I said during the week that we haven’t lost to a bottom four team for two years. We still haven’t.

And that is all that can be deduced from tonight after a first half reminiscent of the dark ages.

PROS

1. Kade Simpson – BOG. The esteemed livolover sms’d me in the torrid first half saying “he’s the only honest bloke at the club”, which is what it felt like at the time. A real leader.

2. Chris Yarran – has the magic

3. Lachie Henderson – Quality. Played much better than JK as well.

4. Grigg showing what he can do

5. Bower had a good game on JK, and I guess Ellard was good on Priddis despite Ellard’s butchery with the ball.

CONS

1. The club was in crisis at half time – devoid of confidence, structure and heart. Some of the players put in disgraceful efforts that were shameful.

2. The only reason we got back any confidence was because we were playing the bottom team in the league. I hope nobody forgets that in their analysis. They were rubbish and our midfield lifted to walk over them.

3. The entries into forward 50 are still a major issue.

4. The disposal of Ellard, Walker, Jamison and a few others was deplorable early. A confidence issue more than anything hopefully.

5. Murphy’s squibbed contest in the second quarter was unacceptable. You would not see any player in a top 4 team do that.

Nobody should let this win paper over the cracks. We’ve bullied around bottom teams on a consistent basis in the last two years, and this win means very little to me.

The true test is when we face equal opposition, a test at which we have failed too often. Hopefully next time it is different.

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They will know that they've been playing against the famous old dark blues

Pros:

- Henderson, Yarran, Simmo, Grigg
- Scotland
- team effort second half.
- intensity second half.

Cons:

- rubbish first half.
- Hampson. I just don't see what some do.
- Waite stupidity putting himself into a position to get reported,

Cons: First half
Pros: Second half

SV...
Never entered the Pro / Con debate before but........

Henderson vs Fev.

We done alright!!

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Stay tuned We're in for a BUMPY ride

you can excuse Ellard , it was virtually his first game, and he did a great job on Pridis, its when they do it week after week, after week... after week

PROS- Simmo- IS def. the most honest player in the side, week after week
Hammer- contests, just needs to start marking them, only way for that to happen is to play him, and play him, and play him


Grigg- worked hard , esp when noone else but Simmo was, same Hendo
Johnson- did ok


CONS- same old, first half, tackling, sheppards, blocks, etc etc- LACK of it.
I think the team is confused about WHO are their forwards, and WHERE they will be coming into the attacking 50 . Being unpredictable is one thing , confusion is another

pro
sometimes you just need to win and we did

con
1st half thinking @#$%&! now the shit will really hit the fan!

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This type of slight is alien in the more cultured part of the world - Walsh. Its up there with mad dogs, Englishmen and the midday sun!

Pros

Simmo, Judd, Yarran, Scotland
Garlett 2nd half
Hendo signs
Warnock > jacobs
Joseph broke lines all night - did he have a hard tag?


Con

Armfield Injury

Chris Johnson - 1st 6 possesions were turnovers

Ist half

_________________
Ecclesiastes 1:4, "One generation passes away, and another generation comes: but The Blues abide forever."

Pros
Simpson, great game and must be leading the B and F
Grigg
Second half
Yarran, Betts and Garlett
We won
Murphys second half

Cons
Murphys first half and not attacking the ball in a contest in the second qrt
Our first half
Woeful disposal at times
Armfields injury, hope he is okay
Waites report

Pros
Chris Yarran - all class
Simmo - a real leader.
Bower starting to get some form
Jeff Garlett - just love his magic
The second half
An ugly win is still a win.
Hammer's mark!

Cons
Disposal by foot - still dreadful
Murph - can be and should be better
Gibbs - went missing in the first half
Must have mixed the magic pills at the beginning of the game, downers instead of uppers! I think the same guy has had that role for the past 6 weeks. Sakc him!
And I almost forgot - Waite's brain fade.

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"our electorate seeks less to be informed and more to be validated." Sad times.

Fool's Gold...that is all...and don't let anyone convince you otherwise !!!!!

Pros

1. Kudos to K Simpson...stood up when it seemed all was lost ! Almost turned the tide on his own !!! Honesty with a capital H !!!!!

2. Yarran and Henderson, together with Waite and Betts, should provide the pieces of a functioning and prolific forward line...(if only we had someone capable of masterminding the strategy...it feels like we have a 12 year old playing around with the chess pieces at the moment...BRING ME KASPAROV !!!!)

3. Grigg can find the footy and win his ball...always believed that...for some reason he has been singled out for being a poor disposer of the footy...he ain't Robinson Crusoe there !!!!!

4. Will someone keep massaging Bowser's quad ??? He is good !

Con's

1. An ordinary, listless first half...with a few really gutless individual efforts (I won't name names !)

2. Still don't seem to have any consistent manner of play or organised structure of moving the ball from defence

3. I really hope that this "rally" does not convince anyone that our problems have been solved. They are still there and need attention....PLEASE !! As I said, fool's gold!

4. Warnock....ummmm...not really...we gave up a bit...and don't seem to have much !

Pro:

Ellard - Added EXACTLY what we needed into the team. Heart, Hardness and Accountability.
Johnson - Good fill-in while Lucas is unavailable.
The Rucks - Both were excellent, Hammer should have had 2 and Warnock played his best game for the Blues. I wouldn't write him off just yet..
Juddy - The obvious, made a fool of every half-wit that booed him
SIMMO - BOG, I have no idea how he became the amazing player he has, a lot of his contemporaries are weak and soft but he managed to become so good.
PRESSURE - <-- This is the reason we have been losing, and this is the reason we looked so good in the 3rd.
Ending the Le Cras love fest in the second half..!
Getting to see the stupid calls in the match day thread.

Cons:
The First Half
Waite reported AGAIN
Gibbs and Murphy anger me to no end w/ their softness and bad decisions. Particularly Gibbs, as he was my favourite player in 08

_________________
#23: Lachlan Henderson

The stats from Champion Data say he only had 3 clangers out of 20 possessions.

_________________
"You are being watched. The government has a secret system. A machine that spies on you every hour of every day. I know because I built it." - Finch

Pros:- Conversion in the second half.
Grigg
Johnson
Rucks
Gibbs Murphy Judd Simpson in the second half. Cream rises to the top
Bulldog becoming the Akermanis of the Property Steward game.
Having Bulldog back in the thick of it. The club should have paid the $20000 instead took the 4 wks for spitting gum. Look how the team reacted.


Cons:- Poor conversion in the first half. We were a shaky bunch and wasted tones of chances to apply scoreboard pressure and getting us further into a pickle.
We will struggle against an in form collingwood.

PROS

Agree thought Johnson at least could hit targets and felt better when ball was in his hands

Grigg one of his best games for Carlton

Garlett must be close NRS - yarran -hendo
waite except for report
206 and Hammer beat cox and nat

bower beat kennedy

judd simpson scotland

second half

More composure from defence in the second half

CON

injury to Armfield

first half skills

15 goals 19 -failed to put scoreboard pressure on early

Pros: Second half
Simmo never gives up
Judd thank f**k

Cons: First half
disposal: when will consistently hit targets?
don't believe the hype; next week will show exactly where we're at

Surely would have had a nomination against the Saints but he is ineligible after playing too many games last year

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#23: Lachlan Henderson

Garlett is eligible, it just seems that the NRS selection panel dont know this.
He played 9 games last year.

'must not have played more than 10 games to the start of that season and must not have been suspended by the AFL or State League tribunals during the season. '

Played 10 so i guess I am wrong

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#23: Lachlan Henderson

Pros:

Got a win, and finally seemed to regain a little confidence. Although next week will be really tough.
Hard running effort.
Simmo and Judd.
Waite and Bower.
Grigg.
Garlett (almost my favourite player now).
Hampson continues to show a bit.
Gibbs field kicking seemed to be back (after a poor month).

Cons:

It seemed like the umpires were adjudicating purely on how much noise the crowd made. Must have had about 5 centre square clearances from cheap frees. It'd be nice to get some real scoreboard advantage from the umpires early in the game for once.
Poor, wasteful first half again.
Murph's field kicking still seems to be off (along with his goalkicking - could have easily kicked 5).
Betts' goal kicking. Another one of those games where he could have kicked a bag.

PRO
- We beat the bottom team, we are not going to win the wooden spoon
- North Melbourne lost

CON
- 1st half we played like s$#t. We are playing like the 15th placed team.
- Are we tanking?
- Collingwood will rip us 7 new a-holes on current form :/