I know it sounds ridiculous, but I believe being belted by St Kilda has been a good thing for a lot of teams this year. The game after every team has lost to St Kilda has been a victory. This could be for a number of reasons; possible ones include an increase in intensity the next week, their opponents taking them lightly or sheer coincidence.
My view is essentially a bit of a mish mash of thoughts put together over the past seven rounds.
Of course there is an element of coincidence in the trend so far. St Kilda have beaten some good teams who of course were going to rebound the following week, and others have simply come up against poor opposition such as the Sydney/Hawks game in round two; Hawthorn limped into that game and the Swans had a point to prove.
Looking at the above table, it clearly shows each team lifts its intensity the following week. Every team won its game and still 4 of the 6 improved its tackle count. It used to be if you were tackling a lot it meant you weren’t playing well but now coaches cite tackles as one of the key statistics in relation to winning games. Perhaps due to the run and carry game style that is becoming increasingly popular to break through zones.
Whatever the reasons, it is an interesting trend and one that will be tested this week when Collingwood take on Carlton. If Collingwood win don’t be surprised if you start hearing more about it, much like people used to mark the game after a trip to Subiaco down as a loss.
Let us know your thoughts; is this just pot luck or is there something more to it? Are teams learning to lift their intensity or is it some other factor?
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