My thoughts on our gameplan / direction - agree? disagree?

[Rhino Richards 1,467]

Do you honestly believe that any team has/should have 17 different game plans?

Positional changes does not a plan B make.

Correct.

I think the poster may think there is a game plan for every letter of the alphabet. B)

[John Crow Batty 8,880]

Game plans are formulated by professional and experienced ex footballers. So on paper most will work if executed properly with the right structure and with a bit of luck. (An unnatural bounce of the ball may have cost St Kilda the flag in the dying stages of the first GF this season). There are too many variables influencing which will eventually work the best or not. But in the end it is a mathematical certainty that only one will deliver ultimate success every season.

One ingredient every good game plan needs to have is the ability to be flexible to suit all kinds of oppositions and conditions.

[Summer Blease 0]

Game plans are formulated by professional and experienced ex footballers. So on paper most will work if executed properly with the right structure and with a bit of luck. (An unnatural bounce of the ball may have cost St Kilda the flag in the dying stages of the first GF this season). And there are too many variables influencing which will eventually work the best or not. But in the end it is a mathematical certainty that only one will taste ultimate success every season.

One ingredient every good game plan needs to have is the ability to be flexible to suit all kinds of oppositions and conditions.

Do you think confidence is the tangible factor in all of this? Without confidence plan A to Z, or even 17 plans would be useless.

[John Crow Batty 8,880]

Confidence is just one of the variables that influence the execution of game plans. One could add attitude, injuries, weather condtions, interstate games and numerous other factors both negative and advantageous that can have an uncontrolable influence on game plan execution.

[e25 5]

Correct.

I think the poster may think there is a game plan for every letter of the alphabet. B)

It would make a nice acrostic poem.

[e25 5]

Do you think confidence is the tangible factor in all of this? Without confidence plan A to Z, or even 17 plans would be useless.

I think what you're trying to get at is familiarity.

Being able to implement the plan on instinct and knowing it will work if implemented properly.

Confidence is just one of the variables that influence the execution of game plans. One could add attitude, injuries, weather condtions, interstate games and numerous other factors both negative and advantageous that can have an uncontrolable influence on game plan execution.

How the opposition sets up and tries to inhibit your gameplan is more of an influencing factor.

[Akum 2,660]

Collingwood & Geelong are made up of players who were initially ordinary (low draft picks) one-on-one but who blossomed once a style of play was put into place that made up for their one-on-one deficiencies. Their game plan relies on creating a loose man and on concentrating the forces in one part of the ground (corridor for Geelong, flanks for Pies), and on avoiding one-on-one contests as much as possible.

In the second half of the first Grannie the Saints (who have a number of high draft picks) managed to make the Pies accountable one-on-one and were able to get on top and show the Pies up to be quite ordinary when each player is made accountable (Malthouse was ready for this in the replay and countered it very well). That's basically what we did to the Pies this year (and failed to do in 2009), aided admittedly by a relative lack of intensity and some poor kicking for goal on their part.

With all our high draft picks, we have an opportunity to create a game plan that's even harder to counter, and we will be very difficult to beat if opponents try to man us up one-on-one. That doesn't guarantee success, of course, but the opportunity is certainly there to build a team that's much better than the current & recent premiers.

[John Crow Batty 8,880]

I think what you're trying to get at is familiarity.

Being able to implement the plan on instinct and knowing it will work if implemented properly.

How the opposition sets up and tries to inhibit your gameplan is more of an influencing factor.

How the opposition sets up we can't control but need to counter. A good game plan with flexibility should address this issue. It is important to consider that all the match day variables apply to them also.

[Harrisonrules 273]

Do you honestly believe that any team has/should have 17 different game plans?

Positional changes does not a plan B make.

Coaching from a box or from the bench - the real coaching occurs on the track. And I have seen steady improvement for years now.

I don't know whether Bailey will only ever be an 'assistance coach' but he definitely isn't a junior coach.

Let's wait for failure to be disappointed, hey fellas?

I know how we all like to be on the ground floor when we turn sh!te.

17 other teams sir.

Game plan plus positional changes

Junior in terms of other experienced coaches

Lets not wait, lets keep abreast of the current state

[DeeSpencer 26,269]

Things I like about our game plan:

1. Defensive first

2. Quick ball movement

3. Down the guts

Things I don't like:

Not enough forward pressure. We don't seem to have an effective tight zone, and so we give up I50's and lose that stat more weeks than we should. In this was we are StKilda like. How the saints played the pies in GF 1 was very like how we've played them this year.

Interestingly though you have to concede something whilst you are losing games (ie. there is a hidden aspect of a game plan that only comes together when you win). StKilda are a low scoring side atm, but really they do score, remember when Lyon first took them over - they could barely score. Geelong were different, they were regarded as too handball happy. Collingwood were written off as never been able to win a flag as they went via the boundary. Hawthorn - well no one really had a clue what they were doing until it worked.

[Rogue 585]

Things I don't like:

Not enough forward pressure. We don't seem to have an effective tight zone, and so we give up I50's and lose that stat more weeks than we should. In this was we are StKilda like. How the saints played the pies in GF 1 was very like how we've played them this year.

Interestingly though you have to concede something whilst you are losing games (ie. there is a hidden aspect of a game plan that only comes together when you win). StKilda are a low scoring side atm, but really they do score, remember when Lyon first took them over - they could barely score.

In the replay the Saints had no forward structure. Too often they were all getting sucked up the ground, leaving no one to kick to - us at our worst. While the Saints might have been able to prevent many of Collingwood's forays forward, the ball came back pretty regularly because of the problems up forward.

We are lazy and only seem to put in if we think it's a milestone game like Neita's 300th or Collingwood on QB. When the boys are on their game they play a great brand of football but as Mick Malthouse said some time ago, you shouldn't need a special occasion to get the best out of you the 4 points each week should be incentive enough.

We lose plenty of milestone games.

[Sir Why You Little 37,302]

Hawthorn - well no one really had a clue what they were doing until it worked.

I am still trying to actually work out Hawthorns Gameplan from 2008!!! It worked but it certainly was a mess!!!!

[rpfc 28,901]

I am still trying to actually work out Hawthorns Gameplan from 2008!!! It worked but it certainly was a mess!!!!

It was an extensive basketball-like zone in defence. Which stretched beyond 50m from the ball so you couldn't kick your way out of it.

All you need to do to beat it is practice handballing and be bold and risky, and confident in your own ability.

[Sir Why You Little 37,302]

It was an extensive basketball-like zone in defence. Which stretched beyond 50m from the ball so you couldn't kick your way out of it.

All you need to do to beat it is practice handballing and be bold and risky, and confident in your own ability.

Yes i know, but from ground level viewing it was just a mess

Although watching Hawthorn in that Brown & Gold attire is always a mess!!!!

[Mad_Melbourne 877]

melbournes game plan is

- defensively based, which i think is the key to granfinal success. (frawley, rivers, garland, grimes, bartram)

- not based upon one goal kicker, which is also key to grandfinal succes (future, jurrah, dunn, watts, aussie, bennell, and midfielders, even garland, morton and grimes sneak a cheeky goal)

- based on hard running, (bail, tom scully, trengove, will be important links)

- accurate disposal, but i think it is based more upon kicking accuracy than handball running,(which is why grimes and garland will play a massive role coming out of our backline, same with morton possibly)

your write up was pretty accurate :D

[rpfc 28,901]

melbournes game plan is

- defensively based, which i think is the key to granfinal success. (frawley, rivers, garland, grimes, bartram)

- not based upon one goal kicker, which is also key to grandfinal succes (future, jurrah, dunn, watts, aussie, bennell, and midfielders, even garland, morton and grimes sneak a cheeky goal)

- based on hard running, (bail, tom scully, trengove, will be important links)

- accurate disposal, but i think it is based more upon kicking accuracy than handball running,(which is why grimes and garland will play a massive role coming out of our backline, same with morton possibly)

your write up was pretty accurate :D

TBH, I didn't see much defining of our gameplan in the OP.

And your post is basically listing the 'requirements' of the gameplan rather than the strategy itself.

I could dig up a thread from many months (years, probably, we are wasting are lives...) ago, but a few regulars would call me self-indulgent and full of myself.

Who am i kidding? They think that anyway. I might search for it later.

[H_T 3,049]

TBH, I didn't see much defining of our gameplan in the OP.

And your post is basically listing the 'requirements' of the gameplan rather than the strategy itself.

I could dig up a thread from many months (years, probably, we are wasting are lives...) ago, but a few regulars would call me self-indulgent and full of myself.

Who am i kidding? They think that anyway. I might search for it later.

You reckon ?

The Game Plan

Self indulgent I know.

Here is another of recent times (post season): -

Plan A/ Plan B - favourite thread - How is the game plan holding up ?

[Mad_Melbourne 877]

TBH, I didn't see much defining of our gameplan in the OP.

And your post is basically listing the 'requirements' of the gameplan rather than the strategy itself.

I could dig up a thread from many months (years, probably, we are wasting are lives...) ago, but a few regulars would call me self-indulgent and full of myself.

Who am i kidding? They think that anyway. I might search for it later.

okay maybe my post is more game style... sorry