If they keep picking Pearce, he'll keep kicking straight to Barba right in the middle of the field... it might kinda work.
Agree with those who found it a bit boring. Definitely worse games this year, but for a grand final it wasn't that great.
Boring game. Expected it from the Storm though. Storm can get fucked, seriously my most hated team in the comp, have been since about 2004.
I don't mind Smith and Cronk, but I can't stand Slater even though he's a QLDer. Hoffman and Bellamy are mega cunts too. Couldn't give a rats ass about any of the others. But yeah, fuck the Bulldogs as well.
If we go into next season with Keating at halfback I'll shoot myself, complete and utter spastic. I sort of expected what happened tonight to have happened much sooner than it did but it hurts a lot more happening in the GF. As it is though it shouldn't take a genius to combat what Melbourne were doing tonight on defence, Keating didn't even fire a shot though, just dumped it off to whoever was close by. Jono Wright was a useless as ever, Reynolds was decent, terrible on defense as usual though. The forwards didn't show up at all although that first half probably drained them pretty well. And the bench bar Graham was just as bad as it's been all season.
What I found disappointing about the Dogs game was the lack of a backup plan. Their tactics all season have been obvious, and I wasn't at all surprised to see Bellamy find a way to combat it. The Dogs really needed another tactic (or more creativity in the halves).
You'd think a cut out pass or maybe even a kick hitting the winger in stride would work wonders against that defense - or at least make them hang back a little. 10 minutes into the second half and I realised we weren't going to see anything different though. Obvs asking far too much of a "FG" halfback.
You could've had Thurston at halfback and you still wouldn't have won given how poor your forwards were in both attack and defence in the mid-field. They're just as responsible for not implementing the ball movement plan, as Keating or Reynolds are.
Game happened exactly how I expected it to, except I thought Melbourne would dominate more in attack close to the line.
Probably would have if they'd jettisoned the bizarre 7th rate penalty goal kicking in favour of building even more pressure on the Dogs' line.