Bigman’s Training Reports

[Crow till I die]

So based on that we just ignore the times when he was not good enough to make the team or when he did play but then gave average performances? Generous.

Understand that but anyone that stands up and performs in finals gets more rope and credits in the bank in ny eye.

My starting front 6 would be

Pedlar TT Keays
Rachele Fog ANB

Then Ah Chee on a wing so our starting midfield rotation would be

Soligo Dawson Ah Chee
ROB Curtin Rankine

 

[Mostyn]

We should highly weight finals performances, both the good and the bad.

Performing in a final is much more important than being average in regular rounds

It's also a MUCH smaller sample size

 

[WetCrow1991]

Because the white version of the guy in the gif you posted will play him in the middle at every opportunity, to the detriment of all. I'm not wishing injury on him, just perpetual recovery, and not quite being up to play midfield.

 

[kirky]

Understand that but anyone that stands up and performs in finals gets more rope and credits in the bank in ny eye.

My starting front 6 would be

Pedlar TT Keays
Rachele Fog ANB

Then Ah Chee on a wing so our starting midfield rotation would be

Soligo Dawson Ah Chee
ROB Curtin Rankine

Lets just park that thought at the moment.

Pedlar has stats lower than Murphy. He needs to lift his game significantly.

 

[Crow till I die]

Lets just park that thought at the moment.

Pedlar has stats lower than Murphy. He needs to lift his game significantly.

View attachment 2488643

I don't care...I care about players that stand up in finals and he did in one of ours in a big way. So to me, he is in our R1 team and until his form decides otherwise, he is there

 

[Scorpus]

It's also a MUCH smaller sample size

We might only get one shot at a flag

 

[BRL121]

What in fact you're saying is, we need a quick small FWD .....it doesn't have to be Rankine per se, as his greatest return on his talent is to be around the ball as much as possible

A quick small fwd was my Draft need identification .....if correct, and we had interest in Dovaston, then the Club realises that need as well ....which may also offer some explanation behind the choice of the two train on players

I reckon this is somewhat misguided. Some of us pointed out halfway through this year that, although Rankine had been great to that point, playing mainly midfield, he was starting to look tired and battered. As might be expected, he is just not bodily capable of playing full-time midfield, and this was confirmed later in the year.

So, rather than desiring a new specialist small forward to allow Rankine to play more in the middle, which would be self-defeating, the realistic desire should be for another mid/small forward to swap with Rankine. I don't believe Rachele is that man.

So we should be looking for another Rankine type, with more than one string to the bow. Of course, we won't get another Rankine, but we need versatility not provided by a specialist small forward.

 

[dylan123]

Because the white version of the guy in the gif you posted will play him in the middle at every opportunity, to the detriment of all. I'm not wishing injury on him, just perpetual recovery, and not quite being up to play midfield.

Laird's only time in the midfield was during the finals which basically indicates Nicks didn't play him at every opportunity this season so I don't think that would change next.

 

[jackster83]

I don't care...I care about players that stand up in finals and he did in one of ours in a big way. So to me, he is in our R1 team and until his form decides otherwise, he is there

Scott Stevens kicked 6 goals in a final once...

I'm all for weighting finals performances higher but even a spud can have a one off big day out.

 

[Mutineer]

Scott Stevens kicked 6 goals in a final once...

I'm all for weighting finals performances higher but even a spud can have a one off big day out.

Cept Scott Stevens wasn't a spud, better than average footballer who unfortunately had the latter part of his career impacted by concussion.

 

[Crow till I die]

 

[Ciao Giacomo]

We should highly weight finals performances, both the good and the bad.

Performing in a final is much more important than being average in regular rounds

I couldn’t agree more.

I remember this bloke* who was dominating during the minor round for Hawthorn and failed to fire a shot in the grand final. I said at the time that he could never be trusted in finals and minor round form was irrelevant.

I do think that 2 games is a small sample to be basing definitive judgements on finals’ capability. We don’t know what injuries/flus that may have affected the performance of players.

Peatling was very good in the 2024 finals but a few posters are willing to write him off based on the 2025 finals.

* Darren Jarman

 

[Mostyn]

We might only get one shot at a flag

Yeah, so how do you choose the players for it?

Someone who had one good week a year ago, or someone who's played well all year?

Hopefully, it's an easy choice. If we're in position for a flag, we've hopefully already had a decent finals series.

 

[maxlilly]

Scott Stevens kicked 6 goals in a final once...

I'm all for weighting finals performances higher but even a spud can have a one off big day out.

Shane Ellen ??
I think if you have a blinder in a big final, that rules out that you are a spud

 

[maxlilly]

I reckon this is somewhat misguided. Some of us pointed out halfway through this year that, although Rankine had been great to that point, playing mainly midfield, he was starting to look tired and battered. As might be expected, he is just not bodily capable of playing full-time midfield, and this was confirmed later in the year.

So, rather than desiring a new specialist small forward to allow Rankine to play more in the middle, which would be self-defeating, the realistic desire should be for another mid/small forward to swap with Rankine. I don't believe Rachele is that man.

So we should be looking for another Rankine type, with more than one string to the bow. Of course, we won't get another Rankine, but we need versatility not provided by a specialist small forward.

I feel the club missed out badly not recruiting Talor Byrne.
He only went a couple of picks before our second pick.
I think we should have traded up to to get him instead of Ludowyke.

I think we need that nippy small forward to balance out our forward line

 

[Crow till I die]

Scott Stevens kicked 6 goals in a final once...

I'm all for weighting finals performances higher but even a spud can have a one off big day out.

What I am saying is that right now, pedlar should be getting first crack of the whip in terms of being in the R1 side (barring injury) because he performed when it counted. If he fails to live up to it he won't be long in the side and another player will get a chance.

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

There are big games littered throughout each season

Must win games
Away matches vs top four teams

Finals-like

These matches need to be given greater credence when rating performance and in guiding future selections. Typically though we are dazzled by the "chance to respond" game against a lowly opponent at home.

Why did we perform so badly when it mattered? It's a mystery

 

[kirky]

I don't care...I care about players that stand up in finals and he did in one of ours in a big way. So to me, he is in our R1 team and until his form decides otherwise, he is there

He stood up in one final and was nowhere to be seen in the second final. Hardly a significant survey of matches to gauge meanwhile his overall performance in minor round he needs to do more.

 

[Crow till I die]

He stood up in one final and was nowhere to be seen in the second final. Hardly a significant survey of matches to gauge meanwhile his overall performance in minor round he needs to do more.

So you are in agreeance then he performed better than 20 other players in the finals for us then.

 

[Slim258]

There are big games littered throughout each season

Must win games
Away matches vs top four teams

Finals-like

These matches need to be given greater credence when rating performance and in guiding future selections. Typically though we are dazzled by the "chance to respond" game against a lowly opponent at home.

Why did we perform so badly when it mattered? It's a mystery

I think there is a clear answer as to why we fell away, fitness.
The boys were absolutely cooked come the first two finals, add in the mental toll the whole Rankine saga the week before probably took on the group.

This year I think we will see a lot more rotations through the midfield to find the right balance and more players being rested throughout the year. Dawson battling a leg issue, Rankine being out made us rely on players such as Laird and Keays who had barely played midfield all year add that to Berry being more of a mainstay rather than a rotation.

McKeown will be working on this.

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

I think there is a clear answer as to why we fell away, fitness.
The boys were absolutely cooked come the first two finals, add in the mental toll the whole Rankine saga the week before probably took on the group.

This year I think we will see a lot more rotations through the midfield to find the right balance and more players being rested throughout the year. Dawson battling a leg issue, Rankine being out made us rely on players such as Laird and Keays who had barely played midfield all year add that to Berry being more of a mainstay rather than a rotation.

McKeown will be working on this.

We were hopeless against West Coast and North Melbourne in the lead up to finals.

And some of our best late season wins came with conceding a huge number of I50s, being efficient up forward with limited supply and getting beaten in stoppages. We hung on grimly for wins on those occasions but it wasn't a long-term winning formula as September proved. In hindsight, the writing was on the wall.

Historically we tend to make excuses for these big stage flops instead of examining game plan, selection, coaching staff or playing personnel.

 

[Slim258]

We were hopeless against West Coast and North Melbourne in the lead up to finals.

And some of our best late season wins came with conceding a huge number of I50s, being efficient up forward with limited supply and getting beaten in stoppages. We hung on grimly for wins on those occasions but it wasn't a long-term winning formula as September proved. In hindsight, the writing was on the wall.

Historically we tend to make excuses for these big stage flops instead of examining game plan, selection, coaching staff or playing personnel.

Agree, and those two games are where we should've rotated the likes of Dawson, Soligo, Peatling, Walker, Murray out of the side to give them a spell leading into the finals.

Going by what we did, we prioritised finishing top over everything else, so lets hope that now we have ticked that box we focus on winning finals not just making them.

 

[Scorpus]

Yeah, so how do you choose the players for it?

Someone who had one good week a year ago, or someone who's played well all year?

Hopefully, it's an easy choice. If we're in position for a flag, we've hopefully already had a decent finals series.

Pick players who perform in finals over those who don't

After that, sort out the remaining positions. The best of the non-finals-performing players fill out the rest of the squad.

The players who perform well all year get into those last spots, but have enormous question marks on their position if they've failed in finals before

 

[Scorpus]

Agree, and those two games are where we should've rotated the likes of Dawson, Soligo, Peatling, Walker, Murray out of the side to give them a spell leading into the finals.

Going by what we did, we prioritised finishing top over everything else, so lets hope that now we have ticked that box we focus on winning finals not just making them.

I don't think it was fitness. Resting Dawson for a week wouldn't have fixed his foot for example. Soligo was down basically all year.

After we blew Gold Coast and Port Adelaide apart, we made a choice to go into a "finals mode" gameplan, which was more contest and control focused. Our form fell away and so did our confidence as a result

 

[Scorpus]

I couldn’t agree more.

I remember this bloke* who was dominating during the minor round for Hawthorn and failed to fire a shot in the grand final. I said at the time that he could never be trusted in finals and minor round form was irrelevant.

I do think that 2 games is a small sample to be basing definitive judgements on finals’ capability. We don’t know what injuries/flus that may have affected the performance of players.

Peatling was very good in the 2024 finals but a few posters are willing to write him off based on the 2025 finals.

* Darren Jarman

I'm perfectly happy to give players mulligans, like Darren Jarman in his first AFL grand final - especially because he had performed well in the 1987 SANFL premiership

You don't get many chances to show your worth in finals though. A lot of our squad have used up their mulligans