Did we learn much?

[joffaboy]

My thoughts on tonights game

My positives

Goose - nice to have him back will be better for the run
Eljay - had my doubts about him but liked what i saw, super fast hands
Heyne - not bad first game tried hard lacks a bit of finish
McEvoy - gave a contest will get better
Goddard - held us together will be next captain after roo imo
Raph - goes missing from time to time but when on can be very damaging
Gardy and King - looked pretty good considering greasy conditions

Jurys out
Ray - did some nice thigs but looked to hang back a bit hope he not fiona
Gwilt- just cant see him being more than where he is now
Dawson - was competitive but lapse and sloppy on occasion


Negatives
McQaulter - not to afl standard
Miles - i know first game but looked lost hope he can find his way
Howard - out of his depth
Begley - barely saw him maybe why bris got rid of him, stings to know we could have had Cousins with this pick

Bugger the game - lets talk about that avatar...

No....forget that....

Lets talk TO your avatar.....

You read his post

I was gunna complain about the size of the avatar - it is too small.

[degruch]

14. You can't just play thru the corridor because Cats and Hawks have game plans that will destroy you.

Well...you can't play up the corridor when there's no-one at the end of it.

[saintly_safes]

1) Anderson and his owner Demetriou have destroyed a once great game and turned it into a game for stagers and bargers.

2) tackles are not rewarded even when a player with the ball drops it stone cold

3) Positives - Heyne looks good. Raph played well. King/Gardiner looked good in the ruck. Gwilt unfortunely wont ever be anything except a depth player. Ray was steady.

4) Nice to see SOS make some changes after halftime and bring some grunt into the forward line.

5) Lovely to see Jack Steven flatten that fairy Johnstone

all depends on were the game is played, if its interstsate then you dont have a hope in hell of competing ,tonight was a classic example ,the westcoast game last year was farcical .The afl think they have a mandate to expand the game & victorian teams dont fit the model they want.

[SAINT JUMP]

everyone settle just our 2nd scratchie means nothing had no one up forward to take a grab. good sighns

[ace]

1. You can't win with a two man forward line especially if the big one is not playing.
2. George W Bush is a better tactician than any coaching staff St Kilda has had this decade. Geelong and Hawthorn are tactically creative, St Kilda tries to copy years later when others have already moved on.
3. Another year, nothing has changed except that Robert Harvey isn't there to do gut running.

[3rd generation saint]

Disappointed with tonight, well really with the second quarter, where the whole team just disappeared.

There was no effort, no enthusiasm and no desire.

Yes it is the NAB Cup and we won it last year and quite probably not a high priority for us, but still, you still want an effort and some signs of a desire to be winners.

Still, round 1 will tell us and in all honesty we have to come out in round 1 and belt Sydney to show we have improved from last year.

I know this team has discussed the problem that for the last few years we have been slow starters and come from behind as a fast finisher not quite making it each time, like tonight.

Just hope they are building to bursting onto the 09 season and being in the top 4 from round 1 to round 22.

[ace]

[quote="WayneJudson42"]
14. You can't just play thru the corridor because Cats and Hawks have game plans that will destroy you.[/quote]

If you can't CONTROL the corridor then you can't win a premiership.

You are doomed to lose if you are forced wide.
The boundary route is so long and allows the opposition time to get numbers behind the ball.

If you use the boundary route the oppostion only has to defend one side of the ground instead of two.

If you use the corridor the opposition's player density in defence is halved creating more holes for forwards to lead into.

Never more so than at the MCG in September.

[saintly_safes]

I think we've leanrt that despite a high player turnover, nothing has changed. We play the same style and quality of football that we've been used to for the past couple of years

I didnt get that out of the last 2 qtrs.

Qtr 1 and 2 were ordinary.

Isn't that a microcosm of our last two years though? Start out playing terribly, with no forward thrust, only to wake up halfway through looking great in the second half with a disappointing finish.

I dont think the finish was dissapointing at all - we ran short of time and lost....but Brisbane just hung and played the clock down.....remember its NAB Cup. We finished full or run IMO.

We also made top 4 last year so Im not convinced we played this way all year to be honest.....

I couldt give a toss about the result tonight - I watched to see other things and was just glad to see them in the second half.

I do agree with Saint66 when he says we need to play the corridor earlier - fair point that.

And just maybe we'd play the corridor a bit more if the AFL's leading mark was playing at CHF?

There's no point kicking the ball into the corridor if there's no Saints player there to get it.

As for the 'come from behind' - I have a different view.
I think it says a lot about our fitness that we are consistantly able to 'negative split' (to use a swimming term). Maybe our early game tactics take the run out of our opposition and slow them up a little?
Our superior fitness then allows us to run over them in the second half?
Of course all the superior fitness in the world is not going to help if the opposition has alread 'blown us off the park' in the first half!

To be fair Magic - Ive noticed we go via the Cape with Roo/Kosi up fwd sometimes and I reckon it frustrates them no end as defenders just line up 2 days out.

Maybe you're correct Teflon - Maybe my rose coloured glasses are back on?

BTW, I really like Brewski's avatar but I think it might be a little large?

I have to say raph was a liability tonight did some nice things in the second half but on the whole was back to his home & away form of 2008 sloppy skills no awareness & worst of all didnt seem to be switched on. I realise that its only a NAB cup game but guys like Raph carnt afford the luxory of going through the motions until the real season starts , he should be busting his arse to show he has a place in the regular side

[SAINT JUMP]

bad coaching tonight only if they where serious about winning

[Saints43]

10. SOS can't coach

Can anyone explain to me what St Kilda Football Club gain from our senior coach handing over the reins to his assistant coach?

I understand it's good experience for the assistant. It was stated that he has aspirations to perform the senior role (I assume at another club).

But how does our club benefit from it? Is our coach so experienced that he cannot learn anything by performing a job that only happens a maximum of 30 times a year (NAB cup,H&A,Finals)?

[The Fireman]

Hmmm what I have learnt or what I already know.
here goes.
Home grd umpiring advantage still exists.
Blatantly biased Interstate Commentary still exists.
DalSanto continues to disappoint.
Clinton Jones as above.
Goddard...outright champion.
The versatility of a few of our players still amazes me but the coach needs to find a spot for them.

What I have learnt.
Heynes......hmmmm like the kid.

[InkerSaint]

Yeah it's just the NAB Cup, doesn't mean anything... yeah right!

LOL! Listen to you sad sacks!!!

The Saints have really done no worse than the Doggies against Essendon.

Sure, you like to win every game you play. And it's a bummer seeing the team go missing for an entire quarter - a nasty reminder of recent history.

Doesn't. Mean. Anything.

Funny how we all have different takes on the game. My takeaways:

- Leigh Fisher still doesn't look like best-22. Thought Gwilt and Raph did.
- Didn't see much in Zac Dawson. Looked destined to play a lot of VFL.
- Can see lots of potential in McEvoy, Heyne, Steven.
- Farren Ray looks like a great pickup. Begley I'm not so sure, but his disposal wasn't as bad as I had feared.
- Don't know what to think of Gardiner. Looked shocking at times. End of the road?
- Geary appeared hesitant. Not sure he's ready just yet.
- Brendon. Goddard. Superstar.

[TheDomeHero]

the new guy in the channel ten commentary team goes alright - rob waters?

[WayneJudson42]

We won't win a flag id we play like that every week IMO

[duckduckduckgoose]

luke ball got some good distance on his kicks last night.

That's kept me a happy camper.


Im glad we lost, we will get much more out of a loss than a win at this stage of the year.

[markp]

We learnt that some of the kids look the goods... Jack Steven I like.

[marksnsparks]

I'm not panicing yet, but I sat watching the first half in disbelief and was thinking that although it's just a practice match, doesn't this mean our depth is crap?

In other words, Brisbane's fringe players are better than ours?

Some of our guys were so out of their depth you couldn't see the tops of thier heads (e.g. Miles, Dawson)

[Devilhead]

I learnt that a few of our younger inexperienced guys played a big part in getting us back into the match - which is a very pleasing sign

[BAM! (shhhh)]

Thought the Saints controlled it for the better part of 3 quarters... but from the last 5 minutes of the first until half time were dominated to an extent they couldn't make up (though they came much closer than I would have thought when the score was 57-11).

Heyne and Steven look like they should (and probably will) be blooded over '09, but neither is going to be an answer just yet. McEvoy can take a grab, but we already knew that. Gardiner's good at getting it, bad at using it, but we already knew that.

Goddard can swing through the forwardline and still be effective as in the backline. Still don't know about him as a mid (love it in theory, but the guy dominates in the backline, and was excellent up front).

[rodgerfox]

Surely we learnt that we're going to persevere with Ross Lyon's inept style of play once again in 2009.

It doesn't work. Never has and never will.

[plugger66]

Surely we learnt that we're going to persevere with Ross Lyon's inept style of play once again in 2009.

It doesn't work. Never has and never will.

How do you know? You didnt watch the game.

[bigcarl]

Thought the Saints controlled it for the better part of 3 quarters... but from the last 5 minutes of the first until half time were dominated to an extent they couldn't make up (though they came much closer than I would have thought when the score was 57-11

well midfield dominance is one thing, but unless you can put it on the scoreboard it counts for nothing.

[rodgerfox]

Surely we learnt that we're going to persevere with Ross Lyon's inept style of play once again in 2009.

It doesn't work. Never has and never will.

How do you know? You didnt watch the game.

I saw most of the first half.

[plugger66]

Surely we learnt that we're going to persevere with Ross Lyon's inept style of play once again in 2009.

It doesn't work. Never has and never will.

How do you know? You didnt watch the game.

I saw most of the first half.

So you lied on the other thread when you said you didnt watch it.

[rodgerfox]

Surely we learnt that we're going to persevere with Ross Lyon's inept style of play once again in 2009.

It doesn't work. Never has and never will.

How do you know? You didnt watch the game.

I saw most of the first half.

So you lied on the other thread when you said you didnt watch it.

If I'd said I didn't watch it, then yes, I'd have lied.

But I didn't say I didn't watch it.