WB Game Day V Fremantle R6 2019

[Sedat]

My thoughts are, it wasn't effort that saw fall short. Just skill.

Skill hurts us but lack of system hurts us more, which contributes to our skill errors because we expend so many petrol tickets trying to cobble together a semi-decent score.

[Eastdog]

Much better effort tonight compared to what we served up last week. I give us a big chance against the Tigers next week back home at Docklands.

We really need to shake up that forward line. Gowers and Dickson not very good tonight. Schache needs to come back in and we need to try out Lipinski and Greene when he is back from injury.

Lin Jong hopefully will see playing soon.

Our defenders worked hard tonight. Cordy, Crozier, Young and Wood did alright. Naughton didn’t clunk those marks as well tonight but still battling.

Hayes did ok as well.

Bont has been very good this year but was quiet tonight. Kicked a great set shot which is an area he has struggled with. Libba as well could have got into the game more and JJ didn’t have a great one.

What’s required: greater disposal efficiency and accuracy in front of goal.

[GVGjr]

Cordy only had 4 kicks

But he also had as many tackles

The other 3 were passengers on the night. Wood had just two marks. Thats two marks, four kicks and zero tackles from the captain backing up from a poor game last week as well. He's truly lucky that he isn't placed under the same microscope that so many others cop most weeks.

[jeemak]

Kicking the football well has two benefits. The first is it keeps the footy in your hands, the second is it keeps the footy out of the hands of the opposition. It's really that simple, and if you do it quickly enough, you end up in good scoring positions.

Because of our bad kicking (and today, disposal by hand) up the ground we couldn't get into good scoring positions. By the time the footy finally went forward with a chain of lazy or lacklustre disposal efforts we just didn't find ourselves in the right spots to kick goals. Things were rushed, players had too much to deal with when looking for the final connection.

I'm completely disgusted that a player like Ed Richards just can't kick properly anymore, or that Jacko is so much worse than he was in the second half of last year and before that when he actually sliced teams up with some decisive kicking. It's the major part of our game, alongside goal kicking, and we have regressed in each.

I genuinely see what the tactics and strategy around ball movement is. It makes perfect sense in lieu of our personnel, but we haven't equipped our players to execute it given the kicking is so bloody bad.

Kudos for the effort, better teams of ours have performed worse over there, but for Christ's sake, it's just kicking and handballing properly that is stopping us and there's no reason for this to be the case.

[jeemak]

And while I've got your attention (if in fact I do), I'm completely sick and tired of Bevo looking pained and exhausted every single time the cameras pan to him after these bullshit skill errors occur, whether they be by hand or foot.

Stop sugar coating it mate, and actually fix it. If that means all we do at training outside of match review and weights is kicking and hanballing, then so be it. As a supporter I want to see my team execute basic bloody skills. It's actually not too late either, focus in this area will help us so much, just put your pants back on, select a side that can be competitive, review the tapes and practice the skills.

[MrMahatma]

And while I've got your attention (if in fact I do), I'm completely sick and tired of Bevo looking pained and exhausted every single time the cameras pan to him after these bullshit skill errors occur, whether they be by hand or foot.

Stop sugar coating it mate, and actually fix it. If that means all we do at training outside of match review and weights is kicking and hanballing, then so be it. As a supporter I want to see my team execute basic bloody skills. It's actually not too late either, focus in this area will help us so much, just put your pants back on, select a side that can be competitive, review the tapes and practice the skills.

Reckon a few of us cut the same tired and frustrated look.

Maybe they should do “goggle box” for doggies fans. Would be interesting viewing.

[G-Mo77]

Reckon a few of us cut the same tired and frustrated look.

Maybe they should do “goggle box” for doggies fans. Would be interesting viewing.

They have to bleep out too much for that.

[Hotdog60]

Do we think we are too hesitant with the ball.
I know there's a time you have to slow things down but during the game and Hunter is a prime example does all the hard running to get the ball but takes a second too long to make a decision.

Just a small sample was he had procession attacking side of centre with a mark. Smith had lead into a hole on the 50 with plenty of space around him and Hunter pauses, waits look inboard then releases to Smith because his free but by this time Freo has him cover by 2 and clear the ball away.

I think the team has become slow by mind making the team slow by foot. Sometimes I wish they take the first option before doesn't become an option.

[GVGjr]

Kicking the football well has two benefits. The first is it keeps the footy in your hands, the second is it keeps the footy out of the hands of the opposition. It's really that simple, and if you do it quickly enough, you end up in good scoring positions.

Because of our bad kicking (and today, disposal by hand) up the ground we couldn't get into good scoring positions. By the time the footy finally went forward with a chain of lazy or lacklustre disposal efforts we just didn't find ourselves in the right spots to kick goals. Things were rushed, players had too much to deal with when looking for the final connection.

I'm completely disgusted that a player like Ed Richards just can't kick properly anymore, or that Jacko is so much worse than he was in the second half of last year and before that when he actually sliced teams up with some decisive kicking. It's the major part of our game, alongside goal kicking, and we have regressed in each.

I genuinely see what the tactics and strategy around ball movement is. It makes perfect sense in lieu of our personnel, but we haven't equipped our players to execute it given the kicking is so bloody bad.

Kudos for the effort, better teams of ours have performed worse over there, but for Christ's sake, it's just kicking and handballing properly that is stopping us and there's no reason for this to be the case.

It's really disappointing and frustrating that our overall skill level has deteriorated and of course our goal kicking isn't anywhere near good enough. When Bevo first arrived he was going to get the team focused on two things.
1) Moving the ball quickly - which he was able to achieve and
2) Improving our kicking skills especially on the opposite foot. The nice way to say it is that it's still very much a work in progress.

Now there has been a significant changeover of personnel since he has arrived but it's particularly concerning when we see players like Richards that has quickly gone from being a good kick to one that isn't no anywhere near as effective. Cordy was a decent kick a couple of years back and has now somehow become a player who struggles to hit targets by often kicking it softly turning what should be an easy mark to something that now has to be picked up on the half volley. As you have pointed out Macrae hasn't had the same effect this year although that and his constant baulking at taking goal kicking shots are the primary reasons so many people don't regard him as truly elite and then you can add the likes of Dunkley, Hunter and McLean and dare I say Bontempelli that aren't effective kicks as they should be. Dickson is no longer the dead-eye shot for goal he once was and Hayes and Wood just aren't good kicks. We certainly have more than our share of challenges at the moment.

I have no idea why the basics of the game have become difficult for elite athletes but some clubs are better at it and maybe there is a lesson to be learned.

[GVGjr]

Do we think we are too hesitant with the ball.
I know there's a time you have to slow things down but during the game and Hunter is a prime example does all the hard running to get the ball but takes a second too long to make a decision.

Just a small sample was he had procession attacking side of centre with a mark. Smith had lead into a hole on the 50 with plenty of space around him and Hunter pauses, waits look inboard then releases to Smith because his free but by this time Freo has him cover by 2 and clear the ball away.

I think the team has become slow by mind making the team slow by foot. Sometimes I wish they take the first option before doesn't become an option.

It's a good point you highlight and perhaps we are looking at the safe option rather than the open man that requires the player to hit the longer target.

[GVGjr]

Just had a quick look at Wood's output so far this season

He's had just 41 kicks in 6 games (close enough to 7 kicks per game)
Just 7 tackles in the 6 games
Marks 25 or just over 4 per game

I know he's never been a great accumulator of possessions as he is averaging just 14 per game but he's not adding much to us at the moment.

[DOG GOD]

Do we think we are too hesitant with the ball.
I know there's a time you have to slow things down but during the game and Hunter is a prime example does all the hard running to get the ball but takes a second too long to make a decision.

Exactly, and other than Hunters lack lustre disposal, my other gripe on him is that he rarely runs in a direct line after getting the ball. Most times he will stop, turn a full 360 and then just bomb it long.

[DOG GOD]

Just had a quick look at Wood's output so far this season

He's had just 41 kicks in 6 games (close enough to 7 kicks per game)
Just 7 tackles in the 6 games
Marks 25 or just over 4 per game

I know he's never been a great accumulator of possessions as he is averaging just 14 per game but he's not adding much to us at the moment.

And the problem with all that Is that he’s the capt. undroppable.

[comrade]

Exactly, and other than Hunters lack lustre disposal, my other gripe on him is that he rarely runs in a direct line after getting the ball. Most times he will stop, turn a full 360 and then just bomb it long.

It’s because he’s fairly slow so he needs to pivot to give himself space. It’s become so habitual he does this even when under implied pressure. Because he muffs even straight forward drop punts and tends to kick them shallow he has a preference for kicking around himself where he can generate a little more power (and less accuracy but this doesn’t seem to bother him).

Macrae has similar tendencies, though he lacks Hunter’s agility to pivot and cut the angles so he now tends to go to ground like Daniel Cross used to do.

Having our two biggest ball winners with such huge deficiencies is a big reason we a) can’t score and b) get torched on turnovers.

[bornadog]

One thing we haven't discussed is who was playing on Matera? 5 goals from him killed us.