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IMPORTANT // Please look after your loved ones, yourself and be kind to others. If you are feeling that the world is too hard to handle there is always help - I implore you not to hesitate in contacting one of these wonderful organisations Lifeline and Beyond Blue ... and I'm sure reaching out to our PRE community we will find a way to help. T.
RICHMOND TEAM 2008 - a finals contender indeed :)
- Thread starter RainsyBaby
- Start date
AstroboyUK said:
We played for pretty much the entire year with an underdone rookie ruckman and apart from foley and maybe johnson/tuck we didnt really have anything going from the ball ups.
Considering how badly smashed we were at center clearences, i think the likes of bowden, king and thursfield (mguane at the end as well) stood up exceptionally. King was a massive find imo and thursfield is going to be the next big thing imo.
The forward line will also get better, a fit lids, richo, polak, brown and whoever else has already shown its got promise.
We lost at least 6 very close games this year, so i think next year we should be pretty competitive. Maybe not finals material, though i think position 8 isnt out of the question.
Overall, i know you want people to be realistic and i believe i am doing so. The hard yards are in progress, that is for certain.
where does one start pointing out the deficiencies of our so called best 22 i would be here all night if i started and to be honest im past trying to persuade people.
firt and foremost though improvement should not be gauged by win loss ratios for the next couple of seasons. we won less games than last yr but imo the list has advanced. the plain simple fact though is we have in a lot of instances improved a lot of players from being described as terrible to ordinary. we have a lot of ordinary players on our list. when we turn these ordinary players into servicable afl players we can then start to talk about finals. the club is 3 drafts away from finals if we get things right. roughly half of the list still has to be turned over this includes a fair few youngsters and favorites as well as perennial duds.
personally i would be getting rid of the older duds first. it may set us back as far as ladder finish is concerned in the short term. but hey just look where we finished with them this yr. plus we will have to get rid of the oplder duds sooner or later imo sooner is better at least it will prevent premature 9th place finishes and allow us to build with the best kids in the land. even with all of our 25yo+ players up and going we will finish bottom 4.
firt and foremost though improvement should not be gauged by win loss ratios for the next couple of seasons. we won less games than last yr but imo the list has advanced. the plain simple fact though is we have in a lot of instances improved a lot of players from being described as terrible to ordinary. we have a lot of ordinary players on our list. when we turn these ordinary players into servicable afl players we can then start to talk about finals. the club is 3 drafts away from finals if we get things right. roughly half of the list still has to be turned over this includes a fair few youngsters and favorites as well as perennial duds.
personally i would be getting rid of the older duds first. it may set us back as far as ladder finish is concerned in the short term. but hey just look where we finished with them this yr. plus we will have to get rid of the oplder duds sooner or later imo sooner is better at least it will prevent premature 9th place finishes and allow us to build with the best kids in the land. even with all of our 25yo+ players up and going we will finish bottom 4.
We have a problem, or Terry does anyway. How do we keep our coach if we dont inprove?
People will be calling for his head, like when we got thrashed by geelong after the Gas incident, and we kept losing.
If we had finished bottom last year, and again this year ,we would probably be further advanced inreality. But would Terry have a job? Or would Sheedy be coaching us next year? If we are going to make hard decisions for the long term it has to hurt in the short term. Remember, "NO PAIN NO GAIN" .
To say our side are wooden spooners is true. But theres nothing wrong with that
plenty of wooden pooners have played in and won Gandfinals. Of course they will improve their mainly kids!
People will be calling for his head, like when we got thrashed by geelong after the Gas incident, and we kept losing.
If we had finished bottom last year, and again this year ,we would probably be further advanced inreality. But would Terry have a job? Or would Sheedy be coaching us next year? If we are going to make hard decisions for the long term it has to hurt in the short term. Remember, "NO PAIN NO GAIN" .
To say our side are wooden spooners is true. But theres nothing wrong with that
plenty of wooden pooners have played in and won Gandfinals. Of course they will improve their mainly kids!
the claw said:
So like Terry said, we may feel like we are going backwards but we are actually moving forward.
I agree with you Claw (which may worry you more than me :hihi), but if you take away the win/loss record and stack 2007 individual games up against individual games in 2006, and yeah, I can feel better about 2007. Considering the experience given to the young and newer players, this should even help in 2008 - but unlike Rainsy Baby (who's enthusiasm I admire) I would dare predict anything else about 2008 until Trade and DN and PSD details are finalised.
I said earlier this season that while we may improve a little, the big danger is how much other teams improve - and bang on queue Geelong, Hawthorn, Kangaroos, Port Adelaide and even Brisbane condemned Richmond to ladder slide. Even Essendon and Carlton climbed above the Tiges. The player experience lost in 2005 and 2006, compared to whom we gained, always made this 2007 outcome likely.
The Trade period could easily make us a wild card in 2008, but the last two trade periods indicate this is unlikely. With the threat of 1st pick in the PSD, we have a chance to force one decent trade.
ND would deliver another instant quality player (ala Lids or even a Selwood), but as good as Bryce Gibbs may become, his first season was only OK and not what you base a ladder rise on. This is still a game of chance.
PSD has even been considered a waste of time, with little more than a handful players being selected. Perhaps another average player will reward or No 1 pick.
Sorry Rainsy, at best I see improvement, and short of minor miracle in the Trade or PSD, any talk of finals is fanciful. Accept the natural course of events - good, Better, BEST, - we still have to get to good yet.
Anyone here pick Hawthorn to be top 4 most of this season, going as high as second? I didn't.
Anyone see our mid-year form in 06 and think the Hawks would go 4-2 against top 4 teams in 07?
Who looked at our backline at the start of the season and thought they'd take us to the finals? Seriously? With only two talls in the journeyman Croad and unproven Gilham?
Campbell Brown to hold down a defensive KP? Who picked that?
Who predicted we'd make the finals without Mark Williams up and firing? That Tim Boyle would come from nowhere to be a valuable contributor?
Amongst those who saw us butcher the ball most of the last two years, who thought we'd be one of the better kicking sides by foot this year?
If the voices of Hawk fans counted for anything, McGlynn, Young, Boyle, Taylor would have been delisted last year. Sewell would have been traded for Ferguson (MEL) the year before. Many of us didn't see the improvement coming in these guys.
I watched the Tigers with some interest toward the end of the year and saw some good signs, much like us at the end of last year. I think you're a shot to be an improver next year if you can keep some key people on the park (Simmonds, Polak, Richo, Foley etc). We have a lot of deficiencies, a whole bunch of kids and a few quality mid-age guys. As near as I can tell, so do you. Some fundamental list problems may hold you back a touch, but if your people can instill the belief I think you're a shot at sniffing around the eight while still developing the kids. I can see potential there. Can't understand why so many here don't want to.
Anyone see our mid-year form in 06 and think the Hawks would go 4-2 against top 4 teams in 07?
Who looked at our backline at the start of the season and thought they'd take us to the finals? Seriously? With only two talls in the journeyman Croad and unproven Gilham?
Campbell Brown to hold down a defensive KP? Who picked that?
Who predicted we'd make the finals without Mark Williams up and firing? That Tim Boyle would come from nowhere to be a valuable contributor?
Amongst those who saw us butcher the ball most of the last two years, who thought we'd be one of the better kicking sides by foot this year?
If the voices of Hawk fans counted for anything, McGlynn, Young, Boyle, Taylor would have been delisted last year. Sewell would have been traded for Ferguson (MEL) the year before. Many of us didn't see the improvement coming in these guys.
I watched the Tigers with some interest toward the end of the year and saw some good signs, much like us at the end of last year. I think you're a shot to be an improver next year if you can keep some key people on the park (Simmonds, Polak, Richo, Foley etc). We have a lot of deficiencies, a whole bunch of kids and a few quality mid-age guys. As near as I can tell, so do you. Some fundamental list problems may hold you back a touch, but if your people can instill the belief I think you're a shot at sniffing around the eight while still developing the kids. I can see potential there. Can't understand why so many here don't want to.
It's habitual Mo!
As good as the Hawks have been in 2007 - it's out first game of the finals - sorry - not saying it to be smart - but should give them a taste at the very least and set up a real taste of further success in 2008 perhaps. Good Luck!
As good as the Hawks have been in 2007 - it's out first game of the finals - sorry - not saying it to be smart - but should give them a taste at the very least and set up a real taste of further success in 2008 perhaps. Good Luck!
This discussion will no doubt resume with a passion around Feb next year: I for one will not make the same overbaked claims I did at the start of this season. We have to learn how to walk before we can run... right now we are crawling (grovelling more like). But I do believe we have a basis: I hope we stay the course and dont start calling for Wallace's head if we remain in the cellar next year. Im not expecting anything better than 10-12th: (but always dreaming of glory)
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Reiwoldt today - FREO, has to be groomed for next 3rd tall
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