Ratts, and our forward 50 mentality.

[AndyWalkersGirl]

Reading one of the newspaper articles this morning really made me quite frustrated. Not with the (Lack of) quality from the journo, but with Ratts and his single target forward thinking.

He said after the match yesterday, that Fev played more up the ground, and therefor we didnt' have anyone to go to inside 50.

What kind of professional coach thinks that, and let alone says it outloud? It's absolute rubbish in my opinion.

Why on earth our club continues to have this one side forward man is beyond me. Ratts coming out and saying that we had no one to go to just shows how behind our game structure really is, and also just spoke volumes about how our players have no confidence in other players inside 50.

What are people's thoughts on this, because I honestly thought we were beyond that whole "Fev will kick us goals, and we must go to him" mentality.

I'm starting to think that dropping Fev for a week, will make our players look to other targets. They're obviously not goinng to do it through choice, so maybe they need a push.

Collingwood game - fev scoreless, we killed them. Yesterday, according to Ratts... we didnt' have Fev up there and therefore had no target.

Absolute joke and has made me really question the professionalism and faith that's going on at our club.

 

[blues4flag]

You mean this quote?

"I think Brendan worked really hard all day and our delivery to him wasn't great at times," Ratten said.

"He probably got caught up a little bit like most of them, too high. Your key forward marking it at half-back doesn't assist you going forward.

Way to take it out of context...had you watched the match yesterday it'd have been obvious that Fev was being played further up the ground in the first half in order to try and get a more dynamic forward structure. Unfortunately, most times we got the ball past the wings our forward line was completely barran - no one there to kick to at all.

 

[blue gunslinger]

What is with Fev's run up? Changing it every time, different number of steps, not running in a straight line, stabs at it.....someone better have a chat to him!

 

[Chism]

What is with Fev's run up? Changing it every time, different number of steps, not running in a straight line, stabs at it.....someone better have a chat to him!

If i see him at the Bullants game today Guns i will have a word to him!!

 

[blue gunslinger]

If i see him at the Bullants game today Guns i will have a word to him!!

Do that!
And tell Ellard/Cloke to put in a good performance - wablues expect both to be in team for rnd 14 at Subi!

 

[AndyWalkersGirl]

You mean this quote?

"I think Brendan worked really hard all day and our delivery to him wasn't great at times," Ratten said.

"He probably got caught up a little bit like most of them, too high. Your key forward marking it at half-back doesn't assist you going forward.

Way to take it out of context...had you watched the match yesterday it'd have been obvious that Fev was being played further up the ground in the first half in order to try and get a more dynamic forward structure. Unfortunately, most times we got the ball past the wings our forward line was completely barran - no one there to kick to at all.

Nope not that quote.

Why on earth is our forward line completely barran anyway? Fev moves up to help us, but no one is willing to go down there and help him?

I dont get the way we do so well one week, and then play like rubbish the next.

 

[Mister Carlton]

Fevola is going to be the best CHB for Carlton starting from this year....

 

[The Coach]

AWG, I agree that Ratts post game did not reflect well on Ratts.

We can't drop Fev for giving plenty yesterday if it was the coach's fault

 

[blues_clues]

Problem with the first quarter yesterday was Ratten tried to use the same gameplan as the week before (which worked against Collingwood) of playing the forwards up the ground to create space in the forward 50 for players to run into.

Unfortunately Adelaide didnt buy into this and just left defenders back filling the holes.

Ratten then tried to stick to his plan but no goals at half time forced a change (finally) and we finally started to turn things around.

Ratts will learn from this, if the other team are playing man on man rather then zoning back i dont actually mind what he was trying to do but he needed to realize quicker that it wasnt going to work that day.

 

[Sublime]

Yes Fev did push well up the ground yesterday, especially in the first quarter but you can hardly blame him. Did you happen to see the service he got yesterday as well? I can remember plenty of times delivery into the forward 50 with him well in front on the lead was terrible. Bounced in front of him on so many occasions, with one Judd pass in particular disgraceful. That said he still had plenty of kickable opportunities and should have done better.

I've noticed the 2 games where we've struggled most (yesterday and Sydney) its been in windy, swirly conditions. Seems our skills really drop off when conditions aren't good and this is disappointing.

 

[thylacine60]

The sooner Fev moves into the midfield...

 

[Alice]

Problem with the first quarter yesterday was Ratten tried to use the same gameplan as the week before (which worked against Collingwood) of playing the forwards up the ground to create space in the forward 50 for players to run into.

Collingwood were terrible last week and not a quality measuring stick at all. what ever did or didn't work against them should not have been used as any real basis for a repeat performance.

 

[Kaladin Stormblessed]

What are people's thoughts on this, because I honestly thought we were beyond that whole "Fev will kick us goals, and we must go to him" mentality.

How the hell did you derive that we were past that mentality?? It has been going on for years, still is and doesn't show any signs of stopping in the near future.

I dont get the way we do so well one week, and then play like rubbish the next.

That's because we didn't play very well last week. In fact, we haven't played well since the Bulldogs game. If you had looked past the result last week you would've seen how poor we were, just Collingwood were worse. But some people (and maybe the club and players as well) chose to put the blinkers on and just say "Wow, 9 goal thumping of Collingwood! We're awesome". It was always going to come back to bite us on the arse against a better team and that's exactly what happened.

 

[BlueBelle]

Yes Fev did push well up the ground yesterday, especially in the first quarter but you can hardly blame him. Did you happen to see the service he got yesterday as well? I can remember plenty of times delivery into the forward 50 with him well in front on the lead was terrible. Bounced in front of him on so many occasions, with one Judd pass in particular disgraceful. That said he still had plenty of kickable opportunities and should have done better.

I've noticed the 2 games where we've struggled most (yesterday and Sydney) its been in windy, swirly conditions. Seems our skills really drop off when conditions aren't good and this is disappointing.

Fev was pushing up the ground early in the first quarter, even before our mids delievered into the F50. When I saw this, I thought what the? Our structure is already wrong.

Moving Kreuz to the forward line in the third had an immediate impact. We really need to keep him up there as often as we can and probably need Fish up there as well. They both have strong hands and will provide another target.

 

[HBF]

Kreuzer is the "tough" one for mine.
So good in the middle for someone so young, yet when he goes forward, he also provides such a good target as well. I thought the Collingwood game was a watershed game for our football club, given Fevola kicked no goals and our forward line functioned quite well.

Whatever we decide in the MC meetings this week, our forward line structure next week vs West Coast will take up much discussion.

 

[Warsaw]

Our forward line ATM is pretty dysfunctional. The set up for the last month hasn't been awesome. We need a second tall that's good on the ground as well as in the air i.e Fisher and we need Betts, Yarran to function around those two. We're going to pretty hard done by if we expect Betts to take a contested mark.

 

[Yubby]

I just think it's bizarre that when you have a midfield of Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Stevens, Simpson, Scotland and others who can all kick the ball very well, why we don't try to kick to our forwards on a lead as often as possible. Sure against collingwood it worked leading towards goal but i still think it's a bit backwards when you have such a talented midfield who generally find the time to choose their kicks that we don't have 2-3 leading options for every forward entry.

 

[gbatman]

we had no one to go to because our set up went to water and was rubbish.

not that our forwards had much of a chance

 

[Jack TY]

Players inconsistent, Ratten even more so....... I don't think this bloke had enough coaching experience before being given the top job. Learning your craft should be done where less is at stake - ie. VFL etc. Riley is experienced, hope he is having appropriate input.

 

[thylacine60]

Players inconsistent, Ratten even more so....... I don't think this bloke had enough coaching experience before being given the top job. Learning your craft should be done where less is at stake - ie. VFL etc. Riley is experienced, hope he is having appropriate input.

Ironic you call Ratts inexperienced...

 

[Jack TY]

Ironic you call Ratts inexperienced...

You had better spell it out for me Thy

 

[thylacine60]

Well I'm pretty sure he was an assistant at both Melbourne and Carlton. Think he coached at SANFL level and also in the EDFL. Happy to be corrected but it seems like a reasonable effort at gaining experience at the game.

 

[Alice]

Well I'm pretty sure he was an assistant at both Melbourne and Carlton. Think he coached at SANFL level and also in the EDFL. Happy to be corrected but it seems like a reasonable effort at gaining experience at the game.

That was Norwood in Eastern football League - div 2

 

[Bluebear]

I thought the Collingwood game was a watershed game for our football club, given Fevola kicked no goals and our forward line functioned quite well.

At times, especially in the first half vs Pies we played Fev up the ground and had a Pagans paddock for Betts, Austin, Waite etc to run into going with the Flight of the ball.

Same structures vs Crows........no-one running hard into the forward space.

What can look at times to be Fev's fault may well not be, and given the lack of application of our midfield on the day, some of the blame must go their way for their lack of run.

This week Fisher and Fev will occupy plenty of time within 30m from goal.
Mark it down.

 

[1981]

At times, especially in the first half vs Pies we played Fev up the ground and had a Pagans paddock for Betts, Austin, Waite etc to run into going with the Flight of the ball.

Same structures vs Crows........no-one running hard into the forward space.

What can look at times to be Fev's fault may well not be, and given the lack of application of our midfield on the day, some of the blame must go their way for their lack of run.

This week Fisher and Fev will occupy plenty of time within 30m from goal.
Mark it down.

Fair post there and I was talking to some mates today about the Pagan's Paddock thing.

It worked last week when it was used as a surprise by Ratts to catch Malthouse off guard (he'd have been planning all week for Fevola to be near goal because Fev has killed the Pies the last two times we'd played them).

Good time to do it too because the Pies were heavily undermanned. Even if it didn't work and they got the jump on us you would think we could reel them in given their depleted side.

But why then do it again the week following, when you have the wind, and when the opposition have seen you do the paddock the week prior so might be planning for it, and given the opposition are renowed for flooding back?

Just seemed a poor and predictable move by Rattan, that didn't work.