Binmans PA

I love Salem, but he struggled this year. If he struggles again next year, irrespective of fitness/thyroid concerns, IMO, his spot has to be looked at.

Agreed, and we were therefore playing the percentages with our ball movement, like we did in 2022 when injury started to strike, but it kept us in games.

We'd have played Howes this year too, but for injury. He's a good ball user, so we can add him to the list. And indeed, if Salem doesn't improve form wise, his spot will ultimately come under threat.

You're the only one banging on about some elite status tag. I believe we did leave a flag on the table this year, as we're just as good as any other team, and we've beaten both grand finalists. It was more down to our injuries that were basically all in the same zone of the ground. No other team dealt with this same problem this year. It's abundantly clear that Petty and Melksham have forward craft. They're both excellent finishers too. We lost both of them for our finals campaign and looked what happened. Inaccuracy cost us both games. I want us to add more class and finishing in the forward half to go with Petty, Kozzy, Fritta and McAdam, to make us better. I think if we get our forwardline personnel, better craft from our forwards, we'll be extremely difficult to beat, because unlike Collingwood, we don't overcommit numbers forward (which we did in Goodwin era #1), if anything, we allow extras against us at contest and play extras behind the ball. Of course, I expect most teams to change things a bit over the season. If Collingwood fall again this weekend, they'd have to examine their game style, and certainly their personnel, pretty heavily. I've written about this already, but what we need to look at is our 7th defender and seeing how we can exploit this for offensive purposes with an outnumber at ground level, rather than in the air. We have to back May, Lever (I'd like O'Sullivan) and our second tall defender to halve contests when 1v1, and go for the intercept when it's on the table. But otherwise, we want an outnumber at ground balls (ie playing three wingers and abandoning the Rivers offensive intercept role), so we can slingshot back to a less crowded forwardline. I expect Chaplin to replace Yze as the game day strategist and it's likely we'll have a new forward and midfield or defensive coach. So we're going to have new ideas challenging the status quo, but it's also incumbent on the senior coach and coaches to play to the strengths of the list. Where are our strengths? Backline personnel, defensive system, our midfield personnel's ability to win contests (win them outnumbered too). So we need to accept that our mids are great at the contest, but less precise with their disposal, which in the recent history of contested players, is pretty much the go. Martin and Dangerfield for example can absolutely butcher the ball by foot. As to our defensive strengths, I think we can sacrifice a little more defensively to give a little more offensively, but that involves something like using two of the three wingers as wing backs, enabling the likes of Bowey, Salem and McVee licence to take on plays higher up the ground, knowing cover is out the back for them. It means we don't necessarily give up our intercept game (which will still be 2024 footy), but that we can get outnumbers at defensive ground ball (which IMV is just about the most important facet of the modern game given the speed the game has been played at since 2021), and this ability to win ground ball, then feeds into our ability to score, and improves efficiency of ball movement by having our better ball users (Salem, Bowey and McVee) instigating our scoring chains from the middle of the ground, and ideally through the corridor.

This is exactly my point and others. Brisbane have an elite forwardline, with great clutch finishers everywhere. We do not, aside from Fritta and Kozzy... FMD, do you read what you post? You're on your little train track and can't get off it.

Our forward inefficiency problem is exacerbated by poor forward personnel...

And now they get to play an interstate team with a horrible record at the MCG. Will Brisbane kick straight enough, and score from stoppage as they have? BTW, who are the elite users in Brisbane's midfield this week? McLuggage on the wing....?

Agreed. It's about quality in the forward half. It'd be great to have more quality ball users, but I'd like to be on a weekly wage like Mo Salah. I'd much prefer we strengthen our forward and back half to maximise what our current mids are the best in the competition at, and that's winning contested ball and owning territory. If you have a more dangerous forwardline, the repeated opportunities become much harder to defend for the opposition. And if your defence is better, you don't leak goals back the other way if we do decide to play more offensively. Goodwin has had two eras. The first was a highly offensive era and the second has been marked by a highly defensive focus. I'd back him to read the tea leaves again. But of course old mate would be reductive and black and white about all this. He's all in on the black and white.

Looks more like a Lewis Taylor clone to me. Aside from the pulled up socks, I don't see the JHF comparison that is bandied around.

No, I see Disco as cover for Lever and Jed Adams as the second tall in time.

Unless they're after someone else. ie not Watson.

I'm hoping we can get two top 10 picks too, and swing O'Sullivan and then Watson. Both make either end dangerous/powerful for us, and allow our contested bulls to go to work at CP. Makes all zones much tougher to beat.

I couldn't find a thread on this guy. Looks perfect for us with our first pick. 198cm, 92kg, KPB/KPF Would not only give us a transition plan for May, but enables us to keep Petty forward in the short term, and for the rest of May's career, play May, Lever and O'Sullivan as the second tall. In time, O'Sullivan could even swing forward. As I've said previously, he reminds me of Harris Andrews, but is a nice kick, can intercept and spoil well, take a good contested mark, seems to have a really nice ground ball game for such a big man, which is really important in the modern game, he's got some nice acceleration and with time, will eventually be able to play that May role on 200cm+ talls. He's a Murray Bushranger guy, so I'm sure @dazzledavey36 will have some intel on him. https://www.afl.com.au/video/988046/2023-coates-talent-league-profile-series-connor-osullivan?videoId=988046&modal=true&type=video&publishFrom=1690527600001 https://www.afl.com.au/video/982342/draft-watch-connor-osullivan?videoId=982342&modal=true&type=video&publishFrom=1689552000001 https://youtu.be/lGE8HzHgF1A?si=pIKm-5DEuTdcXgiL https://youtu.be/seUuUnqMk70?si=_2-D-lZCwKQVvx7z

But we don't have a mosquito fleet in the midfield. We have powerful sizeable midfielders, who smashed the same GWS midfield you're lauding, only 10 weeks ago.

At least three of those guys are fringe, and x factor like Kozzy and Watson, their height is near irrelevant.

What conspiracy theories?

The first round is already compromised with Suns academy players...

Loving the rumours guys. 😄

This. 👏❤️

I think GWS will win tonight too, but you reckon the head coach might be behind GWS' plan or nah?

Offence was good, but defence not so good... partly personnel, partly far too aggressive.

You certainly post like a child mate.

Interesting that old mate Craig Jennings is offence coach for GWS. No chance he comes back to us. Ben Hart is GWS' midfield coach and Leppitsch is obviously at Collingwood as Head of Strategy. Scott Burns has done well for Adelaide's defence, but is a South Aussie and also senior assistant at Adelaide, so unlikely. Cameron Bruce is midfield and stoppage coach at Brisbane. Tim Clarke and Aaron Greaves (coaching and innovation manager) have done well at Carlton. And then there's Stuart Dew. Bruce has had an interesting coaching career trajectory. Obviously, started at Hawthorn in 2013 and then went to Carlton with Bolton in 2017, and was sacked along with Bolton in 2021. He immediately got the job of midfield coach at Brisbane under Fagan (another Hawthorn connection of course) and has overseen their midfield the last two years. Be fascinating to see who we go for and whether their role is two pronged, midfield and ball movement.

Don't read the thread then.

Settle down, Stiffy.