Do we make excuses or are we on a rigid path to success?

[IanG]

It doesn't matter what the issue with them was,

Course it does, it goes to their motives. If the players involved didn't have problems they may not have traded them.

 

[Bill Haverchuck]

rigid path to mediocrity i think...

This club will never have real success until it fixes the biggest issue at the club for 33 years , poor recruiting/list management..

After 33 years of failure it would be nice if the club realised this..

sorry if that is too negative but i find it incredibly frustrating and hard to understand...

 

[22nd Man]

Just thinking about the Weagles who have come from 9th and 13th the previous seasons to be playing in the GF this year. Almost no fanfare or spin along the way. Just shows you don't necessarily need previous finals experience to do well, though no doubt it would help. We talk about building our list and 3 consecutive elimination finals as though it almost guarantees future success. Really what we're doing is what other clubs are doing too...maybe even better. I always see positives and have high hopes. I think we can win any game we play. I can't see us winning a GF any time soon though. Our best players come from the Wallace era. I hope we excel at drafting and trading this year to complement them before it's too late. Is anyone confident we'll have a far more successful season next year and if so what will give us the edge over the other clubs which are striving to improve too?

scary Rosy... this is exactly how I was thinking today thinking of WC rise. Who says you have to "build" steadily, who says it matters how low you were when you started the rebuild. What rule says 6 years of improvement guarantee a 7th? I suspect that we have been too conservative in aspirations, almost scared of setting the bar higher. The 75-0-3 has been a great goal and gutsy to go public with but there would be 10 other clubs whose end game in a 5 year plan is a flag, not finals.
If I remember right, Wallace had thought there was 2 premiership windows -- one right at end of richos tenure and the other now. He might have expected us to add a few more genuine stars to complement the ones he had on the books.

 

[Team Agg]

Course it does, it goes to their motives. If the players involved didn't have problems they may not have traded them.

doesnt matter...they did trade and reaped the benefits....whether they had problems or not, hawthorn had the foresight to trade as the players had currency. what have we ever traded out to get something..........of value that is....

 

[mexican_radio]

we need a superstar and Dangerfield would fit the bill. Sydney showed that money talks by landing Franklin. why can't we pull off a coup like that?

 

[Sintiger]

I don't know the answer to the question in this thread but this time last year Port were all the rage and they didn't make finals this year and the reality is we are just a couple of players away from that top top group.

It's interesting to think about West Coast because there is a combination of things that have caused their rise imo. There is no doubt they underachieved in recent years but there are 4 other factors that are worth also considering

1. They have 3 elite forwards in kennedy, Darling and Le Cras. I think we have one in Jack , maybe two if you include Lids, but we need a more dangerous forward line
2. They have an elite ruckman, we have a war horse
3. The elephant in the room, they changed their coach. How much has simpson changed the eagles ?
4. 3 high draft picks have lifted their games to a higher level in masten, Gaff and Shepherd.

I have thought on occasions about why we play so well at Subi and i think there is a lesson in that. To me it is because it is the biggest ground in the AFL and it is harder to play the shut down game. We have to play and when we do that we are a very good team. I just think we need to free ourselves up a bit and become a touch more aggressive in our style because we are good enough to do it.

We are close to that level but the next step will take us to change something, whether that be young players stepping up, a couple of really good recruits or a small change in style I don;t know. Probably a combination of all 3.

 

[zippadeee]

I don't know the answer to the question in this thread but this time last year Port were all the rage and they didn't make finals this year and the reality is we are just a couple of players away from that top top group.

It's interesting to think about West Coast because there is a combination of things that have caused their rise imo. There is no doubt they underachieved in recent years but there are 4 other factors that are worth also considering

1. They have 3 elite forwards in kennedy, Darling and Le Cras. I think we have one in Jack , maybe two if you include Lids, but we need a more dangerous forward line
2. They have an elite ruckman, we have a war horse
3. The elephant in the room, they changed their coach. How much has simpson changed the eagles ?
4. 3 high draft picks have lifted their games to a higher level in masten, Gaff and Shepherd.

I have thought on occasions about why we play so well at Subi and i think there is a lesson in that. To me it is because it is the biggest ground in the AFL and it is harder to play the shut down game. We have to play and when we do that we are a very good team. I just think we need to free ourselves up a bit and become a touch more aggressive in our style because we are good enough to do it.

We are close to that level but the next step will take us to change something, whether that be young players stepping up, a couple of really good recruits or a small change in style I don;t know. Probably a combination of all 3.

We go into next year with the same group. Same result or even missing the 8.
This group is done.
Either they try and bring in class. Or trade out. As many as we can and start a mini rebuild to try to take the next step.
Ellis should be up for trade
If a first rounder came from Edwards. Good bye
Both are good at home & away games. But finals both are cats

 

[year of the tiger]

I don't know the answer to the question in this thread but this time last year Port were all the rage and they didn't make finals this year and the reality is we are just a couple of players away from that top top group.

It's interesting to think about West Coast because there is a combination of things that have caused their rise imo. There is no doubt they underachieved in recent years but there are 4 other factors that are worth also considering

1. They have 3 elite forwards in kennedy, Darling and Le Cras. I think we have one in Jack , maybe two if you include Lids, but we need a more dangerous forward line
2. They have an elite ruckman, we have a war horse
3. The elephant in the room, they changed their coach. How much has simpson changed the eagles ?
4. 3 high draft picks have lifted their games to a higher level in masten, Gaff and Shepherd.

I have thought on occasions about why we play so well at Subi and i think there is a lesson in that. To me it is because it is the biggest ground in the AFL and it is harder to play the shut down game. We have to play and when we do that we are a very good team. I just think we need to free ourselves up a bit and become a touch more aggressive in our style because we are good enough to do it.

We are close to that level but the next step will take us to change something, whether that be young players stepping up, a couple of really good recruits or a small change in style I don;t know. Probably a combination of all 3.

cool and I will add one more
5. Culture and tradition in playing in grand finals - even though they are a "GF inexperienced" team, they still have 3 or 4? players in the team that was part of their last winning GF

 

[DLR]

The Eagles are an example of two things at the moment, the first being that their previous coach was holding them back by being stuck in an inflexible mindset when the football world had moved on and made his way of doing things obsolete. Their current game plan is simple and flexible but is based on decent key marking targets up forward and doesn't over rely on pin-point precision.

This has the most meaning for me - nicely put David.

I didn't think we were much improved over last year and the results proved it. Success doesn't have a rigid path - look at Hawthorn's out of the box success in 2008. in 2004 15th, then 14th. 11th, 6th, 1st. Then 9th, 7th, 3rd, 2nd, 1st, 1st. Two paths perhaps.

Tiger's path is nothing like it, albeit progressive but perhaps grinding to a halt. While not a prediction, I suspect we will go backwards before going forwards again

 

[glantone]

David C - always enjoy your posts. Thanks for sharing that one.

 

[Team Agg]

I don't know the answer to the question in this thread but this time last year Port were all the rage and they didn't make finals this year and the reality is we are just a couple of players away from that top top group.


I have thought on occasions about why we play so well at Subi and i think there is a lesson in that. To me it is because it is the biggest ground in the AFL and it is harder to play the shut down game. We have to play and when we do that we are a very good team. I just think we need to free ourselves up a bit and become a touch more aggressive in our style because we are good enough to do it.

It because the Ground is long and Skinny at Subi. We are an exceptional lead up team and our Game plan is based on that style of play.

 

[dcstar]

It because the Ground is long and Skinny at Subi. We are an exceptional lead up team and our Game plan is based on that style of play.

You cannot underestimate that ground, when you stand at the edge of the centre square and look towards the goals they seem a long, long way away compared to the 'G or Docklands.

Getting the positioning right and exploiting the lengthwise space is the key to playing well there, also the narrow wings can prevent a side from getting lost by going to wide to simply retain possession - if they do that at Subi they end up kicking the ball OOF too often (just like North did).