Mickstar wrote:
bondiblue wrote:
This next game will tell us a lot about our list and our coach.
Game between 2 teams with a lot of question marks.
Haynes Newman Cerra Saad Evans Wilson should be available to play Sunday week.
Whether they are selected or not is up to the MC. They know the players best.
Point is, apart from OFarrell Motlop and Cottrell, it’s the healthiest list we’ve had to pick from all century.
I haven’t lost faith in the list, but I’m wondering about our zoning and in effect, dare I say it, for the first time, game plan or player and leaders IQ, or both.
I have a feeling we will win if we can keep up our running game for more than 3 quarters. Thus far we have stopped at half time.
Yeah . My question is , who is exactly our best side Bondi ? I mean , when do we move on from Haynes , Saad , Newman etc etc . Dunno about you Bondi but I feel we have to start integrating the next gen into the mix . Not all at once but one or two at a time . Moir and Wilson etc need a decent go in the ones to see if they can cut it .
The best side, as always, is the team populated with players in best form. Simple. Not favourites; form.
When the kids have form to pass oldies is when it does happen, not when we want it to happen; yesterday. Patience and proper development. Hoping and wishing and forcing a square peg into a round hole aint going to do it for me. The VFL is for developing imo. We have become too use to developing kids in the ones since we got back into the draft with Walker and Simmo. Arguably, we through Kreuzer, Murphy and Gibbs to the wolves....and then with the SOS rebuild we expected the goal to goal line Weitering, Marchbank TDF McKay and Curnow to play winning football ahead of their time. Injury sorted out their brittle bodies and they werent good enough to get to within 10 goals of opponents. They were thrown to the wolves imo. Now we want to do the same with Dean beuase he's KPD size.
I thought Haynes and Saad had a really good year despite the vitriol they face from some supporters who wish and hope the younguns would over take them, as the panacea for our misfortune, but the methodology to play kids for the sake of seeing the back of better mature players is not in the spirit of the game imo; winning. Playing players because of their age (potential) is living in hope moreso than reality. Age shouldn't be the reason to over look or select. Form and best for position should be.
If we want to win in round 3: Why drop Haynes for Dean? Why drop Gov for Moir? Why drop Saad for Cowan or Ollie? Because they are better? If they are borderline similar in form and capability to play a role, then sure err on the side of youth, but I'm not in the school of using the AFL to develop 5 x 20 year olds for the sake of development, nor am I going to write off players when I havent got better to replace them with.
In the preseason I thought Lucas Campo hadn't improved from last year, but hoped he or Chesser would pass Acres (personally, I think Florent would be best wing), but I'm not yet convinced they have TBH; Ben Campo did continue to grow his game over the preseason(but he's got Cripps Hewett Walsh Cerra Lord ahead of him for an inside role); Wilson looked great in the preseason and imo full of run and ready to earn a spot (but developed a hot spot in the foot), Dean looks the goods but honestly nowhere near the finished let alone polished product. I don't mind giving Dean a taste, but he's not winning enough ball, and not mobile enough for some opponents who are 3rd talls he will face against dees (horses for courses)...Charleson is a beauty, but nowhere near the level of Boyd (yet), and I thought Cowan wa sa liability last week and should have played VFL to get his run back rather than getting ball and bombing it. I want the bombing out of his system, and not part of his reportoire if that's all he's got. Where's his run ? He obviously not in Form
The kids I believe are bonafide ready to play AFL are Smith, Carroll, and Lord and Ollie are hard workers who can hold their own. Whether Lord and Ollie are better than the other mids or wingmen, after 2 rounds of footy, they really are noticeably developing kids who need to sharpen their sword. I reckon Wilson and Byrne will break into the team this year (unless Byrne burns out ... pardon the pun), and I can see Ison making the grade but not this year.
Their time will come as will that of Moir Monohan and O'Keefe's time, and Byrnes 'got it' but needs to play more than a half in the VFL before he's thrown to the wolves because he's young.
I think Saad is a class player who needs to be let loose and run the ball. I can't see any of the kids able to match his output in round 2. I thought with the addition of Chessser, return of form for Boyd, the fitness of carroll and Cowan improving, Newman may have found it difficult to break into the team, but after last week, I think I'd prefer 33yo Newman over 21yo Cowan.
Anything can happen. Form is something you cant bottle, it evolves and then it clicks.
Bring it on...and patience Grasshopper.
Login
Register
FAQ
