- Jan 19, 2014
- 6,256
- 9,922
- AFL Club
- Western Bulldogs
I enjoy distracting myself from the realities of life from time to time by thinking about why someone should play in a certain part of the ground and under what circumstances.
Broadly speaking, their role in a team. What attributes they possess that would make them a good fit, whether they currently play it or not, and whether that person in that role would make the team better (obviously)
But for me, forward, back, middle is too simplistic with little nuance. The game has changed a fair bit in recent years. No 3rd man up rule, 6 - 6 - 6 rule, standing the mark rule....dissent rule (chortle).
Things to consider in assigning someone a role
There are no doubt more.
Someone like Bailey Williams for example. He's clearly in a bit of a confidence slump at the moment but when he regains that confidence, where should/could he be.
To me, once he regains that confidence, he is one of a few players that I'd like to be the "2nd shot" player to use a golfing analogy. The "2nd shot" player should have the capacity to kick long or short accurately off both feet, the ability to find or un into space, good spatial awareness, some elusivity and vision. Pace is not necessarily a requirement. 2nd shot would generally be from the centre line back to 10m approx inside our defensive arc. Bont, Williams, Macrae, Libba, Daniel, English, Dale, Duryea and possibly Cleary. The 2nd shotter might get a handball receive from a mark out of the defensive square or mark it themselves or there could be a couple of quick interchanges through one or more before you're in the 2nd shot zone
The approach to the green may well include the 2nd shotters but possibly pace becomes an additional desirable factor as they are likely to be on the receiving end of the 2nd shotters.
On a separate but related note. Stats! Oliver Gigacz dogwatch and threenewpadlocks. If the current stats didn't exist (no precedent so not Roe v Wade scenario) and you were commissioned to design a set of stats for AFL footy, would you end up with the same statistical measures we use now or would there be some new additions/changes.
Some discussion about Scott and his role and as was rightly pointed out, he does a lot of unrewarded running which you can't pick up without behind the goals vision or unless you're at the game.
Broadly speaking, their role in a team. What attributes they possess that would make them a good fit, whether they currently play it or not, and whether that person in that role would make the team better (obviously)
But for me, forward, back, middle is too simplistic with little nuance. The game has changed a fair bit in recent years. No 3rd man up rule, 6 - 6 - 6 rule, standing the mark rule....dissent rule (chortle).
Things to consider in assigning someone a role
- Team strengths
- Ruck
- Tap capacity
- Taps to advantage/control/direction/touch
- Reaction speed
- Defence and 2nd+ efforts in close
- Around the ground
- Attacking Capacity
- Defensive capacity
- Clearances
- Effective
- Ineffective
- Centre Bounce
- Stoppages
- Ruck
- Opposition strengths
- Individual strengths
- Size
- Speed
- Burst
- Top End
- Sustained
- Closing Speed
- Endurance
- Marking
- Hands
- Safe
- Strong
- Reading ball off boot
- Leading
- Pattern capacity
- Random
- Player in game assessment capacity
- Contested
- Competitive
- Not competitive
- Leap
- Significant
- Speccy
- Standing
- Not signficant
- Significant
- Hands
- Spoiling
- Punching
- Bodying
- Tackling
- proficiency and effectiveness
- commitment
- brutality factor
- One on One
- appetite
- capacity
- aerial
- ground
- Competitiveness
- appetite
- effectiveness
- Handball
- left
- right
- distance
- accuracy/execution
- speed
- tricks
- Kicking
- left
- right
- distance
- accuracy/execution
- Hands
- soft/hard
- one touch/grab/cleanliness
- speed
- Elusiveness
- sidestep
- left/right preference
- both
- candy sales
- sidestep
- Positioning
- reading the play
- creating space
- finding space
- right place right time/timing
- spatial awareness
- 1 %ers
- unrewarding running
- capacity
- willingness
- shepherding/blocking
- unrewarding running
- Poise
- Execution of skills under pressure
- Calm head
- Game sense
- In game analysis and responsiveness
- On field communication effectiveness
- Capacity for risk and willingness to take risk
- X Factor
There are no doubt more.
Someone like Bailey Williams for example. He's clearly in a bit of a confidence slump at the moment but when he regains that confidence, where should/could he be.
To me, once he regains that confidence, he is one of a few players that I'd like to be the "2nd shot" player to use a golfing analogy. The "2nd shot" player should have the capacity to kick long or short accurately off both feet, the ability to find or un into space, good spatial awareness, some elusivity and vision. Pace is not necessarily a requirement. 2nd shot would generally be from the centre line back to 10m approx inside our defensive arc. Bont, Williams, Macrae, Libba, Daniel, English, Dale, Duryea and possibly Cleary. The 2nd shotter might get a handball receive from a mark out of the defensive square or mark it themselves or there could be a couple of quick interchanges through one or more before you're in the 2nd shot zone
The approach to the green may well include the 2nd shotters but possibly pace becomes an additional desirable factor as they are likely to be on the receiving end of the 2nd shotters.
On a separate but related note. Stats! Oliver Gigacz dogwatch and threenewpadlocks. If the current stats didn't exist (no precedent so not Roe v Wade scenario) and you were commissioned to design a set of stats for AFL footy, would you end up with the same statistical measures we use now or would there be some new additions/changes.
Some discussion about Scott and his role and as was rightly pointed out, he does a lot of unrewarded running which you can't pick up without behind the goals vision or unless you're at the game.
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