Braithy wrote:
Stefchook wrote:
Crippa wrote:
Braithy wrote:
Weitering is not an effective forward. Most of the time we go our forwrd entry through him, his immediate instinct is to sit under the ball and spoil. ie a defender's instinct. Then after Lynch was murdering us, Bolton puts Weitering back, and he looked doubly lost. The Suns would run a cheap block through another forward at Weiters, and allow Lynch free roam at the ball.
it feels like we're hurting weiter's development by swapping him and out of the froward line. the best natural defender in the team, and for his age, the best in the league. Yet we throw him forward in a structureless forward line with poor quality in entry? it's the only coaching and MC strategy that I'm in 110% disagreement over.
Bit harsh saying he is not an effective forward. Kicked 4 goals 2 in his first 3.5 games as a forward as a teenager. Second for the club in goal assists. Equal second marks inside 50 and equal third for tackles inside 50. Overall your post might be right (I'm undecided) but he's an effective forward and an appropriate option for the club at this point until others like Harry get it together.
I can't agree with the original post. I think we always look far more dangerous when Weitering plays forward. I'd love to see him kick a mini-bag soon. But he's already a terrific goal-assist player. I thought his 1st half was good, before he had to be sent back into defence.
I think you're way off and missing the big picture.
Weitering was drafted as a highly touted defender and leader. His scouting ceiling was as a generational defender. The kind that comes along every 20 odd years. and what do we do? throw into a forwadline that barely sees the ball, and when it does, it's just bombed in there with no rhyme or reason.
and we are limiting his development by throwing him forward. he's not a target forward, our forward line is dysfunctional at best, an utter shambles at worst. and there is zero quality in our forward entry. literally anyone could play the role of weitering in our forwardline right now.
Weitering is getting smashed up front, because all of his instincts are geared towards defending and reading the opposition's play & structure. He wouldn't be half as beat up playing in defence, imo.
it's just a waste in this forward line to have a defender as good as weiters, in it. drop white, develop mckay or jacksh up front and let weitering consolidate the backline and make it his.
weitering isn't going to win us games up front. ever. he's not silvagni.
How do you know we're limiting his development? It's true we were smashed on Friday night, and Weitering certainly wasn't at his best. But his 'instincts' haven't stopped him being our most dangerous looking forward this season. It's true SOJ is developing nicely. Even Casboult is showing some form. But perhaps that wouldn't be the case, if Weitering wasn't picking up the best defender each week. That suggests to me that opposition coaches think Weitering is our best forward as well.
As for Weitering never winning games for us in attack. That's not actually an argument. It's an assertion. I think you'll find that 19yo key forwards almost never win games off their own boot. Not even Jesse Hogan is doing it. You just need to compare Weitering with Schache who went 2 in the same draft. Weitering looks far more dangerous up forward than Schache. How long did it take for Tom Boyd to begin to look dangerous? Or Jonathan Patton? It even took a while before Buddy and Roughead became the forward threats they are now today, and Buddy is the best forward we've seen in 25 years. It's of course the same argument with Charlie Curnow. He's not there yet. But he's coming.
And just because someone was playing as a defender in their final junior year, it doesn't necessarily follow that they can't be great forwards. I suspect you'll find that Weitering actually played forward quite a lot as a junior.
Josh Bruce was traded to St Kilda to play defense, but that hasn't stopped him becoming a very good forward. It doesn't seem to have limited his development playing forward. The reality is it's far harder to play forward than back. And if Weitering is good enough to play forward, then we're making better use of him. We've got enough quality young defenders. We don't have enough quality young forwards.
Having said all that, if we're going to struggle to move the ball forward, and Weitering's going to have to play against 3 defenders, then I think we will move him back for a while. Partly to protect his confidence. Partly just to get better value out of him.
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