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

[Brant]

Round 1 Team
Seamus Blank Scrimshaw
Amon Sicily Weddle

Jiath Newcombe Impey
Worpel Day Reeves

Hardwick Chol Gunston
Bruest Lewis Moore

Ginnivan Maginess Nash MacDonald
Sub - Watson


Other possibilities:
If Seamus is still injured possibly Bailey MacDonald

Ward will eventually edge out Morrison in Wing role. D’Ambrosio also a chance. Just chucked in Impey so no Morrison anyway. s**t this is hard

Mackenzie or Hustwaite come in if Day is not ready

Gunston can go back as can Hardwick if it’s needed

I got a couple of queries on that side:

Hardwick as a link-up HFF & Moore as a crumbing/pressure forward?

Chol leading up to the Wing to receive the ball from HB, then resting in the Ruck, whilst wasting Lewis' tank?

 

[burner1]

Quite a few questions to be answered in next 2 months:
-will Day be fit for round 1?
-what is our best wing mix?
-will be just play Chol as 2nd tall and 2nd ruck or will Meek/Ramsden also play?
-who will be the 7th defender (assuming Sicily, Amon, impey, Blanck, scrim, weddle)
-who misses out - one of our smaller forwards (Watson, ginnivan etc) or mid types (Finn, Mackenzie, croc)?
-will there be any surprise faces in 22? Eg Butler, HH?

 

[Slainte]

My issue is that Weddle would be soundly beaten by Stringer - he just isn't great (yet) in a defensive role.

Weddle vs Stringer could work. They are very similar in size and Weddle has played most of his footy as a key defender.

It will be interesting see what jobs Weddle gets in the scratch games vs the Bulldogs. If we play him up the ground or in a rebound role in the back half, you know he won't be taking Stringer. But, if he gets time defending Naughton or JUH and does OK, it gives us the option of playing him on Stringer and omitting Frost.

Stringer is strong overhead but I would back Weddle to beat him unless it is a one on one test of strength. I don't see Stringer applying effective defensive pressure when Weddle has the ball and it is going the other way.

 

[Thrashor]

If you are see the Herald Sun article on who plays round one it won’t tell you anything you won’t have read in Bigfooty and some of the article predictably seems way off with what I read here - “At the other end, Sam Frost remains most likely to pair James Sicily, given Denver Grainer-Barras has been largely training as a forward.” It does suggest that the Essendon forward line could include Wright, Jones, Caddy and Langford which would be very tall if all were on at once and absurd if Stringer was also forward. We would have Blanck, Sic, Scrim and Weddle so I think we would have them covered if that was the case and wouldn’t need Frost or DGB in our backline.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

“Is that the truth, or did you read it in the Herald Sun”.

 

[rei154]

With Essendon looking a little taller down the front end could we see a taller back line?

DGB Frost Scrimshaw
Impey Sicily Amon

Scrim, DGB and Sicily are all capable of playing on smalls and talls, we'd then have the potential of Dimma, Ward, Day, Cj and Weddle who can all play through that line if we need some variation down there.

 

[TylerDurden]

I reckon Sam wants run out of the backline.

Talls: Blanck, Sic, Scrim/ Weddle
Runners: Impey, Amon, D'Ambrosio

Fk their talls. If Blanck can contain 2MP, we should be fine. I'd prefer we run them off their feet.

 

[threesixpio]

I reckon Sam wants run out of the backline.

Talls: Blanck, Sic, Scrim/ Weddle
Runners: Impey, Amon, D'Ambrosio

Fk their talls. If Blanck can contain 2MP, we should be fine. I'd prefer we run them off their feet.

Kill them in the midfield so 2MP never sees it

 

[cs61]

I reckon Sam wants run out of the backline.

Talls: Blanck, Sic, Scrim/ Weddle
Runners: Impey, Amon, D'Ambrosio

Fk their talls. If Blanck can contain 2MP, we should be fine. I'd prefer we run them off their feet.

Yep, run out of the backline, hard runners around the ground with fast ball movement, to a a couple of targets with a fleet of smalls to keep the attacking pressure on when it hits the ground, which we just didn't have last year.

* Also Seamus has a big part to play too from that 'runners' list if his body holds up. His composure under pressure, pace, and skill level was on point even from his very first game. Think his upside is pretty big. Seemed a player that almost preferred to the step up to the higher level.

 

[Brant]

With Essendon looking a little taller down the front end could we see a taller back line?

DGB Frost Scrimshaw
Impey Sicily Amon

Blanck is taller than all of them - surely he plays FB

 

[moginie]

“Is that the truth, or did you read it in the Herald Sun”.

If I can cast my mind back that far, even the Truth was more truthful than the Herald Sun.

 

[SpanishBrowne]

Fk their talls. If Blanck can contain 2MP, we should be fine. I'd prefer we run them off their feet.

just give him the old “rock and a hard place”. aka the “daicos crunch” aka the “maginness/blank sandwich”

edit: to be clear.. ideally don’t fracture bones. just put the fear of god into him

 

[rei154]

Blanck is taller than all of them - surely he plays FB

Forgot about Blanck- in for frosty

 

[MasterSamurai]

İt won't matter who we play in the backline unless our frwds and mids put pressure on , this was something we sucked in early in the season last year. Then there's the clean use of the ball coming out of the backline to utilise our running power which also was below par .fix those and we're half way there been competitive.

 

[parsons nose]

Anyone know if Harry Morrison

1

Harry Morrison

Age

25

Ht

184cm

Wt

79kg

Pos.

Mid

Career

Season

Last 5

D

14.1

4star

K

8.5

3star

HB

5.6

4star

M

4.3

4star

T

2.9

4star

CL

0.9

3star

D

13.4

3star

K

9.8

4star

HB

3.6

2star

M

4.2

4star

T

1.6

3star

CL

0.8

3star

D

18.4

5star

K

11.4

4star

HB

7.0

5star

M

5.4

5star

T

2.2

4star

CL

2.0

4star

is still on the list or is on the long term injury list? Fair haired chap, plays on the flank and wing, wears number 1 gurnsey, played our last month of the season 2023?

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Mitchell - Blanck - Weddle
Scrimshaw - Sicily - Amon

Reeves - Worpel - Nash
Ward - Newcombe - CJ

Moore - Lewis - MacDonald
Watson - Chol - Ginnivan

Breust - Hardwick - Finn - Impey
Sub: Mackenzie

I would love Mackenzie in the side, especially with Day out. I'd pick him over Finn but I'm not sure Mitchell will.

 

[burger09]

Mitchell - Blanck - Weddle
Scrimshaw - Sicily - Amon

Reeves - Worpel - Nash
Ward - Newcombe - CJ

Moore - Lewis - MacDonald
Watson - Chol - Ginnivan

Breust - Hardwick - Finn - Impey
Sub: Mackenzie

I would love Mackenzie in the side, especially with Day out. I'd pick him over Finn but I'm not sure Mitchell will.

Finns ability to sit on Merrett or even Stringer might get him over the line. Interesting watch. A lot of our team line up is still to be confirmed. A big 6 weeks coming up for many players.
We won't know our best 22 going forward untill mid/late in the season I wouldn't think.

 

[WWSD]

I wonder if Ryan could be smokey for Round 1? Jiath could line up on the wing and Hardwick will likely start up forward. Competition for spots will be tight.

 

[parsons nose]

Back: B.MacDonald. Blanck. Sicily

Half backs. Hardwick. Scrimshaw. Morrison

Centre: Amon. C.MacDonald. Jiath

Half forwards. Breust. Chol. Moore

Forwards: Watson. Lewis. Ginnivan

Rucks: Reeves. Newcombe. MacKenzie

Bench: Weddle. Ward. Impey. Worpel

Sub: Nash

 

[extractasam]

Anyone know if Harry Morrison is still on the list or is on the long term injury list? Fair haired chap, plays on the flank and wing, wears number 1 gurnsey, played our last month of the season 2023?

Love him in that offensive wingman role. 15 disposals 2 goals in that second half against the pies rd 21.

I think most on here find him fairly vanilla and hope that he’s overtaken by others at some stage. He’s fairly handy depth either way if he doesn’t find himself in the side rd 1.

 

[Slainte]

Back: B.MacDonald. Blanck. Sicily

Half backs. Hardwick. Scrimshaw. Morrison

Centre: Amon. C.MacDonald. Jiath

Half forwards. Breust. Chol. Moore

Forwards: Watson. Lewis. Ginnivan

Rucks: Reeves. Newcombe. MacKenzie

Bench: Weddle. Ward. Impey. Worpel

Sub: Nash

At the end of the 2023 season, Nash is our third best player. At the beginning of the 2024 season, MacKenzie has gone past him and he can't even get a spot on the bench, How did you figure that out? You also have Bailey McDonald leapfrogging Seaumus. Have you seen something at training that the rest of us have missed?

 

[WillDayFanClub]

Impey Blank/Frost Wedd
Sicily Scrim Amon

Ward Reeves CJ
Day Newk Worps


Croc Lewis Moore
Bruest Chol Hardwick

Bench. Nash Gunston/3rdTall FWD. S Mitchell Mackenzie/Finn Sub Watson on, Gunston off

 

[burner1]

Is Seamue, CJ, Gunston expected to be fit for round 1?

Seamus seems a logical replacement for Hardwick down back but most training reports have him running laps.

İt won't matter who we play in the backline unless our frwds and mids put pressure on , this was something we sucked in early in the season last year. Then there's the clean use of the ball coming out of the backline to utilise our running power which also was below par .fix those and we're half way there been competitive.

Yep. Lewis/Chol/Breust/Moore/ginnivan/Watson/croc/Hardwick/Gunston - on paper doesn’t look like a group good at forward pressure.

 

[TheFourPillars]

Seamus CJ and gunners are in full training

 

[cryptor]

Anyone know if Harry Morrison is still on the list or is on the long term injury list? Fair haired chap, plays on the flank and wing, wears number 1 gurnsey, played our last month of the season 2023?

Underrated player who now has a lot more pressure on his spot.

Amon has moved from the other wing to half back, but Massimo and CJ are now available to be in the mix for a wing spot.

Ward, Mackenzie and Butler will also be putting their hands up for more game time in other roles but will no doubt share time in the wing spot.

I think Morrison's strongest attributes are his footy IQ, heart and on-field leadership. He keeps a cool head under pressure and when you're at games live you'll often see him being vocal and directing teammates to where they need to be.

We're still a young side so these traits will be important for the composition of the team, but I think as the younger players with more tricks mature they'll also make it less of a differentiator for him. Which isn't to say Morrison doesn't have some tricks of his own, just that there is some seriously strong talent coming through.