Opinion Ideal 22 in season 2014

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going to be very interesting. I think there could be more players vying for possies than people realise. Those who have put in huge preseasons could make a mark in the preseason matches and then it opens a pandora's box. Minimal opportunity for so many as far as I am concerned. Some here seem to think we have that workman type list with a couple of stars still. That is long gone, there is far too much talent and ability in this list to ever by called workmanlike. This is a great erticle by Jake Niall;

http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/sydneys-stealth-tactics-are-no-longer-new-20140125-31fru.html

According to a certain player within the group, it is completely open-slather for positions this season. Beyond the absolute locks (i.e. Goodes, McVeigh, Kennedy, Ted, Hanners, Franklin, Tippett, guys like that) nobody is certain of their place, everybody is going absolutely 100% to try to win/maintain their spot come round 1.

I think it's going to be a very interesting Nab Cup!
 
1) Bird is consistent and rarely has a bad game
2) Before he could hope for any time midfield Rampe needs to i) learn to hit a target, or we'll waste our talented forward line ii) Shave off that silly mo and get back to focussing on footy. Not sure if Oz has got UK Top Gear series 21 yet but Clarkson et al claim that a mo is a complete distraction.
Bird is in my best 22 yes no doubt but I think he still has to improve like most , weather he is a lock by the coaches I wouldn't have a clue , I think his 2013 was good , he started the year of slow (sub) after being injured pre season then really got going against the Blues , Crows etc etc , didn't have the best game against Freo (final) but does his job week in week out most times (did the job on Murphy in the previous week), after being in Sydney seeing most of Januarys pre season training I can say he is looking fit and didn't miss a beat (like most) , he will have pressure I think to preform week in week out no doubt.
As for Rampe , he did miss targets at training on a few to many times and Macca was not happy with him one bit , one area of Rampes game he has to clean up that's for sure if he wants to become a demerging HBF , one thing is he attacks the footy hard and gives 110% every time ,I give him credit for that.
 
B. A. Johnson Grundy Smith
HB. Malceski T. Richards Rampe
C. McVeigh Hannebury Jetta
HF. O'Keefe Franklin Parker
F. Goodes Tippett Rohan
R. Pyke K.Jack Kennedy
IC. Reid McGlynn Bird Mitchell

Emer. LRT Shaw Cunningham Laidler
 

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I disagree with those saying the best 22 is unclear and there are lots of spots up for grabs. This completely flies in the face of everything we have seen for the past 5 years.

The coaching staff will have a best 18 in mind before the start of the season, and will very rarely deviate from this except for injury and suspension. There have been very few times over the past few years where a best 18 player has played in the reserves. The bottom 4 players rotate very regularly and the rest overwhelmingly stay in the team unless unavailable.

I agree that we here don't know what the best 22 will look like, but the coaches do.
 
I disagree with those saying the best 22 is unclear and there are lots of spots up for grabs. This completely flies in the face of everything we have seen for the past 5 years.

The coaching staff will have a best 18 in mind before the start of the season, and will very rarely deviate from this except for injury and suspension. There have been very few times over the past few years where a best 18 player has played in the reserves. The bottom 4 players rotate very regularly and the rest overwhelmingly stay in the team unless unavailable.

I agree that we here don't know what the best 22 will look like, but the coaches do.

Well, apparently that's not what the players think.
 
Well, apparently that's not what the players think.
Breaking news: AFL player maintains motivation through gruelling pre-season training by conceding he will be lucky to get more than 5 games
 
I disagree with those saying the best 22 is unclear and there are lots of spots up for grabs. This completely flies in the face of everything we have seen for the past 5 years.

The coaching staff will have a best 18 in mind before the start of the season, and will very rarely deviate from this except for injury and suspension. There have been very few times over the past few years where a best 18 player has played in the reserves. The bottom 4 players rotate very regularly and the rest overwhelmingly stay in the team unless unavailable.

I agree that we here don't know what the best 22 will look like, but the coaches do.

No one knows for sure not even the coaches, they may have an ideal best 22 but that changes every day so many variables to even mention. Who is this best 22 playing?
 
Bird is in my best 22 yes no doubt but I think he still has to improve like most , weather he is a lock by the coaches I wouldn't have a clue .....

Considered one of the elite run with players in the league and consistently in our top 10. What don't people get ? Of course he's a lock and he'll only get better as he gets a few good preseasons behind him. Remember he had all sorts of early problems (mainly stress fractures) which slowed his senior development. Of course he will improve even further now but he'd still be a lock at 2013 level of output. Look for a huge year from Bird in 2014.
 
What you guys think the ruck situation will be? I have heard reports from Cordy and Dampney that Tippett will back up and then others saying maybe the 2 genuine rucks again , have heard Tippett in a interview say he doesn't mind having to go through the ruck and Pyke said Tippett and maybe LRT might back him up , have heard LRT say he also might be going in the ruck , also heard Horses comments in the Age but im not taking to much from that just yet.
Pyke , Tippett 2nd ruck 70/30 ( I hope )
Pyke , Derickx.
Trying to fit all these guys in will be interesting to see
 
There's no doubt that Pyke can spend more time in the ruck than he was required to in 2013, so there's no real need to have 2 genuine rucks with both Tippett & LRT being able to provide a chop out. Particularly with the direction the game is headed.

I don't think we'll see the others given a go unless one/two of the above players are out. Pyke & Tippett are guaranteed a spot, would you say LRT is a definite lock as well?? He'd have to be right? I'm not 100% sure on that based on team balance, but I tend to think LRT would be considered a definite starter if fit.
 
Just thinking about it, we have a fair amount of flexibility with regard to our rucks.

If Pyke, Tippett & LRT are in the team, then we've got the luxury of giving Pyke a bit more of a rest, with both Tipp & LRT able to spend more time in the ruck (Pyke will definitely need to be given some time off throughout the season to keep him as fresh as possible).

If either Tipp or LRT aren't in the side, then Pyke plays a little more time in the ruck and the other player will spend minimal time in the ruck to give Pyke a chop out.

If both Tipp & LRT are out then we'd probably give one of our other rucks a go to help Pyke out.

If Pyke goes down, then someone like Derickx will definitely get a run.

As long as Pyke stays fit, and we manage his time throughout the season everything will go well. If Pyke goes down we end up with one of the worst Ruck divisions in the league.
 
Think LRT will be the 3rd tall down back until AJ is fit and ready , unless Laidler is used as the 3rd tall for the time been, at 190cm you could use him in that role but been hearing in reports its more likely to be the Mattner role if he gets a game.
Pyke and Tippett to ruck im hoping , thets us have another mid/forward in the side if we go that way
 
If Pyke goes down we end up with one of the worst Ruck divisions in the league.
Can you name a worse one? Not Richmond's, because Derrickx couldn't even get a game there. Not GWS or Gold Coast. Hawthorn, widely derided for their rucks previously, just signed McEvoy. Not Melbourne, with 3 players experienced as AFL rucks not including Mitch Clark who starred there for a year.
 

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Can you name a worse one? Not Richmond's, because Derrickx couldn't even get a game there. Not GWS or Gold Coast. Hawthorn, widely derided for their rucks previously, just signed McEvoy. Not Melbourne, with 3 players experienced as AFL rucks not including Mitch Clark who starred there for a year.

Well we essentially end up without an AFL standard ruckman, so I doubt there'd be a worse ruck division in the comp. I'm not too impressed with Collingwood's rucks either, it all hinges on whether Grundy continues the great start to his career (which isn't guaranteed). Then they've got Lynch & an aging Hudson for cover, I wouldn't be too worried coming up against them without Pyke.

St Kilda are garbage after offloading McEvoy
 
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Can you name a worse one? Not Richmond's, because Derrickx couldn't even get a game there. Not GWS or Gold Coast. Hawthorn, widely derided for their rucks previously, just signed McEvoy. Not Melbourne, with 3 players experienced as AFL rucks not including Mitch Clark who starred there for a year.

Tippett is a good ruck if necessary. Better forward ... but its not going to be Armageddon if Pyke goes down.
 
B. A. Johnson Grundy Smith
HB. Malceski T. Richards Rampe
C. McVeigh Hannebury Jetta
HF. O'Keefe Franklin Parker
F. Goodes Tippett Rohan
R. Pyke K.Jack Kennedy
IC. Reid McGlynn Bird Mitchell

Emer. LRT Shaw Cunningham Laidler

Solid team, but I'd swap Mitchell and Rampe for Shaw and LRT.

I'll never understand why people don't rate LRT, he's been a first choice player since 2005 and has hardly put a foot wrong since. Watch the last quarter of the 2012 GF and tell me you wouldn't want him on the field in a big game. He's very hard to beat one on one, reads the flight of the ball very well in the air, has a massive engine, can play forward or back and help in the ruck, and applies elite pressure at both ends. When fit he's a lock for me.
 
With the introduction of the 3 interchanges and 1 sub and now the cap on rotations the idea of best 22 for the home and away season has passed, imo. Coachers will break the season into blocks of games and pick an ideal team for that set (barring injury). They will also use the GPS data collected from past seasons (and particularly 2013 when the Swans midfield engine faded.) Last year set the limits that players like Kennedy, & Jack, can run, sprint and tackle week in, week out and cumulatively without a break (bar the bye round). In response, this year there will be more resting of players to pace them through the season.

Pyke is another who cannot play 22 H & A games as Number One ruck and still be at his best in a finals series. This is what Roo's said in the Age yesterday “It's a tough role to do week-in, week-out, because with the sub now, you have a ruckman doing 80 per cent ruck and 20 per cent forward. The question is, can that bloke go 22 weeks for the year? So the good teams can cover the loss for a couple of weeks and bring someone in, so you almost need a ruck department.

The best teams have the strongest depth but of course the unknown is the injuries.
 
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Just thinking about it, we have a fair amount of flexibility with regard to our rucks.

If Pyke, Tippett & LRT are in the team, then we've got the luxury of giving Pyke a bit more of a rest, with both Tipp & LRT able to spend more time in the ruck (Pyke will definitely need to be given some time off throughout the season to keep him as fresh as possible).

If either Tipp or LRT aren't in the side, then Pyke plays a little more time in the ruck and the other player will spend minimal time in the ruck to give Pyke a chop out.

If both Tipp & LRT are out then we'd probably give one of our other rucks a go to help Pyke out.

If Pyke goes down, then someone like Derickx will definitely get a run.

As long as Pyke stays fit, and we manage his time throughout the season everything will go well. If Pyke goes down we end up with one of the worst Ruck divisions in the league.

End up with one of the worst ruck divisions in the league. That is a bit harsh. One of the most raw ruck divisions yes but not worst. I think both Toby & Sammy both have more than a bit of ability, not sure of Derrickx yet but I will be at the Intra club trial so will see him contest with all the others. Derrickx from what I have seen on the footage of contested work and practice matches is pretty good at marking around the ground.
 
Can you name a worse one? Not Richmond's, because Derrickx couldn't even get a game there. Not GWS or Gold Coast. Hawthorn, widely derided for their rucks previously, just signed McEvoy. Not Melbourne, with 3 players experienced as AFL rucks not including Mitch Clark who starred there for a year.

With Pyke we've got a good ruck division, as both Tippett and LRT are decent backups. But if Pyke was to be injured then you're totally right, we don't have much.

But, we've got a brilliant forwardline and a very good backline and midfield. No team is perfect all around the ground, even the best have weaknesses. As you pointed out, Hawthorn were derided for their rucks, and they won the Premiership!
 
Guys
As much as we all believe who will & who wont make this list, it really does come down to injuries, form, suspension & opposition.

I would love to see who makes Round 1 knowing that Goodes, Tippett, LRT, LJ and Mitchell have had limited pre-seasons & whilst others like McGlynn (as a midfielder), Marsh, Nankervis, Derickx & others appear to have had a good pre-season.

I can only hope that we continue to keep the players on the park & training well with incentives to try to make the team. Hopefully, we have 30 players trying to get into that Best 22 all year & that allows us to rest key players, open up opportunities to see young kids & put pressure on all of the team to keep performing to their maximum efforts.

Go Bloods for 2014 !!!
 

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Opinion Ideal 22 in season 2014

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