9 and 6, then the abyss. Why?

[Go_Dogs]

Re: 9 and 6, then the abyss. Why?

Good post.

[LostDoggy]

Re: 9 and 6, then the abyss. Why?

... I think our performances this year rather than being the result of Eade downplaying our list are instead a vindication of his earlier comments.
As professional athletes they should've seen that Eade's comments as to where we are as a group were a challenge to them, to show him they are prepared to put in the application and go to that next level...

Good post YHF. After we lost the semi last year I remember Eade commenting along the lines of "they thought they had reached the top of the mountain when they defeated Collingwood (in the Elimination Final). They aren't even half way up the mountain yet". I believe Eade and his crew can see what is going on and what needs to be done, but the players - for whatever reason- can't. Therein lies the challenge.

[LostDoggy]

Re: 9 and 6, then the abyss. Why?

I thought that our leadership was really poor this year, our team was constantly being changed and I guess it was hard to settle with a certain structure. Last year we had I think 13 players who played in all 24 matches, this year we have had what, 5 or 6? Also, I think it's easier to account for forwards that are lost as we saw a lot of our midfielders and players in other positions able to help out Johnno and all add to the goal tally fairly evenly, however this year with the loss of our midfielders, our forwards and backs weren't really able to account for them, as it's obviously a position you have to grow into and isn't as simple as drifting down and kicking a goal every so often (also hard, not trying to underestimate that). Also, I think our expectations were a little bit high, not for a top 8 finish, but for a top 4 finish and possibly a serious threat come September, Rodney came out and said early on that we shouldn't expect too much and that there was still a long way to go before seriously threatening for a flag...but 13th is a bit far off from what it should have been. Also, I don't know the reason, but our ability to come back from defecits was amazing last year, and this year it seemed that as soon as we lost the lead, that was it, which could also come down to a leadership thing, belief, fitness, whatever...there would be more than just one thing to blame, but as long as we don't go making any knee jerk reactions we should be OK.