Changes for Round 6 V Demons

[ugg]

He's an emergency so it isn't injury related

[Conor_Dillon]

Harsh on Bird but sends a statement that nobody is safe...would have preferred that statement to be Shaw. If Mitchell continues to play well it will be pretty hard for Bird to break back into the team..unless it's in place of Goodes.
Surely Goodes starts as sub, McGlynn needs match time and Heeney is simply too good.

[aguy]

I'm sorry. But I'm a bird fan. I'm sorry he isn't playing. Hopefully he wasn't just omitted and there's a reason

[Conor_Dillon]

Reid Heeney McGlynn in for Towers, Cunningham and Bird

[aguy]

@AFL_PKeane: Melb v Syd;
Dawes, Spencer, Toumpas, Stretch in for Jamar, Grimes, McKenzie, Michie. McGlynn, Reid, Heeney in for Bird, Cunningham, Towers.

[Scottee]

It's hard to predict if Reid will play this week, but expect they will be extra cautious as the Reid brothers have a history of soft tissue injuries. It was probably good that neither the Swans nor the Pies went after the missing brother as it's probably a big risk, injury-wise, to have both at the same club.

I think it would be a good strategic move to play Zak Jones this week. An opportunity to give Zak the pleasure (I hope) of beating his older brother. I don't know how true the rumours are about the possibility of him going to Melbourne, but I think we should do whatever we can to make sure he stays. Zak seems more of the brotherly competitive type than the brotherly love type, but the fact is that he is still out of contract for next year.

I haven't seen Horse as the type to punish a player for mistakes, so doubt if the players involved in poor decision making and execution will be cut on that basis. It's a confidence killer and leads to players being over cautious and hesitant over fear of being dripped. Horse has always encouraged taking the game on and seems willing to accept that mistakes will be made. Of course he and us fans don't have to be happy about those mistakes. But form is another matter.

Watching the Ressies Zac is not quite ready yet, just needs a bit more fitness and form under his belt after a slow start to the season. McGlynn likewise as explained by Horse. Harry Marsh must be in the mix given the back line performance last week but with Reid and Heeney coming back you would expect this may not be the week. Towers is a definite out for the looks of things and I would imagine that Cunningham might be the only one to make way for Reid.

I would try a few things to mentally refresh the side in terms of positioning though. McVeigh to the backline to provide some mental stability and perhaps move Shaw forward as a goalkicking defensive forward.

Really liked the use of Reid as a third man up follower so would persist with that.

[Ludwig]

It's hard to predict if Reid will play this week, but expect they will be extra cautious as the Reid brothers have a history of soft tissue injuries. It was probably good that neither the Swans nor the Pies went after the missing brother as it's probably a big risk, injury-wise, to have both at the same club.

I think it would be a good strategic move to play Zak Jones this week. An opportunity to give Zak the pleasure (I hope) of beating his older brother. I don't know how true the rumours are about the possibility of him going to Melbourne, but I think we should do whatever we can to make sure he stays. Zak seems more of the brotherly competitive type than the brotherly love type, but the fact is that he is still out of contract for next year.

I haven't seen Horse as the type to punish a player for mistakes, so doubt if the players involved in poor decision making and execution will be cut on that basis. It's a confidence killer and leads to players being over cautious and hesitant over fear of being dripped. Horse has always encouraged taking the game on and seems willing to accept that mistakes will be made. Of course he and us fans don't have to be happy about those mistakes. But form is another matter.

[Conor_Dillon]

The forecast isn't great but I don't think it's going to rain much, nothing that will have much of an influence on the game anyway.

[churry]

The only way this could be season defining is if we lose, which will make it 3 in a row and it will be hard to recover from that.

[ernie koala]

I'm not sure a game against the 13th placed Demons in the 6th round, can be described as "season defining".

It's simply a game the Swans should win and win well.

[barry]

season defining game this week. Close to our best 22. Lose and we r 3 wins 3 losses, and a mid table team.
win and we are 4:2, top 4 chance

[Conor_Dillon]

Adam Curley has tweeted that Sam Reid was undergoing a fitness test at training today and 'was moving well'.
Hopefully his name will be read out tonight

[aardvark]

What is disturbing for me is the lack of leadership by example shown by Macca and Kizza. They were taken out of the game and didn't put up a fight to get back into the game. Really weak leadership in my opinion, I may be wrong but I don't think so. Franklin, Parker, Joey, Laids, Pykie, Tip, Hannas, Smithy etc all showed far greater leadership than our captains last week. They all played hard, desperate footy.

It's a rare occasion I agree with you Wolfie but I do this time. KJ was a bit better in the second half but Macca is about as inspirational as a wet dish cloth. Compare his game with Bob Murphy. I know who i'd rather have.

[wolftone57]

What about Reid Wolfy?
Surely he comes in if fit.

Yes but I was not counting him until he is declared fit. He has been declared fit now and he and McGlinn are set to return. We are doing a lot better than last year with injury. It is our effort and discipline that is worrying me. I only put those ins and outs as an example of what might happen. Sometimes players do get rested but not often. We saw it last year approaching the finals. That may not have been a good idea at that time of year though. I am not convinced that resting players in the last rounds is a good idea. All the sides that won the premiership lately went into the finals with all their sides having played the last two games.

I'd love to be a fly on the wall at the selection committee meeting this week as there are so many good players up for selection and some of the seniors are not performing to standard. As an example these players are really below par; Rampe, Shaw, Goodes, Towers, Reg (the only really ordinary game this year, although I think Longmire got the match ups wrong), Bird (poor last week first bad one), Macca (hardly sighted and when he was disposal was always rushed under perceived pressure), Cunningham (gave very little as sub), Kizza (very ordinary game), Teddy (too loose but exposed by bad match ups and our poor performance upfield).

What is disturbing for me is the lack of leadership by example shown by Macca and kizza. They were taken out of the game ands didn't put up a fight to get back into the game. Really weak leadership in my opinion, I may be wrong but I don't think so. Franklin, Parker, Joey, Laids, Pykie, Tip, Hannas, smithy etc all showed far greater leadership than our captains last week. They all played hard, desperate footy.

So who will come in? I don't have a crystal ball but I would suggest now Sammy and Benny have been cleared they will come in. Goodes & Towers will be dropped and I think Shaw has to be close to his last chance after a very poor start to the season. He is really susceptible to pressure and his disposal has been extremely poor. Rampe could be given a game in the Twos to punish him for his dreadful game but probably not. He wouldn't want to play another bad one though or he will be kicking dew.

The thing that worries me is last year we lost a few early games but we did have injuries and were getting structures right. We did not select to match up either we just played what was perceived as our best available 22. Later a few younger players got a shot and played well, Lloyd a stand out. Players like Tippett, McGlinn, Pyke, Goodes etc were all late starters. But this year we have had very few injuries and yet still in the same position. I know great starts are not that important and that the run home to the finals is more important but it still worries me. It is about the way we are losing that worries me. Lack of composure, concentration problems, too many players in poor form, several players at the crossroads and poor coaching decisions.

In; Benny, Sammy, Heeney & Jones

Out; Towers (really needed to get a game in the Twos last week before coming back to Seniors after being travelling sub), Goodes, Bird, either Rampe (poor last week although I think they will give him an extra week) or Shaw.

[RogueSwan]

...
We need a crumbling fwd ...

I would rather have one that stood strong and stayed on his feet.