Unfortunately, we lack the talent

[sharp9]

We were wrong.

When you see the optimism we all had at the beginning of the year we didn't bank on "raw talent" being a factor.

Today we actually got enough of the ball to win. We were hard at the contest. The difference was talent and speed.

Cousins, Fletcher, Judd, Kerr.....they PICK THE BALL UP AT SPEED.

We have no one.

Willimas used to.

We are the fumble-meisters

We kick the ball to the half forward line over and over and over and over NOT TO THE ADVANTAGE OF A SWAN.

To go up against that four (or any other teams top four) we put up Bolton, Fosdike, Williams and Kirk....one former top talent who can no longer get to the contest and when he does receive the ball he fluffs an up an under or misses from 45 on the run. And 3 genuine triers who would not get selected above any one of the top 4 from the top sides. (Kirk and Crouch would get into any team as stoppers).

Williams and Maxfield are gone as midfield leaders. Jude and Fossy do not have the talent to lead a midfield to a premiership. They are very handy contributers as #3 and 4

Coming up are more triers....Bevan, Buchanan, Thewlis.

Somehow we have to get 4 HIGHLY SKILLED players to lead our midfield.

I suggest (in the short/medium term) giving the jobs to Davis, O'Keefe, Schneider and C. Bolton (plus leaving Kirk and Crouch in there) and then worry about where everyone else plays. Maybe Jude and Fossy will hold down pockets or flanks somewhere. We have to get them out of the midfield...we can't win with them long term.

I can't even remember if we loved Fixter because he was skillfull , but if memory serves it was more because he was hard to beat and had heart (like Bevo...and Jude....and Crouchy....and Kirky....and Mathewsy....and Schaubs....and Ablett...and Monty.....and LRT......and Warfey.....and MacPherson...and Seymour and nearly every Swan who has played in the last 2 years not in the forward line)

Maybe we have been blinded by Kel...that with the right attitude anyone could be a world beater (as long as he had heart and guts). Not true in the AFL 2004.

McVeigh was recruited because of his silken skills....the first Swan recruited on talent since Ryan Fitzgerald (IMO). Willoughby and Schmidt are touted as "ball winners" rather than having great skills.

McGlone and Potter look handy but haven't didn't even get drafted...so that's gotta tell you we're not gonna build a side round them.

We traded Nick dal Santo and Matt Maguire (picks) for Barry Hall.......maybe that wasn't the way to win a premiership.

[NMWBloods]

Yep - we lack skills.

Even our handballs drop at the foot of our players rather than in the right spot.

Our footskills are generally ordinary.

We do not have many one-touch players.

We don't seem to find the same space and have the same awareness as good teams.

Watching the Saints really highlights the difference.

[hammo]

I agree 100%. We just aren't in the same class as the midfields of Brisbane, West Coast, St Kilda and even Essendon.
The thing I am most critical about the Swans at the moment is the inability to get clean possessions. Whereas Cousins and Judd pick the ball up at speed, today the Swans consistently fumbled.
The last few weeks the weather was an excuse but not today.
There are skilful players in our team we need to get them on the ball ASAP or this season will continue to slide.
That means getting Fosdike and Bolton out of the centre.

[Mike_B]

In terms of pure class, no we don't have it. But look back to last year, with a bit of confidence, things do look better - handballs to advantage, kicks hitting targets etc. It's just a matter of doing it consistently - which unfortunately probably won't be the case when we are down as a team.

[hammo]

It is probably too early to tell but I am a little concerned about the "youth policy" at the moment because if this is all we have we could be wallowing in mediocrity for years.

I really hope McVeigh and Willoughby develop into gun midfielders, and there is no doubt O'Keefe and Shneider are handy, but we really don't resemble a premiership side at the moment.

Maybe we are going to have to take some risks at trading this year to get where we want to go. Our class really drops off from the best six to the rest.

[Bear]

Agree - we fumbled today like U14s right throughout the match.

[Dave]

It's hard to say what the problem is. It's almost as though a mediocrity switch has been turned on.

I can't remember how the Saints were playing this time last year but they came good too late to make the finals. I remember Cornflakes making some comment like "we are a better side than them" after a LOSS to some team.
Surely enough they came good and now they seem undefeatable, so what all of a sudden happened?
Did their skills get that much better or is it a self-belief thing that in turn smooths out their playing abilities?
I tend to think the latter.

[liz]

Originally posted by Dave

Did their skills get that much better or is it a self-belief thing that in turn smooths out their playing abilities?
I tend to think the latter.

To some extent you can put the Saints improvement down to the additional strength and experience of their ultra-talented young brigade. But your point is valid.

The Melbourne team that has won 6 in a row is essentially the same set of guys that were a hopeless rabble for pretty much the whole of last year.

The hopeless rabble currently sitting at the foot of the AFL ladder played in the last two GFs.

Class and talent definitely help but won't get a team far without confidence (and lots of hard, hard work and determination).