Realistic expectations V Collingwood

[Eastdog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

I would like to see the effort from our players there throughout the whole match and not just in parts of the match. In 2009 we would have gone into this match thinking we could easily win but now the realisation is that we probably won't and we are once again in a re-building phase like we were during 2002-2004.

[Ghost Dog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Pah. Personally, IMO we give Collingwood too much respect. Was there a similar thread for the Westcoast game? ( a better team IMO ).
I hope we come out all guns blazing tomorrow and as many lads as can manage, win their role on the field.

[Missing-Dog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Pah. Personally, IMO we give Collingwood too much respect. Was there a similar thread for the Westcoast game? ( a better team IMO ).
I hope we come out all guns blazing tomorrow and as many lads as can manage, win their role on the field.

I like this post. I think that is the right attitude to have coming into this game.

Look at how we were going against westcoast nearly at full strength! If collingwood dont play shaw, thomas and reid then I dont see why our guys cant give them a run for there money! Boyd, Griffen, Cooney, Dahlhaus and Murphy. They are 5 players the other team has to worry about already If everybody comes out fired up then we are still in with a chance.

I may even tip us for an uspet now *!*!*!*! collingwood!

[LostDoggy]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Wasn't it great over the past 3 or 4 years going to each game thinking we were a realistic chance of winning.

It kinda sucks going in hoping we don't get walloped or we have a honourable loss.

Spot on, although your post made me kinda bummed. You don't know
what you got till it's gone. 3 PRELIMS IN A ROW! wow. that was exciting.

My girlfriend (not a football person) jumped onboard as a supporter around 05 and enjoyed the ride ...what a ride it was . Now she is finding out what it's really like to be a doggies supporter. She doesn't like it

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

The 2008-2010 period was easily the most enjoyable experience in my Bulldog supporting life for this very reason (with 1997-2000 and 1992 in isolation close behind). Going to the game and expecting a positive result was a great feeling, and having your season ride the wave all the way to deep in preliminary final week was an exhilirating rush.

The St Kilda game certainly has changed the goalposts for my expectations in 2012 - I'm not expecting anything other than some honest toil against any mid range or better team this season. To that end, I'm expecting us to show a fair bit of graft and pluck on Friday night but to never really be in the game and suffer a 5-8 goal loss accordingly. We lack the polish and the overall skill to be a serious opponent for the better teams this year. I hope that changes in 2013-14 when we collectively get a better handle on the game plan.

The losses of Harbrow, Eagleton, Johnson, Akermanis, Hall, Hudson and Ward over the past two years and now with Morris and Williams out injured has severely weakened our list. We can only hope for rapid improvement over the next 2-3 years which is going to be a testing time for the Club. I would like to think that we can at least be competitive tomorrow night as our attack on the ball this year has been perhaps the one redeeming feature.

[Doc26]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

I feel I'm standing on the foreshore looking out with the imminent threat of a large scale tsunami on its way. With that said, this week will be a good test of the intensity first game plan they've been working on under McCartney and how it will hold up under one of the better units going around and for this reason alone I'm looking forward to seeing what we can bring to the table.

Collingwood without Jolly and Ball around the stoppages and without Thomas's run and creativeness helps our case although that half back line of Collingwood looms a frightening proposition if they're let off the hook as I'm expecting yet again.

With a lack of leg speed and ability I'm really not sure who we have that has shown they can realistically lock them down from creating across our forward half.

If our entries into the forward half can dramatically improve and turnovers managed then we might go some way to providing a contest; these would appear big ifs.

[Ghost Dog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Spot on, although your post made me kinda bummed. You don't know
what you got till it's gone. 3 PRELIMS IN A ROW! wow. that was exciting.

My girlfriend (not a football person) jumped onboard as a supporter around 05 and enjoyed the ride ...what a ride it was . Now she is finding out what it's really like to be a doggies supporter. She doesn't like it

I met a bloke at the Hardware store wearing a Bulldogs top. I had my beanie. We had instant rapport and chatted about the game coming up. When you have 150,000 members, you don't do this. I prefer to think of us as an elite supporter group!

[Axe Man]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Collingwood without Jolly and Ball around the stoppages and without Thomas's run and creativeness helps our case although that half back line of Collingwood looms a frightening proposition if they're let off the hook as I'm expecting yet again.

I haven't heard anything about Jolly being out?

Collingwood only defeated Port by 4 goals a couple of weeks ago at Etihad and Port outscored them after quarter time. I would hope we could put in at least a similar effort to Port's against the Pies.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

I hear from Pies fans Jolly is finished. Can't get off the ground with a similar knee problem to Cooney. Maybe it's better if he does play.

[Missing-Dog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

I met a bloke at the Hardware store wearing a Bulldogs top. I had my beanie. We had instant rapport and chatted about the game coming up. When you have 150,000 members, you don't do this. I prefer to think of us as an elite supporter group!

haha its always good to be a part of an elite supporter group

[LostDoggy]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Pah. Personally, IMO we give Collingwood too much respect. Was there a similar thread for the Westcoast game? ( a better team IMO ).
I hope we come out all guns blazing tomorrow and as many lads as can manage, win their role on the field.

The West Coast game was round one, so we had a summer of “intensity at the contest”, etc. to allow us to believe for a bit that it may not be all bad.

Since then, we've had some absolutely shocking periods of play, chiefly against St. Kilda but also Melbourne and last week, I went to Canberra and watched the GWS match. If we struggle to beat GWS (who aren't as bad as people think but let's face it, have played 5 matches as a club) in the first quarter, failing to kick a goal against the GWS backline for 20 minutes of play, how do you figure we're going to go against Harry O, Maxwell, etc.

We are in real danger of getting thumped, in a very embarrassing fashion. I don't think I've ever been as pessimistic about a game as I am going into this one.

I am not going in hoping we'll lose, and I really do expect us to at least put up some effort and intensity. But we are going to struggle to score. We may not kick more than 5 or 6 goals for the match, and that's not exaggerating. It's one of our key issues. Also, if certain culprits go missing for large parts of the game, as is their record, the chances of a shellacking just rise exponentially.

What worries me the most is if Collingwood get a run on us early, that the players will throw their hands up and run out the game with a lower intensity and lack of conviction, as we did against St Kilda, and have done numerous times in recent years. If we can keep up the effort in the face of anything they throw at us, we can walk out satisfied, even if it's a 20 goal belting.

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

The West Coast game was round one, so we had a summer of “intensity at the contest”, etc. to allow us to believe for a bit that it may not be all bad.

Since then, we've had some absolutely shocking periods of play, chiefly against St. Kilda but also Melbourne and last week, I went to Canberra and watched the GWS match. If we struggle to beat GWS (who aren't as bad as people think but let's face it, have played 5 matches as a club) in the first quarter, failing to kick a goal against the GWS backline for 20 minutes of play, how do you figure we're going to go against Harry O, Maxwell, etc.

We are in real danger of getting thumped, in a very embarrassing fashion. I don't think I've ever been as pessimistic about a game as I am going into this one.

I am not going in hoping we'll lose, and I really do expect us to at least put up some effort and intensity. But we are going to struggle to score. We may not kick more than 5 or 6 goals for the match, and that's not exaggerating. It's one of our key issues. Also, if certain culprits go missing for large parts of the game, as is their record, the chances of a shellacking just rise exponentially.

What worries me the most is if Collingwood get a run on us early, that the players will throw their hands up and run out the game with a lower intensity and lack of conviction, as we did against St Kilda, and have done numerous times in recent years. If we can keep up the effort in the face of anything they throw at us, we can walk out satisfied, even if it's a 20 goal belting.

One of the good things about playing Collingwood is that it will really put the acid test on some of our players who are yet to prove themselves against top opposition. We have become too reliant on the likes of Griffen, Boyd, Murphy, Dalhaus, Cross and Picken so I am looking forward to seeing how many others can lift our overall standard.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

One of the good things about playing Collingwood is that it will really put the acid test on some of our players who are yet to prove themselves against top opposition. We have become too reliant on the likes of Griffen, Boyd, Murphy, Dalhaus, Cross and Picken so I am looking forward to seeing how many others can lift our overall standard.

Says something about Dalhaus doesn't it if you are already including him in
this group. Great Pickup. Sherman, DJ and Ves have the potential to run the lines consistently as well if they get good gametime this year

[1eyedog]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Improvement from Wood and Higgins for a start and some form from Gia would be nice too. If we can get 100% from every player then we should be inside of 4 goals.

[The Pie Man]

Re: Realistic expectations V Collingwood

Would really like to see us not blown away in the 1st quarter - to be within a goal would be a start. We were so very poor in the 1st quarter last week, though I suspect we've had an eye on this clash for well over a week (if our social media 'Mission Possible' campaign is anything to go by, which started last week before we played the Giants....) so I do hope to see some fire early.