12 months ago

[SaintWodonga]

We had the wood on the Pies.

The pies went away saw their holes and got Ball & Jolly. Went on a high altitude camp and created a new game plan.

Clearly they were well behind us in 2009. Now well in front.

What did they tweak? How did their plodders become good players?

Ball & Jolly were good, but I think the real improvement came from their young players.

We really need to look at what they did at the end of 2009. We need to come back with new energy and give younger players a go.

What do we need to do to bridge the gap?

[plugger66]

They got rid of most of their plodders and replaced them with young guys.

[degruch]

Clearly they were well behind us in 2009. Now well in front.

They were well behind us about 3 months ago...go figure!

[chook23]

You mentioned it yourself

natural improvement/development of their young very skilled/quick players THAT WE DID NOT RATE because they did not play for us

+ the other factors

[IluvHarvey]

You also can't rule out "belief" after they beat us and Geelong in the year they stepped up again. I think their self belief was a huge factor.

[aussierules0k]

[plugger66]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

[Q5]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

I agree with this - some days everything works, others it doesn't. It was just one of those days...

[oakleighboy]

They clearly have better developmental skills for young people.

[degruch]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

[chook23]

They clearly have better developmental skills for young people.

maybe maybe not

youngsters just more talented/upside

[plugger66]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

[degruch]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

Poor kicking is poor football...like 1.9 20 seconds into 3/4 time. No more Pies excuses, had there been time on, we'd have won GF1 easily.

[plugger66]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

Poor kicking is poor football...like 1.9 20 seconds into 3/4 time. No more Pies excuses, had there been time on, we'd have won GF1 easily.

Yep and if my auntie had balls she would be a sherrin. Lets look at facts and they were the better side this year.

[SaintPav]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

Well If they weren't they definitley are now and that gap will only widen. RL is no fool, he knows it. Unfortunatley, we may not be able to do anything about it in the short term. I hope I'm wrong.

[saintnick12]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

Agree. They were clearly the better team.
Had we won last week we would have pinched it and it would have been a sweet victory...stealing a flag from the pies. But it would have been exactly that. We had our best chance and we blew it. It appears after Saturday's performance that the boys put everything they had into last week and by this week were running on empty and too many injuries.

[Spinner]

Improvement from wellingham beams sidebottom obrien Reid Dawes and Thomas.

All took a step up in output between 09 and 10.


We had one. Gwilt. Who Really only stepped up during the finals series and 1 game during the year.

09 we had montagna Goddard jones gilbert and a few others.


Granted jolley had a massive difference.. But one player doesn't change a team.

[falka]

Its simple. Look who improved from 08 to 09 for Saints. The Pies did that this year in similar numbers, whilst only Gwilt improved for us this year.

What I think happened with us is that our intensity and therefore system was down 5% and that is reflected in the Points for and against.

Have a look at footage from 09 v 10. Players would charge to the mark when opposition had in in d50, wave their arms about, jump, create much more pressure. Where was that this year?, they allowed many more easy kicks for the opposition.

Saints 09 would whip Saints 10.

Time to inject some youth and replace the plodders.

Also a little tweaking of the team with Gilbert and Roo up forward causing havoc and maybe even say a Dal Santo as a permanent classy forward, where 10 quality touches would be gold.

Other possibilities, Gram back into defense where he can create run and not win as tough a pill, Simpkin to have a crack in Blakes position for at least 5 rounds (similar size and athleticism but Simpkin has 10 years)

Bring on 2011.

[SaintPav]

Our draw this year, particularly in the second half was also fairly soft. We are not as good as we think we are. Hence, I was hoping that f---king ball was going to bounce up for the tip rat..

[degruch]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

Poor kicking is poor football...like 1.9 20 seconds into 3/4 time. No more Pies excuses, had there been time on, we'd have won GF1 easily.

Yep and if my auntie had balls she would be a sherrin. Lets look at facts and they were the better side this year.

Oh no, we just didn't kick straight...blub, blub, blub. Saints supporters seem to be honest enough to admit that on 2 occasions this year, the Pies beat us fair and square, but Pies supporters just can't admit that we did the same to them. Amazing.

Honestly, we quite easily saw them off GF1, GF2 was a bad game, for which we have no-one else but ourselves to blame, we made life very easy for the opposition and they were good enough to capitalise. Maybe the Pies easy run in the last 3 months finally paid off? Who knows, but to announce they are a better team at the end of the year, after they took 2 games to finally beat us, is no wiser than announcing the Hawks were better than Geelong at the start of 2009.

[plugger66]

We had 1 off day. It happens.
A slightly more favourable bounce to 44 and...
The filth are not better than us.

2 big victories would suggest you are wrong.

I think you're wrong.

Why? Lets look at all 4 games. Behind in all of them at half time. 2 probably out of reach at that stage another where they kicked poorly in the first half and one we played a great second half to come back and draw.

Poor kicking is poor football...like 1.9 20 seconds into 3/4 time. No more Pies excuses, had there been time on, we'd have won GF1 easily.

Yep and if my auntie had balls she would be a sherrin. Lets look at facts and they were the better side this year.

Oh no, we just didn't kick straight...blub, blub, blub. Saints supporters seem to be honest enough to admit that on 2 occasions this year, the Pies beat us fair and square, but Pies supporters just can't admit that we did the same to them. Amazing.

Honestly, we quite easily saw them off GF1, GF2 was a bad game, for which we have no-one else but ourselves to blame, we made life very easy for the opposition and they were good enough to capitalise. Maybe the Pies easy run in the last 3 months finally paid off? Who knows, but to announce they are a better team at the end of the year, after they took 2 games to finally beat us, is no wiser than announcing the Hawks were better than Geelong at the start of 2009.

If you cant see they were better over the whole year and when they played us well I just give up. It is ok to say a side was better. Were Geelong better than us last year. Probably not but the pies were this year.