Pre Match v Bloose...all comments here thanks.......

[bwphantom]

Doc 63...why don't you take your negative crap and flush it down your own throat.

SUPPORT COLLINGWOOD OR GO AWAY!!

[rexi]

there's a chance that MM makes no changes to the team that played the crows last week. With all of Micks talk about player confidence, removing a player from the first 22 would surely shatter their confidence.

[Doc63]

[K- Man]

Pies by 30 points. Rocca & Taz to star!

[DaVe86]

Sultan of Spin, totally agree that lonie should be given a week off. Im his biggest fan but he isnt performing. Spent most of the game on the pine wearing a jacket and when he came on with 10 mins left in the match, adeliade got on top again with 2 goals. Strange maltouse brought him on when we were looking comfortable.

The way i see this match is as follows.

I think this is a great opportunity, the perfect time to play carlton. At 0-2 we need a confidence booster, a win against carlton woudl do this. A loss would tell us that we cant lift for the crunch games and dont deserve a finals spot this year.

Carlton is good, but not great. Their midfield is fast but they lack in and under players. Stevens, campa, scotland and co are receivers with good skills. If we make the game messy we can win pack contests. Licuria, Burns and woewoedin wll beat the carlton midfield when there is contested ball and then we could use players like johnson and shaw and rowe to provide the run.

Carltons strength at the moment is their backline, however ours is our defence. Carlton have not come up against a good defence yet this year. The best they played against was Essendons with Dustin Fletcher and James Hird and Fev and Whitnall were well held until the last quarter when they broke loose. However Hird cramped up n spent the last quarter on the pine.

I think Maxwell should be brought in this week because we need backline options. Walker should start up forward but if we are short in defence we could throw him back there. We must name a taller side this week, perhaps Fanning could be included. We have to match the carlton talls which are Fevola, Whitnall, French, Prendergast, Waite, De Luca. They are all well built and mobile.

Match ups could be
Presti or Wakes on Fev
Walker on Whitnall??? Walker has the size and mobility however we loose a forward option.
Im not sure if Clement has a suitable opponent this week, he might get a run on Davies or something or mick may give him the big role on Fev or Whitnall.

Carlton may flood, however they didnt against Essendon last week. Our field kicking will be the be all or end all.

Carltons defence is shabby at full strength, but they are without their greatest defender thornton. Livingston may be back this week which will be handy for them, no matter what people may think of Livo he is ok. Norman is nothing special and Teague is no good one out. He is gutsy and flies into packs. However we could expose his lack of height one out. Rocca and Tarrant should be able to outmark him. If Fanning is brought in, we could really expose their defence by playing cloke and walker up forward.

On paper, collingwood is a good matchup for Carlton. Teams have been unable to deal with their talls, however we have enough players with experience to match them, with some in reserve. The game will be won and lost in the middle. If we are unable to bottle up the game, carlton will run all over us with their faster midfield.

Midfield matchup could include
Holland on Campa (thats a must in rivalry round)
Woewoedin on Scotland (neither is overly fast)
Shaw on Stevens ( Stevens will lead rheece to the ball, and shaw can keep up with him, its a good matchup i reckon, rheece will hurt stevens the other way as stevens doesnt tag.
Kouta is a worry, could we perhaps throw young maxwell onto him, size wise maxwell can match. Kouta is their only in and under player. Otherwise i could see Licuria getting the role on him.

Also, Eddie Betts and Davies are worries as they can suprise unaware teams. Look at Davies last year. I think Cole will get the job on Betts, Davies is a funny one, maybe jonno or clement.

Do we want it? Do we still have the hunger to win? All will be revealed in a season defining match.

[Damien]

Presti on DeLuca I reckon, both pretty one dimensional players; all Presti would have to do is punch the ball away

[Streak]

Last year, at our lowest ebb, during Carlton's climb back to respectability, we thrashed them...

...for 3 quarters. Their final quarter efforts pushed them back up the hill in a huge turnaround, and they won by...

...a point.

We can challenge them. Our boys know they mix it up well with Caaahlton. The last two weeks, even though we played poor football, if Tarrant and Rocca had only kicked a little straighter, we would have won. We had flooding to deal with, as well as a couple of unknowns in Eade and Craig.

This foe is familiar. We know we can play at their level. Will we?

I hope so. Rocca and Tarrant to switch it on as Collingwood hits its straps for 2005. The warmup is over, and we've arrived at the real stuff.

Collingwood by 21 points.

[Cannibal]

Every so often, usually when things are so far against us that you start to believe they can't, and won't, ever be turned around, I get this gut feeling that we're going to come up with a big win against all the odds. It doesn't happen very often but when it does, it's right nearly every time eg 2002 QF. I've started getting that gut feeling over the last 12 hours. And, believe me, it's pretty bad! I'm not going to analyse it, because it's beyond analysis; call it a Scot's Celtic sixth sense. It's just there. This could be a right old game to remember in years to come.

[rosspies]

I think these changes could make a big difference

Ins

Maxwell (Extra tall down back)
Fanning (Free up Cloke to go forward)
Egan (Like to see him play after pre season hype)

Out

Williams (Cos hes s%#t)
Obree (Inacurate slow frustrating)
Lonie (Get back some confidence at willi)

Pies by 21 with this team

[skaman]

OK I've woken from my slumber, the last two rounds were just a nightmare. Its time to redeme ourselves. Now is the time, the stage is set. No need for extra motivation, this is Carlton Goddam it! Whatever or whoever is selected in the famous black and white this week, there is no excuses, take no prisoners. Get some old fashion mongel in ya and never say die. Nothin else will surfice. So help me Jock.

[Sultan of spin]

[Woody]

Milestones for round 03:

Tarkyn Lockyer : 100 games (1999-2005)
Shane Woewodin : 50 games (2003-2005)

Good luck boys...

[DaVe86]

ah k sultan didnt realise cole had a blood rule. Yep woey could be a match for kouta. I definately agree with rosspies on the changes. O'Bree, Williams and Lonie out, Maxwell and Fanning in. Im not sure about egan but he would definately have to be in the running. Even Matty Lokan could be in with a chance for a tagging role on a player like scotland. God i wish didak and fraser were in this round, they would be the difference.

[Johnson#26]

Love the pics. It will be a decent contest, considering all players will be hurting. An upset may be on the cards, although, our recent form suggests....

The Blues form hasn't been great, either since their Wizard Cup campaign. Big match.

[35forever]

Excellent analysis Dave, I tried to pick holes in it but couldnt. I agree with Sultan about Woewie on Kouta. I cant imagine an unchanged side after Mick's spray, so yes, Lonie & Willo out, but I think Cheesy did too much to warrant dropping, and Kingy appears to have done more than Egan at Willi.

Geez it'd be a mighty boost if we could pull it off, and I'm willing to bet we'll be in it at 3/4 time, but...


Nah, no buts. Go Pies!