Unofficial Preview Round 1, 2024: Bombers v Hawks, MCG 1:10pm Sat 16th March

[cs61]

Stringer has had his best pre season ever , the penny has finally dropped , is super fit and skinfolds are at their lowest .......

Would love that matchup for us , no way * let that happen . They'll want Stringer getting someone he can try to bully around .

Not sure forwards can choose their match ups though…

 

[Brant]

Stringer has had his best pre season ever , the penny has finally dropped , is super fit and skinfolds are at their lowest .......

Again

 

[Argy]

Not sure forwards can choose their match ups though…

Not so sure about that. Sicily was being regularly manned up last year.

 

[peetoo]

Opposition won’t follow our players like they’re tagging. They’ll simply handover and play their own strategy.

What Sam is doing is trying to create multiple position players. Those who can play outside / inside / forward and occasionally back.

That was the key to the three peat. Flexibility in the midfield - and it’s completely coach able. So the coaches can control it to some extent.

Frankly it’s what got Collingwood to where they are as well. Mids who can “play their role” at a given situation and go forward to impact on the scoreboard.

You spotted the flaw in my plan….

 

[hawkinoz]

Agree with this point on Ramsden. On top of keeping Chol in position, running with Ramsden would give us an extra big man on the ground to compete in the air. Reeves, Blanck, Lewis, Chol isn't that many compared to some sides, with Scrimshaw playing as an undersized key position defender. Also Ramsden drifting forward next to Chol, Gunston, Lewis would be be a real nuisance for the opposition defences.

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

 

[number23]

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

I have thought something similar. He's a very good mark and tall enough to play KPD but all the training has been as a ruck/Forward. He doesn't have the body weight (whatever that is now that the AFL does not publish these stats anymore) currently to take on the bigger forwards but I think that it's worth Sam trying him out. Harris Andrews is relatively lightly framed and does alright.

 

[Topiary]

I have thought something similar. He's a very good mark and tall enough to play KPD but all the training has been as a ruck/Forward. He doesn't have the body weight (whatever that is now that the AFL does not publish these stats anymore) currently to take on the bigger forwards but I think that it's worth Sam trying him out. Harris Andrews is relatively lightly framed and does alright.

Because Harris Andrews READS it.

 

[cryptor]

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

Sicily and Scrim to a lesser degree play KPD roles against larger opponents. They play to their strengths by reading the play/flight better and attacking the ball rather than watching and reacting to their opponent and getting caught playing behind or stuck in a wrestling match.

So my point is that he's certainly big enough, but there is a mental component to it that would be very challenging. Particularly against Hawkins and Walker who are clever and experienced forwards with deceptively good agility for their size.

 

[Topiary]

What we need to get KPD wise is someone not like Sic who reads it so well, but someone who is able to play differently to Sic, who is able to defend as well when the ball comes in over Sic’s head. It is why the progress of Blank is so important, he can defend better one on one, muscle a bloke.
Also hopefully Scrim can get better, be more consistent as his team mates want.
Play to our strengths and be better at defending ALL elements of an oppo forward line. It is called structure.

 

[TylerDurden]

Happy to play Huss in the middle in this game, as Day cover.

 

[Bugs1977]

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

I suppose if you squint hard enough

It's kinda funny that the guy a lot of us wanted to throw down back all those years is now tasked with finding someone to do exactly that

 

[The hands of stone]

Not sure forwards can choose their match ups though…

Dont teams try to manipulate matchups to get the most favourable one's for their forwards ?

 

[HedgeFund]

Dont teams try to manipulate matchups to get the most favourable one's for their forwards ?

Lasts 60 seconds if the back 6 have half a brain

 

[Tony3163]

Lasts 60 seconds if the back 6 have half a brain

Yep, Lewis and Chol aren’t going to orgnaise the defenders to suit themselves.

 

[rick_422]

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

Not sure if this is a pisstake or serious?

He would be destroyed by Hawkins, Walker, Wright. They have made very good defenders look average.

 

[The hands of stone]

Lasts 60 seconds if the back 6 have half a brain

Yep so teams do try to do it

 

[Alite]

Have we considered if Ramsden has the nous to play as a stop gap KPD/Ruck. Must have put on size now and would have the Athletic abilities to run some KPF's ragged.

He could deal with someone like Hawkins, Walker, 2MP fairly well.

It is worth a thought but as others have said, Rama could not handle the types of Fwds you mentioned. Players do develop new skills over their careers and it is clear that Rama has height and a great athletic base. But IMO, putting him into a defensive position this year or next, on a needs basis, would stifle his growth as a player. Cheers for the idea though.

What we need to get KPD wise is someone not like Sic who reads it so well, but someone who is able to play differently to Sic, who is able to defend as well when the ball comes in over Sic’s head. It is why the progress of Blank is so important, he can defend better one on one, muscle a bloke.
Also hopefully Scrim can get better, be more consistent as his team mates want.
Play to our strengths and be better at defending ALL elements of an oppo forward line. It is called structure.

THIS . Blankly is our man, along with team defence. Frost is a good 2nd tall defender and should be in the mix if he curbs his distribution issues*. Scrim, DGB and even Sic are all 3rd tall defenders. I tend to think that the speed of development of McCabe will mirror the timing of the Hawks rise to power. Either that or an audacious trade for someone like Sam Taylor.

But who knows, maybe coach Sam has an ace up his sleeve in the game plan that will not require the standard backline structure. I am magnetically drawn to this idea.

* I don’t care how Frost is made to realise he is not a distributer of the ball but instead more a Frawley/Manginess stopper… just someone make it happen!

 

[peetoo]

Noises coming out of * sound a bit like us. Selection headaches etc

 

[Argy]

Noises coming out of * sound a bit like us. Selection headaches etc

They're always noisy this time of year - their PR dept works hard.

 

[FB19]

They're always noisy this time of year - their PR dept works hard.

I guess you can confidently start work a month early if you work at the Dons.

 

[HedgeFund]

Noises coming out of * sound a bit like us. Selection headaches etc

Every club will be thinking / saying the same thing.

 

[Dewnior]

Dimma will play forward has trained almost exclusively as a forward. You dont spend resources training there the whole season to not play there

Will depend on how well he goes in the new role in the lead up to R1.

 

[Dewnior]

When it all starts to click it's hard to think who will end up on the bench

When Day is fit, he will definitely take up one of the starting bench spots. Just like Silk did.

 

[CHUBBSS]

When Day is fit, he will definitely take up one of the starting bench spots. Just like Silk did.

The great man came to us with a career in the midfield under his belt, day needs a bit more time before he can be the break glass player, I see it but not for a while yet

 

[HedgeFund]

The great man came to us with a career in the midfield under his belt, day needs a bit more time before he can be the break glass player, I see it but not for a while yet

Burgoyne came to a club far more advanced than we are currently, but his class meant he would never play 2s.

I think that’s the main point - Day won’t be required to play a game at BH before he’s ready to play AFL. He’s too important to the current side, and superior to current mids, to hold him back when fit.