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  1. #1
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    It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I don't EXACTLY know how to put my finger on it, but for some reason the 'dogs post 2017 have been really HARD to LOVE.

    2016 we were easy to love. 2017 those players had some cash in the supporter love bank. But from 2018 onwards...

    Don't get me wrong - there are players who I think are amazing (Bont), but apart from Libba, Naughts and Caleb, I really just don't "love 'em". I don't know why.

    I mean, I loved Dunks but the whole Essendon thing has soured me on him.
    I WANT to love Gardner because of his battler status but somehow I just don't.
    Tim is just too pretty and is the antithesis of the Hudson style ruckman who I have always been drawn too.
    Bailey S? Umm. I don't know...the Cotton On stuff? Really? I guess it could be those stupid ads for tradie underwear or whatever but I just wonder who is advising him and what REALLY matters to him? Is footy as important to him as it appeared it was pre- draft???
    Bailey Dale frustrated me so much as a forward that I still can't QUITE get there.
    Jacko sooks it up when things aren't going his way.
    Bailey Williams was there for me but something isn't right with him since the mid-point of last year...
    Alex Keath is great - but somehow seems 'un-bulldog-like' - and just like things being 'un-strayan' I can't even really define what it means.
    Westy is nearly there for me but the whole stuff with his Dad in the media last year was off putting.
    Cody will no doubt be there but he DOES throw his head back for free-kicks and that is frustrating ('cos he DOESN'T need to do it).

    I could go through the team but I will stop there...I guess there have been some games - think the way we finished the regular season last year - where the team just seems to play without care. And whilst I KNOW back in the old days we were terrible on a regular basis I just seem to remember that when the great coaches of my life were in charge (Wallace, Eade) we simply took care of business when we needed too...I still remember a headline from the Herald Sun once upon a time that said "Dogs have TRUE GRIT - What about the Rest" from the Wallace era after we won a Friday nighter vs North in what was an incredibly tight season.

    Friday night? I mean, I got it wrong...I actually said that the forwards wouldn't get us, but our inability to stop kicking it to Stewart would. So much for that. But I had NO expectation we would win and was 100% not surprised when Geelong came out and kicked 3x coast-to-coast goals. And on top of that, every AFLW player we have is leaving to go 'somewhere else' and it's just doing my head in. Sure, of the past 5x 100+ point victories in the AFL we have had 4x of them...but that just re-inforces my feelings that we are flat track bullies who run their hardest when the ball is 'bouncing their way'.

    Is it just me? Man, I hope it is.
    What should I tell her? She's going to ask.

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  3. #2
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    It’s not just you MJP. Some players I can’t gel with..most of those not deserving a game, let alone being AFL players, and yes I know, every team has them, but what I also don’t love is the blatant (well in my eyes) arrogance of team selection. And this isn’t on the players…so maybe it’s the MC I just can’t “love” , and my man crush for Bailey Dale and his normally elite kicking will continue
    I will never see #16 the same!!

  4. #3
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I referred to them as the most dishonest team I have seen play for the club in my decades of watching it.

    So no, it's not just you.

    Effort is conditional for this group, concentration is conditional for this group and reliable skill execution of the absolute basics is conditional for this group.

    Very difficult to like, and outside of all the bullshit fan experience a major reason why I don't go to games.
    Nobody's looking for a puppeteer in today's wintry economic climate.

  5. #4
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I feel like this group can't be trusted, effort is optional and maybe it's time for Bevo to dump a few big name guys to make a statement.

    Makes you wonder how we made the GF last year with this group.
    The curse is dead.

  6. #5
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    Nah I like em. I think Dunkley is a bit of a square but otherwise think they’re all pretty solid. Not like they’ve copped charges or anything.
    - I'm a visionary - Only here to confirm my biases -

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  8. #6
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I love ‘em.

    They frustrate me cause this is quickly moving into wasted season territory and we could actually have won so many more matches than we have.

    End of the day though, I love ‘em.

  9. #7
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    It's an interesting statement. We had a player that for mine was a pretty "Bulldog" type player in Trengove and we treated him like shit.
    For a guy like that to leave with sour grapes makes me wonder what the culture is like behind closed doors as he was salt of the earth.
    Clearly not a star, and expected to be 18-22 but he was genuinely baffled by his non selection at times (I got this first hand).
    No one likes being "retired" but I think type that could've handled it if done right. Not sure I'm on thread with that but I'll leave it there xD
    More on topic, there is a bit of truth in what you say for me. It's a hard team to connect with presently.

    is it the pathway? Is it where these kids are coming from that makes them less "Everyman"? Less gritty? Bailey Smith is the antitheses of Bulldog.

  10. #8
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    You refer to Friday’s game.

    With 15 minutes to go I was expecting a win. And so was most of the crowd sitting near me. Geelong had stalled and we were in control. Geelong was battling to keep us out.

    Then what do I see. Naughton in the ruck. We have gone into the game with one strong forward and he is in the ruck???

    The problem is the sensational arrogance. Before the game we are told One ruck is enough because Geelong rucks are crap. We only need one tall forward because Geelong’s backline is crap. And our midfielders are unbeatable.

    Only took 15 minutes to see it was all rubbish. The team battled on admirably only to be beaten in the end by Geelong looking for their second tall specialist forward. Who’s ever heard of a a team having a second tall forward?

    It is not the players. It is the rubbish game plan that they have to keep polishing.

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  12. #9
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    Quote Originally Posted by Grantysghost View Post
    It's an interesting statement. We had a player that for mine was a pretty "Bulldog" type player in Trengove and we treated him like shit.
    For a guy like that to leave with sour grapes makes me wonder what the culture is like behind closed doors as he was salt of the earth.
    Clearly not a star, and expected to be 18-22 but he was genuinely baffled by his non selection at times (I got this first hand).
    No one likes being "retired" but I think type that could've handled it if done right. Not sure I'm on thread with that but I'll leave it there xD
    More on topic, there is a bit of truth in what you say for me. It's a hard team to connect with presently.

    is it the pathway? Is it where these kids are coming from that makes them less "Everyman"? Less gritty? Bailey Smith is the antitheses of Bulldog.
    Speak for yourself I'm hanging out for it 44 years of work and I'm ready do want I want to do.

    Sorry you were talking about footballers
    Don't piss off old people
    The older we get the less "LIFE IN PRISON" is a deterrent...

  13. #10
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    Quote Originally Posted by Hotdog60 View Post
    Speak for yourself I'm hanging out for it 44 years of work and I'm ready do want I want to do.

    Sorry you were talking about footballers
    Ha gold.

  14. #11
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I love this team, as I do all Bulldog teams

    * Love to watch The Bont, especially his long kicking with his big left foot,

    * Love watching Naughton flying through the air, and if he misses the mark, but still manages to pounce on the ball,

    * Love watching Libba dig that ball out of a pack, or flip the handball over his head to a player running past.

    * Love watching Tim English develop his ruck skills but also the around the ground work

    * Love watching Weightman and what he brings to the forward line

    * Love watching Macrae work hard and rack up so many possessions in a consistent manor

    * Love watching Adz bouncing and running towards goal

    * Love the backline players in Dale, Caleb and Ed

    * Love watching Bailey Smith get better and better, he is strong, quick and a real bull

    Just to name a few.

    Looking forward to seeing JUH and Darcy develop in the future, and seeing what Arty can do.
    FFC: Established 1883

    Premierships: AFL 1954, 2016 VFA - 1898,99,1900, 1908, 1913, 1919-20, 1923-24, VFL: 2014, 2016 . Champions of Victoria 1924. AFLW - 2018.

  15. #12
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    Quote Originally Posted by Grantysghost View Post
    It's an interesting statement. We had a player that for mine was a pretty "Bulldog" type player in Trengove and we treated him like shit.
    For a guy like that to leave with sour grapes makes me wonder what the culture is like behind closed doors as he was salt of the earth.
    Clearly not a star, and expected to be 18-22 but he was genuinely baffled by his non selection at times (I got this first hand).
    No one likes being "retired" but I think type that could've handled it if done right. Not sure I'm on thread with that but I'll leave it there xD
    More on topic, there is a bit of truth in what you say for me. It's a hard team to connect with presently.

    is it the pathway? Is it where these kids are coming from that makes them less "Everyman"? Less gritty? Bailey Smith is the antitheses of Bulldog.
    Trengove was past his best
    FFC: Established 1883

    Premierships: AFL 1954, 2016 VFA - 1898,99,1900, 1908, 1913, 1919-20, 1923-24, VFL: 2014, 2016 . Champions of Victoria 1924. AFLW - 2018.

  16. #13
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I love them but they are so frustrating. Feel like we need a few more Libba & Westy types-tough nuts. We are lacking on field grit and leadership. As a consequence Bont I think tries to achieve too much with his kicks.

    Apart from the head butt I mostly enjoy Baz. He does seem to give his all when he is on field and the publicity for the club from his lucrative deals sits ok with me. Careers can be short so I do not bemoan him, I just hope he stays with us. We are living in a different world then the dour dogs of the past.

    Love the silky skills of Dale, Daniel, Bont. And Naughts is simply for me the most exciting player in RWB I’ve seen, even better then Johnno and Grant.

    And the seeming favouritism shown to some fringe players when others are not afforded same 2/3/4 chances, mc selections resulting in a non balanced team and year upon year issues with ruck are infuriating. I’m definitely not as emotionally invested this year, it’s like I know I’ll be disappointed if I am. I’ll still go to games and still enjoy watching the young ones develop in the the vfl. AFLW player loss is just heartbreaking but the ones who are loyal like Ellie, Kirsty, Fitzy, Browny in turn deserve our loyalty although again I’m not as invested as I was.

  17. #14
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    I get the impression that we don't have a lot of extroverts in the team. Blokes who really play with passion and despise getting beat in a contest as individuals and as a team.

    The first quarter against Geelong was deplorable. It doesn't matter what we did after that. The ONLY way to make up for it was to WIN the game and we didn't. So 'yes', for me it is getting hard to really like this team.

    I am usually pretty optimistic however, in the second half of this year, I have a feeling that we are going to perform really well against the teams above us but then, inexplicably, drop games to teams we are favoured to beat. That is a very Bulldog thing to do, I'm afraid.

    I can see us missing the 8 on percentage in a worst case scenario. Best case we finish 5th or 6th. In between result 7th or 8th. As we know Finals are a new ball game and we have shown that if we get there anything can happen.
    http://journals.worldnomads.com/merantau
    "It's not about the destination - it's about the trip."

  18. #15
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    Re: It's probably just me, but this team is hard to love!

    Quote Originally Posted by bornadog View Post
    Trengove was past his best
    He was dropped when he was at his best for us in 2019 which wasn't terrible form.
    I was speaking more about his character and how it ended non amicably.

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