No Clark, No Dawes, No Hogan. Rucks under-done.

No. 4 should play forward.

We lose an experimental midfielder for one week. Small price.

We need to straighten up. Watts is the logical choice.

Don't think Roos will revert him to his old position straight after spending a whole preseason teaching him to be a midfielder.

Hmmmmmmm--mm--mm-nn-nnnnnnn-no

Pedo, Fitz and Howe will be the forward targets. That's all we got ATM.

No Clark, No Dawes, No Hogan. Rucks under-done.

No. 4 should play forward.

We lose an experimental midfielder for one week. Small price.

We need to straighten up. Watts is the logical choice.

Watts has straightened up a side all of about 2 maybe 3 times in the best part of 50 games as a forward.

I hate to say it but Pedersen is a better option in terms of a guy who can make a contest down the line. Fitzy as the close to goal forward. Howe as the guy who hopefully gets a lot of ball.

Bail, Toumpas, Byrnes, JKH whoever the half forwards are will have to be leading well, kicked to accurately and mark strongly. If the midfield can't over come a saints midfield minus 3 of their best 4 players then we don't deserve to win regardless of who is forward.

Pedo, Fitz and Howe will be the forward targets. That's all we got ATM.

Plus Gawn resting in pocket

Don't mind the idea to be honest.

I'm sure Roos is onto something anyways both for now (this season) and the future. he seems to not be the man to be taken by surprise by things very often.

Watts possibly has to go forward in order for us to win this game (against the Saints). At the moment, he's our 7th or 8th choice midfielder in an unproven midfield so are we really going to giving up that much? We might need to kick about 15-16 goals in order to win the game.

Jack is ahead of both Fitzy and Pedersen both in terms of goal kicking ability and being used as a target. Howe is better suited as the 3rd or 4th forward.

The circumstances have changed dramatically from when the concept of Watts moving into the midfield was mooted. Two of Clark, Dawes and Hogan were almost certainly being penned in for round 1. Possibly all 3.

Right now, Jack's best position is that of a utility or a kind of "swingman" so him playing a role in the forward line (for now) is not that much of an issue. Roos is also known for his flexibility so I'd be surprised if it hasn't at least crossed his mind.

There's plenty of time for Watts to learn how to be a decent midfielder and for what it's worth, I reckon it's an admirable idea that I fully support. But it's all about the here and now - we need to find a way to win.

There's nothing wrong with a change of plans - especially when the circumstances are extraordinary.

Edited March 16, 201411 yr by Macca

This will have to be done diligently. We need another target, that's obvious, but he stayed with us because he wanted to be a midfielder
I think he should start in the midfield and the end result could suit us.

- Say if he plays poorly in the midfield, he would understand being moved and want to prove himself.
- if he sees first hand how the forward line is dearly struggling, he wouldn't object to being moved
- If he plays well... don't stop him.

Watts has a role, has prepared for it over the summer and should be left to carry it out.

Pedo worked himself into the ground providing options against Richmond, he has trained recently with the forwards and deserves the crack.

Fitzy has a chance to make FF/ replacement ruck his own. Love to see a defender stop a pass from Watts to Fitzy at pace.

Add in Howe and our forward line has enough height to stretch the Saints.

Watts is not a tall forward. It aint his job

Let's worry about fixing our forward line next season. We've cultivated a great relationship with GWS's list managers and we can probably work out something with them (who knows, maybe Patton will want to come home -- they might have an abundance of upcoming talent at GWS, but they'll struggle to resign them all for unders when cashed up Victorian clubs start luring players).

The most important thing this year is letting Roosy's gameplan settle into players' heads without switching around player's roles. They need consistency and they need to know their job. Half the reason we've been so abysmal for years is because we had no clear direction from a poor coaching division, and the gameplan (if you can call it that) was a haphazard mess.

Obviously the forward line will need to be fixed in the next off-season if we can't get the injuries sorted, so let's just bed in the new midfield and gameplan for now and get consistency into the playing group. Then next year it's more about refining each player's skills and their role in the team, rather than still trying to teach them what their role is.

Rather lose the game than the plan.

Haven't we seen enough of quick fixes?

Watts must play the role he has trained for. If we are desperate for height in the forward line, a certain Maximus Gawnius fits the bill....

First thing you need from your tall forward is to provide a contest.

Let's worry about fixing our forward line next season. We've cultivated a great relationship with GWS's list managers and we can probably work out something with them (who knows, maybe Patton will want to come home -- they might have an abundance of upcoming talent at GWS, but they'll struggle to resign them all for unders when cashed up Victorian clubs start luring players).

The most important thing this year is letting Roosy's gameplan settle into players' heads without switching around player's roles. They need consistency and they need to know their job. Half the reason we've been so abysmal for years is because we had no clear direction from a poor coaching division, and the gameplan (if you can call it that) was a haphazard mess.

Obviously the forward line will need to be fixed in the next off-season if we can't get the injuries sorted, so let's just bed in the new midfield and gameplan for now and get consistency into the playing group. Then next year it's more about refining each player's skills and their role in the team, rather than still trying to teach them what their role is.

That is a recipe for another 15 - 18 belting's this year.

I thought we ditched the "Watts as a tall-forward" in 2010?

Hawthorn are going to play Rioli back so they get a player with ball in his hands that can guide through the "gridlock" that is going to happen this year. Watts is our bloke with the silky skills to do that and accurately hit targets forward. He plays wing/outside mid - no change there

Anyone see Watt's most recent home and away game.

Kicked 4.0 as a key forward at Etihad.

Repeat that effort on Saturday night and we may sneak over the line.

I can't see Fitzpatrick or Pedersen kicking more than 1 goal each.

I'm confident this will only happen if we aren't comfortably winning at half time.

At least we can blame Watts if we don't kick enough goals.

He is the best set shot in the competition so it's not a bad idea.

Plus we will get to see him crash packs and "rag doll" a few saints like we know he will.

If he doesn't get the pill we can start a "sack Jack" thread so me and Hannibal are all for it.

We require a KPF, not just someone who is tall.

He has his new role, we have depth players at KPF - namely Fitzpatrick and Pedersen.

I still think his best position will be high HFF pushing into the midfield and I think this will be the role he plays this weekend

We require a KPF, not just someone who is tall.

He has his new role, we have depth players at KPF - namely Fitzpatrick and Pedersen.

We are truly in the poo for a KPF if we have to go this low rpfc

No Clark, No Dawes, No Hogan. Rucks under-done.

No. 4 should play forward.

We lose an experimental midfielder for one week. Small price.

We need to straighten up. Watts is the logical choice.

Yep play a Pagans paddock with Howe and Watts with the Hyphen at their feet!