Strategy Changes Round 2 Fremantle vs. Sydney

[s_wd6]

Last year wasn't this board calling the selectors stupid for not playing him.

If option A is Taberner and option B is an un trialled ruck who’s done alright in the WAFL then option B is the correct option yes

Were we supposed to know Reidy was worse than Taberner when he’d never played a game?

 

[Taylor]

If option A is Taberner and option B is an un trialled ruck who’s done alright in the WAFL then option B is the correct option yes

Were we supposed to know Reidy was worse than Taberner when he’d never played a game?

We did have the experience of him playing Port (I think it was) in preseason where he was completely destroyed.

 

[s_wd6]

We did have the experience of him playing Port (I think it was) in preseason where he was completely destroyed.

You’d think someone would improve over a whole season playing every week in the WAFL

 

[Dirty_banchez]

Jackson needed help at the end of last year as he was struggling with carrying the ruck. Reidy did play okay against GWS, so it wasn't a bad call.

Jackson looks ultra dangerous in the ruck this year, so now the correct call is to play him as the main ruck against Grundy.

 

[Taylor]

You’d think someone would improve over a whole season playing every week in the WAFL

Maybe, but I wouldn't expect it from a 23/24 year old who hadn't shown it before.

Reidy's draft profile had him as a forward who could ruck, even though his game was basically hitout and maybe half a goal a game. I think he kicked 9 goals in that 22 year for the Dolphins.

We did get to see him at the end of the year against Port too, similarly destroyed in hitouts, when the ball hit the ground and then around the ground.

If he came back to the club after break to break into the top five in time trials, really working on his mobility even if it's just to get around the ground and offer a mark, different story.

But we knew what he was and what he is. We need him to either get so much stronger that he can win the tap all the time and put it exactly where he wants to put it - or have him tag his opponent around the ground. Vulnerable to run there though.

 

[freo_leo29]

Jackson ruck and Treacy second ruck this week


Treacy is brilliant when asked to second ruck, it really gets him involved in the game


Don't think he's ever been injured in the ruck either

 

[Mags98]

Jackson ruck and Treacy second ruck this week


Treacy is brilliant when asked to second ruck, it really gets him involved in the game


Don't think he's ever been injured in the ruck either

yeah seems a strange aversion on this board to treacy in the ruck. we could have definitely done with getting him more involved against the cats and hes liable to get injured at any point

 

[s_wd6]

yeah seems a strange aversion on this board to treacy in the ruck. we could have definitely done with getting him more involved against the cats and hes liable to get injured at any point

I thought it was more so the fact that we become quite vulnerable up forward with him in the ruck.

 

[cardamon]

Being at the ground reidy did seem to be rucking a lot in the first half (though jackson took a lot of the centre bounces which is the right call for his type of player) but he (reidy) was just no good, average in the hit outs, lack of second efforts

Jackson turned the game our way rucking and following up with the clearance in the third quarter

I think playing Reidy was probably an okay call but once the game started it became clear that he was not our best option in the ruck and we had no idea what to do with him.

Voss in for reidy,
Erasmus for Warner
Bolton for switta
Chappy in from the start
Maybe cooper sub for banfield out

Weirdly i felt our most successful attacking play at the ground was the 45 degree kick to JOM standing in the centre square or thereabouts, who would take the mark contested and then turn and go. Other mids in that position didnt fare so well

Our tall forwards seemed to not want to leave the 50m arc, at least of them should be pushing up to take the relieving mark in the centre since they were doing much up forward

 

[freo_leo29]

I thought it was more so the fact that we become quite vulnerable up forward with him in the ruck.

Jackson, amiss and Voss is fine

If Jackson is benched then amiss and Voss, gives amiss some time to be the #1 which he will relish too

 

[s_wd6]

Jackson, amiss and Voss is fine

If Jackson is benched then amiss and Voss, gives amiss some time to be the #1 which he will relish too

Problem is it isn’t fine. They struggled with no Treacy

 

[King Huskii]

It is because we are grasping at straws to try and prove that the selection committee went out and fundamentally picked the "wrong" team for the game and that they have been picking the "wrong" team for some time and that there is some magic answer in the cupboard that we have not been selecting; there is a lot of trying to work back from that idea and then come up with examples of why we picked the wrong team going on.

In reality, the only player that we picked that probably didn't have good form going into the game was Reidy; but then half of us also pegged ourselves to the idea that we needed to pick him to allow Jackson to play elsewhere, which is probably also where the selection committee arrived at as well. The other half of this board think that Voss can magically play backup ruck but I have seen nothing to suggest that he can. I think the truth is that had Voss played over Reidy then Treacy (or maybe Cox) would have had to have been the one to do the backup rucking. Again, I think most people (including the selection committee) are very against that on the basis that it exposes Treacy (or Cox) to getting injured again.

People will point to Worner, Banfield and Walker (they will always have their detractors, including myself for the first two), but honestly, they had good form in the pre-season games to justify going with them first, and a lot of the first cut flankers were already out with injury - they also look a lot fitter than many of the options that could be brought in. The flankers weren't the main reason we got smashed; we got smashed in the middle.

Of those midfielders that played in the centre (outside of the Top Tier of Serong and Brayshaw) O'Driscoll, O'Meara and Johnson all had good to reasonable pre-season form and where all orders of magnitude better than Brodie. We clearly went at it with an offensive mindset from the centre bounces, which aligns with what everyone wants to see from the coaching team, but at the end of the day we couldn't pull it off with the personnel that we had out there, and we could neither defend well or attack with precision.

The fundamentals of the selection table are that we need Darcy and Young to be available to play in the middle more often than not; and it's not like we aren't trying to make that happen as soon as possible and with the consistency needed to get to the final eight. I am not saying that Longmuir has got everything right, but I am honestly not sure what other things they could have pulled at the selection table, especially if we are focused on getting players up to that consistent level of availability.

I agree with much of what you said regarding player selection bar Banfield. Yes, we have injuries which has helped him to get selected but his pre season form was ordinary. Every training session i watch his kicking skills were probably the worst out of the entire squad. He gives great effort but is woeful with ball in hand if he even manages a possession.

Chapman was sub. That's gotta be a joke. He was the one who blanketed Cameron last time at Skilked. Plus he has the potential to be an A grader yet we allow some context grade players to start.

It's not just selection, JLO had his hands tied a little due to best 22 injuries, it's game plan. We chip the ball around and Geelong wait for a poor kick, intercept it and from turn over kick goals at will. Our kicking inside 50 is horrendous. Some of sharps bombs didn't help and the opposition blocked some so Tracey and Amiss couldn't get a clean lead.

 

[freo_leo29]

Problem is it isn’t fine. They struggled with no Treacy

I reckon Treacy averages more goals playing as the ruck tbh (3 against Brissy, 4 against Richmond, both spring to mind)

This isn't without Treacy, this is with Treacy rucking for part of the game

 

[DocT]

If option A is Taberner and option B is an un trialled ruck who’s done alright in the WAFL then option B is the correct option yes

Were we supposed to know Reidy was worse than Taberner when he’d never played a game?

Sorry if your post is ironic and I have missed the point...
But many people on BF rant and rave like they do know everything better than the selection committee and JLo. People go way OTT with their negativity toward the off-field staff. Hind-sight heroes, armchair critics etc etc. Thank God they have no real responsibility at the club, we'd be absolutely f****d.

 

[s_wd6]

Sorry if your post is ironic and I have missed the point...
But many people on BF rant and rave like they do know everything better than the selection committee and JLo. People go way OTT with their negativity toward the off-field staff. Hind-sight heroes, armchair critics etc etc. Thank God they have no real responsibility at the club, we'd be absolutely f****d.

Yeah but like we all knew playing Taberner wasn’t gonna work

 

[ignoramus]

Were we supposed to know Reidy was worse than Taberner when he’d never played a game?

Were we supposed to know...? No, but the selection committee should know.

And what do you know? They did know. They were right and "we" were wrong.

 

[s_wd6]

Were we supposed to know...? No, but the selection committee should know.

And what do you know? They did know. They were right and "we" were wrong.

Were they right though? Playing Taberner still lost us that game and ended up costing us finals

 

[ignoramus]

I would say rather that playing Taberner didn't help us win the game. I doubt that playing Reidy would've done any more to help us win.

 

[Quazar2]

Dockers are a Sunday fixture, so extended bench business it is. Surely Voss, Erasmus, Simpson (if passed fit) feature in it. Might be too early to bring in Fyfe who I think played only a half (?).

Might be something like:

IN: Voss, Bolton, Erasmus, Simpson

OUT: Reidy, Worner, Switkowski (INJ) Banfield

Bolton and Simpson need to pass their 'tests'. Move Ras to sub. Chapman comes into the starting 22. Jackson to #1 ruck role, with Voss as back up. I mean, Geelong used Dangerfield in theirs!

Doubtful though; I'd imagine Banners stays in, because he kicked his obligatory goal. Not sure Simpson is in the frame to feature this early so may be removed from the extended 8-man bench. It's a shame he just can't do enough to quite crack the team, we really need some more skillful individuals out there.

Of course there's the mystery Monopoly injury card to feature yet, someone who's "pulled up a bit sore" and can't make it, but for some reason was left off the Tues injury report.

 

[Lach72]

Jackson ruck and Treacy second ruck this week


Treacy is brilliant when asked to second ruck, it really gets him involved in the game


Don't think he's ever been injured in the ruck either

Would you stick Pav in the ruck Robert Walls?

 

[s_wd6]

There’s talk Narkle is likely

 

[anchor man]

Even if Brodie still has something to offer, if what the Peel watchers say is true about his lack of effort, you simply can't reward that with AFL games unless you have no other choice.

I have said it all along, he does not get to enough contests around the ground. He goes walk about when it comes to help make plays.
He is pretty good at ruck contests, but........

 

[King Huskii]

Freo to beat Sydney this week

Out Switta in Bolton
Chapman to start

 

[freo_leo29]

Would you stick Pav in the ruck Robert Walls?

Pav went into the midfield, same same


Treacy has performed better as a ruck/fwd than he has as a fwd, we should be wanting the ball in his hands as much as possible

I don't buy into him getting injured in the ruck, the times he has got injured he was playing forward

 

[freo_leo29]

There’s talk Narkle is likely

Jeez we are desperate then, he barely trained all summer

All our forwards getting injured at once seems to have opened the door, I guess this is the depth he was brought in for