Stu

Watching replays of our games from 2021, and the first half of 2022, our forward line was a lot more open than in many games since then. A big reason for this, is teams being coached to sit deep against us. This is for two reasons - knowing we often kicked long to the pockets or top of the square, where TMac, Gawn, and Fritsch could beat their opponents one out. And, that we have very few players who can hit a weighted kick to advantage of a forward in a crowded F50. Previously, teams would push high and our elite running and fitness would allow us to score on the turnover. I clearly remember in the 2022 Mother's Day game against St Kilda, Gawn marking on the wing, kicking to TMac who was leading back to the 50, who then delivered to Ben Brown who was also running back into our F50, who run into an open goal. We seem to never get those types of opportunities due to teams sitting deep against us, and our slow ball movement as a result of players receiving the ball after a turnover looking up and not having many options. One of the tactics we seemed to be trying on Sunday was having the deep forwards stay deep to leave space for half forwards and mids to lead back into. Or, if we get a forward half turnover, for Fritsch or JVR to lead (forward) into. One of the things that I liked on Sunday, was a few times players about to deliver the ball into the F50 just held the ball longer, or turned back and handballed, to give the forwards a moment to make their move, and cast doubt in the defenders mind. If Chaplin can have some success with these strategies, I imagine it will make it much harder for teams to coach against us. If teams start to push up when sitting back no longer works, that plays into the strengths of our full ground press, and our forwards start to get looks at one-on-one contests. Brisbane's small forwards did so well last year because they play a very attacking style. The smalls are in dangerous areas when the ball is kicked to a pack, where if they get the ball they have a good look at goal, but conversely if the fall of the ball is not favourable the opposition will be able to rebound. They also counter attack with wild abandon, which often gives the smalls lots of room to move in the F50. We need to fine a good balance between our overly defensive approach, and the reckless abandon approach the Lions had last year. One kick the wrong way in both the GWS and Cats games and they don't win the flag.

I also loved how our handballs changed angles a lot. Previously, our handballing angles were very predictable and allowed the opposition to close down options. However, yesterday a lot of players managed to pivot their bodies 180 degrees and play the opposite diagonal handball from where the ball came. It opened up the field on a few occasions, and we managed to run the ball up to the F50.

As others have mentioned, Fremantle are a terrific clearance and contest team. So to beat them so resoundingly in clearances, contested possessions etc., was a huge positive for me. I'd have loved for us to kick 3 or 4 goals in the first quarter, because I'm sure the result would have went very differently. But given the wind and the heat, which has been persistent in Perth the last week, it's not surprising Fremantle adapted quicker. It appeared that the coaches tried out some very effective centre bounce plays (sort of like a corner kick set piece routine in soccer), and to my eye to seemed like they were trying not to give too much away in the third quarter once we got back to within 3 goals. That could just be wishful thinking on my part.

Heat is also different in Perth. It gets very hot very early but begins to cool down around 2:30/3 pm. It’s not like Melbourne where the heat peaks at 4/5 pm. By the second half it will be pretty comfortable.

What the other track watchers will do if @Roost it far gets down to training...

It seems that way for all the clubs, and based on reports, we've come through reasonably unscathed (by comparison). I wonder if the AFLPA will be convinced to reduce the xmas break from 3 weeks down to 2 weeks or 10 days. Ultimately, it will benefit the players as it will likely reduce soft tissue injuries.

How many syllables are used to say Prahran...1, 2, or 3? Praaaan? Prah-ran? Pr-ah-ran?

It's also important to consider the ladder position and list age / premiership window for young KPF's that played a lot of first team football (Franklin, Nick Riewoldt, Jack Riewoldt, King brothers). Young players recruited into teams that are performing well, generally have a much harder time getting senior games. Pair that with Hawkins who came into a very successful Cats side, who had to wait for regular games. Shannon Neale on their list is another. Played the last 3 games (dead rubbers) in 2023 (his third year), and then a solid block of games last year (4th year) and averaged 1.5 goals per game. With Hawkins retiring he will likely get regular games next season. Jefferson was emergency for the final 3 games last season, so he was very close to getting an opportunity like Neale, in just his second season. With Ben Brown retiring, and Petty no longer considered a permanent forward, Jefferson will get his opportunities to be the focal point at Casey, and a better platform to push for games in the seniors. If we finish outside the 8 and Jefferson has played 0 games, it isn't a great sign. If we make a prelim or better, and he plays 0 games because our forward line has worked without him, it's much less of an issue.

Not all forwards require JVR's type of aggression and desire for the contest to be successful, just in the same way you need tough in-and-under midfielders, as well as skillful outside players. To my eye, what makes Jefferson different to Weideman and Schache is that (like Fritsch) he knows how to get in positions to receive the ball in a goal-scoring position. He also seems to be more on his toes, able to move away from a contest quickly to receive a handball, or attempt to tackle his opponent. SW or JS either had bad reaction times, or a tendency to rest on their heals (and often a head drop when the first attempt failed). While Jefferson doesn't have JVR's hunger for the contest (not many do), he does have the smarts and reaction times to be a great complement to JVR.

There was a period last year where we had 4 tall forwards in the VFL team, and Jeffo was played in the forward pocket and moved to defence during that period. I recall in games where it was just him and Kentfield as our tall forwards, he looked very good when as the focal point of our attack.

It's a good read, and I highly recommend the Mongrel Punt's content. They're a refreshing change from the news corp / standard AFL industry journalism, so I'm hesitant to share their paid content here, robbing them of revenue. Here are the final 14 (well actually it's 13) questions: 6 – HAVE THE DEES MADE ENOUGH CHANGES TO A FORWARD LINE THAT HAS NOT WORKED? 7 – IS CALEB WINDSOR THE PERFECT RUNNING-MATE FOR ED LANGDON? 8 – HOW HIGHLY DO WE RATE THE YOUNGER DEMON DEFENDERS? 9 – IS BAYLEY FRITSCH THE MOST UNDERRATED FORWARD IN THE GAME 10 – CAN KOZZIE PICKETT HAVE A ‘CYRIL’ TYPE OF YEAR 11 – WHAT DOES A HEALTHY JAKE LEVER DO FOR THE DEES? 12 – IS SIMON GOODWIN UNDER A HEAP OF PRESSURE IF THE DEES ARE OUTSIDE THE TOP EIGHT AT THE BYE? 13 – WHO IS CHECKING INTO THE LAST CHANCE HOTEL IN 2025? 14 – WHO IS THE NEXT BREAKOUT PLAYER AT THE CLUB? 15 – IF THE DEES WERE ONE MOVIE CHARACTER, WHO WOULD THEY BE? 16 - was just missed completely by the writer 17 – ANYTHING TO ADD ON THE DEES, MRS MONGREL? To summarise "I’m predicting a wild ride into the final 4 for the Dees. I’ve never been wrong." 18 – IF YOU COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT THE CLUB, AS A WHOLE, WHAT WOULD IT BE? 19 – WRAPPING UP

Given the amount of sprinting and cardio work prior to the drills, I imagine fatigue played a large part in the turnovers and is a deliberate strategy by the coaching department to teach the players how to make smart decisions and execute properly when fatigued and under pressure.

If we can into February with nothing more than some awareness or strains, that is huge. It means everyone will have a great fitness base that if they do get an injury just before the season starts or during the season, they still have that base to build back from. Much better than trying to build that base during the season because of injury during pre-season.

JVR doesn't lose one-on-one contests, even when he's out of position. Just fights and finds a way to bring the ball to ground.

I'm not sure if you've read the original update re. Mt Scopus and then commented, but there has been a range of information provided by other posters over the last few hours that should allay yours and @Fuchsias Forever's concerns about the project now being dead in the water.

Wait till Kane Cornes hears about this... he will self-combust.

Is it just me, or does a young Peter Landy look like current day Toni Collette?

Regarding the way Lindsay positions himself for contact, I see that as more a way to dispose of the ball more accurately while getting knocked off balance. He prepares himself for the tackle / bump and ensures his hands are free and his body is aligned so that when the hit comes, his centre of gravity isn't knocked too far off line.

Did you boo him/her?

This is the reason why the best soccer academies, focus on ball control and skill in until around 12. They play on smaller fields to remove physical advantages more developed kids might have (speed, endurance, etc), so that all kids develop the needed technique and skill. Once they get to 15, the chance for technique and skill improvement is marginal.

Spot on! Macrae knows he's got an aging list and they're doing what they can to squeeze out any success while they have Sidebottom, Pendlebury, De Goey, Howe, Elliot, Mitchell, playing alongside Nick Daicos. I don't think any of them are going to get better, only decline. Once they retire they won't have the quality needed to seriously compete. Daicos (spews in mouth) is a generational player that won't be as effective once those players retire. Membrey is low-risk option for them to offer depth in an area they have very little while they believe they're a chance for another flag.

It's important to remember that our 11 wins this year would land us in 9th to 12th in all other years, assuming the extra game we played this year was a game we won (so a 10-12 finish in a 22 game season). Getting 14th with 11 wins and 98% is genuinely great for us. We had a pretty terrible season that started going awry in December last year. All that considered, we still finished with 11 wins and lost 3 games to GWS, Port, and the Lions by less than a goal in the run home to the finals. @ChaserJ insightfully likened this year to 2019, and I agree. We're extremely lucky to have pick 5 with the amount of wins we had this year. And it's not like we had a great season and failed to do well. A pick swap will likely end well for us, given all of these variables.