AFL Game Day Round 1, 2019 - Western Bulldogs V Sydney Swans at Marvel Stadium, Docklands

[merantau]

I was really pleased with the numbers we got around the ball when it was in dispute. We played with real intensity and are in for a good year. Go Dogs.

[dog town]

Pleasing to dominate around the ball again. When you look at our team that really needs to be our strength.

Thought Sydney spun the magnets well (had no choice) and got some flow. We were a bit slow to react on ground when they started pushing through the corridor more. The change in their tuck set up also knocked us off balance because they were just hunting the English taps.

The scoreboard pressure got to us in the last qtr and we made poor decisions with the ball. We should have scored 2-3 goals on turn over in the first 12 minutes of the qtr.

Overall it was a good performance with arguably our most important player in JJ to come back soon.

I think we need to cash in on the attention Naughton is getting by finding another spark up forward. He is drawing a crowd but we don’t have other marking options or crumbers (frustrating) cashing in on it.

[Ghost Dog]

Playing swans brings back good memories.
For the record, had us top eight this year! Bullish.
Credit to Bevo for going all out with a tall attack in the first half. With such a young side, fatigue will be an issue late game, but we ground it out. Libba!!!!!

The presser went for 15 minutes...

[Twodogs]

Who is Chris Hemsworth?

Just some kid who went to North Footscray state school.

[bornadog]

who is chris hemsworth?

thor

[BornInDroopSt'54]

Both Naughton and Scache have great goal kicking styles. They slice the ball like Reiwoldt and others. It is a reliable way of controlling ball flight. This is the goal kicking style I would teach and in golf is the best approach shot not a draw or hook.
Macrae is the opposite, kicking across bis body which can be brilliant in centreing. He seems at times embarrassed when running towards 50 that he can only kick across his body and cant kick a goal from 50. He must be trained to kick a straight kick a la Naughton&Schache. He needs to do drills of drilling them straight down the line. Simple.
He has long levers and should be able to kick 50 especially on the run. Adding this kick will also make him less predictable and someone as prolific as him should be a goal kicker.
Macrae needs to have a picture of Tayla Harris's kick in his locker.

[Ghost Dog]

Also cringe a bit with Jack's kicking style. It's as though he is using angles to control the power of his kick rather than his leg swing follow thru. If that makes any sense. Sometimes it works in close play, but not a lot of power.

[BornInDroopSt'54]

Also cringe a bit with Jack's kicking style. It's as though he is using angles to control the power of his kick rather than his leg swing follow thru. If that makes any sense. Sometimes it works in close play, but not a lot of power.

Yeh his kicking style seems symptomatic of his psychology. Obsessive and elite collector and distributor but does not see himself as mercurial or as a finisher or penetrator yet he so easily could be.

[westdog54]

Just had a closer look at the stats and The Bont had an astronomical 640 metres gained. From 17 kicks and 12 handballs.

By way of comparison, Jake Lloyd had 630 metres gained from 24 kicks and 11 handballs.

Bont also had 9 score involvements.

Just a staggering game.

[Happy Days]

By way of comparison, Jake Lloyd had 630 metres gained from 24 kicks and 11 handballs.

Didn't realise that stat accounted for sideways movement.

[AshMac]

Was so good to be back at the footy again.

Key points from the game for my opinion:

1. Libba is our most important player
2. Bailey Smith looks overwhelmed and needs time to adjust to the top level
3. Bontempelli looks clear of his hip issue - was back to 2016 form
4. 6-6-6 rule is great for a forward line w small roaming players
5. We brought the 2016 intensity into the game. Lots of locked down fwd 50’s
6. Wood was great as a lockdown on Buddy - but his form around the ground has slumped
7. Caleb Daniel was great - would love to see him higher up the ground and have the same impact
8. Our mature trade targets both had very good games
9. We can’t run a full game out yet - we’ll build on that over the year
10. It’s round 1 so I’ll keep the lid on - just - about Naughton and richards, but 2017’s draft year could be a steal for a “shallow” draft

[Jeanette54]

Was so good to be back at the footy again.

Key points from the game for my opinion:

1. Libba is our most important player

Like father, like son. Libba Snr was always the engine room of the 'Dogs in his day.

[comrade]

Thoughts on the new kick out rule? I think it helps us quite a bit, with Suckling's huge leg able to clear the area even further now. And when it's Caleb's turn, he can use the extra space to run into and spot up a target easier than if he was constrained to the square.

[GVGjr]

Thoughts on the new kick out rule? I think it helps us quite a bit, with Suckling's huge leg able to clear the area even further now. And when it's Caleb's turn, he can use the extra space to run into and spot up a target easier than if he was constrained to the square.

It hasn't quite won me over yet and I'm not sure we didn't have that advantage anyway even with the kick to themselves option but I'll give it a bit more time.

Agreed we are well placed to take advantage of it with Suckling, Daniel, JJ and Williams all capable of exploiting this change.

I can recall when teams didn't have to wait for the goal umpire to finish waving the flag with the kick ins and Rocket maximised our advantage with that change. From memory we scored the most coast-to-coast goals that year until teams worked out ways around it.

[EasternWest]

Thoughts on the new kick out rule? I think it helps us quite a bit, with Suckling's huge leg able to clear the area even further now. And when it's Caleb's turn, he can use the extra space to run into and spot up a target easier than if he was constrained to the square.

I am a fan.