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Port used Bergman on Cameron, an inspired choice. Matching his speed is probably more important than his height.

We’ve got some tricky choices down back:

Tomlinson - Hawkins
May - Cameron
Hibbo - Rohan
Lever - Henry/intercepting and not get turned around by crafty smalls?

Or do we go:

May - Hawkins
Hibbo/Rivers - Cameron/Rohan
Tomlinson - Henry
Lever - smalls

The Cats showed in the first quarter their crumbers are deadly and Rohan is super dangerous if he gets one on ones out of stoppages.

The midfield and forwards have to get pressure or we’ll be in trouble with a bigger slower backline.

Which means we also have to move the ball well enough to get in position to pressure. You can’t pressure bad turnovers, especially with the way the Cats go in to their uncontested kicking game.

Port are so good at switching and using the corridor and it opened the cats backline right up. We don’t have the same run and skills so we’ll have to muscle them at the contest and make smart decisions under pressure. Would be nice to have peak Clarry, I’m worried he’ll be rusty and wasteful. 


On 6/12/2023 at 11:06 AM, adonski said:

IN: Oliver, Petty

OUT: Spargo, Smith

Big SparGod fan but Chandler presents more upside. ANBs photographic collection of Goody ensures he remains in the 22, too.

Smith unlucky

Might be Charlie as he was subbed before 3/4 time. Let Smithyvstst he was handier than I thought. It's an X factor if he can do better than a small forward with goals and tackles and Kossie  fills in the gaps as the small it's a win win.

Also gives us a roaming presence in a good marking type who can go back  if necessary. But he must produce or perish.

16 minutes ago, layzie said:

Genuinely hope the guy is alright. 

Im sure hell come good ..but his season is/surely in doubt.

Best he rest/recouperate and Id suggest some family time. 

 

Ok that sounds horrible and I will make no further jokes about him being out for our game. Speedy recovery to him. Internal injuries are no joke. 

 

 

16 minutes ago, DeeSpencer said:

Port used Bergman on Cameron, an inspired choice. Matching his speed is probably more important than his height.

We’ve got some tricky choices down back:

Tomlinson - Hawkins
May - Cameron
Hibbo - Rohan
Lever - Henry/intercepting and not get turned around by crafty smalls?

Or do we go:

May - Hawkins
Hibbo/Rivers - Cameron/Rohan
Tomlinson - Henry
Lever - smalls

The Cats showed in the first quarter their crumbers are deadly and Rohan is super dangerous if he gets one on ones out of stoppages.

The midfield and forwards have to get pressure or we’ll be in trouble with a bigger slower backline.

Which means we also have to move the ball well enough to get in position to pressure. You can’t pressure bad turnovers, especially with the way the Cats go in to their uncontested kicking game.

Port are so good at switching and using the corridor and it opened the cats backline right up. We don’t have the same run and skills so we’ll have to muscle them at the contest and make smart decisions under pressure. Would be nice to have peak Clarry, I’m worried he’ll be rusty and wasteful. 

Cameron is the key matchup. He is one of the best link up players and can do a lot of damage assisting and on the scoreboard. Hibbo probably has the strength and agility to match, but Scott can easily exploit his fitness by trying to drag him higher up the ground. 

The other player is Myers. I think Rivers is the right match up for him.

We have the ascendancy in the midfield and need to use the ball better going inside 50. 

When Port ramped up the pressure (which they played full 4 quarters against us), Cats were useless. That is the blueprint.


1 hour ago, Go the Biff said:

Geelong advises cracked rib and partially collapsed lung. Returning by road rather than flying 

That’s really nasty.

10 minutes ago, Redleg said:

Cruel woman.

I said this BEFORE I realized how severe his injury was!

As AF said a few posts ago, that Max is being blocked in the marking contests regularly, without free kicks. He is also often belted, when trying to mark, again without free kicks.

The umpires ignored 3 blocks against the Pies and yet a touch on the opposition sees a soft free kick goal, too often for it not be a direction and more than just coincidence.

At any other club his Coach would be screaming and as we don’t seem to publicly, I hope we are privately to the Umpiring department.

2 minutes ago, Jaded No More said:

I said this BEFORE I realized how severe his injury was!

I realized that and deleted my post.

Edited by Redleg


15 minutes ago, Redleg said:

As AF said a few posts ago, that Max is being blocked in the marking contests regularly, without free kicks. He is also often belted, when trying to mark, again without free kicks.

The umpires ignored 3 blocks against the Pies and yet a touch on the opposition sees a soft free kick goal, too often for it not be a direction and more than just coincidence.

At any other club his Coach would be screaming and as we don’t seem to publicly, I hope we are privately to the Umpiring department.

We also need to block better for Max. Every long bomb kick out to Max should start with a small sitting between Max and his opponent to buy him space.

27 minutes ago, Gawndy the Great said:

Cameron is the key matchup. He is one of the best link up players and can do a lot of damage assisting and on the scoreboard. Hibbo probably has the strength and agility to match, but Scott can easily exploit his fitness by trying to drag him higher up the ground. 

The other player is Myers. I think Rivers is the right match up for him.

 

I’d use Hibbo and Rivers on Cameron interchangeably. Hibbo when close to goal, Rivers when he goes up. Just need some talk and handovers. 

The half backs on Miers have to play him tight that’s for sure and our deeper defenders have to be aware that he’s consistently looking for the around the body short. Don’t sag off your man, force him to kick longer. I suspect they’ll try to get him and Close losing Lever up the ground and turning him around. Lever hopefully is moving better than he was at the end of the Pies game where we had 2022 hobbly Jake make a comeback. 

The Cats forwards are so smart, well coaches, cohesive and organised. They can be getting out played but keep scoring

It seems I’m one of the few people here that doesn’t mind Dangerfield. Hope he recovers well. 

23 minutes ago, DeeSpencer said:

I’d use Hibbo and Rivers on Cameron interchangeably. Hibbo when close to goal, Rivers when he goes up. Just need some talk and handovers. 

The half backs on Miers have to play him tight that’s for sure and our deeper defenders have to be aware that he’s consistently looking for the around the body short. Don’t sag off your man, force him to kick longer. I suspect they’ll try to get him and Close losing Lever up the ground and turning him around. Lever hopefully is moving better than he was at the end of the Pies game where we had 2022 hobbly Jake make a comeback. 

The Cats forwards are so smart, well coaches, cohesive and organised. They can be getting out played but keep scoring

I'm really interested in who McVee gets assigned to. 

Dangerfield cops a lot for being a flopper and acting like he’s been mortally wounded, but to play out the game with a punctured lung would have been incredibly painful. He’s obviously tougher than he gets credit for.


It's hard to move the ball down the ground at Kardinia. Last year we got stuck down their end for large parts of the game. Clearances and centre clearances are crucial.

3 hours ago, jnrmac said:

So last year we were comprehensively outcoached by Scott.  Geelong had Stanley take the ruck and move back to help the defence. Blix tagged Tracc effectively and every time May kicked to Gawn the left side three Cat players would jump into his back. In addition around the ground they smashed Gawn whenever they could - a bit like Port Adelaide tried to do.

So my question to all you strategists out there is what will we do to deal with that or counter that?

We need to make the ground bigger to defend. They only had to clog up the left wing last year and we just kicked the ball high into their defensive press from the kick in. We need to use a combination of short kicks and then be unpredictable, take the 45 into the corridor or switch to the right hand wing to exit. This will force them to spread their zone and defend the whole ground.

We know how to enter our forward 50 against these guys, just lower our eyes and look for the short kick or go long but ensure we halve the contest. The latter approach can work fine as long as our defensive press comes in right behind the kick.

Someone has already mentioned a solution to the Max problem if we are going to go down the left wing but no amount of blocking is going to give us a mark or possession if 3/4 of their team is positioned between the middle of the ground and that left boundary line. They know exactly how that play is going to look, we have to force them to defend the whole ground.

 
6 hours ago, beelzebub said:

Tend to agree..  Just the one change really.

Clarry for Spargo.

These old kitties wont have time to lick their wounds before we seal their season. 

Let Operation: Chris Scotts Head Explodes...commence.

Elegantly posited beezlebub. Agree about Clarry for Spargo as the other smalls seem capable of making a greater contribution (I hope one of them can mark Close).

Kitties will be licking their wounds; against Port, they ran out of legs and alternatives to their modus seen in the first quarter.

The title of your recommended Operation is quite apt; it most certainly is time for it to commence - haven't seen it for at least a year. Umpires will be factor - right across the game but I hope that they do not change the rules in the last quarter like they did in our match against The Filth.


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