Team v North

[saintspremiers]

Maybe he's signed with GWS? Anyone considered that?

But geez...untried L Plater to debut in our biggest game all year?

Not sure I'd be game to make that selection either.

Stop talking sense!

No room for it on www.ilovetommy.com.au

[Beekay]

Well I, for one, think plugger's right. The selectors and Lyon have picked the team they think has the best chance of beating North Melbourne and criticising them for doing that is nonsensical.

While i'm on the fence here...

Considering we won't win the flag... I think that last statement is greatly false.

I'm on the fence because I've only seen highlights of TW, I know little of his preparation or where he is at, or what would be best for his development.

I am excited to see him play seniors, whenever that happens to be.

[Dr Spaceman]

pretty confident he'll play this weekend. and you know who I'm talking about.

Wouldn't surprise me at all.

Imagine the feverish hype that would accompany his selection. Would have 48 hours of it to get through before taking the field. He'd probably get his own banner!

Much better for the kid to announce it to the public some time after 5pm on Saturday

[Con Gorozidis]

What if WALSH now left !

Noone would blame him for looking for other senior AFL options now...What is going on with our selectors? Wow I cant believe their lack of forsight and there understanding of the importance of goal kicking strengths.

He hasnt played a game so if he left it would be like Eljay Conners leaving 2 years a go.

With all due respect than EC - I think Tommy has shown a bit more promise in the VFL. He is also more equipped physically and more versatile positionally.

Furthermore - given he comes from a non-football background I think he should get extra leeway due to the nature and shape of the learning curve.

Add to that the team needs a half decent tall fwd to stop rooey getting triple teamed.

Mind you - Kosi and Dawson have both been in good form - So both should play this week.

I guess if someone had to go out for TW - I think it would have be someone other than those two.

[shmic_s]

As much as i would've loved to see Walsh play his first game. Happy with the selection.
One game isn't going to determine weather he stays or goes. He would know how close he is.

Comparing ANZAC day to virtually an elimination final? Not the same type of 'big' games. Big crowd compared to season on the line.

[mohannair]

What if WALSH now left !

Noone would blame him for looking for other senior AFL options now...What is going on with our selectors? Wow I cant believe their lack of forsight and there understanding of the importance of goal kicking strengths.

He hasnt played a game so if he left it would be like Eljay Conners leaving 2 years a go.

Plugger there is significant difference between those two players ...

Yes one is from Ireland and the other Echuca but apart from that they are both seconds players at the moment.

I would also love to see big Tommy gun play but lets be more practicable, Walshy has only played one good game as a forward, we cannot make a judgement based on one good game.

Lets see how he goes again this week & if he tears apart then we can give him a go against Blues who has got nothing to play for.

This week is a very cruicial game & Tommy would have felt the pressure of performing in a crunch game.

Again thats just my opinion.

[Mr Magic]

[
Pretty sure Bally wasnt told he would be dropped for 7 games. Matter of fact I am certain that isnt true.

And if Walsh is going because he cant get a game then I say see you later. Why would one game make him stay? He has played about 35 seconds game. Never played before that. He is a big guy and they take longer to come on. RL obviously doesnt think he is ready and I am guessing but I think he would be telling him where he is at.

My sources on the Ball dropping (no pun intended) are impeccable. He was told he'd be dropped for 7 games to work on inadequate aspects of his game.

Totally at odds with what I heard.
I heard he was dropped to improve his fitness base which was dropping alarmingly because of the need to manage his op meaning he couldn't do any fitness training eraly in the week. Apparently his 'measured fitness base' was dropping weekly due to this inability to train.
His dropping fitness base meant that he couldn't play as many minutes as the gameplan needed adn that he found it more difficult to 'run and spread' or even impact contests.
If you note that when he was dropped it was when there was no game in the magoos, so he didn't have to worry about recovering from a match (even a less intensive VFl game). I believe the original plan was to give him an increased training load over the 2 week period to try and get his fitness base back up.
What happened subsequent to that I have no idea.

My source is not 'impeccable' but I have no reason to doubt what he/she told me.

And quite frankly, the notion that Ball was told he would be dropped for '7 games' seems nonsensical to me.
I would much more believe he was told he would be dropped 'until he achieved' what they wanted him to work on achieving.

Why '7 games'?
Why not 4,5,6,8,9?
Maybe ask your source why that particular number of '7'?


As to your post re Max - well Max sure learned his lesson.
I think he was part of the discussion that decided Reid and Brown would play in the replay instead of Presti.

So it would seem a case of, it's the right call for everybody except me' if what you're saying is accurate and that he joined the Filth because he was overlooked in 2009.

[barks4eva]

Is Walsh even signed up for next year?

What is his contract status?

[plugger66]

Is Walsh even signed up for next year?

What is his contract status?

He is a rookie so the answer would be no.

[To the top]

The club is always bigger than the player - no matter who that player is, including the apparently much respected individual, Ball.

So forget the player hype and the player promotion because that is not what team is about.

6 goals in one VFL game, against a bottom side, is precisely that.

Walsh needs to back it up, and back it up again until the opportunity arrives - then deliver.

Last week our defence held up pretty well considering, easily led by Dempster's performance.

Only Armitage had an impact among our mids and forwards.

And McEvoy was well and truly beaten in the ruck.

So Sydney dominated and principally had the ball in areas we did not want it in.

Fortunately their kicking for goal was what it was.

Koschitzke adds a presence up forward and can ruck.

Dawson is obliged to take a tall - Petrie?

It is up to McEvoy to lift considerably on last week, Koschitzke to give him a hand and the mid-field to get hands on the ball and use it.

Dempster, Clarke, Gram, Fisher hopefully continue to hold firm in defence, but Geary and Blake trouble me.

Dawson hopefully does what is expected of him.

And the sum result is that our forwards get opportunities and have the impact they have not had over the past 2 games when we have virtually played with no attack.

Riewoldt hopefully becomes effective, Schnieder and Milne become dangerous again and have an impact on the scoreboard, Peake provides some defensive pressure and snags a couple in the process, Ray drifts forward and Koschitzke, when up forward, gives an alternate target.

But it is all going to start in the ruck and with the mid-field - which were the areas which let us down so badly last Sunday in the delightful west of Sydney.

There is plenty to prove for some players - including some of our "big" names whose lack of consistent, game impacting contributions is flying under the radar of comment.

[desertsaint]

dempster jumps straight back again from what looked a definite concussion?
tough.

the team looks typically conservative for a big game. but every game has been. will withhold criticism in the hope that walsh plays.
rather forlorn hope, but...

[bergholt]

the team looks typically conservative for a big game. but every game has been. will withhold criticism in the hope that walsh plays.

what if walsh plays and we lose - and therefore have very little chance of finals? would you be happy or sad?

[Jacks Back]

Poor decision. What does Walsh have to do to get a game? Kick 10? 12? Get in the best in the VFL for 50 games straight?

Would have given a hell of a lot more than Blake or Gilbert.

Maybe be in Sandy's best for more than ONE week.

Are you joking? He has been in the best in nearly every game and, most probably, more than anyone else in the team this year.

[stinger]

[quote="To the top"]

And McEvoy was well and truly beaten in the ruck.
[/quote ]


mcevoy, schneids and jack were all down with a virus last week,.....should see an improvement from all three this week


bit of an injury cloud though over dempster...concussion...raph ...neck injury ..and blake...corkie....

[Jacks Back]

the team looks typically conservative for a big game. but every game has been. will withhold criticism in the hope that walsh plays.

what if walsh plays and we lose - and therefore have very little chance of finals? would you be happy or sad?

This is a team sport. One player won't make the difference and certainly would be no difference to the 22nd player out there. For instance, I'm sure he would have done just as good as Lynch last week.

Actually, maybe if Walsh had played last week instead of Lynch we might have won. You may be onto something.

[samoht]

I reckon Blake = Walsh in disguise.
.. unless Blake with a corkie is still better than a fit Walsh... and can still run circles around him on one good leg.

[True Blue Sainter]

Poor decision. What does Walsh have to do to get a game? Kick 10? 12? Get in the best in the VFL for 50 games straight?

Would have given a hell of a lot more than Blake or Gilbert.

Maybe be in Sandy's best for more than ONE week.

Are you joking? He has been in the best in nearly every game and, most probably, more than anyone else in the team this year.

See above.

[desertsaint]

the team looks typically conservative for a big game. but every game has been. will withhold criticism in the hope that walsh plays.

what if walsh plays and we lose - and therefore have very little chance of finals? would you be happy or sad?

either, neither - depends on how it panned out.

[SaintPav]

Maybe he's signed with GWS? Anyone considered that?

But geez...untried L Plater to debut in our biggest game all year?

Not sure I'd be game to make that selection either.

Other coaches aren't afraid to blood players in big games. Malthouse has debuted quite a few youngsters on ANZAC Day, for example. Tommy has played in the big games in Ireland, so not sure why it would be a problem.

Anzac day is in April. This game may decide if we play finals. There is a big difference.

[To the top]

Acknowledged Stinger.

But they were out on the ground and, unfortunately, their disposition told on their performances which were sluggish at best.

Once you are out there, there are no excuses.

Hopefully they all come up this week because their input will be vital.

Agree that Clarke took a nasty one early which saw him in the rooms for treatment but resumed (I was watching Baker in the expectation the green jacket would come off) and battled on taking smalls and talls whilst Dempster, who was clearly our best, also took a nasty one late.

Hopefully both come up this week.

Blake was hobbled late, but .......

I do agree that relying on Koschitzke (when not rucking or on the pine resting) and Riewoldt as the 6 foot plus players in attack puts plenty of pressure on them including because the "second" opponent can give the appearance of contesting when they are actually blocking - we play one back so other sides have the luxury of doing likewise - and our slow ball movement does not assist in getting these 2 one out in a contest and they find themselves in the defense dominated zone.

So you would look to shift the balance to another 195cm forward - in place of the 175/178cm players who are our other attacking options.

Then you need to look at Walsh's ground level, recovery and defensive (chase, harrass) game and compare this to the shorter forward he will replace.

So who do you drop for him? Milne or Schnieder, because that is the option.

He can not ruck as Koschitzke can - and is inferior to Koschitzke anyway.

Peake is required for his pace.

The rest of our forwards rotate thru the mid-field.

So who of Milne and Schnieder do you drop for Walsh?

[markp]

Why can't people here believe that the people who deal with this every day of the week might actually know where Walsh is at?

Crazy talk, right there.

[Winmar]

I've only seen Walsh in the flesh once this season and liked what I saw. He kicked 6 last week, which is great, but I think this week's inclusions were sensible. If we win this week and he kicks another 6 for Sandy then maybe Ross can consider giving him a run v Carlton.

[joffaboy]

Is Walsh even signed up for next year?

What is his contract status?

Not signed.

Apparently according to some he is so mentally fragile and such a drama queen that he is going to spit the dummy and go back to 20% unemployment and no paid footy in Ireland instead of getting elevated to senior list and paid at least $120k plus match payments next year.....

all because he didn't get one game in 2011.

In the light of this the club has rightly held off signing him as there is about 10,000 footballer who would give their eye teeth for the chance Walsh is getting at our club.

[Winmar]

Here's a video of his goals at Vic Park last week:

http://www.youtube.com/officialsaintstv ... TSkr4Og-_E

[joffaboy]

Here's a video of his goals at Vic Park last week:

http://www.youtube.com/officialsaintstv ... TSkr4Og-_E

Some nice goals from our new version of Gordon Fode

lead nicely to space, kicked a few from spills. Not much pressure on him and the delivery wouldn't be the same in the seniors, but you can only do what you can do, and he did very good.

Exciting to see him at the club. looking forward to seeing him regularily next season getting it lace out from Lenny.