Review Round 12, 2021 - Melbourne vs. Brisbane Lions

[martinson]

I'm dead set against putting Starc in the M/F at this stage.

He's just learning his craft where he is and plays a valuable role.

Let's see where he's at in a year or two.

 

[martinson]

I'm dead set against putting Starc in the M/F at this stage.

He's just learning his craft where he is and plays a valuable role.

Let's see where he's at in a year or two.

But in a situation where we're going to lose if we don't do something I can see that throwing a couple of people around to see if they can give us a spark is logical in principle.

 

[Nunez]

I don't think we should move Starc to the middle on a whim, but see the bye as the perfect time to test it in training. The hard thing would be replacing him down back which we can't really do without Answerth returning or Brock Smith stepping up.

 

[Nuggo]

Madden perhaps?

 

[Tom14]

Madden perhaps?

Maybe he should play more than 3 senior games in a code he has been playing for approx 3 years, before we thrown him in the middle.

 

[martinson]

Maybe he should play more than 3 senior games in a code he has been playing for approx 3 years, before we thrown him in the middle.

Lol.

Exactly.

People seem to think guys can just turn up and if they look any good you can throw them into the M/F

We had a No.1 draft pick in Rayner and he still wasn't up to that after 3 years. So the players of lesser ability haven't got much hope.

 

[Nuggo]

Maybe he should play more than 3 senior games in a code he has been playing for approx 3 years, before we thrown him in the middle.

Was more Madden back Starc middle if we are flirting with the idea of moving Starc to the middle.

 

[mpal6]

Maybe he should play more than 3 senior games in a code he has been playing for approx 3 years, before we thrown him in the middle.

haha, I just remembered Robert Walls "throw him in the ruck" as soon as I read this one.

 

[Ralphy2017]

I agree with your sentiments about Joe.

He's pretty useless at the centre bounce where he just goes up and then back down without providing much of a contest.

It seems that he is a willing participant in whatever capacity we choose to employ him but I firmly believe his energies are better directed to other areas , especially in the forward line. It would be a tragedy if he injured himself at some inconsequential ruck contest, especially when we seem to have got him up and running again after his spending years battling injury at Essendon

I'm not sure of his contract status but I'd like to see us make a play for Mabior Chol.

It looks like he is third banana behind Nankervis and Soldo at Richmond but his performance last night against Essendon, especially in the first half was top drawer.

He's a former Aspley, Brisbane Lions Academy and Lions Reserves NEAFL player.

Would be a big upgrade on Archie and also seriously challenge O for the No1 Ruck spot, while taking the pressure off Joe in that area of the ground.

Chol also has some very good pace, very good

 

[davemc_lions]

Would not mind seeing Starc get a run in the mid. Same as Andrews forward
Might work although what are you loosing in return
Strac been very very good down back.

All the talk Fagan likes players who are versatile.
Joe and Oscar swap over although really only Ah Chee only one that goes forward or back.
our mids go to forward or bench.
When we getting killed in the centre would not mind just trying something new like Starc in the mid.
Seems Charlie does not want to go in their much

 

[jackess]

Would not mind seeing Starc get a run in the mid. Same as Andrews forward
Might work although what are you loosing in return
Strac been very very good down back.

All the talk Fagan likes players who are versatile.
Joe and Oscar swap over although really only Ah Chee only one that goes forward or back.
our mids go to forward or bench.
When we getting killed in the centre would not mind just trying something new like Starc in the mid.
Seems Charlie does not want to go in their much

Saw Charlie in a centre bounce in the second half.

What positional changes did Melbourne make to turn their form around?

 

[NotQuiteJezza]

Brisbane’s problem is that it can defend against the top teams that play a slow, deliberate attack. As soon as any team starts attacking with speed, handball and streaming style they do not have a defensive mechanism to stop the run.

We have too many slow players in the midfield and defense at the moment. We need players like Madden, Prior, Cockatoo and Sharp to get more game time and experience before we are flag hopes.

Until we develop defensive structures that can shut down more than one type of offensive style, we will be second tier.

Big O also needs some help out there. I wonder if he is our long term answer. I love his guts and determination but I don’t know that’s enough.

 

[BangyBangy]

Kath Loughnan to Nicky Del on AFL Tonight: - 'Is there any weakness in Melbourne's game Del?'

Nick Del Santo - 'No Kath, there's not.'

WTF? They were lucky to be behind by only 20 at half time. THAT'S A WEAKNESS YOU IMBECILE.

 

[davemc_lions]

Saw Charlie in a centre bounce in the second half.

What positional changes did Melbourne make to turn their form around?

Saw Charlie at a couple.
Yes you assume they changed something up as they where 20 points down.
Whatever they changed worked.
I do think we marked everything in the first half, tackled well maybe ran out of steam.

 

[Lazza16]

Good to see Dermie call out Oliver and the ridiculous amount throws he gets away with. I reckon he would have got away with 3 to 4 last night which were not even close to handballs and thats about his average every week. It's a real blight on the game and yet we have people lauding the dogs and the likes of Oliver for their great hands.

See if he gets away with in the finals when he has the best umpires watching.

Doggies won the GF doing it...so not sure final umpiring differs from HnA.

 

[martinson]

When you have Gawn , Oliver and Petracca why would you need to change anything up just because you're losing. Brayshaw and Harmes aren't bad either.

The strong odds are they're going to come good at some point in the game.

I don't see anything we could've done to turn it around. They were too good ,we ran out of puff.

 

[BangyBangy]

When you have Gawn , Oliver and Petracca why would you need to change anything up just because you're losing. Brayshaw and Harmes aren't bad either.

The strong odds are they're going to come good at some point in the game.

I don't see anything we could've done to turn it around. They were too good ,we ran out of puff.

Lol, that's your pep talk before the next time we play them?

 

[martinson]

Lol, that's your pep talk before the next time we play them?

It's one game Bangy.

I think anyone in footy or on here is mature enough to know that.

They belted us after half time.

Unless you want to pretend it didn't happen.

As for next time we play them that's a brand new game isn't it.

 

[morsie]

It wouldn't have hurt to throw the magnets about a bit.Maybe McCarthy could have tried to sit on Petracca or Oliver.While not that tall he is strong and athletic.

 

[briztoon]

I reckon the whole "big bodied midfielder" is bollocks really. Our Brownlow medalist is a dwarf( a fricken awesome dwarf), but small.....but strong, quick, creative, etc. "big bodied" runs a very long second to skill. The reason Petracca, and Dusty are guns is because they're blessed with skill, strength, vision, awareness etc.

Of course those players need skill.

Petracca isn’t the Deamons big bodied mid though, he’s their explosive mid who can go forward. Plays a similar role to what Zorko does for us.

Oliver is their big bodied mid. Like Dusty, or Cripps, or Fyfe.

Players who can win the ball and just run through opposition teams. Players who can put a team on their back and win them a game almost individually.

It’s great having Neale, and what he did last year was awesome. But at times he’s a one man show, particularly when our midfield is getting beat like it was against Melbourne in the second half on the weekend.

It’s not a case of Neale or a big bodied mid.

It’s a case of I want both Neale and a big mid in the Oliver mold to support him.

 

[BangyBangy]

It's one game Bangy.

I think anyone in footy or on here is mature enough to know that.

They belted us after half time.

Unless you want to pretend it didn't happen.

As for next time we play them that's a brand new game isn't it.

Lol.

Negative ghostrider.

 

[mpal6]

Saw Charlie at a couple.
Yes you assume they changed something up as they where 20 points down.
Whatever they changed worked.
I do think we marked everything in the first half, tackled well maybe ran out of steam.

It was a bit of them lifting and us not going with them. We were just expecting a win as usual since we were 20 ahead already. Too bad the goals just did not come and midfield were second to ball. The other weird part was our attempts to pop it up on top of the goal square while within range. McStay did it, Rich did it, Big O handballed it, it was weird there were gettable shots not being taken at all. Our counter punch never arrived even though we had the opportunities and the right team members had the ball in hand, that was the annoying part to me sitting on the ground and watching it unfold.

It's good that it happened this time, gives us something to ponder over even from mindset perspective.

 

[briztoon]

I was on this "Starce to the midfield" wagon last year but not anymore. I think he's settled in his current role now and doing a fantastic job. We'll be replacing Birchall and Rich (in the near future), so you want continuity from rest of the players in defense. Starce will need to stay there.

I'd say in Deven we already have the answer to that attacking big body mid. He has all the tools and doing more negative roles presently against Petracca / Oliver / Martin etc and matching up really well. He'll learn a lot this year and we will benefit from it even later this year or in 2022.

Dev Robertson isn’t really a big bodied mid.

He’s more a Joel Selwood type of hard at it mid, just slightly taller, but he’s a much better runner. Doesn’t have that explosive burst of power or outright speed, but he’s fast and can keep running to get from contest to contest.

Bailey and Rayner are our attacking mids, with that ability to burst from congestion, and Rayner has a big body. Hopefully Cockatoo can get healthy and still has his power and speed, to join them.

 

[lionsrules]

I can think of several goals the demons got because of a free kick that changed the situation. We lacked discipline on Friday night. Could’ve been different if we were more disciplined.

 

[briztoon]

Saw Charlie in a centre bounce in the second half.

What positional changes did Melbourne make to turn their form around?

They didn’t make any personal changes, they just changed their game style. Goodwin said it in his presser.

They played a kick it down the line, turn it into a stoppage contest in the first half, which suited us.

In the second half they changed it to a run and handball game off their defensive 50, then spread.

We’ve always had trouble defending against teams that get numbers near the ball who handball and run their way out of trouble.

Our midfield is often too small and/or slow to stop the handball chains, and overlap run.

And our defensive zone is too spread out to get enough numbers near the opposition to match numbers around the ball when they are running and handballing down one wing or through the middle after a turn over.