Problem with playing Tigers is their pressure doesnt let us ‘play the way we want to play’.
That dangerous kick from half back 45 degrees under pressure back into the middle.
Or trying to break the lines through the middle with a chain of handballs,was so often undone last time by Richmonds pressure.
Two Tigers supporters at work were saying yesterday that they’re going and hope we can put up a fight for a while so it doesn’t blow out to early.
Basically saying they don’t want to be bored by smashing us as they think we’re weak as ■■■■.
Stuff their arrogance. Yeah you’ve won a flag. One in 35 years!! They’re so far ahead of themselves that I’d almost take any other team stopping them from winning back to back.
I want us to win this so we put genuine fear into them. Even if we win we’re highly unlikely to make finals.
I want us to be the team that helps to stop them going back to back.
I had that gif of parish mouthing off and the Melbourne player running 50 metres to bump on repeat for 20 days.
I hear ya! I have two Tiger supporter friends - one who almost sounds the person you quote (so fk him), but another friend who sincerely admires what Essendon have done given the dark depths of 2013-2016 and we very much could’ve been a Carlton MkII at the moment. He gives the Bombers some chance on Friday, on the back of his side coming back from a scrappy care-less “practice match” vs the Gold Coast, and that Dimma may do a Sheeds a la R21 2000 and not care too much if they do lose.
My Tigers friend also does admit Richmond has had a great run with injury over the past two years (look at how many games their Top 8 have missed - Martin 1, Riewoldt 2, Rance 0, Cotchin 1, Edwards 5, Ellis, 4, Caddy 5, Grimes 1) and despite winning the flag were given a handy FIXture this year.
They ARENT at the same level as Essendon of 99-01, or Brisbane of 01-04, or Geelong of 08-09 or Hawthorn of 13-15. They lost 7 games in their premiership year and 4 so far this year, with an amazing run of stability to their core senior group.
Attrition is a huge part of the AFL these days, and look at the injuries that GWS, Collingwood (now Port) and even the Eagles (Natanui, Kennedy, Darling etc.) have had - they all sit just below them on the ladder. Richmond ARE NOT ‘head n shoulders’ above the rest of the comp. They are the best, yes, but not by as far as the media and most fans say they are.
Well, Richmond are by far the best we’ve played this year. They destroyed us.
I’d back us in against all other sides, but have seen nothing to indicate we can handle what Richmond are putting up.
They are the best side we’ve played and that was their best performance of the year. Pretty big gulf between them and us at this stage if they’re at their best.
Want McNiece absolutely slicing through them till the early morn. Just laser after laser.
Yes, we don’t want to bring a knife to a gun fight. We want 22 mini-guns!
Not to labour the point, but we can beat them.
If we want to.
But we won’t win pretty, and we won’t win by playing the way we want to play.
Forget the rest of the season, last year we showed we weren’t up to playing finals.
We won’t get the opportunity to play finals this year, so this is it.
At the MCG, against the league leader.
We either play finals football on Friday night, we commit to go further than them, harder, for longer…or the match will play out exactly how people expect it to.
So we have to change our winning approach to win?
Can I ask whether you have seen us play the football that you think would beat the tigers?
Yes, I have.
And that approach has already won us games this season.
The smart Blitzers said it weeks ago.
This was absolutely the best week to get the Tiges.
They had enough time (games) to put a gap between themselves and 3rd spot, and in reality top spot is safe also.
Furthermore, they may go a little harder in the last round, with a minimum of 12 days break between their last game and their 1st Final.
They will prioritize a decent hitout in Rd.23 as more important.
No one is saying we are as good as Richmond or even close, but the timing gives us a chance, as evidenced by them putting some guys in for minor surgery, and evidently resting a couple of mids with hamstring awareness.
IF we can get in the game, and not let them build any meaningful lead on us throughout the evening, will they be prepared to go as hard in the last qtr as we clearly will, with our season on the line ?
How prepared will they be to pay the price to nab another meaningless win (in the scheme of their season) ?
Question is…can we hang tough and keep the scores close for long enough ?
The game against the Pies is what I expect in terms of how hotly contested it was. In the end they broke away due to our injuries affecting mid rotations.
The Tigers vs Pies game somewhat similar although no injuries, in the end Tigers pulled away just because they were the better side.
If they missing 3 of their best mids including their captain it’s going to help bridge the gap. On top of them being mentally switched off a little since top 2 is locked away now.
We can win this. Just have to execute & not go into our shells like last time. Take the game on.
Ok cool.
Hopefully we do that then.
I simply dont think you can toy with momentum/ form in footy anymore, especially near finals. Richmond will be trying their hardest to build some good form again and use that to propel them through the finals series
Quite possibly. But they’ve had a lot of key players with very heavy workloads over the last 2 years so need to balance that with sensible management. No use getting to finals in P1 and blowing up a number of your best/most important blokes along the way.
I agree, but we’re only talking about very fine percentages here.
Will they be as switched on as they will be, say, first week of the Finals ?
The answer most probably is no.
Of course, it doesn’t matter if we don’t play well !
you could say that for any round, and the answer would be much the same really… I doubt a team would be as hyperfocused on round 11, for example, than they would be on round 1 of finals.
games are won and lost on fine percentages, if you are 5% off a team like Richmond will destroy you, and I think that applies to Essendon too in recent rounds, if you are slightly off your game and give us an opportunity we will kick our 5-6 quick goals and give ourselves every chance to win.
I get what youre saying, but just cant see Richmond putting in anything other than their absolute best from hereon out
Blitzers need to get prepared for the fact we are going to get beaten and probably by a fair margin.
We are well down on players (Fantasia is a massive loss) Goddard and Hooker will be lame, Saad if he plays will be down and Langford and a Hepp are carying injuries. We really need Guelfi to be back in for the run and pressure.
I’m as hopeful as anybody, but the reining premiers on a 19 win streak at the G preparing for finals against an in form but limping to the end 11th placed side does not give us a high chance of winning.