Even more bullish after last night...

[SainterK]

Will probably be met with some opposition, but I'm up for a discussion.

Saints will be there when the whips are cracking, no doubt about it.

Suns and Crows before the bye, ideally would be nice to win both of them, but even one sees us set up for a cracker run home (funnily enough, actually more worried about Suns than Crows, poor sides lift more when they have zero expectation on them)

What we have done without a recognised ruckman has been nothing short of impressive.

Laidley and the midfield have been heroic in their attempts, and for mine, it just makes us even more damaging second half of the season with Ben back and our midfield used to roving to just about anything.

It's (once again IMO) been character building stuff these last few weeks, I love it, I love where it's going to take us....I'm even more of a believer about this year than I was.

Some kids have taken their games to another level this year.

Ben, Fisher, Geary are absolutely in for mine.

Schneider and Stanley desperately will be trying to push someone out.

Blake goes back to defence, Kosi back to F50, everything will be as it should be.

The best part about it all, is the experimenting and multi position moves Watters now has up his sleeve, which is SO imporant in modern footy.

[Dave McNamara]

I was going to ask P66 if it was still possible to get those rose-coloured glasses that he used to wear to the footy back in the day with Mart... but they aren't needed! Great post!

No opposition from me!

[matrix]

Gold Coast SUNS vs. St. Kilda Metricon Stadium
Adelaide Crows vs. St. Kilda AAMI Stadium
Bye
St. Kilda vs. North Melbourne Etihad Stadium
St. Kilda vs. Essendon Etihad Stadium
Brisbane Lions vs. St. Kilda Gabba
Sydney Swans vs. St. Kilda SCG
St. Kilda vs. Western Bulldogs Etihad Stadium
Collingwood vs. St. Kilda MCG
St. Kilda vs. Melbourne MCG
Geelong Cats vs. St. Kilda Etihad Stadium
St. Kilda vs. GWS GIANTS Etihad Stadium

id be tipping us in 6 of those remaining games
big boy chips gears rhys and maybe schneides (match fit thou?) to come back in
pinch another one maybe two games (would be nice)

adelaide will belt us at home
bombers the same
and prob a loss to the pies
other games are up in the air

imo

[markp]

I agree, and I'm delighted with where we're at team-wise... we nearly won last night against a white hot side, even though we were diabolically behind the eight ball with major outs.

But ladder-wise we're slipping into the shyte for 2012.

[SainterK]

People saying 13 wins gets you there?

Even though it's so hard to know what will happen with other teams for the rest of the season.

Pretty sure that even if you pencil in losses to Collingwood, Swans, Geelong, Crows....Saints could be finishing in the eight...and they will be VERY capable of winning at least two of those?

[gringo]

This season will come down to who is travelling best late in the season. Anything could happen, Geelong could come good or drop away. Hawks could be anything, Adelaide haven't been up long enough to have real faith in them come september and they have been masked with a super soft fixture. Collingwood and WCE must feel the pinch of major injuries at some point. If any team is in the 8 and travelling well they can pinch one from anywhere no matter what history says. We have had some injuries so far but no horror ones touch wood and at some point our luck might turn and we come home with a very fresh group of guys who missed chunks and an understudy group of youth who have played.

[bobmurray]

Oh Dear....

I'm glad i'm not an eternal optimist, you have to a small grip on reality when contemplating the teams fortunes in 2012

[SainterK]

Oh Dear....

I'm glad i'm not an eternal optimist, you have to a small grip on reality when contemplating the teams fortunes in 2012

At least I have a grip on my grammar, tried to spit that one out a bit quick Bob?

[saintsRrising]

Schneider and Stanley desperately will be trying to push someone out.

.

???

Schneider will be an automatic in once he is match fit. If he is not in our top 10 will go he. Very smart and good user of the ball. Great for goal assists, and will also expand our midfield rotations which we need against the best midfields.

Ditto for Stanley, as Watters has re-affirmed many times that he wants 3 tall forwards. Besides Stanley is the No 2 ruck. Kosi needs to be a marking target.

But yes I agree with your thrust that we can be significantly better, as long as we get our players back without losing other good players.

12 games left. We may need to win 7 or 8 of them. We need to get a move on.

[nobhead]

Oh Dear....

I'm glad i'm not an eternal optimist, you have to a small grip on reality when contemplating the teams fortunes in 2012

At least I have a grip on my grammar, tried to spit that one out a bit quick Bob?

great post spot on imo .everyone carrying on about the tigers last night .alot more upside in the saints who without chips, macca, stanley , schneids, geary in the side nearly won. and didnt have many passengers either . very good problem to have trying to fit them all in ,that point must have got lost in all the richmond hysteria. chin up every one , things are looking very positive.

[bobmurray]

Oh Dear....

I'm glad i'm not an eternal optimist, you have to a small grip on reality when contemplating the teams fortunes in 2012

At least I have a grip on my grammar, tried to spit that one out a bit quick Bob?

[SainterK]

Schneider and Stanley desperately will be trying to push someone out.

.

???

Schneider will be an automatic in once he is match fit. If he is not in our top 10 will go he. Very smart and good user of the ball. Great for goal assists, and will also expand our midfield rotations which we need against the best midfields.

Ditto for Stanley, as Watters has re-affirmed many times that he wants 3 tall forwards. Besides Stanley is the No 2 ruck. Kosi needs to be a marking target.

But yes I agree with your thrust that we can be significantly better, as long as we get our players back without losing other good players.

12 games left. We may need to win 7 or 8 of them. We need to get a move on.

OK then, at which players expense?

It's much easier to say he's in, but who goes out?

[Teflon]

Its hard to guage us - I mean take 2 key rucks and an AA defender out of most sides and they will stuggle.

We are having a dip which is good but whether or not we are genuine resistance against Pies, Crows, Bombers we'll see.

Shame we let the Weagirls get 50pts on us before we decided to play.........

[saintsRrising]

OK then, at which players expense?

It's much easier to say he's in, but who goes out?

It is not just who goes out, but who goes in. Schneider is a better player than Geary. So for mine Schneider is more of an in than Geary if you want to rank them.

If we are picking a finals team, and so the desire to blood players lessons.

Gram/Geary Gilbert Dempster
Gwilt/Blake/Simpkin Fisher Goddard
Joey Hayes Ray
Milera Roo Stanley
Milne Kosi Saad

Ben
Dal
Armo

Int: Jones + 2 So one of Gram, Geary, Blake, Simpkin, Gwilt to miss.
Sub: Should be someone with pace. Cripps has gone ok in this role (but at this stage is mainly an outside player with pace his only real weapon. Ledger would be a possibility (hard nut an quick wh can play inside and out). Siposs a dark horse due ti his kicking. Gram could also be the sub as he has been a big game player....and can play a variety of roles.

Raph will also be chance and I assume Watters will give him a chance to displace one of our other defenders.

If everyone is fit then someone will be stiff to be left out. To win the flag this year you will need pace, flair and good footskills.
Gilbert's height ill keep him in at this stage as we are vunerable down back to height., and we have few options. If his form slumps further The Blake may squeeze him out.

[sainterjo]

Steven and Schneider?

[SainterK]

OK then, at which players expense?

It's much easier to say he's in, but who goes out?

It is not just who goes out, but who goes in. Schneider is a better player than Geary. So for mine Schneider is more of an in than Geary if you want to rank them.

If we are picking a finals team, and so the desire to blood players lessons.

Gram/Geary Gilbert Dempster
Gwilt/Blake/Simpkin Fisher Goddard
Joey Hayes Ray
Milera Roo Stanley
Milne Kosi Saad

Ben
Dal
Armo

Int: Jones + 2 So one of Gram, Geary, Blake, Simpkin, Gwilt to miss.
Sub: Should be someone with pace. Cripps has gone ok in this role (but at this stage is mainly an outside player with pace his only real weapon. Ledger would be a possibility (hard nut an quick wh can play inside and out). Siposs a dark horse due ti his kicking. Gram could also be the sub as he has been a big game player....and can play a variety of roles.

Raph will also be chance and I assume Watters will give him a chance to displace one of our other defenders.

If everyone is fit then someone will be stiff to be left out. To win the flag this year you will need pace, flair and good footskills.
Gilbert's height ill keep him in at this stage as we are vunerable down back to height., and we have few options. If his form slumps further The Blake may squeeze him out.

Yeah you've missed Steven, and I still think Geary needs to be in...and wouldn't rank Schneider higher than him just yet.

Purely because he has mised 10 rds of senior footy, and would need to see a bit of him first to make sure.

[saintsRrising]

Yeah you've missed Steven, and I still think Geary needs to be in...and wouldn't rank Schneider higher than him just yet.

Purely because he has mised 10 rds of senior footy, and would need to see a bit of him first to make sure.

Ben will have missed a few too. But he comes back in.

If Schneider gets match fit...then he will be back in. He went ok for his first game back, and so should be on the up and up from here.

Yes Steven is 100% in And LOL..I missed Schneider too!!!

Gram/Geary Gilbert Dempster
Gwilt/Blake/Simpkin Fisher Goddard
Steven Hayes Ray
Schneider Roo Stanley
Milne Kosi Saad

Ben
Dal
Armo

Int: Jones, + 2 ... So three of Milera, Joey, Gram, Geary, Blake, Simpkin, Gwilt to miss.
Sub: Should be someone with pace. Cripps has gone ok in this role (but at this stage is mainly an outside player with pace his only real weapon. Ledger would be a possibility (hard nut an quick who can play inside and out). Siposs a dark horse due ti his kicking. Gram could also be the sub as he has been a big game player....and can play a variety of roles.

Milne could possibly get squeezed out. But at this stage I would see him as staying on.


Who is your 22?

[SainterK]

I hope I haven't missed anyone....if everyone was fit and firing and I had to pick a side

B: Gram Dempster Fisher
HB: Geary Gwilt Goddard
C: Dal Santo Hayes Steven
HF: Gilbert Riewoldt Milera
F: Milne Koschitze Montagna
R: McEvoy Armitage Jones
Int: Ray Blake Saad
Schneider (sub)

Blake and Stanley are the hard ones to pick between for me