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van Rooyen and Turner to the backline?

WERRIDEE
in Melbourne Demons

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They have both done nothing up forward, time to see what they do down back. Play May and Petty forward. We have nothing up forward it's our major weakness. Fritsch has gone AWOL

and van Rooyen and Turner are both young and seem to be natural backmen. Good idea or do we allow Goody to take us even further backwards?

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    The way we get it up forward is our major weakness.

    Put our forwards infront of a capable midfield whose first option isn't to bomb it in as fast as possible and they'd be doing just fine.

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    6 minutes ago, JTR said:

    The way we get it up forward is our major weakness.

    Put our forwards infront of a capable midfield whose first option isn't to bomb it in as fast as possible and they'd be doing just fine.

    Firstly,  Silly thread but I’lll bite as cortisol still through the roof and am in the mood for doom scrolling.

    Our delivery inside 50 is still problematic but it is a bit of chicken or egg situation. Forwards don’t lead because midfielders don’t kick it to them, so forwards stay deep and hence mids kick it long to the square all the time so the forwards stay there reinforcing the behaviour.

    Now if we they both don’t change at the same time then it’s only natural to go back to what you know is safe.


     

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    Basic footy 101.  What we need to happen (mids connecting with forwards) was a common practice endeavour 50 years ago ... or further back

    A midfielder streams out of the middle and passes the ball to a forward on the lead.  Sounds simple and of course it is simple

    So why is this simple practice looked upon as somehow being a difficult assignment? 

    To go from bombing it long to passing to a forward should be a simple instruction.  it's not rocket science

    I'm wondering that this might be a communication issue ... maybe it's a mixed message with the added bit being locking the ball in the forward line

    Or maybe our mids are so used to bombing it long that they can't change.  Muscle- memory too strong?

     

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    Petty may have had the worst key forward season ever per games played last year so if he's the answer it's a terrifying question.

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    I doubt it's a wise step to take, especially unsettling young players already struggling for consistency.

    I will say though, Disco was drafted as an intercept defender and excelled in that role in the VFL and early in his AFL career. 

    JVR played mostly, and excelled, as a defender at underage level. He had 2-3 games up forward and we drafted him with the hope he'd make it as a forward based off those few games.

    Neither are natural forwards. We're building a forward line around talls who aren't natural forwards and it shows IMO. JVR mistimes his leads, runs under the ball, rarely holds marks etc. Disco doesn't know where to lead and is rarely involved.

    Jefferson appears a natural forward, but isn't up to the level yet. List management has been poor the last few years IMO and we've failed to address a key shortcoming.

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    I'm pretty confident Turner will end up as a defender. And I think he may need to return there sooner than many of us expect. But probably not in the next few weeks. 

    Van Rooyen? No. 

    The list management team need to go tall crazy in the coming drafts. 

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    Turner should be returned to defence. I do like the idea of May playing forward this year. 

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    17 minutes ago, The Taciturn Demon said:

    I'm pretty confident Turner will end up as a defender. And I think he may need to return there sooner than many of us expect. But probably not in the next few weeks. 

    Van Rooyen? No. 

    The list management team need to go tall crazy in the coming drafts. 

    No they don’t they need to keep selecting elite runners and ball users. We have to keep improving our skill set. 

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    Or do what the good teams do and clear space up forward for JVR to run at the ball and at worst get it to the smalls at ground level if he drops it.

    Jefferson broke his hand because three of them ran at the same ball and fell over eachother. Like the opposite of the old Chip/Rivers/Garland three handed spoil.

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    Turner maybe but JVR will be fine...would like to see Kozzie and Milkshake back in forward line though and maybe Kolt and Trac kicking around too...not sure if Fritsch is up to it right now in fact I'm sure he isn't but will the coach send a message???

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    7 hours ago, JTR said:

    The way we get it up forward is our major weakness.

    Put our forwards infront of a capable midfield whose first option isn't to bomb it in as fast as possible and they'd be doing just fine.

    That is one of the biggest issues to solve.

    Are we being coached to bomb it in quickly, or are our forwards just not leading and making space.

    Then when we have a set shot, it would be helpful to at least kick the AFL average.

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    5 minutes ago, Pirlo said:

    Or do what the good teams do and clear space up forward for JVR to run at the ball and at worst get it to the smalls at ground level if he drops it.

    Jefferson broke his hand because three of them ran at the same ball and fell over eachother. Like the opposite of the old Chip/Rivers/Garland three handed spoil.

    Poor Jeffo :( I wonder how long he'll be out for...

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    2 minutes ago, Young Angus said:

    Poor Jeffo :( I wonder how long he'll be out for...

    That injury was vey unfortunate and robbed him of a chance to have a run at it.

    He looked to me to be crying and that is fully understandable.

    Edited by Redleg

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    Turner kicked a difficult goal from the pocket in the 2nd qtr I think, we have players that miss from directly in front. Whilst Fritsch laid 0 tackles yesterday which is unacceptable he like Turner would be better suited to an attacking game plan with quick ball movement. 
     

    Trade for Leek Aleer, he’s only 23 years old, Petty is 25, leaving Turner and JVR up fwd.

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    Absolutely not.

    Well maybe Turner but we do not have that luxury as yet.

    And the high hopes for Jvr to be another champion chf are fading fast.

    I don't think putting him the ruck last year helped his form and confidence. 

    As for Disco he's a lovely shot at goal but i think we are messing him around too by playing him in a position he's not really suited for.

    Id certainly try May fwd but we tried Petty there and it didn't work in the slightest.

    Here's an idea Mfc, rather than having to keep trialling players in positions they are not suitable for, how about simply recruiting some who are?

     

    Edited by leave it to deever

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    Yeah-nah. Jack Billings is the man for full forward. And we should never have traded Sam Frost, JJ, Hunt, Harmsy and big Grundy.

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    i've said it before on this forum so I will say it again.

    Fritsch kicked 6 goals from the square in a GF. Put him back there and find homes for JvR and Disco around him and let him be the target.

    I went to GWS and Fritsch looked lost without a home. I thankfully missed a docklands thrashing but I assume he was nowhere near the square.

    GO DEES

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    24 minutes ago, tiers said:

    i've said it before on this forum so I will say it again.

    Fritsch kicked 6 goals from the square in a GF. Put him back there and find homes for JvR and Disco around him and let him be the target.

    I went to GWS and Fritsch looked lost without a home. I thankfully missed a docklands thrashing but I assume he was nowhere near the square.

    GO DEES

    Wouldn't have made a difference. They played a spare back, Charlie Comben who marked everything with a match high 12 Intercept possessions. He would have had more if we played Fritta deep square for as many 2v1's as he liked. But in general, that tactic rarely works these days unless the game opens up and you win clearance to get the ball in quickly like the rare occasion in the GF.

    They tried to play Trac out of the square in the third quarter and North's zone type set up meant they could come help on every entry that went his way.

    Edited by Young Blood

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    24 minutes ago, Young Blood said:

    Wouldn't have made a difference. They played a spare back, Charlie Comben who marked everything with a match high 12 Intercept possessions. He would have had more if we played Fritta deep square for as many 2v1's as he liked. But in general, that tactic rarely works these days unless the game opens up and you win clearance to get the ball in quickly like the rare occasion in the GF.

    They tried to play Trac out of the square in the third quarter and North's zone type set up meant they could come help on every entry that went his way.

    Spare back? Isn’t it 666 at centre bounces?

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    10 hours ago, leave it to deever said:

    Absolutely not.

    Well maybe Turner but we do not have that luxury as yet.

    And the high hopes for Jvr to be another champion chf are fading fast.

    I don't think putting him the ruck last year helped his form and confidence. 

    As for Disco he's a lovely shot at goal but i think we are messing him around too by playing him in a position he's not really suited for.

    Id certainly try May fwd but we tried Petty there and it didn't work in the slightest.

    Here's an idea Mfc, rather than having to keep trialling players in positions they are not suitable for, how about simply recruiting some who are?

     

    So Turner and Petty are backs who shouldn’t play forward but May, who is far and away our best and most accomplished back, is a back who should play forward…..right got it!

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    2 minutes ago, Roost it far said:

    So Turner and Petty are backs who shouldn’t play forward but May, who is far and away our best and most accomplished back, is a back who should play forward…..right got it!

     

    May used to be a fwd and if your happy to try Petty there, then why not. 

    Well mainly because we tried Petty there and it simply didn't work. I think I'm fair it calling that out. I'm sure most would agree he didn't do well playing fwd.

    And as for Turner, I said well maybe. I was non committal because I saw my own double standard.

    But again mainly because of Petty not doing well there. He averaged less than a goal a game and why he played the odd good game, they were well and truly far and few between.

    May is different to those two. He is much stronger and unlikely to get moved out of position. I believe we need someone that can take a few pack marks given the way we bomb it in.

    i wasn't having a go at you.

    Apologies if it seemed gruff.

    Cheers.

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    On 24/03/2025 at 09:05, Queanbeyan Demon said:

    Yeah-nah. Jack Billings is the man for full forward. And we should never have traded Sam Frost, JJ, Hunt, Harmsy and big Grundy.

    Your humour is about as good as a politician’s in Canberra ie 

    humourless 

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