Our Key Problem

[St Chris]

We are unfit.

Not sure which one it is, but we either don't have the will, or the endurance, to keep up with our opponents.

At quarter time of the game on Good Friday, the siren blew and our guys were done - hands on heads, doubled over, blowing real hard etc. The Kangaroos were not - sure they were happy for a break in the play, but quickly moved to their huddle and got on with life. At that point i knew, we were going to get seriously outrun after halftime, and our only hope was if the Kangas failed to execute, which they didn't. Remember we were up against a team that played in a monsoon the week before, with less turn around, and a 3 hour flight home to contend with.

It's the reason we are constantly outnumbered at the contest, and at either end of the ground. Notice how we bomb long into our forward line and we're outnumbered by defenders, who intercept and find a kick out to half back, run a bit, find a wingman or half forward, run a bit more and kick long to a forward who is out the back?

How can we be undermanned at both ends of the field?? Are we playing AFLW rules with 16 on the park?? Nope, just don't have the guys to do the hard yards up and down the ground.

Anyone catch the JLT games?? Who from the Saints came back from pre-season with a changed body shape?? Nobody did. Round one of pre-season in the time to show off your nice tan and ripped body, and we looked like it was round 18 of the season prior. Sure, a few guys had lost a bit of muscle because they bulked up too much, and I'm not saying we need 22 guys to look like WWF wrestlers, but maybe we've spent too much time fishing and camping, and not enough km's in our legs??

I have no doubt it's the cause behind our terrible skill level, and our very average goal kicking - just too much fatigue to execute properly. Also ties into Richo's comments from a few weeks ago about not being able to train as much because most of the week is recovery. Our players haven't forgotten how to play, their bodies just wont let them do it properly because they are so knackered.

The competition has gone up a level in fitness, and we've stagnated.

So how do we fix it?? That's the million dollar question. I don't know. What I do know is that it's probably not going to be fixed mid-season. And it may cost the coaching staff their jobs.

[spert]

Our midfielders are not strong- easily kept off the contest and apart from Steven, can't burst from contests or run fast enough to get in the clear. Kicks are generally under pressure or bombed, and that causes inaccuracy when trying to deliver. The combination of slow ball movement and lack of run and spread is missing from our games- very obvious yesterday.

[To the top]

Difficult to assess from a screen but it appeared Melbourne had extra players on the ground and far, far cleaner ball skills to utilise those extra players

Melbourne always seemed to have a spare player to feed to then spare players as targets and sometimes 3 players with no St Kilda player in sight

Our cleanest ball handler was Hickey - a ruckman

Then when we did scrub the ball forward we were outnumbered there as well hence we were run past as if we were not there

If we did get to lay a tackle they just did not stick

Physically we looked like an Under 13 side

The lauding of our defence is misplaced because whilst Melbourne turned a behind (yet another one) into a swift entry to their scoring zone we could not because we do not have defenders who can run and carry the ball - then dispose with potency to advantage


The likes of Brown and Geary are not at AFL standard - all they do is transfer
responsibility by waving their arms around

Newnes has no pace, no skill overhead including spoiling and ordinary skills with the ball

And he has plenty of mates

Gresham is not quick hence under pressure because he relies on evasion - so is not a midfield option

We are too top heavy with the likes of Armitage, Dunstan, Steele, Ross in the one team

Then you add Brown and Geary and Newnes then the physically undeveloped Long, Marshall and our Draft picks from last year

And you wonder why we are uncompetitive

The reasons abound because we keep our heads in the sand starting from the Captain

No doubt some will say we are struggling because Longer is absent, accumulating 5 touches in the VFL but Longer is another who is a problem

Hickey in 3 games has touched the call more than Longer has in 2 seasons - plus Hickey is proficient with both hand and foot as we saw v Melbourne

Pretty grim but we can set a path from here because those not up to standard have once again been very clearly identified

Then we get to Sandringham

With so many under pressure who is putting their hand up?

The stats identify a couple but as the AFL performance shows stats are worthless as a measure of contribution

So is there far, far too much emphasis on stats and wanker competitions based on change hands at 99 assessments?

When your reflex is to handball to a player already covered there is a message that you lack skills - because you are so slow you just give by instinct and we have just too many players who are slow and stand around as witches hats performing a role

End of rant

We'll see what the World Cup brings!!

[Jacks Back]

They were sweating and hands on hips after the warm up before the game even started. I think they do way too much on the ground beforehand.

[felix]

You are so right ...gotta get the fuel right .

[St. Paul]

We are unfit.

Not sure which one it is, but we either don't have the will, or the endurance, to keep up with our opponents.

At quarter time of the game on Good Friday, the siren blew and our guys were done - hands on heads, doubled over, blowing real hard etc. The Kangaroos were not - sure they were happy for a break in the play, but quickly moved to their huddle and got on with life. At that point i knew, we were going to get seriously outrun after halftime, and our only hope was if the Kangas failed to execute, which they didn't. Remember we were up against a team that played in a monsoon the week before, with less turn around, and a 3 hour flight home to contend with.

It's the reason we are constantly outnumbered at the contest, and at either end of the ground. Notice how we bomb long into our forward line and we're outnumbered by defenders, who intercept and find a kick out to half back, run a bit, find a wingman or half forward, run a bit more and kick long to a forward who is out the back?

How can we be undermanned at both ends of the field?? Are we playing AFLW rules with 16 on the park?? Nope, just don't have the guys to do the hard yards up and down the ground.

Anyone catch the JLT games?? Who from the Saints came back from pre-season with a changed body shape?? Nobody did. Round one of pre-season in the time to show off your nice tan and ripped body, and we looked like it was round 18 of the season prior. Sure, a few guys had lost a bit of muscle because they bulked up too much, and I'm not saying we need 22 guys to look like WWF wrestlers, but maybe we've spent too much time fishing and camping, and not enough km's in our legs??

I have no doubt it's the cause behind our terrible skill level, and our very average goal kicking - just too much fatigue to execute properly. Also ties into Richo's comments from a few weeks ago about not being able to train as much because most of the week is recovery. Our players haven't forgotten how to play, their bodies just wont let them do it properly because they are so knackered.

The competition has gone up a level in fitness, and we've stagnated.

So how do we fix it?? That's the million dollar question. I don't know. What I do know is that it's probably not going to be fixed mid-season. And it may cost the coaching staff their jobs.

Spot on, St. Chris. I've thought the same since the end of last year. Look at the difference a change of conditioning and fitness head made at Richmond. Just another area we are well short of the mark.

[SaintPav]

The club and many of its staff are unprofessional and inept.

I know this for a fact.

[fugazi]

When you have a losing mindset, you literally become less fit.
Studies done on circulating testosterone levels in sides that are winning vs sides that are losing show the objective difference. So it is more than just whether someone ran PBs in preseason etc...it is their mind dictating their body.
They becomeslower, weaker, more prone to injury, less endurance etc.
We are thinking and playing like losers.

[Waltzing St Kilda]

Very good observations.

Not enough numbers at the ball, not enough gut running, not enough chasing,
not enough power to tackle properly, too knackered when they kick for goal.
And too many lumbering players.

Sums it up nicely.

[Zed]

When you have a losing mindset, you literally become less fit.
Studies done on circulating testosterone levels in sides that are winning vs sides that are losing show the objective difference. So it is more than just whether someone ran PBs in preseason etc...it is their mind dictating their body.
They becomeslower, weaker, more prone to injury, less endurance etc.
We are thinking and playing like losers.

Agreed. This is the first half of the problem.
Subconsciously they've lost their belief . Which makes everything harder - chasing, goal kicking, winning. Under pressure they are so concerned about failing or losing it becomes energy sapping and self fulfilling.

The second half of the problem there are no A graders that can pull them out of this rut. Put 4 x genuine A-graders in this team and they lift everyones belief, standard of play, and results. You take Harvey/Loewe/Winmar/Burke out of our 97 team and the performances of Peckett, Jones, Everitt and others fall away quickly. Similarly you take Roo/Goddard/Lenny/Fisher out of 09/10 and the likes of Gram,Milne,Gilbert,Montagna fall away as well. You insert 4 genuine A grader into our current team and I guarantee you the likes of Carlisle,Billings, Gresham, Acres go to another level.

Unfortunately this is not a quick fix.

We are a destination club for players looking for more game time, contract certainty or fatter contracts - not genuine A Graders who want success. This can only be fixed by the draft - and with one of the strongest drafts on record, weve traded our 2nd and 3rd rounders away. There are no early priority picks and the 2 new expansion clubs thin out the available talent pool further. Recent history suggests that Clark and Coffield will have the confidence sucked out of them in the next 12 months and plateau. Perhaps one of them kicks on to become A Grade in 2020. Perhaps our top 3 draft pick this year is the next Chris Judd. Still leaves us short a couple of genuine A graders. Perhaps we strike it lucky and make a Godfather offer to a mercenary A grader who cares more for $ than premierships. Still hard to see finals in 2019/20.

[Impatient Sainter]

Agree with the above re our players limitations and lost confidence. The only way I see the club pulling out of this malaise is to pull of a coup like replace AR with a super coach in Clarkson.

[fugazi]

Agree with the above re our players limitations and lost confidence. The only way I see the club pulling out of this malaise is to pull of a coup like replace AR with a super coach in Clarkson.

And we go for the Messiah routine again.....we have to do what GT I reckon attempted, and that is to culturally renew the whole club....a new CEO in a company makes a huge difference, we need change at leadership level, no player will make the difference we want.
We are a club with such a long history of under performance that the decade that we were in the finals seems such an aberration.
We need someone to get angry enpugh that we throw off the loser tag and act with balls....at least GT gave it a crack. 2004 was as big a loss as any of the GFs...and we did it to ourselves with the pitch invasion.