Opinion Best team 2022

[Pure_Ownage]

You just question why does he get signed up on decent years etc if he's going to be on the outer.. I can't see it happening - but, I guess we can adapt that mindset that this is going to be a new look Cats team/strategy for 22.

I mean thats true but just because the old coaches picked him doesnt mean the new ones will. So it might change but the 3 year contract limits our options a bit.

 

[Poetic Justice]

I mean thats true but just because the old coaches picked him doesnt mean the new ones will. So it might change but the 3 year contract limits our options a bit.

Kolo could genuinely be the barometer of change for season 2022...

 

[standupand]

Theres room for blitz and sdk. Sdk in his early days will need aerial help 3rd man up (which blitz is very good at) otherwise he will be slaughtered by power forwards (in his early days). If you dont play blitz there then stewart has to do that role helping him and you lose all our offensive drive from our best player. Blitz and sdk in the key posts works its kolo or atkins that should be more in the gun.

Menegola is asked to play a high running hard defensive winger role to support our back 6 as danger selwood and guthrie dont run super hard defensively in transition. If you replaced menegola with a more attacking player our defense would get exposed even more than it already does.

Because those 2 have the endurance and workrate that most of our side doesnt they can fill gaps in a way that is essential. I would dispense with a lot of our over 25s over time (higgins dahl stanley rohan etc) but not blitz and menegola. I agree we do need to bring more attack into our gameplan but high endurance players can help us do that as they cover more ground so i dont think the issues are mutually exclusive.

Yeah I can see the logic of this and I think the MC will agree. Personally I like Blicavs more in that defensive midfield role protecting the back 6 and a back six that has some attacking dynamism to it. Menegola for me doesn't provide quite enough attacking dash for a wing or flank. He would be a good inside mid, but we seem not to have much need in that area.

 

[year of the cat]

How I think we will line up:

B T.Stewart M.Blivcas J.Henry
HB J.Kolojashnij S.De Koning Z.Guthrie
C I.Smith P.Dangerfield S.Menegola
HF R. Stanley J.Cameron B.Close
F G.Miers T.Hawkins Dahlhause
FOLL: J.Ceglar B.Parfitt C.Guthrie
INTER: J.Selwood, Z.Tuohy, T Atkins, S Higgins

My nightmare scenario

 

[Shai]

Unless they are brave, we will mostly have the 22 we have had for a while . Stengle will come in. Probably Sdek. Ceglar will ruck and I hope someone like Stephens can press for a spot. Someone to add inside grunt, which they must feel they need based on the draft.

Finding players of name to come in is easy. Naming who really goes out is more difficult. Stengle for Close, SDek for Henderson, Ceglar for Stanley and .. a tough call but Stephens for Holmes. I hope we transition old for young as the year progresses but till I see it I think the new names will probably not replace the ones who have been in the side for sometime

Can I just ask about Stengle for Close? I see Close as a defensive fwd and Stengle as a creative goal kicking fwd, doesn't seem that 1 will cancel out the other.

 

[year of the cat]

I think stephens will i just think it wont happen in round 1 its a big call for him to step straight in after 2 years of no footy..then again holmes was in by what round 4? But i do think by years end stephens will be best 22.

I agree with your last sentence however as i did point out in another thread we have a super crop of kids under 22 our only players between 24 and 28 are MOC (quality but injury prone) Bews kolo and atkins-and zuthrie simpson and narkle being almost 23 now are equally a bit of a bridge between our over 28yos and the untried kids. Unless we bring in several (and i mean 3 or 4) free agents in that age bracket next year then we have to hang on to some of the 'dead wood' for another couple of years until our kids get towards 50 games..you cant transition to an entire team of under 23s suddenly..they need some experience around them. But i do agree that kolo zuthrie etc are mediocrity in a way although i think they are decent depth players who can do a role til the kids get up to speed.

I agree blitz probably cant ruck this year as he is needed at FB. I suppose the question is do we run with sav as fwd/2nd ruck or do we play both stanley and ceglar together? It gives us more ruck strength but maybe clogs up the fwd line too much? Will be interesting to see which way we go.

With regard to Stephens it’s more likely he’ll start in the VFL. I think we do need to fast track the development of 2-3 young mids though. I’d expect Holmes to play a full season in the AFL and even wouldn’t be surprised to see both Knevitt and Willis play a 4-5 games each next year.

I do think we will need to try and look at a couple of FA’s or mature ages types. Maybe the vacant list position may be used on one?

But I don’t think that Kolo, Atkins etc should be awarded games purely because they are in a particular age bracket. If they aren’t performing then I’d prefer to see them out and a kid in.

I think Stanley and Ceglar can play together. Both are mobile types. I’m not sure what the future of Ratagolea is? But he’s in a bit of trouble if he doesn’t improve in 2022.

 

[Art Vandelay_]

B: Bews Blicavs Kolodjashnij
HB Stewart De Koning Henry
C: Smith Guthrie Duncan
HF: Holmes Cameron Menegola
F: Stengle Hawkins Close
R: Stanley Dangerfield Selwood
Int: Parfitt Tuohy Atkins Rohan
Sub: O'Connor


Miers, Dahlhaus, Zuthrie, Simpson, Ceglar, Esava, Narkle all as depth to be called on.

 

[Shai]

To be honest I think that net goes a lot wider than just those five.

Yeah it does but while some of those guys (including the unnamed) are offering some thing to advance the team that's the way it goes.

You would hope that the young guys coming thru benefit.

 

[Pollywaffle]

Kolo could genuinely be the barometer of change for season 2022...

True. Do we keep picking a robotic plodder or go for someone who may show, with a degree of nurturing, some creativity and growth.

 

[Turbocat]

Can I just ask about Stengle for Close? I see Close as a defensive fwd and Stengle as a creative goal kicking fwd, doesn't seem that 1 will cancel out the other.

I agree with your observation. Its only a rough guess , and form may well change it but I suspect they will look at the players I have mentioned as I see them as easiest to replace. Preseason will give us better feel.

 

[Matthew Jelley]

Really hoping to see a few new players stake their claim for a spot, heres how I would like to see our team looking at some stage

B Henry Blicavs Bews
HB Stewart DeKoning Tuohy
C Smith C.Guthrie Duncan
HF Menegola Cameron Close
F Stengle Hawkins Dangerfield
R Stanley Selwood Parfitt
I Ceglar Holmes Willis/Stephens Evans

 

[crocsta]

My finals team:

B Henry Blicavs O’Connor
HB Stewart DeKoning Tuohy
C Smith C.Guthrie Duncan
HF Menegola Cameron Close
F Stengle Hawkins Dangerfield
R Stanley Selwood Parfitt
I Holmes Stephens Selwood Bews


I can’t believe I’m saying this but I think Zuthrie is going to have a good year so very close to Bews.

Miers and Atkins stiff
1 Ruck plus Blitz and SDK
Stephens will hopefully be ready

 

[BORIS332]

Important to note that this is just what I think our best 22 is, not what I think the club will go with come round 1.

FB: DE KONING, BLICAVS, HENRY
HB: BEWS, KOLODJASHNIJ, STEWART
C: DUNCAN, O'CONNOR, SMITH
HF: MIERS, CAMERON, CLOSE
FF: RATUGOLEA, HAWKINS, DANGERFIELD
1R: CEGLAR, SELWOOD, PARFITT

INT: TUOHY, MENEGOLA, C.GUTHRIE, HOLMES

Players missing out:

DAHLHAUS: really didn't have much impact last year, and I see Miers and Close overtaking him if they haven't already.
EVANS: I like him, but he'll have to force his way in.
HIGGINS: I suspect he'll play mainly VFL next year given his age and decline.
NARKLE: really liked what I saw of him in the VFL, just needs to take the next step.
ROHAN: I'm not a Rohan hater, I just think Ratugolea is essential to our forward make-up, and with Danger playing more time forward Rohan falls out.
SIMPSON: really like him, but his injuries have meant a few have gone ahead of him, I'd like to see him force his way in.
STANLEY: just really frustrates me and I'm thinking (hoping) Ceglar will be more reliable.
STENGLE: had a good season at SANFL level but hasn't done anything at AFL level yet, will need to earn his spot.
STEPHENS: hopefully stays fit and earns his spot.
STEVENS: looks good in the VFL, I can see him forcing his way in.
Z.GUTHRIE: I'm a fan, but we have lots of small/medium defenders and he's towards the bottom of that list.
ATKINS: really, really liked him on a HBF last year, but Henry, Bews and Stewart all ahead of him for that role.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

My finals team:

B Henry Blicavs O’Connor
HB Stewart DeKoning Tuohy
C Smith C.Guthrie Duncan
HF Menegola Cameron Close
F Stengle Hawkins Dangerfield
R Stanley Selwood Parfitt
I Holmes Stephens Selwood Bews


I can’t believe I’m saying this but I think Zuthrie is going to have a good year so very close to Bews.

Miers and Atkins stiff
1 Ruck plus Blitz and SDK
Stephens will hopefully be ready

A lot will hinge on our preferred ruck setup..is stanley or ceglar the no1? Do we think blitz can play FB and be 2nd ruck? (Personally i say no) and if not does that mean we go in with 2 of ceglar stanley and sav covering ruck and fwd? Which in turn affects our forward line setup. Thats the big watch for me in pre season.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Important to note that this is just what I think our best 22 is, not what I think the club will go with come round 1.

FB: DE KONING, BLICAVS, HENRY
HB: BEWS, KOLODJASHNIJ, STEWART
C: DUNCAN, O'CONNOR, SMITH
HF: MIERS, CAMERON, CLOSE
FF: RATUGOLEA, HAWKINS, DANGERFIELD
1R: CEGLAR, SELWOOD, PARFITT

INT: TUOHY, MENEGOLA, C.GUTHRIE, HOLMES

Players missing out:

DAHLHAUS: really didn't have much impact last year, and I see Miers and Close overtaking him if they haven't already.
EVANS: I like him, but he'll have to force his way in.
HIGGINS: I suspect he'll play mainly VFL next year given his age and decline.
NARKLE: really liked what I saw of him in the VFL, just needs to take the next step.
ROHAN: I'm not a Rohan hater, I just think Ratugolea is essential to our forward make-up, and with Danger playing more time forward Rohan falls out.
SIMPSON: really like him, but his injuries have meant a few have gone ahead of him, I'd like to see him force his way in.
STANLEY: just really frustrates me and I'm thinking (hoping) Ceglar will be more reliable.
STENGLE: had a good season at SANFL level but hasn't done anything at AFL level yet, will need to earn his spot.
STEPHENS: hopefully stays fit and earns his spot.
STEVENS: looks good in the VFL, I can see him forcing his way in.
Z.GUTHRIE: I'm a fan, but we have lots of small/medium defenders and he's towards the bottom of that list.
ATKINS: really, really liked him on a HBF last year, but Henry, Bews and Stewart all ahead of him for that role.

Personally id go stanley for sav (as a fwd/ruck) but thats line ball and id go kolo out (although the need for extra height with hendo gone might keep kolo in) for either an extra mid such as simpson (with oconnor in thr back 6) or for atkins who i think gives us more drive from defence. I also think stengle might force his way in.

Your list shows our depth is good..having dahl higgins rohan narkle stanley/sav zuthrie stengle and simpson all as pretty capable afl standard depth plus kids like stephens de koning evans and the draftees with talent..we are pretty covered for injuries anywhere except the key posts..lose blitz or hawkins (maybe more blitz given if hawk goes down danger can play FF) for any length of time and we are in trouble (which is why id like a key back for our last rookie spot) but otherwise we have good coverage.

 

[BORIS332]

Personally id go stanley for sav (as a fwd/ruck) but thats line ball and id go kolo out (although the need for extra height with hendo gone might keep kolo in) for either an extra mid such as simpson (with oconnor in thr back 6) or for atkins who i think gives us more drive from defence. I also think stengle might force his way in.

Your list shows our depth is good..having dahl higgins rohan narkle stanley/sav zuthrie stengle and simpson all as pretty capable afl standard depth plus kids like stephens de koning evans and the draftees with talent..we are pretty covered for injuries anywhere except the key posts..lose blitz or hawkins (maybe more blitz given if hawk goes down danger can play FF) for any length of time and we are in trouble (which is why id like a key back for our last rookie spot) but otherwise we have good coverage.

I'd like to start with Kolo in the side so we're not throwing SDK to the wolves. Ideally, SDK would find his feet by mid-season and others would force Kolo out.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

I'd like to start with Kolo in the side so we're not throwing SDK to the wolves. Ideally, SDK would find his feet by mid-season and others would force Kolo out.

I agree its more likely kolo starts initially so we have an option to switch onto talls mid game if SDK is struggling. But i agree once SDK is up to speed after a while im hoping one of our small to medium defenders would be picked over kolo-we have a lot of options for those back 6 spots.

 

[Shadow89]

Starting to really warm to Stevens getting a gig early on. Is now pretty much the same size as Kolo (both 193 and Stevens maybe a few kgs lighter). Has more speed, and from what I saw in the VFL last season, a very, very good kick.

I've got two sides here. One will be what I think our Round 1 team will be. Two will be my personal picks (preferred team with mix of youth and experience).

Side A (Round 1 GFC selectors line up):

B: Bews, Blics, Henry
HB: Stewart, SDK, Tuohy
C: I. Smith, Selwood, Menegola
FO: Stanley, Danger, Parfitt
HF: Duncan, J. Cameron, Rohan
F: Close, Hawkins, Stengle
INT: Ceglar, O'Connor, Atkins, Holmes
Med sub: Miers

EMG: Ratugolea, Kolo, S. Higgins, Zuthrie

Side B (My preferred line up, and what I hope we end up with at different points throughout the year when guys like Sel, Stanley and Tuohy get rested):

OUT: Sel (rested), Tuohy (rested), Stanley (rested), Rohan (omitted), Miers (omitted), Atkins (med sub)

B: O'Connor, SDK, Henry
HB: Stevens, Blics, Stewart
C: I. Smith, C. Stephens, Holmes
FO: Ceglar, C. Guthrie, Parfitt
HF: Duncan, J. Cameron, Danger
F: Close, Hawkins, Stengle
INT: Menegola, Bews, Willis, Neale
Med Sub: Atkins

EMG: Zuthrie, Ratugolea, Simpson, Miers

*********************************

Two vastly different sides, but the bottom one is the one I hope we can get closer to by year's end - especially if we look like not making finals/look like just we'll be making up the numbers

 

[BORIS332]

Starting to really warm to Stevens getting a gig early on. Is now pretty much the same size as Kolo (both 193 and Stevens maybe a few kgs lighter). Has more speed, and from what I saw in the VFL last season, a very, very good kick.

I've got two sides here. One will be what I think our Round 1 team will be. Two will be my personal picks (preferred team with mix of youth and experience).

Side A (Round 1 GFC selectors line up):

B: Bews, Blics, Henry
HB: Stewart, SDK, Tuohy
C: I. Smith, Selwood, Menegola
FO: Stanley, Danger, Parfitt
HF: Duncan, J. Cameron, Rohan
F: Close, Hawkins, Stengle
INT: Ceglar, O'Connor, Atkins, Holmes
Med sub: Miers

EMG: Ratugolea, Kolo, S. Higgins, Zuthrie

Side B (My preferred line up, and what I hope we end up with at different points throughout the year when guys like Sel, Stanley and Tuohy get rested):

OUT: Sel (rested), Tuohy (rested), Stanley (rested), Rohan (omitted), Miers (omitted), Atkins (med sub)

B: O'Connor, SDK, Henry
HB: Stevens, Blics, Stewart
C: I. Smith, C. Stephens, Holmes
FO: Ceglar, C. Guthrie, Parfitt
HF: Duncan, J. Cameron, Danger
F: Close, Hawkins, Stengle
INT: Menegola, Bews, Willis, Neale
Med Sub: Atkins

EMG: Zuthrie, Ratugolea, Simpson, Miers

*********************************

Two vastly different sides, but the bottom one is the one I hope we can get closer to by year's end - especially if we look like not making finals/look like just we'll be making up the numbers

Comparing Stevens to Kolo is apples and oranges. Their height has nothing to do with it, it's like comparing Scarlett (194cm) to Mackie (193cm) - both defenders but vastly different players.

 

[bellpark]

The clear thing with predicting 2022 best side is if we want to win, it cannot be the same names - just not good enough particularly in midfield. So, loving the raft of potential players that have has some time into the/on the verge/ could improve plus what we have bought in via the draft (where several of those look likely types already - Kroger and Willis). So I think if we get 3 to 5 from Simpson, Narkle, Stephens, Stevens, SDK, Stengle, Ceglar, one or two draftees, into the side regularly, and internal improvements even more from Close, Kolo, Bews, better year from Blitz, and a best performance in finals from Rohan, we can lift significantly. On the flip side we may have slides from Danger, Selwood, Stanley, Menengola, Higgins, etc. Also dont see Myers, Dalhaus up to the job (OK defensively but no hurt factor offensively). Unlikely perhaps we win it, but there is still hope and we are finally getting a critical mass of potential senior players together. If our mid talent spotting is better this year from the draft than the comventional wisdom, then we will have a real kick along.

 

[year of the cat]

Comparing Stevens to Kolo is apples and oranges. Their height has nothing to do with it, it's like comparing Scarlett (194cm) to Mackie (193cm) - both defenders but vastly different players.

Yeh, one might be able to play footy, whilst the other can't.

 

[Shadow89]

Comparing Stevens to Kolo is apples and oranges. Their height has nothing to do with it, it's like comparing Scarlett (194cm) to Mackie (193cm) - both defenders but vastly different players.

Both Mackie and Scarlett could play small and tall, despite their significant 'size' difference - that's more what I was getting at with Kolo and Stevens.

Stevens could essentially replace Kolo as a smaller KPD, whilst offering stronger disposal, offensive capability and speed. Given their close weights and identical heights, it's a lot more similar than Scarlett and Mackie.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Both Mackie and Scarlett could play small and tall, despite their significant 'size' difference - that's more what I was getting at with Kolo and Stevens.

Stevens could essentially replace Kolo as a smaller KPD, whilst offering stronger disposal, offensive capability and speed. Given their close weights and identical heights, it's a lot more similar than Scarlett and Mackie.

I actually agree on stevens attributes and its why id like him in the team by 2023 but i think both him and kolo are medium talls neither is a true KPD which is why we need de koning (who is) to have a good year.

 

[dazbroncos]

I think the premise here is flawed.

With our age profile.. and the gap between young and old.... the "22" concept is fatally short..

WE need to be best 25 or 26 as there aint no way everyone makes it to the end without running outta steam.


GO Catters

 

[Shadow89]

I think the premise here is flawed.

With our age profile.. and the gap between young and old.... the "22" concept is fatally short..

WE need to be best 25 or 26 as there aint no way everyone makes it to the end without running outta steam.


GO Catters

I reckon we could have a Best 30, if we're going down that route (squad for the season not Best 22 for that week):

B: Bews/O'Connor, SDK/Kolo, Henry/Zuthrie
HB: Stewart, Blics, Tuohy/Atkins
C: I. Smith, Selwood/C. Stephens, Menegola/Holmes
FO: Stanley/Ceglar, Guthrie, Danger
HF: Duncan/Simpson, J. Cameron/Sav, Parfitt/Willis
F: Stengle/Miers, Hawk/Neale, Close