So how can we beat the Cats next week?

[Dry Rot]

Tonight was special, but how do we defeat the mighty Cats next week?

[ledge]

By tackling like we did tonight.

[LostDoggy]

GRIFFFFFF!

Nah, I actually have no idea. I dont want to think about that just yet, i'm still thrilled with defeating Sydney again!
But i'm guessing keeping on the defensive pressure, and agree with the tackling.

[GVGjr]

That's the million dollar question but if we play as hard as we did tonight and eliminate a few errors, then you never know.

[Throughandthrough]

Tonight was special, but how do we defeat the mighty Cats next week?



Get a higher score them then.



But also, the Cats were shite in the prelim last year, nearly lost to Collingwood.

Also need to look @ the way Collingwood thrashed them last time.


We are definitely in this...

[hujsh]

We don't. We challenge and make them work and use it as motivation that we only lost by 15 points and only have to improve by 15 points and come out next year and beat them.

Similar to Collingwood but we get better not worse

[Bulldog Revolution]

We have to come up with a plan to get on top of their backline.

I expect our backline to perform well, and I think our midfield will do well enough, but it's really how do we attack and exploit that backline?

They always seem to have extra men on the ground because they help for each other so well

[The Coon Dog]

Use the Leigh Matthews philosophy, 'If it bleeds, we can kill it!'

[Sedat]

Match the intensity at the contested ball that we displayed tonight. We have set a benchmark on how we should be approaching every game and we just cannot go back to what we served up last week.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

Match the intensity at the contested ball that we displayed tonight. We have set a benchmark on how we should be approaching every game and we just cannot go back to what we served up last week.

Yep, that plus improve even more on our ball use, back to the level we were at for the first 15 weeks of the year.
We do that and we can get close.

I think another factor that could be key is expectation. As funny as it may sound the Cat's will have more pressure than us going into this game, as they are expected to win.
The sobering thought though, is that they over any other team in the competition don't seem to be phased by extra pressure, in fact they almost seem to relish it.

[The Coon Dog]

I think we really have to start with their backline & try to keep the Cats defenders as far apart as we can.

Milburn & Scarlett are both prepared to back their ability to read the play & zone off their direct opponents that they then generate enormous drive going forward. Thompson is quite prepared to allow Harry Taylor to take the oppositions best forward as it then makes life easier for Harley, Milburn & Scarlett.

Make them accountable!!

Most of us on here are passionate supporters who don't really understand all the thinking behind much of the respective coaches & match committees plans, despite the fact we think we do.

I'd be really interested in mjp's take on how to pull Geelong apart if he has the time, it would make for interesting reading.

[The Underdog]

We work hard and create options upfield and are patient with our ball use, never falling into the trap of just booting it long into our undersized forward line. We tackle like crazed lunatics. We play disciplined man on man footy when they have it not letting them get an easy loose option.
We hope like hell.

[Go_Dogs]

Pressure, tackling, harassing the ball carrier. That's how we win. We need to work on being a bit smoother going forward at times too, if we butcher the ball going forward Geelong will make us pay.

I hope to see some great match ups this week, like Griff on Junior, Boyd to perhaps go to Bartel. Gia and Eagle will most likely need to play more defensive roles this week, as with Higgins who seemed to be more defensively minded this week.

Big game no doubt, but not at all out of the realms of possibility. If we play well, create a bit of luck, we could well pull off the upset of the year.

[Rocket Science]

Manning up like we did tonight would go a long, long way next week, or any time for that matter.

Was marvellous to see wide angle shots of Sydney players looking to take stationary kicks after a mark or a free and seeing every Swan forward of the ball being closely tracked by his opponent...I lost count of the number of time the pending kicker was finally called to 'play on!' because they'd used up their available time and still couldn't find a suitable option...In the end many Swans almost stopped presenting because we simply weren't allowing them sufficient space or latitude.

Brilliant.

[FrediKanoute]

Guys what sensational win I listened to it at work here in London and am plenty excited, especially since I am getting on a flight back to Oz in about 5 hours time! So I will be at the prelim on Friday night!!

Just back on topic though, I actually think we match up better against the Cats than we do against the Hawks. The Cat's have a more even spread of good players rather than 2 stars who can rip us to pieces. Yes whilst our last two results against the haven't been the best I am prepared to disregard both mainly because last year they caught us pretty much when we had lost a number players and this year it coincided with out vamped up training program.

If we play much the same way we do against Sydney, doing the 1%'ers, tackling hard and most importantly making certain we maintain scoreboard pressure they are beatable. We need to forget what their players can do, and look inwardly about what our guys are capable of doing together!

[LostDoggy]

BELIEVE we can beat the cats. Show confidence, and play for each other.

[Max469]

BELIEVE we can beat the cats. Show confidence, and play for each other.

That is what I always say - Believe we can do it and we will.

NO team is unbeatable.

Come on Dogs - we can do this.

BRING IT ON

[Bumper Bulldogs]

I think we need to tag Mackie off 1/2back. Maybe bring in Cam White to run around with Ottens. Lastly The Glove needs to towel up Steve J. They IMO are the three big tickets.

the other thing we need to do is truly want to redeem ourselves against the Hawks in the Grand Final.

Yes if you want it bad enough it will happen!

Good luck doggies.

[LostDoggy]

Match the intensity at the contested ball that we displayed tonight. We have set a benchmark on how we should be approaching every game and we just cannot go back to what we served up last week.

Ahhh Morning Ladies and Gentleman:) Well I feel a lot better today than I did last Saturday!

Great post Sedat:) You are completely correct in what you say here. If we play like that every week we will be a team that opposition will fear. A team with a blend of contested ball winning ability, speed and skill will win far more games than they lose.

Now Geelong. Hmm well we have the added bonus that 99.9% of the footy world expect us to lose. I say we replicate what we produced last Night minus a few clangers, throw in some luck and we have a better chance than people realise.

These are the moments that feel great:)

[Bulldog Revolution]

Guys what sensational win I listened to it at work here in London and am plenty excited, especially since I am getting on a flight back to Oz in about 5 hours time! So I will be at the prelim on Friday night!!



Love your commitment Fredi

[1eyedog]

I have theories but who knows really as TCD pointed out. If we win it I reckon we'll be playing the Saints, they'll beat Collingwood tonight and will beat Hawthorn next week.

[LostDoggy]

I think we really have to start with their backline & try to keep the Cats defenders as far apart as we can.

Milburn & Scarlett are both prepared to back their ability to read the play & zone off their direct opponents that they then generate enormous drive going forward. Thompson is quite prepared to allow Harry Taylor to take the oppositions best forward as it then makes life easier for Harley, Milburn & Scarlett.

Make them accountable!!

Most of us on here are passionate supporters who don't really understand all the thinking behind much of the respective coaches & match committees plans, despite the fact we think we do.

I'd be really interested in mjp's take on how to pull Geelong apart if he has the time, it would make for interesting reading.

The same grunt we showed last night....plus the above. I get the feeling that Harley, Milburn and to a lesser degree Scarlett have been allowed to play above their abilities by allowing them the space to maintain a connective structure. Despite my distaste for smartarse tactical ploys- I would seriously consider using some decoys to force Harley and Scarlett to play more traditionally. Details I'm not sure of...Perhaps involving Welsh, Minson- Josh Hill at full forward?

[mighty_west]

How do we beat them? we pray to god!

[Twodogs]

RUN, Forest, Run!

[gohardorgohome]

* Keep up the same level of intensity at the contest as last night.
* Set a target of at least one tackle per player per quarter.
* Attack Attack Atttack
* Take risks
* Tag no more than 2 or 3 players. Cant be too defensive!!!
* Back yourself when in you are close enough to have a shot, even if you can see a teamate in a marginally better position. We always seen to screw things like that up by trying to be too team focussed.
* Run the lines and be willing to kick long to a contest. Make sure the kick is on the same side as your teammate giving him the 65/35 advantage.
* Be willing to switch play to the "Fat" side of the ground.
* Set a flood for 5/10 mintes if Geelong get a 3 goal run in a row to slow down the tempo.

[Desipura]

Use the Leigh Matthews philosophy, 'If it bleeds, we can kill it!'
You beat me to it TCD. It was the first thing that came to mind walking out of the "G".
Apologies for not recognizing your text.
Tackle like they have never tackled before. Treat this like our grand final. Collingwood did it last year in the preliminary final.

[LostDoggy]

We go in underdogs with zero pressure on us - unlike the Hawks game - and play like we did at the start of the season:)

[Mantis]

I hope I don't hear that "we have nothing to lose this week" from our player's/ coaches.

We are only playing for the opportunity to make a Grand Final something the club has done on only 2 occassions in our 84 year history in the VFL/ AFL. To me I think we have lot's to lose.

Sure all the pressure will be on Geelong, but I hope we don't take a defeatist attitude into the game. **** Geelong they had there fun last year, let's get on the front foot, be positive and give us one hell of a ride.

It's going to be hard, but not un-achievable. Let's roll up our sleeves, play tough, committed and uncomprimising footy and see where it takes us.

[craigsahibee]

I have theories but who knows really as TCD pointed out. If we win it I reckon we'll be playing the Saints, they'll beat Collingwood tonight and will beat Hawthorn next week.

Yes, the '97 GF that should have been. I would also love to beat Collingwood in a Grand Final. Now that would be special.

[NoName]

That is what I always say - Believe we can do it and we will.

NO team is unbeatable.

Come on Dogs - we can do this.

BRING IT ON

Agree

[LostDoggy]

We wont be able to pin point passes against Geelong, forward options will dry up and pressure will build. We will go back to the fumbly, handball sideways/backwards style game. Could be a 10 goal flogging.

[SonofScray]

It will be a tough ask. One of those moments where we are going in massive underdogs but we probably don't have much to lose now. Real giant killer stuff. Exciting prospect for anyone that has followed this team through thick and thin, if there has ever been moments for us where we've been really dangerous, form or no form, it is these games.

Think the Dons and Carlton and their winning streaks, the comebacks against Cats down at Kardinia Park, even this year against our bogey teams in the Saints and Swans. Preliminary finals, anything can happen. Dogs of all Clubs can understand that surely.

Tackling last night was immense, we need to keep it up.
We need to make the loose man down back accountable, make the defenders work for their possessions when we lose it in the F50.
Don't die wondering, attack!
Take our chances in front of goal. Punish the turnovers.

No doubt we'll be hearing plenty about it, all the cliches and bad memories but I am certain that this team, one which is able to break our hearts one week could just very well give us something special as well. We've got a puncher's chance now, its probably all we deserve but with any luck it might be what we get.

[LostDoggy]

There is no guarantee Hawthorn is going to make the GF. If the Saints beat Collingwood tonight, they are a show against the Hawks as they match up well on them (and have beaten them recently).

A Saints - Dogs GF would go some way to making up for the time it SHOULD have happened back in '97 (and stick it right up the media 'pundits' who are hoping for a 'dream GF').

If Carlton got over the Bombers in '99, the Dogs can get over Geelong '08.

[Sedat]

Absolutely loved the intensity last night (can't remember us ever having 41 tackles in a game to half time) but we'll need to be cleaner with the football next week. If we cough up 50+ turnovers against Geelong, they will punish us more clinically than Sydney could. Having said that, last night's intensity serves as a blueprint for how we should approach every match.

[Mofra]

Also need to look @ the way Collingwood thrashed them last time.
Which was by denying the run of the players who don't have the ball.
We need to block players who can receive a handball, given they handball more than they kick. If we deny them this, they will be forced more and more to dispose of the ball under pressure, which will give our rebounding defence a chance to spot up leading forwards.

Collingwood played man on man all over the ground, when the ball was near them & when it wasn't (denying their opponent a clean run for a handball receive). It is a difficult, taxing style of football where every single player needs to be focussed 100% of the time. We aren't without a chance - we were comprehensively outplayed by Geelong, at their home ground, yet were still even roughly halfway through the 3rd quarter, and we have just played out best game for 3 months.

Bring them on!

[1eyedog]

There is no guarantee Hawthorn is going to make the GF. If the Saints beat Collingwood tonight, they are a show against the Hawks as they match up well on them (and have beaten them recently).

A Saints - Dogs GF would go some way to making up for the time it SHOULD have happened back in '97 (and stick it right up the media 'pundits' who are hoping for a 'dream GF').

If Carlton got over the Bombers in '99, the Dogs can get over Geelong '08.

I was thinking exactly same thing earlier. I think the Saints will beat the Pies and I agree that they will make a game of it and Hawthorn could be off the boil

[BulldogBelle]

Try to get Morris on Mooney. Mooney ran Lake ragged in the game at Kadinia Park earlier in the year and got some cheap goals from it. Lets keep Lake close to goals where he catch match up on Ottens when he swings forward. Same if Mooney plays close to goals.

Tackle like we have never tackled before

Get the ball in Gilbee/Hargraves hands in the back 50 as much as possible. These two need to play the quarterback/playmaker role as much as possible

Run to create space and give our small forward line an option, several times last night we kicked to a 3 on 2 contest in the forward 50m, and our smaller forwards like Welsh + Harbrow and even Hahn just got squashed

Win the clearances. Rotate Hahn, Griff, Cooney, Gia, Cross, Boyd, Johnno all on the ball to ensure we are as agressive as possible at the contests.

The game played against them earlier in the year was in the middle of our fitness 'loading' period, which I think took some run out of the boys legs (ie the last quarter)...I think we matched them for 3 quarters of footy at their home ground this year...something our guys will have in the back of their mind as a positive!

[The Underdog]

We wont be able to pin point passes against Geelong, forward options will dry up and pressure will build. We will go back to the fumbly, handball sideways/backwards style game. Could be a 10 goal flogging.

The thread is about how we can beat the Cats. I think we all know why we are unlikely to. They are the best side in the competition and on balance a better side than us 9 times out of 10. I think the point is to suggest ways we can make this week the 10th time. Some of us know the reality but still hold hope that if we do everything right, just maybe we can do this. We know the likely outcome but hey maybe we'll be constructive about this and possibly dream a little bit, for a day or two at least.
Of course feel free to start a thread entitled, "why we will get pumped by the Cats next week".

[Stefcep]

Well we can learn a few things from last time:

1. Sustained pressure when we don't have the ball FOR FOUR QUARTERS will cause them to make mistakes.

2. Man up ie tag Bartel, Ablett out of the game. Against Carlton Eade let Judd Steven and Co run freely because he believed our midfielder would do more damage than theirs. No, our midfielders eg Cooney, Cross, acker and also Boyd and Morris must wear their opponents like gloves.

3. long bombs to the forward line will not work (rememberMilburn? 16 possessions in the first quarter), we just don't have the personnel to take those sort of marks (no Minson is NOT an option here, he is too slow, and too unreliable with his kicking): we need to attack with long low passes out in front to the forwards on the flanks, not down the guts.

4. Cooney needs to lift. His last month or so has been very inconsistent. These are the games that players of his quality, number 1 draft pick, was a Brownlow top-three favourite etc, must perform in. This is when it counts to rack up the possessions, not in getting 35 possessions in April or May. and I think he is due , he's had two very ordinary finals' performances in a row now.

4. We must make the forward opportunities count, no misses from 25m out on the run. No stupid things like Callan last night.

[hujsh]

We wont be able to pin point passes against Geelong, forward options will dry up and pressure will build. We will go back to the fumbly, handball sideways/backwards style game. Could be a 10 goal flogging.

Is that how we beat Geelong?

[LostDoggy]

We do have one thing that Geelong no longer has, the desire to break our premiership drought - a burning hunger that will not be appeased until we see that last day in September. Use the force doggies use the force.

[dog town]

Matching or bettering the intensity we had on Friday would be a start. We have to be at that sort of level just to be in the game.

Quick kicks out of congestion could be a good tactic. The cats get more support around the ball than any team I have seen which is what allows them to move the ball the way they do. If we get the ball in a contest it might be a good idea to get out the area pretty quickly rather than getting run down and coughing it up. Of course clean ball movement is preferred but if we are out numbered and under pressure then a quick kick to space is the best option against the cats.

I would instruct our players to run into the guy who just passed the footy and block him from staying involved. This prevents the overlap handball they like to use and forces them to kick the footy. I would also prefer to see us stand off our opponent and let them make a move before tackling. The cats thrive on drawing players then releasing other cats into space. Lets make them kick.

Everyone says to keep there defenders apart but its easier said than done. They all read the play so well. We just need constant movement and we need to kick the ball at angles. The MCG is a bit wider than the narrow cats ground so that should help us. A good tactic might be kicking it over the heads of the cats defenders and turning them around as well. If we can carry the footy deep enough (say 70 out) then we can have guys running back into space. We might still be out numbered 2 to 1 but if the kick has enough on it we might get an uncontested mark. Its just another way of breaking them up a bit.

Would love to be able to spring Lake up forward. The one weakness they have shown is against big guys who can take a grab. Not sure if we can afford it. Certainly dont want Lake chasing Mooney on the lead all day as it will take him out of the play. Think Lake is needed down back though.

The longer we stay in the game the more anxious they will get so we need to make every post a winner. Remember they have not been challenged for a long time. You can change the dynamics of a contest pretty easily if you can just get something over them.

[DOG GOD]

Every dogs player will get an opposition player....beat ur player on the day and we go close to winning the game, IF 15 of our 22 players beat their respective player.

[LostDoggy]

We will have to feed them before the match..can we provide
22 Slabs of beer
44 Shots of tequila
22 Lamb Kebabs

We then might have a chance to beat them once thier decision making is affected ;)

[Raw Toast]

Matching or bettering the intensity we had on Friday would be a start. We have to be at that sort of level just to be in the game.

Quick kicks out of congestion could be a good tactic. The cats get more support around the ball than any team I have seen which is what allows them to move the ball the way they do. If we get the ball in a contest it might be a good idea to get out the area pretty quickly rather than getting run down and coughing it up. Of course clean ball movement is preferred but if we are out numbered and under pressure then a quick kick to space is the best option against the cats.

We did this successfully against the Swans at the SCG. One of the big questions is whether we let them have a loose man down back, which is one of they ways they insure themselves against the quick kick. Of course, even if it is man-on-man, they like to have their defenders in front and they tend to have a few run to the drop of the ball. Milburn was theoretically on Harbrow at times early last game but played like a loose man for much of it.

I'd like us to start off man-on-man and to take it from there, but I think Eade will start off defensively, aiming to break even initially like against the Swans, and so have someone loose down back to help us steady the game. Our forward line pressure becomes of even greater importance if we do this though.


I would instruct our players to run into the guy who just passed the footy and block him from staying involved. This prevents the overlap handball they like to use and forces them to kick the footy. I would also prefer to see us stand off our opponent and let them make a move before tackling. The cats thrive on drawing players then releasing other cats into space. Lets make them kick.

This is where learning from Collingwood becomes important, though part of why we haven't had as big a tackle count as some other teams this year, is that corralling the ball carrier has been a bigger focus. It's a tricky line to take, as we need to be close enough to the ball carrier so that they are under pressure when they kick, but far enough away so they can't just hand-pass over to the free running player.


A good tactic might be kicking it over the heads of the cats defenders and turning them around as well. If we can carry the footy deep enough (say 70 out) then we can have guys running back into space. We might still be out numbered 2 to 1 but if the kick has enough on it we might get an uncontested mark. Its just another way of breaking them up a bit.

We tried to this at Kardinia Park earlier in the year IMO. It didn't work then, but perhaps that was as much about the swirly conditions that the cat's defenders were more at home with. Welsh is one who should be favoured by this tactic, as should Johnno, though he's struggled to mark this year when the ball is kicked a bit behind him even when he's been in better position for this kind of kick.

I think it's super-important that we mix it up coming forward. We started just doing the one thing in our first game against them, whereas against the Swans we were more versatile. Higgins, for example, was playing defensively against Kennelly, but became a useful leading target as a way of keeping Kennelly honest. Murphy tends to be favoured by feinting back towards goal and then leading out again.

[dog town]

We did this successfully against the Swans at the SCG. One of the big questions is whether we let them have a loose man down back, which is one of they ways they insure themselves against the quick kick. Of course, even if it is man-on-man, they like to have their defenders in front and they tend to have a few run to the drop of the ball. Milburn was theoretically on Harbrow at times early last game but played like a loose man for much of it.


.
Yeah its a tricky one. Last time we tended to get sucked towards the ball and our half forwards didn't hold there positions well. To borrow a soccer term, its vital that we hold our shape. Our forwards will be tempted to push up the ground hunting for kicks but it leaves us hopelessly exposed when we eventually bring the ball forward. We need to carry the ball off half back or switch the play so that we can keep our forwards relatively close to home. Milburn and Harley wont even bother chasing opponents past about CHF if they know they can get an easy mark later on in the chain.

Of course, if we can pressure them into some turnovers through the midfield then our style of play becomes irrelevant. The tricky part for our guys that are closer to goal is to stay far enough apart from each other that we can keep them one on one but close enough to goal that they are still dangerous. That is not easy to do.


This is where learning from Collingwood becomes important, though part of why we haven't had as big a tackle count as some other teams this year, is that corralling the ball carrier has been a bigger focus. It's a tricky line to take, as we need to be close enough to the ball carrier so that they are under pressure when they kick, but far enough away so they can't just hand-pass over to the free running player.


We just need to hold, hold then stick them when they make a move. If we can hold them up a bit and make them stop then we are also a chance to run them down from behind as well. I would like to think that in a knock out final we may be able to have a feverish defensive work rate and perhaps cause a few flutters.


We tried to this at Kardinia Park earlier in the year IMO. It didn't work then, but perhaps that was as much about the swirly conditions that the cat's defenders were more at home with. Welsh is one who should be favoured by this tactic, as should Johnno, though he's struggled to mark this year when the ball is kicked a bit behind him even when he's been in better position for this kind of kick.

I. Yep we did try it. We pretty much wasted our possession ascendancy in the first quarter by trying to do that long kick into space. The problem was the wind just carried the ball too far. I still think its a good tactic to mix in with some other stuff. Even the year before when we got belted at the dome Johnson took a few marks like this against Harley.

Good pick up with Johnno. He has not been taking those marks where he has the better position. Our forward line as a whole has been dropping those types of marks lately.

I think Minson has to play his big man role for alot of the day. People will say that the "run off' factor might burn us but he is needed. If the ball gets held up across half forward we just need that option of sticking it in the air and cuasing a 50/50 ground level contest. The alternative is we try and pick out a pass and it will get gobbled up. If you let Geelong get set behind the ball they kill you. Atleast in that scenario we are forcing another contest.

[Twodogs]

The longer we stay in the game the more anxious they will get so we need to make every post a winner. Remember they have not been challenged for a long time. You can change the dynamics of a contest pretty easily if you can just get something over them.



For me this is the vital bit. We just have to find a way to stay in the contest and chip away at their self belief. This becomes even more important in a match where the loser faces elimanation.

[BulldogBelle]

Lots of good suggestions by the guys on this forum. I hope our brains trust is taking note. Great tackling, I think is the key plus each player doing what they do best. Each player has to make the most of their individual skills.

I think that we should also think outside the square. What psychology can we use? We only really need to make 3 or 4 of them useless to beat them.

Mooney should be easy to beat. He has a history of violence and it can be used against him. Get Lake to get into his face, upset him, get him thinking about getting even rather than playing footy. The frees and 50 meter penalties will just flow. Get a team mate to help out every now and then by coming up and making a random derogatory remark.

Ottens can be put off his game in a similar way. Consistent niggles to the ribs would probably work wonders. Shaggy could do this.

They say that Ablett doesn't have much between the ears, if that is so then he is probably open to repetitive suggestion. The whole team, at every opportunity has to tell him to handball it up in the air as soon as he gets it. Ablett will eventually become so confused that he will have to be taken off.

I hope that our brains trust have made a decent plan this time. The plan against the Hawks was woeful.

[The Pie Man]

Here are the teams from round 1 last year (when we last beat the cats). * players not currently playing or likely to play.

Bulldogs

Daniel Cross
Lindsay Gilbee
Jordan McMahon*
Scott West*
Adam Cooney
Matthew Boyd
Sam Power*
Brad Johnson
Nathan Eagleton
Ryan Griffen
Daniel Giansiracusa
Farren Ray
Ryan Hargrave
Will Minson
Jason Akermanis
Luke Darcy*
Dale Morris
Robert Murphy
Andrew McDougall*
Shaun Higgins
Cameron Wight
Brett Montgomery*

Cats

Corey Enright
Paul Chapman
Gary Ablett
Cameron Ling
James Bartel
Darren Milburn
Brent Prismall
Andrew Mackie
Joel Corey
Joshua Hunt
David Wojcinski*
Matthew Egan*
Nathan Ablett*
Matthew Scarlett
Kane Tenace*
Charlie Gardiner*
Cameron Mooney
Tom Harley
David Johnson *

This Geelong team lost 3 of the 1st 5 games last year before they started on their rampage. The round 6 turnaround just happened to coincide with Steve Johnsons return. He would probably be the most significant difference in the Geelong team.
We beat them by winning it around the centre/clearances and with hard tackling with West, Cross, Cooney, Gilbee, Boyd and McMahon having collectively a huge stat count (Cross 37 touches). I think we have a better team this year although they were probably a lot fitter then than now. We need Crossy and Cooney to have huge games, as well as big efforts from Griffen, Boyd and Gilbee. But even that probably won't be enough. Aker and Eagleton will have to stand up and put in big as well.

Brad Johnson kicked 8 - didn't I think we were headed for top 4...oh well, I'll take it a year late. IMO they still struggle for the right matchup on Johnson should he play deep forward.

[whythelongface]

Brad Johnson kicked 8 - didn't I think we were headed for top 4...oh well, I'll take it a year late. IMO they still struggle for the right matchup on Johnson should he play deep forward.

Let's hope that Johnno can repeat this effort again. IIRC he beat both Scarlett and Harley on that day. It will be interesting to see who they play on Johnno.

The key is the clearances if we can go 60/ 40 in the clearances then we have a chance of beating them. Big games are required from Huddo, Crossy and Boydy so that they can feed off to Griff and Cooney to set up our inside 50's.