BV, don't tell me you don't see the disappearing acts, the fumbles, the falling to the ground in a contest, the weak tackles, the lack of support gut running, amongst other 1%ers - from our higher rated players.

Eliminating these from our game makes us a 5+ goal better side - a top 4 side !

It requires a step up in mental application and concentration.

Are our top dozen or so players capable of stepping up or have they peaked ?

Rexy you're right but that's the reason Malthouse was brought in to fix in my opinion.
This has failed as a concept to date.
We have the talent but unfortunately lack the resolve.
What malthouse needs to do is lay down the law to the senior members of the team then the rest will follow.
He was in a good position to do this after the NAB cup but failed and again after the Richmond game.
If this keeps going we will be in a worst position than last year.
Of all my hesitations on MM appointment I thought he would at least take charge of this particular trait of ours but so far has failed to make any progress in this department and along with this insipid game plan make me somewhat annoyed at his lack of impact thus far.

Couldn't agree more ... At last some real sense on the issue.

The MC has made major mistakes over the last 3 weeks. The MM game plan with this group is not working ... Either its a crap game plan or the players are not listening. I thought we made a big mistake getting MM ... I hoped and am still hoping I was wrong ... but from what I see out on the field, the signs are not encouraging.

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I am as mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any more!!!

You cant totally eliminate that stuff. Every team has broken tackles, players that fumble, players going in and out of the game.
Where were the Geelong players when we went on a 5 goal run?
Have a look at the Collingwood V Hawks game on the weekend. There were plenty of Collingwood players walking out of the centre when the ball went into their back line.
I didnt see the Geelong mids chasing too hard on Saturday when we were winning our share of the clearances.

You're looking for a perfection that cannot be obtained.
Be more realistic in your expectations. There is no player who makes all his tackles, doesnt fumble and doesnt drift out of games at stages.

If you did some research you'd see our 1%ers have been up with the best over the past few years.

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Looking forward to seeing our potential realised.

a more accurate reflection of reality is likely to be that we have the resolve but lack the talent.

Don't be pedantic BV, of course I don't expect TOTAL elimination of 'that stuff'.

Our players aren't disciplined enough and that has affected our results for years and kept us middle-of-the-pack.

..agree, i can see a half year of this.. ..i think there's a general idea of how we wanna play and a belief that in the list we have the means to do so.. ..it's just cycling through all variables.. ..when the inconsistencies of players and player position/role's begins to get genuinely settled, we'll take a leap forward in improvement..

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..if you can't be good, be good at it..

Well said

Its plainly logical and reasonable for change to require lead-up time, not unusual to experience temporary reduced efficiency, expecting otherwise is just simplistically naive

I'm not being pedantic.
I'm trying to understand your view.
You state our 1%ers are poor. The actual data tells me otherwise.

So if you've got some actual information to back up your view or to dispel the relevant stats, I'd love to see it.

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Looking forward to seeing our potential realised.

I find it a bit sad how a lot of our supporters (I've been guilty of it too) continue to ride the 1999 preliminary final wave. It was a prelim, nearly 14 years ago. Granted it was super sweet at the time and then some, but to continue to milk it is St.Kilda-esque. The closest thing we've had to a flag since 1995...we don't see a side like Geelong continually flaunt their close 2007 prelim win....flags take care of everything.

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Premierships: 1869, 1871, 1873, 1874, 1875, 1877, 1887, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1914, 1915, 1938, 1945, 1947, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1987, 1995.

"GIBBS."

If you need a reality check look at how our players mark a leading player or how they peel off for a receive when the ball is still in contention instead of shepherding and supporting.
How many players stand on the mark when an opposition player runs past him when he could help his team mate and go with him and let his team mate take the mark when he’s caught behind?
Its little things like that that makes an average team into a formidable team.
The only thing that has kept us going in recent times is Judd and the talent of our squad when they are up and running.
How many games have we won against a top four team when the pressure is on and we need someone apart from Judd to stand up and make a statement?
We have won before and we can do it again but will or can we do it consistently?
That’s what we need to achieve in our mentally frail list.
That's what's called resolve against talent.

The biggest problem with our list IMHO is we have drafted too many small bodied players, even Brisbane to were too strong over the ball during the NAB GF.

Too many times there were 50/50 contests in which our players hesitated against Geelong and lost the contest giving up possesion far to easily.....And our captain is one of the biggest offenders!

We need a hell of an off season cleaning out players, trading and recruiting to get us anywhere near where we should be due to poor recruiting. Bigger stronger and hungrier players please!!!

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Circumstance has no value. It is how one relates to a situation that has value. All true meaning resides in the personal relationship to a phenomenon, what it means to you.

I'm a bit late to this thread...........

Mick does indeed have a lot of work ahead of him. But, he's earning a Million freaking dollars a year to do it so i have very little sympathy for him.

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"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit"
- Aristotle

Ratten coached Carlton about 120 times. MM just 3.....yeah I can really see MM losing sleep about his "dream" of equalling Ratten's lofty heights as a coach.

And...Brett Ratten can only dream of beating shit/average sides when it mattered. Just as an entree, I'll serve up 2012 (StK...Milera/Milne/Saad), PA, GC, Bulldogs, NM, Ess...when we were supposed to be 'red hot')

And unlike BR who turns gold into shit, MM didn't need to dream of turning Steinfort, Lonie, Freeborn, Betheras, McKee and Molloy into Grand Final players. He actually did it

Not happy with our process but IMHO, I'll take 2013 with MM to BR any flowering day of the week

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

You can blame our Board for the million dollars per year that Mick is earning. So no one is asking you to feel any sympathy for him.

As Elizabeth Taylor once said when being asked about being the first actress to earn one million dollar per picture,

"If someone is stupid enough to offer me a million dollars I am certainly not going to be stupid enough to refuse it."

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"Hence you will not say that Greeks fight like heroes but that heroes fight like Greeks"?

Winston Churchill

RB, I hear what your saying and share similar frustrations. Our difference is simply whether its an attitudional issue or a methodology issue. What your referring to as fragility/lack of resolve, I consider to be poor technique, deliberately ingrained to the point of being instinctive. Very few footballers go out not intending to be fully resolute in their efforts, difference is that some teams differ on where the main area/s of focus in effort should be.. The examples you mention have been an intrinsic part of this teams method of play since well before this season. I've gone back & watched many of last years games, examples of players running away from team mates in contests rather than assist in sacrficial acts is typical, the team was coached and conditioned to run away from contested scenarios, to create linkups, that's why you still have remnants of the pissy keepings off handballs to no one in a particular let alone a position of advantage. Apposing teams rightly figured that by putting numbers around the contest they could effectively short circuite the blues style of play , hence incosistant performances & shock losses . This year despite 3 narrow losses the teams at least been competitive, never totally out of the game. How to you make that transition and slowly change instinctive habits without exposing habits that suck? Surely you accept that your not gonna be able to do it all at training, what your seeing on game day is deficancy eminating from previous poor coaching. Lets be fairdinkum It's not just simply additudinal issues in question here, the actual structural make up of the team ie personal was purposly complied to compliment previous game style, that's why you have so many so called linking HBF on the list, that's what I mean by a talent deficiency. The mere fact that some of those defficnacies have stood out like dogs balls in 2013 is the reason why you and I are talking about it, and if we're focussing on it then you can bet the coaching and playing group are also., that's where true resolve against talent starts.

Agree, The money argument is irrelevant. Makes no different to expected outcomes.

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#NewBlues beginning 25th August 2015

It does when you have a board stupid enough to pay $1,000,000 for expected outcomes.............

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"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit"
- Aristotle

Why is the amount relevant?

I don't care whether the coach is paid $1 or $10 000 000 my expectations don't change.

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#NewBlues beginning 25th August 2015

It does when everybody from the media, experts and supporters demanding success and pointing fingers and the coach's inadility to bring out the best in a talented and under performing player group.