AXV: Taiwan Dolphins

[Colliwobblers]

Fixtures

    Round 1:     Lambs - away
       Round 2:     Gazelles - home
      Round 3:     Eskimos - away
   Round 4:     Crabs - home
     Round 5:     Strikers - away
   Round 6:     Tigers - home
  Round 7:     Bears - away
   Round 8:     Dongs - away
             Round 9:     Headhunters - home
Round 10:   Ales - away
    Round 11:   Llamas - home
        Round 12:   Crocodiles - away
    Round 13:   Folders - home
       Round 14:   Elephants - away
  Round 15:   Vipers - away
                       Round 16:  Eskimos - bitter rivalry round
     Round 17:   Gazelles - home
   Round 18:   Llamas - home
       Round 19:   Elephants - home

the draw was harder to do than it looked, everyone has the same home and away games by number but they are a bit mixed up...

You have a nice run home... at home :)

[Justin Bieber]

120 million people in the stadium?!?!

[Toga]

120 million people in the stadium?!?!

Was gonna say! :P

[Memphistopheles]

120 million people in the stadium?!?!

Was gonna say! :P

Taken from the old thread lol.

When we're champions of the world we'll need the room for all our fans :D

[Memphistopheles]

the draw was harder to do than it looked, everyone has the same home and away games by number but they are a bit mixed up...

You have a nice run home... at home :)

Yeah a very nice run home.

No reason why we can't finish top four if we have a good run with injuries.

Defence and Forward line a bit weak and no obvious VC option but otherwise the team looks good.

[Memphistopheles]

Injury worries for Dolphins

THERE was bad news for Taiwan Dolphins supporters today with head coach Memphistopheles revealing that several of their starting XV players had been struck down by injury and could miss the start of the season.

Midfielder Matt Rosa injured his thigh in last week's CW Cap hitout, and was forced to go under the knife after it was found he had compartment syndrome.

It is expected the classy wingman will miss the first five rounds of the AFL season after having surgery on his thigh, which is a huge blow to the Dolphins hopes.

And, it has also been revealed that exciting goalsneak Jason Porplyzia is battling a stomach ulcer and is no certainty to line up in round 1.

Porplyzia, nicknamed the Porpoise by Dolphins supporters, was rushed to hospital after the CW Cap match on the weekend with over exposure to anti-inflammatories the suspected cause of the ulcer.

Despite this set back the Porpoise said he is confident he will be ready for his side's round one clash with the Lambs in two weeks.

"I feel good now, I feel fine â€" no worries. [I've] just had a light week on the track and I'll go back into full training next week and should be fine," he said.

"At this stage I'm looking to play."

Memphistopheles said despite these setbacks the team was looking in good nick for it's round one match against the Lambs.

"We have reasonable depth in these areas and should Matt and Jason be unavailable our team will cope. New signing Eddie Betts will be in strong consideration for a starting spot if either player doesn't come up for round 1, as is Dan Jackson, Sam Wright, Kyal Horsley and Tory Dickson."

[Memphistopheles]

A MAGNIFICENT performance from Taiwan’s talismatic captain Gary Ablett Junior helped the Dolphins defeat the Mongolian Lambs in the first round of the Asian XV’s 2013 Premiership Season.
After a slow start Ablett hit full stride in the second half of the match against the Lambs and guided them to a thrilling come-from-behind win.
He booted 4 goals, picked up 34 disposals and had nine clearances on his way to a clear best-on-ground performance and 192 Sportsbet points.
The Lambs took an early lead against the Dolphins but with Matthew Kreuzer dominating the ruck contests and Ablett dominating the clearances they were unable to hold onto their lead and were overrun.
Ablett’s score is a new record for the Asian XV’s and looks likely to stand for some weeks yet with most players in the competition still working their way towards full fitness.
His stunning display also has him as the bookmaker’s early favourite for the Asian XV’s  best and fairest â€" the Great Khali Medal.
However, Ablett  said after the match that he would’t be getting carried away by his individual performances for the Dolphins
“As captain my main focus is helping the team win every week,” he said.
“The best part about the victory today was we were able to get the four points â€" it was just a bonus for me that I was able to play such an important role in this.”
Dolphins head coach Memphistopheles said he was delighted to win the opening game of the season against a potential top four contender in the Lambs.
“Gary led the way with a super showing but we couldn’t have gotten the points without a strong showing from the rest of the team,” he said.
“The Lambs put up a strong fight and they had a few players missing through injury so I have no doubt that they will bounce back from this defeat.”
Memphistopheles said Jordan Lewis, Daniel Jackson, Ben McGlynn and Matthew Kreuzer were other worthy of praise for their performances in the Dolphins’ win.
He also commended the efforts of youngster Tory Dickson, who was brought into the side as a last minute inclusion for the injured Joel Cory.
“Tory’s performance was especially pleasing considering the late call up and he has certainly put his hand up for a starting spot next week.
“I’m also delighted to have a number of selection dilemmas ahead of this week’s home game against the Gazelles, with Jason Blake, Alan Toovey and Mathew Stokes all pushing their case for a first XV spot,” he said.

[Justin Bieber]

Why doesn't it say XVS or something like that before your topic title?

[KoopKicka]

Awesome write up Memph! great read. :)

I can see the Dolphins causing a few problems this year... particularly in the finals with captain GAJ pumping out 180+. Hopefully he has a quiet one when you're up against the Bears. ;)

Obviously the forward line is the main worry with McGlynn/Betts/Stokes rotating at F4. The depth is also very thin as you have highlighted, hopefully you don't get too many big injuries.

Obviously its a good article, he's a journo for Christ's sake :P

Whereas Im just an aspiring one. :P

[Memphistopheles]

Awesome write up Memph! great read. :)

I can see the Dolphins causing a few problems this year... particularly in the finals with captain GAJ pumping out 180+. Hopefully he has a quiet one when you're up against the Bears. ;)

Obviously the forward line is the main worry with McGlynn/Betts/Stokes rotating at F4. The depth is also very thin as you have highlighted, hopefully you don't get too many big injuries.

Thanks. Putting my skills to use in the AXV's.

Anyone know how to align the text in a post here so it doesn't go past the right-hand edge of the photo like in my latest post. I tried to figure it out but couldn't.

Our forwards are a bit of a worry though I'll back in Lewis, Porplyzia and McGlynn to nail down their spots and i think the last spot is between Betts, Stokes and Dickson. They won't be the greatest scorers but should do alright.

Mid depth is a bit shaky now that Lower is tagging :@ and Rosa is out with injury. Though Corey should be back, Jackson looked good and Zaha should avoid the vest in future weeks.

But, def is my main worry. Wright spudded it, Vlastuin didn't play and Toovey and Blake won't always do so well. Brennan as D3 not great either. Tried to get Taylor off the Crocodiles to no avail in the trade period. And add in Enright and Adcock and that's literally all I have from a defence standpoint. Actually no wait Patfull played on the weekend as well.

Also whatlez I didn't realise all the topics has XVS in front of it when I started it and only noticed now you've pointed it out. How do you change a topic title? If so I can change it.

[Toga]

Think you just edit the OP there Memph, and then change the subject to: "AXV: Taiwan Dolphins" :)

[Memphistopheles]

Think you just edit the OP there Memph, and then change the subject to: "AXV: Taiwan Dolphins" :)

Thanks - done!

[Justin Bieber]

Yay it looks good now :)

[Toga]

Think you just edit the OP there Memph, and then change the subject to: "AXV: Taiwan Dolphins" :)

Thanks - done!

No worries Memph - looks good! :D

[Memphistopheles]

AFTER a strong opening round performance the Taiwan Dolphins came crashing back down to earth against the Turkey Gazelles in their round two home clash at the Kerr-ching National Stadium.
Captain Gary Ablett Junior put in a lethargic performance which was matched by many of his team-mates as the Dolphins slumped to a disappointing 281 point defeat.
For the second week in a row the Dolphins found themselves ahead early in the game however, relentless pressure from Gazelles took its toll and they were unable to maintain their advantage.
Taiwan's head coach Memphistopheles said the Gazelles deserved full credit for the victory and had outplayed the Dolphins went it counted.
"Their captain Jobe Watson was simply inspirational for them and he had strong support from their other experienced players in Chapman, Cox, Grima and Shaw," he said.
"This is where we came up short - we didn't get much out of our senior guys or much support from our younger lads like we did last week and they just overran us in the second half.
"AFL is a team game and you need all of your players contributing if you want to succeed. I'll be having a word to some of the guys that let us down this week at training about how they can better contribute to the team."
The highlight for the Dolphins was the return to fitness of David Zaharakis who had 26 disposals and 8 marks on his way to scoring 119 SportsBet points, one of just four Dolphins to do so.
Zaharakis looks set to be a key player for Taiwan if he can stay on the park and with this in mind he was subbed out of the match once the Dolphins chances of winning were over to preserve his body for the rest of the season.
Rory Sloane also hit form after a poor start to the season and showed he deserves a second chance at the vice-captaincy after Jordan Lewis took his spot for the match against the Gazelles.
The Dolphins are now 11th on the ladder following the loss and this week travel to Kathmandu to face arch rivals the Eskimos who are on a high following an impressive away win against the UAE Tigers.
"This is a danger game for us - on paper we have a better team but they showed last week just how dangerous they can be," Memphistopheles said.
"We will have to work out how to stop the Eskimos' in-form midfield if we want to take home the points. This is a game where everyone needs to step up, especially our captain and senior players."