I find no joy in this

[footyhead]

I find no joy in the state of the Swans and their supporters, but I said during the week that the Swans were premature in their "lucky" win last week against the Lions.
Today's result has proved me right.
I repeat everything I have said about Roos and his team. They are playing a @@@@@ brand of footy and they do not believe in themselves and they don't have anything like constancy.
In other words Sydney in 2005 has yet another pretender premiership team.
But of course if they make the finals all will be forgiven. How pathetic.

[ROK Lobster]

He's right though. Pretty much all footyhead says is on the money. I don't care if he is a she in Afghanistan and supports the LA Lakers, I agree with most of what he said for the last 12 months. Only right now, I am starting to wonder if the Swans will make the finals.

[ugg]

Mid Table Mediocrity.

[mpr104]

Originally posted by ROK Lobster
He's right though. Pretty much all footyhead says is on the money. I don't care if he is a she in Afghanistan and supports the LA Lakers, I agree with most of what he said for the last 12 months. Only right now, I am starting to wonder if the Swans will make the finals.

If we do make the finals, it will be from frustrating and bottling up oppositions, NOT from playing adventurous, exciting and enterprising footy.

[robbieando]

Originally posted by mpr104
If we do make the finals, it will be from frustrating and bottling up oppositions, NOT from playing adventurous, exciting and enterprising footy.

and that's because we lack two tall key position defenders that allow Leo and Tadhg to run off half back and create the adventurous, exciting and enterprising footy we all want the Swans to play.

Problem is we have Schauble on the injury list half the time and no real second option other than playing guys who aren't up to senior footy for one reason or another (LRT/James), or moving guys out of position and weakening the teams adventurous, exciting and enterprising footy in the process (C-Bolt/Leo)

The fact we have failed to draft ANY real key position defenders in the past two drafts (other than redrafting Heath James) has come back to hurt us, as has the lack of attacking talent coming though in the midfield other than McVeigh, who just isn't played on the field offen enough.

What Footyhead has said for 12 months, while it seems right to most, is NOT the real reason we can't improve on our efforts in 2003 when we played adventurous, exciting and enterprising footy and the lack of a second key position defender didn't hurt us because teams didn't/couldn't work out our tactics, thus we had a free run to the third week of the finals.

Its not Roos' fault other teams play us man on man and make it look like we flood, when we are playing to the adventurous, exciting and enterprising tactics of 2003. The only thing he can be blamed for is our lack of tall defenders coming though under his watch and the lack of gametime McVeigh has got in his two years so far.

Stop making FH out to be some sort of wiseman, when all he is, is a St Kilda supporter out to troll RWO.

[ugg]

Originally posted by robbieando
The only thing he can be blamed for is our lack of tall defenders coming though under his watch and the lack of gametime McVeigh has got in his two years so far.


I don't see how that is Roosy's fault. I don't think Heath James can hold a key position, Daniel Hunt had two bites of the cherry and wasn't up to it and LRT will need a few years. At least Vogels and Campbell have been drafted for future years. As for McVeigh, I agree with you to a certain extent. I think Spriggs is taking up a spot on the team which could fall to McVeigh or any of the younger midfielders. Don't think he adds anything extra to our current midfield.

[robbieando]

Originally posted by ugg
I don't see how that is Roosy's fault. I don't think Heath James can hold a key position, Daniel Hunt had two bites of the cherry and wasn't up to it and LRT will need a few years. At least Vogels and Campbell have been drafted for future years.

I think I should of used "could" instead of "can" because I do agree that options have been tried, but the point of was harking back to is the past two draft's when we have only drafted Matt Davis and Heath James as guys could could be called KPP's. That's not good enough in my eyes when you say that you don't think James is up to holding a KP defence spot, then why re-draft him????

Fully fit our defence is very good, but the amount of times we have been without Schaubs the past two seasons has been telling and not really having a true backup is not good enough.

[ugg]

Originally posted by robbieando
I think I should of used "could" instead of "can" because I do agree that options have been tried, but the point of was harking back to is the past two draft's when we have only drafted Matt Davis and Heath James as guys could could be called KPP's. That's not good enough in my eyes when you say that you don't think James is up to holding a KP defence spot, then why re-draft him????

If it was up to me I wouldn't have. I think the idea was always to have Saddo go to CHB and Schauble to FB when Dunkley retired (although this would have been Eade's plan) but as we know Saddo can't hold CHB either.

Have a look at the last 2 drafts (in which Roos was head coach) and the only regular playing KPP backman we could have drafted is Jared Rivers. And he was overlooked by all the other clubs too.

[SXP]

Robbie, you're talking like there was a huge amount of KP players available and Ross has drafted Heath instead. Maybe you should go back and refresh your memory, where Paul clearly said that there were no such players available and James was the best option at the time.
Future is with the young players and I hope we'll find one or we'll wait for that premiership a bit longer.

[ROK Lobster]

Originally posted by robbieando
Stop making FH out to be some sort of wiseman, when all he is, is a St Kilda supporter out to troll RWO.
He has an opinion which I, in part, agree with.

[Newbie]

Our drafting and developing of taller players have been pathetic. Since Dunkley, there has been no one. I am sure that Stafford would have a much better career if his first club was not us.

We seem only be able to teach our players accountability and nothing else.

[swans_premiers]

Originally posted by Newbie
Our drafting and developing of taller players have been pathetic. Since Dunkley, there has been no one. I am sure that Stafford would have a much better career if his first club was not us.

We seem only be able to teach our players accountability and nothing else.

Goodes?

[robbieando]

Originally posted by SXP
Maybe you should go back and refresh your memory, where Paul clearly said that there were no such players available and James was the best option at the time.

Yet why wasn't James brought in today for LRT instead of Spriggs??? Fact is, our lack of talls down back is hurting us because it doesn't allow Leo, Tadhg and C-Bolt to play their natural positions and thus force us to play the game we have played the best part of a year now.

[ROK Lobster]

Originally posted by robbieando
Yet why wasn't James brought in today for LRT instead of Spriggs??? Fact is, our lack of talls down back is hurting us because it doesn't allow Leo, Tadhg and C-Bolt to play their natural positions and thus force us to play the game we have played the best part of a year now.
Spriggs was always going to come in for a tall, as discussed earlier in the week. LRT is fit I'm sure. He would have played if MOL didn't come up.

[footyhead]

It is ironic that the year that the umpires decides to really come down on defenders, making it very hard hard for them to stop the forwards, is the same year that the Swans decide to try and kick the least number of goals in the entire comp.

[Newbie]

Originally posted by swans_premiers
Goodes?
Goodes is a tall man with excellent short man skills. His tall man skill is quite average. Great leap means he could negate a tall man but he does not dominate smaller players as much as a player of his size should.

[NMWBloods]

Originally posted by Newbie
Goodes is a tall man with excellent short man skills. His tall man skill is quite average. Great leap means he could negate a tall man but he does not dominate smaller players as much as a player of his size should.
That is a very good analysis.

[ugg]

A good goodes analysis?

Yeah, agree with what was said. Hentschel beat him today.

[dread and might]

Originally posted by robbieando
Yet why wasn't James brought in today for LRT instead of Spriggs???

Adelaide's midfield superiority would have been a factor in bringing in a fit running small. In retrospect.....

[Wazza]

Originally posted by robbieando

Its not Roos' fault other teams play us man on man and make it look like we flood, when we are playing to the adventurous, exciting and enterprising tactics of 2003. The only thing he can be blamed for is our lack of tall defenders coming though under his watch and the lack of gametime McVeigh has got in his two years so far.



Get over McVeigh he isnt going to make ant difference to this team, his lack of game time is directly a result of his inability to step up when he has been given game time. Fosdike is miles ahead of McVeigh although McVeigh may well be better in years to come.

We need key defenders LRT will give us that in time but we also need some size in the midfield. Leo Barry is giving away stupid free kicks because he is outsized by the player he has to compete against every week

I havent been impressed with our midfield since Lyon took on the midfield role, nor have we recruited well for this role, Spriggs doesnt give us anything we didnt already have.

The Swans have one of the best forward lines but lack good sized highly skilled midfielders and is at least 1 tall short in defence. The only improvement to the Swans this year is in our ruck division with the addition of olly its hard to pick any player who has shown significant dvevlopment or improvement from last year and some of them look like they have gone backwards - ROK case in point, Maxfield needs to do a Swatter he is holding someone back.

Im not suddenly bagging the Swans as I said this last week in my - "um hello this is ground control" thread. The only positive I will add is this may be the wake up call the team mangement need.

My rant for the week is over but I promise there will be more next week. ;o)

Cheers

Waz

[Mike_B]

Originally posted by Wazza
I havent been impressed with our midfield since Lyon took on the midfield role

IMHO this has been a key issue that has passed by unnoticed for the most part. Don't underestimate how much we lost when Malaxos decided to head home. Ross Lyon doesn't come close to Malaxos as a midfield coach and the football department needs to look at this and fast.

[Nico]

Originally posted by Newbie
Our drafting and developing of taller players have been pathetic. Since Dunkley, there has been no one. I am sure that Stafford would have a much better career if his first club was not us.

We seem only be able to teach our players accountability and nothing else.

And accountability went out the window today.

[dimelb]

Originally posted by Newbie
Our drafting and developing of taller players have been pathetic. Since Dunkley, there has been no one.
Dunkley started (football) life as a forward. Campbell and Vogels are usually played as forwards but are big bodies and have decent marking and kicking skills. Worth a try down back. Then we can give Leo a rest from the top forwards and get him back doing what he does best off HBF. And move Kennelly further up field.