What's the cause of our decline/slump?

[Jezza]

Simple question: What are the cause(s) of our slump?

- Is it opposition sides figuring out how to counter our game plan?
- Have the coaching staff adversely tinkered with the game plan?
- Is it purely psychological?
- Have injuries caught up with us?
- Have the events involving Stephenson and Beams in the last few weeks impacted the players more than we realise?
- Is it a combination of things?

It would be interesting to hear the thoughts of fellow posters.

[eddiesmith]

I don’t think it’s a slump, we’ve played poorly for nearly 2 months now but got lucky in a few games. Going back 2 months and we nearly lost to Carlton...

Last year was a fluke and everyone got ahead of themselves

[PyreneesPie]

Jezza, I posted this in the game thread and will do so again here, for what it's worth. I really believe that mental attitude means everything in any sport!

"Okay... I know I will probably get slammed for this, but I've had a couple of glasses of red, so who cares?? Smile

Last season, the boys played out of their skins. They had belief in
themselves to reach the pinnacle, despite an horrendous injury toll. They played on instinct and want. They took risks, attacked the ball with ferocity and trusted their team mates would do the same. They gave their all. And what did they get for all that effort, courage and determination? A heart-breaking GF loss on the basis of a questionable umpiring decision.

As that ultimate goal gets closer this season, the tragedy of that loss is still in their sub-conscious. Why play like demons when the end result may be the same? The pain would be just too much to bear.

So, right now they are playing scared.... afraid of what may await them in September. Honestly, our team doesn't need coaching with technical game plans and a thorough berating for playing within themselves. They need someone to give them mental courage, someone to tell them it will be alright, if they they don't reach the top of the mountain. It's the manner of the chase that gives them the joy, the glory and the satisfaction.

And I'm not drinking Wolf Blass Smile However, as Bucks is a Wolf Blass ambassador, he would do well to show the players some examples of teams failing at the last hurdle, but regardless, still winning in their own estimation and achieving the admiration of all, most importantly themselves".

[BHPIE]

Teams know ,if we take possession in last line of defense to give us the defensive 50 to stuff around with , sooner or later we'll turn it over , in the mean time theyve maned up n we have no one to kick to, all our fwds push up to get a kick n theres no one fwd , hence our game plan is stuffed,imop

[PyreneesPie]

[Haff]

The coach. 10 good weeks of footy doesn’t make you a great coach. Having the softest draw ever got us in having hardly beaten a team in the 8. The team rode that to a GF and only played well in 1 game really.
Now? We are 2017 again, soulless game plan that doesn’t suit our cattle and has been more than worked out.
It’s time Bucks. 8 years of shit, 1/2 that was any good. Enough said.

[Johnno75]

Has anyone been to training lately. Are we undertaking some sort of heavy training block (do they even do this anymore)

One thing I noticed is a lot of our boys look physically spent last night, no one really prepared to run to provide a target or run back to cover in defence.

I had more spread in my toast this morning. Been like that for a few weeks but much more noticeable when your at the G. Hence the slow possession game up the line kicking long to no one or any burst out of defence greeted by a sea of opposition defenders. I thought we killed that game off last year but like a good horror movie you can’t kill it off.

[simon tonna]

[What'sinaname]

Our ladder position has flattered us.....When you look at quarters won, we are sixth with 29 quarters won. After the round we'll be 8th which is a more accurate reflection of our ability that the curent ladder position.

Last year we made top 4 only because of our buttery soft draw.

This year, we're a middle of the table team.

We are not a top 2 and probably not a top 4 team.

[Pies4shaw]

I think people are looking too far to find complex explanations for simple things.

We are actually not that good. We weren't that good last year - the modern draft arrangement tosses up new Grand Finalists virtually every season in a competition with too many teams and a diluted talent pool, which is good for the entertainment spectacle but awful for those of us who support a particular team. I took the view at the start of last year that we were several competent AFL players short of a team and we remain that way. That said, we would probably (and may yet) still be near the top of a very, very mediocre pile if we weren't missing Adams, Stephenson, Langdon and Howe, if some of the guys who are playing (Elliott, Sier etc) were actually match-fit and if we had at least a good VFL-standard tall forward.

The fact that we have struggled so much this season against below-par teams, so frequently, indicates that we are not going anywhere, unless something changes dramatically for us in our fit, available talent pool.

Last night was very disappointing and I absolutely hated it but it was hardly unexpected.

Also, I expressed the view in the "fixture" thread before the bye that I couldn't believe that the AFL would give us a week off and then make us play 3 games in 12 days (and the first 2 on the hardest surface in the AFL) - the draw was prepared like it was intended to bring us back to the pack and, lo and behold, it did.

[Clifton Hill-Billy]

Injuries, lack of intensity and tackle pressure has been non existent, we look slow and fatigued. We have lost all joy in our football. We have a mentally fragile core playing group who respond to being challenged and pressure with avoidance and going into their shells. Look at all the close games we lost in 2015-2017. Ditto last year's GF. We've pumped up our own tyres and now all the air is deflating at an ever increasing rate. We don't even have a puncture repair kit.

[Damien]

The hunter has become the hunted. That is definitely a factor. Teams are up for us much more than they were last year.

Jayden Stevenson out is a factor too. Our forward line has lost a major source of goals.

Our form will turn with some confidence and there is no better panacea for the group than a win on the road.

[Mr Miyagi]

[pietillidie]

[September Zeros]

I’ve said it over and over and over. We can’t keep blaming injuries if we insist on retaining injury prone players just because they are good / great footballers.

Instead of culling the Reid’s , Wells and the Elliot’s we added another in Beams and then we are left wondering why every year our injuries are so numerous. It’s the same guys and has been for years. Are injuries part of the problem? Yes! Buts it’s partly our own fault too.