Post-match analysis

[nostalgicsaint]

Happy with an elimination final loss?

I was happier with 2020

And in hindsight 2020 actually set us back several years.

Big picture.

[older saint]

What a great year. If you told me we were playing finals at the beginning of the year i would have laughed yet we did. As for the game GWS were better. That's it, we were out played by a better team. They took out our big weapons and moved the ball too quickly for us. All the young guys got a taste of finals footy and will be better for it. I am really looking forward to next year now, more than i have been in a decade.

Take a bow boys

Well said. I must admit i am shocked how negative people are here.
We aren't good enough yet, played a team with multiple top 10 draft picks who are mature, and never quit using the same game plan which won 13 games in a season where we were predicted to win 8-10.
I thought the crowd noise when we were coming was awesome. took me back tot he old Moorabin days with Plugger.

[Yorkeys]

What a great year. If you told me we were playing finals at the beginning of the year i would have laughed yet we did. As for the game GWS were better. That's it, we were out played by a better team. They took out our big weapons and moved the ball too quickly for us. All the young guys got a taste of finals footy and will be better for it. I am really looking forward to next year now, more than i have been in a decade.

Take a bow boys

Well said. I must admit i am shocked how negative people are here.
We aren't good enough yet, played a team with multiple top 10 draft picks who are mature, and never quit using the same game plan which won 13 games in a season where we were predicted to win 8-10.
I thought the crowd noise when we were coming was awesome. took me back tot he old Moorabin days with Plugger.

Hear hear.

Had a moment of enlightenment when I realised how big and fast GWS are overall. Remembered Tony74 cautioning our list was in the 6-12 band. Had to belatedly agree as I was being bashed over the head by that truth.

Our coaches have been great. What a dud was Leon Cameron.

[wally]

Funny I remember Kingsley copping alot of flak / criticism when he was an assistant at the saints.

[wally]

Funny I remember Kingsley copping alot of flak / criticism when he was an assistant at the saints on here

[B.M]

They are only bad at StKilda

Coaches and Players seem to go alright elsewhere

[Teflon]

Happy with an elimination final loss?

I was happier with 2020

In a Covid rubbish year?
Think you’re papering over cracks again
I’m happy with this year
Better than I expected with injuries, new coach , game plan and list with holes
Just need to keep turning over deadwood senior players
Juniors stood up more often than not

[nostalgicsaint]

They are only bad at StKilda

Coaches and Players seem to go alright elsewhere

I hope the irony of this post isn't lost on you.

[The G Train Legacy]

Happy with an elimination final loss?

I was happier with 2020

Seriously, that was a 17 game season of 1 hour games. A glorified Lightning Premiership. Mickey Mouse compared to a real season. Ryder was in awesome form and Dan Hannebery actually strung together a few games for us at the end of the season. If it had been a 22 game season we probably would've missed. I doubt Hannebery would have managed another 5 games for a start.

St Kilda 2023 would have pummeled St Kilda 2020.

[shanegrambeau]

That wee vignette on Footy Class by Kano looked shocking, didn’t it. Not in a fatal way, but just looked liked players not finals hard and ready.

[B.M]

2020 we won a final

With new coaches, new player, new gameplan

I don’t care if it were played in 5 minute quarters on the fkn moon

If we won the premiership in 2020 you wouldn’t have been happy

I was on here and the vibe was pretty good in 2020 after the final win!

I suppose you’d rather have finished in a prelim this year than win a flag in 2020?

Last time I checked, Richmond won 3 premierships in 4 years - not 2

[nostalgicsaint]

Happy with an elimination final loss?

I was happier with 2020

And in hindsight 2020 actually set us back several years.

Big picture.

[Otiman]

2020 was a lot different outside of Victoria. You all still have PTSD from it, it seems.

[lewdogs]

Happy with an elimination final loss?

I was happier with 2020

Jeez mate you've gone down a very negative path after the loss. Of course people would rather have won the game but overall it's been a year of improvement. The key now is to springboard and further improve. You can go on and on about how Pou shouldn't have played or Windy should have been in the middle it changes nothing. The final was a disappointing performance but I think we should cut them some slack considering what happened.

[samoht]

Stocker, Owens, Windhager, NWM even 18 y.o. Phillipou ... they have improved us.
And they will keep maturing and getting better.

I agree, we have improved over 2020 and 2022.

But re the post match analysis ... Billings and Coffield could have made a difference ... we took too many small forwards into the final.

That was a mistake.

[CQ SAINT]

Stocker, Owens, Windhager, NWM even 18 y.o. Phillipou ... they have improved us.
And they will keep maturing and getting better.

I agree, we have improved over 2020 and 2022.

But re the post match analysis ... Billings and Coffield could have made a difference ... we took too many small forwards into the final.

That was a mistake.

I saw King Caminiti Sharman and Owens line up. Which one was the small forward?

We subbed out a tall?


Billings would have been another small forward, who doesn't kick a lot of goals, ever, does he get clearances or would GWS just give the ball to him?

Coffield is a good player but you wouldn't drop a small forward for him.

[samoht]

CQ saint:

For team balance, and also from what we should have learned about our specialist small forwards from previous finals (their reduced output and effectiveness in tough, physical games) over the last 15 years or so, we probably should've dropped one of our small forwards at least, for a bigger body.

We had 3 small forwards, as it turned out ... I would have just gone with Gresham who at least wins his own ball.

Billings plays taller than his height ... and he's 185 cms. He has more strings to his bow - he'll gather his 20 possessions, and doesn't just rely on delivery.
He's a playmaker - and we needed as many as possible vs GWS.

I think we would have gone better minus the two specialist small forwards ... and of course I'm referring here to Butler and Higgins.

Even Byrnes would have helped with his speed and playmaking around the ground ... that's another player we could have selected ahead of our 2 specialist small forwards to counter what GWS was bringing.

[Yorkeys]

Higgins form decline has been one of the most disappointing aspects of this year. Billings run of injuries close up.

[shanegrambeau]

Marshy from SaintsTV said, Dougal Howard should have been picked (as key defender) and Cordy as a forward.

Sounds IMO

Alas, spilt milk etc.

[CQ SAINT]

CQ saint:

For team balance, and also from what we should have learned about our specialist small forwards from previous finals (their reduced output and effectiveness in tough, physical games) over the last 15 years or so, we probably should've dropped one of our small forwards at least, for a bigger body.

We had 3 small forwards, as it turned out ... I would have just gone with Gresham who at least wins his own ball.

Billings plays taller than his height ... and he's 185 cms. He has more strings to his bow - he'll gather his 20 possessions, and doesn't just rely on delivery.
He's a playmaker - and we needed as many as possible vs GWS.

I think we would have gone better minus the two specialist small forwards ... and of course I'm referring here to Butler and Higgins.

Even Byrnes would have helped with his speed and playmaking around the ground ... that's another player we could have selected ahead of our 2 specialist small forwards to counter what GWS was bringing.

Byrnes was stiff, Howard was stiff. Billings just wasn't up to it physically this year. If he doesn't get traded, he can earn a spot in the finals by being the playmates we need, he hasn't inspired me that way since 2021.

[CQ SAINT]

CQ saint:

For team balance, and also from what we should have learned about our specialist small forwards from previous finals (their reduced output and effectiveness in tough, physical games) over the last 15 years or so, we probably should've dropped one of our small forwards at least, for a bigger body.

We had 3 small forwards, as it turned out ... I would have just gone with Gresham who at least wins his own ball.

Billings plays taller than his height ... and he's 185 cms. He has more strings to his bow - he'll gather his 20 possessions, and doesn't just rely on delivery.
He's a playmaker - and we needed as many as possible vs GWS.

I think we would have gone better minus the two specialist small forwards ... and of course I'm referring here to Butler and Higgins.

Even Byrnes would have helped with his speed and playmaking around the ground ... that's another player we could have selected ahead of our 2 specialist small forwards to counter what GWS was bringing.

Byrnes was stiff, Howard was stiff. Billings just wasn't up to it physically this year. If he doesn't get traded, he can earn a spot in the finals by being the playmaker we need, he hasn't inspired me that way since 2021.

[CURLY]

CQ saint:

For team balance, and also from what we should have learned about our specialist small forwards from previous finals (their reduced output and effectiveness in tough, physical games) over the last 15 years or so, we probably should've dropped one of our small forwards at least, for a bigger body.

We had 3 small forwards, as it turned out ... I would have just gone with Gresham who at least wins his own ball.

Billings plays taller than his height ... and he's 185 cms. He has more strings to his bow - he'll gather his 20 possessions, and doesn't just rely on delivery.
He's a playmaker - and we needed as many as possible vs GWS.

I think we would have gone better minus the two specialist small forwards ... and of course I'm referring here to Butler and Higgins.

Even Byrnes would have helped with his speed and playmaking around the ground ... that's another player we could have selected ahead of our 2 specialist small forwards to counter what GWS was bringing.

Byrnes was stiff, Howard was stiff. Billings just wasn't up to it physically this year. If he doesn't get traded, he can earn a spot in the finals by being the playmaker we need, he hasn't inspired me that way since 2021.

Byrnes a big no. Billings I think should have played .

[CQ SAINT]

I think we can just ad GWS to the Brisbane Lions Collingwood and Melbourne as midfields we just can't compete with. Neither Billings or Byrnes would have changed that.

[Vortex]

I think we can just ad GWS to the Brisbane Lions Collingwood and Melbourne as midfields we just can't compete with. Neither Billings or Byrnes would have changed that.

Yup!

Was pretty obvious all year, was just making up the numbers, still at least 2 to 3 years of list building to go before we can seriously contend, and that's provided the young players we've blooded in the last few years don't hit a ceiling and prove not to be not capable of becoming GF quality performers. She's a tough business this list management, even with a good coach.

[Jacks Back]

CQ saint:

For team balance, and also from what we should have learned about our specialist small forwards from previous finals (their reduced output and effectiveness in tough, physical games) over the last 15 years or so, we probably should've dropped one of our small forwards at least, for a bigger body.

We had 3 small forwards, as it turned out ... I would have just gone with Gresham who at least wins his own ball.

Billings plays taller than his height ... and he's 185 cms. He has more strings to his bow - he'll gather his 20 possessions, and doesn't just rely on delivery.
He's a playmaker - and we needed as many as possible vs GWS.

I think we would have gone better minus the two specialist small forwards ... and of course I'm referring here to Butler and Higgins.

Even Byrnes would have helped with his speed and playmaking around the ground ... that's another player we could have selected ahead of our 2 specialist small forwards to counter what GWS was bringing.

Byrnes was stiff, Howard was stiff. Billings just wasn't up to it physically this year. If he doesn't get traded, he can earn a spot in the finals by being the playmates we need, he hasn't inspired me that way since 2021.