Changes for Hawthorn

[Bay Pie]

I've been supporters of these guys after decent performances and have been loathe to bag them after a poor performance on the basis of what their role is and what they bring to the team. Leroy & Toovey should be dropped. Both lack skill but have a crack. Leroy brings a presence but little else. Toovey is a lock down player who hasn't been really locking down anyone nor providing that drive we saw last year. Then there is O'Bree. Now he had supposedly a virus last week and it may have effceted his game this week, but he is pushing Pendles to an unfamiliar role on the HFF when he is a gun in traffic and muts be played in the guts. Really tough becuase they all appear to be MM favourites. While J-Mac wasn't good, if we continue to play him, I'm very confident he'll be firing in no time. Same goes for Caff but he was OK on Friday. Fraser must stay in. We blew up when only playing 1 ruckman last year, now people want to go back to one ruckman.

IN: Shaw, N.Brown/Reid, Anthony/Dawes
OUT: L.Brown, Toovey, O'Bree

I didn't see the VFL game, but based on form from reports Reid & Dawes. JA does have a record on Gibson though.

Predominately midfield (inside) play: Beams, Wellingham, Pendles, Ball & Swan

 

[Frankie23]

Calls to drop O'Bree are stupid, we got done in the clearances against Melbourne, yet when O'Bree came back into the team we beat St.Kilda in the clearances?

Give him a few games to get into peak form/fitness after that virus, but he is a vital clog in our middle.

My initial thoughts on this weeks changes

In: Reid, Dawes, Shaw, Anthony
Out: L.Brown, Toovey, McCarthy, Fraser

I know Fraser won't be dropped, but I can't see the 2 rucks working...

 

[Bay Pie]

Calls to drop O'Bree are stupid, we got done in the clearances against Melbourne, yet when O'Bree came back into the team we beat St.Kilda in the clearances?

Give him a few games to get into peak form/fitness after that virus, but he is a vital clog in our middle.

O'Bree had 4 clearances, 1 tackle, 13 possies (8 contested). I have always agreed he has been a vital cog but I've got no doubt Pendles and Beams would have gotten more time in the middle if O'Bree was not playing and they would have been able to achieve these numbers easily, with a similar game/position time. Maybe the virus still effected him. I don't know.

After several years of thinking he was the best person for that role, I now think we have the players to step into Cheesys' role and do that role better.

 

[Swan4Brownlow]

I don't think that Reid has an "ideal" match-up this week. Looking at Franklin and Roughead, they are both seriously big units who are equally adept at getting the ball on the lead and staying back and beating their man 1 on 1 in a wrestle. Presti takes Roughead so that leaves the question of who goes to Buddy? This is a question that I don't know the answer to, because I think Reid would be undersized in the strength department, while someone stronger like Nathan or Leroy Brown would be too slow to stick with him on the lead. Remember, Buddy and Roughy ALWAYS tear us a new one so these are two critical match-ups.

Moving to our forward line and it is bleedingly obvious that we need at least one and if not two more tall forwards. I think the reason Malthouse isn't keen on playing 3 tall forwards is because our strength is in our small forwards (Didak, Davis, Medhurst, Thomas if he goes down there). Unfortunately however, small forwards will never win us tight, contested games of footy like we saw the other night. When both teams are flooding back, you need players who can take a pack grab. For this reason I think we MUST start trying to play with 3 taller forwards. Dawes out of the goalsquare, Anthony in a pocket and Cloke at CHF. Cloke was great against the Saints until he hurt his ankle and anyone that doesn't agree really has NFI. He took some really strong contested grabs, and bar the shot he kicked on the full, all of his set shots were at least given a chance to go through the big sticks.

The problem is, who do we drop to bring in these two big men? If Leroy isn't going to take Roughead or Franklin, then he needs to make way. If he plays forward then he needs to have an impact and he hasn't the last few weeks. The next question is who do we drop for the second tall?. Really, for team balance, it should be Fraser, but I strongly doubt that he will be dropped as this would leave us with only one ruckman and without Brown to pinch hit as well. Unfortunately, I really doubt that we will bring in both of Dawes and Anthony because we seem locked into playing a resting ruckman as an extra forward. At the moment thought we are getting absolutely nothing out of this set-up because Jolly is struggling to get into any rhythm in the ruck and Fraser isn't taking any grabs up forward. Given the Hawks have a really poor ruck department at this stage, I'd love to see Malthouse grow some stones, drop Fraser and go in solely with one ruckman. Dawes can pinch hit when we need him, but remember Jolly played a staggering amount of time in the ruck at the Swans, it isn't beyond him to play the vast majority of the minutes while also towelling up Renouf, Hodge or whoever else goes up.

Shaw comes in for possum eyes Toovey. Make no mistake, he has had three shocking games. His disposal has been woeful, his opponents have been murdering us and he cannot pick the ball up cleanly off the deck with any sort of pressure on him.

My changes for this week would be:

OUT: L. Brown, A. Toovey, J. Fraser

IN: H. Shaw, C. Dawes, J. Anthony

With Buddy, either Maxwell or Harry O to be given the job.

 

[Pies_10]

After watching the VFL side yesterday id like, Anthony, Dawes and N Brown to be given a go next week.

 

[pieman123]

bring N.Brown in to play on Roughy and put Presti on Franklin and play him like we did Riewoldt

 

[Michael_knoth]

What like step on his feet untill he roles his ankle. And then just run his around a bit untill he does his hammy?

 

[The Magnificent Seven]

bring N.Brown in to play on Roughy and put Presti on Franklin and play him like we did Riewoldt

Unlikely he'll get off the rough conduct charge from the weekend - although it was clumsy, he'll probably get a week.

 

[drummoyne]

Josh Gibson has just gone off with what seems like a serious hamstring injury.

Could this affect our changes? Perhaps try to stretch their struggling KP stocks..

 

[daics_35]

Gibson has just doen his hammy so i think we should go with a tall forward line so dawes cloke and jack should all play.

 

[The Magnificent Seven]

Jordan Lewis absolutely flattened - lucky not to have worse damage when you watched the replays. One tough bugger but jeez he's going to have a headache all this week.

Doubts over Buddy after a reckless bump on Aker. I reckon he could go a week.

 

[Shellz]

Buddy may be out

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

In H Shaw Dawes Reid
Out O'Bree McCarthy L Brown

 

[Bay Pie]

Buddy may be out

Tribunal: So what do you have to say for yourself Franklin?

Franklin: My shoulder made contact with his head and I was suspended only recently for the same thing but we play Collingwood this week and the AFL loves me.

Tribunal: Given we only gave Osborne 1 week for decapitating Joel Selwood, you're free to play.

 

[gifted1]

in kid 'x' one week
out kid 'x' the next week
bloody hell
people saying out mccarthy and caff are crazy, both need consecutive games, both have ability.
how about we question the need for obree seeing how ball and sidey are in.
how about we question the need for toovey if we bring back shaw
you CANNOT bring a kid in and drop him the next week (although malty did inexplicbly do it to reid)
i'll use essendon for example, they rate gumby, he was terrible round 1 but they stuck with him and he is showing something, you cannot develop kids in a one week cut throat environment

 

[rose jam]

I just want Leigh Brown out, you can't trust him to not do some momentum changing stupid thing in a big game

 

[anshell]

Exactly^.I'm glad someone pointed that out.Some of stupid things he does must be demoralising to the team.

 

[Boris the Contradiction]

In H Shaw Dawes Reid
Out O'Bree McCarthy L Brown

Agree completely. Other changes

Ins: Pendlebury (centre), Lockyer (forward flank), Davis (wing/half forward)
Outs: Pendlebury (wing/half forward), Lockyer (back pocket), Davis (forward pocket)

 

[rose jam]

Agree completely. Other changes

Ins: Pendlebury (centre), Lockyer (forward flank), Davis (wing/half forward)
Outs: Pendlebury (wing/half forward), Lockyer (back pocket), Davis (forward pocket)

Haha funny stuff.
But I'd go further;

In: Players that hold their position and don't get sucked up the ground in a stupid 18 man zone that is ridiculous

Out: The 18 man zone on the kick-ins that always lead to a goddam turnover at half forward for a switch of play and run up the other side to a free man inside 50m

 

[KissStephanie]

J-Mac needs another run!
It's hurting our kids by putting them in and out of the team!
Look at how good Wellingham has become after getting more than 1 chance.

One big difference. Wellingham actually played well when given a chance in the seniors.

In: Dawes, Anthony, Shaw
Out: L.Brown, McCarthy, Macaffer

 

[jayceontaylor]

One big difference. Wellingham actually played well when given a chance in the seniors.

In: Dawes, Anthony, Shaw
Out: L.Brown, McCarthy, Macaffer

spot on

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

what like step on his feet untill he roles his ankle. And then just run his around a bit untill he does his hammy?

lol!

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

in kid 'x' one week
out kid 'x' the next week
bloody hell
people saying out mccarthy and caff are crazy, both need consecutive games, both have ability.
how about we question the need for obree seeing how ball and sidey are in.
how about we question the need for toovey if we bring back shaw
you CANNOT bring a kid in and drop him the next week (although malty did inexplicbly do it to reid)
i'll use essendon for example, they rate gumby, he was terrible round 1 but they stuck with him and he is showing something, you cannot develop kids in a one week cut throat environment

I agree. Toovey and O'Bree do not have current form. Macaffer was more a one week replacement for Heath Shaw. I saw him playing on Gwilt for a time who was one of St Kilda's best. If he lost that contest, then he should be omitted, and may be anyway if H Shaw comes in. Dawes, Anthony and Reid are the selection priorities, particularly Dawes.

I have had a road to Damascus experience over Fraser. Given the way that Hawthorn's rucks have been squashed by late in the game by opposing rucks, there is perhaps some merit in keeping an out of form Fraser in purely for ruck duties.

 

[Pies_10]

One big difference. Wellingham actually played well when given a chance in the seniors.

In: Dawes, Anthony, Shaw
Out: L.Brown, McCarthy, Macaffer

Coundn't agree more McCarthy and Macaffer were atrocious friday night.

 

[soreplums]

Out: O'bree, Toovey, Brown

In: Shaw, Dawes, Reid/Anthony?