Centre Half Forward

[i_luv_westcoast]

We seem to have a few options for this position now. Do we go with Gaspar, Sierakowski or Gardiner?

Travis Gaspar is an up and coming player who I think will develop very nicely and play this position well in the future. Currently he seems to play a good quarter then goes missing.

Sierakowski is obviously coming back from his knee injury but really impressed me on the weekend. Perhaps he could play here for a couple of years as Gaspar continues to develop.

Gardiner in my opinion should play in the ruck. He is our best ruckman, and with Dean Cox would from a great rucking combination.

Thoughts?

 

[Thrawn666]

I agree re Gardiner, definitely wasted at CHF. He should only play there when taking short spells from rucking. Cox I dont think would be that great at CHF. If Sierakowski can keep up the kind of hustle he showed at CHF on the weekend he could prove to be another target for us, I feel he is harder at the ball than Gaspar, and a stronger mark, but I also feel that Gaspar is better at the ruck contests and is the way of the future. Hopefully the coaching staff can find a happy medium where both players get a chance to inflict some damage. Maybe its time to play Gaspar down back a little to prepare him for the CHB position that everyone seems to think he is being groomed for. This doesnt mean knock Jako out of CHB , but if there is a tall opposing ofrward line it couldnt hurt to throw him back.

 

[Visro]

I can see WC playing Gaspar more down back now, probably as the third tall defender or fourth (depending on whether Glass is playing).

We have enough options at CHF with Sierra in the short term and McDougall and Hansen in the future.

Talls in defence are a bit short at the moment though. Glass and Gaspar are the obvious choices but I still feel that whilst Gaspar will be good at CHB, Glass isn't really good enough for FB. He's more like Rawlings at Hawthorn, a really handy tall defender. Again Lynch from WP looks like he could develop into either a defender or forward but whilst he's tall in the WAFL, 191cm is only tallish for the AFL.

On Embley and Hunter, they're at that really awkward height (190cm) where they're too short to be a key position players but too big to be a running midfielder. I'd develop both players as talls that push up the ground and basically run from half back through to half forward. Both are quick and are a good mark so that is an option playing them in the middle half.

We have enough talls, its just a matter of finding out where to fit them in. The uncertainty on McIntosh and Jakovich doesn't help much either in not knowing how much longer they are going to play. At the end of the season we will know I guess...

 

[jod23]

Well if Cox continues to ruck like this....then not playing Cox in the ruck and letting him sit on the pine would be a waste. But then having Gardiner at CHF is also a waste. I dont think CHF though is really a problem anymore, the game has changed and having 3 Embley/Williams type players across HF is enough in todays game....the days of the big CHF are gone.

Seira though should play there at the moment and send Gaspar into defence as with Milli playing what looks like his last year and Jakovich getting on a bit then we will need replacements. Right now we have just Glass?? So throw Gaspar back.

 

[Mead]

I tend to agree that gaspar should be down back more.. Let him play his one good quarter at CHF, then bring Siera on, and shift Gaspar back
In the ruck, with so many options, my suggestion is instruct Gardie and Cox to run *hard*- i mean, really really hard for the first quarter.. As in, have Gardie exhaust the other team's ruckmen, and force them to bring on the replacements early.. I believe that Cox is significantly better than most team's second tier ruckmen- so Gardiner, buggered after running so hard, heads to the bench, which he can do, because we have the CHF position sewn up. Cox beats his replacement, and then Gardiner comes out and does it all over again..
With Cox, Gardiner, Siera, and Gaspar all as bona fide options in the ruck, (and incidentally, all very mobile players), we have the cattle to kill teams in the ruck simply by having our ruckmen sprint everywhere, and have as much rest as they want whilst the other team's guys die.

 

[Captain Random]

I'd like to think this isn't Milly's last year. Sure, he can be injury-prone, but when he's on the park he makes a hell of a difference. And I'm sure he'd be desperate to play on - this team is going places, and he may have a sniff at another medal before he goes.

Same goes for Roo, by the way.

Playing Gardiner at CHF was something that Judge got bagged for (didn't Bartlett say "who rests their ruckman at CHF?") but it certainly works. If we don't have to do it in the future (i.e. depending on how Siera progresses) definitely play Gardy and Cox in the ruck. Cox has been great - he has grasped the opportunity presented to him by Gardy's injury and run with it.

 

[Macca19]

I dunno if Gaspar would be the right man for CHF, and definatlty not as a defender. He seems to lack pace which would make him being a defender very frustrating. He isnt very mobile or agile, but he has a lotta height and a great kick. Maybe as a third ruck option used as a forward (similar to a Lade at Port). Considering Cox's form has been so good, maybe him and Gaspar should be the two rucks with Gardiner playing at CHF for a game or two...something different and it could well work as Gardiner is much more suitable than Gaspar to CHF (altho has a worse kick).

thats my 0.02

 

[TheRealBuzz]

Not sure about that. I mean Justin Leppitsch is no slouch in the speed department, and Gas made him look quite slow in that match a few weeks ago.

But he does take a while to get into a gallop, and I'm not sure if he could play on the last line of defence. He'd have to play around centre half back in a similar role as Jako.

Preferably I'd like him to stay up forward with the eventual goal of becoming the strong marking centre half forward that we've lacked for some time now.

 

[Frodo]

Originally posted by Macca19
thats my 0.02

Can't get done for that unless yer on P plates

 

[carlyp]

P plates.......ahhhhhhhhh a thing of the past for me.. Got off them today!!!!!!!!!!! YEEHAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! No more 2 and a half hour triips to Launceston Now..should beable to di it much quicker now!

 

[Methuselah]

what........down to 15 minutes????

 

[carlyp]

Originally posted by Methuselah
what........down to 15 minutes???? [/QUOT


HA HA Methuselah! Now that I can do 110 km on highway 1 I will make the 220 km distance much quicker! Up till now i have had to do 80ks and it is sooooooooooo slow!