Preview Changes vs Richmond

[Candiru]

Where on earth do you get the impression that I reckon his 30+ games have been meaningless?

I'm saying, if we were to disregard this pattern, who would we even bring in?

You guys seem to think Hutchings is a week by week proposition. You say things like "if he doesn't tag, he doesn't play". But the reality is that it's been 30+ weeks of picking him. And it's not clear that there are any better options waiting in the wings.

 

[Gugs9]

Ok serious hat on now...

The Eagles rule the air and the Tigers rule the ground, so obviously the weather will impact how this match gets setup.

Unfortunately the forecast is looking increasingly grim:

View attachment 726623

At the very least conditions are going to be less than ideal for playing the possession football that is the West Coast trademark.

As a result this will end up being a game decided by clearances, territory and spread.

In order to sustain such a match over four quarters, the team in my opinion requires additional rotations to impact stoppages and provide attacking spread, particularly coming out of defence.

In defence, McGovern, Barrass, Hurn, Sheppard and Jetta pick themselves. The question is more how those five should be complimented.
In attack Richmond will play the two talls in Lynch and Reiwoldt with 7-8 smalls constantly rotating around them (likely D.Rioli, Castagna, Bolton, Graham, Baker, Caddy, Lambert and Martin). With the exception of D.Rioli, each of these smalls average over 15 disposals per game this season - they cover a lot of ground.
With this in mind, Nelson has to keep his place. He has been doing the job against opposition players in recent weeks, can run all day and is built for wet weather.

Schofield on the other hand, presents a problem. He is a lockdown defender that is comfortable hanging back and spoiling the overhead ball. If the ball goes to ground, or his opponent moves up the ground he can get exposed quite badly. Playing against the above-mentioned forward group of the Tigers with three stay-at-home defenders in McGovern, Barrass and Schofield in addition to Hurn's lack of pace is an open invitation to allow Richmond to gain ascendancy of the ground ball and post-clearance contests through loose players working up the ground. If that is allowed to happen and the Tigers dictate the terms of the territory battle, the situation can be expected to decay very rapidly and there would likely be no coming back.
With inclement weather in the forecast, this situation concerning immobility in defence is only compounded.

If Duggan is declared fit to play, he comes in for Schofield. If he is unable to make the trip, I'd still consider Cole or Watson ahead of Schofield as defence at ground level and breaking the Tiger press through offensive run from behind are going to be imperative to the team's chances in this match.

The midfield remains as it is. Hickey retains the ruck duties and Hutchings vs Masten would appear to be the only potential change. Hutchings however has a proven record of being able to effect a strong tag that can change a game in a way that Masten is unable to offer, so he keeps his place.

Up forward, Darling and Kennedy are automatic selections, as are Cripps, W.Rioli and Ryan. O.Allen gets a nod for being able to provide a secondary ruck option to Hickey and Waterman's return of 7 goals in his last 3 games are good enough to see him retain a place.

Petruccelle though, has to make way. He may be quick, but has laid just the one tackle over the past two weeks, missed several more that directly lead to opposition scores and his disposal on the run particularly, leaves a lot to be desired. In a pressured, tackling, contested battle he currently is a liability.

So who to replace him with then?
Cameron undoubtedly would provide superior tackling pressure and goal awareness, but would offer little further up the ground based on his past performances of averaging less than 8 disposals per game. Furthermore, I can't see him being able to get to enough contests to prevent the likes of Short and Houli from gaining easy possessions and rebounding at will.
Masten would be a left-field option to run with one of the Richmond rebounding defenders as his ability to cover ground is elite and could provide additional spread with ball, but he is completely deficient when it comes to tackling and ground ball gets for such a task.
Indeed the best option available for this position is Ah Chee. Big-bodied, tackles hard and has great hands - exactly the kind of player you want going into a wet weather slog. If his opponent pushes up to the stoppage as an extra, no worries - he just goes with them. If the opposition doesn't pay him any respect then he will present as a marking option due to his size and in turn alleviate Darling and Kennedy from many searching leads up the wing.


So changes can be summarised as follows:
In: Duggan, Ah Chee
Out: Schofield (omitted), Petruccelle (omitted)


Tactically I would place Yeo in a head-to-head with Martin, Shuey to Edwards and put a hard tag on Prestia through Hutchings.

I would be inclined to use the marking strength of Cripps, Ah Chee and Ryan to create mismatches in attack against Houli and Short and ultimately hold them accountable.

I would also deploy Nelson in a complete shut down role upon Lambert - wherever he goes, he gets followed. Lambert is the grease that keeps the Richmond machine from breaking down. It is him who finds spaces and opens things up through the link play generated (he is also the Tigers #1 player for score involvements per game this season).

As mentioned before, this will be territory game - win the clearance, get it forward quickly and get to work up forward.

Obviously, the key here is to win the clearance in the first place. Richmond's entire game plan is based around winning the centre bounce clearance and owning territory from there. Over 36% of their total number of clearances are centre clearances, which is the highest such proportion in the competition by a considerable margin. The first objective in this match should be to shut down the Tiger's set pieces at centre clearances and then proceed to attack the following stoppages with full force as this is where Richmond can be broken. Contrary to popular belief, Richmond are statistically the worst stoppage clearance team in the competition this season.

Kill the centre bounces. Dominate the stoppages. Win territory. Beat them at their own game.

This is how West Coast can win this match, regardless of the weather.

Great analysis, only thing I would add is since Jack Riewoldt has been back Tigers have actually been rolling with the 3 tall forwards (Riewoldt, Lynch and Chol Second Ruck).

If they continue with this structure this week I think there is a spot for Schoey, particularly as Gov could play his intercept role while rolling off the resting ruck.

 

[Gwaihir]

I felt it was more Redden inside and Dom outside? Seems so long ago now.

Agreed, Dom basically took over the Gaff role. Played it differently (doesn't rack the kms as much) but you know what happened next.

 

[Gwaihir]

They both shared the role. Playing parts inside and outside.

Yeah, there were plenty of switcheroos going on. That explains the numbers.

 

[Avalor]

Ok serious hat on now...

The Eagles rule the air and the Tigers rule the ground, so obviously the weather will impact how this match gets setup.

Unfortunately the forecast is looking increasingly grim:

View attachment 726623

At the very least conditions are going to be less than ideal for playing the possession football that is the West Coast trademark.

As a result this will end up being a game decided by clearances, territory and spread.

In order to sustain such a match over four quarters, the team in my opinion requires additional rotations to impact stoppages and provide attacking spread, particularly coming out of defence.

In defence, McGovern, Barrass, Hurn, Sheppard and Jetta pick themselves. The question is more how those five should be complimented.
In attack Richmond will play the two talls in Lynch and Reiwoldt with 7-8 smalls constantly rotating around them (likely D.Rioli, Castagna, Bolton, Graham, Baker, Caddy, Lambert and Martin). With the exception of D.Rioli, each of these smalls average over 15 disposals per game this season - they cover a lot of ground.
With this in mind, Nelson has to keep his place. He has been doing the job against opposition players in recent weeks, can run all day and is built for wet weather.

Schofield on the other hand, presents a problem. He is a lockdown defender that is comfortable hanging back and spoiling the overhead ball. If the ball goes to ground, or his opponent moves up the ground he can get exposed quite badly. Playing against the above-mentioned forward group of the Tigers with three stay-at-home defenders in McGovern, Barrass and Schofield in addition to Hurn's lack of pace is an open invitation to allow Richmond to gain ascendancy of the ground ball and post-clearance contests through loose players working up the ground. If that is allowed to happen and the Tigers dictate the terms of the territory battle, the situation can be expected to decay very rapidly and there would likely be no coming back.
With inclement weather in the forecast, this situation concerning immobility in defence is only compounded.

If Duggan is declared fit to play, he comes in for Schofield. If he is unable to make the trip, I'd still consider Cole or Watson ahead of Schofield as defence at ground level and breaking the Tiger press through offensive run from behind are going to be imperative to the team's chances in this match.

The midfield remains as it is. Hickey retains the ruck duties and Hutchings vs Masten would appear to be the only potential change. Hutchings however has a proven record of being able to effect a strong tag that can change a game in a way that Masten is unable to offer, so he keeps his place.

Up forward, Darling and Kennedy are automatic selections, as are Cripps, W.Rioli and Ryan. O.Allen gets a nod for being able to provide a secondary ruck option to Hickey and Waterman's return of 7 goals in his last 3 games are good enough to see him retain a place.

Petruccelle though, has to make way. He may be quick, but has laid just the one tackle over the past two weeks, missed several more that directly lead to opposition scores and his disposal on the run particularly, leaves a lot to be desired. In a pressured, tackling, contested battle he currently is a liability.

So who to replace him with then?
Cameron undoubtedly would provide superior tackling pressure and goal awareness, but would offer little further up the ground based on his past performances of averaging less than 8 disposals per game. Furthermore, I can't see him being able to get to enough contests to prevent the likes of Short and Houli from gaining easy possessions and rebounding at will.
Masten would be a left-field option to run with one of the Richmond rebounding defenders as his ability to cover ground is elite and could provide additional spread with ball, but he is completely deficient when it comes to tackling and ground ball gets for such a task.
Indeed the best option available for this position is Ah Chee. Big-bodied, tackles hard and has great hands - exactly the kind of player you want going into a wet weather slog. If his opponent pushes up to the stoppage as an extra, no worries - he just goes with them. If the opposition doesn't pay him any respect then he will present as a marking option due to his size and in turn alleviate Darling and Kennedy from many searching leads up the wing.


So changes can be summarised as follows:
In: Duggan, Ah Chee
Out: Schofield (omitted), Petruccelle (omitted)


Tactically I would place Yeo in a head-to-head with Martin, Shuey to Edwards and put a hard tag on Prestia through Hutchings.

I would be inclined to use the marking strength of Cripps, Ah Chee and Ryan to create mismatches in attack against Houli and Short and ultimately hold them accountable.

I would also deploy Nelson in a complete shut down role upon Lambert - wherever he goes, he gets followed. Lambert is the grease that keeps the Richmond machine from breaking down. It is him who finds spaces and opens things up through the link play generated (he is also the Tigers #1 player for score involvements per game this season).

As mentioned before, this will be territory game - win the clearance, get it forward quickly and get to work up forward.

Obviously, the key here is to win the clearance in the first place. Richmond's entire game plan is based around winning the centre bounce clearance and owning territory from there. Over 36% of their total number of clearances are centre clearances, which is the highest such proportion in the competition by a considerable margin. The first objective in this match should be to shut down the Tiger's set pieces at centre clearances and then proceed to attack the following stoppages with full force as this is where Richmond can be broken. Contrary to popular belief, Richmond are statistically the worst stoppage clearance team in the competition this season.

Kill the centre bounces. Dominate the stoppages. Win territory. Beat them at their own game.

This is how West Coast can win this match, regardless of the weather.

Very good summation of what's required. Duggan won't be in, I wouldn't think, not this week, so changed to Tom Cole, and I think you have hit the nail on the head. Cole for Schofield and Ahchee for Petrucelle. Better match ups for the conditions.

 

[RookiePick]

Pottering v Gunnar.

Clash of the Titans.

 

[HoneyBadger35]

I'm saying, if we were to disregard this pattern, who would we even bring in?

You guys seem to think Hutchings is a week by week proposition. You say things like "if he doesn't tag, he doesn't play". But the reality is that it's been 30+ weeks of picking him. And it's not clear that there are any better options waiting in the wings.

If the person had written “If he doesn’t tag it is my preference that he doesn’t play” instead of “he doesn’t play”, would that have avoided the typical semantics driven derailing?

 

[Candiru]

If the person had written “If he doesn’t tag it is my preference that he doesn’t play” instead of “he doesn’t play”, would that have avoided the typical semantics driven derailing?

It's got nothing to do with semantics. And a discussion of a player's place in the team is hardly "derailing a thread" devoted to who's in the team.

My point is merely that Hutchings appears to be considered best 22, judging by his 30+ games in a row. Nor are there obviously better candidates waiting in the wings. So I'm not sure this idea that he's a purely "horses for courses" selection really stacks up. He's been picked whenever he's available for quite a while.

None of that has anything to do with semantics.

 

[HoneyBadger35]

It's got nothing to do with semantics. And a discussion of a player's place in the team is hardly "derailing a thread' devoted to who's in the team.

My point is merely that Hutchings appears to be considered best 22, judging by his 30+ games in a row. Nor are there obviously better candidates waiting in the wings. So I'm not sure this idea that he's a purely "horses for courses" selection really stacks up. He's been picked whenever he's available for quite a while.

****, I’ve got nothing on for a few hours, I’ll get into the ring.

I’m a big Hutchings fan. I like him as a tagger. I dislike him as a winger. He has been picked a lot, rightfully so, because he is close to the best tagger in football. The games where he is picked but doesn’t tag are less beneficial to the games where he is picked and does tag.

Therefore, when discussing the changes that we personally would like to see in the internet changes thread, the statement “if he isn’t going to be tagging I would prefer we play someone else” isn’t inflammatory or ridiculous.

It was, as usual, a wording and semantics issue with you. “If he doesn’t tag, he doesn’t play” is technically incorrect, but the meaning behind it is clear. What they meant was if he doesn’t tag, I don’t think he should play.

That’s clearly not the opinion of the match committee but this Internet forum for every day fans are not often frequented by actual members of the match committee so we make do.

 

[kaiserchief13]

Can't catch a break with conditions this year

 

[Candiru]

I’ve got nothing on for a few hours

Did you crash pornhub again?

I've made my point quite clearly. The consistency with which Hutchings has been picked suggests he's deemed best 22 by those picking the team. Or close enough that he's been picked 30+ games in a row. It suggests he's not merely a "horses for courses" selection.

It's not a "wording or semantics" issue. That's a silly thing to say.

Which part of that do you actually disagree with?

 

[HoneyBadger35]

It's not a "wording or semantics" issue. That's an intensely silly thing to say.

I've made my point quite clearly. The consistency with which Hutchings has been picked suggests he's deemed best 22 by those picking the team. Or close enough that he's been picked 30+ games in a row. It suggests he's not merely a "horses for courses" selection.

Which part of that do you actually disagree with?

Absolutely none of it. He very near always gets, picked regardless of role.

And yet because someone phrased their opinion a certain way you took them to task, as always.

A lot of people on here agree that if Hutchings isn’t tagging they’d rather someone else play the wing. The intent was to discuss it, in the correct place to discuss such things amongst footy fans, without being taken to task over the phrase “doesn’t” when they should have used “shouldn’t”.

 

[Candiru]

Absolutely none of it. He very near always gets, picked regardless of role.

And yet because someone phrased their opinion a certain way you took them to task, as always.

A lot of people on here agree that if Hutchings isn’t tagging they’d rather someone else play the wing. The intent was to discuss it, in the correct place to discuss such things amongst footy fans, without being taken to task over the phrase “doesn’t” when they should have used “shouldn’t”.

So you don't disagree with me, but here you are pretending to disagree. Let's just be clear about that.

The phrasing isn't the issue. I'm disagreeing with the idea that Hutchings is a "horses for courses" selection. The fact he's been picked so consistently suggests otherwise.

And you don't disagree so I'm not sure what you're on about. Just getting involved so you can later make a big song and dance about being exasperated for the sake of it?

 

[HoneyBadger35]

So you don't disagree with me, but here you are pretending to disagree. Let's just be clear about that.

The phrasing isn't the issue. I'm disagreeing with the idea that Hutchings is a "horses for courses" selection. The fact he's been picked so consistently suggests otherwise.

I don’t disagree with the observable fact that he has been picked a lot regardless of role. I’m not denying that has happened, because it has happened and nobody could dispute that.

I’m saying it shouldn’t happen. That’s what the original poster was saying too. They weren’t saying he doesn’t play when he doesn’t tag, they were saying it’s their opinion that he shouldn’t play when he doesn’t tag. That’s my opinion too. That’s the discussion to be had in a changes thread, not how many games has he played on the last two years.

 

[Candiru]

I don’t disagree with the observable fact that he has been picked a lot regardless of role. I’m not denying that has happened, because it has happened and nobody could dispute that.

I’m saying it shouldn’t happen. That’s what the original poster was saying too. They weren’t saying he doesn’t play when he doesn’t tag, they were saying it’s their opinion that he shouldn’t play when he doesn’t tag. That’s my opinion too.

Your opinion doesn't chime with the reality of what's actually happened.

 

[daddy_4_eyes]

I'm disagreeing with the idea that Hutchings is a "horses for courses" selection.

I hope I phrase this question to you correctly so as to avoid a multi-quote lesson on how wrong I am about something or another.

Outside of his tagging ability, what in your opinion does Hutchings bring to the team that makes him anything other than a "horses for courses" selection?

 

[Candiru]

I hope I phrase this question to you correctly so as to avoid a multi-quote lesson on how wrong I am about something or another.

This is ridiculous.

If you want a considered, good faith response, don't start with such nonsense.

 

[HoneyBadger35]

Your opinion doesn't chime with the reality of what's actually happened.

Yeah, which is why we’re talking about about what we want to happen in the future in a “which changes would you like to see in the future” thread.

Did you get so annoyed at the people who posted Masten out every week knowing full well he was never getting dropped on his way to 200+ selections?

 

[Brave Sir Robin]

Welcome to Bigfooty, where you are free to express your opinion of what should happen, as long as it is consistent with what has happened in the past.

 

[Candiru]

Welcome to Bigfooty, where you are free to express your opinion of what should happen, as long as it is consistent with what has happened in the past.

No you're right. We should ignore entirely the reality of what has happened previously.

 

[daddy_4_eyes]

This is ridiculous.

Please answer the question.
I firmly agree that he should be a horses for courses selection, but am eager to be swayed by a considered argument. Or is your argument based on just disagreeing for the sake of it?

 

[Biggie]

 

[HoneyBadger35]

“We’ve been doing this badly, and I’d like if we changed it.”
“Lol but it’s what we’ve done before you idiot.”

Elite analysis.

 

[Wedgetailed Westerner]

Ok serious hat on now...

The Eagles rule the air and the Tigers rule the ground, so obviously the weather will impact how this match gets setup.

Unfortunately the forecast is looking increasingly grim:

View attachment 726623

At the very least conditions are going to be less than ideal for playing the possession football that is the West Coast trademark.

As a result this will end up being a game decided by clearances, territory and spread.

In order to sustain such a match over four quarters, the team in my opinion requires additional rotations to impact stoppages and provide attacking spread, particularly coming out of defence.

In defence, McGovern, Barrass, Hurn, Sheppard and Jetta pick themselves. The question is more how those five should be complimented.
In attack Richmond will play the two talls in Lynch and Reiwoldt with 7-8 smalls constantly rotating around them (likely D.Rioli, Castagna, Bolton, Graham, Baker, Caddy, Lambert and Martin). With the exception of D.Rioli, each of these smalls average over 15 disposals per game this season - they cover a lot of ground.
With this in mind, Nelson has to keep his place. He has been doing the job against opposition players in recent weeks, can run all day and is built for wet weather.

Schofield on the other hand, presents a problem. He is a lockdown defender that is comfortable hanging back and spoiling the overhead ball. If the ball goes to ground, or his opponent moves up the ground he can get exposed quite badly. Playing against the above-mentioned forward group of the Tigers with three stay-at-home defenders in McGovern, Barrass and Schofield in addition to Hurn's lack of pace is an open invitation to allow Richmond to gain ascendancy of the ground ball and post-clearance contests through loose players working up the ground. If that is allowed to happen and the Tigers dictate the terms of the territory battle, the situation can be expected to decay very rapidly and there would likely be no coming back.
With inclement weather in the forecast, this situation concerning immobility in defence is only compounded.

If Duggan is declared fit to play, he comes in for Schofield. If he is unable to make the trip, I'd still consider Cole or Watson ahead of Schofield as defence at ground level and breaking the Tiger press through offensive run from behind are going to be imperative to the team's chances in this match.

The midfield remains as it is. Hickey retains the ruck duties and Hutchings vs Masten would appear to be the only potential change. Hutchings however has a proven record of being able to effect a strong tag that can change a game in a way that Masten is unable to offer, so he keeps his place.

Up forward, Darling and Kennedy are automatic selections, as are Cripps, W.Rioli and Ryan. O.Allen gets a nod for being able to provide a secondary ruck option to Hickey and Waterman's return of 7 goals in his last 3 games are good enough to see him retain a place.

Petruccelle though, has to make way. He may be quick, but has laid just the one tackle over the past two weeks, missed several more that directly lead to opposition scores and his disposal on the run particularly, leaves a lot to be desired. In a pressured, tackling, contested battle he currently is a liability.

So who to replace him with then?
Cameron undoubtedly would provide superior tackling pressure and goal awareness, but would offer little further up the ground based on his past performances of averaging less than 8 disposals per game. Furthermore, I can't see him being able to get to enough contests to prevent the likes of Short and Houli from gaining easy possessions and rebounding at will.
Masten would be a left-field option to run with one of the Richmond rebounding defenders as his ability to cover ground is elite and could provide additional spread with ball, but he is completely deficient when it comes to tackling and ground ball gets for such a task.
Indeed the best option available for this position is Ah Chee. Big-bodied, tackles hard and has great hands - exactly the kind of player you want going into a wet weather slog. If his opponent pushes up to the stoppage as an extra, no worries - he just goes with them. If the opposition doesn't pay him any respect then he will present as a marking option due to his size and in turn alleviate Darling and Kennedy from many searching leads up the wing.


So changes can be summarised as follows:
In: Duggan, Ah Chee
Out: Schofield (omitted), Petruccelle (omitted)


Tactically I would place Yeo in a head-to-head with Martin, Shuey to Edwards and put a hard tag on Prestia through Hutchings.

I would be inclined to use the marking strength of Cripps, Ah Chee and Ryan to create mismatches in attack against Houli and Short and ultimately hold them accountable.

I would also deploy Nelson in a complete shut down role upon Lambert - wherever he goes, he gets followed. Lambert is the grease that keeps the Richmond machine from breaking down. It is him who finds spaces and opens things up through the link play generated (he is also the Tigers #1 player for score involvements per game this season).

As mentioned before, this will be territory game - win the clearance, get it forward quickly and get to work up forward.

Obviously, the key here is to win the clearance in the first place. Richmond's entire game plan is based around winning the centre bounce clearance and owning territory from there. Over 36% of their total number of clearances are centre clearances, which is the highest such proportion in the competition by a considerable margin. The first objective in this match should be to shut down the Tiger's set pieces at centre clearances and then proceed to attack the following stoppages with full force as this is where Richmond can be broken. Contrary to popular belief, Richmond are statistically the worst stoppage clearance team in the competition this season.

Kill the centre bounces. Dominate the stoppages. Win territory. Beat them at their own game.

This is how West Coast can win this match, regardless of the weather.

Dylan82 is Simmo Confirmed!!!!

 

[Candiru]

Please answer the question.

Your question is "what does Hutchings bring to the table if he is not doing a straight-up tagging job?"

In my view, he still justifies his spot as a defensively minded midfielder who we know brings defensive workate, repeat effort, pressure and accountability round the contest.

For example, if it's a choice between Hutchings and Masten, I prefer Hutchings.

And I can't think of too many teams who don't have at least one player worth negating or curtailing, even if it's not a dedicated "tag".

Who else would you even consider bringing in?