Toast Collingwood has Best Midfield for 2017

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COLLINGWOOD coach Nathan Buckley will be armed with the game’s top-ranked midfield in his make-or-break 2017 season, according to Champion Data.

The AFL’s official-number crunchers have delivered a glowing endorsement of the Magpies’ prime movers using a complex formula to asses each midfielder’s output over the past two years, in comparison to their peers.

Led by superstar ballwinners Scott Pendlebury and Adam Treloar, the Pies have six top-end midfielders who are classified as elite or above average, bolstering claims Collingwood has the centre square setup to break its three-year finals drought next season.

Well hopefully that Translate's to On-Field Then

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/a...t/news-story/0454702aa6527ac5461a7cabca9192bf
 

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Aug 10, 2015
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Get the ball, use it well, things happen....
 

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Heater39

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Jun 11, 2008
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We have a great midfield of individuals on paper (as we did last year) but as a collective I feel we are only mid-range. Too many games last year where we got smashed in the midfield, particularly in the centre clearances. I couldn't find the differentials stat, which would be the most useful, but in terms of averages here is where we rank for the key midfield stats

Disposals- 8th
Contested possessions - 8th
Clearances- 14th
Centre clearances- 14th

Unless we improve significantly in these areas then I can't see how we can be ranked as a top 4 midfield, let alone the best...
 
Apr 20, 2015
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On talent alone i can see exactly where they are coming from. Pendlebury, Treloar, Sidebottom, Adams, Wells, Greenwood, there is so much talent there. It also runs very deep as well with Crisp, De Goey, Wills, Blair all mote than capable to chip in if needed.

The thing that needs to improve is the structures in the midfield, which hopefully the coaches get it right next season. We have the best up and coming ruck as well, so really there is no excuses.
 

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Mar 11, 2008
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Wells makes a huge difference to the mix.

We have decent pure inside mids in Adams, an improving De Goey and Greenwood, elite inside/outside combo mids in Pendlebury and Treloar and a very good, albeit not overly impactful, outsider in Sidebottom.

Wells adds terrific pace, foot skills and the all round hurt factor to be able to damage teams in transition. If he plays enough games, our transition from defence to the forward line will improve significantly, especially with kickers like Reid, Howe and Dunn (and the lack of kickers like Toovey, Brown, Frost and - I know this won't be popular but - hopefully Sinclair) in our backline.
 
Oct 14, 2015
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We'e had the best midfield since 2002 and have only won one premiership,its about time its starts delivering results.

We have had some excellent midfields and in 2010/11 we ran very deep (Wellingham at 6th or 7th showed the talent). Too easy to forget Daisy's sheer brilliance in 2011.

Considering best 3 mid-fielders in one team, at their very best post-2002:

Collingwood: Pendlebury, Swan, Thomas (2010/11)

Geelong: GAJ, Selwood, Bartel (2008/9)

West Coast: Judd, Cousins, Kerr (2005/6)

Brisbane: Voss, Black, and Akermanis or Lappin (2003/4)

(Hawks and Swans were also very strong.)

Who do you choose if you are a neutral supporter to win you a game? 10 Brownlow medals between them. I would choose Brisbane's trio, but not by much.
 
Last edited:
May 24, 2004
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Brisbane: Voss, Black, Akermanis / Lappin (2003/4)

(Hawks and Swans were also very strong.)

Who do you choose if you are a neutral supporter to win you a game? 10 Brownlow medals between them. I would choose Brisbane's trio, but not by much.
Brisbane's trio has one huge advantage - there are FOUR players in it!
 
May 27, 2008
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Wells makes a huge difference to the mix.

We have decent pure inside mids in Adams, an improving De Goey and Greenwood, elite inside/outside combo mids in Pendlebury and Treloar and a very good, albeit not overly impactful, outsider in Sidebottom.

Wells adds terrific pace, foot skills and the all round hurt factor to be able to damage teams in transition. If he plays enough games, our transition from defence to the forward line will improve significantly, especially with kickers like Reid, Howe and Dunn (and the lack of kickers like Toovey, Brown, Frost and - I know this won't be popular but - hopefully Sinclair) in our backline.

Sinclair isn't a bad field kick. I'd argue his run and carry greatly assists our transition from defence. A bit like it took Reid a while to lose his stigma of being a bad kick on the back of a couple of bad set shots early in his career; Sinclair likewise suffers from first impressions when he couldn't finish in front of goal when he started as a forward pocket. Sinclair lacks innate goal sense not a reliable field kick.
 

wednesdaywarrior

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Apr 19, 2010
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I'm bullish about our midfield. It's interesting data. That debate during trade period between (I think) John Ralph and a Pies fan on Twitter saw Ralph declaring Melbournes midfield better than ours. A close call I'd say but I reckon if De Goey turns into the player most of us think he will be and Callum Brown - who many write off us too small but is virtually the same size as Jack Viney - is anything like his father, I'd expect within two years to have the most talent laden midfield in the comp. That's undeniably exciting. There are just a few mitigating factors beyond that though as I see it:

1. Talent in itself isn't always enough. A centre square combination have to sync together and understand each others patterns. I don't think our team is settled or mature enough just yet for that to happen but I hope it does.

2. In big games and clutch situations it's usually monster ruckmen and midfielders who bully control of the contest making stats irrelevant. Whether Grundy can compete in such situations is yet to be tested and whether we have a locked in brute, tall midfielder is yet to be seen. If one of Sier, Wills or De Goey emerged as the latter I don't see any team in the comp handling our midfield.

3. Again, stats are great but I'm still wearing the scars from those seasons of big games against Geelong or Hawthorn where Swan and Pendlebury had about 80 possessions between them and our total possessions as a team was awe inspiring and we'd lose by ten goals. It's also about ball use efficiency and what's happening round the rest of the field. The story is so often told by the bottom six players as much as the top six!
 

little_chris

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May 12, 2009
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We have had some excellent midfields and in 2010/11 we ran very deep (Wellingham at 6th or 7th showed the talent). Too easy to forget Daisy's sheer brilliance in 2011.

Considering best 3 mid-fielders in one team, at their very best post-2002:

Collingwood: Pendlebury, Swan, Thomas (2010/11)

Geelong: GAJ, Selwood, Bartel (2008/9)

West Coast: Judd, Cousins, Kerr (2005/6)

Brisbane: Voss, Black, and Akermanis or Lappin (2003/4)

(Hawks and Swans were also very strong.)

Who do you choose if you are a neutral supporter to win you a game? 10 Brownlow medals between them. I would choose Brisbane's trio, but not by much.

Your forgetting west coast - embley and andthe best ruckman at the time Cox.

Brisbane had Luke power, Jonathan brown, alistair lynch.

Pies had Dids, jolly, beams, heater, to name a few.
 

doodles98

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Aug 6, 2012
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It's a pleasing thought and Wells addition must be making a big difference to those ratings. I have big hopes for the second tier mids to really step up next year. Crispy, Fatty, Aish, Wills, Phillips could all have a big impact on our fortunes over the season if they can go up a gear.

Not sure how our midfield can rate so highly when we rate so poorly at clearances. It's a pretty crucial stat!

I would take West Coasts top 3 mids as the best I've seen post 2002; followed by the Hawks with Mitchell, Lewis, Hodge.
 
It's a pleasing thought and Wells addition must be making a big difference to those ratings. I have big hopes for the second tier mids to really step up next year. Crispy, Fatty, Aish, Wills, Phillips could all have a big impact on our fortunes over the season if they can go up a gear.

Not sure how our midfield can rate so highly when we rate so poorly at clearances. It's a pretty crucial stat!

I would take West Coasts top 3 mids as the best I've seen post 2002; followed by the Hawks with Mitchell, Lewis, Hodge.

We're not so bad at stoppages, pretty good I'd say. But yep, centre clearances ain't so grand.
 

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