CHANGES: Rd 03 vs Essendon

[La Dee-vina Comedia 16,381]

22 minutes ago, TheKozzieExperience said:

Excellent.

The Bombers draft about 4 indigenous kids a year trying to find the next Farmer or Mcleod, and they never get it right.. we will show them how its done!

McDonald-Tipingwutu says 'Hi'

[Lord Travis 10,130]

IN: Weideman, Pickett, Lockhart

OUT: Jackson, Smith, Jones

TMac and Melksham on very thin ice and need to lift.

If ANB is dropped, it shows clear favouritism by the coaches. He was far from our worst player on the weekend. Off the top of my head ANB was performed better than Smith, Jones, Melksham, TMac, Jackson, Jetta, Lever. 

On form, Melksham, TMac, Smith, Jackson and Jones don't deserve a game next week. They were all non-contributors. Smith was actually more damaging to us than he was to them, and we would've been better off playing a man down. He was Isaac Weetra level bad on the weekend.

[picket fence 15,036]

6 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

You've  made some good points here.

I am also in the camp of just getting Weideman in and play him for the rest of the year. We have [censored] around with his development and he needs continuity in his game. I am also in the thought of having all 3 of Jackson, Weid, and Mcdonald as our 3 key forward. Jackson to part time ruck which leaves Weideman and McDonald to just focus on being key forwards full time.

I also hate this whole playing Bayley Fritsch from deep full forward. Justin Plapp our forwards coach has a lot to answer to this. He's best utilised as a half forward which his clean kicking skills on display.

Yes Dazzle I FIRMLY BELIEVE WEEDS plays rest of the year and if he improves and kicks goals then he is worth the risk. If , However he plays for minimal return you might look at him as a trade.

Other point re Bailey Fritch is spot on. Also, (and I have been saying this for years who teaches set shot routines in Goal kicking)??iF IT Plapp what is he doing about this aspect? This is not rocket science

1 Hold ball correctly

2 LINE UP A TARGET BEHIND THE GOALS 

3 Practice regimented set shot run routine.

4 Practice lower Ball Drop therefore minimising or eliminating completely margin for error.

5 Watch BALL ONTO BOOT Kick with Taught instep

6 Follow through tragectory watching Flight

ITS THAT SIMPLE

[Pates 9,536]

7 hours ago, Jaded said:

I don't think we can play all 3 of Weideman, Jackson and Tmac, because Fritsch plays as a tall. He is not a ground ball player. It will leave us far too lumbering. As it is, when the ball hits the deck we are stuffed. 

But there is no rush for me with Jackson, whereas Weideman is at an age now where we need to find out if he can really play and be that CHF we are looking for. If he isn't, we need to reinvent him or cut our losses. But he has never played with enough continuity for us to find out. I refuse to believe that someone who played so well under the pressure of finals, does not have the talent to be a good solid player at the very least. And honestly, how many years does TMac have left with his feet? He can barely move as it is. Imagine in 2 seasons! 

We invested a lot into Weideman, and yet we won't invest game time into him. 

My thoughts exactly. Jackson isn’t going anywhere and has a bright future with us, Weids hasn’t had consistency in a single forward role. I’d even be up for TMac moving to a mobile forward role with him being the second ruckman instead of Weids. 

He kicked 5 goals in the scratch match, he has to come in. 

[The Chazz 4,077]

Logic says that;

Out - Jackson, Jones, Smith

In - Weid, Pickett, OMac or Hibberd (the latter two to be determined by match-ups)

Reality says that Goodwin won't drop Jones (emotional choice), Smith (loves him) or Jackson (won't drop him after a week), so I have NFI who will come out for Pickett, who will definitely come in.  Maybe he will drop ANB, given that he came in for Kossie before his brain fart.

[loges 5,988]

3 hours ago, Jaded said:

Play both, then there is no risk that you won't be at least a little disappointed 

I'd prefer to be pleasantly surprised. 

[one_demon 826]

On 6/13/2020 at 8:41 PM, Little Goffy said:

I'm going to say it.  We really missed O'Mac.

That's when you know our defence has problems

[dazzledavey36 48,602]

2 hours ago, TheKozzieExperience said:

Excellent.

The Bombers draft about 4 indigenous kids a year trying to find the next Farmer or Mcleod, and they never get it right.. we will show them how its done!

Welcome Back Petraccattack/Hogans Heros/ Yze Magic ?

[dee-tox 4,767]

Gonna be interesting.

I don't get the love affair Goodwin and others have for Smith. He ain't a footballer and I wonder if he ever will be. Maybe Hibberd comes back.

TMac must be under the pump. Did a few good one percenters but no contested marks or goals and turning circle of the Queen Mary. The Weed is putting his hand up.

Think it's too early for Jackson at this stage. Coaches normally don't drop players after one game but an they'll need to look at this.

Jones had a poor game but I thought he was tagging  for a bit.

ANB was busy and played very well in first half. When the system broke down he seemed to as well.

 

[Lord Nev 13,511]

2 hours ago, Bring-Back-Powell said:

On form Melksham should be dropped. Hasn't fired a shot since the Gold Coast game last year. Disappointing as I really rate him.

Jones had his career worst game on the weekend. Not good signs for an old player such as him.

Having said that, ANB didn't do much in the second half.

Both Jones and Melksham have far more upside than ANB by way of contributing to a win.

ABN's stiff but he was the player to replace Pickett, and will likely make way for him unless they want to make an early season statement like they did with Hibberd.

But do you pick a side on 'upside' or do you base it on form, contribution and effort?

I reckon I know what most successful sides would do.

 

[binman 37,719]

Smith has to stay in. As i posted yesterday it is just plain stupid to bring a young player in and drop him straight away. Hate it. Bad for the player and sends the wrong message to other players, fans and the media. The only time i think it is ok is if they a complete shocker and there is concern another one will smash their confidence. 

Besides he wasn't great but he was by far not our worst player.

Not convinced they should play him as a defender though. I read what Chaplin said about the reasons why they want to play him as a defender. Said it was because  his athleticism gives us flexibility down back and he is less likely to get injured. I get the first part but the second part makes no sense to me. I would have thought he is more likely to get injured down back where he has to contest and tackle all day. But that is by the by.

The problem is it is evident he is not a natural footballer. He has low footy IQ.

In the old days they could put such a player down back. Tell them to stay glued to the hip of their direct opponent and let the forward take them to the ball.

That doesn't work anymore and the defender has to understand systems, zones, body positioning, when to attack, when to stay down etc etc. Kids who have come through the TAC cup system struggle with all that let alone a fella who last played footy as 15 year old.

As a forward his chaos style works much better. See ball. Attack ball. Smash packs. Bring the ball to ground. Take speccies.  He can be more instinctive and his athleticism becomes an attacking weapon. It is this combination of abilities that gives me confidence he can be a player. 

Of course forwards needs craft but i would argue playing forward is less challenging than back in terms of its testing your football IQ. And the risk reward is tipped the wrong way if you don't have that football IQ. Flying for the wrong ball and leaving a player out the back is one example of this we saw on Saturday. But he can sort that.

More concerning is his kicking. Defenders are constantly put under pressure when kicking. Mistakes means goals. Natural defenders know better when and where to kick. And when not to. All that requires experience. Look at Rivers. Not only is he  natural but he has played all his elite junior footy down back. And making things worse Smith is no more than an average field kick.

As a forward he is really hard match up as you need a defender who can match his strength, pace and leap. They have to worry about him. Not vice versa. And like Tmac his kicking is actually really good from set shots. 

[Pates 9,536]

4 minutes ago, binman said:

Smith has to stay in. As i posted yesterday it is just plain stupid to bring a young player in and drop him straight away. Hate it. Bad for the player and sends the wrong message to other players, fans and the media. The only time i think it is ok is if they a complete shocker and there is concern another one will smash their confidence. 

Besides he wasn't great but he was by far not our worst player.

Not convinced they should play him as a defender though. I read what Chaplin said about the reasons why they want to play him as a defender. Said it was because  his athleticism gives us flexibility down back and he is less likely to get injured. I get the first part but the second part makes no sense to me. I would have thought he is more likely to get injured down back where he has to contest and tackle all day. But that is by the by.

The problem is it is evident he is not a natural footballer. He has low footy IQ.

In the old days they could put such a player down back. Tell them to stay glued to the hip of their direct opponent and let the forward take them to the ball.

That doesn't work anymore and the defender has to understand systems, zones, body positioning, when to attack, when to stay down etc etc. Kids who have come through the TAC cup system struggle with all that let alone a fella who last played footy as 15 year old.

As a forward his chaos style works much better. See ball. Attack ball. Smash packs. Bring the ball to ground. Take speccies.  He can be more instinctive and his athleticism becomes an attacking weapon. It is this combination of abilities that gives me confidence he can be a player. 

Of course forwards needs craft but i would argue playing forward is less challenging than back in terms of its testing your football IQ. And the risk reward is tipped the wrong way if you don't have that football IQ. Flying for the wrong ball and leaving a player out the back is one example of this we saw on Saturday. But he can sort that.

More concerning is his kicking. Defenders are constantly put under pressure when kicking. Mistakes means goals. Natural defenders know better when and where to kick. And when not to. All that requires experience. Look at Rivers. Not only is he  natural but he has played all his elite junior footy down back. And making things worse Smith is no more than an average field kick.

As a forward he is really hard match up as you need a defender who can match his strength, pace and leap. They have to worry about him. Not vice versa. And like Tmac his kicking is actually really good from set shots. 

May not have been our worst player but he was our most costly defender. We looked more organised and settled in defence against WC with the trio of OMac, May, and Lever because they all play like defenders, Smith plays like a forward so play him there. I don't know if it's the coaches trying to get too cute but they seem determined to take players who have natural positions that work for them and mould them into something else. Fritch, Harmes, Brayshaw, and now Smith all players that they seem to want to turn into something rather than use their natural gifts.

I don't mind Smith being played again, but we play Smith as a defender and we will lose games. He makes Frost look like a defensive genius.

[stinga 473]

2 hours ago, Lord Travis said:

IN: Weideman, Pickett, Lockhart

OUT: Jackson, Smith, Jones

TMac and Melksham on very thin ice and need to lift.

If ANB is dropped, it shows clear favouritism by the coaches. He was far from our worst player on the weekend. Off the top of my head ANB was performed better than Smith, Jones, Melksham, TMac, Jackson, Jetta, Lever. 

On form, Melksham, TMac, Smith, Jackson and Jones don't deserve a game next week. They were all non-contributors. Smith was actually more damaging to us than he was to them, and we would've been better off playing a man down. He was Isaac Weetra level bad on the weekend.

Agree with all that but differ in the ins/outs.  I'd keep Jackson and Smith (They need at least 2 games to see what they've got)   It was the experienced players you named that let us down. I'd add AVB to the ins and drop TMac, Jetta and Melksham with Jones.  I really like Lockhart.  At least Weideman, Smith and Jackson can jump and go sideways which Tmac can;t.

[dazzledavey36 48,602]

Player review from the scratch match. This is exactly what we want..

https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/706162/the-reserves-practice-match-all-17-players-reviewed

 

[binman 37,719]

22 minutes ago, Pates said:

I don't mind Smith being played again, but we play Smith as a defender and we will lose games. He makes Frost look like a defensive genius.

I have to say there is fair dose of irony trading a defender that whilst athletically gifted, strong and fast is not a natural footballer (and who it must be said is now a pretty good one) and is prone to having very costly brain fades.

And replacing him down back with an athletically gifted, strong and fast bloke who is not a natural footballer and on the evidence of one game prone to having very costly brain fades.

Edited June 15, 2020 by binman

[Lord Nev 13,511]

I know it's only a scratch match, but after reading the report from the club what about Weid and Brown in for Jackson and TMac?

 

[John Demonic 4,780]

5 minutes ago, binman said:

I have to say there is fair dose of irony trading a defender that whilst athletically gifted, strong and fast is not a natural footballer (and who it must be said is now a pretty good one) and is prone to having very costly brain fades.

And replacing him down back with an athletically gifted, strong and fast bloke who is not a natural footballer and on the evidence of one game prone to having very costly brain fades.

Could be a pointer that Frost was only traded because of contract demands and our club simply not being willing to use up cap space, rather than having an illuminated moment that we're too dumb in defense.

[Hellaintabadplacetobe 4,089]

12 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Player review from the scratch match. This is exactly what we want..

https://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/706162/the-reserves-practice-match-all-17-players-reviewed

 

I wouldn't be surprised to see Lockhart promoted next week.

Thought he was stiff to miss out but it was probably only fitness concerns due to limited training.

Edited June 15, 2020 by Hell Bent
Spelling

[dazzledavey36 48,602]

3 minutes ago, Lord Nev said:

I know it's only a scratch match, but after reading the report from the club what about Weid and Brown in for Jackson and TMac?

 

Brown is a lot more agile then Tmac. Problem is hes coming up against two big defenders in Hurley and Hooker who will just out muscle him.

Brown is better off being the 3rd tall forward behind Weid and McDonald. 

[Dee-lusional 187]

 

A team I would like to see.

Couldn't split Jets/ Pig. 

Brown/LJ. Think LJ has had a taste and Brown would want to show Dons what they let slip

AVB/Gus. Think Gus plays best at centre/rover but clarrie is doing it better + Love AVB

Jones to be managed, Smith Out. TMac to be started down back. Weid to be left alone at FF. Milks & Fritt to hit up the leading targets 

 

B	Jetta/PIG		May		Lever
HB	Rivers		T Mac		Salem
C	Langdon		Viney		Thomo
HF	Milks		Brown/LJ		Fritta
F	Hunt		Weid		Pickett
Ruck	Gawn		Clarrie		Tracs
I/C	AVB/Gus	Bennell		Hannon		ANB

[Lord Nev 13,511]

7 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Brown is a lot more agile then Tmac. Problem is hes coming up against two big defenders in Hurley and Hooker who will just out muscle him.

Brown is better off being the 3rd tall forward behind Weid and McDonald. 

Ah yep, that's fair, although not sure TMac has done much since becoming the first forward. Just like what I read from Egan about Brown making the forward line function well. Can't see us rolling with 3 talls in the current format, so I guess I'm just asking if we think Brown and Weid is a potentially better combo than TMac and Jackson?

[John Demonic 4,780]

9 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Brown is a lot more agile then Tmac. Problem is hes coming up against two big defenders in Hurley and Hooker who will just out muscle him.

Brown is better off being the 3rd tall forward behind Weid and McDonald. 

Adel - Tom Lynch link up role? we've really missed any roaming 50m leads and marks on the wing. I can't even recall TMac taking a grab on wing.

Edited June 15, 2020 by John Demonic

[dazzledavey36 48,602]

5 minutes ago, John Demonic said:

Adel - Tom Lynch link up role? we've really missed any roaming 50m leads and marks on the wing. I can't even recall TMac taking a grab on wing.

He played that role really well against Adelaide and North in the praccy match.

[Dee-lusional 187]

Sounds like JJ may be a chance after reading the pracie match report 

[Half forward flank 1,022]

3 hours ago, La Dee-vina Comedia said:

McDonald-Tipingwutu says 'Hi'

Michael Long, gee they have had a few good indigenous players.