The pre-season and injury developments have had me re-thinking my usual 22, which leaves me with this:

FB: Laidler Jamison Duigan
HB: Yarran Bower Lucas
CC: Gibbs Murphy Simpson
HF: Garlett Henderson Scotland
FF: Walker Waite Betts

RR: Kreuzer Curnow Judd

Int: Robinson Hampson Carrazzo

Sub: Tuohy

Tuohy will be bedded into the senior team by season's end, but I think Duigan looks a little better in that position, and Yarran's role should remain roughly the same for 2012 while Scotland is still in the mix. A more physically imposing Jamison & Bower, alongside the composure and G&D of Laidler & Duigan should provide a more reliable and versatile back 5 or 6 than perhaps some would rate it as. Height is a concern, but if more of those names can literally hold their ground, any reach advantage for the opposition in a contest would be significantly diminished.

Warnock has no upper body strength at the moment, and I can't see him getting enough of it back to compete around the ground enough for much of the first half of the season. And for all the miles and effort they've put in, especially this pre-season, Kerr, Armfield, Russell, Ellard, McLean and Joseph can consider themselves an unlucky bunch alongside the exciting string-bean that is Buckley.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

FB: Russel Jamison Laidler
HB: Scotland Henderson Yarran
C: Gibbs Carazzo Simpson
HF: Robinson Waite Garlett
FF: Kreuzer Walker Betts
RUC: Warnock Judd Murphy
INT: Duigan Curnow Lucas
Sub: Armfield
Emergency: Hampson Thornton (ahead of bower due to versatility) Ellard
I would play Carazzo only as our no.1 tagger, against sides without taggable midfielders Ellard/Curnow will get that on ball role.

Thoughts??

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Better late than Cerra

Valid point on Warnock.
Behind the other two boys by some right now in terms of fitness.

I'd be very surprised if we saw Buckley in the seniors before 2014.
His body and general skills are not 2012 and may not be 2013, either.
He'll be put onto the slow burner.

I can see him being rotated in to play off the HFF. Very good decision maker.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

Well all I can say is that Harker listed a lot of people not doing full-on training.
Waite still isn't in the midst of it if I heard Riley correctly.
To me that's a worry.

I have no idea of course, but it seems to me that Ratts is conservative by nature.

So I reckon Touhy is a definite starter in the best 22 because he was in it at the end of last year and according to the training reports on here, is training the place down.
Russell wasn't in the piccy last year so won't start round one.
Warnock worries me. Ratts loves him but for mine he doesn't do enough around the ground but once again, was in the lineup last year and had a good finals so he gets the not unless injured.
Carrazo is first picked every week.
Ellard and Joseph are in the Rstts mould so may be in the mix as they both payed finals last year.
Rowe was recruited for a specific role, which makes me think Hendo will play down back again next year.
Waite will play CHF if fit or if not, I reckon Rowe will play there just because the coach will need to justify picking him up.

IMO, whilst this is an interesting exercise so far out, there are too many variables at stake. It's a guessing game.
To make it more interesting, perhaps there should be some sort of competition....

Perhaps 3 points for a player named in the position/line nominated by the poster, 2 points for any other player nominated in the best 18 but in a different position and one point for the rest.

Winner gets kudos. The rest can please themselves.

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Let slip the Blues of war (with apologies to William Shakespeare) (and Sir Francis Bacon, just in case)

BS, I wouldn't worry too much about anyone not in full-on drills for a day or two each week as they have a recovery group so none of the blokes over-train. It might seem like a strange option rather than to re-jig the training regime, but this allows for better match preparation as the boys are put through their paces at a higher intensity, as well as an outlet for those returning from injury.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

Can see that structure being the one that wins us finals. The names can be changed depending on form and injuries but the general mix looks good to me.

One tall too many for early in the season IMO though. When the grounds are hard and our boys are fresh we are best off using our advantage in the running dept to gather wins.
So for the first 12 rounds i would only play one of Bower and Henderson and replace the one that misses with another powerful fast running player .

I'd like to name my best 22 in about June-July.

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No ones listening till you make a mistake.

Tried to make up a team.
Started off not to bad, then started thinking.
Post season surgeries, injuries, pre-season form, new recruites.

Thank god Kew has closed down

Thought before Duigs went down that JR was a good chance to take his spot in 2012, even surer now that Duigs has left the door ajar.

JR had a very interrupted year with injury last year, made pretty obvious when he spoke at Coteries etc. Just can't believe that his 2nd in the 2010 B&F still doesn't carry a bit of currency with the MC.

Can see Tuohy taking AJ's spot too, his pre season has put the icing on the cake IMHO.

Talked to Henderson yesterday and he told me that he'd definitely be playing back this year.

For me that makes the backline:

B: Tuohy Jamison Duigan

HB: Laidler Henderson Yarran

Like that backline - for me

B: Tuohy Jamison Duigan -if Tuohy injured Russell to replace, if Duigan injured Bower to replace
HB: Laidler Henderson Yarra
C: Simmo Juddy Lucas (now there's some pace)
HF: Walker Waite Gibbs
F: Betts Hammer Garlett
Foll: Kruez Robbo Murph

Int: Carrots Scotto Russell
Sub: Ellard

Close: Curnow (could replace Ellard) Joseph
Top Ups: Thornton, Bower, 206 (as not fit)

Good mongrel in backline, with added pace of tuohy and class of Yarran
Midfield: good mix with Extraction of Juddy, Class of Murph, mongrel of Robbo, 3rd/4th efforts Kruez

Question for me is forward line - good pace, tackling pressure. However, marking a bit unknown and absolute grunt / fear factor (mongrel) a bit lacking

!. Marking - Walker Waite and hopefully the visually-improved Hampson provide a decent set of marking options - that "hopefully" part is of course the big IF;
2. Mongrel - just swap Gibbs and Robbo and the problem is largely solved - especially if Waite can walk the line between aggression and getting suspended. Of course then the lack of mongrel problem resurfaces in the midfield, but whilst we have a decent supply of hard players we have few who make the opposition look over their shoulders - Robbo of course, SOV and perhaps a couple you wouldn't want to fill the hole in front of - but that's about it. Bell in the limited footage I've seen looks like he might hit the packs hard - but not in the Robbo mode. If you're looking for grunt rather than mongrel there's always the option of McLean but I fear that his lack of pace is just too much of a handicap and despite his having an inside game we need we won't see him much if at all in the seniors. Off the bench Carrazzo and Russell are options for physically developed bodies in midfield, but again not mongrel by any means.

However, I don't know to what extent you need mongrel as opposed to physically strong bodies. Apart from the clear trend across the competition to move towards leaner physiques due to the amount of running needed, it is more the possibility of a Robbo (say) running through you that makes the opposition think twice, rather than how often it happens. A Robbo on the forward flank. venturing - as flankers in the modern game do - into midfield would go a long way to keeping opponents mindful of what might be coming the opposite way. What we need more of in midfield is both personnel and perhaps more importantly a methodology to keep opponents from monsterring Judd all day - and in that regard I have faith in the new midfield coach to install that methodolgy in the personnel picked.

At the end of the day, the greatest weapon we have is our overall pace and it seems to me the way things are developing the plan is to maximise that and burn other teams with pure speed - that seems to me to be how we have unlocked the better teams we have had success against recently and to be the one weapon we have that the opposition will all struggle to counter - but to maximise speed you usually have to sacrfice grunt (the Laoisman and perhaps Russell excepted) and that may be the trade-off we make.

Don't rule out 2e for mongrel. Yes, he's in the backline but has proven he can mark and kick and take the game by the scruff of the neck. Wouldn't be surprised if he didn't get the odd little spell up forward.

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We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion.

Or the mid-field given the fact that he is a half back flanker ............................









Actually I'm serious.

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"Hence you will not say that Greeks fight like heroes but that heroes fight like Greeks"?

Winston Churchill

2e I think may get a run through the middle, he can kick goals from 70 anyway so not needed up forward

Like the idea of Robbo rotating through HFF.

Russell has grunt and niggle, but maybe not mongrel. Great final against O'Keefe of the Swans a couple of years ago. so maybe Russell and Robbo rotating through middle and HFF.

Not sure of goal kicking credentials though....

Don't let Synbad read your opinions.

Some of you blokes really need to learn how to use quote tags. Sometimes it's like a scavenger hunt just to read a reply.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

We will know after the NAB Cup matches

Will Curnow return to his early 2011 form?
Will Kruezer be fit and thus develop?
Will Yarran move to midfield and explode?
Will Gibbs move to midfield and thrive?
Etc etc

Gunna have another crack at this (assuming fitness)! This is the side I would start with.

Armfield Jamison Laidler
Duigan Henderson Scotland
Yarran Gibbs Simpson
Waite Rowe Garlett
Kreuzer Walker Betts

R: Warnock Judd Murphy

I: Carazzo Lucas Robinson Thornton

Iterations to this line up:

Hampson in for Rowe
Tuohy for Armfield
Curnow for Lucas

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I am as mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any more!!!