Its Like A Disease...

[MH_Bomber]

We played very well collectively for a half and then one or two poor efforts (older players being the usual culprits) and they all drop off. But I suppose with so much inexperience that can be expected.

We should have been 6 goals up in the first 15 minutes. We we on and they werent. They were soft but we didnt know how to bury them and make them pay. Its almost like the Bomber players were surprised that they were so competitive for the first 2/3 of the game. They need to believe in themselves more. They were in that game up to their eyeballs.

Its very disappointing to end up losing by 50 points but I was pleased with the efforts of most of the younger players in the first half.

[Boyler_Room]

I wonder what the game would have looked like had McPhee kicked that easy goal, Monfries taken those marks in the forward line, Lucas not missed a dead set sitter in front early and so on. As you say, we would have been 6 goals up and their confidence would have been shot. Franklin and Hodge kept them in the game with those goals, and Bateman's run through the middle. Even so, the game would have had a totally different complexion by quarter time and on.

[Malky]

Where was the leadership? Some of that wouldn't have gone astray in the 2nd half. Trouble was, those supposed leaders either went missing or were the ones butchering the ball, themselves. How are the younger guys supposed to learn from their peers when this garbage goes on?

Where was the coaching from Knights? What was the plan to break their zone defence? Why didn't each individual player have an accountable role on their direct opponent to allow Hawthorn to rebound so efficiently and easily out of defence?

[Rossoneri]

The heads dropped as soon as Franklin kicked the goal 30 seconds after McPhee dropped an absolute sitter. How McPhee keeps his spot in the team is a f*cking joke.

[Boyler_Room]

The heads dropped as soon as Franklin kicked the goal 30 seconds after McPhee dropped an absolute sitter. How McPhee keeps his spot in the team is a f*cking joke.

That was the moment my wife hurried my kids into bed ... and when I think I may have busted my hand/wrist... ouch.

[Rossoneri]

As has been mentioned by Robbie, we have nothing in the 24-28 year bracket apart from McVeigh. The rest are either rubbish or a bunch of front-runners.

Kids like Lonergan, Hislop, Reimers, Houli, Watson, Davey you can built a midfield around. Throw in someone like a Dyson, Jetta (neither get enough of the ball), Myers (looks good) Dempsey and Hocking (if he ever gets fit) and you have a decent enough midfield. Stanton also, who is only 21 I think.

All we need is for Neagle and Gumbleton to shake their injury problems and Daniher to make it as a defender with Pears (who I also like the looks of) and there is a very good nucleous there.

Having said that, this is all based on speculation and potential. Half of them may turn out to be duds, in which case, we are back to square one.

[hop]

It's got to be said - we are the dumbest team in the comp.

Every goal we score these days is due to luck - not one movement forward is based on planning and/or confidence. We bomb away and we get a grab - or we lay off a risky hand pass at through the middle that comes off and we luckily have player to spot up.

The converse is that when it doesn't come off (and that's most of the time) the rebound is predictable, swift and without pressure. Open forward line for our opposition, and our defenders too worried about their opponents rather than watching the ball and planning their own rebound. This inevitable results in an easy running goal or a clean grab by one of their key forwards. If we're lucky enough to force a contest, then we panic and chip the ball around until pressure comes and we turn it over in their forward line. Otherwise we rush a point and do the same thing. Our kick-out strategy (if we have one) has been a joke for years.

From the middle we simply throw our bodies at the opposition without care or strategy - inevitably that leads to a free kick. We have a ruckman who is probably as good as any this year - however we have no grunt or brains in and under to feed and move the ball forward. If Hille doesn't follow up or is not blocked by the opposition we are doomed. How often did the Hawks peel off tonight? How often did Hodge win the tough ball and brushed off an opponent? How often did Batemen get the outside receive and run the lines? Easy to spot tonight - but it's been happening all year. (The names might change but the result is the same)

Our tackling is a joke. Yeah, we do it more often, and it is an area of the game that we have attracted Kudos in the past couple of weeks - but it remains piss weak, and our opponent s get the ball off any way if we don't free kick them.

We don't have a big (190 plus) backman who can crash and bash. This has to be a recruitment priority. Paddy and Fletch are of the same ilk - albeit Paddy is light-years behind in his development. There is no one on our list that can fill this role. The consequence being all forwards play with confidence against us - happy birthday the bombers are coming - I'll kick a P.B tonight.

One on one football. If we can't run out the season testing the mettle of each player on our list - then we have wasted another year.

[Rossoneri]

Absolutely no structure at all.

Who ever does our stratergy from opposition kick ins should be shot. Why always the huddle? And then why no one on the outside of the huddle? I believe O'Donnell takes care of this, so its obviously in great hands. Afterall, he was our midfield coach for the past three years.

And even when Hille wins a hitout, we still cant get a clean break. What the f*** are they teaching them down there?

[MH_Bomber]

At the time of that McPhee calamity I think we were only 7 points adrift !!! A 2 goal turn around at that point seemed to break the players' resolve.

There is also another question that must be posed - Fitness. The mistakes crept in more heavily the longer the game went. Take Lovett for instance. He played what I reckon was close to his best half of footy in that game and then inexplicably, it seems, dropped off his intensity and couldnt manage to tackle.

[Bomber_Fan]

I think we're all expecting too much of what is a very young team. I was impressed with our first half and it confirms that we're on the right track. We went in hard - blocked for other players; in summary, I believe we played some great footy. But the bigger and more mature bodies of Hawthorn finally took their tolls on Essendon's younger bodies. You can't expect somebody like Myers to be competing with seasoned competitors like Lewis and Hodge for four quarters. Even a Hawthorn supporter who rang last night into SEN(very late I might add because I couldn't sleep) thought we were heading in the right track.

[Rossoneri]

I think we're all expecting too much of what is a very young team. I was impressed with our first half and it confirms that we're on the right track. We went in hard - blocked for other players; in summary, I believe we played some great footy. But the bigger and more mature bodies of Hawthorn finally took their tolls on Essendon's younger bodies. You can't expect somebody like Myers to be competing with seasoned competitors like Lewis and Hodge for four quarters. Even a Hawthorn supporter who rang last night into SEN(very late I might add because I couldn't sleep) thought we were heading in the right track.

Kids are fine, but our assistant coaches and then our coach need to turn things around.

Are set up at center bounces is a disgrace, we always seem to go with a huddle when the opposition take kick-ins with no one on the outside. We also seem to have 6 forwards in our F50 yet other teams always leave their gun forward one out.

[Bomber_Fan]

I think we're all expecting too much of what is a very young team. I was impressed with our first half and it confirms that we're on the right track. We went in hard - blocked for other players; in summary, I believe we played some great footy. But the bigger and more mature bodies of Hawthorn finally took their tolls on Essendon's younger bodies. You can't expect somebody like Myers to be competing with seasoned competitors like Lewis and Hodge for four quarters. Even a Hawthorn supporter who rang last night into SEN(very late I might add because I couldn't sleep) thought we were heading in the right track.

Kids are fine, but our assistant coaches and then our coach need to turn things around.

Are set up at center bounces is a disgrace, we always seem to go with a huddle when the opposition take kick-ins with no one on the outside. We also seem to have 6 forwards in our F50 yet other teams always leave their gun forward one out.

I agree with you about the centre bounces. But I think in the first half we did hold our own. It was always going to be a struggle when Hille had to try and beat two reasonable ruckmen all game who were being constantly rotated and thus rested. Especially when our second ruckman Bellchambers hardly got any game time. Just to illustrate how far ahead other clubs are ahead of us in innovation though, the Hawthorn ruckmen were being showed on a portable TV were they are going wrong with their taps. With the kickouts (I wasn't at the game) but I was pleased to see on at least one occasion that two Essendon players broke from the huddle before any other Hawthorn players to cover the flanks.

Your last point is what kills me every week, we're the bottom team yet teams flood our forward line. It is the perfect time to try out some strategy to counter players like Franklin and Fevola who always seem to kill us. Personally, I would like a loose man playing in defence in front of players like these. If teams try to move another player into their forward line to get rid of this loose man. Well then we will bring another player into our backline to make sure we flood the crap out of their forward line. Let us become the hunters and not the hunted for the change.

[Boyler_Room]

I agree with you about the centre bounces. But I think in the first half we did hold our own. It was always going to be a struggle when Hille had to try and beat two reasonable ruckmen all game who were being constantly rotated and thus rested. Especially when our second ruckman Bellchambers hardly got any game time. Just to illustrate how far ahead other clubs are ahead of us in innovation though, the Hawthorn ruckmen were being showed on a portable TV were they are going wrong with their taps. With the kickouts (I wasn't at the game) but I was pleased to see on at least one occasion that two Essendon players broke from the huddle before any other Hawthorn players to cover the flanks.

Your last point is what kills me every week, we're the bottom team yet teams flood our forward line. It is the perfect time to try out some strategy to counter players like Franklin and Fevola who always seem to kill us. Personally, I would like a loose man playing in defence in front of players like these. If teams try to move another player into their forward line to get rid of this loose man. Well then we will bring another player into our backline to make sure we flood the crap out of their forward line. Let us become the hunters and not the hunted for the change.

I thought the odds inthe ruck were going to even out with Campbell spending a lot of time on the bench thanks to an AC injury, but he got the jab at half time and came out and hurt us pretty badly. Hille dominated the hitouts, but couldn't do everything himself. Just had no support. I brought up about the laptop on the field at Quarter Time in the game thread... and posed the question: Why aren't we doing it?

The flood issue is one I've been stunned to see that we're not doing anything to counter. In fact, if anything we're helping by crowding our own forward line with a lot of "targets". When we do eventually employ an open forward line, Lloyd (who is supposed to be the target, I'm sure) ends up marking the ball on the lead about 80m out and then we're stuffed because he a) no longer has anyone to kick to inside 50 and therefore b) takes forever to move the ball along, allowing opposition players to flood back into what was supposed to be an open forward line. Our structure is all at sea, all over the ground.

When we started chipping the ball around because Hawthorn were flooding the middle of the ground we should have seen an overlap, run past with the handball, move the ball on quickly and kick OVER the flood. The flood was 50 - 80m ahead of the ball on the HB line. Instead of moving the ball forward with run and carry then kicking long to get over the flood, we chipped backwards inside D50 until the flood slowly closed in on the ball and trapped it... resulting in a turnover and goal. To me it's a simple answer, yet it seems like logic completely went out the window, the panic set in and we constantly chipped around in the backline until the inevitable turnover. Frustrating to watch. Once the skill errors crept in, turnovers ran rife and heads dropped. We resigned ourselves to a loss, instead of adapting and overcoming.

[j-mac31]

As has been mentioned by Robbie, we have nothing in the 24-28 year bracket apart from McVeigh. The rest are either rubbish or a bunch of front-runners.

Kids like Lonergan, Hislop, Reimers, Houli, Watson, Davey you can built a midfield around. Throw in someone like a Dyson, Jetta (neither get enough of the ball), Myers (looks good) Dempsey and Hocking (if he ever gets fit) and you have a decent enough midfield. Stanton also, who is only 21 I think.

All we need is for Neagle and Gumbleton to shake their injury problems and Daniher to make it as a defender with Pears (who I also like the looks of) and there is a very good nucleous there.

Having said that, this is all based on speculation and potential. Half of them may turn out to be duds, in which case, we are back to square one.

I agree mostly, however I still feel we need a GUN midfielder. SOmeone who wins clearances, but has the pace to run away from them too like Hodge, Ablett, Judd, etc. (BTW I saw a few highlights of Cotchin yesterday, he will be up there). ATM we have quick players and clearance players, no one who does both. Get someone like that in this year's draft and we are set for the future.

[onzman]

It's got to be said - we are the dumbest team in the comp.

Every goal we score these days is due to luck - not one movement forward is based on planning and/or confidence. We bomb away and we get a grab - or we lay off a risky hand pass at through the middle that comes off and we luckily have player to spot up.

The converse is that when it doesn't come off (and that's most of the time) the rebound is predictable, swift and without pressure. Open forward line for our opposition, and our defenders too worried about their opponents rather than watching the ball and planning their own rebound. This inevitable results in an easy running goal or a clean grab by one of their key forwards. If we're lucky enough to force a contest, then we panic and chip the ball around until pressure comes and we turn it over in their forward line. Otherwise we rush a point and do the same thing. Our kick-out strategy (if we have one) has been a joke for years.
From the middle we simply throw our bodies at the opposition without care or strategy - inevitably that leads to a free kick. We have a ruckman who is probably as good as any this year - however we have no grunt or brains in and under to feed and move the ball forward. If Hille doesn't follow up or is not blocked by the opposition we are doomed. How often did the Hawks peel off tonight? How often did Hodge win the tough ball and brushed off an opponent? How often did Batemen get the outside receive and run the lines? Easy to spot tonight - but it's been happening all year. (The names might change but the result is the same)

Our tackling is a joke. Yeah, we do it more often, and it is an area of the game that we have attracted Kudos in the past couple of weeks - but it remains piss weak, and our opponent s get the ball off any way if we don't free kick them.

We don't have a big (190 plus) backman who can crash and bash. This has to be a recruitment priority. Paddy and Fletch are of the same ilk - albeit Paddy is light-years behind in his development. There is no one on our list that can fill this role. The consequence being all forwards play with confidence against us - happy birthday the bombers are coming - I'll kick a P.B tonight.

One on one football. If we can't run out the season testing the mettle of each player on our list - then we have wasted another year.

The most sensible and accurate post Ive read lately.

[tonysoprano]

One on one football. If we can't run out the season testing the mettle of each player on our list - then we have wasted another year.

Hop, your entire post was a good one - but these couple of sentences hit the nail on the head. =D>

[MH_Bomber]

Hop I agree with your point about manning up, however I thought our pressure was very good on the man in the first half. We were worrying them out of it. In general play we actually had them on toast. Monfries, Lucas and someone else missing those opportunities in the first half really hurt us. We could have been 5 or 6 goals to zip, that would have zapped the hawthorn confidence which was strangely down in the first half even more. We kept with them until the turning point which I dub the McPhee ultimate clanger. Everything went pear shaped from there. It was like the youngsters, who had been busting a gut, just totally went into their shells after that moment. Perhaps Mcphee has poisoned himself with excessive peroxide and that is effecting his ability to take a simple, unpressured mark with no one within cooee.

[Boyler_Room]

Hop I agree with your point about manning up, however I thought our pressure was very good on the man in the first half. We were worrying them out of it. In general play we actually had them on toast. Monfries, Lucas and someone else missing those opportunities in the first half really hurt us. We could have been 5 or 6 goals to zip, that would have zapped the hawthorn confidence which was strangely down in the first half even more. We kept with them until the turning point which I dub the McPhee ultimate clanger. Everything went pear shaped from there. It was like the youngsters, who had been busting a gut, just totally went into their shells after that moment. Perhaps Mcphee has poisoned himself with excessive peroxide and that is effecting his ability to take a simple, unpressured mark with no one within cooee.

Interestingly, that "someone else" was McPhee running into what should have been a certain goal from only 15-20m out.