Red, White And Black

Round 5, 2012
Melbourne 4.1, 8.3, 10.6, 10.6 (66)
St Kilda 5.4, 8.5, 10.9, 12.12 (84)
Crowd: 24,798 at the MCG, Saturday, 28th April at 7.40pm

A cold, wet Saturday night at the MCG was never really going to offer us much more than the not-quite-hell the Saints and the Demons put us through.

The home side was a winless outfit that has been playing with all the interest of a VAFA Club XVIII side without the urge to start a fight; the visitors were used to the comforts of the sanitised concrete dome that would more than likely struggle at the first sign of dew on the grass. On top of that, they didn’t seem to be that good this year.

For St Kilda, finishing ahead at game’s end certainly didn’t offer much redemption for the multitude of missed chances that very nearly blew the game for the side. It wasn’t a win eeked out on obviously superior skill, nor paradoxically superior intent; the Demons actually looked like they wanted to be out there. They just happened to do enough and shut the Demons out of the game when it counted.

It was two weeks in a row then that opportunities to create genuine scoreboard pressure went begging for the Saints. The shots missed by Milne, Riewoldt and Nicky Dal in the first half were ghastly, with Big Beau Wilkes and Big Rhys Stanley having to mop up the mess. If it was any half-decent side as the opposition then the Saints would have put been really made to pay. They were eight days previous.

My Dad and I plonked ourselves on the wing in the MCC Members’ section with the other 30 people that decided to turn up. Regardless of the poor weather, it was probably what should have been expected. Melbourne’s fans have every excuse to not bother for a while (would they anyway?) and St Kilda’s won’t turn up if there isn’t a roof. True to form, we watched the second quarter in the Bullring once the rain really started. Either way, this game was going to take at least a drink or two to get through.

Having spent a couple of weeks in Cambodia and Thailand my Dad had finally made it to his first live match for the season. He’s seen enough in his time that the excitement of “the first game of the season” has surely worn off; the hopes of new seasons, let alone the hopes of new eras, have only held so much for this club. This was a microcosm of years of false dawns and empty promises.

Saturday night really echoed the Port Adelaide farce in Round One, when true to tradition the Saints allowed a mediocre team to look serviceable and “earn” the adulation of the home fans. Melbourne’s were brought into the game like they hadn’t this season, and only St Kilda could allow goals like those kicked by Jones, Davey and Bartram to happen, and for Morton to play his best game in relevant memory.

Read the rest of this entry »

This match preview is as much as anything about looking forward to the post-match. A game like last week, against strong opposition, of, brings the reality of where this team is at back into sharp focus for Saints fans. The team, whatever coach is pulling the reigns, is not what it once was. The cream rises to the top in the close games, and that meant a win for Fremantle. So now, coming up against the (seemingly) cursed, inept and winless Demons, I’m looking forward to hopefully getting some chicken soup for my football soul; a reminder for a day or two at least that whilst this team is staving off a downslide, that it is still far from the depths of the AFL’s cellar.

You may say that I’m taking my eye off the ball by being so presumptuous about returning to the winner’s circle, and you’re probably right. If Scott Watters caught a whiff of this within the confines of Seaford then I’m sure he would be cracking skulls. But with the Saints on the precipice of not very much this season, staring down the barrel of a mid-table finish, every probable win is immediately very desirable. And the style in which the four points is grasped is not as important. When you’re side is entrenched in a flag tilt, the nuts and bolts of wins andlosses alike are almost more important than the results themselves – the team’s resulting ladder finish is more assured. Nothing for the Saints this season is assured; you need only recall round 1 for a clear reminder.

It’s true that last week’s loss was not exactly the kick in the face that it felt like. Freo are a strong side that will challenge anyone that they face this year, home or away. The Saints only had themselves to blame (again), after having the better of the contest yet failing in the game’s most critical element: scoring. What areas they failed in are certainly in their control, yet I’m skeptical about their ability to rectify those deficiencies with the personnel at hand.

More and more each year, a side is defined more by its weakest links than it’s greatest champions. St Kilda’s display last week was the best example. By and large, the Saints dominated around the contests and played the game in their half. But this was all overshadowed by a Kosi brain-fade, missed passes from Milne (not to mention CJ), terrible disposal from Geary, general slowness from Blake, etc. From the pre-season Watters declared a need for a squad of 30-35 players that can represent the team at any time; we’ve echoed those sentiments. Stanley, Cripps, Ledger and Simpkin have raised their hands in this area at different times and to different degrees but so far it hasn’t been enough to lift the team to the start it needed if it was actually serious about finals this season.

At 2-2 after four rounds, suddenly the team’s fixture after the horror patch (Hawthorn, West Coast, Carlton and Sydney from rounds six to nine) even seems daunting – how quickly you can come back to the pack.

My favourite part of the round 4 loss (if there was one) was the continued promising play of Tom Simpkin. Through the four quarters Head came up against John Anthony, Matthew Pavlich and Zach Clarke. He may be physically a little undersized (like all our key defenders; Za* D@ws0n would come in handy here), but he is playing tall, competing fiercely and his use of the ball under pressure is pretty composed. A few teammates could take a leaf out of his book. Jarryn Geary, disposal aside, too continued to display career best form with strong rebound off half-back.

Read the rest of this entry »

Scott Watters summed it up well, when he said “tactically there were no surprises at all” in the match versus the Dockers on Friday Night. Freo’s display and structure had all the hallmarks of a Ross Lyon led team; St Kilda spending the lion’s share of the game camped in the Dockers half.

There has been a much publicized change of coach and attitude at the Saints, and from the limited sample size of games so far there have been some positives both in game style and in the faith put in some of the younger players to this point, but ultimately last night we saw a ghost of the Lyon era come back to haunt the side. I’m talking about ball use, and more specifically converting opportunities.

The scoreboard will tell you that the Saints, having trailed by 14 points at three quarter-time, only managed three goals three for the term but this doesn’t illustrate the team spent in their 50 and the several missed opportunities that were squandered without a score registered.

A gilt-edged missed chance by fresh substitute Jamie Cripps only a couple of minutes into the final term felt fatal, despite the amount of time on the Saints’ side. Justin Koschitzke, also blew an opportunity to shoot at goal when the side was grabbing back the momentum of the game. Unfortunately, another Kosi brain-fade transpired and a looping handball to Milne wasted another chance to score.

It seems like it is almost a recurring nightmare for this group, and one that Ex-Boss would be all too familiar with. Yes, the Saints won their share of tight game over the last 2-3 years, but in the big contests in particular there has been a glaring lack of skill and execution at the pivotal moments. And again last night this was there for all to witness.

Read the rest of this entry »

For years, us Saints fans have discreetly adopted second (and sometimes third) teams to barrack for in hard Saints times, lonely Septembers and such. But it seems like over the off-season just gone many a St Kilda fan has adopted Fremantle. And not so much to barrack for – as much for anything as to try and voodoo-doll them, and more specifically Ross Lyon and Zac Dawson, into horrific form and horrific purple coloured clothing ventures.

Since the siren sounded on round 3, we have heard from players and both coaches alike downplay the animosity that will be circling the Dome tomorrow night. If there exists a “it’s all about the four points” counter, machine, device, contraption within AFL house then surely it has exploded by now. The thing is, folks: it is all about the four points at this stage of the season. Yes, it would be hilarious to see Ross Lyon’s face splattered by a pie, but I’d still take the win.

At this time of the year, substance heavily outweighs style. In the last couple of games in particular the Saints have had an increasing amount of substance to their game. They were beaten in the inside 50 count last week against the Bulldogs yet were incredibly efficient – 28 scoring shots from 46 inside 50s for the night. That was on the back of a 21-goal haul, albeit against the lowly Suns. Under (now nemesis) Ross Lyon, the Saints were a lot of things, but they were never really considered efficient, especially not in terms of scoring.

So far this year, it seems a lot of the generally typical aspects of a Lyon side are slowly rubbing off on the young Dockers. They definitely seem more focused on the defensive side of the game; their offensive side of the game has yet to fully come together. They scored 16 goals first up against the almighty Cats, before more workman-like efforts against the Swans (12 goals 9) and Lions (8 goals 16). Ironically, it has been inefficiency that has given Ross The Ex-Boss headaches over the last two games, with his charges having dominated for large periods without converting on the scoreboard. Sound familiar?

Read the rest of this entry »

Round 3, 2012
Western Bulldogs 1.2,  1.5,  2.6,  5.10 (40)
St Kilda 4.5,  6.6,  13.9,  15.13 (103)
Crowd: 28,971 at Etihad Stadium, Saturday, April 14th at 7.40pm

High hopes for this game totalled exactly nil during Saturday.

For the religious of you (you may have seen some of my internet heroism post-match as my train was swamped by far-too-enthusiastic Christian teenagers – more on that later), I should point out this had nothing to do with the fact I attended the Global Atheist Convention during the day and am thusly incapable of positivity or any kind of hope.

The 92-point win over the Suns in Round 2 had a lot to do with the Gold Coast’s poor showing, and whilst the Dogs were gallant at Football Park neither of these sides could have been said to be staring down a top-four place this season.

In fact, most pundits had both taking a dive in 2012; the Saints to at least fall out of the eight and the Dogs to truly entrench themselves in the bottom part of the ladder as they attempt to rebuild.

Neutrals would have been a little bemused by Clinton Jones leading the team out in his 100th game – surely a precursor to something of a non-spectacle. The Convention had disappointed me a little – I’d only bought a ticket to see Christopher Hitchens, and he’d passed away in December after a long illness – so I wasn’t in a fantastic mood anyway after spending $300+ on a ticket. Richard Dawkins just isn’t quite the same.

I sat in the nosebleed section with my Saints-supporting friend Lewis (of the band sensationally named Footy) who bought a few more friends of his own along. Among them was an American who was seeing her first game of the sport. Chances are she found the experience perhaps even more wanting than the neutral fan; the game was done and dusted a few minutes into the third quarter and until that point had basically seen the Dogs blanketed by the Saints, who ran and harassed in numbers and despite their dominance the quality of possession wasn’t fantastic. It wasn’t a pretty game to watch, echoing the shut-downs of the St Kilda side in the early part of 2009.

Read the rest of this entry »

Over the last week, as the sky falls in exclusively on the Melbourne Football Club, the media spotlight turned to some of the Dees’ recruiting that has produced their current crop of players. Did they capitalize on the selections that they had? Did they focus on the right types of players? It quickly reminded me of the Saints draft woes through of a (now) critical six-year period of 2003-2008.

At the time there was still quite a bit of naivety about developing lists and recruiting, and it felt like the general approach was that your list was in one of two states: built and ready to contend and thus only needed topping up, or your list was in re-build mode. The third mode, I suppose would be the Richmond mode: destined to finish 9^th. AKA irrelevant mode.

How does this relate to the early naughties Saints? At the end of the 2003 season, the team’s then talent-laden, young list was on the precipice of ditching its training wheels and launching into a period of premiership assaults. I do not think anyone predicted that the ascension to the top of the ladder would be so rapid, but the St Kilda faithful was salivating at the imminent prospects of the group.

After having really capitalized on a raft of top draft picks through 2000-2002, the club really took a nosedive in recruitment area. At the time the calamitous decisions were questioned and derided, but their impact were smoothed over because the core of the list was so strong. Now that the Dal Santos, Riewoldts, Goddards et al are ageing as well as the way the game is so team focused nowadays, the mistakes that were made post 2002 are now being laid to bare.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Saints and the Bulldogs have won solitary premierships from a respective 115 and 87 attempts in this league.

For all of the equalisation policies the AFL has bought in over recent decades, in recent seasons both clubs have managed to maintain their identities as the clubs that simply can’t win a premiership.

St Kilda have spent much of their existence around the bottom of the ladder, much more than anyone else. They’ve finished behind all comers 26 times, and have nearly always been in the news for the wrong or ridiculous reasons, both on and off the field.

The Sons of the ‘Scray have spent most of their years in relative obscurity. A number of mid- and lower-ladder finishes in not-so-infamous style; their more successful times punctuated by a string of preliminary final defeats. They were very nearly forced into a merger with Fitzroy, but its fans and Peter Gordon saved the day and they remain the most community-oriented club in the league.

Meetings in those recent seasons between the two clubs had a rare zest as both challenged for that second premiership. Both came close, but the respective heroes of the red, white and black and red, white and blue will forever remain in the shadows of those of that other Cinderella club, Geelong. (Of course, there’s Melbourne too, which has gravitated exclusively the other way in this chapter of their drought).

Whilst Geelong get set to challenge again for a fourth flag in six years, the Saints and the Dogs are in the throes of revolution. Both clubs have new coaches; the Saints have undergone further off-field upheaval with the its professionalised approach to youth develop as new faces begin to make regular appearances; the Dogs have even more youngsters.

Ninety-two point win last week or not, on Saturday night I’ll be looking out for Stanley, Ledger and Simpkin probably more than I will be Hayes, Riewoldt and Goddard; likewise Dogs fans Dahlhaus, Smith and Jones than Boyd, Cooney and Lake. This weekend, dreams of that second premiership on either side of the city’s ports will be far from most rational thoughts.

So for different reasons than we’ve become used to this game will be tough to pick. On paper it’s the Saints with the more imposing top end that should win. Even then, the young players really did make an impression last week: Milera’s dash through half-forward, Stanley’s strongest and most effective performance in his short career and Jack Steven continued last year’s great form. Hard-nosed markers would say so they should have had an impression against what was effectively a one-man team, and that stance has much merit.

The Bulldogs lost, but were impressive for different reasons. Calling it a “spirited” performance would probably wear thin after a while for their fans, but the young side really did scare an up-and-about outfit on their home turf.

St Kilda’s midfield will have benefited from Sunday evening either way; it was a chance for Lenny to get some game time and work into some form upon his return and BJ particularly needed something in the way of a confidence booster/chill out. Dal was solid again but Joey will need to be a bit tougher this week if they’re to really overcome the Dogs’ core of Boyd, Griffen and Cooney.

The three talls in Roo, Kosi and Stanley working together well last week would have filled each and the players further up the ground with a lot more certainty about the side’s structure. Repeating that will go a long way to winning on Saturday night if the midfield is on top, otherwise there is some quality in that Dogs’ backline – Lake, Murphy, Hargrave – to create headaches.

Players in the Dogs’ attack such as Jones, Roughead and Grant could cause more than enough trouble for a rather undersized St Kilda defence, but even with inexperienced players like Simpkin, Newnes and Geary down back it could go either way. This is what’s tough to pick about this game: younger players are generally inconsistent. A 92-point win or gallant loss one week could mean anything for the next.

Docklands this Saturday night won’t exactly be going off. A close result either way shouldn’t surprise and could entertain, but the quality won’t echo the more important battles these clubs have had in the past few years. These are different times.

Via The Age: Next chapter in the Nick Riewoldt story