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Friday Focus: Cats playing tough, efficient footy
1 hours, 27 minutes ago | Back
By Matt Burgan Exclusive to AFL BigPond Network
Friday Focus: Cats playing tough, efficient footy
1 hours, 27 minutes ago | Back
By Matt Burgan Exclusive to AFL BigPond Network
News
The indicators are pointing in the right direction for Geelong at this stage of the season.
The Cats are playing a very high possession game, yet it is direct and fast.
Geelong is averaging 383 disposals per match – seven more than second-placed West Coast – while the Cats have five players in the competition's top 16 disposal winners.
Jimmy Bartel, who finished second in Geelong's best and fairest award in 2006, has already notched up 89 disposals at an average of 30 per match. In 2006, Bartel averaged 23 disposals per match.
From Bartel's disposals in the opening three rounds, 73 have been won in an uncontested manner. This ranks him No.1 in the AFL for uncontested possessions.
Although Gary Ablett has not been known for racking up big numbers in the past, thanks to taggers hanging off him with regularity, he has improved his disposal average significantly this season.
Last year, he averaged 17 disposals per match, while after three rounds this year he is averaging 27 touches each game. He is ranked equal seventh in the competition for disposals.
Forty-one per cent of Ablett’s possessions this year have been contested. He is fourth in the league in total contested possessions, having won 34. Last round against Melbourne, 18 of his 30 disposals were contested. No other player in the competition won more contested balls in the round.
Reigning best and fairest winner Paul Chapman is the league’s equal-11th most prolific ballwinner with 78 disposals. Chapman is averaging 26 disposals, four more than his 2006 average.
But it is his ability to set up teammates in scoring positions that has been invaluable for the Cats. Chapman leads the AFL in score assists with nine this year.
The 'Coreys' have also stepped up this season.
Corey Enright has taken his disposal average from 22 to 25. He too has set up teammates with six score assists this season.
Joel Corey has averaged 25 disposals, one more than last season, while he is ranked equal 10th in uncontested possessions with 57.
The Cats are also kicking long, compared to the rest of the competiton.
Geelong has averaged 65 long kicks per match, which ranks it second in the AFL. In turn, the Cats have a high inside-50 count, averaging 61 per match. In Geelong's past two matches, it has topped 60 inside 50s – something the Cats had not achieved since rounds eight and nine, 1999.
The Cats have also been extremely efficient with their disposal, hitting the target 85.5 per cent of the time, ranking them second in the competition.
Geelong's fast style has seen it play on from marks 50 per cent of the time, ranking it No.1 in the AFL.
The Cats also rank equal No.1 in the competition in goals, due to the combination of high inside 50s and their efficiency once inside 50. Once inside 50, Geelong has opted to kick 28.4 per cent of the time, ranking it fourth in the league.
Things in here that stand out to me are:
* Ablett Jnr with high proportion of contested possessions - this shows we need him playing in the midfield.
* Long kicks, 2nd in the league - good sign, keen to move it in to the forward line quickly
* Playing on from every second mark - also great news. Something we need to do against teams that flood against us.
Sure, we've played a couple of easy teams the past couple of weeks, and I'm not too sure if we beat the Hawks it's going to give us much of a picture of how we're going, but I think from this we get a picture of at least how some of the key parts of our game plan have changed since last year.
The test will come when we are under pressure... will we resort to chip,chip possession style, or will we back ourselves and keep playing on and kicking long?
Thoughts?
The indicators are pointing in the right direction for Geelong at this stage of the season.
The Cats are playing a very high possession game, yet it is direct and fast.
Geelong is averaging 383 disposals per match – seven more than second-placed West Coast – while the Cats have five players in the competition's top 16 disposal winners.
Jimmy Bartel, who finished second in Geelong's best and fairest award in 2006, has already notched up 89 disposals at an average of 30 per match. In 2006, Bartel averaged 23 disposals per match.
From Bartel's disposals in the opening three rounds, 73 have been won in an uncontested manner. This ranks him No.1 in the AFL for uncontested possessions.
Although Gary Ablett has not been known for racking up big numbers in the past, thanks to taggers hanging off him with regularity, he has improved his disposal average significantly this season.
Last year, he averaged 17 disposals per match, while after three rounds this year he is averaging 27 touches each game. He is ranked equal seventh in the competition for disposals.
Forty-one per cent of Ablett’s possessions this year have been contested. He is fourth in the league in total contested possessions, having won 34. Last round against Melbourne, 18 of his 30 disposals were contested. No other player in the competition won more contested balls in the round.
Reigning best and fairest winner Paul Chapman is the league’s equal-11th most prolific ballwinner with 78 disposals. Chapman is averaging 26 disposals, four more than his 2006 average.
But it is his ability to set up teammates in scoring positions that has been invaluable for the Cats. Chapman leads the AFL in score assists with nine this year.
The 'Coreys' have also stepped up this season.
Corey Enright has taken his disposal average from 22 to 25. He too has set up teammates with six score assists this season.
Joel Corey has averaged 25 disposals, one more than last season, while he is ranked equal 10th in uncontested possessions with 57.
The Cats are also kicking long, compared to the rest of the competiton.
Geelong has averaged 65 long kicks per match, which ranks it second in the AFL. In turn, the Cats have a high inside-50 count, averaging 61 per match. In Geelong's past two matches, it has topped 60 inside 50s – something the Cats had not achieved since rounds eight and nine, 1999.
The Cats have also been extremely efficient with their disposal, hitting the target 85.5 per cent of the time, ranking them second in the competition.
Geelong's fast style has seen it play on from marks 50 per cent of the time, ranking it No.1 in the AFL.
The Cats also rank equal No.1 in the competition in goals, due to the combination of high inside 50s and their efficiency once inside 50. Once inside 50, Geelong has opted to kick 28.4 per cent of the time, ranking it fourth in the league.
Things in here that stand out to me are:
* Ablett Jnr with high proportion of contested possessions - this shows we need him playing in the midfield.
* Long kicks, 2nd in the league - good sign, keen to move it in to the forward line quickly
* Playing on from every second mark - also great news. Something we need to do against teams that flood against us.
Sure, we've played a couple of easy teams the past couple of weeks, and I'm not too sure if we beat the Hawks it's going to give us much of a picture of how we're going, but I think from this we get a picture of at least how some of the key parts of our game plan have changed since last year.
The test will come when we are under pressure... will we resort to chip,chip possession style, or will we back ourselves and keep playing on and kicking long?
Thoughts?
