Matchups Vs Saints

[StillWaiting5689]

Big game on Friday and how we go with the match ups will be very interesting. I'm only going to mention two in detail and throw a couple of suggestions out there, hopefully other posters fill in the gap.

Riewoldt: Obviously he is the big one, stop him and you go a long way to stopping the saints. With the form he has shone so far this year it will be difficult. If the saints get on top in the midfield he will have a field day so pressure all over the ground is the key to stop him. Not sure who goes to him though, even if presti gets up for the game might not be the best option - Roo has stitched him up the last few times but I don't know who else could do it. Is Reid ready? Maybe Harry but he usually dominates Milne. Maxwell also very important in this match up as he will be needed for third man up. I have a feeling this match up is going to cause headaches on the night.

Goddard: IMO he is the saints second best player, has been released from the back half and is playing predominately midfield this year and I think he is their most damaging mid. I think Daisy should do a hard tag on him when playing midfield and have Maxwell go to him when he pushes forward.

Other possible match ups
Harry v Milne
Toovey v Schnieder
Ball v Hayes (this should be good to watch)
Pendles v Dal
Swan v Jones
Didak or Davis v Baker
Beams v Montagna

Midfield battle extremely important, hopefully Jolly can dominate gardiner, as if we lose this our forwards will struggle with limited and ineffective supply against the saints awesome defence, all the forwards will need to play well. Saints have a lot of good players that can bob up and play well, their midfield is second only to Geelongs so it is important not to let them all run rampant and rack up 25+ possies because we won't stand a chance.

Thoughts?

 

[Nardz]

i know this sounds silly - as theres a good chance he would get towled up (but theres that chance with pretty much every defender we have) but i would like to see reid start on reiwold

we know reid has the athletic ability to keep up with him so give him a job and see what he can do. he'll have plenty of help from harry and maxwell and if he lowers his colours it wont be the end of the world - should be a learning experience for him to play on the best forward in the game.

on a side note jolly and ball need to show something this week.

 

[Alexander323bc]

If Roo is at FF then Presti, if at CHF Reid.

Looking at our Midfield compared to theirs I cant help but feel that we can not go one on one. It needs to be a team effort to beat them (pardon the cliche) as I think one on one we will get slauthered.

Didak, Medders and Davis should not move out of the F50 for the whole game.

Trav and Anthony should start at the F50 ark.

I would have Porno Man (Barham) come in to the team and tag montagna. Dont care if he gets 0 touches, just dont let Montagna have more then 15 effective touches.

 

[knightwheelrqr]

In:
Presti (If available bring back into the side if not then L.Brown keeps his place and plays FB)
N.Brown (Best opponent for Riewoldt. L.Brown can't run with him and Reid is more a sweeper than someone capable of playing a premier forward. Would still require some help defense but physically the only player with a chance to hold Riewoldt below 3 goals)
O'Bree (If available bring back (most likely), if not then bring in Barham for the shock factor. Not because Barham is the best player available for selection but instead because he can tag/ run and do everything Johnson can as well as bring energy to the game which will be needed if we are to beat St.K. The kid will tackle and run which will be needed big time, would really want to test him against a side that plays at this intensity. Think he is up for it. List him as EMG I say!!)

Out:
L.Brown (If plays would be best suited up forward if at all, but if not Presti then best FB option)
Reid (Not suited to playing on the big St.K forwards at this stage)
Johnson (Inj)

 

[mattys123]

Other possible match ups
Harry v Milne
Toovey v Schnieder
Ball v Hayes (this should be good to watch)
Pendles v Dal
Swan v Jones
Didak or Davis v Baker
Beams v Montagna

Agree with most of these, and the Thomas/Goddard matchup, but only if Goddard plays back, which he hasn't recently.

If he doesn't go to the HB line, use daisy on Gilbert. yes I know the size difference, but someone needs to keep Gilbert honest, or else he roams the backline not unlike Jason Cloke did in 2002 and 03 before teams figured him out.

Riewoldt is the key to this match, no matter what, we need to play a loose man in their forward line, it is just about our only chance of restricting Riewoldt. Presti if he plays will start on him, of that I have no doubt.

I hope Ben Reid plays, there are matchups for him this week, no matter what side Stkilda selects.

Thursday night will be interesting, Presti, O'Bree, J-Mac, Ben Reid, Dawes, who plays for us, and who plays for the Saints as Roo's forward help, because Pattison was terrible even in a thumping win.

 

[TradeDraft]

In:

N.Brown (Best opponent for Riewoldt. L.Brown can't run with him and Reid is more a sweeper than someone capable of playing a premier forward. Would still require some help defense but physically the only player with a chance to hold Riewoldt below 3 goals)

Do you Remember the NAB Cup game we Played where Roo destroyed N Brown and Presti came in and Saved Brown's Ass?

 

[Damon_3388]

For some reason, I just really want to see Reid play on Reiwoldt. He's got the length and athletic ability to match him, so lets see if he's got the temprement and discipline too.

Also, I wouldn't mind seeing Cloke make way for Dawes, but I doubt it'll happen.

 

[mattys123]

Do you Remember the NAB Cup game we Played where Roo destroyed N Brown and Presti came in and Saved Brown's Ass?

Wasn't only Riewoldt, He kicked 3 on brown, Mcevoy kicked 2 on him, and Rhys Stanley (19-20 yo kid) out marked Brown point blank for Brown's 6th against.

Then Presti came on, and we came back from 43 points down.

(Ok, so Riewoldt went off for 15 minutes, but still).

 

[StillWaiting5689]

If presti plays he will go to Riewoldt but I just keep remembering last year and the forwards who had success against Presti. They were the high leading up style forward like Riewoldt and Franklin and if I remember correctly didn't Miller play alright on him? Should definately be given first crack though.

 

[StillWaiting5689]

Thursday night will be interesting, Presti, O'Bree, J-Mac, Ben Reid, Dawes, who plays for us, and who plays for the Saints as Roo's forward help, because Pattison was terrible even in a thumping win.

I wouldn't be suprised if the saints didn't make a change as they were so dominate but I'm thinking they will drop Pattison and bring in Stanely, who I think Reid should go to. Thursday selection will be interesting.

 

[The Norm]

I'd like to see Harry play on Riewoldt. He's the only player we've got who has the right combination of speed, strength and endurance to stop him. He has the track record as well, so I'm thinking this is how Mick might go, unless he throws the job to Ben Reid.

If Presti is selected I think the running he'll need to do to keep up with Riewoldt might be too much for him, and I'd prefer he sits this one out if they're planning to play him on Riewoldt unless he's 100%.

Will they play another tall forward? If Stanley gets selected (not sure of his chances/availability) Reid would be the obvious matchup. Have absolutely no trust in Leeroy playing in defence, so if they play Pattison maybe Presti (if fit) can take him. Also gives us another option should Harry get beaten. Maxwell will be important on Friday night.

Is Toovey up to playing on Milne? Would be a good test for him though I think Milne may be too smart.

Looking forward to seeing Harry stitch Riewoldt up.

 

[PieBeast]

I am with you The Norm , reckon Harry is itching to have a crack at Roo.

 

[Wooljay]

Only issue is that if we play Harry on Roo, what do we do with Presti? No Kosi match up, what other tall options would he go against in their forward structure? Genuine question, not being facetious.

 

[3066]

Presti in Reid out. Cheesy back in for Ben.... though personally I think Goldy should be back in. N Brown (from what I saw on Saturday) played pretty poorly and Goldy was looking like he should be playing seniors. Besides what could be better than Goldy ripping it up against a side that apparently rejected him in a possible Ball trade deal (or was that BS?)

Presti on Roo with Maxy/Harry becoming the 3rd man when needed. Problem is Roo is pretty unstopable at the moment so we need pressure on their delivery. Milne (the little prick) has ripped us a few times too so I wouldn't mind seeing Daisy on him when needed. Daisy should match his turns and smash him hard with the tackles. We need tackle pressure in their forward 50 ... Maxy, Harry, Daisy and Goldy are our best in the club.

 

[robertg22]

I've always liked the idea of Goldsack on Riewoldt.
I don't think Harry should get him, especially with Kosi out they'll just play him closer to goal and Harry will get exposed for height.

 

[rose jam]

Presti goes to Riewoldt and let's him take balls outside the 50m. Without Kosi there Riewoldt has nobody to kick to if we hold our position and don't have our backs get sucked up the ground.Saints don't have dangerous enough forwards that should be warranting our backline to lose structure.

 

[Camo1902]

I don't want to see Harry go near him, we lose too much rebound if Harry has to play a key defensive post. I hope they go with what they've done in previous games and keep Harry on Milne.

Reid will get butchered by Riewoldt, so i hope they don't go there either.

In fact i'll go as far as saying that there isn't a defender in the comp who can stop Rooey at the moment, so i'm resigned to us losing this battle. I just hope we push him to spots where his influence will be nullified a little.

IMO we need to treat this one as a team battle, and play him the way we played Barry Hall in Rd 1 with numbers flooding back into the hole all night, and 2 or 3 blokes going up against him in marking contests. We need to also be resigned to the fact that Riewoldt will win 3 or 4 frees for the night, as that's been a consistent theme last year and early this year.

I like all the other matchups you've listed. Hayes v Ball & Dal Santo v Pendles will go a long way in determining the result i think.

 

[mattys123]

The one thing I probably disagree with is Jones on Swan.

I don't think this will happen.

Swan is almost untaggable, and most coaches still seem to think he doesn't hurt them as much as a Pendlebury or a Didak.

My bet would be Jones on Didak, although I actually hope this happens, and we can win without Didak, we can't win without Medhurst or Swan.

Medhurst sets up more goals then anyone, and Swan is our engine that just keeps going for 4 quarters.

With the way our midfield rotates, I can't see Jones getting a mid, he will get Didak or Medhurst.

 

[popathon]

Riewoldt will beat any of our defenders most nights. We need to win the midfield battle or at least put enough pressure on their mids to stop 30m lace out chest passes to Roo. The reason we did so well last year defensively was becasue we put pressure on their midfielders around that 60-70m mark which made the forwards work for their goals.
I wouldn't mind seeing Goldy come in over Toovey.

 

[Primetime Pricey]

The one thing I probably disagree with is Jones on Swan.

I don't think this will happen.

Swan is almost untaggable, and most coaches still seem to think he doesn't hurt them as much as a Pendlebury or a Didak.

My bet would be Jones on Didak, although I actually hope this happens, and we can win without Didak, we can't win without Medhurst or Swan.

Medhurst sets up more goals then anyone, and Swan is our engine that just keeps going for 4 quarters.

With the way our midfield rotates, I can't see Jones getting a mid, he will get Didak or Medhurst.

If this is the case i would like to see Didak take Jones down to the goal square and expose Jones on the lead or crumbing at the feet of our Power Fwds.
If Didak takes him down there and Lyon changes things up and moves Jones off him then Didak can stay down there but float around half fwd.

 

[Frankie23]

As much as I would like Harry on Roo, Presti has a proven record and gets first crack at him.

Presti-Roo (Most obvious match-up, Presti showed in the NAB Cup where he kept him goalless for a half that he is up to the job, anything less then 4 goals is a win)

Maxwell-McQualter (This is where we can expose them, Maxy has to man up on there 6th forward, who imo is McQualter. Whilst he will try to make Maxy accountable, Maxy has to try support Presti at every opportunity)

Toovey-Milne (Pure shut-down role for Toovs here. Milne can be a handful, but Toovs has the pace to follow him)

Harry-Schnieder (Schnieder is a real danger, Harry needs to take him. We saw what he was capable in the NAB Cup, and is in decent form)

Heather-Goddard (BJ will play forward at times, and has potential to rip a game to shreds. When he goes forward, Shaw needs to tighten up on him)

Those are the main match-ups. If Stanley comes in one of Reid/L.Brown needs to take him)

Reiwoldt will kick his 3-4 goals, we have to write them off, it's the other forwards like Milne and Goodard that we can't let have an impact. Keep them under 12 goals is the aim for the defence as we did in the Qualifying final last year.

 

[The Magnificent Seven]

I was thinking:-

Heater vs Schneider - Schneider is very dangerous at ground level and Heath can match him for speed, smarts and size

Harry vs McQualter - Allows Harry to play loose and provide rebound

Presti vs Riewoldt - But only deep. You want to force Roo out to half forward and don't allow him to drag his man outside the arc. Too many times he'll run them ragged and then simply run back towards the goals in either a 1-on-1 or getting loose. We need to stifle that a bit more and make them chip it around the forward line

Toovey vs Milne - My only concern is Tooves getting lost, because Milne can get free very easily. Perhaps this is where having Harry free becomes important

Goldsack vs Pattison - A bit of height and speed to help out Presti and to also help if Gardiner drifts back

Thomas vs Gwilt - Play Thomas defensively to link up to the mids

Maxwell vs Goddard - He'll be able to run with him and provide strong defensive pressure

Pendles vs Dal Santo - Pretty exciting head-to-head

Swan vs Jones - Most equipped to handle the tag

Sidebottom vs Montagna - A tough ask, but Sidey can run and run and run and that's just what he'll need to do. Probably tag-team with Wellingham

Beams vs Baker - If he can stand up to Baker breathing down his neck he'll be handy here

Cloke vs Blake -

Jack vs Gilbert - Will probably get monstered but at least he'll provide a contest

Lockyer vs Gram - Should make him accountable

Fraser vs Dawson - Why not? Mix it up a bit. Plant Josh/Leigh Brown down here and have each of them rotate with Jolly

Hayes vs Ball - Good to watch

Gardiner vs Jolly (obviously!)

Ray vs Davis

I/C Medhurst, Wellingham, Brown, Reid

In: Presti
Out: Johnson

St Kilda's mids are too fast for O'Bree in this match. We'd be better off backing ourselves with pace, fast ball movement and steering clear of stoppages. Gardiner will give Jolly a good going-over and based on the last two performances he's not quite hitting his straps yet.

 

[hellfire]

I'm seeing a lot of underrating of McQualter in this thread. He has kicked two goals in each of our previous two "real" encounters [non-NAB], and in the QF had a fair bit of the ball. Is generally pretty accountable too, lays a lot of tackles and provides good forward pressure. We can't simply let O'Brien or Maxwell to play on him and just run loose. He's a dangerous player.

Obviously Riewoldt is a major focus, I'd give Presti first crack, Reid second. Everyone else to really help out when he's inside 50.

Goddard and Dal Santo are the other two we must stop. They both consistently carve us up, and both use the ball as well as anyone. Hard tags to be applied to both, possibly give it to someone like Thomas or Wellingham.

Hayes is a bit out of form, but he has to be closely checked around stoppages. He is another who always dominates against us.

 

[soreplums]

I can see Goddard spending time up forward taking away some run from Harry or shaw.

I'd like to see both Cloke and Anthony start in the goal square with either Leon or Medhurst floating around their feet. If Dids gets tagged, put him deep up forward and play Medhurst and Davis higher. Let our quick half-forwards/Forward Pockets push up the ground and use their leg speed to break the zone and carry the ball to our big forwards who are deep.

Fraser playing as a tall ruckrover/CHF around 40-80 metres from goal... or maybe a quick tall is better suited to this position.

 

[soreplums]

I'm seeing a lot of underrating of McQualter in this thread. He has kicked two goals in each of our previous two "real" encounters [non-NAB], and in the QF had a fair bit of the ball. Is generally pretty accountable too, lays a lot of tackles and provides good forward pressure. We can't simply let O'Brien or Maxwell to play on him and just run loose. He's a dangerous player.

Obviously Riewoldt is a major focus, I'd give Presti first crack, Reid second. Everyone else to really help out when he's inside 50.

Goddard and Dal Santo are the other two we must stop. They both consistently carve us up, and both use the ball as well as anyone. Hard tags to be applied to both, possibly give it to someone like Thomas or Wellingham.

Hayes is a bit out of form, but he has to be closely checked around stoppages. He is another who always dominates against us.

Very underrated for the role he plays for the saints. Does his job. Kicks a couple and sets up a couple each week. He loses focus because other teams concentrate on their stars.