Round 11 Recap: Eagles still Alive as Maister-Bowl heads West

There is a pulse. It's weak; the Doctors are in the corner shaking their heads with solemnity. Outside the bedside window a Hawk menacingly circles the hospital, whilst a Bomber flies overhead carrying a cargo mostly consisting of suspicious looking pharmaceuticals.

But we are ALIVE! By THAT much. Let's start with the positives, shall we?

In my mind it was the very first time this year that the team really dug deep, backs against the wall, undermanned and pulled out the 'W'. We started oh so poorly. 4 goals to zip. I thought the worse. I remembered this loss. But we steadied, showed resolve, stuck around and eventually, as time ebbed away, stole a win.

I thought Blayne Wilson had a very impressive debut. He showed poise under pressure, marked well and displayed good kicking skills. E-Mac had a cameo down forward, kicking a gem from outside 50 plus, of course, the winner after Maister tripped over. Darling kicked 3, whilst Priddis chipped in with a vital 2 goals in the last quarter. I thought Embley also showed some form up forward.

A hard-fought, extremely difficult and well-deserved win. Anyone who tries to argue that umpiring gave us the win are fools. Fools or Victorians.

Now, onto the negatives. The game saw an unwelcome continuation of all of the problems which have plagued our team throughout the year. We started the game lethargically, 4 goals to zip. We turned the ball over ad-nauseum to the extent that Scott Selwood ruined a fast break by directly handballing the ball to a Saint. It took the entire game to claim the lead.

But most of all, and here's the scary part, the Saints are 2-9. They are probably the 3rd worst team. I know they've put in some good performances. But I'm extremely concerned that in 2 weeks time, at the same venue, against the Hawks, that we will lose by 10 goals. Not to mention all the tough games following that potential nightmare.

It's the bye now though. Let's hope the team can improve and quickly.

I'll probably post a mid-season recap/preview over the weekend. It may be extremely painful and scary but I'll soldier on.