Carlton vs Freo in Freo Practice Match

[kruddler]

Geez we are really scrapping the bottom of the barrel when 'trying' sounds as though its good enough.  Its not for me 

I don't care at all if we tried all I care about is we failed again to deliver. We are likely to stay a bottom team again this year so trying doesn't cut it for me. 

Hope you are that forgiving when Casboult sprays his first shot from 25 metres out. I can assure you he tries too. 

I never said it was good enough.

We tried at the trade table. We didn't get what we wanted.
So, we got a Cripps clone in the draft.

You make out like we don't have a ruckman on our entire list, and all we did was recruit 170cm types.

We improved that area.....just not as much as we'd hoped.

[Lods]

It's a bizarre old world when
-after a promising back-end to last season
- a good hitout where we more than matched Collingwood
-a game far from home with some of our major movers and our key position forwards all on  the sideline
... we're now hopeless and looking to finish in a worse position than last year.

Too much stock is being put on one game.
These games provide an opportunity for fringe players to play themselves into the side.
It also provides an opportunity for some to play themselves out...and that's probably what happened for a few on the weekend

[Macca37]

I don't believe too much stock is being put on one game.  It's been said that we played well against Collingwood, as though that's a balance for the weekend's effort.  Freo's fringe players really showed by their accurate kicking to position just how many fringe players we have who are going up and down on one spot.

Really, they appear to model their kicking skill set on Ed Curnow - if you get the ball often enough odds are you will get lucky and find a team mate.

For years  I've watched Carlton throw away any chance of kicking a winning score, or even getting close to top sides, because players going forward  butcher the ball with monotonous regularity, turn it over, and game over.

I don't know whether it is the players we recruit or coaching staff, but after so many years of mediocrity when can we expect to have players with the necessary foot skills to make a serious attempt at making the top eight?

[Tragic]

let's not write off the season before a game is played...

[DJC]

let's not write off the season before a game is played...

So can we write it off after Round 1? 

I’m not too concerned about the players or their skills.  Our list is better than it was last season, injuries heal and skills execution can be up and down.  What concerned me most about the Freo game was the apparent lack of positive action from the coaching box.  Of course, that could be down to fitness and conditioning restrictions limiting Teague’s capacity to address Freo’s tactics and favourable matchups. 

I reckon the club will be desperate for a better showing next game so that the membership momentum continues.  If so, we may see more proactive coaching and fewer players having their game time limited. 

[Lods]

So can we write it off after Round 1? 

I’m not too concerned about the players or their skills.  Our list is better than it was last season, injuries heal and skills execution can be up and down.  What concerned me most about the Freo game was the apparent lack of positive action from the coaching box.  Of course, that could be down to fitness and conditioning restrictions limiting Teague’s capacity to address Freo’s tactics and favourable matchups. 

I reckon the club will be desperate for a better showing next game so that the membership momentum continues.  If so, we may see more proactive coaching and fewer players having their game time limited. 

I guess the unknown here is how Teague is using these games.
It may be that he persists with a match-up or tactic in practice game for a bit longer than he would in a regular season game simply because he wants to see if it turns around or how the individual player responds.
The practice games have no real consequences for doing so.

[capcom]

But isn't a practice game the ideal time to use and test tactics?  I sure would have thought so

[Lods]

But isn't a practice game the ideal time to use and test tactics?  I sure would have thought so

It's a time for a whole lot of different things.
You try some new roles, tactics and matchups without giving too much away.
The side against Richmond (Rnd 1)will be different to the side that played Freo
I suspect the last practice game before Round 1 will be closest to our starting line up but even then we'll probably try a few different things in terms of game time and tactics.

[capcom]

Stuff giving too much away .... it's a long season.  ;D

[Lods]

Yep, that's why you don't waste a lot of energy (or worry ) on these games.