Kerr as a Tagger

[Goosecat]

If Kerr got some help, much the same way Cousins and Judd did back in our hey day, this wouldnt even be a topic of discussion.

Masten to the guts v Melbourne. Get Priddis out of the starting combination. Use him off the bench.

We need a enforcer to hit Kerrs tag hard, legally of course. Shame it wont happen.

Mate you don't see Abletts tag getting smashed every contest to free him. It helps but it isn't the be all, end all.
Cous did it for years with no help, carrying this team on his own before taggers were as scrutinised as they are now for all their dirty tricks.
Go back through the earlier posts and read my comments on Kerrs deficiencies. He has talents as we all know but not the nuances, timing and ability to break away from tags with the right movement and body-work at the right time. He just doesn't have it and no amount of blocking will sort it until he gets a genuine education from someone. Even then because it hasn't come natural he will never be as good as the likes of Judd, Cousins, Ablett etc at breaking a tag.
At the moment he's caught in no mans land with Priddis doing what used to come natural to him and no idea on the clever plays required to break a tag at the right time through smarts, bodywork and timing.
Give the lad the education he as yet has never really had.
I don't think there is anyone at the club with real natural ability to teach him this at the moment, as such the only option if you want him to learn is to play him on these types in a negating role picking up the way they go about it. He will get smashed but he needs the education.
It's a bit like asking Suma to teach our forwards how to take a contested grab or block successfully for other forwards. The guy hardly took a contested grab in his life, never blocked for anyone else and really doesn't know the nuances himself. There is actually no-one on the coaching staff who knows how to take a contested grab and hasn't been since Glendinning days and even he was more used to spoiling then marking. Yet people wonder why we have for so many years had big forwards who never learned to take a contested grab.
Kerrs problems at the moment lie with the education he hasn't received and the way he is being used, it's that straight forward. He hasn't suddenly stopped trying, he hasn't suddenly become a useless footballer, he is being let down by the coaching staff!

 

[DanceCockie]

He is struggling with breaking a tag atm and drifts in out of games. would putting Kerr up agaisnt the oppitions best midfielder help him?????? like when we play geelong Tag Ablett with Kerr. Ablett always fins the ball so that means he will lure Kerry to the ball as well.

Just a suggestion but we need to do something, he is a shadow of the player he was when we had Judd and Cousins. The sole Reason is coz they got tagged not him so he could get plenty of touches and infulence the game.

No, his teammates need to do more and clear his path.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

Firstly Kerr needs more support.

Secondly, I still think Masten playing as a crumbing forward who occasionally pushes into the midfield is a good move (for the moment whilst he matures).

Schofield to take over from Stinger as our run with player.

We have the talent, it just takes time for the team to settle and develop.

What we really need is another A-Grade midfielder, preferably of the pacy line braking kind and a key forward capable of taking a contested mark.

If Kennedy struggles, why not play Brown up forward and trial Spangher as our third tall down back.

Even if Kerr could fulfill a tagging role what happens when the opposition targets Selwood? Lecca as a midfielder is a great idea maybe, but we need him kicking goals at the moment and he would need some solid work to probably reach the required level of fitness.

 

[DanceCockie]

Was Swift injured this weekend or just 'rested'?

 

[lewigie]

Hopefully rested for a debut.

 

[DanceCockie]

Hopefully rested for a debut.

Hope so, he'll add some pace to our very flat midfield group.

 

[bodazoka]

Whats with all of this Kerr needs to be a tagger crap? every opponent he has had for the past two weeks has had major posessions and/or kicked goals. Gun players dont get free rides, they also have to be accountable for their man especially when they themselves are being tagged out of it. Kerr has not shown he is capable of even looking after his tagger defensively let alone putting him on the best midfielders in the game.

Not to mention he is one of the smallest blokes on the field, Kerr may be strong in the arms but someone like Ablett/Judd/Goodes ect.. have much much better core strength and would flatten Kerr quite easily, Kerr wouldnt be able to use his body to block.

I prefer Kerr to have to toil with a heavy 1/2/3 player tag each and every week for the next two years so that when Masten/Swift/Ebert/Shuey ect.. start getting tags Kerr is going to go from having 3 players tagging him to having 1 player tagging him. It will seem to Kerr like he has all the space in the world going from heavy heavy tags to lighter ones and make him a better player for the team.

 

[Anjahads]

Need beau waters to come through and clean up the tagger

Maybe Cockie in the middle,he is definately solid enough and has no fear!

 

[DanceCockie]

Not to mention he is one of the smallest blokes on the field, Kerr may be strong in the arms but someone like Ablett/Judd/Goodes ect.. have much much better core strength and would flatten Kerr quite easily, Kerr wouldnt be able to use his body to block.
eavy heavy tags to lighter ones and make him a better player for the team.

Are you for real? Kerr's probably the strongest player pound for pound in the competition. Instead of him playing as a tagger or being tagged I'd prefer to see him go head to head more often.

 

[faisan]

I don't think using Kerr as a tagger would help. The best way to learn to deal with a tag is to get tagged every game. He will eventually learn to deal with it the same way the other gun midfielders in the comp have.

He definitely needs more help and that will take time for the other guys to step up.

 

[lewigie]

Are you for real? Kerr's probably the strongest player pound for pound in the competition. Instead of him playing as a tagger or being tagged I'd prefer to see him go head to head more often.

Playing head to head he dominates.

See Port or Bulldogs matches.

 

[bodazoka]

Are you for real? Kerr's probably the strongest player pound for pound in the competition. Instead of him playing as a tagger or being tagged I'd prefer to see him go head to head more often.

Mate I know he is strong but hes still a little bloke.. pound for pound strength sounds fine in principal but when you have Judd who is 189cm and 85 Kilos or Ablett 182cm 88 Kilos going up against Kerr at 178cm and 79 Kilos. Judd and Ablett are going to win most of those contests, both are ferocious and incredibly skilled in a contest, and are taller and heavier but probably just as quick.

Head to Head is a decent idea... but it needs to work both ways, head to head doesnt work if the opp coach goes and puts a tag on Kerr. Than its Kerr trying to get away from the tag whilst the other guy dominates and Kerr gets blamed for not doing anything.

Kerrs mantra this year is to take whatever abuse physical and mental comes his way and not get suspended. Play as best he can under duress and learn how to handle a tag as well as get away from the tagger. Lets let the guy learn this skill for the year and hope that he comes out of it next year armed with the ability to beat a tagger.

Id prefer that then trying to get him to learn to be defensive as we are always going to want him to be an attacking mid more than a defensive one.

 

[archiemoses]

I think putting Lynch in the middle may be the tonic needed. He played some good games in the middle towards the end of last year. He can win the hard ball and get the ball moving forward.

Then Kerr just needs to stand infront of him and instantly has all the space he needs because no tagger will be able to get around his metre wide frame.

I hurts me to say, but we miss Rowan Jones and his blocking skills.

 

[Marlin01]

I hurts me to say, but we miss Rowan Jones and his blocking skills.

We miss a second ruckman, which would free Lynch up to do those kind of things instead of playing in the ruck.

 

[archiemoses]

We miss a second ruckman, which would free Lynch up to do those kind of things instead of playing in the ruck.

That could actually be the solution.. Time to fast track naita. He layed 8 tackles in reserves i think.

 

[lewigie]

In half an hour of footy. + 7 disposals which is a pretty good effort really.

 

[bodazoka]

In the reserves...

 

[lewigie]

Still, laying 8 tackles is alright.

He played mainly in the forward line too, so 7 disposals in half an hour is alright too.

I would've been shitting myself if I was on the other team knowing you'd have to play against him next week

 

[archiemoses]

In the reserves...

Just easing him back. Like you would any champion race horse. You wouldn't put Northerly first up into the cox plate

 

[Special Agent Utah]

Are you for real? Kerr's probably the strongest player pound for pound in the competition. Instead of him playing as a tagger or being tagged I'd prefer to see him go head to head more often.

Someone better let the opposition coaches know we want him to only go head to head then.

Yeah that will work.

 

[bodazoka]

Just easing him back. Like you would any champion race horse. You wouldn't put Northerly first up into the cox plate

I know, it was just a comment to show that he was playing in a league well under AFL ranks so his posession and tackle count doesnt really reflect much. The time on ground and the fact he got through the game would be the more pleasing signs for me, and also how he was moving.

 

[footballfreak]

Maybe more as a half-forward