Team Mgmt. 2017 Team selections, injuries and availability

[Lore]

So you're probably aware of the spreadsheets I keep posting everywhere. Well this will be something of a home for it I guess.

Spoiler: 2016 version

 

[eth-dog]

Who's spot does he take?

Howlett or Colyer

 

[Lore]

Well this is interesting, 14 people have voted so far and it looks like we like the club's current preferred midfield group (with Parish, though he's currently injured).

 

[Killer_Mike]

Well this is interesting, 14 people have voted so far and it looks like we like the club's current preferred midfield group (with Parish, though he's currently injured).

Could I please have an "other" option please?

 

[Lore]

Could I please have an "other" option please?

What's your 'other'? I can add it as an extra option.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

Medium - Longer term, I hope for Merrett, Heppell, McGrath, Parish, Laverde, Colyer and Zaka. Maybe with a dash of Francis.

Oh yeah and Dusty.

 

[Killer_Mike]

What's your 'other'? I can add it as an extra option.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

What's your 'other'? I can add it as an extra option.

Laverde?

 

[TheFrenchCut]

I would like a mix of Zerrett (at this point we can probably just call him Merrett surely?), Heppell, Parish, Zaharakis and Myers, with Jobe and Colyer among those coming off the bench.

I know Myers hasn't set the world on fire, but I think it's important that we start to figure out if he's going to step up as an inside mid. Thus far, for the minutes he's had in there, Jobe hasn't been able to win as much contested pill as usual -- he's ok, he's getting older -- so I think it makes sense to lessen our reliance on him in this area.

 

[Killer_Mike]

What's your 'other'? I can add it as an extra option.

Sorry that was Begley

 

[Killer_Mike]

C Laverde Merrett McGrath
Followers McKernan Begley Langford
Bench Parish Colyer Heppell McKenna

 

[Cold Sober]

The absence of one Mr Ryder has had a large bearing on our mid field. With all due respect TBC has had more chances than no.13 on a roulette wheel, Big Luey IMO is doing the job and the better we get around him will determine how good our midfield progresses.
Hurley is a throw in/out option.
Mc Grath is the future middle gun.
Watson could play the next two years at FF and solve our over abundance of talented forwards who don't seem to want or be given a chance to make it.
RECRUIT TOP END, we have the talent to assist not quite the talent to assault.

 

[Red Black and Blue]

The absence of one Mr Ryder has had a large bearing on our mid field. With all due respect TBC has had more chances than no.13 on a roulette wheel, Big Luey IMO is doing the job and the better we get around him will determine how good our midfield progresses.

TBC just dominated Mumford in his third game back, and Leunberger hasn't dominated a single game in two years.

 

[Cold Sober]

TBC just dominated Mumford in his third game back, and Leunberger hasn't dominated a single game in two years.

I'm a big TBC fan but please give me consistency at this level, you keep me posted.

 

[Liberator]

Ruck/Forwards
I know Joe has been good in the ruck, he really has, and I would want him to still play some time there, but I like the idea of two Rucks where one of the two is Smack (I know, I know, rookie list and not a great tap ruckman, not a great full time forward) and the other is either Tbell or Leuenberger. So really three Rucks.
With Stewart to ply his trade in the twos, until he can be a better threat in the air. He needs to do this anyway, even if he is to remain a weird tall flanker hybrid type, as he has always been so far in his career... Who gives more value: Stewart full time forward or Smack (with Tbell swapping in)? Longer term I'd say Stewart, but not just yet, and only if he can play to his height/size. I guess Brown should come into consideration too, as an alternative to Stewart when he is recovered...

All this to say that I've caught the Hooker back disease (tho penicillin can cure this I believe). To be a single position player, you need to be really good at that position. And yes, Hooker is going to be good enough and Green has been good enough - but it does limit our flexibility and who we can develop (I've got Redman/Begley/Francis/Langf and Laverde in mind here... And Stewart down the track).
Okay. Off to the drunk tank for me (ouzo/whisky/beer and about to fly the 24 hours home, fool that I am).

 

[BrunoV]

My preferred midfield is almost entirely speculative.

Merret-Laverde-Langford and Zaharakis-Parish would be the starting five I'd hope to see next year.

At this point in time I'd prefer to see McGrath and McKenna stay at half back. Depending on the way other players develop McGrath could be most valuable at half back destroying a quality opponent and then working off him. Of the two I'd prefer to see McKenna moved to a wing.

Fantasia and Tippa are too good forward to permanently be part of the midfield rotation.

I still hold hope that Long will make it. If he does it will be as a two-way wingman which would be really helpful.

 

[GUMBLETRON]

Assuming Laverde develops as you hope, does he provide enough size and strength to make up for the rest of that core?

 

[Skipper_]

My preferred midfield is almost entirely speculative.

Merret-Laverde-Langford and Zaharakis-Parish would be the starting five I'd hope to see next year.

At this point in time I'd prefer to see McGrath and McKenna stay at half back. Depending on the way other players develop McGrath could be most valuable at half back destroying a quality opponent and then working off him. Of the two I'd prefer to see McKenna moved to a wing.

Fantasia and Tippa are too good forward to permanently be part of the midfield rotation.

I still hold hope that Long will make it. If he does it will be as a two-way wingman which would be really helpful.

Where do you see Heppell?

 

[Lore]

150 votes so far, which means 30 posters have voted. Zach Merrett is the only midfielder chosen by consensus

 

[BrunoV]

Where do you see Heppell?

Did forget about Heppell. Take Langford out, I suppose.

 

[rumply]

McGrath should probably be on the list as well but agree with Bruno in leaving him back (where he's killing it) for a while while slipping into the midfield on occasion.

I get confused with Lanford & Laverde tho - one's apparently pencilled in as a forward, the other a mid, no?

 

[Lore]

McGrath should probably be on the list as well but agree with Bruno in leaving him back (where he's killing it) for a while while slipping into the midfield on occasion.

I get confused with Lanford & Laverde tho - one's apparently pencilled in as a forward, the other a mid, no?

Club has Langford as a mid and Laverde as a forward, judging by the way they've been training and playing since they got here. I think both have the potential to play both though and I wouldn't be surprised if Laverde went through the middle a bit once he's back.

 

[Skipper_]

2018 primary midfield rotations
HB: McGrath- McKenna
C: Parish - Heppell - Merrett
R: Bellchambers - Langford - Laverde
HF: Zaharakis
I/C: Goddard

 

[eth-dog]

2018 primary midfield rotations
HB: McGrath- McKenna
C: Parish - Heppell - Merrett
R: Bellchambers - Langford - Laverde
HF: Zaharakis
I/C: Goddard - Zaharakis

Cloning Zaka huh?

 

[citizen-erased]

McGrath should probably be on the list as well but agree with Bruno in leaving him back (where he's killing it) for a while while slipping into the midfield on occasion.

I get confused with Lanford & Laverde tho - one's apparently pencilled in as a forward, the other a mid, no?

Both are both.
But i like the idea of them filling the Goddard/Watson holes in our midfield they will eventually leave.

Ruckman - Heppell - Laverde
Parish - Langford - Merrett

IC: Zaka Colyer
support from McGrath & McKenna off HB and Tippa & Fanta from the fwd line

Probably need to add another top pick mid (either a Hopper/Jones pickup or draft one)
Clarke Mutch Begley may all turn out to be viable mid options eventually.

 

[Lore]

I've added a couple of columns to the metres gained tab in the spreadsheet. One is the difference between the players average metres gained as a percentage of their best game this season. I think in an older player a smaller number shows consistency over the year. In a younger player it shows inconsistency, but it also indicates growth. For all players it is impacted by playing while injured or when team dynamics fail (i.e. the forwards all look rubbish in the Carlton game because the ball barely got near them that day). McKenna is going at 54% which is as a result of some massive numbers in the last two weeks. The other column I've added is a ratio of metres gained per disposal. Generally you want more metres per disposal, but if you're doing a lot of contested work with short handballs in close then your numbers will be down (and rightly so), aka Goddard.

Players with higher average metres gained tend to play more games (or only miss by reason of injury). You can also see by comparing the various games that in our good games, nearly everyone plays better. Maybe that's obvious but here is the statistical proof

Overall Hartley has just about doubled his average metres gained since the start of the year, which matches up with the idea that he was sent back to the VFL to work on the offensive side of his game. Merrett seems to be in a constant 'purple patch'. That kid is insane (he actually leads the league in this stat haha). You can also see the improvement of the returning players over the course of the first half of the season. Random aside: The colours of the player numbers in the metres gained tab correlate to the sections that they're listed under in the 'by position' tab.

Looking in the player stat breakdown tab, there are 20 guys currently out of contract, and quite a few of them that I'd like to see sign back on. There's a priority on Daniher and Parish's signatures, Zaka is a free agent and some of the others we wonder if they'll retire or play on. I think we need to add McKenna to our priority re-signings too though.

At the other end of the scale, Jackson Merrett and Craig Bird are out of contract, and are the only two OOC players who have debuted for the club but haven't played a single game in 2017. Have to think they'd be the first to get the chop at the end of the year :/ Alex Morgan is also an interesting case. He's at the bottom of the list, he hasn't played a game, he's 21. But we picked him up with a known injury history, spent all of last year getting him right and he's only in his second year. I don't see why the club would put so much effort into him, having recruited him knowing they would need to put time and effort into him, only to give up after only 18 months. Suggestions that he might be delisted at the end of this year seem a tad premature.