What do we take from this???

[damienc]

Plenty. Forget the margin or the scoreboard. It was how we went about it. Last week was a great step in the right direction. This was a small leap. We smashed the dish lickers in the midfield and in contested possessions. Lenny was sensational. What a recovery from doing your AC? How stupid was Lake doing a Scarlett on Simpkin? That should earn him a four week holiday. But getting back to the game. Stanley continues to come along in leaps and bounds. In his case literally!! He's a different player this year. Just goes to show what a little bit of self belief and confidence can do for your game. Are we a different team from last year? You bet.

Our forward line last year was constipated. Put three blokes on Roo and two on Milney and you shut down the entire St Kilda offensive. Now we have options. Roo is covered give it to Kosi. If Kosi is covered give it to Stanley or Milera or any of the midfielders who might have floated into the forward line. So 60 plus points better than the dogs. What do we make of it?

This season is shaping up to be a cracker. You might have tipped the Blues to beat the Pies but it ended up a nine goal thrashing. It is still very early in the season but the form teams are clearly, Geelong, Hawthorn, Carlton and maybe the West Coast.

Are the Saints good enough to beat any or all of those four? Won't know until we play them. But tonight was another confident step in the right direction. This team is starting to understand that if you win contested ball you win footy games. Look at what the Blues did to the Pies and Pendlebury? No I am not getting too carried away. The dogs had no fight in them tonight and the Saints did as they pleased.

But I reckon we have a different team this year. There is a a bit of mongrel in what we are doing on the footy field and I like it.

Can't wait for the next instalment.

[SainterK]

I enjoyed that, nice write up

Have to agree with the Mongrel...the forward line has Hamill written all over it, the backline has a Max like focus about it, the whole team has a Scott like balance about it.

Steps in the right direction.

[whiskers3614]

Next week is huge, beat Freo and Melbourne following week and we're 4and1'
One week at a time I know but win these and one out of Carlton and Hawthorn and we are genuine top 4 hopes.
Lose to Freo in Melbourne and the best we can hope for is 6th or 7th

[philtee]

Agree. Seeing the team in full flight tonight made me feel that this group isn't done with yet.
Jack Steven bouncing down the wing. Montagna tearing through the centre. Rhys Stanley
plucking grabs. Newnes, Milera and Simpkin looking like real players. Desperation for
the footy when you don't have it.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a football team.
The icing on the cake will be Milne kicking his 500th to seal the deal against the Dockers.

[bobmurray]

Next week is huge, beat Freo and Melbourne following week and we're 4and1'
One week at a time I know but win these and one out of Carlton and Hawthorn and we are genuine top 4 hopes.
Lose to Freo in Melbourne and the best we can hope for is 6th or 7th

Every week seems to be huge...there's a spin for every occasion....bring on the next opponent and let's whip em

[gringo]

I couldn't believe the rush to write us off, I still can't see why we are so much worse off. The journos should wait and see before blanketing the write offs. We knew a few had to come on but Stanley, Milera and Geary alone stand out so far and there is hope a few more aren't far away.

Newnes is the quiet achiever, he was trusted down back under pressure and managed, Polo has lifted and our old boys still look hungry. I'm not writing them off until I have good reason and I haven't found it yet. Where are those Freo tools.

I think the journos believed the Lyon role players were making us look better than we were crap and the no youth coming through line hope we can prove every one wrong and cause some real damage in 2012. At least it's exciting, I'd hate to follow the Dogs right now.

[bobmurray]

I couldn't believe the rush to write us off, I still can't see why we are so much worse off. The journos should wait and see before blanketing the write offs. We knew a few had to come on but Stanley, Milera and Geary alone stand out so far and there is hope a few more aren't far away.

Newnes is the quiet achiever, he was trusted down back under pressure and managed, Polo has lifted and our old boys still look hungry. I'm not writing them off until I have good reason and I haven't found it yet. Where are those Freo tools.

I think the journos believed the Lyon role players were making us look better than we were crap and the no youth coming through line hope we can prove every one wrong and cause some real damage in 2012. At least it's exciting, I'd hate to follow the Dogs right now.

I'd hate to be McCartney..never played AFl.. Smorgon steaming in the background.....Shite list..those losers could implode...

[desertsaint]

Just glad we got Watters, and not Neeld or McCartney.
Oh, and happy with the Pies new coach as well - gawd imagine if we had him?

[mad saint guy]

The thing that stands out for me is that we saw the our core can still produce performances like they did in '09 and '10. We are a much, much better team with Lenny in the side and he looks like he's now back to his best. We also haven't seen kids play the level of confidence that Stanley, Milera, Simpkin etc are showing; in the past few years I think whenever a young player got a gig he was told to be accountable and not make mistakes. Now we see them playing with the confidence to back themselves and do everything they can to cement a spot. And that scenario is vastly superior to having 8 struggling role players in the side every week because Lyon knows exactly what they can do.

The OP's point about the forward line is also very true. Tonight Kosi and Milne sacrificed their games to take the Dogs' two best rebounders in Lake and Murphy out of the contest. Yet this didn't hurt our forward line because we had Stanley and Roo presenting with an array of midfielders told to back themselves inside 50.

A few concerns remain, one of them being the skill level of the players bringing the ball out of defence. Simpkin, Polo and Geary took the majority of the kick ins which just doesn't make sense to me, and add the questionable disposal of Blake and Gilbert and there will be plenty of turnovers at half back. Gwilt will be very handy when he returns and I wonder if there could be a role for Schneider or Siposs as a designated kicker coming out of half back.

[whiskers3614]

Just glad we got Watters, and not Neeld or McCartney.
Oh, and happy with the Pies new coach as well - gawd imagine if we had him?

Let's reserve judgement on coaches for a wee bit.
I seem to remember some hand wringing by SAints supporters early on in Spud Frawley's tenure at Tigers think he won a couple on the trot and we thought we'd missed out on next Norm Smith!

[No1_Saint]

Early days of course...but the signs are good and isn't it nice to have a good start to the season? If we can win a couple more before that game at the G and if the Hawks keep going strong...we will have the G rocking. Thank god it's a home game...good chance for a nice pay cheque for the club.

Each win helps leap the players into finals contention. Go Saints!

[kalsaint]

Newnes is the quiet achiever, he was trusted down back under pressure and managed, Polo has lifted and our old boys still look hungry. I'm not writing them off until I have good reason and I haven't found it yet.

I think the journos believed the Lyon role players were making us look better than we were crap and the no youth coming through line hope we can prove every one wrong and cause some real damage in 2012. At least it's exciting, I'd hate to follow the Dogs right now.

We also have the Schneiderman to come back too.

Only problem we might have is the lack of height in defence against tall forwards at Hawthorn, Geelong, Carlton, West Coast and Adelaide. Win our share of the midfield and we are a chance to match any of these.

[BigMart]

That the bulldogs should have recruited Beau Wilkes...how fu**ed is their fwd line.

Armitage, Stanley, Steven,, Geary are taking a step

To add to

Cripps, ledger, Siposs

To add to

Ross, Newnes

[bergholt]

How stupid was Lake doing a Scarlett on Simpkin?

to be fair, if simpkin's head wasn't so enormous lake would have clean missed him.

[AnythingsPossibleSaints]

We still have a LLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGG way to go with our ball movement up the field and into the forward line and with our kicking for goal though. And I mean a LLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGG way. We butchered so many golden opportunities going forward and made so many poor choices coming off half back it wasn't funny. But even that is a positive, that we could win so incredibly easily (albeit free kicks assisted) yet still have so damn much to work on.
Our pressure and tackling and chasing and attack on the ball or whoever had it were a BIG BIG positive though, as were the performances of Geary, Simpkin, Armitage, Hayes, Roo, Stanley.

[matrix]

i reckon watters would have them being drilled on the turn overs they made

granted they didnt hurt us as the dopgs did not take advantage of them, but against a decent side we would have been made to pay

he;ll deff talk up the contested poss and hardness and chase and tackle tho
that was a deff positive

[gringo]

Lyon didn't look good for quite awhile. Mac cartney, Neeld and Sanderson were the obvious choices and we only really took Watters as he looked the best of the rest. It might have more to do with perception of a list in decline on our part than anything the coach is doing special. Geelong were the same, there was an expectation that an ageing list had nothing left in the tank and in hindsight may have been premature. Sanderson was always talked of as being the great constant that Geelong had and he was always the highest rated. Neeld and Mc cartney will evolve and build their lists.

I'm super impressed that Newnes has come in and held up. He got 15 or so disposals and looked really composed down back. Polo just about had his best game since he's been at the Saints and looked like his confidence is building, Stanley was great and if to more goals went through he would be looking like super star quality. Geary is picking up his game and dragging himself to a new level. Milera didn't get the volume of the last couple of weeks but is just class with positioning and his dish offs and tapping the ball forward to our advantage were awesome last night. It's actually exciting to watch us play at the moment, I can't wait for next week should be the match of the round although the Blues smashing the Bombers by 10 goals will get the billing.

[Junction Oval]

Last night, I thought that we saw some "team confidence" that we can play and win any game. The good draw for the first 5 games has given the team time to consolidate - the coach, the younger players and the senior players, for "another go."

If we get over Freo (which we should), Hawthorn will be THE first big test!

[Megsie]

4 points & a % boost !!!!!!!!!!

[felix]

Our intensity was ah um intense

[Leo.J]

movement.

[The Redeemer]

The thing that stands out for me is that we saw the our core can still produce performances like they did in '09 and '10. We are a much, much better team with Lenny in the side and he looks like he's now back to his best. We also haven't seen kids play the level of confidence that Stanley, Milera, Simpkin etc are showing; in the past few years I think whenever a young player got a gig he was told to be accountable and not make mistakes. Now we see them playing with the confidence to back themselves and do everything they can to cement a spot. And that scenario is vastly superior to having 8 struggling role players in the side every week because Lyon knows exactly what they can do.

The OP's point about the forward line is also very true. Tonight Kosi and Milne sacrificed their games to take the Dogs' two best rebounders in Lake and Murphy out of the contest. Yet this didn't hurt our forward line because we had Stanley and Roo presenting with an array of midfielders told to back themselves inside 50.

A few concerns remain, one of them being the skill level of the players bringing the ball out of defence. Simpkin, Polo and Geary took the majority of the kick ins which just doesn't make sense to me, and add the questionable disposal of Blake and Gilbert and there will be plenty of turnovers at half back. Gwilt will be very handy when he returns and I wonder if there could be a role for Schneider or Siposs as a designated kicker coming out of half back.

I laughed when Polo took a kick-out and right on cue butchered it completely.

Maybe Watters and co. puts a premium on a poor kicker getting the ball easily out via a kick-in to a much better kicker further up the field? I know it goes against the grain of surety coming out of the back 50 but maybe method madness? Who knows.

Kosi is a very under-rated member of this football club.

Kids look confident. Considering the opposition we have had in the past few weeks I am happy for them to bugger up now and get it out of their system so when we play better teams they are still confident but not overboard.

[Richter]

Will be interesting when a few players come back from injury....

Gram --- in for Newnes
Gwilt, Clarke --- in competition with Blake, Dempster, Simpkin
Schneider --- in for Cripps/Polo/Milera/Milne

[AnythingsPossibleSaints]

Don't see Raph Clarke coming back unless we lose a lot to injury or whatever, really. He's had ample opportunities and not quite made himself an "automatic" IMO.