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Always an interesting exercise this time if the year when trying to assess the relative strengths and time lines of each clubs lists.
For mine the big improver will be Richmond...the Cousins factor will be the icing on a pretty handy midfield cake.Foley,Cotchin,Deludio etc
Won eight out the last 11 and should have beaten us at Telstra[but enjoyed their pain immensely with my Richmond Brother inlaw beside me ]
The slider...dare I say it North Melbourne...have been enormously resilient but apart from Boomer Harvey and Wells just won't have enough class on the park IMO....The shinboners have proved me wrong before but I still see them as being the most vulnerable this year.
Never take a backward step even to gain momentum.....
'It's OK to have the capabilities and abilities, but you've got to get it done." Terry Daniher 05
"We have beauty in our captain and we have a true leader in our coach. Our time will come"
Thinline.Post 09 Grand final.
big improver - eagles (still have a lot of talent and a great homeground advantage if they can use it)
slider - hawks. wont achieve anywhere near the heights of last year. will still be in the finals, but last year they just happened to hit a purple patch at the right time. (kudos to them though)
ohwhenthesaints! wrote:Interesting prediction...here's my opinion for those interested
Improver will be Port Adelaide, they will suddenly remember they are capable of making the eight
I think the team to slide will be Sydney, it has to happen sometime
Agree 100%...Port have recruited well, under-performed and suffered from injuries last season. They'll be pumped this year. Sydney have lost two senior players already, and their old stars aren't getting any younger...expecting injuries to hit guys like Goodes, O'Locky and Hall if they're not tip top.
Improvers - Port (top 8), West Coast (8-11), Richmond (5-9)
Sliders - Sydney (Bottom 4) Doggies (5-10)
Treading Water - St Kilda (3-10), Adelaide (3-14)
ROBERT HARVEY A.K.A The Great Man, Banger, Harves, Ol' Man River...
384 games, 4 B&F's, 3 EJ Whitten Medals, St.Kilda Captain, 2 Time Brownlow Medalist, 8 Time All Australian, 2nd Highest Brownlow votes poller.... The greatest of ALL TIME!!
I wont say much but Im hoping we improve our position from 4th
richmond will make the top 8 (the inclusion of cousins will jumpstart their chances )
and i reakon carlton should have a good run to
INS:
Tigers
and either the Blues or PA (or possibly both)
OUTS:Adelaide, Swans and Roos (just, or they may just hold on)
My guestimate is that the Blues, Adelaide, PA and Roos will all be line ball in making the 8 in 2009.
Pies to stay in the 8...just.
Cats and hawks to reamin the teams to beat...with Dogs and Saints on the rug below them.
Adelaide: Slide. Have lost senior players and their older core is older..without enough young players hitting their straps.
Brisbane Lions: Have a new coach in Voss. My gut feel is that they will have a tumulteous year as a comabination of list rebuilding and a new coach with new ideas. They will wina similar number of games but will miss the eight.
Carlton: Their midfield will be better this year. But their backline will still bea concern and they still lack a key forwrd besides Fev. I think they will be better..but only just. They were however 2.5 games behind the swans and the Roos, and 2 games behind the pies....and so if the Blues can improvea might and the Roos and swans slide...the Blues may just slip into the 8...but it will be tight.
Collingwood: Will stay thereabouts in 2009 (they finished 8th...so may go upa rung or two) as I think that they have a lot of good young talent. Their team structure has a few lacks though in the ruck and in key forwards (Sav is past it) and not enough quality in their midfield.
Essendon: 12th..and will stay there or finish lower. Their stars are a year older....and their younsgters coming through as a group lack talent.
Fremantle: 14th in 2008. Will they be that bad again in 2009? I think they underachieved in 2008, but have lost some players and now seem to be in genuine re-build. so 2009 would seem to be 2008 repeated,,,but maybe with more than 6 wins.
Geelong: Will be very interesting to watch Geelong in 2009. 2008 they were awaesome, but faultered on the big-day. This may inspire them...or it could be their continue undoing if self-doubts emerge.
Hawthorn: Snagged a flag early in 2008...and havea team with many young players yet to potetially peak. Will they lose the desire in 2009? logically one would expect them to reamaina powerhouse club for many years now.
Melbourne: More of the same...buta slightly better year. However would still be favourites for the spoon.
North Melbourne: Each year they continue to surprise. Logically I would not pick them for the 8. However the Roos boys may surprise us all again.
Port Adelaide: Should have a better 2009, than 2008 and may just sneak into the 8.
Richmond: I think thatthere is a lot to like about the Tigers with a number of young players ripe to bloom whether it is in the midfield or with younger talls like Riewoldt. IF some of the oldersters like Cousins and Coghaln can have "useful" seasons then one would expect them to play finals. Of the teams outside of the 8 in 2008, I believe that the tigers are the team most likely to force their way into the 8 in 2009.
St Kilda: 2008 saw the team at last getting the hang of Lyon's gameplan. However to be a genuine Premiership Threat a host of players need to shake off the potential tag and step up and improve. Useful years from the injured ball, Maguire and Baker could makea big difference...and particualrly if ball can hit his straps as the Saints midfield lacks an extra star or two in the midfield.
Sydney Swans: Will slide out of the 8 in 2009. have lost several important players and do not seem to have the players to replace them.
West Coast: I think the Eagles have assembleda lot of really good young talent over the last several years. For the I think 2009 will bea really up and down year..but they will continue to build for the future by getting games into their youngsters. I expect that they will finish higher than 15th..but not by much. However watch out for the Eagles in several years time.
Western Bulldogs: Third in 2008, and will be thereabouts in 2009 too. Have been lacking in talls, but some of their youngsters such as Everitt should start to deliver.
Flying the World in comfort thanks to FF Points....
Richmond - sorry cant see where or why they are going to improve but then again I don't read newspapers. Cuz can improve all he likes, aint gonna make a team.
Carlton - have already self-destructed. Don't believe the hype.....don't,don't, don't believe the hype - sorry bit of public enemy.
Adelaide in transition, port adelaide.....big possibility.
saints - more mature, more options...will probably take a few weeks to get the balance but should be around the mark.
Geelong, age shall (not) weary them at the going down of the form we shall remember them. Poor old buggers.
Hawks - lets see how the preassure of being no. 1 sits - cracks.
Dees - don'ts, haven'ts, can'ts.
Swans - could surprise - don't know why just sus about them I guess.
Pies - same old same old - good but not good enough.
Doggies - over achievers, can't see it happening. Fat head city
West coast - nat(anui) enough going for them.
Freo - ee oo, oh no, no go.
Brissy - seriously short of a rudder. But that shouldn't stop them from being absolute crap. Hope they wallow in mangroves for some time.
Roos - yeh there abouts again, can't see them dropping off to much - like the look of their recruiting.
I think there's another club but if I can't think of them they probably don't don't rate
I've never seen a bad St.Kilda player - that's just how they are.
ohwhenthesaints! wrote:Interesting prediction...here's my opinion for those interested
Improver will be Port Adelaide, they will suddenly remember they are capable of making the eight
I think the team to slide will be Sydney, it has to happen sometime
Agree 100%...Port have recruited well, under-performed and suffered from injuries last season. They'll be pumped this year. Sydney have lost two senior players already, and their old stars aren't getting any younger...expecting injuries to hit guys like Goodes, O'Locky and Hall if they're not tip top.
carlton simply have no good talls coming through apart from jamison and kreuze...2 dont make a team
add gibbs, murphy and judd...thats 5 out of 22 needed
add fev...thats 6.....
i dislike carlton as much as anyone on here...however after taking off the rose coloured baised glasses i can't for the life of me see how they are going to improve enough now and into the future to succeed
players like bower, fisher, betts, cloke, carrazzo, houlihan...are not players that one would want anywhere near the st kfc...these 7 are literally off the top of my head too..im sure there is more...way more
Interesting to see so many rate the Tigers - I actually feel they'll still miss finals this year. I just can't see Richo having another year like he did last year given his age and I don't think they have great depth up forward.
I think (and hope ) that the Pies will be the slider this year. They've lost heaps of experience in the last few years (Wakelin, Buckley and Burns) and so the young kids may get found out a little more than in the past.
kp83 wrote:Interesting to see so many rate the Tigers - I actually feel they'll still miss finals this year.
.
I think (and hope ) that the Pies will be the slider this year. .
Interesting that you have the Pies sliding..
The Tigers finished 2 points (halfa win) behinf the Pies in 2008.
They finished 4 points behinf the Roos..but witha better %.
So 4points and % behind the Swans.
And 6 points and % behind the Swans.
One more win....and they could have displaced one or both of the roos and the Pies.
I think the last several places in the 8 will be very tight again in 2009....and I can see the Tigers have overall that little bit better year in 2009.
Whereas I see the Swans, Roos and Crows all sliding.
So that is why I see the Tigers playig finals fooball in 2009...though I think that they will not stay in the finals long.
Last edited by saintsRrising on Mon 09 Feb 2009 8:58pm, edited 1 time in total.
Flying the World in comfort thanks to FF Points....
PJ wrote:Richmond - sorry cant see where or why they are going to improve but then again I don't read newspapers. Cuz can improve all he likes, aint gonna make a team.
Carlton - have already self-destructed. Don't believe the hype.....don't,don't, don't believe the hype - sorry bit of public enemy.
Adelaide in transition, port adelaide.....big possibility.
saints - more mature, more options...will probably take a few weeks to get the balance but should be around the mark.
Geelong, age shall (not) weary them at the going down of the form we shall remember them. Poor old buggers.
Hawks - lets see how the preassure of being no. 1 sits - cracks.
Dees - don'ts, haven'ts, can'ts.
Swans - could surprise - don't know why just sus about them I guess.
Pies - same old same old - good but not good enough.
Doggies - over achievers, can't see it happening. Fat head city
West coast - nat(anui) enough going for them.
Freo - ee oo, oh no, no go.
Brissy - seriously short of a rudder. But that shouldn't stop them from being absolute crap. Hope they wallow in mangroves for some time.
Roos - yeh there abouts again, can't see them dropping off to much - like the look of their recruiting.
I think there's another club but if I can't think of them they probably don't don't rate
i want to throw that straight in the recycling bin and process it at the end of the year when it proves to have been 100% correct.
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