Preview Round 16 - Essendon Bombers vs Port Adelaide - Saturday, July 1st - 7:25 pm - MCG - Ridley's Revenge

[TheGrizz]

I think there is a major risk in carrying 2 genuine rucks into this game.

Port have been monstering teams with Finlayson in the ruck against opposition 2nd rucks with his follow up work. I would seriously consider whether we should be carrying both Bryan and Phillips this week in the team.

 

[Keystone agony]

No team has won off the bye playing a team that didn't have a bye the week before

Essendon be like, hold my beer

Theres no doubt in my mind, we will be the only ones to buck the trend ha

 

[ant555]

I edited my comment to include a comment about Kelly. What are your thoughts there?

To expand his defensive 1on1 loss rate is 40% which is one of the worst in the league for players with a reasonable sample of contests. He got absolutely cut up by Walters too who McGrath would have handled easily.

He was not great last week and has a couple of poor games this year.
He has lost 4 contested one on ones out of 10 so far this year. Nick Hind has lost 2 from 6. Mass has lost 2 from 5. There is also the fact that one on one defensive losses do not count the games he intercepts the ball or spoils from non contested situations. He averages 5.1 intercept possessions.
I know I am not going to win this argument as you have never rated him.

 

[andleanback]

I think there is a major risk in carrying 2 genuine rucks into this game.

Port have been monstering teams with Finlayson in the ruck against opposition 2nd rucks with his follow up work. I would seriously consider whether we should be carrying both Bryan and Phillips this week in the team.

Yeh I would pull 1 ruck out this game and let weid 2nd ruck

 

[Keystone agony]

Only issue is Finlayson will jump all over and move to well for Weideman

Also the best opportunity for Bryan to play and his 34% was very good

Also based on last week im not convinced the plan is such that Weideman is the back up ruck, i think it still may be 2MP. Who i think id rather keep forward

 

[Lore]

Disagree.

From what I’ve seen we are playing that way by design. Rutten focused heavily on trying to be a front half turn over team whereas Scott has taken a lower risk easier to implement clog the corridor and flood back game plan.

I’m not sure the focus is on being a slingshot team that is more a byproduct of the defensive scheme that is primarily in place to protect our poor back 6.

I do question the long term viability of defending this way but maybe it’ll allow us to play the likes of Reid and Cox as KPDs more easily and we can change the plan later on.

Rebound footy is flashy and good for the fans, builds excitement and sells memberships, so in some ways the club might have been happy enough with that under the previous CEO. But it's not flag football because it relies on 6-10 players to do the job of 15, which is not reliable or sustainable particularly in the 6-6-6 era.

We are playing the way we are because it is the only thing we've been good at since 2016, when we lost our entire midfield. It's generally the only way we've been able to win games since (on average only about half of them), because the midfield that came back isn't what it was before, was always missing something anyway, and has yet to be fully replaced and developed since they retired.

We've had too much focus in the last decade on recruiting players with x-factor physical abilities that are often lost with age, injury and muscle/weight gain, and sometimes also incompatible with endurance. The result is that we don't focus enough on x-factor personal attributes like footy smarts, team-orientation and interpersonal skills (leadership), some of which we now seem to be trying to develop and embed as cultural values.

That means we still have a problem especially between the arcs, and between the ears, and until we get that right our game plan is going to be stuck in this same rut it has been for 8 years now.

Scott hasn't put in a new gameplan (yet) or really built any layers on it at all. He's used what we already had, stripped it back to what they know how to do, with a focus on drilling the fundamentals, and a bit more observable effort with regard to developing and teaching game day strategies and tactics. The point of doing that is to try to build confidence in the group and get everyone on board, while he assesses where the list is really at and what they're really capable of.

The alternative is to do what Truck did in 2022, trying to get a group of players to act outside their natural game, when they don't understand it, haven't developed the skills (physical or psychological) to execute it, and when it doesn't immediately work unless everyone does it together, quickly ends in disaster.

I do think Truck was right about some things though, identifying a need for cultural change being one area, and the other being the comment that "the best place to look for the players you need is on your list". It seems to be Brad's approach too... so developing each individual player helps us figure out what their strengths are and whether that individual player is capable of playing the roles we need to fill in order to take the next step as a group.

Langford in the back and forward lines is the obvious example, but he's also made a point of exposing a lot of players for a run of games in a particular role at AFL level to see what they're capable of, regardless of age. Davey, Menzie, Jones, Hobbs, Caldwell have all done this, as have Merrett, Shiel, Setterfield and Heppell. Caldwell, Hobbs, D'Ambrosio, Durham may be tried in different roles for a run of games as well as we get into the second half of the year.

With that in mind, the selection committee is likely to persist with certain players in certain roles for twice as long as patience lasts for the average BigFooty poster. The game plan will develop as the list does, which will take probably a couple of years, both in terms of developing the individuals we have, and acquiring and training the ones we need.

 

[andleanback]

Only issue is Finlayson will jump all over and move to well for Weideman

Also the best opportunity for Bryan to play and his 34% was very good

Also based on last week im not convinced the plan is such that Weideman is the back up ruck, i think it still may be 2MP. Who i think id rather keep forward

Probably would do the same to Bryan

 

[Ambrosia]

He was not great last week and has a couple of poor games this year.
He has lost 4 contested one on ones out of 10 so far this year. Nick Hind has lost 2 from 6. Mass has lost 2 from 5. There is also the fact that one on one defensive losses do not count the games he intercepts the ball or spoils from non contested situations. He averages 5.1 intercept possessions.
I know I am not going to win this argument as you have never rated him.

Not trying to win argument or score points. Generally value your opinion.

Sample size is definitely an issue

 

[bennyg12]

Is Draper back?

 

[andleanback]

Is Draper back?

Would almost say zero chance and by the sounds of it will be out for a few more.

 

[TheGrizz]

AFL website reporting Zerk hurt his abductor late. You would think Baldwin is the obvious choice.

I wouldn't carry two rucks in this one. Finlayson feasts on 2nd rucks around the ground and I think it's a way to get Weideman involved in the play and add some speed to the forward line.

Out: Zerk, Bryan
In: Menzie, Baldwin, Wanganeen (sub)

 

[owen87]

AFL website reporting Zerk hurt his abductor late. You would think Baldwin is the obvious choice.

I wouldn't carry two rucks in this one. Finlayson feasts on 2nd rucks around the ground and I think it's a way to get Weideman involved in the play and add some speed to the forward line.

Out: Zerk, Bryan
In: Menzie, Baldwin, Wanganeen (sub)

Could be a fun lesson for Bryan, he's a pretty good mover for a big guy.

 

[TheGrizz]

Could be a fun lesson for Bryan, he's a pretty good mover for a big guy.

Then I think you drop Weideman, but from Scott's comments on Monday I doubt that is happening.

Wright, Weideman, Stringer, Langford and 2 x Rucks is simply too tall. Something has to give.

 

[owen87]

Then I think you drop Weideman, but from Scott's comments on Monday I doubt that is happening.

Wright, Weideman, Stringer, Langford and 2 x Rucks is simply too tall. Something has to give.

I wouldn't mind seeing Langford playing as the 2nd tall, his leading patterns are generally good and it allows for an extra small or medium to offer more at ground level.

But yes, sounds like the Weideman will be playing.

 

[Runk]

Standout is a bit strong IMO but he was one of the better players. Then again it did not take a lot to standout amongst the rabble we where.

Stand out meaning he was one of the better players that day cos the gap between him (and a couple of others) to essentially every other person out there was huge

 

[silk]

It won't happen, but with Draper out, I'd love to see Brad run Bryan as number one ruck. Challenge him to step up.

 

[andleanback]

Huge loss draper. Not only for our centre clearance stuff but he really is our barometer and the boys walk taller with him.

 

[Lore]

Huge loss draper. Not only for our centre clearance stuff but he really is our barometer and the boys walk taller with him.

I love his attitude. He’s always positive and bubbly and he generally lifts in the big moments and razzes up the players around him.

Whatever his limitations might be, I agree, they walk taller with him standing next to them.

There aren’t many players like that… I think Chook did it for us previously, Stringer to some extent when he’s trolling the crowd a bit, though he seems a bit off that lately.

 

[Mikevk123]

In- Baldwin, Montgomerie, Tsatsas
Out- Weideman, BZT, Kelly

B McGrath Baldwin Ridley
HB Redman Laverde Montgomerie
C Merrett Parish Martin
HF Langford Stringer Perkins
F Menzie Wright Guelfi
FOLL- Bryan Caldwell Hobbs
I/C- Phillips, Snelling, Durham, Heppell
Sub- Tsatsas

 

[Getratugolea]

Weideman needs trying as a back or ruck until Draper is back... dont risk Wright being injured in the ruck

looking like the season has gone now

 

[windyhill]

I think we are a very good bet here.

 

[Foxx]

I don't think it's in the ruck we are going to get found out against Port.
Phillips held his own last week,and I'll back Bryan to do the same.

It's their fleet of smalls and mediums that will do the damage. We have to bring Shiel, Hind, Menzie back in if we are a chance.

 

[Keystone agony]

I don't think it's in the ruck we are going to get found out against Port.
Phillips held his own last week,and I'll back Bryan to do the same.

It's their fleet of smalls and mediums that will do the damage. We have to bring Shiel, Hind, Menzie back in if we are a chance.

Ports weakest department is the ruck

Phillips is close to better than their number 1 ruck imo

Its the big forwards and elite mid/forwards in Butter, Rozee, JHF, Boak, Wines, Rioli, SPP

We were smashed after qtr time last week. I50s is big for me, i want to see them even

 

[Vindicater]

Out: Weideman, Kelly and Snelling

In: Menzie, Shiel and Hind

Guelfi to sub.

FB: McGrath Zerk Ridley
CHB: Redman Laverde Hind
C: Martin Merrett Durham
CHF: Langford Stringer Caldwell
FF: Menzie Wright Guelfi
R: Phillips Parish Hobbs
INT: Heppell Shiel Bryan Perkins
Sub: Snelling

 

[citizen-erased]

not a lot of point risking Zerk when Baldwin is banging the door down
So that's one change.