Rd 18 vs Fremantle Dockers @ Optus Stadium

**111431** · 17th July 2022, 06:11 PM

Originally Posted by TheBloods

Hickey is a worry isnt he , last 2 games hes played he has been destroyed . Darcy last night , Draper few weeks back . Darcy ok you could forgive , but that big dill Draper ? And even Darcy , great ruck but is that what we can expect from him against top rucks now ? What happens if we play Melbourne in a final ? Or Collingwood ?

I think you are being hard on Draper. He is an old fashioned physical ruckman who likes to hit his opponent hard but has the athleticism to run all day. Hopefully Ladhams can develop into that type of prototype. Hickey is valuable to us - critically so. He may not win all the taps but he contests and creates problems for the opposition. I’m not sure Tommy P has thanked him for the spoil that gave him his last goal. Without Hickey we can’t win. It is no coincidence the arrival of Hickey has coincided with the rise of the Swans

**i'm-uninformed2** · 17th July 2022, 06:12 PM

I think the issue with Hickey is also that he’s had no continuity. The best rucks are like workhorses. He’s now likely to get a run of three or four games with Ladhams thumb so hopefully he can build up a base of resilience.

**TheBloods** · 17th July 2022, 06:18 PM

Originally Posted by 111431

I think you are being hard on Draper. He is an old fashioned physical ruckman who likes to hit his opponent hard but has the athleticism to run all day. Hopefully Ladhams can develop into that type of prototype. Hickey is valuable to us - critically so. He may not win all the taps but he contests and creates problems for the opposition. I’m not sure Tommy P has thanked him for the spoil that gave him his last goal. Without Hickey we can’t win. It is no coincidence the arrival of Hickey has coincided with the rise of the Swans

Without Hickey we cant win ? Spare me . We went the stretch before the bye without him , last week !

I am not picking on him im saying his form is a worry , cant have a ruck getting smacked around by his opponent . Cmon

**111431** · 17th July 2022, 06:25 PM

Originally Posted by TheBloods

Without Hickey we cant win ? Spare me . We went the stretch before the bye without him , last week !

I am not picking on him im saying his form is a worry , cant have a ruck getting smacked around by his opponent . Cmon

In the Essendon game he was beaten up in the last qtr when Draper got really physical with him. Up until that point he held his own.

Darcy is their current B&F and is in all Australian contention.

I would argue we negated him last night in the second half by playing uncontested footy and reducing the stoppages which are Darcy’s strengths.

Hickey is mature, a competitor, doesn’t suffer from brain fades and serves our midfielders pretty well including your mate Chad

**TheBloods** · 17th July 2022, 06:54 PM

Originally Posted by 111431

In the Essendon game he was beaten up in the last qtr when Draper got really physical with him. Up until that point he held his own.

Darcy is their current B&F and is in all Australian contention.

I would argue we negated him last night in the second half by playing uncontested footy and reducing the stoppages which are Darcy’s strengths.

Hickey is mature, a competitor, doesn’t suffer from brain fades and serves our midfielders pretty well including your mate Chad

I agree with all of that usually but lately hes been shocking . Maybe injured . Im not picking on him im saying its a worry

**AB Swannie** · 17th July 2022, 08:19 PM

Originally Posted by AB Swannie

Totally agree. Dylan has often looked a little like the 3rd wheel in a relationship. He has just lacked confidence to back himself but those last few plays were really strong. I loved his celebration showing that little bit of swagger that he has lacked. I also noticed that Horse gave him just a fraction more love when the team came through the rooms (not as much as the Chad though)

I just watched a replay of Dylan's last goal and noticed that Franklin was on his outside calling for the ball. Timid Dylan would've passed it off but the more confident Dylan backed himself and slotted the goal. Good signs.

**Roadrunner** · 17th July 2022, 08:19 PM

Originally Posted by TheBloods

I agree with all of that usually but lately hes been shocking . Maybe injured . Im not picking on him im saying its a worry

Hardly shocking, TB. Maybe not as good as he has been and that can be due to interruptions with injury and illness.
I’m confident he will be back to his best given a run of games. In the meantime, he needs more support from Reid and Amartey.

**111431** · 17th July 2022, 08:23 PM

Originally Posted by TheBloods

I agree with all of that usually but lately hes been shocking . Maybe injured . Im not picking on him im saying its a worry

Keep the faith in the ‘wild thing’

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**Agent 86** · 17th July 2022, 08:37 PM

Originally Posted by Roadrunner

Hardly shocking, TB. Maybe not as good as he has been and that can be due to interruptions with injury and illness.
I’m confident he will be back to his best given a run of games. In the meantime, he needs more support from Reid and Amartey.

Looked pretty tired. Was the “illness” Covid? Seems to knock those recovering around and don’t have the energy they usually might.

**i'm-uninformed2** · 17th July 2022, 08:41 PM

One good sign from last night is Horse has twice picked through an elite defensive system, which is what you encounter in finals - but using two very different methods. Melbourne and Freo are the two best defensive sides in the comp, who set up brilliantly behind the ball and then surge it forward, with their small or high half forwards critical.

Against Melbourne, we were prepared to go long to a contest or towards the boundary, effect a stoppage or a throw in. Against Freo, it was chip, chip, chip. In both cases, we refused to stream mindlessly into the spider web set up behind the ball, and they couldn’t sling shot back. It took their small and medium forwards out of the game, and gave our defence more time to stablise when it came back our way.

It was notable last night that Fox, Lloyd, Ramps and Ollie were our highest mark players. Not by going backwards, but by using small pockets of space to progress the ball forward. When it was time to go, we could - like when Rowbottom took a mark on the wing, had Chad running by and gave the handball so he could pump it inside 50 - but never mindlessly.

Great coaching, and great execution by the players.

**Ludwig** · 17th July 2022, 08:46 PM

Originally Posted by Roadrunner

Hardly shocking, TB. Maybe not as good as he has been and that can be due to interruptions with injury and illness.
I’m confident he will be back to his best given a run of games. In the meantime, he needs more support from Reid and Amartey.

Amartey only had 54% TOG, which is very low, even accounting for the bit of time on the bench with the shoulder injury. I wonder why. I didn't notice it during the game.