Spagger83
Cancelled
- Banned
- #1
my say for what it's worth (it's just an opinion):
we have an abundance of forwards. for the coaching staff it's a good problem to have. for the players trying to get into the team it's frustrating as they have to wait for their go. for the players in the team it should focus them on performing week in week out or risk being dropped for the forwards that are dominating in the vfl while waiting for their chance.
A forward line can realistically only fit 5-6 players in it.
with 3 (max) being tall marking options in my opinion.
Our forwards over the 187cm (med to tall forward) mark: (in number order)
2- Rusling 190cm : pretty much a leading full forward from goalsquare type, in his 17 games we haven't seen anything else that would say otherwise. relies on his pace and one grab marking. needs to take his chance when he gets it and string some serious games together this year.
has to be make or break year and sorry to say if that shoulder goes again it could be curtains in a lee walker - knee style.
Best 22 prediction: won't get into the team until at least round 3 due to the fact he hasn't even played a pre-season game yet. will need some big numbers at vfl level and hope that the afl forwards are struggling so that he can get a go. he must take his chance.
9- Anthony 192cm : hasn't really put a foot wrong. kicking accuracy means that his selection is almost guarenteed (barring form), has an aggressive attack on the footy and the carrier and is also quite good at ground level. behind play i watch him and he does all the right things which is why he gets the rewards at the end. he creates space then uses that space very well to either lead into himself or let another forward take. very clever and knows how to attract the footy. after being drafted as a backman i doubt we will see him go back there as his forward play is too good. could he be the clubs leading goalkicker in 09??
best 22 prediction: keeps performing and he's done nothing wrong so until then yes, he's in.
15- L Brown 195cm : surely a backup forward option. at fremantle he was purely a defender, at north he was swung back and forward with a career best 7 goals in a match. but at the pies he will most likely be used back or not at all. has a good attack on the footy and the man but decision making is below average and general skills in play aren't the best.
best 22 prediction: no, and even if he plays it should be down back.
20- Reid 195cm : when i saw him live at the richmond nab cup game i was quite surprised on how big he has gotten. he looks to be filling out quite well. another good sign is that even after bulking up he has kept his pace. for a high draft pick i think all collingwood supporters will want to start to see a return in 2009. he has natural ability but needs to string some performances together. he has his admirers and his haters but all that matters to all supporters is his overall performance. he has the ability to play down back aswell which has been tried. but you would have to pick a nice matchup to throw him down there consistantly at this stage of his career. to this point in his 6 senior games he hasn't shown too much, but this is hopefully his breakout year. i have also been surprised with his attack on the footy, last year i thought he was a little tentative, but i see he has improved in that area. his leadup to the wings in a chris tarrant fashion could get his some gametime, he just has to take his chances.
best 22 prediction: possible, based on his versatility and speed.
23- Rocca 195cm : well we all know what Big Anth can do. but we don't know if he still can do it. that's what we will find out this year. i really don't know what to expect from Anthony this year. for someone that's played 238 games and kicked 411 goals he goes into this year virtually as an unknown quantity. can he still roost it, can he still move around?? we will find out. If the younger forwards go past him this year i doubt he will bounce back though. his leadership and team lifting abilities should see him in the side when fit. shouldn't be played unless 100% i think.
best 22 prediction: probable, his sheer size dictates the opposition put an equally sized defender, which should open the way for the 2nd and 3rd forward to do their thing on the lesser defenders. and IF rocca actually is still upto it at afl level then watchout!
30- Macaffer 187cm : i'll start by saying i haven't seen too much of him. but what i have seen he is a natural forward. the thing against him is that at 187cm he is too small for key position. and he has a teamate named paul medhurst that has the "small marking position" all to himself already. so i think medhurst not being able to play is the only way that macaffer will get a go. unless he has another string to his bow like being able to go into the middle for abit and joining our midfield rotation. im not sure of those abilities of his. would look to get a couple of afl games up his sleeve after some good stuff in the vfl over the last 2 years.
best 22 prediction: no, not at this stage. too many ahead of him that would need to fall over.
31- Dawes 193cm : impressed last year when given a call up, and previously at vfl level has dominated games with his marking ability. technically not a great forward however has shown glimpses of some natural footy nouse. we have so many options so with any chance he gets he, like all the others must really take it. to be honest i can't see him and rocca being in the same forward line. looks to be one or the other scenario. at this stage he's still young but he will get a chance in 2009 to show his talents. he could be travis and rocca's backup. then again, if he can show he can lead up to contests and show he has a bigger tank to play as a high forward up around the wings then he could have an advantage over someone like rusling and anthony. it's going to be hard for4 him to play 12+ games this year i feel, and if he does i think it will be a huge bonus for him.
best 22 prediction: no, based on the numbers going for his "tall marking" position
32- Cloke 196cm : certainty barring injury/suspension. in rocca's absence has become the leader of our forward line and has thrived on having the younger, less experienced guys around him. he gets the best defender every week and this rocca hopefully being back and up and about i believe we will see travis take his game to another level this year. anything is a possibility this year and if he's game is on he is due for some big bags of goals. he is getting smarter aswell which is a big bonus, he knows where to attract the footy now and if his use of the ball is spot on he can dominate.
best 22 prediction: certainty, enough said. would be hoping for a year of 60+ goals and 230+marks
we are in a position where we have a good variation:
We have 7. Paul Medhurst who at 179cm he is the shortest tall man in the league if that makes sense. he isnt too much of a crumber, he's more lead and mark actually, which belies his height. at freo he got worked out though where opposition knew that if they put a defender say at 188cm onto him that he could be beaten. last year he showed that he knows how to overcome that now by getting up the ground more and becoming a midfielder/forward when he was getting frozen out of a game. then when they switch back to a small defender he'd take them back to the square for some one on one body stuff which he loves doing. all australian in 2008 and hopefully can back that up.
best 22 prediction: certainty. hopefully crack 50 goals again.
Throw in these guys:
L Davis, McCarthy, Didak, Pendlebury, Thomas, Corrie, Beams, Wellingham, Sidebottom, Lockyer, Dick and Swan and it's really plain to see that from midfield going forward we are in a really really great position to set ourselves up for a flag tilt. We have some blokes that love to attach and if they all gel and really fire up we are close to unstoppable as we saw when we last played the cats.
after all this my best forward line is (when all are 100% fit):
Didak/Davis, Rocca, Cloke, Anthony, Medhurst, McCarthy/Swan.
dont take what i say too seriously, its just the opinion from someone that is just like you, bleeds black and white. whatever the forward line combination that MM goes with i wish them all the best and hope they kick arse! thats why we have a selection committee, good luck to them, it's a hard job.
enjoy and go pies.
(i'll do the backline if you guys want??)
we have an abundance of forwards. for the coaching staff it's a good problem to have. for the players trying to get into the team it's frustrating as they have to wait for their go. for the players in the team it should focus them on performing week in week out or risk being dropped for the forwards that are dominating in the vfl while waiting for their chance.
A forward line can realistically only fit 5-6 players in it.
with 3 (max) being tall marking options in my opinion.
Our forwards over the 187cm (med to tall forward) mark: (in number order)
2- Rusling 190cm : pretty much a leading full forward from goalsquare type, in his 17 games we haven't seen anything else that would say otherwise. relies on his pace and one grab marking. needs to take his chance when he gets it and string some serious games together this year.
has to be make or break year and sorry to say if that shoulder goes again it could be curtains in a lee walker - knee style.
Best 22 prediction: won't get into the team until at least round 3 due to the fact he hasn't even played a pre-season game yet. will need some big numbers at vfl level and hope that the afl forwards are struggling so that he can get a go. he must take his chance.
9- Anthony 192cm : hasn't really put a foot wrong. kicking accuracy means that his selection is almost guarenteed (barring form), has an aggressive attack on the footy and the carrier and is also quite good at ground level. behind play i watch him and he does all the right things which is why he gets the rewards at the end. he creates space then uses that space very well to either lead into himself or let another forward take. very clever and knows how to attract the footy. after being drafted as a backman i doubt we will see him go back there as his forward play is too good. could he be the clubs leading goalkicker in 09??
best 22 prediction: keeps performing and he's done nothing wrong so until then yes, he's in.
15- L Brown 195cm : surely a backup forward option. at fremantle he was purely a defender, at north he was swung back and forward with a career best 7 goals in a match. but at the pies he will most likely be used back or not at all. has a good attack on the footy and the man but decision making is below average and general skills in play aren't the best.
best 22 prediction: no, and even if he plays it should be down back.
20- Reid 195cm : when i saw him live at the richmond nab cup game i was quite surprised on how big he has gotten. he looks to be filling out quite well. another good sign is that even after bulking up he has kept his pace. for a high draft pick i think all collingwood supporters will want to start to see a return in 2009. he has natural ability but needs to string some performances together. he has his admirers and his haters but all that matters to all supporters is his overall performance. he has the ability to play down back aswell which has been tried. but you would have to pick a nice matchup to throw him down there consistantly at this stage of his career. to this point in his 6 senior games he hasn't shown too much, but this is hopefully his breakout year. i have also been surprised with his attack on the footy, last year i thought he was a little tentative, but i see he has improved in that area. his leadup to the wings in a chris tarrant fashion could get his some gametime, he just has to take his chances.
best 22 prediction: possible, based on his versatility and speed.
23- Rocca 195cm : well we all know what Big Anth can do. but we don't know if he still can do it. that's what we will find out this year. i really don't know what to expect from Anthony this year. for someone that's played 238 games and kicked 411 goals he goes into this year virtually as an unknown quantity. can he still roost it, can he still move around?? we will find out. If the younger forwards go past him this year i doubt he will bounce back though. his leadership and team lifting abilities should see him in the side when fit. shouldn't be played unless 100% i think.
best 22 prediction: probable, his sheer size dictates the opposition put an equally sized defender, which should open the way for the 2nd and 3rd forward to do their thing on the lesser defenders. and IF rocca actually is still upto it at afl level then watchout!
30- Macaffer 187cm : i'll start by saying i haven't seen too much of him. but what i have seen he is a natural forward. the thing against him is that at 187cm he is too small for key position. and he has a teamate named paul medhurst that has the "small marking position" all to himself already. so i think medhurst not being able to play is the only way that macaffer will get a go. unless he has another string to his bow like being able to go into the middle for abit and joining our midfield rotation. im not sure of those abilities of his. would look to get a couple of afl games up his sleeve after some good stuff in the vfl over the last 2 years.
best 22 prediction: no, not at this stage. too many ahead of him that would need to fall over.
31- Dawes 193cm : impressed last year when given a call up, and previously at vfl level has dominated games with his marking ability. technically not a great forward however has shown glimpses of some natural footy nouse. we have so many options so with any chance he gets he, like all the others must really take it. to be honest i can't see him and rocca being in the same forward line. looks to be one or the other scenario. at this stage he's still young but he will get a chance in 2009 to show his talents. he could be travis and rocca's backup. then again, if he can show he can lead up to contests and show he has a bigger tank to play as a high forward up around the wings then he could have an advantage over someone like rusling and anthony. it's going to be hard for4 him to play 12+ games this year i feel, and if he does i think it will be a huge bonus for him.
best 22 prediction: no, based on the numbers going for his "tall marking" position
32- Cloke 196cm : certainty barring injury/suspension. in rocca's absence has become the leader of our forward line and has thrived on having the younger, less experienced guys around him. he gets the best defender every week and this rocca hopefully being back and up and about i believe we will see travis take his game to another level this year. anything is a possibility this year and if he's game is on he is due for some big bags of goals. he is getting smarter aswell which is a big bonus, he knows where to attract the footy now and if his use of the ball is spot on he can dominate.
best 22 prediction: certainty, enough said. would be hoping for a year of 60+ goals and 230+marks
we are in a position where we have a good variation:
We have 7. Paul Medhurst who at 179cm he is the shortest tall man in the league if that makes sense. he isnt too much of a crumber, he's more lead and mark actually, which belies his height. at freo he got worked out though where opposition knew that if they put a defender say at 188cm onto him that he could be beaten. last year he showed that he knows how to overcome that now by getting up the ground more and becoming a midfielder/forward when he was getting frozen out of a game. then when they switch back to a small defender he'd take them back to the square for some one on one body stuff which he loves doing. all australian in 2008 and hopefully can back that up.
best 22 prediction: certainty. hopefully crack 50 goals again.
Throw in these guys:
L Davis, McCarthy, Didak, Pendlebury, Thomas, Corrie, Beams, Wellingham, Sidebottom, Lockyer, Dick and Swan and it's really plain to see that from midfield going forward we are in a really really great position to set ourselves up for a flag tilt. We have some blokes that love to attach and if they all gel and really fire up we are close to unstoppable as we saw when we last played the cats.
after all this my best forward line is (when all are 100% fit):
Didak/Davis, Rocca, Cloke, Anthony, Medhurst, McCarthy/Swan.
dont take what i say too seriously, its just the opinion from someone that is just like you, bleeds black and white. whatever the forward line combination that MM goes with i wish them all the best and hope they kick arse! thats why we have a selection committee, good luck to them, it's a hard job.
enjoy and go pies.
(i'll do the backline if you guys want??)
