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As the team selections this year seem to have stirred more debate than ever before, thought it would be worthwhile running through some of them. It seems as if Hinkley has selected the best 22 from last year + Ryder and stuck with them, only bringing in like for like. He also hasn't made selections based on team weaknesses but rather stuck to the gameplan - for instance playing Neade rather than another midfielder in the first two games despite us lacking match fitness. Ken has always backed players in and usually they have rewarded him, he isn't the kind of coach to make changes weekly and gives the side several weeks to get comfortable together whilst tinkering around the edges.
Game one: Criticised for playing underdone players, an out of form Neade and taking a risk with Butcher. However, despite all this we could have/should have beaten the most defensive and best side of 2015 at their home. So the structures and personnel work, some might say another mid instead of Butcher/Neade may have got us over the line but who knows. The other point is we didn't have a SANFL game so not playing people like Hartlett and Monfries wouldn't have allowed them to get match fitness and meant they would have had to miss several weeks to get match fitness - we were a bit hamstrung there. Yea maybe Young, Stewart and Mitchell should have come in here as the most in form players or we back our best 22 who were a kick short of a GF.
1) Ryder - was fit, and our sole ruck, had to play.
2) Monfries - fit and a key 22 player
3) Trengove - only back over 195cm, not match fit but essential
4) Wingard - Arguably our best forward and our X factor, even at 50% he can change a game.
5) Hartlett - our best kick, had to play.
6) Boak - recovered mostly from the corky, always going to play.
7) Neade - great form last year, even if his preseason form was poor, his forward pressure merited selection.
The real question is who would have come in instead?
Game 2:
Redden for Butcher. Regardless of whether Butcher should have got another game or not, Redden came in to free up Ryder and was likely to be subbed. Sadly with the Impey injury it didn't work and Redden was too out of form and lacking in fitness to impact the game significantly. Our work rate also dropped off and we were killed around the contest. It was a high risk move and a dumb one, but had it paid off we would be singing its praises. Really it never should have happened considering his lack of form and fitness and that he was only just back from injury. I am not sure why they made this decision.
Game 3: Ah Chee, Mitchell, Young and Krak in for Cornes, Redden, Neade and Impey. All made sense really. Needed run and inside winners and we got them. Ah Chee over Moore was a surprise. Cornes was being managed.
Game 4: Wines and Gray out, Lobbe and Cornes in. Can't argue with that.
Game 5: Gray in for Ah Chee.
Game 6: Polec out for Ah Chee.
Game 7: Impey, Amon and O'Shea in and Ah Chee, Young and Carlile out. Ah Chee being dropped to get a full SANFL game doesn't make sense, Young is fair considering form and poor defensive efforts. O'Shea wasn't in great form, but then he never really kills SANFL but still comes in and is solid at AFL. He is also our next in line KPD and covered Carlile/Trengrove last year quite well. The problem with these selections was we removed two inside mids and a KPD and replaced them with two running backs and an outside runner. This is despite our midfield getting killed and the Lions actually having a solid midfield. Impey is fine to cover the Brisbane smalls, Amon is in form and makes sense to provide X factor, O'Shea was probably surplus to needs.
Game 8: O'Shea out and Wines and Carlile in, fair. Gray is in form but is a SANFL mid, if we want an AFL mid I think there are better options, if we want a small forward there are better options. Gray is the only other rookie to warrant elevation. Cornes retirement, allows Krak to be elevated year long.
Paul Stewart is in cracking form as a space filling half bank flanker/wing. We have a few of those in the team already and would have been rough to have dropped anyone prior to this game.
So have our selections been that crazy or disappointing? Bar game 7, Redden and Gray, I would say they have been perfectly reasonable.
Game one: Criticised for playing underdone players, an out of form Neade and taking a risk with Butcher. However, despite all this we could have/should have beaten the most defensive and best side of 2015 at their home. So the structures and personnel work, some might say another mid instead of Butcher/Neade may have got us over the line but who knows. The other point is we didn't have a SANFL game so not playing people like Hartlett and Monfries wouldn't have allowed them to get match fitness and meant they would have had to miss several weeks to get match fitness - we were a bit hamstrung there. Yea maybe Young, Stewart and Mitchell should have come in here as the most in form players or we back our best 22 who were a kick short of a GF.
1) Ryder - was fit, and our sole ruck, had to play.
2) Monfries - fit and a key 22 player
3) Trengove - only back over 195cm, not match fit but essential
4) Wingard - Arguably our best forward and our X factor, even at 50% he can change a game.
5) Hartlett - our best kick, had to play.
6) Boak - recovered mostly from the corky, always going to play.
7) Neade - great form last year, even if his preseason form was poor, his forward pressure merited selection.
The real question is who would have come in instead?
Game 2:
Redden for Butcher. Regardless of whether Butcher should have got another game or not, Redden came in to free up Ryder and was likely to be subbed. Sadly with the Impey injury it didn't work and Redden was too out of form and lacking in fitness to impact the game significantly. Our work rate also dropped off and we were killed around the contest. It was a high risk move and a dumb one, but had it paid off we would be singing its praises. Really it never should have happened considering his lack of form and fitness and that he was only just back from injury. I am not sure why they made this decision.
Game 3: Ah Chee, Mitchell, Young and Krak in for Cornes, Redden, Neade and Impey. All made sense really. Needed run and inside winners and we got them. Ah Chee over Moore was a surprise. Cornes was being managed.
Game 4: Wines and Gray out, Lobbe and Cornes in. Can't argue with that.
Game 5: Gray in for Ah Chee.
Game 6: Polec out for Ah Chee.
Game 7: Impey, Amon and O'Shea in and Ah Chee, Young and Carlile out. Ah Chee being dropped to get a full SANFL game doesn't make sense, Young is fair considering form and poor defensive efforts. O'Shea wasn't in great form, but then he never really kills SANFL but still comes in and is solid at AFL. He is also our next in line KPD and covered Carlile/Trengrove last year quite well. The problem with these selections was we removed two inside mids and a KPD and replaced them with two running backs and an outside runner. This is despite our midfield getting killed and the Lions actually having a solid midfield. Impey is fine to cover the Brisbane smalls, Amon is in form and makes sense to provide X factor, O'Shea was probably surplus to needs.
Game 8: O'Shea out and Wines and Carlile in, fair. Gray is in form but is a SANFL mid, if we want an AFL mid I think there are better options, if we want a small forward there are better options. Gray is the only other rookie to warrant elevation. Cornes retirement, allows Krak to be elevated year long.
Paul Stewart is in cracking form as a space filling half bank flanker/wing. We have a few of those in the team already and would have been rough to have dropped anyone prior to this game.
So have our selections been that crazy or disappointing? Bar game 7, Redden and Gray, I would say they have been perfectly reasonable.
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.........its either VB, or Coopers best. Usually stout 
