DeeSpencer

Really, I thought yesterday under pressure in the first quarter the backs were incredibly slow to set up with a number of stoppages in Collingwood's forward line. In fact I think they got one or two goals from forward stoppages when it wasn't right in the first 20 minutes. The backs also failed at spreading quickly and encouraging the switch. Hibberd and Salem are the two players I'd have in charge. I'd use them to get Joel Smith and (if it were me) Petty lined up correctly. Probably room for one of Lewis or Vince still as we don't have a lot of obvious inclusions so no doubt that experience is valuable but a 30+ year old guy shouldn't be in charge of the show, there's enough others who have played plenty of footy. And surely Oscar and Jetta don't need to be told what to do, they've been playing back in this system for the longest?

The hair is relevant. He spent all last year making sure it wasn't pulled out of place. Seems to have a stronger more reliable rug this year, I was hoping it would help his form. Look good, play good. He's not just a regular player, he's a player who does more media for the club than any other, a responsibility and a privilege. It also makes him harder to drop. AFL 360 probably don't want to hear from a Casey player every Tuesday night.

Stress Worried about making mistakes Pressure Overwhelming Overly frustrated Yeah Tom sure sounded like a confident defender. Tom is clearly a player with a new found confidence and at the time I made a thread about him he was clearly a player without a lot of confidence. I stand by it. Just as I'll stand by this one. There will be a touch of short term pain against certain sides where Lewis' ability to find and sometimes use the ball will be missed, just as there was short term pain last year without Tom down back. But in the long run we will have defenders who can actually defend and physically compete with the best sides.

You need to go to the footy with some new people. Might've been third best for Collingwood.

TOM MCDONALD believes a permanent move to the forward line will allow him to play with newfound freedom, with the Melbourne swingman glad to be free of the pressures of defence. Following surgery on both of ankles at the end of last season, and integrating into main training in the past month, McDonald said he was relishing his time training at the opposite end of the ground for the first time in his career. "I don't know why but it's taken a bit of the stress away from playing footy," McDonald told AFL.com.au. "Sometimes as a defender I was so worried about making mistakes. The pressure that comes with being a full back or centre-half back can be overwhelming at times, and I tend to get overly frustrated with myself and it costs me." http://www.melbournefc.com.au/news/2018-02-12/mcdonald-ready-for-his-crack-up-forward I was paraphrasing but I stand by it. The guy was making mistakes and I'd be pretty sure he meant with the ball more than defensively. Either way, he's a whole new player as a forward and my point was that Tom openly admits he had issues playing as a defender. I'd love to find a new position for Lewis but there's no where to hide a plodder these days. Half back is the best option but eventually the time comes from there as well.

0 impact. How many did he get from playing on from the kick out.

Has Tom McDonald played as a defender since then? Or did the coaches eventually - through injury or otherwise - wake up to the fact it wasn't working and move him forward. Even Tom himself admitted he'd lost all confidence in his ball use as a defender. If you got them to speak honestly I think you'd find a few team mates who have lost all faith in Jordan Lewis as capable of winning a one on one contest or willing to really put his body on the line for his team.

What the heck is the point of a defender who can't defend. What role is that? If he could run, kick long and tear the game apart I'd accept his lack of defensive skills but he can't. What he can do is find the ball but Hibberd and Salem can do that. Find me a defender who can't defend who's ever won a premiership. If they do exist I bet they are bringing more to the table than racking up little dinky kicks.

The day it was all over red rover for Jordan/Jordie/Lewy/old fake hair

Bernie is just as concerning as Lewis but Bernie can at least defend. He's a willing puncher and can tackle. Bernie's ball use is sporadic but when it's on he's more damaging than Lewis is, he still has penetration in his kicking and can make the big switch. We aren't changing the way we play for Bernie though. He takes an opponent and has a crack.

My grandpa could've played well at half back for the last month. And he's been dead for 30 years.

Easy to give a 2nd effort when your first effort is non existent.

I'm done with this pretender being unable to stand any half decent forward with an ounce of leg speed or overhead ability. I'm done with him falling over or giving away free kicks because he knows he's physically incapable of even halving the contest. I'm done with his futile efforts to change direction. I'm done with the way he picks up the ball protecting himself and only on his left side so he can't move on to his right. I'm done with his handballs that go to grass. I'm done with him taking kick outs despite only being able to kick 45 metres. I'm done with his stupid fake hair. I'm just absolutely done with Jordan Lewis. Vote. Tell me where you stand. If you're sucked in by the stat padding that invariably occurs when he's a mile from his opponent or even playing 7 defenders then good for you. If you think some of his nice short kicks justify his ongoing selection then let me know. Personally, I can't have the team playing a guy who will get so badly found out by a good team. I don't see what that achieves? I think we've got 2 really nice rebounding defender options in Hibberd and Salem who whilst not perfect are tough, courageous, pacy and can beat good opponents. They are the guys who should be getting 20 cheap kicks a game and around them we should have defenders who have the ability to actually defend.

If there's a Freo player to target to get cheaply to play it role it might be Tom Sheridan on a wing. Former first round pick and a very good runner who hasn't kept a consistent spot in the team. He'd be a buy low candidate.

Up until this year he'd butcher the ball relentlessly. Now he's starting to hit his targets. Reminds me of Harmes, but a little smaller and faster. I think he'd play half forward or wing for us and add a hard runner. Freo aren't giving him up in contract though, he's one of their bright spots, so he's a target for the end of next year.

Agree. He's a natural reader of the play and should kick to space. When he tries to thread it in tight he gets in to trouble.

Harmes going back to cover Lever meant Gus was shifted to the wing a lot more. Think he shifts back inside more next week.

In a number of preseason training threads I said Gus keeps finding the ball but is sloppy with his kicking. Would've been nice if he started in the team from round 1 but I think reading between the lines Goody put the foot down and said he had to do the extras on his body and his skills at training. It's starting to pay off and should only get better if he keeps the focus on nailing the fundamentals. We got smashed at the clearances today so all the mids have a fair bit of work to do for next week.

His right foot isn't always any better! In space he should use his right, but I like the idea that he goes on his left to get out of trouble and hope he keeps using it. His dual sided ability has always been his stand out trait, especially out of congestion by hand and foot.

Gawn wins a lot of hit outs to advantage, so any midfielder playing with him is going to get the ball, but Viney and Harmes are the two I've noticed far more than others who nail the timing and get the ball straight from the tap on the run bursting to goal. Harmes kicked a goal earlier in the year from a hit out that was beautiful to watch. All of the mids have improved their work with Gawn massively since the Hawthorn and Richmond games which were disasters in that regard.

Played all last year with injuries. The plantar fasciitis was hurting him from the early rounds all the way through to the surgery, and then he came back underdone from that. He wasn't healthy at any stage last season. Hopefully he can get back to 2016 form and even more. He also seems to have the best combination with Gawn, somehow with Harmes the other midfielder who reads Gawn well.

At this stage, no I don't think so. The AFL approved a Saints ruckman to play for Frankston not Sandringham to get him more game time and help Frankston out, so they might be willing to consider a proposal.

I think a guy who hasn't played an organised game of footy in over 3 years is a bit of a gamble, but drafting any rucks at 18 is and this has cost nothing in draft picks, doesn't take a legitimate list spot and his pedigree is first class. My biggest issue with it is how do we get game time in to him without the VFL development league? Do we make him the 3rd ruck next year? If he's 4th in line and there's not injuries that's a hard ask to see game time. Might be a test case to take to the AFL and see if he can play for a VAFA team.

You don't turn down good players but wing/half back class and a gun small forward are probably still the priorities I'd think. Expect Carlton to put their first round pick on the table for Shiel or Kelly (or both), they are Sos' favourite players and they need to land a mature mid to kick start their rebuild before it massively flops. North will try the same as well. Anyway, unless ware linked to a player we don't need to be bringing up names. We have a team with a few weaknesses but also a few strengths as is right now.

A couple of long center clearances in to outnumbered forward 50's and strong defensive marks in those turnover stats I'd suggest. Kicks could be better but really it's part of the game plan. Bomb it forward and let the forwards do the rest.