Our back

[Rob]

It was mentioned in the pre game that we are getting some depth to the squad. Based on today, that is a load of crap. Look at our 6 players at the back of the 22 (in no particular order):

Palmer
Johnson
Pearce
McPhee
Pitt
Roberton

All of which were just shocking today - yet who can we replace them with? The only player we have playing good consistent footy in the WAFL is Anthony, and the only one there that could possibly be replaced by him is McPhee, and I don't think McPhee has been that bad this year. The other 5 were genuine liabilities, and really haven't shown anything to say they won't be. Where is this depth that they were talking about? Make no mistake, if we get a couple of injuries to our best dozen or so players, we could really take a drop.

 

[Higs]

We have good depth because those 6 worst players you mentioned ARE our depth players. At full fitness, Barlow, Silvagni, Hayden, Mzungu, Morabito and Suban would be ahead of the lot of them and guys like Palmer, Johnson would be sitting as an EMG

 

[Scham]

Higs, even if we had a full squad to pick from McPhee would still get a game. Harve's loves him.

 

[prattsta]

Make no mistake, if we get a couple of injuries to our best dozen or so players, we could really take a drop.

in fairness, Barlow, Morabito, Suban, Silvagni and Hayden were all best 22 last year and are unavailable this season. We have good depth because we were still winning without 5 of our best.

 

[Clay Davis]

It's easy to blame the bottom six guys, and in some respects I agree, but the game played by Pavlich was utterly disastrous for us. It was his terrible ball use and lack of defensive efforts that hurt us. It was like Priddis crossed with Lewis Jetta, but 10 times worse.

 

[Nickos66]

The bottom 6 were only half the problem, if that..

 

[Man of Men]

I'd be inclined to at least stick with pearce for another week or two and see how he goes. Its his first afl match in a while

 

[BeinPurplenGreen]

It was mentioned in the pre game that we are getting some depth to the squad. Based on today, that is a load of crap. Look at our 6 players at the back of the 22 (in no particular order):

Palmer
Johnson
Pearce
McPhee
Pitt
Roberton

All of which were just shocking today - yet who can we replace them with? The only player we have playing good consistent footy in the WAFL is Anthony, and the only one there that could possibly be replaced by him is McPhee, and I don't think McPhee has been that bad this year. The other 5 were genuine liabilities, and really haven't shown anything to say they won't be. Where is this depth that they were talking about? Make no mistake, if we get a couple of injuries to our best dozen or so players, we could really take a drop.

Only change I could see happening is Anthony in if Ballas misses with injury - I would also bring any of Sibo, Crichton, Griffen or Bucoo in for MJ, but we all know that won't be happening.

The bottom 6 were only half the problem, if that..

Exactly, I'd hardly think it right to list Pitt and Pearce as the worst offenders. Sitting in the stands I was very very disappointed with the failure to chase, the lack of manning up and the dropping of the heads by a significant number of senior players. Very poor vibe, no excuses really for that second half.

 

[Memories]

While individual players deserve mention (mostly Pavlich and Mayne who killed us the most of any players) we were losing 1 on 1s all over the ground.

The Richmond game plan seemed to be, wait till you could kick to a contest, don't even bother marking it, bring it to ground and move it quickly. Counted about 8 goals that were scored like this. Our young players basically aren't up to a defensive standard needed, and Ibbo/Roberton/Pitt couldn't stop Peel Thunder from getting 18 goals . But most of the players seemed to be dialing in their performances anyhow, not enough concentration on the game.

Full Image Click Here

That said DeBoer while having a couple of fumbles kept Martin right out of the game, he's coming along nicely.

 

[Chops_a_must]

I'd be inclined to at least stick with pearce for another week or two and see how he goes. Its his first afl match in a while

He certainly was not our worst and I wasn't unimpressed with his work.

While individual players deserve mention (mostly Pavlich and Mayne who killed us the most of any players) we were losing 1 on 1s all over the ground.

The Richmond game plan seemed to be, wait till you could kick to a contest, don't even bother marking it, bring it to ground and move it quickly. Counted about 8 goals that were scored like this. Our young players basically aren't up to a defensive standard needed, and Ibbo/Roberton/Pitt couldn't stop Peel Thunder from getting 18 goals . But most of the players seemed to be dialing in their performances anyhow, not enough concentration on the game.

Full Image Click Here

That said DeBoer while having a couple of fumbles kept Martin right out of the game, he's coming along nicely.

Fantastic micro analysis once again.

 

[Leslie_Chow]

Don't know which thread it belongs in but I put it in here because Pitt being mentioned in our bottom 6..

Anyways i really think that we will regret passing on Darling. He may have had attitude problems, but he will be a star.
Pitt just looks lost out on the ground. Yes he is first year, but Fyfe and Hill had major impacts in their first year with the same frame.

I dont know if this is relevant to anything, but I just had to say it. Given our key position problems that will hit us in a few years, I think we have passed on a genuine gun of the future.

 

[E Shed]

If you can't see Pitt can play you aren't paying attention

 

[Clay Davis]

Don't know which thread it belongs in but I put it in here because Pitt being mentioned in our bottom 6..

Anyways i really think that we will regret passing on Darling. He may have had attitude problems, but he will be a star.
Pitt just looks lost out on the ground. Yes he is first year, but Fyfe and Hill had major impacts in their first year with the same frame.

I dont know if this is relevant to anything, but I just had to say it. Given our key position problems that will hit us in a few years, I think we have passed on a genuine gun of the future.

Heresy on these boards to even suggest our current recruiting team don't get it dead on every draft. Last year's draft was a flashback to the days of Phil Smart, with a Victorian flanker taken every round.

In what way can Pitt play, E Shed? His ball use is dead ordinary, and that is meant to be his greatest asset. No speed, little hunger for the contest. It will be many years before he is at his best.

 

[OuterWing Parrot]

Don't know which thread it belongs in but I put it in here because Pitt being mentioned in our bottom 6..

Anyways i really think that we will regret passing on Darling. He may have had attitude problems, but he will be a star.
Pitt just looks lost out on the ground. Yes he is first year, but Fyfe and Hill had major impacts in their first year with the same frame.

I dont know if this is relevant to anything, but I just had to say it. Given our key position problems that will hit us in a few years, I think we have passed on a genuine gun of the future.

Six games in and one bad loss and questions get asked about a skinny 18yo. Jayden has been an exciting addition to our squad. Not saying it might not be time for him to do a stint in the WAFL, but I reckon Pitt has shown plenty of good signs and with a bit more experience is looking like becoming an influential player. Way too early to know whether either Pitt OR Darling will be champs, but I'm not at all unhappy with what I've seen of Jayden Pitt. Well done to our recruiters.

 

[Memories]

The bad thing is, this tactic against us will keep working. We really need to get the midfield in line and hope some of the players coming back can improve the defensive efforts. Richmond have shown up our gameplan and our zone and I expect other teams to copy it.

 

[Leslie_Chow]

Six games in and one bad loss and questions get asked about a skinny 18yo. Jayden has been an exciting addition to our squad. Not saying it might not be time for him to do a stint in the WAFL, but I reckon Pitt has shown plenty of good signs and with a bit more experience is looking like becoming an influential player. Way too early to know whether either Pitt OR Darling will be champs, but I'm not at all unhappy with what I've seen of Jayden Pitt. Well done to our recruiters.

Im not writing him off, but questions do need to be asked. Also Id love to see how he has added excitement and what good signs he has shown or how he will be an influential player. He may be down the track, but he is yet to show it.
It just needs to be brought up because we missed out on Darling. Alot of people want to believe that our recruiters are always going to get it right. Darling was touted as a top 3 pick early last year. He is a KPF. He is West Aussie. He is tearing it up now. I think there is good enough evidence to suggest we may have got it wrong with this one.

 

[rgauci]

Our zone doesn't move side to side very well. Which is fine at Subiaco because its a long skinny ground but the MCG which is very round and we get exposed on the wings.

I was dissapointed with Duffield who Jake King nullified. Broughton looks underdone and isn't moving freely. Grover was good and with McPharlin playing on Riewoldt we missed his usual rebound from defence. Johnson got given a bath by Tyrone Vickery who is being played on potential. Disgusting effort from him.

Pavlich was crap. I thought Sandilands, Mundy, Ballantyne and Keplar can really hold their heads high. DeBoer did a great job and nullified Martin.

It was the senior players underperforming which was the main problem. Not the bottom 6. Though it's easy to blame them because we can name alternatives. You can't change our senior players.

The recruiting department obviously thought Jack Anthony was going to be better. Hence passing on Darling for a midfielder in Pitt. I think Pitt has been fine to date and looks to be acustoming to the speed of the game. Even though Pitt was a 1st rounder, lets not forget he was pick 20 in a draft which was severely compromised. I'm not upset with that selection what so ever.

In hindsight (which is always 20/20), we should of taken Darling at pick 20 and Ed Curnow in the PSD. If Jack Anthony does a Tarrant and becomes a solid backman next year and Pitt keeps improving, we might all be eating humble pie.

 

[OuterWing Parrot]

Im not writing him off, but questions do need to be asked. Also Id love to see how he has added excitement and what good signs he has shown or how he will be an influential player. He may be down the track, but he is yet to show it.
It just needs to be brought up because we missed out on Darling. Alot of people want to believe that our recruiters are always going to get it right. Darling was touted as a top 3 pick early last year. He is a KPF. He is West Aussie. He is tearing it up now. I think there is good enough evidence to suggest we may have got it wrong with this one.

Pitt was exciting in the Bulldogs game. Came on as sub for the last quarter and had 7 good possessions in the frantic finish. Good signs include a couple of nice goals (even yesterday he kicked a classy goal). Has mostly looked comfortable with the ball. Like all young players has made a few blues, but appears to have pretty good decision making.

I understand that you are not writing off Pitt, but I disagree that there is presently enough evidence to suggest we have got this selection wrong. Regardless, NO recruiters get every pick right and right now I think our recruiting team can rest easy. If they can find 2 or 3 regular senior players each year they've done an excellent job.

From 2010, if none of Mzungu, Pitt, Mellington, Michie, Anthony, Griffen, Faulks, Roberts and Lower turn into decent players then you can get stuck into the Dockers recruiters. I'm not sure when is the right time to make that assessment as injuries, opportunities and maturity have an impact, but Round 7 of season one is waaay too early.

 

[Memories]

I guess the point is there are too many passengers in the team, Pitt is one, and sides which exploit our passengers will beat us. There's a reason Pitt is in the team, we are developing him. However we should expect to lose quite often when we carry so many into a game.

Besides Grover and Broughton down back no one else really shows anything. Duffield is down severely in form. McPharlin/Ibbo/MiJo/Roberton/Pitt/Suban are commonly found out and go half hearted to most contests. We have one of the weakest backlines of any club that fielded a team last round. Mzungu, Hayden and Barlow (who runs to cover defensive holes) will strengthen it, but who knows if it will be enough against quality sides.

 

[Ysaye]

Don't understand the criticism of Pitt. He is looking like he will be a top line midfield prospect and his kicking at times is damaging - he is definitely someone you want as an up and coming prospect. Yes we missed out on Darling, but we still got a quality player. When he gets a little stronger he will be an excellent wingman.

 

[Lach72]

I guess the point is there are too many passengers in the team, Pitt is one, and sides which exploit our passengers will beat us. There's a reason Pitt is in the team, we are developing him. However we should expect to lose quite often when we carry so many into a game.

Besides Grover and Broughton down back no one else really shows anything. Duffield is down severely in form. McPharlin/Ibbo/MiJo/Roberton/Pitt/Suban are commonly found out and go half hearted to most contests. We have one of the weakest backlines of any club that fielded a team last round. Mzungu, Hayden and Barlow (who runs to cover defensive holes) will strengthen it, but who knows if it will be enough against quality sides.

McPharlin and Suban? Righteo

 

[theGav56]

Don't understand the criticism of Pitt. He is looking like he will be a top line midfield prospect and his kicking at times is damaging - he is definitely someone you want as an up and coming prospect. Yes we missed out on Darling, but we still got a quality player. When he gets a little stronger he will be an excellent wingman.

I think he is way ahead of where I thought he would be given his physical development, and look forward to watching his career unfold. That is for the future.

The thing for me in the Darling comparison is that Darling fills a spot we are deficient in right now, and Darling is ready to play right now. Not selecting him to me was a signal that the recruiters and coaching staff are happy with the squad and the structures that we can set up for season 2011. Right now that is not looking to be a great assessment.

It is a little like the Hill/Rich comparison which had the theory that Rich was ready to go and physically developed, but Hill would be a bit more of a project. Rich came with a guarentee 150-200 games, Hill didn't. Didn't turn out that way, but that is how it went. The club clearly got it very right, maybe they have with Pitt too.

 

[BananaOnTheRun]

something is wrong with our structures when the opposition scores 14 goals in the second half. HB is a bit weak at the moment. do our mids run back much to support?

 

[Memories]

McPharlin and Suban? Righteo

McPharlin leaks goals mainly through two methods, stupid disposal coming out of the backline and through losing 1 on 1 contests. He is good when he can play somewhat loose off his man (getting 2nd or 3rd best forward) but we don't really have a spare KPD to allow him this luxury and MiJo has him covered for the loose man (pretty much his only role he can play).

Suban is slow and has a turning circle of a mack truck. He leaks goals by letting his opponent run off him.

Basically who is the player like Ballatyne we have down back? That will ferociously attack each contest? Broughton is almost it, but he plays almost a lone hand currently, with Duffield popping up time to time. Grover at least can somewhat nullify most forwards and play on his man. DeBoer could be it, but looks to be tagging midfielders now.

The way those Richmond forwards were all free yesterday, almost like they had no man most of the game goes to show we lack speed and agility in the backline. Roberton, Pitt, Ibbo, MiJo just aren't up to it as defenders in the modern game. They are unaccountable and have no heart. Pitt at least I will excuse because he isn't being groomed for a back position but Ibbo/Roberton/Mijo is a horrible half backline.

Maybe it's time to switch things up and play Mayne down back. His goal kicking is horrendous but his pressure is excellent.

 

[Nickos66]

Agree with possibly trying Mayne down back. His field kicking is fine, so him applying the pressure clamps down back and nailing it to someone on a wing would be very much effective.