Bankers and Anchors - Round 12

[Eastdog]

This is the round 12 edition of the Weekly Bankers and Anchors Thread. Once the game against Brisbane Lions is concluded post your nominations for:

The Bankers = 3 guys that you we banked on to do the right thing during the game
The Anchors = 3 guys that weighed us down by their errors or poor play

Please limit it to no more than three of each, but feel free to make honourable/dishonourable mentions. As usual try to make it constructive criticism.

Try and restrict it to individual players rather than aspects of the overall match.

The thread is named in honour of a popular WOOF Contributor, The Banker, who passed away on 22/04/2012 after a six month battle with cancer.

[bulldogtragic]

Bump. Fire away.

[LostDoggy]

Macrae - I get the inaccuracy of some of his kicks but he can play. He needs to stop being called the "next Pendlebury" by the media. Different style, difference skill set, kid is still a great asset to have.

Libba - 14 tackles. Poor bloke is Altas Telamon, holding the team above his head for what must feel like an eternity.....

Bontempelli - 15 touches; 5 tackles and shows some great signs for the future.

----------------------------

Christian Howard. I'm not one of the haters. Not his fault he accepted the contract put in front of him and not his fault he was picked by the MC. The guy deserves to move on at the end of the year out of mercy. Another club might rookie him and then he gets another shot. Its pretty hard to see him out there and not being up to it with the burdon people place on his head of pick 15.
Had we picked a different player in his stead we may have won........? Heaven forbid - Liam Jones?

The coach deserves some pressure at this point. I'm still a fan but the heat is on.

[Mofra]

Can use players as both bankers & anchors today:

Macrae: can find the ball and gain space, very good. Just never ever ever turn your back on play again.

Williams: Constantly leading and running and making the effort. Just rarely impacted a contest.

Wallis: Had some huge centre clearances and went in hard. I'm afraid he has "Cam Faulkner" disease - can do the tough stuff, can't do the easy stuff.

[GVGjr]

Can use players as both bankers & anchors today:


You sure can

[whythelongface]

A
Our defence stood tall in the face of a barrage of Inside 50's from Brisbane - Morris, Roughead and Higgins in particular;
Picken nullifying Zorko when he moved on him
Bonts and MaCrae look the goods

B
Our clearances and midfield defensive pressure late in the 1st qtr and in the 2nd qtr was pathetic. This is what lost us the game.
Griffen - not sure what has happened but he is not the same player as 12 months ago - is he still carrying an injury
The coaching team - I have been supportive but I am starting to lose patience. That was a must win game and they took the game away from us in the 1st and 2 qtrs. and we had no answers. What is going on?

[Remi Moses]

Roughy- Thought he was terrific and got monstered
What on earth is going on with players being mugged
Macrae- a couple of poor kicks, but he has captain written all over him

Anchors- the lack of spread, and run and carry.
Williams - feel sorry for him but he hasn't got any forward smarts.
Minson - got beat up by Stephan Edberg( whatever his name is)
The Coach - The game is played for a majority outside the contest and yet we are over brimming with inside only players who cannot kick or have any poise, and have no pace.
I'm not advocating for a sacking , but please address this glaring problem we have.

[G-Mo77]

Bankers.

Macrae. Best game of the season IMO. Looked to be struggling over the last few but he's got it.

Roughy. Thought he fought hard and played really well under the pump. My respect went up for him hearing him on 3AW after the game. He's really hurting right now. Seems to bleed for the jumper.

Getting home.

Anchors

I did this last week and I'll do it again. Everyone involved with Christian Howard being at our club. Double anchor for the MC to select him AGAIN! The guy can't play AFL football. Cut our losses and move him on.

The MC's selections. For gods sake we need a big body in there to help out Crameri and Grant. Jones, Redpath hell even Campbell all playing VFL.

That'll do, no need for a third.

[always right]

Forget Howard....point the finger at the blokes we think can play.

Anchors:
Minson....hang your head in shame Will after that pathetic effort against a third rate ruckman. He's having a shocker of a season.
Griffen....no excuse tonight. We needed you to lead from the front and you gave us stuff all
Crameri....earn your money and impact the game

Bankers:
Murphy....sorry but you need to play another five years as I can't bear to watch our team without you.
Picken and Roughy.....at least we can tell you care.

[LostDoggy]

Bankers

Jordy - oh how we miss him when he was out injured
Dale - Put him on the forward line ;-) he never loses a one on one
Shaun - hope he isn't too hurt, finally looking like a decent consistent footballer
Jackson - ball magnet, made some errors but gets in the right spots to receive

Anchors
Koby - the loopy handball to grant, cost us a certain goal, went to ground too easily
Mitch - can get the ball but not damaging enough
Crammers - badly out of form

[Ozza]

Anchors:

Minson - I reckon tonight will sit in the pit of Will's guts for a while. He is a real genuine bulldog and bloke Will - I don't enjoy potting him- but he lowered his colours extraordinarily tonight. Borderline can't pick him next week.
Howard- don't really need to labour on this one. We played one short really.
Griffen- isn't the same player this year. Don't doubt his effort - but impact and leadership wasn't what you expect from your captain when things went badly.

Bankers:
Gia- again performs the sub role excellently. We moved the ball better, looked a chance to score and set up better with him out there.
Libba- continues to do everything in his power to try and get us to win.
Roughead- acquitted himself well throughout and did some nice things with the ball

[ratsmac]

Bankers

Macrae - knows how to find the ball and knows how to use it. Still a way to go but is going to be a star.
Libba - wins the ball and gives it to the best option and not someone standing right next to him like a lot a players in our team. 14 tackles again shows just how hard he is working.
Roughhead - he is very underrated from outside our club. He is becoming the ever reliable just like Dale Morris.

Anchors

MC - Christian Howard really? He doesn't dominate VFL footy so what makes you think he can play AFL. Tom Williams is not a KPP. When was the last time he took a contested mark? When was the last time he crashed a pack? The selection and positioning of some players is baffling. Ok, plan A seems to be to try win the contested ball and move the ball with quick handball to an open forward line. (that's what I think they are trying to do). Well plan A isn't working for whatever reason (no skills, opposition are better, Macca knows all our deficiencies), where the hell is plan B. We get beaten the same way nearly every week. Last week Freo flooded our forward line and then got us on a fast spread. This week the bottom of the ladder team done the same thing. Do our coaches have a plan on how to defend this? Opposition coaches just have to watch the replay to easily figure out how to beat us. We are the easiest team to play against IMO.

Griffen - yes his efforts are there (10 tackles) but where has his line breaking dash gone. Is the captaincy burdening him? He isn't influencing games like we need from him. It's harsh to give him an anchor but much is expected.

Minson - he was beaten by a third choice ruckman. We need someone to challenge mince for his position. Those goals Stefan Martin set up from stoppages in Brisbane's forward pockets where inexcusable from Minson.

Crameri - if he gets so much as a finger touched on him he will spill the mark. I feel sorry for him because like every bulldog forward since the great Chris Grant, he has the weight of the whole bulldog fraternity on his shoulders as the answer to our forward line woes. He just needs to be stronger in his marking. It's hard to be a forward with slow motion ball delivery though.

[SonofScray]

Bankers:

Roughead had double the amount of one percenters of anyone else on the ground. I thought he was the best performed tall on the field against a quality, albeit aged star of the competition.

Higgins: I still don't like him playing in the backline but was impressed with a few courageous efforts that you just don't see from him too often. Clearly growing in confidence in his body and able to give more of himself for the cause. Off set by one extremely weak contest out on the 50m line opposite the Footscray End but I can forgive that on the back of the rest of his work.

Tutt: Not great but he was one of only 3 players for us to run and bounce the footy more than once. Doing what he was brought in to do.


Anchors:

Leadership. Giving us nothing on the field. No one is up for the fight at the moment.
Crameri, looked surly and was ineffective. Needs to get played fwd and go back to basics.
Everyone else. Just because.

[Eastdog]

Bankers

Picken - Just gives his all for our side each week

Libba - Going to be a gun that's obvious

Gia - Thought he was great as the sub and gave us a bit of spark up forward


Anchors

2nd quarter - so frustrating to lapse this needs to be addressed

Our ball use in Forward 50

Turnovers

[Remi Moses]

Bankers

Jordy - oh how we miss him when he was out injured
Dale - Put him on the forward line ;-) he never loses a one on one
Shaun - hope he isn't too hurt, finally looking like a decent consistent footballer
Jackson - ball magnet, made some errors but gets in the right spots to receive

Anchors
Koby - the loopy handball to grant, cost us a certain goal, went to ground too easily
Mitch - can get the ball but not damaging enough
Crammers - badly out of form

That Koby handball emphasised what a poor decision maker he is .
Hope he improves, but all he had to do was kick the bloody thing

[LostDoggy]

Picken and Roughy.....at least we can tell you care.

I'd add Tutt to that. Ran all day.

[meenies]

Bankers:
1. Our backline - all put in.
2. Mids when have Libba, Wallis and Griff in there as a group - as a team they are rarely beaten.
3. Our supporters who still turn up - when we play with such rubbish.

Anchors:
1. Our other mids (bar Dahl) - who do not have the same "kill" in their eyes, when in the centre.
2. Our forwards coach - what are you teaching them?
3. 2014 season.

[Ghost Dog]

Bankers

Macrae - knows how to find the ball and knows how to use it. Still a way to go but is going to be a star.
Libba - wins the ball and gives it to the best option and not someone standing right next to him like a lot a players in our team. 14 tackles again shows just how hard he is working.
Roughhead - he is very underrated from outside our club. He is becoming the ever reliable just like Dale Morris.

Anchors

MC - Christian Howard really? He doesn't dominate VFL footy so what makes you think he can play AFL. Tom Williams is not a KPP. When was the last time he took a contested mark? When was the last time he crashed a pack? The selection and positioning of some players is baffling. Ok, plan A seems to be to try win the contested ball and move the ball with quick handball to an open forward line. (that's what I think they are trying to do). Well plan A isn't working for whatever reason (no skills, opposition are better, Macca knows all our deficiencies), where the hell is plan B. We get beaten the same way nearly every week. Last week Freo flooded our forward line and then got us on a fast spread. This week the bottom of the ladder team done the same thing. Do our coaches have a plan on how to defend this? Opposition coaches just have to watch the replay to easily figure out how to beat us. We are the easiest team to play against IMO.

Griffen - yes his efforts are there (10 tackles) but where has his line breaking dash gone. Is the captaincy burdening him? He isn't influencing games like we need from him. It's harsh to give him an anchor but much is expected.

Minson - he was beaten by a third choice ruckman. We need someone to challenge mince for his position. Those goals Stefan Martin set up from stoppages in Brisbane's forward pockets where inexcusable from Minson.

Crameri - if he gets so much as a finger touched on him he will spill the mark. I feel sorry for him because like every bulldog forward since the great Chris Grant, he has the weight of the whole bulldog fraternity on his shoulders as the answer to our forward line woes. He just needs to be stronger in his marking. It's hard to be a forward with slow motion ball delivery though.

Think I'll just agree with you Ratsmac and call that my anchors and bankers.

[boydogs]

Bankers

Roughead spoiling and even outmarking in defense - starting to look like we have Lake back
Wood defending and offering rebound as well
Higgins putting his body on the line

Anchors

Overusing the ball through the midfield instead of getting it into the forwards
Failing to slow the game down when Brisbane got a run on
Howard giving us nothing