I'm hanging onto the "it's never as good as it seems nor is it as bad as it looks" quote?

You could go stir crazy otherwise

Good perspective!

Footy induces fickle and bipolar responses from otherwise healthy people.

I think the line you quoted should be posted on the TC banner.......

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It's never as good as it looks and it's never as bad as it seems.

The biggest thing I noticed from this game was that we took Murphy, Gibbs and Kreuzer out and put Cripps with a bunch of first and second year players and were a lot better in the clearances. He is so important to our midfield. The Saints on ballers don't get talked up as much as Melbourne's but they still had Steven, Armitage, Dunstan and Ross out there. Gibbs and Murphy will look a lot better than they did against Melbourne when they line up next to Cripps.

Macreadie looked very promising. Our young KPD have been the highlight of the pre-season series for sure. Marchbank was good again, he's probably the best mark at the club already. Plowman was good again, looks like he's running more than last year.

I liked Pickett again, his speed can break games open for us. Hope he's named for round one. That play where he set up Cuningham's goal was excellent.

Polson could be a good one. Serious breakaway speed and was a willing tackler. Development year for sure and he needs to tidy up his kicking but after a full year of VFL footy and another pre-season he could make a real difference in games as a half forward.

Cuningham was better. Glad he got another game to prove himself, very physical and a lot better defensively.

Palmer and Kerridge were alright. Increased productivity for Palmer which he needed. Both have a role to play while the young mids develop.

Smedts was alright in the back line. Good ball use which stood out in that team. Someone will have to take Tuohy's spot and it looks like he and Thomas will get an opportunity at it while Byrne recovers. Hope he can build on that performance.

Tough day at the office for White but I'm glad he was there to take the heat off the young defenders. That's why Rowe will be so important for us this year.

Boekhorst won't get a game as an outside mid based on that and tough to see him fitting in as a half forward with the additions we've made. Was going hard at the ball but not for any result. Needs a breakout game soon.

Good experience for Korcheck and Williamson but they've got a lot of development ahead of them.

Charlie Curnow looked more comfortable in the midfield, still one of our better forwards though. I reckon he'll gradually improve as a midfielder for the next two years if that's where they keep him and then start ripping games apart in 2019.

McKay's effort is good. Flies for a lot of marks and chases hard. Not quiet physically ready yet but will get a few games this year. Just needs to keep doing what he's doing while getting physically stronger and soon those marks will stick.

Great post Sin - a good summary and hope you are right about you predictions going forward - not sure I agree entirely about white and daisy though

Bolts I reckon put Thomas as a spare in the defence in the last quarter to stop the bleeding(he was contrary to his public thoughts I think worried about the extent of the belting being handed out and how it would impact on the players and supporters- this is a guess by me ) but alas obviously was to no effect and his less than precise ball use caused deeper problems - cant kick and pin point passes which used to be his trait don't seem to hit targets now - might be a confidence thing

yes white with his bullocking and strength does assist the young players BUT his egregious decision making skill errors, overconfidence in his own skills and sometimes over physical approach to the opposition outweigh his assistance on many occasions

ROWE is Rowe and perhaps has to play on the gorillas until Weiters and Marchbank build up but has similar downsides as White

I think -this is another guess -Weiters will start forward against Richmond - for 2 reasons - lack of goalkicking power and we will otherwise be too top heavy in defence if we have rowe marchbank plowman and or white (not what I am hoping for)

Good read, although certainly on the glass-half-full end of the spectrum (not that there's anything wrong with that!)

Added to what you've said above, I'm also hoping SPS might make a difference in the midfield. I'm not expecting more than some green shoots in 2017 - but SPS, C Curnow, Cunningham, Fisher & Polson are the ones we're looking to support/complement Cripps, and eventually replace Gibbs & Murphy, in the medium-longer term. The likes of Kerridge & Palmer are honest battlers who are stop gaps in the midfield.

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It's never as good as it looks and it's never as bad as it seems.

for a 92 point loss - a breathtaking analysis

I agree with a number of your positives. But I've been disappointed with Plowman's form so far. I suspect he's been asked to play a role he may not be entirely suited for (playing on smaller forwards). But I thought Petracca chopped him up last week. And I wasn't particularly impressed this week either.

Closely followed by "the darkest hour is just before the dawn" ???

He was pretty good last year. Far from the worst we've got and still young. Others to go way before him.

Shit MIL,why did you have to bring that up.Yep,it was me who came out with that pearler.

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All my dangerous friends

Hi Mick I think we will forgive you
In my view you have plenty of runs on the board
Keep it going

Yeah, besides, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

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