AFL Live tips

[hirdylloydy1]

Hi everyone, well last night i was smashed by stakerz by 68 points and then stupidly invited hbk to a match , that went even worse, i think about 16 goals to 2 from memory. I thought a thread where the good players could provide any tips to people trying to get better would be useful.

Main issues for me, ( play as essendon )

Always seem to get outmarked even when in front position

When im tackled and try to get a handball out, it goes hardly any distance, whereas when you tackle a good player they seem to be able to get a handball off to a free teamate.

When theres a free ball and i have space, my opponent seems to run a lot quicker to the ball, so we get to it at the same time, whereas my players seem to have to chase almost the length of the ground to eventually catch them ( yes im holding sprint )

I have learnt not to hold sprint when tackling but seem to give around 10 or so free kicks a match away ( is this just bad luck )

I seem to always have a hole at centre half back. ie there is none of my players there when my opponent is running through. ( have all tactics on balanced )

Again free ball situation, when ai chooses player closest to the ball, i go to move him towards the ball and he runs the other way for a second, in this second my opponent has gained a huge break in getting to the ball, player switching doesnt seem to affect the good players. Is there a trick to this?

When i try to hit up a player on his own sometimes the ball will just sail over my players head, even though hes in reaching distance of it, he doesnt even attempt to mark it, even though i am pushing the mark button.

How do i stop my players from falling for the old run to the player with the ball so an easy handball is given over the top

When my opponent bumps me my player stops in their tracks while they then grab the ball.when i try to bump someone, my player stops as well, so get no benefit from it.

A lot of the time against the good players, i think my player is in a good position to spoil, but their arms just flail about like an unco, while my opponent takes the mark

Have ba made essendon ridiculously crap, or am i ridiculously crap?
Thinking its the latter as hbk uses richmond and i think they are a similar rating to essendon.

Have any of the good players played as essendon, and what were their thoughts?

There is more but cant think of them at this stage, any tips given would be appreciated

 

[Archer_11]

G'day hirdylloydy1.

So much to say - hopefully a pro will answer - but want to offer a quick one now (just my opinion of course). There's good news and bad news. The bad news is that you are playing the 2010 version of Essendon in terms of ability, so the stats maybe aren't as high as they could be. You will always struggle playing anyone that is more experienced than you with a weaker team. The good news is that you're not going mental, a lot of the things you describe above just 'always seem to happen' when you're getting pumped by a better side. I don't know how BA have doe it, it's quite impressive really, but nothing seems to go your way when you're losing. You get back in the game by winning a few hit outs and hitting a few leads (learn to kick to someone close by only powering up the meter to half when kicking). If you can do this for a few minutes things will start turning around.

I probably sound like a mad man but this is my experience - when you're getting pumped slow it down, keep possession and work your way slowly back into the game. Which is a lot like the real thing, to BA's credit.

The other thing is don't stress about your defensive 50, if the player is good and they get it there, they're going to score, a lot of the time there's nothing you can do about it (do set your players to stand in front though, and tag if needed). The game is won or lost in at the hit outs and in the midfield.

There are other specific tips to the above but this is something I just wanted to offer.

 

[TheGhostOfJohnBelushi]

Hi everyone, well last night i was smashed by stakerz by 68 points and then stupidly invited hbk to a match , that went even worse, i think about 16 goals to 2 from memory. I thought a thread where the good players could provide any tips to people trying to get better would be useful.

Here's my tips, even though I'm playing you in a scratch match tonight. Aren't I nice?

Main issues for me, ( play as essendon )

Play as someone else. Heh. Davey and Jetta are awesome for pace. Put them forward or in the middle if you can. Hurley is good at CHF and Fletcher should be able to kick long from FB. I find the rucks lack a bit.

Always seem to get outmarked even when in front position

Marking is my worst trait, unfortunately. I find this too. Work to your strengths. Spoil more and try and direct it to a teammate or in your direction of goal. Work on targeting players on the lead so they don't get outmarked.

When im tackled and try to get a handball out, it goes hardly any distance, whereas when you tackle a good player they seem to be able to get a handball off to a free teamate.

Frustrating as well. Basically you need to think two moves ahead, like chess, against good players. Be proactive rather than reactive. Good players generally use good teams that have better players. Essendon doesn't have great players. You can beat good teams with a lowly side. It's hard work though.

When theres a free ball and i have space, my opponent seems to run a lot quicker to the ball, so we get to it at the same time, whereas my players seem to have to chase almost the length of the ground to eventually catch them ( yes im holding sprint )

Probably an Essendon thing. Davey and Jetta. Remember them.

I have learnt not to hold sprint when tackling but seem to give around 10 or so free kicks a match away ( is this just bad luck )

Probably. What kind of free kicks? Are you tackling every time? Try using a bump instead. Particularly in defence where free kicks are most costly and tackling also takes your man to ground. Bump keeps your man, most of the time, on his feet.

I seem to always have a hole at centre half back. ie there is none of my players there when my opponent is running through. ( have all tactics on balanced )

Use tagging tactics? Set your backline to defensive? Try out things to see what works and what doesn't. It can be annoying to set tactics, as they generally need to be done in game online and you can't pause... so be quick! Maybe try doing it quickly in a few offline games so you know the menus pretty well.

Again free ball situation, when ai chooses player closest to the ball, i go to move him towards the ball and he runs the other way for a second, in this second my opponent has gained a huge break in getting to the ball, player switching doesnt seem to affect the good players. Is there a trick to this?

This happens to me as well. :/ Can't help you there. Just keep plugging away.

When i try to hit up a player on his own sometimes the ball will just sail over my players head, even though hes in reaching distance of it, he doesnt even attempt to mark it, even though i am pushing the mark button.

Happens to me too. Don't know why this happens. Use the targeting system more perhaps? Kicking in their general direction sometimes doesn't work out too well. Try stab passes. Hard to master, but very effective.

How do i stop my players from falling for the old run to the player with the ball so an easy handball is given over the top

Switch to the player you want to control and keep him away from being drawn in. Sometimes, if you time it right, you can intercept the over the top pass and laugh as you're on your merry way. Takes practice and timing. Again, you have to think two steps ahead.

When my opponent bumps me my player stops in their tracks while they then grab the ball.when i try to bump someone, my player stops as well, so get no benefit from it.

Happens to me also. Just do your best.

A lot of the time against the good players, i think my player is in a good position to spoil, but their arms just flail about like an unco, while my opponent takes the mark

Happens to me as well. See a pattern here? Try having your players play in front?

Have ba made essendon ridiculously crap, or am i ridiculously crap?
Thinking its the latter as hbk uses richmond and i think they are a similar rating to essendon.

Essendon are pretty crap in the game, but far from unusable. HBK is very familiar with his Richmond team and has his game set beautifully. But he is not unbeatable. Learn the strengths of the side. Try using different players in different positions. Learn who kicks best from outside 50 regularly. Sometimes players with severe hooks are best to use because you know they will hook it every time and you can aim wide and watch it slam through. Other players who don't hook as much can sometimes be unpredictable, because they'll either pull it or kick it straighter without warning.

Have any of the good players played as essendon, and what were their thoughts?

There is more but cant think of them at this stage, any tips given would be appreciated

I've used Essendon and found them ok if you play to their strengths. I smashed my cousin the other night (think he went the Bulldogs). Hurley kicked 8, Jetta and Davey tore it up with pace. Basically, you need to work out what your strengths are and what your team's strengths are, and use those to your advantage. I know my weaknesses, so I try to disguise them so my opposition can't exploit them. I also look for my opponent's weakness and try to exploit that. It really is just a matter of time, patience and practice.

 

[hirdylloydy1]

thankyou very much guys really appreciate any input. You will see what i mean with a few of the points tonight jorel, but is good to know that some of these happen to good players too! bit worried about tonight given you beat hbk with gold coast!

PS - should add that i currently do team tactics once first point is kicked, so if you see me standing there not doing anything, at least you know! ( hope this is being fixed in the patch )

 

[BlackMamba]

Sounds to me that your main issue with marking/spoiling is that you're pressing it too late. Try it a bit earlier. You'll find players won't just let it go over their head, and you'll start to spoil more.
Also, try to bring your guys more forward of the dot on the ground in a marking contest. If you can get front position, you'll have more of a chance to win the contest.

With the space at CHB....set your ruckman to defensive (in the team tactics). He's push back into defence and hopefully fill the hole.

 

[TheGhostOfJohnBelushi]

thankyou very much guys really appreciate any input. You will see what i mean with a few of the points tonight jorel, but is good to know that some of these happen to good players too! bit worried about tonight given you beat hbk with gold coast!

PS - should add that i currently do team tactics once first point is kicked, so if you see me standing there not doing anything, at least you know! ( hope this is being fixed in the patch )

As for tonight, I might "rest" Ablett and a few others. Moreso to experiment with other players than to be cocky or anything. If it was a H&A game, I'd be full guns blazing.

 

[hirdylloydy1]

Sounds to me that your main issue with marking/spoiling is that you're pressing it too late. Try it a bit earlier. You'll find players won't just let it go over their head, and you'll start to spoil more.
Also, try to bring your guys more forward of the dot on the ground in a marking contest. If you can get front position, you'll have more of a chance to win the contest.

With the space at CHB....set your ruckman to defensive (in the team tactics). He's push back into defence and hopefully fill the hole.

What would everyone think the optimum time to press the mark button would be, i currently press the button when the ball is approx 3/4 of the way to me from the kicker, is this to early? or to late?

 

[BlackMamba]

I think it depends on the kick. If it's a stab pass, you have to do it very early. If it's a high bomb pass, then 3/4 is about right I think.
Saying that, I usually punch in contests from high bombs, but some people have managed to still outmark me in them....so maybe my timing is off as well.

 

[illnino]

First off, good thread, and good replies.

Jorel in particular seems to have come a very long way from when he broke his controller out of rage a while back Great advice mate, we must have another game sometime - If your beating HBK, then you can beat me.

Now for my thoughts, fwiw;

Main issues for me, ( play as essendon )

Could have stopped there, cause that's your problem

Nah, they suck on this game, but so does North who I'm currently struggling with in the comp. Just got to play to your own strengths, as well as your team's strengths, as Jorel said.

Always seem to get outmarked even when in front position

Don't know if any of the following is legit, but I seem to do reasonably well in marking contests, so maybe you want to try some of these tips.

When I enter a marking contest, unless it's forward of the center of the ground, I will spoil the ball 99% of the time. I also hold toward the ball with the direction stick all the way through the marking contest so as to try and get front position (sometimes I even hold sprint, but not sure if that really helps - doubtful). Holding the mark button down for the entire marking contest seems to work for me as well, as does my timing which is to press and hold the mark button fairly early (don't mash it, press it 2 or 3 times maximum if you have to). Actually, I press it as early as I can, without pressing it too early so that the marking command doesn't actually register.

I think that's about it for marking/spoiling.

When im tackled and try to get a handball out, it goes hardly any distance, whereas when you tackle a good player they seem to be able to get a handball off to a free teamate.

I'm not sure, but when I hold the handball button down, it sure as hell feels like it goes much further than when I just tap it. Maybe someone else has noticed this? So yeah, try that mate, and keep in mind that the direction of the handball is very sensitive. Try to place the handball to the advantage of your teammate if he is manned up (ie. on his side, not his opponents side). Also, don't get too handball-happy, a quick tap of the kick or goal kick button around the corner resulting in a net gain of around 30 meters is a lot safer than potentially turning the ball over on the spot.

As Jorel said as well, instead of controlling the player about to pick up the ball, switch to the second or third closest player to the ball and run to space with him. Then when your AI teammate picks up the ball, which will auto-switch you to control him, you can handball to that second player you set up in space (very effective and common tactic online, but hard to explain).

When theres a free ball and i have space, my opponent seems to run a lot quicker to the ball, so we get to it at the same time, whereas my players seem to have to chase almost the length of the ground to eventually catch them ( yes im holding sprint )

Try another team other than essendon and see if they are noticeably quicker or not. I'm finding North horrendously slow compared to my beloved Hawks. Also, try changing your team lineup around a bit, both personnel-wise and your on-field structure. Put fast players on all 4 flanks if possible, as well as a wing and at least 1 of your 3 mids.

I have learnt not to hold sprint when tackling but seem to give around 10 or so free kicks a match away ( is this just bad luck )

Must be your AI teammates (or deliberate OOB/rushed behind, holding the ball, illegal bump etc.). 99% sure it's impossible to give away a free kick through tackling when your not holding down sprint. I give away a few free kicks by holding sprint, but I'm not too bad.

I seem to always have a hole at centre half back. ie there is none of my players there when my opponent is running through. ( have all tactics on balanced )

See Jorel's answer on this one mate, he pretty much covered it IMO. Maybe try tagging the CHB also.

Again free ball situation, when ai chooses player closest to the ball, i go to move him towards the ball and he runs the other way for a second, in this second my opponent has gained a huge break in getting to the ball, player switching doesnt seem to affect the good players. Is there a trick to this?

Try not holding in a direction, just hold the homing button (which is the mark/tackle button). Though even doing this doesn't work sometimes...maybe someone else knows more...

When i try to hit up a player on his own sometimes the ball will just sail over my players head, even though hes in reaching distance of it, he doesnt even attempt to mark it, even though i am pushing the mark button.

Yeah, that'll happen sometimes. Not much else you can do other than hold sprint and tap or hold the mark button.

How do i stop my players from falling for the old run to the player with the ball so an easy handball is given over the top

Change to him, manually if need be (by holding the 'change player' button and tapping the direction stick in that player's direction until he is highlighted). This is what I was alluding to earlier, and although it's very hard to master and requires thinking a few steps ahead as Jorel said, it's extremely effective and a 'must have' in your arsenal of tricks if your to match it with the best. VERY important to learn.

When my opponent bumps me my player stops in their tracks while they then grab the ball.when i try to bump someone, my player stops as well, so get no benefit from it.

Not really sure on this one, haven't really noticed anything of that nature. My main tip with bumping is to hold the right stick, not just tap it.

Here's another hint I'm not sure that too many people know about;

If you bump when your opponent kicks, it will make the kick fall short. If you tackle when your opponent handballs, your a chance of making the handball go astray or knocking the ball loose in the tackle. But, if you bump when your opponent handballs, it does no real damage, and if you tackle while your opponent kicks, again there is little effect. So, the trick is to predict what kind of disposal your opponent will do so that you can bump him or tackle him accordingly to affect his disposal, and alternatively, when you have the ball, the trick is to predict whether your opponent will bump or tackle so that you can choose whether you need to handball or kick to avoid your opponent from having an effect on your disposal.

Hope that makes some sense...Was hesitant to give this tip away to be honest, but I'm sure there are others who've already figured it out anyway, so here's to evening out the playing field.

A lot of the time against the good players, i think my player is in a good position to spoil, but their arms just flail about like an unco, while my opponent takes the mark

Read my tips earlier regarding marking/spoiling. Make sure to hold the right stick to spoil, rather than just tap it, and also try holding the left stick in the direction of the ball throughout the whole marking contest so that you can try to get front position (hold back toward your opponent's goal, on the both sticks, if your running with the flight of the ball to spoil in defence).

Keep in mind that after the patch, we'll have to hold down the left trigger as well as flick the right stick to spoil, rather than just flicking the right stick (which will instead bump/jostle after the patch).

Like I said earlier, not sure if these tips do anything, but I seem to go alright in marking contests most of the time (though that was with Hawthorn. I'm struggling a bit with the Roos in this area, so maybe it has more to do with how good your team/player is then what I originally thought).

Have ba made essendon ridiculously crap, or am i ridiculously crap?
Thinking its the latter as hbk uses richmond and i think they are a similar rating to essendon.

I've no idea how HBK plays so well with Richmond and I have a new found appreciation for his skills after having had my first game online with another team other than Hawthorn - the Roos. Couldn't believe how hard it was to play good footy as them. Their skill level and speed are significantly lower than what I'm accustomed to.

Speaking of HBK, hopefully he sees this thread and gives his 2 cents as well, we'll have you n00bs up and running in no time

But yes, the bombers are pretty crap in this game going by what the majority of people say. Perhaps try using a better team and see if you notice an increase in skills across the board. I reckon you might.

Have any of the good players played as essendon, and what were their thoughts?

Never played as them. Just the Hawks and now, 2 games as the Poos.

Hope any of that helps mate.

 

[HBK619]

I've no idea how HBK plays so well with Richmond and I have a new found appreciation for his skills after having had my first game online with another team other than Hawthorn - the Roos. Couldn't believe how hard it was to play good footy as them. Their skill level and speed are significantly lower than what I'm accustomed to.

Speaking of HBK, hopefully he sees this thread and gives his 2 cents as well, we'll have you n00bs up and running in no time

I'm not really one to give away my trade secrets (although people can watch the vid that BlackMumba put up in the Epic Matches thread and gleen what they will from there, as I will tonight from your match).

But what I'll do is give 4 coachy tips, in that I'll let you in on some stuff, but keep most of it secret.

Anticipation - Anticipation is huge. Knowing where your next play is going is what will keep you and the ball alive in the contest. It's not about pre-planning your steps, it's about assessing the situation and knowing exactly where you're going to go. If you take too long to decide you'll either be done in, or you'll turn it over 9 times out of 10. Use the radar and on screen play to pick what you want to do, before you have the ball

Team - It's not down to who you use, but where you play them. The default teams are good, but not optimised for the best possible team you can put out there. If you have any stars in positions that won't see them be near the ball whenever it is in an important situation then you're playing them wrong. Get your gun runners and ball users into the middle, get your strong players in the spine. Every team can be optimised and improved to get the most out of what you have, as little or as much as it may be.

Gamestyle - Set out how you want to play and stick to it. Whether that be a handball heavy gamestyle, or one where you just want to move it forward no matter what. Also pick how you want to move up the ground and stick to it. I like the wings, but if I see an option in the middle, I'll take the risk and go there.

Tactics - No way am I giving this part away, but work with what suits the above the best. If you have more pacey players, set the tactics up to exploit and use that. If you have slower, more tackle heavy players, set them up to use that. It's all about finding the balance of tactics that will suit your team, change everything up and see what fits.

 

[illnino]

I'm not really one to give away my trade secrets (although people can watch the vid that BlackMumba put up in the Epic Matches thread and gleen what they will from there, as I will tonight from your match).

Go for gold mate, unfortunately you won't learn much from that dismal display

Really struggling with the Kangas, no idea how I can last the full BF comp as these chooks. Just too slow and terrible at spoiling/marking.

Just won a game 2v1 by 2 points. I'm confident I would have won by 6+ goals had I used the Hawks, so yeah, goes to show how much adjusting is needed when changing teams.

 

[Beloved]

Here are a few little things I've picked up along the line. I most certainly won't give away my tactics, but here are a few pointers I use. I really hope these make sense, as I will just be rambling.

- Don't, under any circumstances, drag a player ahead of the play to the contest. This allows your opponent to use the spare man. If he is running free through the middle about to kick into the forward line, let him. After a while, he will be forced to pump the ball long as there will be no space to run in, whereas if you drag a man to him, he will have an easy option up ahead. That's when you force the contest instead of giving him an instant advantage by bringing a man from your defence into the centre.

- Always spoil in defence! Don't even bother taking the risk by trying to mark. Force the ball to ground and work it out from there. The chance of a player converting from a congested situation are a lot slimmer than them scoring from a set shot.

- Move behind your opponent when you're outnumbered around the ball. Most players handball directly behind them because their opponents usually tackle the guy who gets the ball, allowing them to get the easy clearance. If you move to the spare man, you're right there to intercept the handball and with a quick handball or kick, you're in business.

- Think before playing on. I have lost count of the times I have caught my opponent playing on and have won the free kick or managed to clear it in my favour. If you mark it in the centre and there is an opponent around you, go back behind the mark and see what's ahead of you. If there aren't any leads, bomb it long forward or near the boundary line.

- Don't just bomb the ball from kickouts. I love playing these people because more often than not, I manage to get the ball back from their kick in. If you take your time and look around you, there is usually a smart chip on around you. I'd recommend playing a few practice games and figuring out patterns from your players before putting this into action online, but from experience, my best weapon has been the ability to move the ball from defence to the forward line without letting the ball hit the ground. This is very easily achievable if you just take your time and look what's ahead of you instead of rushing.

- Use the lock-on kicking for short passes. If you take a mark and don't want to bomb it, find a man making a strong lead and kick the ball in front of him (you'll learn how long to hold the kicking button for). Even if the ball doesn't make it to the man in the air, a gather, turn and quick kick has already gained you 50 or so metres.

- The radar is your friend! Figure out whether you are black or white on the radar ASAP and use it to your advantage! You'll find that a sneaky look at the radar when you've got a mark at half back will often show you a free man on the wing or in the centre.

 

[hirdylloydy1]

Thanks heaps everyone, put a few of these into practise tonight and worked really well.

 

[BomberJacqui]

I feel like such a noob after reading some of this

Im unbeaten but use basic tactics lol.

Add me mickyt888 for a good game prefer someone really good i need to lose

 

[hirdylloydy1]

just thought i would share some tips for anyone else playing as the bombers.

No 1. Jetta ISNT in the starting lineup, get him in

No 2. Move davey from forward pocket to either half forward or wing, depending on your playing style, i put him to the half forward line swapping him for mark williams. Davey has a vicous hook to his set shot goal kicking and i still stuff up with his kicking for goal, so mark williams who is a pretty straight kick is better in the pocket. while daveys pace is better suited to an open area of the ground

No 3. Bring tayte pears on for mark mcveigh on the half back line.

will be checking player ratings to find out some other better positions, but these changes alone seemed to make it a bit easier to play as the bombers

 

[TheGhostOfJohnBelushi]

just thought i would share some tips for anyone else playing as the bombers.

No 1. Jetta ISNT in the starting lineup, get him in

No 2. Move davey from forward pocket to either half forward or wing, depending on your playing style, i put him to the half forward line swapping him for mark williams. Davey has a vicous hook to his set shot goal kicking and i still stuff up with his kicking for goal, so mark williams who is a pretty straight kick is better in the pocket. while daveys pace is better suited to an open area of the ground

No 3. Bring tayte pears on for mark mcveigh on the half back line.

will be checking player ratings to find out some other better positions, but these changes alone seemed to make it a bit easier to play as the bombers

I'm taking credit for the first two.

 

[hirdylloydy1]

I'm taking credit for the first two.

this is true, it wasnt until you mentioned this that i even thought of changing from the default team

 

[gareth36]

just thought i would share some tips for anyone else playing as the bombers.

DONT.

 

[HBK619]

Anyone still struggling with this game, take all these tips and use them!

The first time I played hirdylloydy I won 14.10 to about 2 goals.

Tonight I JUST beat him by a few goals in a very tight, very tough contest in which I was down for 3 quarters of the match.

 

[hirdylloydy1]

ive got to say hbk, its this thread that made me better, a big thankyou to everyone who has contributed their tips!!

 

[vonn]

I need helppp. I always seem to get outpositioned in a marking contest unless it's uncontested. Especially when it's Dawes or Cloke. I drop about 4000 players back and change tactics to defense but it just does not work! I'm moving the stick like crazy and press Y a few times, but it won't work because my player doesn't actually move forward, or even move at all!
It seems to be better when I don't lock the kick if i'm on the receiving end, but even then I don't understand how to get front position if it's body on body because the damn guy won't move where I'm telling him to so the other team spoils or marks... and I'm sick of handball! Thoughts?

 

[HBK619]

I need helppp. I always seem to get outpositioned in a marking contest unless it's uncontested. Especially when it's Dawes or Cloke. I drop about 4000 players back and change tactics to defense but it just does not work! I'm moving the stick like crazy and press Y a few times, but it won't work because my player doesn't actually move forward, or even move at all!
It seems to be better when I don't lock the kick if i'm on the receiving end, but even then I don't understand how to get front position if it's body on body because the damn guy won't move where I'm telling him to so the other team spoils or marks... and I'm sick of handball! Thoughts?

If you're on the attacking side of things try and lead your players to the ball by kicking shorter and letting them run onto it.

In terms of defending, against AI there's not a whole lot you can do as they tend to be made to be perfect. Just do your best to spoil at every opportunity.

Can also try and master the right stick bump which was supposed to be a feature added into the first and only patch. Basically just flick the right stick to attempt to bump your opponent out of the marking contest. Never really felt it work myself tbh, but could give it a go?

 

[vonn]

Thanks.. Yeah I tried the first it worked well...
I know this sounds stupid, but how do you actually find the perfect time to spoil in a certain direction? Like on XBOX I think it is Y and then right stick in the direction you want to spoil, and that is just awkward combo + the minute I get my fingers onto those buttons, they've already marked... Maybe I just have not played this game enough.

I wasn't even sure what the hell the bump thing is meant to do... It sure as hell never works whenever I try to use it, and if I wanted to use it to affect a kick I'd rather just tackle.

 

[diesel_85]

Thanks.. Yeah I tried the first it worked well...
I know this sounds stupid, but how do you actually find the perfect time to spoil in a certain direction? Like on XBOX I think it is Y and then right stick in the direction you want to spoil, and that is just awkward combo + the minute I get my fingers onto those buttons, they've already marked... Maybe I just have not played this game enough.

I wasn't even sure what the hell the bump thing is meant to do... It sure as hell never works whenever I try to use it, and if I wanted to use it to affect a kick I'd rather just tackle.

Pretty sure the 360 degree spoiling on 360 is left trigger and right stick in the direction you want to spoil. It's one of the trigger buttons anyway

 

[SugarShane]

Yep, L2 on PS3 plus the right stick.