News Charlie Dixon signs for West Broken Hill

[Andre]

Ok, so we're clear, Dixon kicked 4 goals in a game just two weeks ago. Last week he kicked no goals, because Ryder went off injured halfway through the second quarter and he had to ruck. And we're blaming him for that?

Tom Clurey's forward craft wasn't good enough last week either. That's because he didn't play in the ****ing forward line.

Pfft. Making excuses for Clurey.

I still stand by that our best forward structure is all of Dixon, Watts and Marshall playing (with Ryder fit). Watts is further up the ground as the high HF link man, Dixon and Marshall in the 50. Marshall draws a tall KPD away from Dixon, so he's not so swarmed by opposition defenders. And Dixon and Marshall, one can push up to a CHF (near the 50 position), whilst the other is deep. Westhoff is free to either drop back to cut off marks out of defense or the tall wingman that the opposition coach has to toss up between putting a KPD on and making life so much easier for our tall forwards or leave a small on and hope they can outrun the Hoff (good luck given the ground he covers every game).

I'm resigned to not seeing it in 2018, between injuries and bereavement, but I still contend this is the forward line (and team tall balance overall), that is our best chance to win a flag. Much better, IMO, then Dixon, one of Watts and Marshall, alongside S. Gray (Robbie is obviously a given forward and I'd take Thomas, even with his poor game this week, in 2018 / 2019 over S. Gray).

 

[Enviable Tradition]

Fair points, I have always been a Dixon fan , I love his attack and passion, he is just off at present. There were a few times he was beaten easily. That's not on coaches , that's his to own and improve on.

Yep, I am definitely not saying he isn't down on form. Just not down on effort.

 

[Schulzenfest]

Pfft. Making excuses for Clurey.

I still stand by that our best forward structure is all of Dixon, Watts and Marshall playing (with Ryder fit). Watts is further up the ground as the high HF link man, Dixon and Marshall in the 50. Marshall draws a tall KPD away from Dixon, so he's not so swarmed by opposition defenders. And Dixon and Marshall, one can push up to a CHF (near the 50 position), whilst the other is deep. Westhoff is free to either drop back to cut off marks out of defense or the tall wingman that the opposition coach has to toss up between putting a KPD on and making life so much easier for our tall forwards or leave a small on and hope they can outrun the Hoff (good luck given the ground he covers every game).

I agree. However I think we can still function OK with one less tall than that, but not two. Which is why I'm going to be very annoyed and will probably be tipping GWS after we inevitably bring in a small for Ryder this week.

 

[bow and arrow]

I actually don't blame his forward line issues on him at all, he spends half the game in our defence then is supposed to spring back and take a mark, steady himself and kick 10 goals a game??? Our game plan doesn't consist of kicking to leading forwards, we bomb it on his head, our forward line entries are chaos and it has to be coached that way surely? Lade can bugger off with his radio comments yesterday.

It would be interesting to see how many of those 140 times had a kick near his chest or on the side that benefited Dixon rather than his opponents. He's seldom caught behind! Happens to our forwards at least 75% of the time and it really is not good enough!

On [device_name] using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Andre]

I agree. However I think we can still function OK with one less tall than that, but not two. Which is why I'm going to be very annoyed and will probably be tipping GWS after we inevitably bring in a small for Ryder this week.

This week I'd be bringing in Frampton for Ryder, plus Leinert. Under 99% of circumstances I want Howard back, but this week's cluster **** of injuries I'd put him forward with Dixon and Watts.

 

[mynameissilver]

It would be interesting to see how many of those 140 times had a kick near his chest or on the side that benefited Dixon rather than his opponents. He's seldom caught behind! Happens to our forwards at least 75% of the time and it really is not good enough!

On [device_name] using BigFooty.com mobile app

Yea I agree , our skills are what sets us apart at present. You can't kick , you can't play. The saving grace is that we can turn it around.

 

[Chrizzt]

Ok, so we're clear, Dixon kicked 4 goals in a game just two weeks ago. Last week he kicked no goals, because Ryder went off injured halfway through the second quarter and he had to ruck. And we're blaming him for that?

Tom Clurey's forward craft wasn't good enough last week either. That's because he didn't play in the ****ing forward line.

I'd say, much like the result last week itself, criticising Dixon's output (in particular as a forward) last week in isolation is nonsensical. However you can't deny he's been in possibly his worst form since that late stretch in 2016.

He's still 8th in the league for contested marks - which is a good feat - but he and Mason Cox are the only two who are in the top 10 for contested marks that aren't in the top 100 for total marks. He needs to lead more instead of just wanting us to kick it on his head in the hopes that he can outbody an opponent. Riewoldt, Franklin, Brown, Cameron all have the ability to get contested marks as well as marks on a lead. It's something Dixon needs to be focusing on.

 

[OneGreatClub]

I'd say, much like the result last week itself, criticising Dixon's output (in particular as a forward) last week in isolation is nonsensical. However you can't deny he's been in possibly his worst form since that late stretch in 2016.

He's still 8th in the league for contested marks - which is a good feat - but he and Mason Cox are the only two who are in the top 10 for contested marks that aren't in the top 100 for total marks. He needs to lead more instead of just wanting us to kick it on his head in the hopes that he can outbody an opponent. Riewoldt, Franklin, Brown, Cameron all have the ability to get contested marks as well as marks on a lead. It's something Dixon needs to be focusing on.

We need a proper forwards coach. I am so over the way we play. A disgrace.

 

[Chrizzt]

We need a proper forwards coach. I am so over the way we play. A disgrace.

I'm not certain it's Lade that's the problem per se. It seems very likely that we are putting way too much emphasis on Bassett's defensive plan which leaves any forward structure as an afterthought. Kinda hard for Lade to succeed with the current setup. While I'm not in the sack Hinkley camp, it does seem like it should be up to him to have integrated a game plan with more synergy between offence and defence.

 

[PowerBaz]

It would be interesting to see how many of those 140 times had a kick near his chest or on the side that benefited Dixon rather than his opponents. He's seldom caught behind! Happens to our forwards at least 75% of the time and it really is not good enough!

On [device_name] using BigFooty.com mobile app

Maybe they can practice that over summer, you know, football basics...

 

[PAFC66]

I heard on FiveAA that Port have directed an inside 50 to Dixon 140 odd times this year. The most of any forward in the comp. (Brown was second Norths)
Something is obviously not working

Perhaps it's Dixon.

 

[El_Scorcho]

I'm not blaming a single forward for our scoring woes when our game plan is so anti scoring it puts Ross Lyon to shame.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

I'm not certain it's Lade that's the problem per se. It seems very likely that we are putting way too much emphasis on Bassett's defensive plan which leaves any forward structure as an afterthought. Kinda hard for Lade to succeed with the current setup. While I'm not in the sack Hinkley camp, it does seem like it should be up to him to have integrated a game plan with more synergy between offence and defence.

I reckon this is the real problem.

We have a young inexperienced backline so we send numbers back for support. Imagine if we had a backline like Geelong during their glory day of Scarlet, Harley, Milburn Enright Hunt, Wojcinski and Mackie. Those 7 players on grand final 2007 had racked up 184+159+213+125+99+118+61 games = 841 games of experience. And that doesn't include 2007 All Oz CHB Matthew Egan who got a crippling foot injury in Rd 22 of 2007 and never played AFL again.

Then all of them were there for the next 4 years at least, Harry Taylor was drafted in November 2007 as a 21 year old already about 96kgs and played 3 years in the WAFL. And some stayed at Geelong for another 9 or 10 years after the 2007 GF.

Look at our backline and the 100+ gamers - Hartlett out for the season after Rd 5, Broadbent since second half of last season out injured all the time, Pittard poor form and injuries in and out of the team and Jonas was suspended in last years finals and this year has started to rack up injuries since the bye. Hombsch is a few games short of 100 but he was the most experienced on Sunday and he has had his issues after multiple hip operations. So our backline is full of inexperienced kids all 60 odd games or less - DBJ, Clurey, Howard, Bonner and Houston.

Once again this highlights why dropping Trengove was such a stupid move and we were forced to send Ebert to play HBF.

So you get Sam Gray and Boak in particular, but others as well, doing what I have started the last few weeks, calling useless running, to go and support our backline, they dont get much of the ball for all that running and when they do get the ball in the forward lines they are usually so ****ed from doing all that running, that they struggle to kick for goal properly.

Our game plan produces so many unintended consequences that our coaching group cant, or wont see them, and are too stubborn, or too dumb to address them.

I'm getting sick of defence first bullshit.

Maybe I have read and watched too much about WWI the last 18 months and in particular about Monash and his troops at Le Hamel, Amiens and St Quienten Canal.

Monash got sick of the quagmire of defence first on the western front and decided to form strategies to use all the different weaponry on hand and integrate them all, and smash thru the German defence on the Hindenburg line with an attack first strategy. It succeed, it helped win the war and it changed warfare forever. I'd like for us to find a Monash type strategist.

 

[Enviable Tradition]

This week I'd be bringing in Frampton for Ryder, plus Leinert. Under 99% of circumstances I want Howard back, but this week's cluster **** of injuries I'd put him forward with Dixon and Watts.

I'd be OK with Howard going forward. Not because I think it is the best option or because I don't worry about our undermanned defence without Jonas and Howard but because it would show that we are prioritising kicking goals over saving them.

 

[bringbackbucky]

Our 17 man defense seems to be holding up well. Our 1 man forward line is struggling though...

 

[Andre]

Monash got sick of the quagmire of defence first on the western front and decided to form strategies to use all the different weaponry on hand and integrate them all, and smash thru the German defence on the Hindenburg line with an attack first strategy. It succeed, it helped win the war and it changed warfare forever. I'd like for us to find a Monash type strategist.

I'm fully supportive of a Blitzkrieg assault on the premiership. As long as we're out of there before the Soviet winter sets in, an assault on the Eastern Front, driving up towards the MCG sounds good to me.

 

[El_Scorcho]

I reckon this is the real problem.

We have a young inexperienced backline so we send numbers back for support. Imagine if we had a backline like Geelong during their glory day of Scarlet, Harley, Milburn Enright Hunt, Wojcinski and Mackie. Those 7 players on grand final 2007 had racked up 184+159+213+125+99+118+61 games = 841 games of experience. And that doesn't include 2007 All Oz CHB Matthew Egan who got a crippling foot injury in Rd 22 of 2007 and never played AFL again.

Then all of them were there for the next 4 years at least, Harry Taylor was drafted in November 2007 as a 21 year old already about 96kgs and played 3 years in the WAFL. And some stayed at Geelong for another 9 or 10 years after the 2007 GF.

Look at our backline and the 100+ gamers - Hartlett out for the season after Rd 5, Broadbent since second half of last season out injured all the time, Pittard poor form and injuries in and out of the team and Jonas was suspended in last years finals and this year has started to rack up injuries since the bye. Hombsch is a few games short of 100 but he was the most experienced on Sunday and he has had his issues after multiple hip operations. So our backline is full of inexperienced kids all 60 odd games or less - DBJ, Clurey, Howard, Bonner and Houston.

Once again this highlights why dropping Trengove was such a stupid move and we were forced to send Ebert to play HBF.

So you get Sam Gray and Boak in particular, but others as well, doing what I have started the last few weeks, calling useless running, to go and support our backline, they dont get much of the ball for all that running and when they do get the ball in the forward lines they are usually so ****** from doing all that running, that they struggle to kick for goal properly.

Our game plan produces so many unintended consequences that our coaching group cant, or wont see them, and are too stubborn, or too dumb to address them.

I'm getting sick of defence first bullshit.

Maybe I have read and watched too much about WWI the last 18 months and in particular about Monash and his troops at Le Hamel, Amiens and St Quienten Canal.

Monash got sick of the quagmire of defence first on the western front and decided to form strategies to use all the different weaponry on hand and integrate them all, and smash thru the German defence on the Hindenburg line with an attack first strategy. It succeed, it helped win the war and it changed warfare forever. I'd like for us to find a Monash type strategist.

Great post.

There is no pressure like scoreboard pressure. By scoring you make the other team panic and try to force things that aren't there, and that's how you force turnovers and open them up.

We just don't make teams panic at all because there is zero fear that we're going to run away with it. It's part of why shit teams seem to step up against us, and it's because they know we're considered a big scalp but we're also ripe for the plucking if they can have a few things go their way. I have no doubt that we'd have found a way to win with a dominant ruckman and Robbie Gray on the ground, but a couple of things went wrong and it was very quickly advantage Fremantle.

An attacking gameplan would have seen the absolute stoppage dominance we had in Q1 lead to an 8 goal lead, and then it wouldn't have mattered when Ryder and Gray went down. Instead we kept them in the game and they ran over us.

 

[mynameissilver]

I reckon this is the real problem.

We have a young inexperienced backline so we send numbers back for support. Imagine if we had a backline like Geelong during their glory day of Scarlet, Harley, Milburn Enright Hunt, Wojcinski and Mackie. Those 7 players on grand final 2007 had racked up 184+159+213+125+99+118+61 games = 841 games of experience. And that doesn't include 2007 All Oz CHB Matthew Egan who got a crippling foot injury in Rd 22 of 2007 and never played AFL again.

Then all of them were there for the next 4 years at least, Harry Taylor was drafted in November 2007 as a 21 year old already about 96kgs and played 3 years in the WAFL. And some stayed at Geelong for another 9 or 10 years after the 2007 GF.

Look at our backline and the 100+ gamers - Hartlett out for the season after Rd 5, Broadbent since second half of last season out injured all the time, Pittard poor form and injuries in and out of the team and Jonas was suspended in last years finals and this year has started to rack up injuries since the bye. Hombsch is a few games short of 100 but he was the most experienced on Sunday and he has had his issues after multiple hip operations. So our backline is full of inexperienced kids all 60 odd games or less - DBJ, Clurey, Howard, Bonner and Houston.

Once again this highlights why dropping Trengove was such a stupid move and we were forced to send Ebert to play HBF.

So you get Sam Gray and Boak in particular, but others as well, doing what I have started the last few weeks, calling useless running, to go and support our backline, they dont get much of the ball for all that running and when they do get the ball in the forward lines they are usually so ****** from doing all that running, that they struggle to kick for goal properly.

Our game plan produces so many unintended consequences that our coaching group cant, or wont see them, and are too stubborn, or too dumb to address them.

I'm getting sick of defence first bullshit.

Maybe I have read and watched too much about WWI the last 18 months and in particular about Monash and his troops at Le Hamel, Amiens and St Quienten Canal.

Monash got sick of the quagmire of defence first on the western front and decided to form strategies to use all the different weaponry on hand and integrate them all, and smash thru the German defence on the Hindenburg line with an attack first strategy. It succeed, it helped win the war and it changed warfare forever. I'd like for us to find a Monash type strategist.

You do make some good points . How much of this flooding back to help though do you attribute to our turnovers exiting defence? That's all I saw on Sunday, constant miskicks ,handballs to players who were hot. It can't help surely.
It's like Oppo teams have worked us out and know exactly how to play us, and we are just not skillful enough to extract the pill.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

You do make some good points . How much of this flooding back to help though do you attribute to our turnovers exiting defence? That's all I saw on Sunday, constant miskicks ,handballs to players who were hot. It can't help surely.
It's like Oppo teams have worked us out and know exactly how to play us, and we are just not skillful enough to extract the pill.

Sunday was a little bit different because apart from the GC game in Shanghai that's the only other game we have played with a lot of rain and the ball was like a piece of soap for probably more than half a game. We tried cute dry weather footy for too long and that contributed to our stuff ups.

I think for most other games - not Essendon and WCE games - we have won the territory battle for the majority of the game so the game has been played in our half and we don't bloody score from so many opportunities. I think we get numbers back irrespective of turnovers and are drilled to get back and support automatically.

 

[edgie]

I'm not blaming a single forward for our scoring woes when our game plan is so anti scoring it puts Ross Lyon to shame.

I don't think it has to be one of the other re: Dixon. He's Travis Cloke tier this year, and not the one that made AAs.

 

[El_Scorcho]

I don't think it has to be one of the other re: Dixon. He's Travis Cloke tier this year, and not the one that made AAs.

The inconsistent delivery, poor forward entry and the fact that he's play a significant chunk of the season in the ruck have all contributed to him struggling to get into his groove.

Prime Tredrea would struggle to dominate with this setup.

 

[Chrizzt]

I reckon this is the real problem.

We have a young inexperienced backline so we send numbers back for support. Imagine if we had a backline like Geelong during their glory day of Scarlet, Harley, Milburn Enright Hunt, Wojcinski and Mackie. Those 7 players on grand final 2007 had racked up 184+159+213+125+99+118+61 games = 841 games of experience. And that doesn't include 2007 All Oz CHB Matthew Egan who got a crippling foot injury in Rd 22 of 2007 and never played AFL again.

Then all of them were there for the next 4 years at least, Harry Taylor was drafted in November 2007 as a 21 year old already about 96kgs and played 3 years in the WAFL. And some stayed at Geelong for another 9 or 10 years after the 2007 GF.

Look at our backline and the 100+ gamers - Hartlett out for the season after Rd 5, Broadbent since second half of last season out injured all the time, Pittard poor form and injuries in and out of the team and Jonas was suspended in last years finals and this year has started to rack up injuries since the bye. Hombsch is a few games short of 100 but he was the most experienced on Sunday and he has had his issues after multiple hip operations. So our backline is full of inexperienced kids all 60 odd games or less - DBJ, Clurey, Howard, Bonner and Houston.

Once again this highlights why dropping Trengove was such a stupid move and we were forced to send Ebert to play HBF.

So you get Sam Gray and Boak in particular, but others as well, doing what I have started the last few weeks, calling useless running, to go and support our backline, they dont get much of the ball for all that running and when they do get the ball in the forward lines they are usually so ****** from doing all that running, that they struggle to kick for goal properly.

Our game plan produces so many unintended consequences that our coaching group cant, or wont see them, and are too stubborn, or too dumb to address them.

I'm getting sick of defence first bullshit.

Maybe I have read and watched too much about WWI the last 18 months and in particular about Monash and his troops at Le Hamel, Amiens and St Quienten Canal.

Monash got sick of the quagmire of defence first on the western front and decided to form strategies to use all the different weaponry on hand and integrate them all, and smash thru the German defence on the Hindenburg line with an attack first strategy. It succeed, it helped win the war and it changed warfare forever. I'd like for us to find a Monash type strategist.

I won't entirely disagree that our impotence in attack is concerning, but as I posted in another thread:

2017 Richmond were 8th for points for and 3rd for least points against.
2016 Bulldogs were 12th for points for and 3rd for least points against.
We are currently 10th for points for and 2nd for least points against.

I'll take it a step further - in 2017 Richmond had the second lowest aggregate score (for + against) in the league, and in 2016 Bulldogs had the lowest. This year Port has the lowest.

There is certainly a case to be argued for strong defensive shape and pressure.

 

[OneGreatClub]

On the Figuring Footy website is the analysis of goal kicking by the analyst who joined us this year.
I hope employing him hasn’t backfired. It sure feels like we have gone backwards in that area.

 

[El_Scorcho]

On the Figuring Footy website is the analysis of goal kicking by the analyst who joined us this year.
I hope employing him hasn’t backfired. It sure feels like we have gone backwards in that area.

The only major change between this year and previous years in goalkicking that I can see is the players are trying too hard to generate a high percentage scoring option when they've got a perfectly good medium percentage scoring option on their hands.

What this means is that instead of either scoring a goal, scoring a behind and having time to set up, or kicking it out on the full and having time to set up, we're a 50/50 chance of turning it over in the middle of the forward 50, which is prime intercept mark score launch territory for every single team in the AFL.

We're literally at the point where Moss's cue card analysis of Arsenal is applicable to Port Adelaide.

"Did you see that ludicrous display last night?"

"The thing about Port Adelaide is they always try'n walk it in."

 

[Skindy]

The only major change between this year and previous years in goalkicking that I can see is the players are trying too hard to generate a high percentage scoring option when they've got a perfectly good medium percentage scoring option on their hands.

What this means is that instead of either scoring a goal, scoring a behind and having time to set up, or kicking it out on the full and having time to set up, we're a 50/50 chance of turning it over in the middle of the forward 50, which is prime intercept mark score launch territory for every single team in the AFL.

We're literally at the point where Moss's cue card analysis of Arsenal is applicable to Port Adelaide.

"Did you see that ludicrous display last night?"

"The thing about Port Adelaide is they always try'n walk it in."

Yeap this exactly!

With a side with the level of skill deficiency as ours we should be utilizing every scoring opportunity we can get.

The marginal gains made in the likelihood of a goal being scored by passing it to someone in a moderately better position is offset by the fact that as the amount of disposals/shot taken increases so does the chance of a turnover.