I sit 11 rows back in the forward pocket at the city end. With a full stadium, the sound of the ball hitting JT’s hands when he took that pack mark late in the 3rd was LOUD and AWESOME. I’ve never heard a sound quite like it and I’ve been going to the footy for over 50 years.
The pass mark for this year was top 4 and the double chance. We blew that out of the water.
IMO the improvement came out of team connection, better functioning forward line, a step up from Johnson and a big step up in connection from Shai.
Nicholls kicked 4 on the weekend and seems to be building.
What are your thoughts? What have you seen as the big improvement in ‘26 and where do you see further improvement coming from?
FB: Draper Davies Wagner
HB: Simpson Murphy Walker
Plus whoever the 7th was who wasn’t injured
Just discovered last night. Very enjoyable watching them react in the second half.
Playing two Sydney teams in 5 days in locations 4,000km apart. Find me another sporting team anywhere in the world doing that.
They say the bottom 6 can be what separates teams, so I thought I’d take a look at the 2013 GF bottom 6 (my opinion) and see how the current crop compare.
Nick Suban - was regular first 22 bu,t IMO, Wags is a better player and he currently isn’t in the team.
Danyle Pearce - didn’t stand up in big games but was regular first 22. Would take JOM over him, who is currently not in the team.
Cam Sutcliffe - was solid but no tricks to his bow, no breakaway pace or long reliable kick. Would not be knocking on the door of the current team.
Tom Sheridan - unreliable by decision and by foot. Makes a better podcaster. Wouldn’t get anywhere near this team.
Zac Dawson and Zac Clarke - I can’t, I just can’t.
Compare these to, not even our bottom 6, but our depth 6 (obviously my opinion):
Def: Hugh Davies and OMAC - both would be in the 2013 line up
Mid: JOM and Swag - ditto
Fwd: Charlie Nichols (he looks ready for a debut) and Tobyn Murray - both new players but gee they look like they have a nice top end.
This my evidence that the current team is just so good across the board and a huge upgrade on our last GF team.
Would love your thoughts.
It’s wharfie time in the GF. Who are you sending to the centre bounce?
Last night we had 7 players who have centre bounce cred: Serong, Brayshaw, Bolts, Reid, Young, Johnno and Raz.
Not so long ago it was cut and dried, Serong and Brayshaw were it and others rotated through.
Bolts, Young and Reid have changed that.
Which 3 are you sending to the centre bounce when it’s all on the line?
The footage from the refcam in the Aus-Turk game was spectacular when they showed it. I think it would be even better in AFL. They can’t bring that shit in fast enough.
Place your questions in the comments. Mine are:
What did you expect from Pat Voss when you drafted him? Was he a rough pick who has exceeded all expectations? Or were you looking for a particular type that you saw in him?
What do you believe are the critical factors in turning the club culture around from the gut wrenching years after 2015? Did it start with Moose / Ryan / Cox or was the introduction of Serong / Brayshaw the turning point? Or something else? Because there was a massive change in discipline and focus sometime around the time these guys came in.
What are your questions for the club that journos don’t ask because they don’t care as much as we do.
The spend: $190 AUD since Feb ‘24. Mostly Railroad Adventures. Haven’t spent for quite a while.
The phases:
Started out auto rolling until I got too frustrated and quit for a while, just checking in for the dailies.
Noticed that checking in for the dailies actually built dice up into the thousands quite quickly.
I understand probability, so I started rolling with a higher multiplier when 6 7 8 squares from premium targets. The effect was instant. I was able to build my dice over the long term. Not massively, but I wasn’t heading backwards like I had been.
I did this quite conservatively for a long time, maximum x20, unless a heap of pick-ups were lined up, then I might roll higher.
Finally worked out how to regularly find players with shields down and target them with shut downs. This made a big improvement in progress and winning side tournaments.
Worked out that if you just knock one stage off each building it doesn’t cost much to repair, so I don’t do any more than that to a single target, then move on to someone else.
In the last few months I’ve become confident enough to use x50 and x100 and occasionally x200 on 6 7 8. The strategy has continued to be successful. I wasn’t able to play as much as usual this last album so I never expected to complete it. But I did, using the strategies above.
I have 3 solid friends who help with builds and adventures.
I need a fourth. DM me if you need a fourth and are willing to do your share on builds and adventures.