Sicily today

[magnifisaint]

Bunging hard-man Howard on Sicily and moving Caminiti to defence may have been an option.

That's hilarious. He'd be watching him take mark after mark. Howard has completely lost me. The sooner he moves the better the club will be.

[Scollop]

Sicily has been cited by the MRO for his head high bump on Caminiti

He's been handed a one-match ban for rough conduct.

If Anthony stayed down with his face slumped into the turf and came to the bench sooking and carrying on maybe Sicily would have got a 3 match ban

https://www.afl.com.au/news/938161/matc ... d-cop-bans

[Sainter_Dad]

We played one extra in our defence right from the word go

Guess who Hawthorn had in their defence as their plus one?

There are certain players who will cut you up and Sicily is some one who can do that

I get that we have our game plan and we stick to that, but when you unleash a good player and he gets on a roll it’s very difficult to swing the momentum back your way and control some one who initiates their attacking chains from their backline

That’s a coaching issue

It wasn’t the only reason we lost. They main area in my opinion is that we got smashed in the midfield. Ross and his match committee had an opportunity to try Campbell this week when Owens wasn’t there to support Marshall. Ross and match committee have backed in the same mids over the last 5 or 6 weeks and these guys have also let us down

Not precisely true - they have taken Sincs out of the back line and injected him into the midfield - trying to make him a premier mid when we need two people to cover him off the HB. I know that he is a significant weapon in the middle - but not for 120 minutes - yet

[terry smith rules]

My understanding is that a few Saints had Sicily as captain in their fantasy team

[shanegrambeau]

I can't fathom as to what they think about putting Sharman on as a shadower for Sicily.

Surely, please surely, don't tell me, it was about Sharman's development, or that he needed the experience to run hard with a pro so as to really impress upon hin the need to be mobile and switched on?

Nope

It must have been bad luck. Picked the wrong sub, just unlucky.

I really hope RTB has his eye cast on getting the four points each and every moment of each week. Maximum competitiveness at every moment.

Since our 'brave loss' to Collingwood, we have certainly rolled backwards..I see a Humber SuperSnipe with a dodgy handbrake.

[samoht]

RL's game plan becomes a "very game plan" whenever our coach is comfortable to back it, happily conceding 40 possessions to opposition backmen.

I think Harbrow got around 40 possessions against us, skillful half back lines such as Thomas, Shaw and Harry O'Brien racked up 90 possessions against us.

There's a pattern and a history.

[shanegrambeau]

Good point Sam
Maybe RL thinks it’s OK for their back line to kick it to each other all day, clocking up high possessions, as long as they don’t penetrate the centre line of open up a corridor.

We saw that against Freo..

So maybe Sicily and perhaps Daicos can clock ‘em up and ‘no great shame’?

But recently, we have been opened up like a can of sardines!

And Sicily was damaging.

[saintsRrising]

It wasn’t the only reason we lost. They main area in my opinion is that we got smashed in the midfield. Ross and his match committee had an opportunity to try Campbell this week when Owens wasn’t there to support Marshall. Ross and match committee have backed in the same mids over the last 5 or 6 weeks and these guys have also let us down

Midfield being smashed was the key reason.

Next was how both teams entered their forward lines. Hawks way classier , and effective, mainly kicking to the advantage of a leading player, whereas the Saints were often either just roosting it, or kicking at the player and his opponent. Kicking it to the advantage of a forward was rare. for St Kilda.

[CQ SAINT]

Sicily did what Wilkie has done most other weeks, except Wilkie has an opponent to manage as well.
Sicily would have had a very different day if Mitchito was playing and Caminiti wouldn't have been pushed off his path all day, while our mids set Sicily up for a dream interception game.
Just tell Crouch and Ross to stop running away from support, in a half asked effort, to get a clearance away under pressure.
The Hawks mids knew by half time that if they surrounded the circle and attacked the exits rather than the ball carrier, the ball carrier would stall, invite pressure and balloon the ball up. That's what Crouch, Gresh and Ross do. There's the f****** problem. What's the plan? Do we need a plan to counter that? The numbers are all even on the ground. Let these 3 manage their own output without threat of punishment, until they get it right or play themselves out of a career.
Ross has lost his mojo, he has prepared so well, for so long, and has been durable while others fell all around him. I think this last injury from preseason may be lingering or he is just getting old. If he can't assert himself against Hawthorn, which I backed him in to do, tell him to get really healthy and really fit and rotate him from the bench to the sub and get him out off Owens way and sign him for 2 more.
Crouch gives what the label says, effort.
Gresh could be, but he just isn't. Pump up his tyres and let him go.