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Bigman’s Training Reports

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Milera, Smith, Borlase and Murphy

Over Draper, Worrell, Hinge and Curtin types ?

Bit surprising, but not gonna read much into it, maybe to keep a few on edge and a few still with confidence that they are in the mix, when in fact maybe they arent without injury
That's a really good point. Might be rotating the last 5 or 6 spots out of the best 22 to keep everyone who's 'in the mix' on their toes. I like it
 
A huge thanks to Bigman for doing match reports as they gives a much greater perspective what's happening in the lead uo to what should be a exciting 2025.
Not only does he gives us what's happening at training well before reading elsewhere but with great detail ,that you can visualise the progress of our team and where they might fit.
From these reports along with our later trading and recruiting I don't understand why more posters not getting massively excited about season ahead .
I am placing bet on getting top 4 .

Forward line that includes
Tex -- he will keep a defender busy in games played
FOG -- No reason cant play as well if not better than last year.
TT -- How in the hell cant you get excited by what he can produce and how teams going to match up on
Rachelle -- The talent is there and obviously superbly fit , so just needs to impose himself more and learn to feed off our greater marking presence up forward.
ANB. -- A very good player playing role that Murphy played ,what more is there to say.
Rankine -- playing mid or fwd you just have be drooling to see what he is going to do.
Curtin -- I have never been more excited by a draftee as much as this 197 m classy colossal and size just makes him impossible to match up on after covering other bigs in our fwd line .

MIDS
Without going into great detail along with adding Peatling to mix and possibility of Cumming and more Rankine and maybe not at start of season but adding speed of Draper and of course more mature bodies of Soligo ,Taylor etc etc and of course the skip won't be required to play Fwd ,back and mid in one game.

DEFENCE
With all our injured bigs back and injection of Cumming and Milera into to add experience etc .
How could you not expect the D to improve .

COACHING
Like all I am ver critical of our coaching team led bu Nicks and some look after mates combo .
The positive here is M Davis and like all not sure exact role but must be significant to leave premiership team .
He reminds me of one person a fellow called Phil Walsh and look what could have happened there.
I noticed with interest K Cornes said Phil was the best coach he ever had .

CONCLUDE WITH QUESTIONS FOR BIGMAN
How much is Davis involved and is it in a senior way .
Like many a Worrell fan but from reports and more available quality defenders is he going to get in first lineup.
Club etc getting enthused about Milera form and forcing out kids etc did great job last season .
So has he done a bulk of good stuff or just that flashy move now and again.
Could Andrew if added or T Murray do ok job if ROB injured .
More feedback if possible on Edwards who had huge hopes for but struggled mainly last year and Ryan who jumped ahead of him last year .
Sorry but last is regarding Welsh with no other club showing interest in has he shown more than you expected in what time had.
I am with you Craig Crowing and believe there is much to be excited about. I went a year early last year with my optimism, but think we are in a better position this year. We have recruited, done a review and strengthened our coaching. We just need luck now with injuries to key personnel and hope that the coaching staff have the humility and resolve to put into place what is necessary. If the above works itself out, I too believe we can be top four and from there, given a good run with injuries and some luck, anything can happen!
 
I would 100% play Taylor or Dowling or Jones as sub before Murph. Even Berry as a late game bulldozer gets the vest ahead of Murph.
100% ✓ Correct call. With the names you just rolled out there is simply no justification for the Murph ahead of those blokes. But...as someone pointed out earlier...Nick's Factor.
For me of the names you mentioned, Berry gets the nod, then Jones (based on Bigman's latest reports) then Taylor, then Dowling. But it all comes down to who they're supposed to replace and in which position. As a sub you'd have to think Berry is the most versatile option that includes genuine mid skills.

If a mid goes down and you've got Jones or Dowling or even Taylor or Murph, you're shuffling magnets and immediately lose quality around the ball or up forward if Ranks or Keays has to cover it. With Berry, he can go forward or mid. If it's a defender you've lost to injury, then magnets are moving and likely Dawson drops back and berry slots in. No room for Murph
 
100% ✓ Correct call. With the names you just rolled out there is simply no justification for the Murph ahead of those blokes. But...as someone pointed out earlier...Nick's Factor.
For me of the names you mentioned, Berry gets the nod, then Jones (based on Bigman's latest reports) then Taylor, then Dowling. But it all comes down to who they're supposed to replace and in which position. As a sub you'd have to think Berry is the most versatile option that includes genuine mid skills.

If a mid goes down and you've got Jones or Dowling or even Taylor or Murph, you're shuffling magnets and immediately lose quality around the ball or up forward if Ranks or Keays has to cover it. With Berry, he can go forward or mid. If it's a defender you've lost to injury, then magnets are moving and likely Dawson drops back and berry slots in. No room for Murph
Selecting a sub as an insurance policy is only partly useful. But if you're looking at the game as the coach from a defensive position, insurance against an injury is fine.

However, if you have a positive and proactive outlook as coach, and you're trying to win the game rather than just save it, the sub would be planned to enter the game and use their fresh legs to help make things happen. He was much maligned but it was in this role where Ned became most useful to the team because he would provide significant pressure for a short time when everyone else was tiring.

We've had some weird (bad actually )sub selections over the past few years but I hope we never select the "next best player" as sub just because he was unlucky to miss the 22. That's just crappy idealism and a bit of a consolation prize.

Who is your best available IMPACT player for a quarter? Who has the best speed over the last quarter? Who can get at least 10 effective possessions in the last quarter. Which oppo player can our sub run away from in the last quarter? Who can best provide run and carry and the quickest ball movement in the last quarter? Who can offer lead after lead for the last quarter?

Of all the players outside the 22, I hope we pick every week...this guy.
 
Same reason why guys like Hinge, Keane and Worrell are in the B side.

Just mixing things up
Plus you cant just have the best 22 beat up on the rookies and depth. It has no purpose. They would have group specific players trying to work with each other but for competitive sake you want your best players battling it out with your best players as well.
 

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This is why Murph was on the B team earlier? Because Nicks thinks he's one of our best players to battle it out with?

Could be right...

huh?

Thats not what I said at all. It has nothing to do with whether they think Murphy is a good player. Some players will be floating to make up numbers between the 2 sides while the best 22 combat each other.
 
The context of "generally behind" is that we lose that stat on a week to week basis, it's not referencing our physical positioning. On differential we are the 14th placed team for spoils, so bottom 5, not top 3.
Not sure about the value of looking into ‘spoil differential’.
 
huh?

Thats not what I said at all. It has nothing to do with whether they think Murphy is a good player. Some players will be floating to make up numbers between the 2 sides while the best 22 combat each other.
I know mate, sorry, I was twisting your meaning intentionally to stir the pot a bit more is all. My bad.
 
I don't think Taylor is any chance with an uninjured list and it doesn't even mean that Murphy gets in, nor Smith pushing Nank out. I think your pitchfork stash is safe.

View attachment 2218115

Nank may beat out Milera and maybe Curtin misses for a Taylor or Dowling, but there's basically 19 locked in players (injury notwithstanding) for round 1. Probably 20 due to Butts having a late start courtesy of injury. Smith is too far back and should be behind any in-form, yet to debut player. But Murphy, off a good preseason, particularly whatever trial games are planned, could find himself as sub.

I will say with Smith, and although I didn't rate his 2023 as many other did, there's little doubt that his back injury made his 2024 a fair bit worse than it otherwise would have been. He might not be as far back as most would think. Probably not in front of Nank, but if he's fit and uninjured, I wouldn't be surprised if he was to get the nod ahead of Bond or debuting Ryan if injuries got us to that decision. Especially if we're up and about and finals are on the cards.
Is Rankine having smoko?
 
I’m jumping at shadows - but can’t fathom why he would currently be even trialled in the A team.
In the most positive sense, you do it so that the teams are a bit more even so it's not just a whitewash at training which achieves nothing...

Of course that requires a level of thinking that is more than I would expect from the coaches.
 

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Just a little bemused logging in to read Bigmans training report and have to skip pages and pages about bloody Murphy for crying out aloud.
Praying our man at training today and read something interesting and actually elightning rather than posters interacting over a very insignificant Murphy .
There is bookmarks.
 
Just a little bemused logging in to read Bigmans training report and have to skip pages and pages about bloody Murphy for crying out aloud.
Praying our man at training today and read something interesting and actually elightning rather than posters interacting over a very insignificant Murphy .


Wow sorry Murph.
 
Just a little bemused logging in to read Bigmans training report and have to skip pages and pages about bloody Murphy for crying out aloud.
Praying our man at training today and read something interesting and actually elightning rather than posters interacting over a very insignificant Murphy .

when will people complaining about threads going off topic realise they are only adding to their own complaints?
 

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