actually actively combined to kick the ball away from the goals & Burgess was for some weird reason playing as the main forward . Tex was of course shuffling around the ground after getting on a flight to Perth with his back totally rooted & couldn’t pick up the ball so was trying to do some weird unsuccessful ‘soccer it’ air swing with his foot all night when it came near him and to top it off Milera somehow snapped his knee in half trying to take a mark.

Pre-game you had that Brodie Smith 250 game party festival organised that kept his spot safe and then post-game you had Nicks in the presser blame the result on the fact all 44 players are out of form by round 3 of the season & Graham Cornes doing the FiveAA post-game slagging callers & saying everything is still on track for 2024 its just the list is average & only a couple of Crows players would make Port’s team.

Great Easter long weekend to be a Crows fan!

 

[spenze]

to be fair the whole team played like trash. it was the ultimate slow moving football where the team had no run or carry. Not sure what you want Crouch to do. Based on our first few weeks of the year and the defensive mindset of Nicks, id say the whole team was instructed to maintain possession which means a short chip and stop game plan and wait for the next safe option to occur.

Being a highly experienced player with no pressure on him, I'd at least want him to look at all options, especially inboard where we had plenty. Even in those clips, there were times when we did go inboard from approx the same positions Crouch was in.

The guy is way over rated on this board