Locks ranks the midfields

[itsintheblood]

Originally posted by peejay
I admire you for doing such rankings (and in fact for having the time).

I would have thought that a midfield that included Kane Johnson, Mark Coghlan, Nathan Brown and Brad Ottens (both of which you did not mention) would be in the top half of the comp rather than 13th.

But as they say in the classics its only your opinion.

I think our midfield could surprise many doubters this year. Ottens, stafford, marsh, brown, Johnson, coghlan, tivendale, bowden, rhodan, could do quite a bit of damage if all goes well.

In terms of position on the midfield ladder, hard to tell at this stage but 13th seems a bit tough with these sorts of names.

 

[Blue Fury]

This is the way I'd view the midfields:

1) Which players do I need to tag?
2) If I don't will they hurt me?

In respect to the Carltons list Kouta, Campo and Stevens realistically all need to be tagged. I’m not saying we have a super doper midfield but not 15th and 16th as many have stated previously.

 

[Portia]

You forgot...

3) Will a tag only partially remove them from the game?

 

[Blue Fury]

Porthos you're spot on, I don't think a tagger ever stopped the Diesel, and they rarely stop Buckley. The real top notch players more often then not destroy the taggers.

That’s why midfield depth is so important, you can’t tag 6 players. The Brisbane midfielders outside Voss, Lappin and Black love it. Aker, Power etc. hardly get tagged and if you don't put a stopper on them they’ll carve you up.

This is were Carlton will improve, the whole midfield wont be totally dependent on Kouta and Campo as they were last year. Stevens, Scotland, Johnson, Harford, Clarke, Houlahan, Waite, Hulme will be able to assist and rotate. All the top midfields rotate their players allowing each player to function at 100% each time there on the ball and then rest on the bench or in a pocket. Don't forget Blues didn't have that luxury last year.

 

[JeffDunne]

Originally posted by Blue Fury
Porthos you're spot on, I don't think a tagger ever stopped the Diesel, and they rarely stop Buckley. The real top notch players more often then not destroy the taggers.

That’s why midfield depth is so important, you can’t tag 6 players. The Brisbane midfielders outside Voss, Lappin and Black love it. Aker, Power etc. hardly get tagged and if you don't put a stopper on them they’ll carve you up.

This is were Carlton will improve, the whole midfield wont be totally dependent on Kouta and Campo as they were last year. Stevens, Scotland, Johnson, Harford, Clarke, Houlahan, Waite, Hulme will be able to assist and rotate. All the top midfields rotate their players allowing each player to function at 100% each time there on the ball and then rest on the bench or in a pocket. Don't forget Blues didn't have that luxury last year.

What happens when these players, other than Stevens, is rotated into the midfield? All tags are off (and I doubt any team would tag the three), and teams with more class/depth will tear them to shreds. Most of the players you mention would be rotating through the ressie's at almost any other club. This I think is why people rate them so poorly.

 

[Mr Q]

Originally posted by ok.crows
The Eagles played Adelaide three times in 2003, and got well beaten in the midfield each time.

And the Eagles are the only team to have thrashed Brisbane in the last two years (in 2002 at Subi by 48 and 2003 at the Gabba by 63). Doesn't mean we think our midfield is better than theirs.

The Crows played two of those three at FP (just look at the Eagles all time record there!), and the third was played against a vastly understrength Eagles line up. When the Eagles played Brisbane they had a few names out. The Crows might be a little ahead of the Eagles for now, but its only a matter of time.

 

[MarkT]

Originally posted by Blue Fury
That’s why midfield depth is so important, you can’t tag 6 players.

Unless and until some players show a fair bit more than they have to date in their careers only Stevens will be given a hard tag and they can stop him. Campo will get a niggler to try and suck him in and make him pay for his non existent accountability. Scotland will be left alone unless he starts damaging sides badly. The rest won't even figure in match planning. Teams will back their midfield to be better and do more damage and it will be a safe bet.

 

[ok.crows]

Originally posted by Mr Q
And the Eagles are the only team to have thrashed Brisbane in the last two years (in 2002 at Subi by 48 and 2003 at the Gabba by 63). Doesn't mean we think our midfield is better than theirs.

Maybe, maybe not --- but the fact is my comment was a RESPONSE to an Eagles fan who was claiming the the RESULTS proved Eagles midfield was the second best.

The RESULTS don't show any such thing.

The Crows played two of those three at FP (just look at the Eagles all time record there!), and the third was played against a vastly understrength Eagles line up. When the Eagles played Brisbane they had a few names out. The Crows might be a little ahead of the Eagles for now, but its only a matter of time.

Surely, even in your twisted logic, it is better to have a WIN as a RESULT than a loss. And surely, even in your twisted logic, there is a better case for thinking the team with the 3-zip win record might have been the better side ?

Oh yes, you do concede that much. Well then, where is the rub ?

 

[Blue Fury]

Originally posted by MarkT
Unless and until some players show a fair bit more than they have to date in their careers only Stevens will be given a hard tag and they can stop him.

I think you need to tag Kouta, Stevens and Campo, who gets the hard tag, I dont know? but one thing that's for sure is if any of these 3 guys are left alone they will hurt you.

 

[koutawalker]

Originally posted by Blue Fury
I think you need to tag Kouta, Stevens and Campo, who gets the hard tag, I dont know? but one thing that's for sure is if any of these 3 guys are left alone they will hurt you.

I'd say who is better out of Campo and Stevens. Who will hurt you the most? Kouta gets a lot of his possesions at stoppages and he gets the hard ball gets, so a tag would probably be less effective on him as it would be on a receiver. I think Campo still will be getting tagged the hardest but this year we will have Stevens who will take some relief of Campo.

Ranking Carltons top 6 midfielders we are not the worst or second worst. If it was our top 10-12 midfielders then yes we are the worst.

 

[TheHeatleyStand]

Originally posted by MarkT
Unless and until some players show a fair bit more than they have to date in their careers only Stevens will be given a hard tag and they can stop him. Campo will get a niggler to try and suck him in and make him pay for his non existent accountability. Scotland will be left alone unless he starts damaging sides badly. The rest won't even figure in match planning. Teams will back their midfield to be better and do more damage and it will be a safe bet.

The tag wont really work on us this year. It wont matter, the game plan is to find the ball and kick it into a very potent forward set up.
You certainly wont see us over posessing the football and with 5 or 6 ball magnets who can find the ball and deliver it accurately we only need to break even in the midfield to hurt the opposition.
Who are the ball magnets? Kouta, Camporeale, Stevens, Scottland Houlihan and Johnson. throw in Waite,Sporn,Hulme,Clarke,Walker.Davies,McKormick and a very fit Harford (supposedly the first time he has been fit and had a pre season in a feww years) and the forward line will have a few more opportunities than last season.

Who is the forward line you ask?
Whitnall, looking fitter and faster. Usually he is around 6 weeks from the last minute fat farm entry .
Fevola, kicked 63 goals in a team that couldn`t get the ball and when they did couldnt kick it straight to him.
Laurence Angwin, 202 cms excitement machine who can run, mark and kick.(Hard to know who will man him up once Fev and Whitnall have been covered)
Digby Morell,(will be a dangerous 4th tall)
Fisher along with digby will be 4th tall but is very mobile and can play on the wing. Showed last season that even though he was skinny enough to take a bath in a thermometer he could still make an impact. 192 cms and having put on 10 kilos since the beginning of last year he will improve greatly to an already exciting debut year.
Small forwards will be Lappin and Houllihan.
Steve Kenna the crumber forward pocket.


Pagan will go for a very attacking football team this year because we can afford to do it.