12-13th
Simple answer - not enough class in the midfiled.
Our senior on-ballers in Tuck, Johnson, Tivendale, Hyde and Krakouer are probably the worst in the competition. When you think about it these 5 are our most experienced midfielders, and Johnson is our no.1 tagger. Who is gonna make the play? Who is gonna create? Who is gonna grab a game by the throat and win it off their own boot? Simple answer - None of the above.
We can't rely too much on the likes of Foley, Deledio, Polo and Tambling to carry us to finals. People like to fantasise but it won't happen. These kids are 2-3 years away from making a strong impact, however I have my doubts on most of them.
In order to be competitve against the better midfields our better senior players in Bowden, Brown and Newman must help out in the midfield. But Terry is reluctant to play them so that's why we'll struggle big time.
I can still remember the Bulldogs, Swans, Saints and Eagles floggings we copped last year. Cast your mind back. Don't try to erase these memories. We had absolutely no answers in the midfield. None at all. The opposition were doing as they liked. We looked like we didn't belong there. Tuck, Hyde, Krak and Tivendale can't compete with these guys.
Sure we're gonna scrounge a few wins here and there, against the bottom teams with our desperation and determination when our backs are against the wall, but when the big boys come out to play, we might aswell not waste our time and energy. The cream always rises to the top, and untill we put the limited cream we have in the middle, then we will always fall in a heap.
