So who has the story?

[bigred]

So there is something going on.

Need someone to spill the beans.

[Devilhead]

Says who?

[MC Gusto]

I guess the theory is we can’t possibly be this bad without some sort of issue bubbling away in the background.

Who knows? Certainly seems like the team is at sea, the players are lost and the game plan is unrecognisable

Cannot see us beating the hawks by any stretch of the imagination

This year is gone, the real question is whether the next decade is gone also? Are we looking at yet another full blown rebuild?.. and if so can we please do it properly this time and hit the draft hard? Essendon’s haul this year case in point, they are fundamentally ahead of us now

[bigred]

Says who?

They.

[Vortex]

Yep she has a real 1998 smell about it. The Cliff came and went last night and it's a big cliff. Heads should roll. Time for Cuddles to change personalities. All this mind and connection BS needs to be thrown out the door. Hill being given a leave pass last week to fly to Perth is the genesis of the issue, and there has to be an issue. The optics of that was diabolical, who the f*** takes off when there is real hard work to be done, most leaders roll up the sleeve and dig in, not F*** off to an energy sapping time zone for a soiree.

The players have just given up...WHY!

[Joffa Burns]

So there is something going on.

Need someone to spill the beans.

Hard to disagree with this, something is wrong and more of the same isn't going to rectify it.

[Vortex]

I want to see Ratts take a leaf out of Clarkos book and see holes punched in walls

[PADDLEPOP1001]

I think the next two games will tell the story!

[Vortex]

I think the next two games will tell the story!

I think the last three games was the trilogy.

[takeaway]

Brad Hill pinched Jack Steele's favourite boots and keeps insisting they are his, even though they are too large and he can't run properly in them. Caused tension in the group, with Hill being ostracised, and players ignoring him when in clear space, but giving him the ball when 2 or more opponents are around him.

Roughie smashed Paton's leg, and Lade continually stepped on Marshall's foot in ruck drills, even stamped on Billing's foot as he went past. Players are intimidated by some of the coaches, and Ratts is trying to mend bridges.

The medicos apparently failed to foresee that Gresh would do his achilles.

As a result, players are hesitant, lacking confidence, and the game plan has fallen down.

There you have it.

[samoht]

Brad Hill pinched Jack Steele's favourite boots ... with Hill being ostracised, and players ignoring him when in clear space, but giving him the ball when 2 or more opponents are around him.
Roughie smashed Paton's leg, and Lade continually stepped on Marshall's foot in ruck drills. Players are intimidated by some of the coaches, and Ratts is trying to mend bridges.
The medicos apparently failed to foresee that Gresh would do his achilles.
As a result, players are hesitant, lacking confidence, and the game plan has fallen down.
There you have it.

I think I'll eat in, this time.

[bangaulegend]

Brad Hill pinched Jack Steele's favourite boots and keeps insisting they are his, even though they are too large and he can't run properly in them. Caused tension in the group, with Hill being ostracised, and players ignoring him when in clear space, but giving him the ball when 2 or more opponents are around him.

Roughie smashed Paton's leg, and Lade continually stepped on Marshall's foot in ruck drills, even stamped on Billing's foot as he went past. Players are intimidated by some of the coaches, and Ratts is trying to mend bridges.

The medicos apparently failed to foresee that Gresh would do his achilles.

As a result, players are hesitant, lacking confidence, and the game plan has fallen down.

There you have it.

Are you seriously suggesting we have a game plan?

[Impatient Sainter]

Ratts did in his press conference - he has NFI whats going on!

[flack]

Bring back Banger. A lot of people thinks he doesn't have the media skills for the job. The job is getting the best out of the players not smiling into cameras. His commitment to the Saints is more than money can buy and an assistant could do all the media work if needed.

[Joffa Burns]

I have an acquaintance who played at PA with Lade for many seasons.

He said he was talking with Lade last week and that the coaching group were shell shocked by the start to the season and largely blamed the injuries to key players like Marshall, Ryder, Paton.

Doesn't instill a massive amount of confidence.

[SaintDippa]

After the Melbourne match the coaching group should have realised that long bombs to Gawn 20 out is probably not the going forward strategy. Then we had bombs to Essendon talls, Nanck, Port talls and McGovern/Barrass. Just as well Sicilys out or he'd intercept it a dozen.

[bigcarl]

I have an acquaintance who played at PA with Lade for many seasons. He said he was talking with Lade last week and that the coaching group were shell shocked by the start to the season and largely blamed the injuries to key players like Marshall, Ryder, Paton.

I think it is as simple as this. If you had to pick two players we couldn’t afford to be without, it’d be Ryder and Marshall. Closely followed by Gresham.

It’s not healthy to be over-reliant on certain players, but we are.

Paton was certainly a loss and the puzzling omission of Carlisle in defence for the start of the season left us unsettled down back structurally.

[sks023]

The club had 10 days to prepare for the Port thumping yet no strategy seemed to be implemented
What was the plan going in ? I saw nothing to suggest that there was one
A more confused bunch of blokes I have never seen

[Cordz2]

So there is something going on.

Need someone to spill the beans.

It really does seem like it.

[Yorkeys]

Injuries, several badly out of form, coaching staff in denial about Hannebery playing and form loss returning easily, newish draftees pretty poor bunch/no depth, no new energy. Carslisle, Hill, Long, Lonie, Buttler are too much lead in the saddlebags. Have unfortunately met most sides at the peak of their powers. Accept reality, stop hoping: make personnel, recruiting and tactic changes. Please. Don't waste a crisis.

[SaintPav]

Looking at our performances a bit more closely, after having a purple patch, our form fell away from the middle of last season. We got smashed by the Cats and lost an important game to West Coast. We also lost to Melbourne before that and we were lucky that we had a few easier games against struggling teams like Hawthorn and GWS which allowed us to secure a place in the finals.

Before that, we lost to teams like Norf (FFS), Freo and Collingwood. Teams that are now struggling.

We got the Dogs on their bad day in the EF and were lucky to get away with a win. We didn’t actually stand up to the Tigers when it counted in that final.

Sadly, I think we have overrated ourselves.

[MC Gusto]

Thinking about last nights game and that first goal by Higgins

Freak goal right? And perhaps shocked a few that it went through including jack himself but did we see any players celebrating and getting around him? Did we even see the player celebrating it himself?

Something is up Red, you are right

[mbogo]

They are certainly lacking confidence, the body language at half time yesterday coming out from the rooms spoke volumes! They just did not portray much energy or desire.
Not convinced on Crouch. Hill is flat, and no one either gives it for the run or has the time. No one runs forward in groups this year at all.
Paton more missed than we realise. Rucks have no replacements at AFL standard. Geary shows leadership when he is in. Gresh loss shows up our lack of midfield depth.
Half a dozen players choke regularly and hear footsteps.
I actually felt there was more fight this week in the last quarter than previously.

[spert]

The club had 10 days to prepare for the Port thumping yet no strategy seemed to be implemented
What was the plan going in ? I saw nothing to suggest that there was one
A more confused bunch of blokes I have never seen

Ratts can't seem to find the switch that switches the team on for a game. Very disappointed in the lack of intent chase by so many- just let their opponents off the hook too many times.

[IluvHarvey]

The only story is that we are a Mentally weak team.
A basket case between the ears.
We play on trends only.
The WCE game we managed to get a couple of Goals in a row and we looked like World Beaters.
The Ess, Rich and Port games we didn't get a sniff and ours heads dropped faster than a pair of Trousers in a Thailand Brothel.
The Port game is a perfect example, played our guts out in the first quarter and couldn't convert, from there "Heads were down and got flogged"