binman

Howe is pretty good sub option I reckon. Offers terrific flexibility. As you say he can play back, tall and small and at a pinch, as you suggest, forward. But he can also play wing, releasing the boson to play as a mid or replacing him or Lindsay.

Ross the boss Glendinning being a big one I suspect.

I find it so weird - presumably people who post on thiscsite support the dees. Yet some just do nothing but knock tbe club. It makes it impossible to take anything they write seriously.

I was at that game. The worst thing I've ever seen on a football field. It was a smart coaching move by Barass to put Smith on Matthews, who was basically playing as a full forward. Normally Matthews had defenders on him roughly the same size but he'd was just too good one on one. Smith was taller obviously and was giving Matthews a comeyebath. So Matthews hit him, from behind IIRC - certainly Smith didn't see it coming. Lost all respect for Matthews that day. Still infuriates me the esteem he is held in.

At least your pain was soothed. Not mine - backed lions for a win (though more at the line, so the pain wasn't too bad - but jeez, kicking the bloody goal lions!)

That's the numbers for this season, fir us but you'rer right its not a direct correlation of course - though I will note that in the four wins you highlight the gap in pressure rating was marginal in three as you note the swans game tied). And I'd also note 66% hit rate is statistically significant. I suspect if the analysis was say 10 pressure points differential or would be close to 100%.

That's a good point. He has said he want to be a leader and for much of the ladtb2 years has been our best key forward. Perhaps he puts a bit too much pressure on himself and as you say if he doesn't feel he has to the man, so to speak, up forward he can play with a bot more freedom.

Well Cameron, who whilst tall, does not play as a tradional key tall forward, or rarely does. He's really more a flanker. Nealeis the Cats key forward. Meaning neither top 2 players in the coleman are key forward. But, sure key talls are still important. And most of that list are key forwards. But look at the average goals per game. King is the leading goal scorer amongst the tall forwards. At his current average, King will kick 61 goals for the home and away season. Hogan won the coleman last year with 69. And as i said neither the the pies or lions, one and two on the ladder, have a dominant key forward. The crows are third and do have dominant key forwards, so are an outlier. But the key is still their fadt ball movement.

We are doing that much better (ie sepeatimf decences) much better this year, certainly in our wins.

Do you mean Brad Green's letters to members?

We have a media department?

Weird how taj is the only player who's right up is not in italics - code of some sort (jokes btw)?

It's a factor. I think a related challenge for jvr is, as ive noted in other posts, two of the key metrics for tall forwards is ensuring their opponent doesn't take intercept marks and bringing the ball to ground so the smalls and mediums can go to work. By definition that involves lots of tight, shoulder to shoulder battles which can't be easy for a young key forward. But honestly I think the main challenge for JVR is that he is still young, particularly for a key forward. They're cliches because they're true - key tall take longer to get to their peak than other players and improvement is not linear. For proof of that just look at JVRs peers, ie other young key forwards - JUH, Amiss, Logan McDonald, Amartey, Treacy, Philthorp, Neale, Cadman. All have had periods with big dips in their performances. Treacy is a good comparison to JVR. He's been terrific this year, after a good 2024. But he's had his dips too - and its work noting thst he's almost a year older than JVR. JVR is a gun and IMO will be back soon playing elite footy for the dees.

Of all stats, pressure rating is now by far and away the most reliable indicator in terms of the correlation between winning that stat and winning a game. The real challenge for teams is its simply not possible to bring elite pressure for more than say 3 or 4 weeks in a row. Tops.

It's interesting actually, for all the talk about our need for a gun forward, the reality is in 202, as Daniel Hoyne often notes, the key is what happens with the ball (ie ball movement from the back half, kicking skills, ability to hit targets indside 50 and kicking skills of half back flanks, mids and wingers) not ahead of it. That's to say gun tall forwards are no longer critical in the way they were 10 years ago. Carlton is the obvious example as they have arguably two of the best key forwards in the AFL and they can't score. In contrast the two best sides atm, the pies and the lions, don't have a dominant key tall (though Miochek whilst not that tall plays tall - a terrific player). It's just so hard now for key forwards to take contested marks inside 50 and they rarely get clear leading lanes that players like Dunstall used to such great effect. In terms of forwards, its hard to argue that the most important players are now small to medium forward amd mid/forwards like Elliot, Bailey, Koz, Papley etc etc.

Release the Epstein files!

Depends on the circumstances.

I was def going and really looking forward to it (i live in the Southwest, so it's practically a home game) - but i just realised i have to wash my hair.

My little joke at the loading cult meetings, one fellow cult members roll their eyes at, is - 'here we go, enjoy some carb loading with these delicious pastries'

Agree. And disco has the wheels to go with Eliot on the lead

Can't wait

Would loves to have landed Holmes. Terrific footballer. And I know it ain't gonna happen, but jeez how good would it be to land Wanganeen-Milera foe next season. He is exactly what we need, though to be fair every team would be improved of he joined them.

Yep, all good points. And what I like about them is the focus is, for the sake of argument assuming our clear dead legged performance was as a result of loading, questioning the logic of doing so. Given how big an impact it has on our fortunes, our high performance program and strategy should be questioned, should be critiqued. I question our ability to perform when we are fatigued and wonder to what extent mental preparedness plays a part. There's no excuse for not being switched on at the start if the game and it didn't link like we were. Let's say I'm right, and I think I am (your point about not covering their spread is an excellent one - we have been the team spreading opponents of late, Lyon clearly knew we were sluggish and he looked to exploit that), my thoughts about your reasonable question about not changing tack because of our 0-5 start are: What would the consequences be of changing a complex, carefully calibrated program halfway thru the season (different scenario because they had banked wins, but when the pies played freo off a five day break they had a lot of injuries yet stuck with their plan to rest key senior players, clearly impacting their chances of winning. When asked about that decision Mcrae said they had a plan created in the preseason and stuck with that plan - it's about the war not the battle) If we are not in optimal shape against the pies they will shred us - after two peak games (the lions, then swans) would we be able to have yet another against the Saints and then peak again and be in optimal shape against the pies? How important is it we play really well next Monday - one of only two guaranteed marquee games we have each season, one we have played poorly in in recent times, huge TV audience and a home game go boot What is impact on the high-performance program and planning of having to play Port, in Adelaide Oval, off on a six-day break after the Pies games (i'd argue it's not really possible, particularly for teams with so many young players in it, to be 'up' for five games straight (and we were up and about against the hawks too) The bye is the recovery period for pre bye loading - given we have the bye after the Port game we have to load at some point ahead of the bye and given we had perhaps given we had a seven daybreak into the Saints and an eight day break into the Pies perhaps doing that work ahead of the saint's game made more sense than comprising our performance against the Pies and Port (potentially an 8 point game given they are more likely to be make finals than the Saints That would be a calculated gamble, but that's part of the equation no doubt in the preseason planning process - and really even fatigued we should have beaten the Saints given it's not as if they played out of their skins

Sung to the tune of:

Brilliant, many thanks @WheeloRatings. Makes for fascinating reading It makes sense that our average pressure rating is a bit lower this year than than previous years given shift to a more transition focused game. Just a note on 2024 - we also had a bye in round 6 (because we played the stupid OR).