Some areas for improvement from today:
Papley - his good is so good. So good. But he just doesn't work hard enough at times defensively. His work rate chasing the footy towards goal, compared to an opponent going the other way can be significant. I think he could be truly elite if he works on this
Midfield balance - I'm not sure we really know what our right mix is yet. When Warner isn't in the middle, and it's Mills, Parker, Kennedy.. we have a lot of strength and first hands on the ball, but not a lot of line breaking and speed. Florent is still finding consistency of his impact. So as a result, we're a bit slow and lacking variation in there
JMac - his decision making with the footy really can improve. He's a very good player, but he made some strange decisions early. Even the one where he kicked to Heeney for the first goal, he was aiming to hit a target 10m away and kicked over him. When around a contest, he can sometimes just give the footy off, not necessarily to someone in a better position. I really rate him - great tank and energy, but some big improvement still
The backline - so good to see them get rattled and work their way back to really win the contest. Looked like JDG and Cameron could help them to a good score. Having a settled back group is important, and they have been this year. Hopefully a good month ahead of them playing together
Buddy - wasn't a good day for tall forwards, and Buddy contested as much as he could, but didn't look to be moving well. Not 100% yet. Might be worth resting to Perth
Blakey - nice move getting him in the ruck. He jumped well. And playing a role where he won't have someone checking him closely will open up opportunity for him. As he learns the craft (if this is a future role) he can really be damaging by rucking and getting to the outside of the contest to get the hands off a clearance winner. Keen to see how this plays out
McLean is a freaking revelation. One of the best contested marks in the comp. Consistent effort. Bet the coaches love him.
Great game from Wicks. The dude is a hard at it all game.
There wasn’t a bad player after quarter time. Enjoyable stuff.
Thought Bud worked into it well. There are still few joys to match a Franklin goal. Savouring each one.
Those who malign Lloyd should watch him in his game. His run is vital; gets the most out of himself.
Hayward is definitely best 22 playing like that. Marking and forward pressure were great.
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Seems a cracking lad.
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[QUOTE=Faunac8;818039]TOG: 98%.
Good Win, enough to like, bank 4 points and in to next week. Surely finals bound at this point which is pretty awesome. J Mac becoming a gun, what an astute pick he turned out to be !
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Longmire said earlier this year that "Buddy won't play every game". At that point I got the distinct impression that away games with significant travel involved might be the ones Buddy misses.
Fremantle away looks like it fits that statement.
Tick from me on that as well, however wonder if the ground itself (Optus Stadium) will play on the club medico's minds? Last time Bud played there he kicked 8 goals against WC but he sustained a bruised heel which hindered him for rest of the season (it was the first AFL game played at Optus). Not sure if the hardness of the surface has since improved/settled?
Wonder if they’ll give Logan a run in Perth?
Enjoyable afternoon out in the end. Breeze really was very stiff and swirly most of the game, the players seemed to adapt as they went on, but don't underestimate the difficulty of the conditions.
Good to see Heeney back in some form. I thought McInerney was very good, also Wicks, McLean and Dawson. Blakey good on return. Plenty of contributors in the second half. Pies defence started well but then really faded, for some reason.
I stuck around for a quarter of the VFL, sadly didn't get to see Naismith on the field but enjoyed what I saw. Very different experience, being inside a much emptier SCG echoing to the sound of players shouting. Hello to the boundary security guy I chatted with, who wished the game was in the morning as they were getting pretty cold by that stage.
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