Please don't let SS erupt, we need to rally....

[SainterK]

We were in it all day, we were competitive, I thought there was a glimpse of the never say die attitude until the last, and I thought some players played into some form today.

I personally expect them to give a contest, I didn't see it last week, I saw it today.

If Bombers were playing to keep their season 'alive' by getting to 3 wins, we are certainly in it with 5 wins and being 6th on the ladder.

I came on here for some perspective after Roo went down with a hamstring, and everybody told me that it wasn't going to be easy and we are not going to win every match.

Please don't desert what you 'perceive' to be a sinking ship, we are St Kilda and the year is still young.

Lenny, Fisher, Joey, Blake and the like...they are just not going to let us go down without a fight.

[FortiusQuoFidelius]

...they are just not going to let us go down without a fight.

They did today! utterly poor!

[SainterK]

...they are just not going to let us go down without a fight.

They did today! utterly poor!

See I disagree with you there, but that's cool

[joffaboy]

Nedd to drop Raph and everything will be fine.

Many on here have told us that.

[cowboy18]

Nedd to drop Raph and everything will be fine.

Many on here have told us that.

Maybe he wasn't dropped far enough?

[DWOODROW]

What needs to be done to fix it then. We have to wait for a while before Rooey gets back but i thought one man doesn't make a team. Proving hard to agree with,

[Toy Saint]

Yeah K, there were a few good signs. The Bombers, like the Blues last week,blitzed us for pace, and Zac got completely smashed, but there were good points. Kosi moved well, Gilbert moved forward, and the boys showed they were prepared to take the game on. If we had of converted some set shots, we may have got the points. Go Saints.

[degruch]

Don't worry K, I am still with the program...the sky hasn't fallen in yet.

[saintspremiers]

Bugger that.

The Earth is flat.

We won't win the flag this year.

End of Story.

[Rooey_for_PM!]

We were in it all day, we were competitive, I thought there was a glimpse of the never say die attitude until the last, and I thought some players played into some form today.

I personally expect them to give a contest, I didn't see it last week, I saw it today.

If Bombers were playing to keep their season 'alive' by getting to 3 wins, we are certainly in it with 5 wins and being 6th on the ladder.

I came on here for some perspective after Roo went down with a hamstring, and everybody told me that it wasn't going to be easy and we are not going to win every match.

Please don't desert what you 'perceive' to be a sinking ship, we are St Kilda and the year is still young.

Lenny, Fisher, Joey, Blake and the like...they are just not going to let us go down without a fight.

Here, here! You have summed up my thoughts exactly, SainterK!

I for one am proud of our boys and will even go out on a limb here and suggest that there are some positives to be taken out of this game! Kos kicked three and am hoping this will give him a much needed boost, Heyne's debut was impressive, and we were in it right up until the end.

Go Saints! Bring on round 9!

[SaintTom]

Very funny with the Raph jokes, but the Saints really have a problem at the moment. I didn't get too worried about last week, but after this week they don't seem to have much of a direction. I thought they played alright tonight, with 11 more inside 50s, and still we couldn't score. I think kicking might have let us down a bit, but I'm a little worried that Milne, Schneider and McQualter's impact was negligible. It's a worry that we're playing okay, and still getting knocked off by Essendon. We're very, very lucky not to be 0-4 after our 4-0 start. The bombing into the forward line wasn't terrible I don't think, we seemed to at least take more marks inside 50 from that then we have been recently, but there is something seriously lacking up there. Was a touch disappointed in Heyne's effort, that seemed seriously lacking early.

Ross also said during the week that bringing our backs in and throwing them forward wasn't working, yet Chips started in the forward line? If he acknowledges a problem, I'm surprised he doesn't act on it even for a while. I wasn't a subscriber to the 'No Roo No Saints' idea, but at the moment we're looking shakey. He takes one if not two great defenders, and that leaves opportunities for our other forwards. Without him, there seems to be little structure up forward.

On the positive side I thought Gards was fantastic. Not only his goals, but his general work around the ground. At one stage I remember him gathering from ground level and putting on a burst of speed through the middle with some success. The other positive was Kosi, who I think may take a bit of confidence away from this game that might just be the spark he needs. Aside from that, and I'd say a pretty solid game from Geary, sadly most other players I saw didn't really play outside what you'd expect. Lenny was great, Dal was much better than last week, but there are a few players who are shadows of their 2009 selves.

[SainterK]

Glad to see not everyone is as soft as marshmallows!

Don't jump off, the ride is about to get exciting

[battye]

While I agree with you SainterK, this is a game we should have won. Weren't Essendon 14th on the ladder?

Clearly we are exposed for pace and Ross Lyon has no time to waste in coming up with a game plan to rectify that. My concern is that time is against us in that regard, and as a team we look out of form.

Fortunately we are still in the first half of the season, so there is time to turn it around if we are efficient. But we have to get back on track very soon, and a trip to Subiaco is standing in the way of that.

[markp]

I was right about the need to develop a game plan that didn't require players.

Until this is addressed we will keep losing games.

[Bernard Shakey]

Glad to see not everyone is as soft as marshmallows!

Don't jump off, the ride is about to get exciting 8-)

Oh the ride is exciting, but I've been riding it for too many years and it's starting to wear a little thin.

Last year was the one that got away and I was worried then that we couldn't keep up that intensity for another season. Every one (except the Bulldogs) is onto our game now and I'm not sure Ross has a plan B or C.

Has the team collapsed because Roo went down? If so what does that say about their character?

Ross said he wouldn't play with the backs to bolster the forwards and played Fisher forward today. Well Fisher has to go back next week because Dawson has decided to go on leave.

If we can regroup and win at Subi next week, then we're looking good. If not I don't like the immediate future of this club.

[battye]

And Blake and Gilbert went forward at times too. I am sick of backmen playing up forward. Either make the swap permanently (until Riewoldt returns) or bring in a specialist forward. If that person is Heyne, then why wasn't he in the forward line?

[SainterK]

Glad to see not everyone is as soft as marshmallows!

Don't jump off, the ride is about to get exciting

Oh the ride is exciting, but I've been riding it for too many years and it's starting to wear a little thin.

Last year was the one that got away and I was worried then that we couldn't keep up that intensity for another season. Every one (except the Bulldogs) is onto our game now and I'm not sure Ross has a plan B or C.

Has the team collapsed because Roo went down? If so what does that say about their character?

Ross said he wouldn't play with the backs to bolster the forwards and played Fisher forward today. Well Fisher has to go back next week because Dawson has decided to go on leave.

If we can regroup and win at Subi next week, then we're looking good. If not I don't like the immediate future of this club.

I honestly believe that a lot of our issues are form related, and the absence of Roo is simply exposing this.

I saw signs today of the form returning.

[battye]

I honestly believe that a lot of our issues are form related, and the absence of Roo is simply exposing this.

I saw signs today of the form returning.

I agree with you there. Once we start scoring 15 goals a game again, I think we will be hard to beat. The forward line is the problem, and Kosi looked a bit more imposing this week. So hopefully that is a sign of good things to come.

[kalsaint]

While I agree with you SainterK, this is a game we should have won. Weren't Essendon 14th on the ladder?

Clearly we are exposed for pace and Ross Lyon has no time to waste in coming up with a game plan to rectify that. My concern is that time is against us in that regard, and as a team we look out of form.

Fortunately we are still in the first half of the season, so there is time to turn it around if we are efficient. But we have to get back on track very soon, and a trip to Subiaco is standing in the way of that.

I agree with all you said here but I see the SUBIACO game a clear opportunity to regain our momentum and earn the respect we have lost across the AF, media commentary teams and our own members. I dont see Subicao as a barrier at all, just another potential win but we will need to provide some speed back into the line up as the playing area here is large.

[AccidentallyTim]

I haven't abandoned my Saints and I still have my membership card, it's not been thrown out like some supporters from other teams.

Strangely I'm optimistic about next week and can't wait to take on the Eagles.

I know this is not the best idea in the world but how good would it be to see Rhys brought into play ruck and take on Nick Nat!

In my dream Rhys would out tap, out crumb, out run and out play the excitment machine from the west....

*tim wakes up*

[battye]

I know it's because of higher draft picks and what not, but why can't we get just one rookie/young player like Natanui who will just break apart a game with some stunning piece of play?

I keep hoping Stanley will be that guy, but until he gets a game who knows?

[georgie girl]

We were in it all day, we were competitive, I thought there was a glimpse of the never say die attitude until the last, and I thought some players played into some form today.

I personally expect them to give a contest, I didn't see it last week, I saw it today.

If Bombers were playing to keep their season 'alive' by getting to 3 wins, we are certainly in it with 5 wins and being 6th on the ladder.

I came on here for some perspective after Roo went down with a hamstring, and everybody told me that it wasn't going to be easy and we are not going to win every match.

Please don't desert what you 'perceive' to be a sinking ship, we are St Kilda and the year is still young.

Lenny, Fisher, Joey, Blake and the like...they are just not going to let us go down without a fight.

Well said! Lots of problems yes, but I think it was a much more positive game. You couldnt ask more from the likes of Lenny and Joey. They were sensational all day.

[PJ]

Gram going down caused the shuffling on the deck and unfortunately the coaches couldn't find the balance.

We need to start experimenting with a new marking forward because what we have at present isn't working (Kosi and collection of part timers) - my preference is Walsh or Stanley (probably Walsh given form). 2 marking forwards are needed, perhaps either Kosi and Walsh/Stanley or Goddard and they should be given extended time there.

[Bernard Shakey]

Gram going down caused the shuffling on the deck and unfortunately the coaches couldn't find the balance.

We need to start experimenting with a new marking forward because what we have at present isn't working (Kosi and collection of part timers) - my preference is Walsh or Stanley (probably Walsh given form). 2 marking forwards are needed, perhaps either Kosi and Walsh/Stanley or Goddard and they should be given extended time there.

Walsh has played less than half a game as a forward in his six games ever of Aussie Rules and you think he's the form player to come in as a marking forward for St Kilda? Do you see many Sandy games?
By the way he's a rookie and can't play until elevated to the senior list.

[Devilhead]

If we can regroup and win at Subi next week, then we're looking good. If not I don't like the immediate future of this club.

So if we win in Perth we are looking good

BUT

If we lose in Perth then the club has no future

Hmmm ... interesting premise ... from this I can only gather that you think we are standing on the edge of a black hole

See the way I see it is that we have 14 games left - 11 of which are against sides below us on the ladder at this current stage - 5 of which are against the bottom 3 sides - if we win 7 games we make the 8 - if we win 9 we make the top 4 - with Roo back well before the finals I can see us definitely making the 8 - if we have our full side fit and firing for the finals then we can win the flag no matter where we finish in the 8