Best Position

[Moo]

We have a few players I'd like to clone so I could throw them simultaneously - however such is life and we need to go solo.

Just interested where posters would like to see these guys line up in 2012, note not where you think they will ...where you would play em -

Ballantyne
Midfield or Forward

The Energiser Bunny on speed, perhaps the greatest fear is the little bugger has no off switch and runs himself into the ground.

Hopefully Lyon manages him a little better.

Until a Walters, Mellington or Michie step up ...I really think a killer small forward is a pre-requisite for a competitive unit.

Verdict - I'd play him predominantly as a small forward ...his pressure at the business end of a zone is great and he is always a chance to score a goal. Bieng at the feet of Pavlich should be easier than being at the feet of Mayne.

Broughton
Midfield or Back

Remember the win we had over Geelong 2 seasons ago .....in the dying minutes the Cats slammed the ball deep into attack twice ...both times Mr G Broughton calmly marked and repelled them.

Broughton is a very consistent player and you just get the feeling that whatever job he is allocated he just gets on and delivers.

I want the midfield to get better but I am hoping there is enough firepower to allow Broughton to go back and bring stability with - McPharlin, SCOS & Ibbotson to give us a really solid defensive spring board moving forward.

Verdict - Need the midfield grunt to come from our midfield group...Broughton back for me.

Hill
Wing or Back

Would the real Stephen Hill please stand up and put one finger on each hand up.

Did many things wrong last year, however I think the lack of any strategic moves last year to move him forward or back, give him a differing role and running him into the ground - certainly did not help his cause.

Back to basics in 2012, new coaching structure ...I'd have him across the middle of the ground. His ability to break a game open, get another 20 m and nice delivery - if we have targets in the forward 50 ...you would like Hill streaming towards you.

Verdict - Start him as a winger, though with the flexibility to moving him as necessary to break a tag.

Fyfe
On the Ball or Forward

Freaky kid is freaky.

To me Fyfe is just too good not to be where the action is, I wont say midfield - I'll just say on the ball ... I'd give him license to get to where he feels he can be damaging.

Verdict - Where ever you like

Suban
Wing or Back

Suban - I really need to see some improvement from Suban, potential don't cut it.

Hopefully full pre-season and more of a gameplan should help him ...pace is a concern, however I'd see him on a wing or at least a very high flank.

Kid has a great footy brain and certainly is determined, need to see it out on the field .....just have a feeling that him and Lyon is going to be a match made in heaven.

Verdict - get him up the field

De Boer
Defensive Forward or Tagger

I am an unabashed De Pig fan, his tackles stick and when Public Enemy penned the words 'Refuse to Lose', I'm sure they were channeling De Boer.

I want De Boer in the middle, and the way Lyon loves to shut down games ....his tackles around stoppages well when he tackles you, you stay tackled.

I am really hoping one of the fringe players steps up to take care of the defensive forward role, maybe a Crichton if he can step up.

Verdict - I'd have him in the guts, works hard and you want him where the likes of Judd and Pendlebury are in the firing line.

Jack Anthony
Forward or Back

No Clark, need a 2nd target ...Pav to CHF and play Jack out of the square.

We brought him in as a forward, we need a forward .......backline is in reasonable shape - Jack becomes an important 'What if' player.

Manage his pre-season and build his confidence, he had shit delivery last season and he was a whipping boy.

Verdict - Forward. Let's see what he lloks like with Pav/Mayne/Ballantyne ...should be able to clear some leading space. Also let us get him on the end of delivery from Barlow, Mundy, Morabito & Hill ...rather than the B Team he got when he was inserted into our Gray's Anatomy lineup.

 

[Proud Bogan]

95% from me Moo.

You lost 5% because of Jack Anthony, but I am more than happy to be convinced.

In particular, I agree with Broughton and Balla wholeheartedly.

All of this talk of needing a lock down small defender, (whatever that is?), when we already have a proven performer with lovely release skills......only to push him to the midfield....

????

WTF?????

We have a proven terrier in the FP, but we need to push him as well into the midfield???, (yes I realise that RL mentioned this in passing), but seriously???

Why develop players into a new role when we already have proven, young, performers there in the first place?

Develop/draft players where our deficiencies are. Don't reinvent the wheel.

 

[Jezzitizle]

For me, keep Balla forward and throw him on the ball only when we need some energy late in a quarter. He's too dangerous for the oppositions defence to ignore. And think about it, if we play Saints the further from the goals he is, the better you feel.

Broughton mid for me. We need to have real depth with experienced players. And as good as he is back, feel like he can step it up in the middle.

Hill to the WAFL until he starts taking the game on again.

Fyfe midfielder who constantly drifts forward.

DeBoer is a negator, he's gotta go where he is most needed no matter where it is.

JA WAFL and play Keples. Even when Kep has a bad day he provides a contest and gives the other boys a hope, can cut out in the ruck or plough the wing. When JA has a bad day, you sometimes dont notice he's playing till halfway through the third.

 

[mike91]

I agree with most of your points Moo. Another one to chuck up would be Mzungu. Question being will he replace Roger Hayden or will he play through the midfield?

 

[Scootyb]

Yeah agree with everything bar Anthony, think he is an ideal Grover replacement especially with what he showed under heavy Collingwood fire in round 23. Has a neat kick coming out of defense. Up forward he is a one trick pony. Doesnt chase or mark particularly well, his only bow sting is his consistent set shot

 

[magnus34]

Maybe Hill could be a back/centre type like the Carlton mids or at worst Joel Bowden-esque.

I'd like to see JA played forward for a decent number of games.. at least 5 probably 7.

 

[DockerLand1]

Yeah agree with everything bar Anthony, think he is an ideal Grover replacement especially with what he showed under heavy Collingwood fire in round 23. Has a neat kick coming out of defense. Up forward he is a one trick pony. Doesnt chase or mark particularly well, his only bow sting is his consistent set shot

I agree, he showed more in that Pies game down back than he did forward all season. With Pav moving back forward and our A team midfield team coming back, the Forward line can develop without him.

Lyon is going to want to get the backline 100% first. We need young players who can take over. SIlvagni and J.A. will be a big part of that.

I also have a sneaking suspicion that Sibo is going to pop his head up and get a red hot go under Lyon. Or am I just hoping that his talent will finally get a show?

 

[free at last]

Play hill the way FREO played him in 2010.

With JA it depends on whether we draft kersten, if we get kersten I'd like to see JA be developed down back to cover for groves.

Where to play broughton is influenced by who we draft again. If we draft the likes of adams , Greene or Horsely ( inside mids) all appear they would be capable of handling runs through the midfield.With this scenario happening broughts will probably be played like he was in 2010.

Let fyfe do what he wants.I wonder if da fyfe has stopped growing in height , if fyfe height ends up at 193cmor 194cm we will have an all-time CHF on our hands.

Ballas should play deep. As crew have said seems prone to soft tissue injuries and running through the midfield will only increase the chances.

Suban

De boer = midfield tagger.

 

[WAnchor]

Certainly a refreshing thread in relation to the 'did we screw up on trade week' sequels.

Ballantyne - he tends to drift in and out of games a lot, and is generally much more quiet in Melbourne games. He seems to thrive on getting the ball. WHilst I'd have forward as his predominant possie, if he's quiet, I'd give him a stint on the ball. This may adversely affect how involved he becomes back up forward.

Broughton - with less injured players (hopefully), we'll have more midfielders to choose from.At the start of the season we should have a fitter Barlow and Morabito. Broughton should be played down back.

De Boer - with his ruthless attack, I wonder if he could be the inside mid that we need? I like the idea of him as a tagger, too, but it's dependant on who else is in the team, particularly if we retain Crowley and what Lyon does with McPhee.

Hill - would love him on the wing, with some space, kicking to Pavlich - who is anchored inside the arc. The thought gets me excited.

Suban - my wish for him is that he plays a full season, irrelevant of his position. Whenever he suggests that he's hitting his straps, he has been cruelled by injury. I also wonder what his inside mid attributes may be like. He has certainly shown a capacity to be hard at the ball.

Anthony - will be interested in his pre-season, and where he trains. To be honest, Sibosado looked awesome in his one small stint. I'd love for Anthony to show similar enthusiasm, but I'm not sure he really had a forward opportunity. If I remember correctly, the heavens were heaving when he played his first game - making it difficult for a key forward. And he was dropped the following week. Be great to see Lyon encourage his confidence to flourish.

 

[Scham]

Play hill the way FREO played him in 2010.

With JA it depends on whether we draft kersten, if we get kersten I'd like to see JA be developed down back to cover for groves.

Where to play broughton is influenced by who we draft again. If we draft the likes of adams , Greene or Horsely ( inside mids) all appear they would be capable of handling runs through the midfield.With this scenario happening broughts will probably be played like he was in 2010.

Let fyfe do what he wants.I wonder if da fyfe has stopped growing in height , if fyfe height ends up at 193cmor 194cm we will have an all-time CHF on our hands.

Ballas should play deep. As crew have said seems prone to soft tissue injuries and running through the midfield will only increase the chances.

Suban

De boer = midfield tagger.

Agree with all this.

Suban's main strength is his left boot. He should be in the midfield doing what RL expects Balla to do up the ground i.e. complementing the taller slower mids, breaking the lines and delivering with depth and precision to our forwards.

With Hill, Morabito, Barlow, Mundy and him delivering the ball forward and kicking the odd goal themselves we're going to kick winning scores more often than not.

 

[BananaOnTheRun]

Ballantyne, Hll and Anthony are the interesting ones for me.

I feel that Balla's skill set is better served forward, and agree about the off switch. The guy had two hamstring injuries last year and we need to manage that better. Look at what the Hawks do with Cyril. Both these little fellas run faster than their legs can handle and Ballas will benefit from a similar approach, eg. perhaps look at his running technique, give the guy a rub down each time he goes for a run.

Hill suffers from the weight of expectation and I think we need to play to his strengths better. I'd put him in the backline to have a Leon Davis type of role but with perhaps more defensive accountability. Let him grow into the rebounding defenders role, where his sublime left boot and vision can be utilised while still allowing him to go for a run off half back should the opportunity present itself. Let him become the superstar from there, rather than plonk him into positions and expect him to be one.

Anthony may be a solution to our small defender problems, so I'm more inclined to try him out there first. If we don't draft anyone into that position, then I'd play either he or Faulks as a small defender and let him become a part of the team structure.
I do agree that he hasn't been treated fairly by the club, it's one of the inconsistencies in the communication from Harvs this year that spelt his demise.

 

[Patty_Moz]

Agree with Ballas, Broughton, De Boer and Hill.

Agree with Suban to middle as if Duffield, Broughton and Ibbo are all playing in the back there isnt a real need to play him full time as a backman, I'd like him to be used more as a mid then it would free up Fyfe who may be our most important player in coming yrs.

I'd like Fyfe to play more as a forward in the end if he can kick 30-40 goals and rotate through the midfield in short stints then he is more valuable to us than a full time midfielder. We could still use him in the midfield like Hird in the past and how Stevie J was used this yr but like Pav if Fyfe can kick goals then our team is more dangerous and Fyfe would still rack up 25 possies.

I'm not sold on Anthony at all yet but I agree forward is where he should play... Hopefully with a big preseason and new coach (he did seem to be one of the ones Harvey didnt like) he can show something. His game against Dawes is talked up way too much. He played against a bloke who had been out injured for 2 months with a broken hand and didnt have any confidence in his marking ability, the next week he was so useless down back that he was moved into the forward line. He should be played as a forward because I'm not convinced of his KPD abilities from one game against a player returning from injury also if we can get 30-40 goals from him then he is more valuable to the team as we have a few KPD options but depending on preseason form I think Bradley deserves first crack at FF.

 

[theGav56]

Good thread.

I guess MJ has been left out of the discussion as he has been over-discussed already, but surely he is one of the most interesting players we have in terms of how he can be used, and how Lyon will actually use him. I am wanting Lyon to harden him up a bit with clarity about what his role is, then leave him back, drifting to the wing.

I can see JA back or forward, and don't have enough weight either way to have a preference. But he was shabbily treated with his stints last year as a forward. It is going to change up there, and we also have Sumich coming in so I am hoping he can be successful forward for us.

Getting those two players contributing in those positions makes us a much better side. I am also very interested to see what Sibosado does under Lyon, assuming he is on the list. There is nowhere to hide this year.

If our midfield is fit and firing I prefer Broughton back, but I also really like the idea of Hill back and Broughton midfield if Hill continues to struggle or needs some development time.

 

[Chris25]

I think Suban has to play in the midfield, but more because he isn't suited to the back lines. He isn't a good shut down defender, and doesn't have the pace to play on the crumbing forwards anyway. Plus, when was his last good game in the back half? He goes missing so much, it's like he isn't even there. If he doesn't make a home for himself in the midfield, then he will struggle to stay in our best 22.

What I would like to see is him playing in the midfield, and pushing forward. Not a great comparison, but a bit like David Zaharakis. Suban's kicking over a distance has always been a bit overrated for mine. But he has shown signs of being a good shot for goal on the run, and when he spots someone up in the forward line and kicks with touch he is generally pretty good.

He has the potential to average 20 touches and a goal a game, if he plays forward of centre. Otherwise he is being wasted in my opinion.

As for the others...

Ballantyne - forward
Broughton - back
Hill - midfield, and not just outside
Fyfe - midfield
DeBoer - forward
Anthony - back

 

[Dr2Sheds]

Ballantyne I think forward, while he carved up when he pushed up the ground this year, he was completely knackered afterwards and had to spend the next 10min recouping on the bench. I'm not sure he can develop the tank a midfielder needs, or his legs stand the rigors of a midfield season.

Broughton Too good a contested mark and reader of an oppositions attacking play to be 'wasted' in the midfield imo. Leave him down back, we need the footy smarts down there to setup play from opposition turn overs.

Hill I still like Hill on a wing, having our best midfield back next year should help him out,though i like the idea of playing him in a Leon Davis role as Banana mentioned.

Fyfe Wherever he likes.

Suban At the beginning of the year before he was injured he was showing some good things from the half back flank, leave him there with rotations in the mid field.

De Boer That's a tough one; if he had his goal kicking boots on earlier on you'd say he made the defensive forward position his own. That said, i really enjoy watching him mow down the opposition at stoppages.

Jack Anthony Still not sold on Jack, i prefer Keps in the forwards, depth back man for mine (maybe he can do a Tarrant but i won't hold my breath).

 

[Lach72]

I wonder whether Suban can play the high half forward, pushing into the midfield.

 

[Silent Alarm]

Definitely feel Suban is a better midfielder. The guy has the brittle for it, and despite his build, can certainly run and run.

I find Ballantyne just isn't good enough for a midfielder role. He works better forcing pressure in a smaller area, ala, put him forward pocket, so he has half of the 50 metre arc to apply pressure - put him in the middle, and he doesn't that boundary. As people have said, he can sometimes run himself into the ground... certainly not beneficial. Shorter bursts of higher pressure can help his, and Freo's, cause.

DeBoer should certainly sit half back. He's certainly got some strength and mongrel, and to have him anywhere else, would see him not being utilised. I can't really see him being good enough to a midfielder, and, he's far too inconsistent (at goal) to be a forward.

Fyfe is interesting. The kid just seems to be where we need him - usually on the boundary, whether it be on the wing, half forward, or half back. I think the idea of a Luke McPharlin run out of the backline, searching for an open position, and hammering it to Fyfey (as he beats seven West Coast players in the pack). He'd still be very effective in the midfield though. It's certanly the kind of headache a coach would want - do we want a currently awesome, yet potentially Brownlow-awesome half forward, or midfielder?

 

[Admiral Byng]

Fyfe - around half forward. He is a great overhead mark and has terrific kicking skill. He'd be great in the midfield, but I reckon further forward he can do more damage, taking marks and then hitting leading targets deep inside 50.

Anthony - I'd like to see him get himself properly fit and ready for action. Give him a long stint in the forward line first. Only if it really isn't working out there for him would I consider moving him back and trying to turn him into something else.

 

[Fred Ziffel]

This is my first post so please go easy on me.

Many people were disappointed with the sacking of Mark Harvey; I'm not one of them.

If Mark was a star, then Ross is a Galaxy and with that will come a desperately needed game plan.

The first instalment of that game plan was the appointment of Mark Stone, as the stoppages expert, and this is where I believe a few different roles for some of our players will come in.

First candidate for me is Matt Deboer .

Matt could be a central player in a new stoppages plan as could Ryan Crowley .( should, he get a contract ).

Other than a new on ball role for MDB, I can see him vying for a Half Forward Flank with Chris Mayne. Chris Mayne simply has to produce more goals next year.
The other Forward Flank is Nat Fyfe's. They will be either side of Pavlich and told to lead away from the corridor and draw their opponent away from Pavlich who will stay in the corridor.

Jack to play Full Forward , qualified with all the previous posts regarding his mismanagement last year.

Ballantyne definitely should be in the pocket next to Jack and Josh Mellington really impressed me last year. He gets the other forward Pocket because of his strength and aggression. He displayed strong marking last year and is a good size as a counter to Balla's gnome like height.

Hill and Mora the wingers providing massive delivery into the forward line, with a hint of variety from their individual styles. Morabito driving long 60 metre passes to Jack and Stephen Hill mixing it up with some deftly weighted passes to the half forwards with the occasional 50 to 60 metre bombs .
This of course is contingent on the crowding tactics of opposition backlines .
Having both wingers with a massive kick as well as accuracy is why I think they will be the perfect wingmen .

The centreline is completed with MickyB.

Nic Suban and Greg Broughton for the Back Flanker roles playing either side of Luke.
Just as the wingers pick themselves for their particular kicking strength, Nic and Greg bring the same function to the backline.

Nic Suban is simply a magnificent kick with his drilling passes and has a hint of mongrel in him to boot. A big limitation for Nic is he is onesided.

Greg Broughton is close to being our best both feet player IMO and with his already demonstrated footy brain he is the ideal backman in pressure situations. Of course he has the added advantage of being able to play anywhere, as he did last year, but with the prospect of Mundy , Barlow and Morabito all being in the same team for the first time in 18 months , it is the added luxury we deserve.

With Suban and Broughton as the back Flankers there could be games where we may be a tad on the short side and that is why I see Ibbo being positioned in the back pocket to provide that quick switch , on occasions.
It is for this reason that I see Adam Mcphee as the ideal Interchange.

One thing is certain , with Ross Lyon will come change.

Not the least of which will be a game plan. I can't recall one in the past five years apart from always go to Pavlich when he actually played in the Forward line a couple of years back. That is probably why we actually performed better in the handful of games that Pavlich missed.

 

[Leslie_Chow]

This is my first post so please go easy on me.

Many people were disappointed with the sacking of Mark Harvey; I'm not one of them.

If Mark was a star, then Ross is a Galaxy and with that will come a desperately needed game plan.

The first instalment of that game plan was the appointment of Mark Stone, as the stoppages expert, and this is where I believe a few different roles for some of our players will come in.

First candidate for me is Matt Deboer .

Matt could be a central player in a new stoppages plan as could Ryan Crowley .( should, he get a contract ).

Other than a new on ball role for MDB, I can see him vying for a Half Forward Flank with Chris Mayne. Chris Mayne simply has to produce more goals next year.
The other Forward Flank is Nat Fyfe's. They will be either side of Pavlich and told to lead away from the corridor and draw their opponent away from Pavlich who will be stay in the corridor.

Jack to play Full Forward , qualified with all the previous posts regarding his mismanagement last year.

Ballantyne definitely should be in the pocket next to Jack and Josh Mellington really impressed me last year. He gets the other forward Pocket because of his strength and aggression. He displayed strong marking last year and is a good size as a counter to Balla's gnome like height.

Hill and Mora the wingers providing massive delivery into the forward line, with a hint of variety from their individual styles. Morabito driving long 60 metre passes to Jack and Stephen Hill mixing it up with some deftly weighted passes to the half forwards with the occasional 50 to 60 metre bombs .
This of course is contingent on the crowding tactics of opposition backlines .
Having both wingers with a massive kick as well as accuracy is why I think they will be the perfect wingmen .

The centreline is completed with MickyB.

Nic Suban and Greg Broughton for the Back Flanker roles playing either side of Luke.
Just as the wingers pick themselves for their particular kicking strength, Nic and Greg bring the same function to the backline.

Nic Suban is simply a magnificent kick with his drilling passes and has a hint of mongrel in him to boot. A big limitation for Nic is he is onesided.

Greg Broughton is close to being our best both feet player IMO and with his already demonstrated footy brain he is the ideal backman in pressure situations. Of course he has the added advantage of being able to play anywhere, as he did last year, but with the prospect of Mundy , Barlow and Morabito all being in the same team for the first time in 18 months , it is the added luxury we deserve.

With Suban and Broughton as the back Flankers there could be games where we may be a tad on the short side and that is why I see Ibbo being positioned in the back pocket to provide that quick switch , on occasions.
It is for this reason that I see Adam Mcphee as the ideal Interchange.

One thing is certain , with Ross Lyon will come change.

Not the least of which will be a game plan. I can't recall one in the past five years apart from always go to Pavlich when he actually played in the Forward line a couple of years back. That is probably why we actually performed better in the handful of games that Pavlich missed.

Not a bad first post

 

[Lach72]

Hey Fred can you expand on that a bit?

 

[Fred Ziffel]

Sorry about that.

 

[Proud Bogan]

Sorry about that.

Don't be.

Good post.

 

[Moo]

Not a bad first post

I think my first post was Karl Langdon can lick my ballsack - so as first posts go ....Freddy you doing all right.

 

[Fred Ziffel]

I mentioned a possible different role for Deboer because of a new focus on our stoppages with Mark Stone.

Another player who may be marked for a new role is Nick Lower who I regard as the closest player to Deboer.
They both strike me as being ideal for that blocking and muscling around packs.
Nick Lower just covers so much ground and seems to have absolutely no trouble at being where the ball is.