The list is horse shit.

[robbie67]

I have said it all before. The prosecution rests.

[Mrs Mercuri]

Disagree........

I think we have a great group of youngsters coming through, and a lot of them have been blooded this year. As it has been said many times on this board, we are just lacking in players between the ages of 25-28 at the moment to lead the way.

[Rossoneri]

Robbie, that is not entirely true and you now it. It is probably cow shit!

But that being said, as you have stated many times and I have agreed with many times (and Mrs M says above), the list is good when you look at the age 21 and below section. It is our players from 23-28 who are killing us, and for this we can thank Sheeds

Watson - great player
Winderlich - still in our best 22, but only really works one way. Will get back on defence though
McVeigh - past it, really struggling. Can only be a back pocket now with the odd spurt in the middle.
Welsh - Our new Mark Bolton, good for 2-3 games a year
Hille - great player, needs help
Dyson - was ok in 2009, gone backwards this year possibly due to injury.
Laycock - who?
Stanton - BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Slattery - I like his endevaour, but gee wiz...

But as for the recruiting, this is why you can't solely blame Dudoro for it. Since Sheedy has gone we have picked up
Myers
Hurley
Pears
Zaharakis
Hooker
Hardingham
Howlett
Colyer
Melksham

Now while I am basing this solely on that dreaded word potential, it does seem as though these guys are a hell of a lot better than the idiots we picked up from 2001-2005. For one, most of them can already kick and handpass. Some can even go in and get the ball and actually hit a target with it. Melksham and Zaharakis are two midfielders who have good footy brains and when they kick to a 50-50 contest, they actually make it a 60-40 or 70-30 contest in our favour by kicking it to the advantaged side of the contest (if that makes sense)

[little_ripper]

I tend to think the coaching is shit. they obviously haven't got the players working hard enough.

rE: drafting. it only appears good in the last 5 years because we have had earlier picks. all those players have not yet proved themselves as good consistent afl level players. (they havent yet justified being labelled as basket cases either though)

alls not lost. but geez the coaches really need to demonstrate that they are indeed really on the right path.

too many floggings and average performances.

[Rossoneri]

I tend to think the coaching is shit. they obviously haven't got the players working hard enough.

Totally agree. How many times to we see a player run through the middle, then have to stop at the wing because we have no one in our forward line?

rE: drafting. it only appears good in the last 5 years because we have had earlier picks. all those players have not yet proved themselves as good consistent afl level players. (they havent yet justified being labelled as basket cases either though)

Well, Bradley was pick 6, Bolton pick 4, Stanton pick 12, Gus pick 10 Laycock pick 14 (give or take a couple of spots)

Of the ones I mentioned, Melksham (10) Pears (23), Zaharakis (23), Howlett (rookie), Colyer (26), Hooker (54)

[andrewb]

It's either the list or the coach. Both can't be shit. We scraped into finals last year.

Very even competetition this year and we've had an absolute shocker of a draw.

I'm holding judgement until Round 6 2011.

[Windy_Hill]

If the list was rubbish, there is no way known we could beat 5 top 8 sides in a season when we have only won 7 games to date.

A shit list may fluke a lucky win over a top side once, maybe twice a season. (how many times has West Coast knocked off Top 8 sides this year?)

No, we have players who can play the game. Problem is the shit that is being taught to these guys

Name me, other than Pears, one Essendon player from the last 5 years who has improved in their second and third seasons?

[Rossoneri]

With 19 guys out yesterday, and ALL the players clearly not playing for their coach, I wish to withhold general dismissal of our list as rubbish until I see them under a new coach.

These guys either cannot or will not play Knights game plan....whatever it is.

To see them playing under a new Coaching panel playing a gameplan that suits our list and not some fanciful rubbish in MK's fertile imagination is what I want to see first.

Even when we had close to a full team we were struggling.

Our problem is that we only need to lose 2-3 players (Fletch, Hille, Watson) and we are f*****!

Injuries are not the issue this year, consistency is. In both coaching and playing.

[uptick]

With 19 guys out yesterday, and ALL the players clearly not playing for their coach, I wish to withhold general dismissal of our list as rubbish until I see them under a new coach.

These guys either cannot or will not play Knights game plan....whatever it is.

To see them playing under a new Coaching panel playing a gameplan that suits our list and not some fanciful rubbish in MK's fertile imagination is what I want to see first.

Even when we had close to a full team we were struggling.

Our problem is that we only need to lose 2-3 players (Fletch, Hille, Watson) and we are f*****!

Injuries are not the issue this year, consistency is. In both coaching and playing.

I reckon part of the problem there was loading the team sheet with the older/slower members of the playing list.

[j-mac31]

But that being said, as you have stated many times and I have agreed with many times (and Mrs M says above), the list is good when you look at the age 21 and below section. It is our players from 23-28 who are killing us, and for this we can thank Sheeds

This. Getting Dangerfield and/or Boak would have been so good.

Stanton - BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Best comment of the season.

[swoodley]

If the list was rubbish, there is no way known we could beat 5 top 8 sides in a season when we have only won 7 games to date.

A shit list may fluke a lucky win over a top side once, maybe twice a season. (how many times has West Coast knocked off Top 8 sides this year?)

No, we have players who can play the game. Problem is the shit that is being taught to these guys

Name me, other than Pears, one Essendon player from the last 5 years who has improved in their second and third seasons?

Zaharakis has improved this year

Although I say this with a certain amount of "tongue in cheek", Jetta and Myers have shown more this year than in previous years

Alwyn Davey has had his best year so far.

Heath Hocking has also had his best year.

Sorry, I named more than one

[Windy_Hill]

If the list was rubbish, there is no way known we could beat 5 top 8 sides in a season when we have only won 7 games to date.

A shit list may fluke a lucky win over a top side once, maybe twice a season. (how many times has West Coast knocked off Top 8 sides this year?)

No, we have players who can play the game. Problem is the shit that is being taught to these guys

Name me, other than Pears, one Essendon player from the last 5 years who has improved in their second and third seasons?

Zaharakis has improved this year

Although I say this with a certain amount of "tongue in cheek", Jetta and Myers have shown more this year than in previous years

Alwyn Davey has had his best year so far.

Heath Hocking has also had his best year.

Sorry, I named more than one

I will grant you Zaharakis and Hocking.

Davey no - better but not as good as year 1

Myers and Jetta - Our version of an Agatha Christie novel - I have no idea how its going to end??

[Rossoneri]

If the list was rubbish, there is no way known we could beat 5 top 8 sides in a season when we have only won 7 games to date.

A shit list may fluke a lucky win over a top side once, maybe twice a season. (how many times has West Coast knocked off Top 8 sides this year?)

No, we have players who can play the game. Problem is the shit that is being taught to these guys

Name me, other than Pears, one Essendon player from the last 5 years who has improved in their second and third seasons?

Zaharakis has improved this year

Although I say this with a certain amount of "tongue in cheek", Jetta and Myers have shown more this year than in previous years

Alwyn Davey has had his best year so far.

Heath Hocking has also had his best year.

Sorry, I named more than one

I will grant you Zaharakis and Hocking.

Davey no - better but not as good as year 1

Myers and Jetta - Our version of an Agatha Christie novel - I have no idea how its going to end??

I think Davey's first season was over-rated as it was the first time we had a quick person in the team since Darren Bewick.
Hurley has improved this year compared to last year, as has Hooker.

[robrulz5]

I'm of the belief that its the coaching that is letting the players down, we all know the game plan sucks. We have alot of good young talent at the club and if we get the right coach they could make a very good side in a few years time. None of us can expect success now or possibly next year, we need to wait until these guys play more games together and are also able to have a game plan that means we win more games than we lose.

[Rossoneri]

I'm of the belief that its the coaching that is letting the players down, we all know the game plan sucks. We have alot of good young talent at the club and if we get the right coach they could make a very good side in a few years time. None of us can expect success now or possibly next year, we need to wait until these guys play more games together and are also able to have a game plan that means we win more games than we lose.

If he would actually settle on a team rather than dropping 4-5 young players after every loss we might be ok.

[robbie67]

Robbie, that is not entirely true and you now it. It is probably cow shit!

But that being said, as you have stated many times and I have agreed with many times (and Mrs M says above), the list is good when you look at the age 21 and below section. It is our players from 23-28 who are killing us, and for this we can thank Sheeds

Watson - great player
Winderlich - still in our best 22, but only really works one way. Will get back on defence though
McVeigh - past it, really struggling. Can only be a back pocket now with the odd spurt in the middle.
Welsh - Our new Mark Bolton, good for 2-3 games a year
Hille - great player, needs help
Dyson - was ok in 2009, gone backwards this year possibly due to injury.
Laycock - who?
Stanton - BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Slattery - I like his endevaour, but gee wiz...

But as for the recruiting, this is why you can't solely blame Dudoro for it. Since Sheedy has gone we have picked up
Myers
Hurley
Pears
Zaharakis
Hooker
Hardingham
Howlett
Colyer
Melksham

Now while I am basing this solely on that dreaded word potential, it does seem as though these guys are a hell of a lot better than the idiots we picked up from 2001-2005. For one, most of them can already kick and handpass. Some can even go in and get the ball and actually hit a target with it. Melksham and Zaharakis are two midfielders who have good footy brains and when they kick to a 50-50 contest, they actually make it a 60-40 or 70-30 contest in our favour by kicking it to the advantaged side of the contest (if that makes sense)

I think the guys under 21 are OK. Nothing more as yet. To be honest, I think that we have been so pathetic in the draft for so long, that even if we just get a pass mark we are over the moon about it. Myers at this stage appears to be just another error. Hurley, Pears, Zaka, Howlett, and Melksham have the ability. I do worry that if Hurley, and Melksham in particular spend too much longer under Knights they may never reach that potential.

[jimmyc1985]

There's worst lists in the AFL. We do have some potential, but we're going to have to get very lucky to build a top 4 list within the next 5 years from where we currently are given the concessions/restrictions in place over the next 3 years.

[rockhole]

If the list was rubbish, there is no way known we could beat 5 top 8 sides in a season when we have only won 7 games to date.

It is this theory that is the only thing keeping me sane at the moment. The rubbish being currently served up is a result of what is going on between the ears which at the moment is 3 parts of F.A. What I cannot understand is what the hell happened the week following the North and St. Kilda wins when we were dusted by the Scum. The confidnce should have been flying and we had seen some great footy and superb tackling all of which just evaporated.

Now we are spiralling out of control and something has to change quite dramatically to stop this. Evans and Robson have a lot at stake over the next few weeks and they better get it right.

[Crazyman]

I don't think our list is as bad as some make it out to be, however, on this years performances, we have also shown that maybe it is not as good as maybe I thought it was going to be earlier in the year...

[little_ripper]

before the start of the season, essendon was tipped by many to have a really poor season. this was mostly due to a very tough draw.

however whats panned out is that its been the so called 'easy' games which have caused the bombers the most grief.

why? because the coaching staff cannot get the side 'up' for these games.

players need no motivation to give their all against quality sides. when we are playing geelong, pies, dogs, saints, hawks, swans etc I believe we generally get the real essendon.(even if its a thumping - yes sometimes the opposition is just genuinely much better)

Knights has a game plan which works when executed well, but he is really a suspect match day coach, whether it is making the right positional moves when a player is getting well beaten or giving his players suitable direction or a roasting at end of quarter breaks.

You only need to watch an essendon game for the first 15-20 minutes to see if its 'really' worth watching for the whole 2 hours.

I just can't see an essendon comeback in a game any more.

I dunno if these are just problems associated with a genuinely young team. We haven't had one of those for 15 or so years and maybe thats the problem.