Coach Justin Longmuir Pt 2

[Mags98]

Flaws in the game plan I'm not sure about but letting the Bombers come back from 25 points down was a mistake. Letting Stringer have his best game for the year. Leaving Dangerfield, Horne-Francis, Brent Daniels, Jesse Hogan, etc to carve us up and not making a change match day was poor coaching.

I thought Liam Reidy held his own. Would our season still be alive if he played against the Cats instead of Taberner?

People take the piss out of Zach Dawson but did anyone have 10 shots on goal against Dawson when RTB was here like Hogan did? If they did I don't remember, Hogan only kicked 2 against the Saints this year. Don't get beaten by what you know. How often do guys like Bontempelli tear us up under JLo?

bont tears up every team in the comp what sort of question is that

again not sure how you can point to individual players letting themselves down ie. ryan v stringer or cox v hogan and blame it on JL?

the system and gameplan JL has the team playing sees us up against the top teams in the league and only narrowly missing out, if not for a spate of fumbles and bad decisions. certainly there are some areas that need improvement on the coaching side but to throw it all out bc we didnt score 3 more points in the season seems short sighted to me

 

[Snuffaluphagus]

bont tears up every team in the comp what sort of question is that

again not sure how you can point to individual players letting themselves down ie. ryan v stringer or cox v hogan and blame it on JL?

the system and gameplan JL has the team playing sees us up against the top teams in the league and only narrowly missing out, if not for a spate of fumbles and bad decisions. certainly there are some areas that need improvement on the coaching side but to throw it all out bc we didnt score 3 more points in the season seems short sighted to me

I think the main issue and one that I dont think has any justification is the pressure. The one non-negotiable among the top teams, and top teams in finals is pressure. We are no where near either in the pressure gauge, or, if you want to right that off, just the eye test. It has to be better

 

[dont bowl there]

bont tears up every team in the comp what sort of question is that

again not sure how you can point to individual players letting themselves down ie. ryan v stringer or cox v hogan and blame it on JL?

the system and gameplan JL has the team playing sees us up against the top teams in the league and only narrowly missing out, if not for a spate of fumbles and bad decisions. certainly there are some areas that need improvement on the coaching side but to throw it all out bc we didnt score 3 more points in the season seems short sighted to me

I think we could use the ball less which should result in less fumbles when the heat gets turned up in big games/late in close games. Not to go all Suma but honestly just that small tweak could have big results.

 

[DragoDelph]

I think we could use the ball less which should result in less fumbles when the heat gets turned up in big games/late in close games. Not to go all Suma but honestly just that small tweak could have big results.

If they trust the next person in the line to take the mark or at least halve the 1/1 contest, think this happens more.

At the moment it seems they're trying to bypass "bad" options, by running it.

Taking the handball game less will also conserve energy which should hopefully mean more energy to sustain pressure.

More 1/1 wins up the ground, even with the handball game will result in less turnovers and the mids/backs having to sprint back the other way, also conserving energy.

Basically. They need to be better at the contest.

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[wakojako]

If they trust the next person in the line to take the mark or at least halve the 1/1 contest, think this happens more.

At the moment it seems they're trying to bypass "bad" options, by running it.

Taking the handball game less will also conserve energy which should hopefully mean more energy to sustain pressure.

More 1/1 wins up the ground, even with the handball game will result in less turnovers and the mids/backs having to sprint back the other way, also conserving energy.

Basically. They need to be better at the contest.

Jackson is still young but is starting to come of age now. We really need him to work his ass off this off-season on his contested marking. It will completely transform our ball movement. The same applies to Amiss. We really need him up the ground taking contested marks. Probably need Johnson (193 cm) and Chappy (193 cm) to add that to their repertoire as well.

 

[james haish]

I think the main issue and one that I dont think has any justification is the pressure. The one non-negotiable among the top teams, and top teams in finals is pressure. We are no where near either in the pressure gauge, or, if you want to right that off, just the eye test. It has to be better

Pressure is one, the other is the lack of defence in the front half of the ground. There were times in games where we needed to turn the ball over in the forward half and got nothing.

 

[arsesmart]

Jackson is still young but is starting to come of age now. We really need him to work his ass off this off-season on his contested marking. It will completely transform our ball movement. The same applies to Amiss. We really need him up the ground taking contested marks. Probably need Johnson (193 cm) and Chappy (193 cm) to add that to their repertoire as well.

LOL are you a dad coach by any chance?

 

[Rhufus]

Pickett will improve our forward half pressure massively.

Bolton and Pickett will improve our ground balls gets.

No they wont,necessarily. Its not like they are faster than Switta, Emmett and Freddy. They will do the same thing as JLo instructs the existing players to do for an opposition kick in. ie sag off about 20 feet and then let them commit to one side of the ground then set up on that side of the wing for a contest. Just about every kick in there is no contest until the ball is past the half way mark. You dont win big games giving all that ground every time.

The lack of pressure problem is not fitness, its not players lack of desire, its tatical.
If it was lack of effort, then the coach would be playing you at Peel.

The coaching staff clearly dont rate tackle pressure inside our forward 50, we are the third worst team. Unless JLo addresses that issue at least, he should be booted.
Oh and by the way only about three players know how to tackle, to go for the hips, most are just sold candy like babies.

 

[Dockeroo]

serious flaws that saw us lose out to top 4 teams by less than a couple of goals? could you expand on that

I’ll explain in more detail when I have more time.
But basically when the pressure gauge goes over 200, our excessive handballing backwards in chains of 6 or 7 hand passes, out of stoppages in an attempt to find the perfect target forward of the ball just does not work.

Inevitably someone fumbles when there’s pressure on the ball and we are suddenly scrambling and out of position defensively.

We went 3-8 in 11 games against the finalists. We went 0-4 when the season was in the melting pot in August.

Also it was the most even season ever. You talk as if these top 4 sides were miles ahead of us all season.

It’s not a talent issue either - we have 5 of the best 44 players in the league this year.

 

[WilloTree]

I’ll explain in more detail when I have more time.
But basically when the pressure gauge goes over 200, our excessive handballing backwards in chains of 6 or 7 hand passes, out of stoppages in an attempt to find the perfect target forward of the ball just does not work.

Inevitably someone fumbles when there’s pressure on the ball and we are suddenly scrambling and out of position defensively.

We went 3-8 in 11 games against the finalists. We went 0-4 when the season was in the melting pot in August.

Also it was the most even season ever. You talk as if these top 4 sides were miles ahead of us all season.

It’s not a talent issue either - we have 5 of the best 44 players in the league this year.

The old bomb it long and hope method? I'm sure that will be popular on here.

 

[james haish]

The old bomb it long and hope method? I'm sure that will be popular on here.

Lots of other methods than ring a rosie handball. Forward handball out the front of the stoppage, get the balls into the hands of a line breaking mid, etc

 

[dont bowl there]

Lots of other methods than ring a rosie handball. Forward handball out the front of the stoppage, get the balls into the hands of a line breaking mid, etc

Few stats from Wheelo, we rank:

1st for handball receives
2nd for uncontested possessions
3rd last for contested possessions (Only Eagles and Richmond below us)

Then people wonder why we struggle when the heat gets turned up late in games? The system isn't broken or unfixable but it's not all down to fumbles and missed shots at goal late. We overuse the ball way too much which is fine in a regular round 11 game but it's not going to work in finals or high pressure moments.

 

[Dockeroo]

Few stats from Wheelo, we rank:

1st for handball receives
2nd for uncontested possessions
3rd last for contested possessions (Only Eagles and Richmond below us)

Then people wonder why we struggle when the heat gets turned up late in games? The system isn't broken or unfixable but it's not all down to fumbles and missed shots at goal late. We overuse the ball way too much which is fine in a regular round 11 game but it's not going to work in finals or high pressure moments.

When the heat and pressure gets turned up to unbearable levels by opposition players, JLs over-handballing gameplan reminds me of the old Mike Tyson quote.

“Everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the face”

 

[james haish]

Few stats from Wheelo, we rank:

1st for handball receives
2nd for uncontested possessions
3rd last for contested possessions (Only Eagles and Richmond below us)

Then people wonder why we struggle when the heat gets turned up late in games? The system isn't broken or unfixable but it's not all down to fumbles and missed shots at goal late. We overuse the ball way too much which is fine in a regular round 11 game but it's not going to work in finals or high pressure moments.

Yep, there are obvious flaws in the way we play that need addressing, and if Longmuir doesn’t, he’ll waste another year, and will end up being sacked.

Personally I don’t think he’s capable of addressing them. He does not seem the kind of bloke who prioritises pressure at the ball carrier

 

[dont bowl there]

Yep, there are obvious flaws in the way we play that need addressing, and if Longmuir doesn’t, he’ll waste another year, and will end up being sacked.

Personally I don’t think he’s capable of addressing them. He does not seem the kind of bloke who prioritises pressure at the ball carrier

Probably why we need to get some fresh voices into the coaching team, unless I missed a change we went with the same bunch in 2024 that were there in 2023. After two seasons of missing finals they simply need to make a change, we all know it won't be in the head coaching role so they need to at least change a couple of the assistants.

 

[malpaso]

When the heat and pressure gets turned up to unbearable levels by opposition players, JLs over-handballing gameplan reminds me of the old Mike Tyson quote.

“Everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the face”

Yeah except we started the handballing to move the ball faster this year. Pressure and the ability to win contested possession will come from our team getting older, fitter and stronger.

 

[malpaso]

Yep, there are obvious flaws in the way we play that need addressing, and if Longmuir doesn’t, he’ll waste another year, and will end up being sacked.

Personally I don’t think he’s capable of addressing them. He does not seem the kind of bloke who prioritises pressure at the ball carrier

Rubbish, that's what they did at the Pies and he was the defensive coach if I'm not mistaken?

 

[Lach72]

I would be slimming Jackson down by 5 kg and getting him more mobile, then putting him at stoppages of the whole pre-season.

Part of the method is as much as possible running things around Hayden Young

26

Hayden Young

Age

23

Ht

189cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

D/M

Career

Season

Last 5

D

10.0

3star

K

6.6

3star

HB

3.4

3star

M

3.2

3star

T

1.4

3star

MG

160.0

3star

D

10.0

3star

K

6.6

3star

HB

3.4

2star

M

3.2

3star

T

1.4

2star

MG

160.0

3star

D

10.0

3star

K

6.6

3star

HB

3.4

3star

M

3.2

4star

T

1.4

4star

MG

160.0

3star

.
I can also barely remember Switta at a bounce at the end of the season.
And this will be an interesting thing when we get Bolton, who is similar size and also moves through the midfield

 

[malpaso]

Few stats from Wheelo, we rank:

1st for handball receives
2nd for uncontested possessions
3rd last for contested possessions (Only Eagles and Richmond below us)

Then people wonder why we struggle when the heat gets turned up late in games? The system isn't broken or unfixable but it's not all down to fumbles and missed shots at goal late. We overuse the ball way too much which is fine in a regular round 11 game but it's not going to work in finals or high pressure moments.

Contested possessions along with increased pressure will come from a maturing squad. A team that is #1 in clearances will surely add that to their bow, it's not that far a leap.
Our overuse of the ball as an excuse is simplistic, our skills are poor to top it off. We must be #1 in limp handballs which to the eye look like the player second-guesses themselves while handballing.

 

[malpaso]

I would be slimming Jackson down by 5 kg and getting him more mobile, then putting him at stoppages of the whole pre-season.

Part of the method is as much as possible running things around Hayden Young.
I can also barely remember Switta at a bounce at the end of the season.
And this will be an interesting thing when we get Bolton, who is similar size and also moves through the midfield

Same with Pickett

 

[dont bowl there]

Contested possessions along with increased pressure will come from a maturing squad. A team that is #1 in clearances will surely add that to their bow, it's not that far a leap.
Our overuse of the ball as an excuse is simplistic, our skills are poor to top it off. We must be #1 in limp handballs which to the eye look like the player second-guesses themselves while handballing.

If we don't have the skill level to be pulling off the handballing game then shouldn't that be on the coach to make a change in style? We can't just assume it will all be OK once we get a bit older.

 

[Lach72]

If we don't have the skill level to be pulling off the handballing game then shouldn't that be on the coach to make a change in style? We can't just assume it will all be OK once we get a bit older.

Lot of things feed into it.

Treacy maturing helps, as does Amiss. You can be more confident banging it on the boot when the keys can take a grab.

Second to that…put Pickett and Bolton at the feet of those talls, instead of an aging Walters and Banfield.

What happens then? Both can take huge grabs, both are genuine crumbers and are fast and can tackle and chase.

Ok, now we really can bang it in the boot, instead of aiming for perfection.

We’re already winning enough ball midfield. Our clearance stats talk to that.

So, then it becomes a back line thing. Again, Jackson taking some marks, Darcy getting fit and taking some marks would be handy.

Bolton and Pickett, linking with O'Driscoll, Freddy and Hsarp gives us real running power.

I also want Jackson training as a midfielder. Breaking open space using his body and quick hands

 

[malpaso]

If we don't have the skill level to be pulling off the handballing game then shouldn't that be on the coach to make a change in style? We can't just assume it will all be OK once we get a bit older.

Well we do have the skill however look at some of the characters involved in our transition game like Banfield who does a great job getting into position and working hard but then let down by lack of skill and brain farts.
As we know the club is targetting forward half players (medium/smalls) that will increase not only our scoring power but our ability to move the ball more efficiently.
The style in my opinion is fine, there are players that need to get better.

 

[dont bowl there]

Lot of things feed into it.

Treacy maturing helps, as does Amiss. You can be more confident banging it on the boot when the keys can take a grab.

Second to that…put Pickett and Bolton at the feet of those talls, instead of an aging Walters and Banfield.

What happens then? Both can take huge grabs, both are genuine crumbers and are fast and can tackle and chase.

Ok, now we really can bang it in the boot, instead of aiming for perfection.

We’re already winning enough ball midfield. Our clearance stats talk to that.

So, then it becomes a back line thing. Again, Jackson taking some marks, Darcy getting fit and taking some marks would be handy.

Bolton and Pickett, linking with O'Driscoll, Freddy and Hsarp gives us real running power.

I also want Jackson training as a midfielder. Breaking open space using his body and quick hands

I agree with all of that, players make the difference when it comes to the game plan which is why it's up to the coach of each side to implement a gameplan that suits the players they have. We aren't GWS who are also a high handball side, we don't have the same level of ball users that they have. So instead of trying to push a style on a side that doesn't fit it we need to be making changes to the style or as you said the players. If we land Bolton and Kozzie I imagine everything suddenly looks a lot better, will that be enough to counter when the pressure goes up in close games/finals, who knows but I hope we get to see if it does in 2025.

 

[dont bowl there]

Well we do have the skill however look at some of the characters involved in our transition game like Banfield who does a great job getting into position and working hard but then let down by lack of skill and brain farts.
As we know the club is targetting forward half players (medium/smalls) that will increase not only our scoring power but our ability to move the ball more efficiently.
The style in my opinion is fine, there are players that need to get better.

Fair enough, everyone has a different view on the way their team should play. I think it's not as simple as the style is fine but the players need to get better. The players need to get better at handling the tough moments but we can't be sitting with West Coast and Richmond when it comes to contested possessions.