Team Mgmt. 2024 Midfield

[Yoda_]

We have the 2024 forward incarnation thread, the midfield mix is and has been the biggest worry for us for so long.

I think we bat deep enough, its just the attitude change we need from senior players and the improved development from the guys under tiers 1 and 2 that sees this group finally develop and compete with the best consistently week in week out.

Jye Caldwell

6

Jye Caldwell

Age

23

Ht

183cm

Wt

83kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

13.3

3star

K

6.8

3star

HB

6.5

4star

M

3.3

3star

T

3.7

5star

CL

1.8

4star

D

14.3

3star

K

7.0

3star

HB

7.3

4star

M

3.3

3star

T

3.3

4star

CL

1.8

4star

D

13.6

4star

K

7.0

3star

HB

6.6

4star

M

3.8

4star

T

3.8

5star

CL

1.6

4star

the biggest difference in 2023 as he went from bit parts role player in the middle to a starter when called upon. Not only did he show an ability to negate but when asked to be more offensively minded he turned it on in a stretch (rounds 10-16).

With Hobbs improving, Tsatas largely unsighted, the addition of Duursma allowing Durham or Martin to possibly play midfield time and who knows what comes of Archie in season 4.

We likely play the same group of 3 starters - Parish, Merrett, Setterfield
Then rotate through - Shiel, Caldwell, Stringer
Continue to develop - Hobbs, Perkins, Tsatas

Who knows what comes with these guys, potential midfield minutes perhaps - Martin, Durham, Redman? McGrath?




This is my biggest watch this year to see how the dynamic of this group clicks and what changes as we have been monstered for so long.

 

[eth-dog]

I'm worried about our defensive work ethic still. For some reason, even when they've shown that they can guys like Merrett, Shiel, Parish and even Caldwell just have random games where they just switch off defensively, especially at the stoppage.

 

[Call Me Cake]

I'm worried about our defensive work ethic still. For some reason, even when they've shown that they can guys like Merrett, Shiel, Parish and even Caldwell just have random games where they just switch off defensively, especially at the stoppage.

Somewhat agree. We've shown that we've been able to do that to other sides earlier in the year.

I'd say we were able to match it in the centre at times but as soon as we had stoppages around the ground where the set up doesn't exist we fell apart too often and our defenders were caught off gaurd (but hopefully McKay's addition will help with this a little so that others can roam free).

I reckon we still need that big tall bodied midfielder with endurance and the ability to extract/put extra pressure on the contest.

 

[ghostdog]

Somewhat agree. We've shown that we've been able to do that to other sides earlier in the year.

I'd say we were able to match it at centre bounces when it was 666 but as soon as we had stoppages around the ground where the set up doesn't exist we fell apart too often and our defenders were caught off gaurd (but hopefully McKay's addition will help with this a little so that others can roam free).

I reckon we still need that big tall bodied midfielder with endurance and the ability to extract/put extra pressure on the contest.

Agree with the last point. Great that we've got Setterfield but a second would be ideal. Not even sure I'm convinced about Setterfield either.

 

[ghostdog]

We have the 2024 forward incarnation thread, the midfield mix is and has been the biggest worry for us for so long.

I think we bat deep enough, its just the attitude change we need from senior players and the improved development from the guys under tiers 1 and 2 that sees this group finally develop and compete with the best consistently week in week out.

Jye Caldwell the biggest difference in 2023 as he went from bit parts role player in the middle to a starter when called upon. Not only did he show an ability to negate but when asked to be more offensively minded he turned it on in a stretch (rounds 10-16).

With Hobbs improving, Tsatas largely unsighted, the addition of Duursma allowing Durham or Martin to possibly play midfield time and who knows what comes of Archie in season 4.

We likely play the same group of 3 starters - Parish, Merrett, Setterfield
Then rotate through - Shiel, Caldwell, Stringer
Continue to develop - Hobbs, Perkins, Tsatas

Who knows what comes with these guys, potential midfield minutes perhaps - Martin, Durham, Redman? McGrath?




This is my biggest watch this year to see how the dynamic of this group clicks and what changes as we have been monstered for so long.

The prospect of Durham going through the middle is interesting. Fearless at the contest, 185cm and clearly bulked up since September, I wonder if the possibility has been mentioned to him. Maybe he pinches for Setterfield. It allows Duursma to get his on a wing and means Stringer can stay forward.

 

[Godzke]

We have the 2024 forward incarnation thread, the midfield mix is and has been the biggest worry for us for so long.

I think we bat deep enough, its just the attitude change we need from senior players and the improved development from the guys under tiers 1 and 2 that sees this group finally develop and compete with the best consistently week in week out.

Jye Caldwell the biggest difference in 2023 as he went from bit parts role player in the middle to a starter when called upon. Not only did he show an ability to negate but when asked to be more offensively minded he turned it on in a stretch (rounds 10-16).

With Hobbs improving, Tsatas largely unsighted, the addition of Duursma allowing Durham or Martin to possibly play midfield time and who knows what comes of Archie in season 4.

We likely play the same group of 3 starters - Parish, Merrett, Setterfield
Then rotate through - Shiel, Caldwell, Stringer
Continue to develop - Hobbs, Perkins, Tsatas

Who knows what comes with these guys, potential midfield minutes perhaps - Martin, Durham, Redman? McGrath?




This is my biggest watch this year to see how the dynamic of this group clicks and what changes as we have been monstered for so long.

I'm also backing Setters to return to top 3 but Shiel will effectively miss an entire pre-season, so wouldn't count on him as part of rotation calculations.

Biggest watch, as has been the case for a few seasons now, is on Stringer to see where his body is at. At full flight, he's unquestionably our most damaging stoppage exit player (as he can shrug and shoulder multiple opponents, which Merrett can't). If he clicks, it will be him, Caldwell and Hobbs as the 4, 5 and 6 in our midfield rotation.

Can't see Durham or Redman getting any meaningful midfield minutes unless we're experimenting when 10 goals up or down.

 

[ant555]

You would think Shiel will have to earn his spot as he does not look like he is going to be ready in round 1. I will say that if he is injury free and played a few good VFL games he will get back in the side. 99% of his poor form has been injury related. When he has been fit he has played at very good to elite level. The question is will he be injury free ,

Setterfield is a lock for me.

Parish will be there but may play a little forward. I suspect all of Parish / Merrett / Hobbs / Caldwell will have a forward role at stages and fill one small forward spot in rotation.

You would think Perkins would continue to see some midfield although I doubt it will be at the level of the end of this year. I still see him as more half forward / wing but I concede he can play a bit of a defensive / blocking role in the middle but I personally think that would be a waste of his ability.

I think Tsatas will be in the VFL to start the year if everyone is fit but at some stage he will force his way in.

I can see Martin and Durham getting some minutes but my view is it will be more change up stuff for short periods in games.

I think we are getting close to a good midfield mix.

 

[Bombers36]

We certainly are spoilt for choice here and bat very deep. In fact - we have 7 specialist mids..!! They are;-


Hobbs, Parish, Merrett, Setterfield, Shiel, Tsatas & Caldwell


Plenty of others who can rotate through here as well (Gresham, Martin, Perkins, Durham)


I think in 2024 this will be a strength of the team given our depth in the midfield

 

[MiguelM]

You would think Shiel will have to earn his spot as he does not look like he is going to be ready in round 1. I will say that if he is injury free and played a few good VFL games he will get back in the side. 99% of his poor form has been injury related. When he has been fit he has played at very good to elite level. The question is will he be injury free ,

Setterfield is a lock for me.

Parish will be there but may play a little forward. I suspect all of Parish / Merrett / Hobbs / Caldwell will have a forward role at stages and fill one small forward spot in rotation.

You would think Perkins would continue to see some midfield although I doubt it will be at the level of the end of this year. I still see him as more half forward / wing but I concede he can play a bit of a defensive / blocking role in the middle but I personally think that would be a waste of his ability.

I think Tsatas will be in the VFL to start the year if everyone is fit but at some stage he will force his way in.

I can see Martin and Durham getting some minutes but my view is it will be more change up stuff for short periods in games.

I think we are getting close to a good midfield mix.

And if we can get an injury free year out of Goldy it is a massive leg up to the midfield. He could feed the likes of Parish to AA level.

 

[owen87]

And if we can get an injury free year out of Goldy it is a massive leg up to the midfield. He could feed the likes of Parish to AA level.

Even half a season of good Goldstein games to allow Bryan and Draper to get fit and fresh would make a big difference. Not having to rush Draper back like we did last year as a last ditch shot at finals would be nice.

 

[Yoda_]

Biggest watch, as has been the case for a few seasons now, is on Stringer to see where his body is at. At full flight, he's unquestionably our most damaging stoppage exit player (as he can shrug and shoulder multiple opponents, which Merrett can't). If he clicks, it will be him, Caldwell and Hobbs as the 4, 5 and 6 in our midfield rotation.

Stringer really is our ace of spades, we seem to rely on him to be the match winner when we should be using him as the joker to break the game open.

He has been to unreliant and as such would prefer him to spend less time in the midfield than previously. Him fit is better than a match winner 1/4 and 4 weeks missed a season imho

 

[Yoda_]

You would think Shiel will have to earn his spot as he does not look like he is going to be ready in round 1. I will say that if he is injury free and played a few good VFL games he will get back in the side. 99% of his poor form has been injury related. When he has been fit he has played at very good to elite level. The question is will he be injury free ,

Setterfield is a lock for me.

Parish will be there but may play a little forward. I suspect all of Parish / Merrett / Hobbs / Caldwell will have a forward role at stages and fill one small forward spot in rotation.

You would think Perkins would continue to see some midfield although I doubt it will be at the level of the end of this year. I still see him as more half forward / wing but I concede he can play a bit of a defensive / blocking role in the middle but I personally think that would be a waste of his ability.

I think Tsatas will be in the VFL to start the year if everyone is fit but at some stage he will force his way in.

I can see Martin and Durham getting some minutes but my view is it will be more change up stuff for short periods in games.

I think we are getting close to a good midfield mix.

Shiel, like Heppel has played when fit. I think he starts even if on the bench.

Agree that our starting 3 should be Merret, Parish and Setterfield. I do like the fact the guys have ability to play forward (Parish, Hobbs, Merrett, Caldwell) which gives us the ability to double down on needing to play a certain amount of forwards, a certain amount of mids etc.

Martin and to a lesser extent Durham should see some (minor) midfield minutes, I expect them to see some albeit brief for now.

 

[Yoda_]

We certainly are spoilt for choice here and bat very deep. In fact - we have 7 specialist mids..!! They are;-


Hobbs, Parish, Merrett, Setterfield, Shiel, Tsatas & Caldwell


Plenty of others who can rotate through here as well (Gresham, Martin, Perkins, Durham)


I think in 2024 this will be a strength of the team given our depth in the midfield

ant555 for years has said the midfield mix has been ok for height wise, it is more the defensive accountability of these guys that has held us back. I am liking the choices we have now, not just Settterfield and Caldwell but the buy in we have from Merret, from Hobbs etc.

If they can continue to "buy in" we improve again

 

[Vindicater]

Caldwell is the one I am unsure of in regards to the future. Not due to skill/talent but more fit.

 

[Chief Hopper]

Biggest watch, as has been the case for a few seasons now, is on Stringer to see where his body is at. At full flight, he's unquestionably our most damaging stoppage exit player (as he can shrug and shoulder multiple opponents, which Merrett can't). If he clicks, it will be him, Caldwell and Hobbs as the 4, 5 and 6 in our midfield rotation.

Stringer was great 2 years ago when he was rolling in our midfield. He had a strength and X factor we don't have from anyone else.
Just goes to show how much of a hole our midfield went down in when Stringer or Setterfield got injured.

I can see Tsatas filling in the void from one of those two. But the others on our list seem bit too skinny to make the difference.

 

[ghostdog]

We have the 2024 forward incarnation thread, the midfield mix is and has been the biggest worry for us for so long.

I think we bat deep enough, its just the attitude change we need from senior players and the improved development from the guys under tiers 1 and 2 that sees this group finally develop and compete with the best consistently week in week out.

Jye Caldwell the biggest difference in 2023 as he went from bit parts role player in the middle to a starter when called upon. Not only did he show an ability to negate but when asked to be more offensively minded he turned it on in a stretch (rounds 10-16).

With Hobbs improving, Tsatas largely unsighted, the addition of Duursma allowing Durham or Martin to possibly play midfield time and who knows what comes of Archie in season 4.

We likely play the same group of 3 starters - Parish, Merrett, Setterfield
Then rotate through - Shiel, Caldwell, Stringer
Continue to develop - Hobbs, Perkins, Tsatas

Who knows what comes with these guys, potential midfield minutes perhaps - Martin, Durham, Redman? McGrath?




This is my biggest watch this year to see how the dynamic of this group clicks and what changes as we have been monstered for so long.

Exponential growth through a solid preseason from Caldwell, Hobbs, Perkins and Tsatas will bring us to a very exciting season. Add the same for Martin and Durham and we look like a really competitive unit for the future. I agree with previous assessments in that there will have to be multiple mid-forward rotations. I don't think that necessarily has to include Stringer anymore, which is fine; we need to wean ourselves off reliance on his CBA ability anyway.

 

[ghostdog]

Caldwell is the one I am unsure of in regards to the future. Not due to skill/talent but more fit.

I'm not. Have another look at Caldwell's goal sense when he goes forward - has kicked some cracking goals and clutch set shots. He's a great chance to take Stringer's role, albeit more focused on midfield than forward time, but when he goes forward the ability is there.

 

[Godzke]

Stringer was great 2 years ago when he was rolling in our midfield. He had a strength and X factor we don't have from anyone else.
Just goes to show how much of a hole our midfield went down in when Stringer or Setterfield got injured.

I can see Tsatas filling in the void from one of those two. But the others on our list seem bit too skinny to make the difference.

Yep, can add Draper as well. He was probably more effective as a ground level bullocking mid than as an aerial tap ruckman. Once he went down with injury, with no Setters or Stringer, then we really felt it.

 

[ant555]

Yep, can add Draper as well. He was probably more effective as a ground level bullocking mid than as an aerial tap ruckman. Once he went down with injury, with no Setters or Stringer, then we really felt it.

That is certainly true. We lost that grunt / size .

 

[ant555]

ant555 for years has said the midfield mix has been ok for height wise, it is more the defensive accountability of these guys that has held us back. I am liking the choices we have now, not just Settterfield and Caldwell but the buy in we have from Merret, from Hobbs etc.

If they can continue to "buy in" we improve again

Need the buy in for sure. Hopefully if everyone stays fit the pressure will provide some to change the tune but in the end Scott will live or die on his ability to sell the message and make it happen if the same issues are there. Will be an interesting season. If he can get them on board we are good enough to win a final . Do not think we are at strong top 4 level but we are good enough to play finals and win one if we decide to put the effort into the team defense.
The season has three directions it can go

1. The penny drops and they improve the team defense and we play to our potential .Result is finals or a very solid season where we just miss but we do not give in too often.
2. The same issues continue and the coach has to off load several best 22 players. Result is the build will take years longer.
3. The same issues apply but the coach is blind to it and keeps backing the senior players and we are driving down the same road again.

I would like to add another classy midfielder of the taller variety who can take a mark to balance it out more.

 

[MiguelM]

Yep, can add Draper as well. He was probably more effective as a ground level bullocking mid than as an aerial tap ruckman. Once he went down with injury, with no Setters or Stringer, then we really felt it.

And then Ridley was the perfect storm.

Thumped by Cats we then fell off the cliff.

 

[fishardansin]

Stringer was great 2 years ago when he was rolling in our midfield. He had a strength and X factor we don't have from anyone else.
Just goes to show how much of a hole our midfield went down in when Stringer or Setterfield got injured.

I can see Tsatas filling in the void from one of those two. But the others on our list seem bit too skinny to make the difference.

Stringer was a star for 9 weeks. Statistically the best player in the league. However, it is not a long-term solution and I think that where our list is placed we should be looking for a long-term solution. Stringer could sustainably influence the forward line for 3 or 4 years more and I hope we're challenging in that back end of that. Stringer will be a very impactful player when Wright is playing well and we have a CHF who can get on his bike AND draw the 2nd tallest defender. That will leave the opposition with a dilema of what to do with Stringer, particularly if we have at least one damaging small forward.

So, for mine, let Stringer have the occasional burst in the middle this year but most important for us is to get Wright and Gresham fit and firing, develop someone into a running CHF, and then let Stringer be the straw that breaks the opposition's defensive back.

I think Setterfield did demonstrate his value last year. I think the beast mode of Hobbs will only get better over the next few years and I think that Perkins won't be that pure midfielder but he'll be able to influence the middle like Stringer did at his peak (not to that level, but enough to make a difference). I also think that Martin can be moved into the middle with Dursma and Durham on the wings.

I also think that with team defense and zones, etc, it isn't just about the midfield per se. I'd love to have Stringer, Wright, and Gresham causing a lot of problems deep and then have a half-forward line that is full of people who have played some midfield minutes Langford - Cox - Perkins who push up and play like mids forward of the stoppage. That allows our midfield to sag back support the defence and look to feed the ball to running half-backs if they can't give the ball to the half-forwards.

 

[Vander18]

Setterfield is a lock for me.

100% agree.

He’s not a star but our midfield looked
so much more balanced early in the year when he was playing. His ability to not only stick tackles but completely wrap up the ball carrier so they couldn’t dispose of it stood out very clearly.

I made a point elsewhere re picking the best 22 not the 22 best players. Very true of midfield - Parish, Merrett and Shiel cannot be the core group. The extra physicality of Setterfield, Caldwell and Hobbs has to feature heavily.

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

I have Merrett and Parish as the two guys who'll play the most minutes in there and rightly so.

Hobbs is the next piece of the puzzle. I think he can becomes the starting midfielder that we expect and he's got a bit of grunt about him.

Shiel is next in line and can rotate in with those guys. Provides power and pace. Is injured all the time so who knows how many games we get out of him.

Caldwell will be the other guy that can make the leap. Shown bits and pieces, played 50 games, 23 years old, injury free for a while and makes the leap next year.

I'd be giving Tsatas a chance over Setterfield. I'd have Setterfield playing VFL mostly if the above guys can stay fit.

Is Andrew McGrath

1

Andrew Mcgrath

Age

25

Ht

180cm

Wt

83kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

22.7

5star

K

11.6

4star

HB

11.1

5star

M

1.6

2star

T

6.4

5star

MG

252.9

4star

D

22.7

5star

K

11.6

4star

HB

11.1

5star

M

1.6

2star

T

6.4

5star

MG

252.9

4star

D

22.0

5star

K

11.0

4star

HB

11.0

5star

M

1.2

2star

T

6.4

5star

MG

219.0

4star

ready to come back in and do some midfield minutes? I'm highly skeptical but its now or never, should have built the engine by now to play in the midfield. There are some players that have shown they can move into midfield at 25+.

 

[JayJ20]

Setterfield was a reason the midfield held up well at the beginning of the year. He bought a bit of balance to the midfield with his tackling and marking ability (due to his height).

After he got injured in round 9, the midfield started to progressively fall away. Carlton, Port and Adelaide were the only good performances after he got injured and even then, Port and Carlton had quarters where they dominated the midfield.