Carlton's game plan for Etihad Stadium 2012

[Boltfromtheblue]

I love watching Carlton play, especially because of the style of footy they play. As a game it is meant to be enjoyable and I love the daring, aggressive, fast and free flowing footy that they play when the ground opens up and we see the excitement that Yaz, Garlett, Simpson, etc bring. (Conversely, the reason why I just want to slash my wrists when watching the Swans matches). This approach seems to be better implemented on the larger MCG.

We are yet to see how we will play our 9 matches on the confined spaces at Etihad. I think we have really struggled there over the past couple of seasons and these 9 matches will be critical for how we progress through the season. These matches include 2 against StK who can really shutdown a free flowing games. Also play the Swans, Geelong and Adelaide there. We have also struggled with North there over recent years. Am less worried about the games against GWS, Brisbane and Bulldogs.


Can I propose a few questions for discussion?

Why have we not preformed as well as we should have at this ground in the past?

How should we go about things differently this year (team structure or game plans)?

Do we actually need to approach these games differently from playing at the MCG or do we just approach it with the confidence that we can hold our own with tight congested footy and then wait for periods when the games breaks open?

Sorry I know a few of these issues have come up in past postings but wanted to bring it back with a 2012 context.

 

[thylacine60]

Is it that much smaller than the G? Surely there's something we can tweak in our GP to accommodate it if so.

 

[pepalenko]

I couldn't pin point what it is, maybe a little narrower than the G. Haven't done too badly there against the Saints in recent years and the two games last year against Liobs and Swans were excellent.

 

[thylacine60]

Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
City: Melbourne
Address: Yarra Park, Jolimont, Vic, 3002
Capacity: 100,021
Ground dimensions: 160 metres x 141 metres


Etihad Stadium ( Formerly Telstra Dome)
City: Melbourne
Address: 740 Bourke St, Docklands, Vic, 3008
Capacity: 53,355
Ground dimensions: 159.5 metres x 128.8 metres


Skilled Stadium
City: Geelong
Address: La Trobe Terrace, Geelong, Vic
Capacity: 28,300
Ground dimensions: 170 metres x 115 metres

Skinnier by a dozen metres? That's it?

 

[Just Kreuzing]

I love watching Carlton play, especially because of the style of footy they play. As a game it is meant to be enjoyable and I love the daring, aggressive, fast and free flowing footy that they play when the ground opens up and we see the excitement that Yaz, Garlett, Simpson, etc bring. (Conversely, the reason why I just want to slash my wrists when watching the Swans matches). This approach seems to be better implemented on the larger MCG.

We are yet to see how we will play our 9 matches on the confined spaces at Etihad. I think we have really struggled there over the past couple of seasons and these 9 matches will be critical for how we progress through the season. These matches include 2 against StK who can really shutdown a free flowing games. Also play the Swans, Geelong and Adelaide there. We have also struggled with North there over recent years. Am less worried about the games against GWS, Brisbane and Bulldogs.


Can I propose a few questions for discussion?

Why have we not preformed as well as we should have at this ground in the past?

How should we go about things differently this year (team structure or game plans)?

Do we actually need to approach these games differently from playing at the MCG or do we just approach it with the confidence that we can hold our own with tight congested footy and then wait for periods when the games breaks open?

Sorry I know a few of these issues have come up in past postings but wanted to bring it back with a 2012 context.

Nope, win the contested ball and use it efficiently and pressure/tackle the hell out of them when they have it and we will be fine

I think most confuse game plans and structures etc with actual work rate and intensity.

 

[Tanks_Alot]

We've done fine against the Saints up there the last 3 games even though we lost the last one it wasn't a blow out and to be honest I don't think the players were as fired up as usual for that one since there was nothing to gain.

As for the Swans, well we stitched them up last year, we also beat Adelaide and Brisbane, came within a couple of points against Geelong.

The Dogs game was our worst performance of the year and I don't expect that to happen again, GWS may as well be a bye we'll thump them and that leaves North who I think will be the biggest threat there.

Well let's say we lose one or two, that won't be such a big deal as long as we win all our MCG matches and we win 3/4 of our next road trips. Honestly I think we'll beat Freo at PS and we are a good chance against the Eagles but I'm not sure we'll win both PS games. The other road trips are GC which we'll win and Port which we should also win.

So, imo as long as our game is working well enough on the bigger grounds, then there's no reason to panic because it will still work at Etihad against most of the teams we have to play there. Finals will be at the MCG so if we're playing well there, then I'm happy.

 

[gbatman]

For some reason we couldn't kick straight there at night. We always play well but sometimes kick poorly there.

 

[Tony Lynn 15]

Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
City: Melbourne
Address: Yarra Park, Jolimont, Vic, 3002
Capacity: 100,021
Ground dimensions: 160 metres x 141 metres


Etihad Stadium ( Formerly Telstra Dome)
City: Melbourne
Address: 740 Bourke St, Docklands, Vic, 3008
Capacity: 53,355
Ground dimensions: 159.5 metres x 128.8 metres


Skilled Stadium
City: Geelong
Address: La Trobe Terrace, Geelong, Vic
Capacity: 28,300
Ground dimensions: 170 metres x 115 metres

Skinnier by a dozen metres? That's it?

It is not just that Thy, you are missing the key factor...it is half a metre shorter!

 

[parrot]

MCG's about 10% bigger i.e. surface area. Do the Math. That's significant. On the question... it's a real good one, and I'm sure we'll have to tweak things a little bit. We mostly play down the corridor or just outside, so it's not going to be a huge problem. Teams that aggressively flood (i.e. Weagleland) obviously like smaller grounds because there's less space for them to flood. But there's a little collection of anti-flooding strategies we can employ. If you want to see them in action, watch the last quarter V Pies, when Buckley loaded up his backline to prevent a 100+ point blowout. We know teams are going to do this against us. The issue when we played the Weagles there last time, was that we had a horrendous list of injuries before the game, and lost crucial players in the game. We had guys like Austin holding down KPD posts. Severely undermanned that day. Nothing went right

 

[PP34]

I hate when Carlton play at Etihad. That is all.

 

[Peacock]

Etihad has no pockets. Measuring length and width isn't a fair comparison.

Etihad is like an oval, and the MCG is like a circle.

 

[reg_lower91]

This is the key for me this year. People keep talking about our first 'real test'. I think our first real tests come in Rounds 7 & 8 against the Saints and Adelaide respectively at Etihad.

 

[Boltfromtheblue]

Different game plan required?

 

[Krooooze]

It doesn't make too much sense why are vastly superior at the G. Going by the measurements Etihad is slightly smaller but not by much. So we should be able to spread the way we do at the G. For some reason our accuracy was so poor at Etihad. Hopefully we rectify it this year. Etihad is more suitable for teams that press.

 

[Boltfromtheblue]

Interestingly we played the following games at either MCG or Etihad:
2011
-played MCG 10 times: won 6, lost 3, drew 1 (win 60%)
-played Etihad 9 times: won 5, lost, 4 (win 56%)

2010
-played MCG 8 times: won 5, lost 3 (win 63%)
-played Etihad 9 times: won 3, lost 6 (win 33%)

2009
-played MCG 8 times: won 4, lost 4 (win 50%)
-played Etihad 8 times: won 6, lost 2 (win 75%)

Think My perceptions may be stuck in those defeats of 2010. Two years behind isn't bad

Of course the results also reflect the teams that we play at each ground and playing Richmond and Melb at the MCG does boost the percentages a bit.

Nevertheless, it would be interesting to know if players themselves find it different playing on these grounds and how that influences team plans but also their decision making.

 

[Wickzki]

The West Coast and Western Bulldogs games there last year can almost be struck out from the record. The injuries sustained before and during both games derailed both games. IIRC we were relatively cruising against the Dogs before Jarrad Waite's injury and were unable to match it with them when we lost him. Remove that (the Bulldogs game) alone from the record and we won 62.5% of our games there last year which is better than our MCG win-loss record. I honestly believe that our Etihad record is a myth.

 

[koutamarto]

What flabagasts me is that the afl grounds are not standardized and consistent across the comp. To me half an hour to make an NRL fan believe me about this.

 

[Kramer1]

Etihad holds no fear for us.

The ground demands numbers around the ball, strong work at stoppages, quick spreads and two way running.

All things that could have been queried at one time or another in recent seasons, but think we overcame most of these issues last year, and look to have all but nailed them this year.

 

[thylacine60]

Etihad holds no fear for us.

The ground demands numbers around the ball, strong work at stoppages, quick spreads and two way running.

All things that could have been queried at one time or another in recent seasons, but think we overcame most of these issues last year, and look to have all but nailed them this year.

Just at Etihad?

 

[Snoozer]

Etihad is significantly smaller. 12m narrower, skinnier pockets... it makes a big difference. Our strength is run and spread. Much tougher in a more confined area. You would be very surprised at how much possession is gathered in that additional width.

Best way to counter an ultra-defensive tactics employed by Saints/Swans is to play ultra-defensive ourselves and try and burn them on the counter attack. Whenever they get the ball, let their defensive lines press up the ground, and when the ball is turned over in our defensive zone, burn them with run, carry and speed.

We have the speed to outrun them on a fast break. They don't.

The likes of Yarran, Touhy, , Garlett, Simpson and Murphy will be critical.

 

[Kramer1]

Just at Etihad?

Yes...no other football ground requires any of those things.