Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

[LostDoggy]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Harbrow in for Wight? To play on Kosi?

McDougall, maybe, but Eade gave Wight a bit of a wrap after the game so I'd say Wight is safe for another week at least.

Wight has the tank and the reach to go with Reiwoldt, anyone game enough?

I guess you are right about Harbrow, but I still dont think we should use Wight.

[Dry Rot]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Great preview Griff #16. Well done.

Could Goddard be a nasty wild card? IMO he was beginning to look good before he got injured.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

I believe that this game won't be won in our backiline, i think that our midfielders and half forward line holds the key. We will win enough of the ball, it's how we use it through the HF line and how we defend when the ball comes out.

Agree and I thought I said it?

[LostDoggy]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Agree and I thought I said it?

sorry dude, I posted before I read..... Good minds think alike, they say

[Mantis]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Wight has the tank and the reach to go with Reiwoldt, anyone game enough?

No thanks.

Think Morris has to go to Riewoldt.

[GVGjr]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Great preview Griff #16. Well done.

Could Goddard be a nasty wild card? IMO he was beginning to look good before he got injured.

Goddard should be back. Played well on the weekend from all reports and he was running into some decent form when he played for the Scorpions. Not sure if he is ready to dominate though.

[dog town]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Probably as big as games get this early in the season. Will we go with the flooding and chipping tactics we used last year when we drew with them or back our normal style in? Should be interesting to see which way we go.


Massive game for Cam Wight. Has beaten two small profile opponents and now will most likely cop a fairly good opponent. Logic suggestes he will spend a fair bit of time on Kosi. If we cant rely on him to go with forwards of his stature then he either needs a new position or to improve rapidly. I reckon he can hold Kosi and leave Harris/Morris and Hargrave to tackle the others.

Stkilda play a fairly similar style to Sydney in that they place huge importance on stoppages and are quite prepared to slow the tempo of the game right down when its required. To win the game we certainly have to be competitive at the stoppages but in reality in games where they will try to choke our run we probably have to run even harder than usual. Space will be like gold for us and to get space against a side like Stkilda you really have to work hard to create it.

If I were to tag a Stkilda player it would be either Gram or Montagna. They provide the run and carry for Stkilda and much like Sydney when they are without Kenelly they can look quite pedestrian without it. Giansiracusa may play as a defensive forward on Gram if we can possibly engineer that match up. What is working in our favour at the moment is how even our contribution is amongst our forwards. It is pretty much assured that Gram will have to play on a dangerous player. Callan or Addison could be a chance to tag either Montagna or Dal Santo.

[Mantis]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Good work Griff, Top stuff...

I'm pretty keen to bring in McDougall this week, but for who is another matter. I would be looking to start Lake on Gehrig, Morris on Riewoldt and Wight on Kosi. If one of our players is getting beat or wose still gets injured we really have no cover. We were forced to play Welsh in defence late on Saturday and really that shouldn't be an option.

For me the key player's to shut down are Gram off half back and Montagna through the midfield. If we can cut down there run and carry it will certainly help in our attempts to win this important game.

Shapes as a big test.

PS. dogtown just beat me too it...great minds think alike.

[The Underdog]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Terrific review G#16. Morris on Reiwoldt would be a key match-up. Morris should match him on the leads and do OK in the body work but he couldn't go with him in the air. Hargrave would be my tip.

I'd prefer Morris. Shaggy has played on Riewoldt before and never got close. Morris has regularly given up height and done the job.
I think Griffen 16 has got the match-ups about right. Not confident enough in Wight to go with Riewoldt and to be honest, if he doesn't take Kosi, who does? You almost have to be satisfied if you hold 2 of the 3 of them, but the third has a potential to win the game any way. As others have said, the midfield battle is crucial. I also think their backline matches up pretty well with us, although they don't really have a big guy to take Will. Maybe it's time for him to take some grabs in the forward 50.

Selection will be very interesting. Eagleton is the obvious choice for Higgins, and no one else really deserves to get dropped, but match-ups might dictate somebody losing their spot. McDougall would be good back up but will probably miss on form alone. We'll need to do everything right to win it.

On a side note, does anone else think Leigh Fisher looks like Johnno without the smile?

[LostDoggy]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Good preview Griff!

It surprises me how much emphasis people put on Williams and Skinny being out of the side. Both guys show signs of being great players in the future but do we really miss them that much at the present time? Both guys certainly showed a lot of promise last season but imo neither player is an established best 22 player.

One key to this game will be making sure that Riewoldt gets the majority of his ball up the ground and preferably out wide. He tends to lead out a fair way from goal imo.

I'd like to see the dogs try and exert some real physical pressure. St Kilda will understandably be confident going itno this match due to our form against them in recent seasons. It's very important that we show that we're not intimidated by them and that we're going to play the game on our terms. Don't forget that Ross Lyon still has a tendency to gravitate towards a Sydney style game, which isn't executed anywhere near as well as the Swans.

Obviously there's a lot of focus on who will stop their forwards. I have a theory on this. They can't kick goals if the ball is up our end.

[BulldogBelle]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Excellent preview Griff#16.

Hopefully STK will make that mistake again and sit Lenny Hayes on the bench in the first quarter.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

astute observations hobdog! Marginalising Riewoldt, in addition to getting first use out of the centre via Cooney, Acker, Cross- and banging it down forward should draw the match day debate down to our forward fifty. Loose skilled players ie Murphy, Griffen and Gilbee have to be used with nouse and flair from a coaching point of view....IMO Cooney needs yet another big one for us to win.

[alwaysadog]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Really great thread and great intro G16.

Don't forget that the old master in the #35 jumper loves playing against us cause we give him so much space.

[The Coon Dog]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Just pretending I'm Ernie Sigley here for a sec & betting that Reiwoldt gets the softest free kicks imaginable on Friday night for some sort of perceived contact. He usually does against us!

[Bornadog]

Re: Round 3 Match Preview: Bulldogs v Saints

Although the Saints have a tall forward line they don't kick many big scores and infact last year overall, they had one of the lowest average goals per game count.

An interesting thing will be what game plan Eade will use in this game, remebering in last years draw we basically played the same style as the Saints? I would say it all depends on what happens in the first half of the game. I think we should make the Saints chase us and really kick a big score as we have done in the first two games. If our forward line and midfield can maintian the same tackling pressure as in the first two games, then we will blitz the Saints.

The match ups will be interesting. Eagleton will come in for Higgins, but whether Callen holds his place will depend on how Eade decides to match up against the Saints forwards. Wight will take Kosi and probably Morris will take Rienwoldt, Callen will be on Milne unless we decide to bring in McDougall. The Saints may try and rest a ruckman in their forward line to stretch us, so we may need to bring in another tall. Would we bring Street in if McDougall is not in form so that he follows Gardiner around?