Hornet wrote:
Sidefx wrote:
Anyone outside of the club who reads this thread would think we are all delusional, because some people carry on here like we are a top 4 chance.
Nah sid, supporters would just like to get out of the bottom 4 for a change.
imo, that's how the club has sold this season to the fans and why we have record memberships. We swapped our first round pick because the club itself believes we should be sitting further up the ladder come seasons end. To end up near the bottom with a handful of wins and no early pick to satisfy our sorrows would be devastating for this club.
I'm not ready to stick the boots into Bolts yet as I like to give a coach 3 years to show us some light at the end of the tunnel, as I've done with every coach we've had... but these are exceptional circumstances and we need to cut Bolts and co a bit more slack. I believe we're on the right track but we can still make observations about what we like or dislike about our direction.
What we shouldn't accept anymore is the 'players tried hard, got their ribbons, went out for happy meals' type of mentality. Thankfully I'm not hearing that from the club but some of the post game reviews on here are a bit like that. No more excuses...
Out of the bottom four would be a great result for us this year. However, I will play the devils advocate here, who are the 4 teams we're going to be above?
There is nothing wrong with constructive criticism either, but there seems to be a lot more ill directed slagging of the coaching decisions and game plan with some peoples expectations far exceeding our abilities. I am sure Buckley had bucket loads of this criticism and it has taken him about 6 years to make Collingwood a top 4 team and he started with some pretty good talent. Yet some seem to expect Bolts to be a messiah in a few years starting with a really talentless team that has had to have a full rebuild, you can see my issue here.
I 100% agree on over decorating modest playing also. It just needs to be kept factual and in context to each players development time frame, role and experience. i.e. Murphy a now 250 game veteran, number 1 draft pick and former captain of the club. Needs to stand up more when needed and lead the way for these young kids, setting the example that we want to be defined as. Rather than focusing only on less experienced and less talented players for a few clangers that should be expected.
Personally, my no more excuses year is next year. This year players need to be made accountable and dropped to the twos or moved on for poor form as the team builds its cohesion and the talent develops. Let's hope we win a few on the way, definitely more than two.