Looking back on the highlights again - I like the way Mcdonald sets up and kicks for goal. Technique looks pretty solid. Can't wait to watch him develop - got a good feeling he will be a very decent player for us.
"You get the feeling that like Monty Python's Black Knight, the Swans would regard amputation as merely a flesh wound."
Spot on, GWS got their goals way too easy. Like much of what Dawson brings but he's not a "natural" defender in the same way as Mills appears to be. McCartinb's firt half however was exhilarating.
Bouquets to Gulden, Campbell, Wicks and (I reckon) McDonald who I think have done enough to be in round 1.
Brickbats to whoever's idea it was to only have 3 food outlets open at Giants stadium.
Horse mentioned the Reserves in his post match and said that Stephens played after 2 weeks injured. Wish the Swans would let us know how the Reserves went, who played and who did well. Like to know how Gould and others are doing
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Love to know if Paddy McCartin played in Reserves
If things go well neither will be in the 22 all year (and thus not play for the Swans again).
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Looked that way to me.
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It's absurd. Either trolling or incorrigibly entrenched in an inferior position. Rowbottom was class again. Warner was good, though!
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Total lock. Looked more comfortable than at any time last year, while retaining traits that showed promise.
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I think it shows he's depth right now. First small defender off the 22.
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Stephens was an emergency. Unclear to me whether he's returning from something or just outside best 26.
Of the 26 named today, barring injury: Sinclair, Bell, Ling and Clarke won't play round 1. Reid has Sinclair's spot.
Hard to see Stephens come in after not playing today. So of the 22 others who played today, the question is who comes out for Lloyd. For me: either Melican or Hewett. Campbell should play. Not a great sign for Hewett that he's being played off half back. Got a fair bit of it today, but not really damaging.
Really excited to see McDonald today - contested well in air, can clunk 'em, good at ground level, and obviously a monster boot.
Really, really should beat Adelaide.
Very enjoyable match. The results in these AAMI Community games don't matter as much as the processes. You want to see everyone putting their best foot forward and making it a challenge for the match selection committee to whittle this talented squad down to just 22 players. They did that today, and to think there was no Lance, no Jmac, no Dylan, no Lloyd, no Gould, no McClean. That is some real talent on the sidelines.
I gave 5 votes for Luke Parker. Just a bull in the centre, and going forward to impact the scoreboard. It's a rare thing you only see in the very best - Dusty, Fyfe, Danger, the Bont. He has played a selfless role the past few seasons but with some kids stepping up he might be able to get on the receiving end of that hard work!!
4 votes for JPK. Started slow but had worked his way into the game sublimely after half time. Got us back into it, brought the kids into the game. The consummate captains performance.
3 votes for Jimmy Rowbottom. All class. Rarely makes a mistake, tireless worker, gets into the right places. It seems he hits the scoreboard every week I watch him over the past year or so. Moves so well. He is a pure talent.
2 votes for Tom McCarthin. BEAST until he went off about midway thru the third. Marked and spoilt everything that came his way. Looked scratchy when he came back on but I'd already seen enough to know we are looking at our next great full back.
1 vote for Sam Wicks. What a ferocious tackler! I pity the fool who dares to possess the ball in his path. Did anyone see that moment he sent a Giants player into the turf with his bump? Great stuff!! Taking the game by the horns!!
Honourable mentions must go to Warner, who was dynamic with his burst out of stoppages, delighted with his progress this year; Braeden and Errol who both used the ball so incredibly well, neither looked out of place; Logan!! That mark! That goal! I quite liked Florent's game but still would like to see a bit more consistency in how he approaches each quarter.
Thrilled with what I saw today! We might have lost but i am brimming with optimism about our chances this year, though some may say that is a naive attitude to have to a preseason game! But if having faith is wrong, then i dont wanna be right!!
I watched the first 3 quarters of the replay, taking a closer look at some of the weak points raised by the comments on the game.
- Hickey had a terrible 1st quarter, which got us off to a bad start. Gave away 5 frees in the game. The ruck will remain an open problem until we manage to draft or trade for a quality ruckman.
- Melican played okay. He was beaten 3 times by Himmelberg on the lead by 3 qtr. time, but all perfect passes that even the best defenders would have problems with. In the first case, Rampe had a clear run at the ball, but chose to block his man instead, letting Himmelberg just edge out Melican.
- I thought poor play from Rampe was the biggest problem with our defence. He kicked poorly, made bad decision, and didn't provide the leadership that was needed, especially with Lloyd out and Mills moved to the midfield. I'm sure he'll return to his usual self in the next game or so. Even Fox was missed.
- GWS had a lot of open men in the forward line due to the lack of defensive organization. We need Rampe and Lloyd to handle this while we're building a new back 6 combo. I think we'll work it out.
- Hayward doesn't have the goal sense needed to be a forward, especially one playing close to goal He's not a good decision maker at the moment when a good decision is required. He does have talent and can make a contribution, but not as forward; at least not yet. He has to be moved up the ground where he can find more space and time. We have plenty of small forward options now, so he's not needed there. He can be reprogrammed to play another position in the reserves.
- Wicks, on the other hand, has good vision, and is a quick decision maker. He also has very short quick movements in close. His reaction time to opposition player movements might be the best at the Swans, which accounts for his effectiveness as a tackler. He has good pace and and excellent kick. He's an unexpected find who deserves to be in the side.
- There were some who made negative comments about Reid, but I thought he played pretty well, without being outstanding. It was more a selection mistake to has Reid as the only key forward in the first half. But it is a practice match, so it's the right time to experiment with these sorts of things.
The rest looked pretty good. There was a lot more to be positive about than negative.
I also want to add that I concur with NeonBible's comments. He probably got the votes in the right order as well, although I didn't think Kennedy had enough influence throughout the game and gets caught out for pace when the opposition ruckman dominates the stoppage.
Last edited by Ludwig; 7th March 2021 at 11:15 PM. Reason: Added comment on NeonBible post
We need to review our expectations of Reid. For his whole career he has been judged on his potential, or brief glimpses of good play.
But he's getting on now, and his best footy is behind him. He should only be judged as the 2nd or 3rd tall marking target, and if he's asked to be no.1 forward we arent really fielding a competitive team.
I thought it was exciting seeing all the new young talent and I am really enthused with how much academy talent is now in the side BUT and this for me is the big but , we were easily beaten in the end by a team that many predicted to slide down the ladder this year. GWS have lost a fair amount of talent from their ranks but the biggest difference for me is that their top end guys are probably at a better stage in their careers than ours. Kelly , Haynes , Greene , Coniglio etc are for me a better top end group than kennedy, parker, rampe, reid etc. I think GWS would have taken just as much excitement from the likes of Bruhn as we did from our younger guys. We seem to be forming a pretty good group but its probably at least a year or two before we see any big rise up the ladder.
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