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Preview Round 3: Fremantle Dockers v Lions
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Preview by irel
You got Shakespeare in round one (GG) all visual innovation, humour, substance and pathos, Tolstoy in round two (Quigs) storytelling, depth, insight and lengthy analysis and now prepare for Rd three fluff of a western serial that lacks substance and forgotten soon after it is read. The blindman has a lot to answer scheduling me to follow such giants of the Lions BF forum.
SO FAR - we have swooshed on a high round one and swooshed back to disillusionment in round two and the roller-coaster hasn’t even gathered speed. What will happen in rd three?
Was the Lions win against Melbourne genuine reflection of development or just an aberration and we are back to the status quo in rd two? Well, now we know. To put it mildly Melbourne is crap and it appears the Brisbane Lions Academy team would have given them a run for the money.
The Carlton game gave us a totally different perspective on where we are. So a question emerges, have we actually regressed in our development? It is hard to fathom a game where the basic skills of the game simply did not exist. Was that performance an aberration and the real Brisbane Lions will emerge once again from its cocoon and swoosh us back into the high stratosphere?
Even though the injury list has not been as deep as in previous pre seasons the team has not been complete. Will we finally see Voss settle the team and develop some continuity, and consistency in selections and positional placements or will we continue to demonstrate dysfunctional approach and as Weevil put it so perfectly, swoosh backwards and forwards like a twig in a breeze.
There was genuine excitement of the prospect for season 2012. A talented list gathered by Hadley and Kerr, a midfield whose potential is to be the best in the league, a defence that is also moving in the solid bracket and a forward line that ... well we are not developing one. Instead we are shifting backman and midfielders to blue-tack gaps. IMO a very poor approach. This was a perfect opportunity to continue development of the existing forwards or commence the development of Longer in that Key Forward role.
After a reality check loss to Carlton it will be a test of Voss’ aptitude to change the mindset and the impact on individuals and travel to Perth with a winning attitude.
THE TEAM
Defence for the Freo game- It is universally acknowledged in all team sports the team’s foundations are built on a solid defence. A settled stable defence goes a long way to ensuring good results. So far this season we have had dysfunctional management of our defence. Our best defender has been moved to FF thus leaving a gaping hole which was so obviously exposed against a good team like Carlton. Without stability, confidence and leadership coming from the back we were sadly exposed.
What I would like to see is Merrett return to FB and under his leadership establish a regular back six. Obviously when injury impacts to have depth of coverage in the reserves is essential. I believe we have the depth thus there is no reason to rob the midfield or any other area to cover for defensive absences. Drummond is an essential element and his return has to come this week. Goose is playing the best football since arriving and Golby has almost established himself as that small tagging defender. McKeever is progressing nicely and there is no need to tamper his development by dropping him on last week’s aberration. Hanley, Patful, Lester and Adcock make up the other experienced elements of the back six with Docherty to come in at some stage once he gains match fitness in the twos. I believe McGrath is the expendable one that perhaps provides some experience depth but IMO he does not add value under his current poor form.
Midfield/Ruck for the Freo game – Once again the three C’s apply here. Continuity, Constancy and Consistency. If this is applied I believe stability, development and results will be the inevitable positive outcome. Destabilising or dysfunctional management of the roster more often than not has a negative effect on results and team balance. Over the past twelve months the three R’s (Rich, Rockliff and Redden) have built a solid foundation for Voss to build a strong midfield for the next decade. However once again tampering and tinkering has only lead to destabilisation and ultimately dissatisfaction and poor performances. IMO the “R- Mid” should not be tampered with. Polkinghorne and Beams have come in and have complimented and shown promise. Leg speed is the glaring missing element. Perhaps Green is the answer and Bartlett later in the year once he builds some confidence and match fitness in the twos. I see Harwood as the ideal replacement for Black, however he needs to be given time on the ground and I am suggesting continuously for the remainder of the season. Yeo also must come in for that extra outside class at the expense of Polec. Once again played for the remainder of the season will only benefit in the long term. No point developing class in the twos. Carlton game showed how much need and how important it is for us to have a good mature, experienced tagger. This is where Raines has now established himself and he also is a must “in” for the Freo game.
Fit Leuenberger vs Sandilands is the likely match up. Leuie has not been able to take the points against Sandilands in previous meetings. However he has steadily been improving and this is a game that will finally see Leuie deliver on his promise. It is essential that our midfielders get first touch of the ball at centre bounces and stoppages. Getting the clearances especially on the wide open spaces at Suby is essential. Longer coming in for Hudson will give Leuie support in the forward stoppage Ruck work. I see Longer as a KP forward and stationed at FF he will be an imposing and dangerous player that will also take away from Brown being double and triple teamed. Subiaco is an ideal place to begin the Brown-Longer combination.
The return of Brown will shape the structure for the rest of the season. As I indicated I would like to see Longer at FF and Brown at CHF and continue with this combination for the remainder of the season. The other element essential to our structure is Karnezis. Once again there is no point developing Karny in the reserves. He clearly is a confidence player and there is no better place to gain that than playing as Brown’s foil in the seniors. He will learn nothing in the ressies that he can’t learn in the seniors. If they are trying to teach him the defensive elements of his game by playing him as a defender in the ressies than surely he could be given periods of relief work in the defence at senior level. Anyhow IMO I would not have tampered with what clearly was working last year.
Banfield and Bewick are disappointments to me. I categorise them as “Downhill Skiers” In a team like Geelong or Collingwood they will thrive because their deficiencies may be easily covered by their more experienced and skilled team mates. But in a developing team like ours their glaring deficiencies only add to the woes and more often than not sap the confidence of others around them.
However as there is lack of depth in the small crumbing types at the Lions, Banfield is the only option. Sheldon clearly is not AFL standard and it appears that others who may be able to fill this role such as Green and Dyson are seen as not good enough or their performance at Reserve level does not put enough pressure on the selectors to be seen as an option.
The linkman played by Bewick is easily covered by Hawksley. This is Hawksley’s best position. He has shown in the past that his value is in the forward structure and not as a backman. Hawksley has been severely mismanaged. He is a ball gatherer with good skills and his brain fade that is so noticeable at the back will not be as impactful as a forward.
IMO some real corrective measures need to take place at the selection table. Once this has been made the team needs to be settled down and make as few changes as possible. Injury and suspensions permitting.
Therefore for me Out – Black, McGrath, Bewick, Polec, Stiller, Hudson, Banfield
In—Brown, Karnezis, Harwood, Hawksley, Yeo, Longer, Drummond
However taking a historical perspective of what Voss does this is what I think will happen
In; Brown, Drummond
Out; Black, O’Brien
The Freo perspective.
Freo is a much more settled team under the guidance of a very astute leadership in Lyon. There may be a slight problem of Pavlich and the tribunal, however if he does not get sighted than I expect pretty much the same line up to take the field. Maybe Mundy coming in but he will be short of match practice and may be eased into the season in the same manner that Barlow has. Via the substitute way.
Freo can consider themselves unlucky to be one and one from two games. Some umpiring decisions that clearly did not go their way and the absence of Ballantyne cost them the Sydney game. They will be seeking some redemption. As much as everyone is saying how they would not change the way Ballantyne is playing, playing stupid football ultimately cost his team four points. Missing the finals by four points or on % should not sit well on Freo supporters.
There also may be an injury problem with Mzungu.
Freo showed vs Geelong that they are hard to beat at Subiaco and Brisbane has traditionally not been a good traveller to the West. There have been the sporadic exceptions but in general Brisbane has performed badly and Freo has performed superbly on occasions.
Freo is a leg-fast side. This is a significant advantage on the wide open spaces of Patterson stadium. However stamina is also required and if the Carlton game is to be taken as evidence Brisbane would have spent the tank by about half time and Freo should run over Brisbane in the second half of the game. The only question is by how much.
There will be few match ups that will be significant.
Sandilands vs Leuenberger is the key battle. Getting hit outs to advantage is essential to get first hands to the ball. Sandilands has had Leuie’s measure in the past. However if Leuie is injury free, he should be very competitive this time. Leuie has lifted his game to an AA level, especially around the ground and playing as an extra midfielder or forward when required. Subiaco will be an ideal ground for these two giants of the game to clash on equal terms.
Brown vs McPharlin is another match up. It was twelve months ago when Brown was cleaned up by a wayward McPharlin knee. This will be Browns return to the main AFL stage this year. He is unlikely to be at his best. He will lack match fitness however he will bring leadership, experience and focus to the stage. Perhaps other team mates will benefit from this. If Voss persists with Merrett up front he should be the beneficiary from Brown’s presence. Or even Longer if Voss actually takes that approach.
Barlow vs Raines – Barlow must be tagged. He is the major ball supplier in Freo’s midfield. Not having an effective hard tag on Barlow will mean easy pickings for the Freo forward line which now includes Anthony.
With Black out through injury the Freo tag will no doubt go to Rockliff. Thus the Rockliff – Grover duel is significant. Grover is perhaps the most underrated tagger in the league. If Rockliff is not able to break free it is imperative that Rich, Redden and Beams take up the leadership role and exert some midfield clearance work.
One player I have been very impressed this year is Michael Johnson. He’s lifted his game considerably and is now a very damaging player for Freo. He seems to be thriving under Lyons astute usage of his height, agility and versatility. Johnson is the type of player McKeever needs to model himself.
Others that need to be pacified are Hill, Mayne and Fyfe.
Fyfe is moving into that elite player category and must be tagged closely in order to minimise his impact on the game.
IMO two weeks ago this was a winnable game for Brisbane. However what I witnessed vs Carlton does not give me confidence that we can even come close to Freo.
The best thing that Voss can do is let Harvey have the reigns for this game, including final say at the selection table. It’s the only way I can see us getting a positive result.
My tip is Freo by 60 plus.
You got Shakespeare in round one (GG) all visual innovation, humour, substance and pathos, Tolstoy in round two (Quigs) storytelling, depth, insight and lengthy analysis and now prepare for Rd three fluff of a western serial that lacks substance and forgotten soon after it is read. The blindman has a lot to answer scheduling me to follow such giants of the Lions BF forum.
SO FAR - we have swooshed on a high round one and swooshed back to disillusionment in round two and the roller-coaster hasn’t even gathered speed. What will happen in rd three?
Was the Lions win against Melbourne genuine reflection of development or just an aberration and we are back to the status quo in rd two? Well, now we know. To put it mildly Melbourne is crap and it appears the Brisbane Lions Academy team would have given them a run for the money.
The Carlton game gave us a totally different perspective on where we are. So a question emerges, have we actually regressed in our development? It is hard to fathom a game where the basic skills of the game simply did not exist. Was that performance an aberration and the real Brisbane Lions will emerge once again from its cocoon and swoosh us back into the high stratosphere?
Even though the injury list has not been as deep as in previous pre seasons the team has not been complete. Will we finally see Voss settle the team and develop some continuity, and consistency in selections and positional placements or will we continue to demonstrate dysfunctional approach and as Weevil put it so perfectly, swoosh backwards and forwards like a twig in a breeze.
There was genuine excitement of the prospect for season 2012. A talented list gathered by Hadley and Kerr, a midfield whose potential is to be the best in the league, a defence that is also moving in the solid bracket and a forward line that ... well we are not developing one. Instead we are shifting backman and midfielders to blue-tack gaps. IMO a very poor approach. This was a perfect opportunity to continue development of the existing forwards or commence the development of Longer in that Key Forward role.
After a reality check loss to Carlton it will be a test of Voss’ aptitude to change the mindset and the impact on individuals and travel to Perth with a winning attitude.
THE TEAM
Defence for the Freo game- It is universally acknowledged in all team sports the team’s foundations are built on a solid defence. A settled stable defence goes a long way to ensuring good results. So far this season we have had dysfunctional management of our defence. Our best defender has been moved to FF thus leaving a gaping hole which was so obviously exposed against a good team like Carlton. Without stability, confidence and leadership coming from the back we were sadly exposed.
What I would like to see is Merrett return to FB and under his leadership establish a regular back six. Obviously when injury impacts to have depth of coverage in the reserves is essential. I believe we have the depth thus there is no reason to rob the midfield or any other area to cover for defensive absences. Drummond is an essential element and his return has to come this week. Goose is playing the best football since arriving and Golby has almost established himself as that small tagging defender. McKeever is progressing nicely and there is no need to tamper his development by dropping him on last week’s aberration. Hanley, Patful, Lester and Adcock make up the other experienced elements of the back six with Docherty to come in at some stage once he gains match fitness in the twos. I believe McGrath is the expendable one that perhaps provides some experience depth but IMO he does not add value under his current poor form.
Midfield/Ruck for the Freo game – Once again the three C’s apply here. Continuity, Constancy and Consistency. If this is applied I believe stability, development and results will be the inevitable positive outcome. Destabilising or dysfunctional management of the roster more often than not has a negative effect on results and team balance. Over the past twelve months the three R’s (Rich, Rockliff and Redden) have built a solid foundation for Voss to build a strong midfield for the next decade. However once again tampering and tinkering has only lead to destabilisation and ultimately dissatisfaction and poor performances. IMO the “R- Mid” should not be tampered with. Polkinghorne and Beams have come in and have complimented and shown promise. Leg speed is the glaring missing element. Perhaps Green is the answer and Bartlett later in the year once he builds some confidence and match fitness in the twos. I see Harwood as the ideal replacement for Black, however he needs to be given time on the ground and I am suggesting continuously for the remainder of the season. Yeo also must come in for that extra outside class at the expense of Polec. Once again played for the remainder of the season will only benefit in the long term. No point developing class in the twos. Carlton game showed how much need and how important it is for us to have a good mature, experienced tagger. This is where Raines has now established himself and he also is a must “in” for the Freo game.
Fit Leuenberger vs Sandilands is the likely match up. Leuie has not been able to take the points against Sandilands in previous meetings. However he has steadily been improving and this is a game that will finally see Leuie deliver on his promise. It is essential that our midfielders get first touch of the ball at centre bounces and stoppages. Getting the clearances especially on the wide open spaces at Suby is essential. Longer coming in for Hudson will give Leuie support in the forward stoppage Ruck work. I see Longer as a KP forward and stationed at FF he will be an imposing and dangerous player that will also take away from Brown being double and triple teamed. Subiaco is an ideal place to begin the Brown-Longer combination.
The return of Brown will shape the structure for the rest of the season. As I indicated I would like to see Longer at FF and Brown at CHF and continue with this combination for the remainder of the season. The other element essential to our structure is Karnezis. Once again there is no point developing Karny in the reserves. He clearly is a confidence player and there is no better place to gain that than playing as Brown’s foil in the seniors. He will learn nothing in the ressies that he can’t learn in the seniors. If they are trying to teach him the defensive elements of his game by playing him as a defender in the ressies than surely he could be given periods of relief work in the defence at senior level. Anyhow IMO I would not have tampered with what clearly was working last year.
Banfield and Bewick are disappointments to me. I categorise them as “Downhill Skiers” In a team like Geelong or Collingwood they will thrive because their deficiencies may be easily covered by their more experienced and skilled team mates. But in a developing team like ours their glaring deficiencies only add to the woes and more often than not sap the confidence of others around them.
However as there is lack of depth in the small crumbing types at the Lions, Banfield is the only option. Sheldon clearly is not AFL standard and it appears that others who may be able to fill this role such as Green and Dyson are seen as not good enough or their performance at Reserve level does not put enough pressure on the selectors to be seen as an option.
The linkman played by Bewick is easily covered by Hawksley. This is Hawksley’s best position. He has shown in the past that his value is in the forward structure and not as a backman. Hawksley has been severely mismanaged. He is a ball gatherer with good skills and his brain fade that is so noticeable at the back will not be as impactful as a forward.
IMO some real corrective measures need to take place at the selection table. Once this has been made the team needs to be settled down and make as few changes as possible. Injury and suspensions permitting.
Therefore for me Out – Black, McGrath, Bewick, Polec, Stiller, Hudson, Banfield
In—Brown, Karnezis, Harwood, Hawksley, Yeo, Longer, Drummond
However taking a historical perspective of what Voss does this is what I think will happen
In; Brown, Drummond
Out; Black, O’Brien
The Freo perspective.
Freo is a much more settled team under the guidance of a very astute leadership in Lyon. There may be a slight problem of Pavlich and the tribunal, however if he does not get sighted than I expect pretty much the same line up to take the field. Maybe Mundy coming in but he will be short of match practice and may be eased into the season in the same manner that Barlow has. Via the substitute way.
Freo can consider themselves unlucky to be one and one from two games. Some umpiring decisions that clearly did not go their way and the absence of Ballantyne cost them the Sydney game. They will be seeking some redemption. As much as everyone is saying how they would not change the way Ballantyne is playing, playing stupid football ultimately cost his team four points. Missing the finals by four points or on % should not sit well on Freo supporters.
There also may be an injury problem with Mzungu.
Freo showed vs Geelong that they are hard to beat at Subiaco and Brisbane has traditionally not been a good traveller to the West. There have been the sporadic exceptions but in general Brisbane has performed badly and Freo has performed superbly on occasions.
Freo is a leg-fast side. This is a significant advantage on the wide open spaces of Patterson stadium. However stamina is also required and if the Carlton game is to be taken as evidence Brisbane would have spent the tank by about half time and Freo should run over Brisbane in the second half of the game. The only question is by how much.
There will be few match ups that will be significant.
Sandilands vs Leuenberger is the key battle. Getting hit outs to advantage is essential to get first hands to the ball. Sandilands has had Leuie’s measure in the past. However if Leuie is injury free, he should be very competitive this time. Leuie has lifted his game to an AA level, especially around the ground and playing as an extra midfielder or forward when required. Subiaco will be an ideal ground for these two giants of the game to clash on equal terms.
Brown vs McPharlin is another match up. It was twelve months ago when Brown was cleaned up by a wayward McPharlin knee. This will be Browns return to the main AFL stage this year. He is unlikely to be at his best. He will lack match fitness however he will bring leadership, experience and focus to the stage. Perhaps other team mates will benefit from this. If Voss persists with Merrett up front he should be the beneficiary from Brown’s presence. Or even Longer if Voss actually takes that approach.
Barlow vs Raines – Barlow must be tagged. He is the major ball supplier in Freo’s midfield. Not having an effective hard tag on Barlow will mean easy pickings for the Freo forward line which now includes Anthony.
With Black out through injury the Freo tag will no doubt go to Rockliff. Thus the Rockliff – Grover duel is significant. Grover is perhaps the most underrated tagger in the league. If Rockliff is not able to break free it is imperative that Rich, Redden and Beams take up the leadership role and exert some midfield clearance work.
One player I have been very impressed this year is Michael Johnson. He’s lifted his game considerably and is now a very damaging player for Freo. He seems to be thriving under Lyons astute usage of his height, agility and versatility. Johnson is the type of player McKeever needs to model himself.
Others that need to be pacified are Hill, Mayne and Fyfe.
Fyfe is moving into that elite player category and must be tagged closely in order to minimise his impact on the game.
IMO two weeks ago this was a winnable game for Brisbane. However what I witnessed vs Carlton does not give me confidence that we can even come close to Freo.
The best thing that Voss can do is let Harvey have the reigns for this game, including final say at the selection table. It’s the only way I can see us getting a positive result.
My tip is Freo by 60 plus.
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Lions by 20+.
Brown to kick his 500th, Stiller to surprise the lot of you, Danny to remain up forward in a interesting display and Goose and Patfull to tag-team Pavlich, keeping him to 1 goal. Bigfooty posters to also try and have me committed sometime during the season.
Brown to kick his 500th, Stiller to surprise the lot of you, Danny to remain up forward in a interesting display and Goose and Patfull to tag-team Pavlich, keeping him to 1 goal. Bigfooty posters to also try and have me committed sometime during the season.
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Irel, you little ray of sunshine you.
And talk about throw the baby out wiv the bathwater at the selection table, would you also drop a couple of Vossy's assistants for Nathan Clark & Muzza Davis?
To be sure there is more than a grain of truth in your analysis. I just can't be that pessimistic (whilst recognising the possibility).
Wait till next week to bring Longer in. Chinny Stiller deserves his 100th, & is too much of a runner to drop for a Subi game. Rhino for Simon. JB in for McKeever. IMO a week or 2 inthe ressies to work on his skills would do no harm.
Freo by 27.
And talk about throw the baby out wiv the bathwater at the selection table, would you also drop a couple of Vossy's assistants for Nathan Clark & Muzza Davis? To be sure there is more than a grain of truth in your analysis. I just can't be that pessimistic (whilst recognising the possibility).
Wait till next week to bring Longer in. Chinny Stiller deserves his 100th, & is too much of a runner to drop for a Subi game. Rhino for Simon. JB in for McKeever. IMO a week or 2 inthe ressies to work on his skills would do no harm.
Freo by 27.
Thanks for the preview Irel. I honestly have no idea what will happen in this game. No clue at all. Obviously I am hoping for a Lions win but I think it will be tough beating them at Subi. I just want to see us put in a competitive performance.
In Brown Drummond Harwood
Out McKeever Bewick Black
In Brown Drummond Harwood
Out McKeever Bewick Black
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I considered the 100 game situation and Stiller's running ability but ultimately I felt sentiment should not get in the way of what is best for the team.Irel, you little ray of sunshine you.
To be sure there is more than a grain of truth in your analysis. I just can't be that pessimistic (whilst recognising the possibility).
Wait till next week to bring Longer in. Chinny Stiller deserves his 100th, & is too much of a runner to drop for a Subi game. Rhino for Simon. JB in for McKeever. IMO a week or 2 inthe ressies to work on his skills would do no harm.
Freo by 27.
Predicting a loss can always be considered pessimistic.
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When I saw Irel had done this preview I thoguht it was always going to be interesting.
There are certainly a few things that I disagree with
- i'm not convinced that the fatigue displayed in the carlton game, will mean we will be out on our feet by half time. Having said that the five day turnaround is too easy an excuse to cling on to. if we are going to be a running side (and the Melbourne game shows we can succeed if we do play that way) we have to have enough skill and endurance to carry it off, and enough depth to rotate the squad from week to week. I'm tipping a frustrating last quarter fade out.
- I don't think that Vossy should 'hand the team to Harvey'. I thought Freo under Harvey were a very well coached team, but in round one last year we had them until Browny went off. I trust that Vossy can come up with a plan to take it to Freo, but do think Harvey will assist in that, both because of his own tactical acumen and his knowledge of the Freo side.
But there are some that I agree with too
- I am concerned about banfield. I love his willingness, I love his chase but I am wondering if he is limited as a player. He is certainly in our best 22 at the moment and deserved to be playing, but he is the sort of player who perhaps needs to be pushed to the fringes (by others) if we are going to establish ourselves as a top 8 side. Having said that, I was always of the view that Sean Hart was a limited player, so I'm a pretty poor judge.
Brisbane will win at least one quarter but Freo by 16 Points.
There are certainly a few things that I disagree with
- i'm not convinced that the fatigue displayed in the carlton game, will mean we will be out on our feet by half time. Having said that the five day turnaround is too easy an excuse to cling on to. if we are going to be a running side (and the Melbourne game shows we can succeed if we do play that way) we have to have enough skill and endurance to carry it off, and enough depth to rotate the squad from week to week. I'm tipping a frustrating last quarter fade out.
- I don't think that Vossy should 'hand the team to Harvey'. I thought Freo under Harvey were a very well coached team, but in round one last year we had them until Browny went off. I trust that Vossy can come up with a plan to take it to Freo, but do think Harvey will assist in that, both because of his own tactical acumen and his knowledge of the Freo side.
But there are some that I agree with too
- I am concerned about banfield. I love his willingness, I love his chase but I am wondering if he is limited as a player. He is certainly in our best 22 at the moment and deserved to be playing, but he is the sort of player who perhaps needs to be pushed to the fringes (by others) if we are going to establish ourselves as a top 8 side. Having said that, I was always of the view that Sean Hart was a limited player, so I'm a pretty poor judge.
Brisbane will win at least one quarter but Freo by 16 Points.
Nice write up Irel. There are some things I agree with and others I don’t. You are right though that this week Voss must pay close attention to any suggestions made by Harvey. He has just come from coaching Freo and knows the players very well.
You are however like a dog with a bone in regards to your concept of “skills” with the WA guys. Yeo could become a great runner but one thing he is certainly not atm is classy. His skills let him down time and again in the NAB and in the Champs last year he was not much better. If you want class in the side I would stick with Polec and give him an extended run. Hawksley is the other favourite of yours and again I have seen virtually nothing to suggest his skills are anything but below par. When freed up to play a linking role he can find it but I would rather give someone a go who can hurt the opposition in this role. Has Hawksley been doing much in the ressies? Were it me I would give Harvey a run in the Golby role and let Golby get up the ground to link up and use his good skills. Golby is a ball magnet too and has better skills. Harvey is strong with absolutely elite pace and solid skills. He is one guy I would like to get a look at at AFL level.
With Barlow just coming back and working into match fitness (first two games as the sub) I would not be using the tag on him. Fyfe would be the first guy I would put a tag on. He has a lot of hurt factor and may be susceptible to being tagged at this stage of his career. Hill is the other one I would look at. You know he can hurt you and you also know that a tag works.
Going the other way Rockliff would be up there for a tag but if I was an opposition coach I would find it very hard to go past Rich for the first tag. Freo do have a few defensive players in their side and is possible that they could have the likes of Crowley, McPhee or Broughton sit on both Rich and Rockliff.
I am definitely onboard with you that we should be playing Merrett and Rockliff in their true positions and not in the forward line. Rocky will play some time up forward you would expect but a 70/30 midfield/forward split is what we should be aiming at. Merrett and Rockliff in defence and midfield respectively shores up those lines a great deal. That probably means Beams goes back to the HFF but personally I would move Polkinghorne forward. Beams has shown more skills through the middle of the ground than Polkinghorne and is the better long term prospect imo.
If Raines is fully fit I agree he should come back in. His skills improved a little last year and his running and tagging ability would be handy in this match. I would give Bewick and O’Brien time back in the ressies. Both have been subs and neither has been particularly impressive in the games so far as outside runners. Get them back in the reserves where they can keep match fit with full games and work to get back. Harwood in for Black and I wouldn’t mind seeing Green get a run as well. His pace and ball winning ability would be handy. Both Harwood and Green need to have shown more outside ability in the reserves I think to get picked. If they have then they are very easily picked.
Karnezis has to come back. He worked well with Brown and it sounds like he was running well in the reserves. He looked sluggish in the NAB and it looks like he has been given roles which involved a fair bit of running when he was sent down. He showed some really good combination with Brown last year and he needs to be developed. Pick him in the firsts and stick with him.
Longer? Maybe. I would be keen to see him play against GC in week 4 but this week there are issues for and against picking him. This week he could be handy on the open spaces of Subi up forward and in the match up with Clarke. On the other hand Sandi could pound him though and Hudson might be better suited to pounding back. In a game we are not expected to win I might go with it and give him the chance. Whichever way we go though Leuey should be playing at least 65% of the ruck time.
Freo have not been as impressive as I thought they would be to date. They are still struggling a bit to win the clearances and they have not really clicked just yet. There have been a lot of errors in defense from the likes of Johnson, Suban and Dawson and scoring is well and truly possible with good entries and some pressure coming out. Freo are dangerous up forward and Freo’s mids are good with the ball if they are given time and space. We need to control the middle and pressure the ball when we don’t have the ball.
After the Carlton game I am not predicting a win for the Lions but I think it will be closer than the 60 points predicted by Irel. Freo by 24 for me.
You are however like a dog with a bone in regards to your concept of “skills” with the WA guys. Yeo could become a great runner but one thing he is certainly not atm is classy. His skills let him down time and again in the NAB and in the Champs last year he was not much better. If you want class in the side I would stick with Polec and give him an extended run. Hawksley is the other favourite of yours and again I have seen virtually nothing to suggest his skills are anything but below par. When freed up to play a linking role he can find it but I would rather give someone a go who can hurt the opposition in this role. Has Hawksley been doing much in the ressies? Were it me I would give Harvey a run in the Golby role and let Golby get up the ground to link up and use his good skills. Golby is a ball magnet too and has better skills. Harvey is strong with absolutely elite pace and solid skills. He is one guy I would like to get a look at at AFL level.
With Barlow just coming back and working into match fitness (first two games as the sub) I would not be using the tag on him. Fyfe would be the first guy I would put a tag on. He has a lot of hurt factor and may be susceptible to being tagged at this stage of his career. Hill is the other one I would look at. You know he can hurt you and you also know that a tag works.
Going the other way Rockliff would be up there for a tag but if I was an opposition coach I would find it very hard to go past Rich for the first tag. Freo do have a few defensive players in their side and is possible that they could have the likes of Crowley, McPhee or Broughton sit on both Rich and Rockliff.
I am definitely onboard with you that we should be playing Merrett and Rockliff in their true positions and not in the forward line. Rocky will play some time up forward you would expect but a 70/30 midfield/forward split is what we should be aiming at. Merrett and Rockliff in defence and midfield respectively shores up those lines a great deal. That probably means Beams goes back to the HFF but personally I would move Polkinghorne forward. Beams has shown more skills through the middle of the ground than Polkinghorne and is the better long term prospect imo.
If Raines is fully fit I agree he should come back in. His skills improved a little last year and his running and tagging ability would be handy in this match. I would give Bewick and O’Brien time back in the ressies. Both have been subs and neither has been particularly impressive in the games so far as outside runners. Get them back in the reserves where they can keep match fit with full games and work to get back. Harwood in for Black and I wouldn’t mind seeing Green get a run as well. His pace and ball winning ability would be handy. Both Harwood and Green need to have shown more outside ability in the reserves I think to get picked. If they have then they are very easily picked.
Karnezis has to come back. He worked well with Brown and it sounds like he was running well in the reserves. He looked sluggish in the NAB and it looks like he has been given roles which involved a fair bit of running when he was sent down. He showed some really good combination with Brown last year and he needs to be developed. Pick him in the firsts and stick with him.
Longer? Maybe. I would be keen to see him play against GC in week 4 but this week there are issues for and against picking him. This week he could be handy on the open spaces of Subi up forward and in the match up with Clarke. On the other hand Sandi could pound him though and Hudson might be better suited to pounding back. In a game we are not expected to win I might go with it and give him the chance. Whichever way we go though Leuey should be playing at least 65% of the ruck time.
Freo have not been as impressive as I thought they would be to date. They are still struggling a bit to win the clearances and they have not really clicked just yet. There have been a lot of errors in defense from the likes of Johnson, Suban and Dawson and scoring is well and truly possible with good entries and some pressure coming out. Freo are dangerous up forward and Freo’s mids are good with the ball if they are given time and space. We need to control the middle and pressure the ball when we don’t have the ball.
After the Carlton game I am not predicting a win for the Lions but I think it will be closer than the 60 points predicted by Irel. Freo by 24 for me.
nice write up...but no way should Polec be dropped. We need to get 50 games into him ASAP, and he has shown enough over the pre-season and round 1 to keep him in...you dont develop youth by dropping them after a bad game when most of his much more senior teammates failed aswell!
We need to pick the youth with quality and play games into them...not let them rot in the QAFL
We need to pick the youth with quality and play games into them...not let them rot in the QAFL
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If this were to be my last year of scheduling preview writers I might suggest there is - “no such thing as a free lunch”, short memories or toughen up princess, this is your character building exercise re last years ‘swap’ to the round one Freo game…
But… as I would not want your 2012 preview to be your last, [you know how much we all enjoy your call it as you see it previews, eg “Melbourne is crap and it appears the Brisbane Lions Academy team would have given them a run and linking players to be “Downhill Skiers” or even “let Harvey have the reigns for this game…], I will attempt to link elements of miscellaneous related pastimes that may or may not indirectly suggest that you lighten up and let us enjoy your preview.
So my polite and attenuated response is in the form of a few words from the English poet Robert Herrick.
Of Blind-man-buff, and of the care
That young men have to shoe the Mare…
PS – consider yourself in the clubhouse and currently on the podium. In all seriousness, thanks and a great write up irel!!!
But… as I would not want your 2012 preview to be your last, [you know how much we all enjoy your call it as you see it previews, eg “Melbourne is crap and it appears the Brisbane Lions Academy team would have given them a run and linking players to be “Downhill Skiers” or even “let Harvey have the reigns for this game…], I will attempt to link elements of miscellaneous related pastimes that may or may not indirectly suggest that you lighten up and let us enjoy your preview.
So my polite and attenuated response is in the form of a few words from the English poet Robert Herrick.
Of Blind-man-buff, and of the care
That young men have to shoe the Mare…
PS – consider yourself in the clubhouse and currently on the podium. In all seriousness, thanks and a great write up irel!!!
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Freo by 6 goals.
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I can't see any way for us to win this.
It'll be interesting to see if we can hold on towards the end and prevent this from becoming a real blowout.
It'll be interesting to see if we can hold on towards the end and prevent this from becoming a real blowout.
This is a winnable game imo. Came close to beating them twice last year. I think Fremantle have been heavily overrated, we have Mark Harvey to help out, Brown is back and coming off a nine day break we can easily come close winning this game.
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Reckon we will see more changes to our forward line beyond Out: Merrett, In: Brown.
Big forwards do well at Subiaco.
Retzy may get a run to provide that high leading marking target. Karnezis has also put his hand up.
Big forwards do well at Subiaco.
Retzy may get a run to provide that high leading marking target. Karnezis has also put his hand up.
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All games are... but some are less likely but for me this comes in as a possible because...
Plus Side
- We have inside knowledge of Freo's players,
- Our last three games versus Freo have been close - 23, 2 and 13 pts.
- We have also matched up well against a Ross Lyon game plan - last three games against St.Kilda were also close 13, 14 & 16 point margins.
- We have not beaten either side since - 2009 Freo & 2008 StK
- Historical facts/stats mean nothing... Haw vs Gee anyone?
- Do rose coloured glasses help a positive or hinder? Rnd 2 anyone...
Huddo always used to do extremely well against Sandilands.
Some people say the Lions looked slow. Nobody can run quicker than the ball travels when it's kicked, and you guys have the 2nd best long kick in the entire league. Drummond has to play.
Some people say the Lions looked slow. Nobody can run quicker than the ball travels when it's kicked, and you guys have the 2nd best long kick in the entire league. Drummond has to play.
chopperduck
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I've seen a couple of people mentioning about us playing a running game style lately, but i don't see it. We are in no way trying to emulate the Geelong type game plan, and i really don't think we try and run the ball anywhere. I think we are, and will remain to be, a long kicking side. We fall down because our skills aren't up to scratch yet, but even after Brown is gone, we are looking to build into a kicking team.
Just gotta have the work rate to run, create space and/or get seperation from your man, then also have the skills to hit that person up.
Just gotta have the work rate to run, create space and/or get seperation from your man, then also have the skills to hit that person up.
Polec stays in for me, he needs time at AFL level, I would have Karny in for the same reason, I would also have Raines in this week as well, I liked his tagging work around the stoppages and we have one G Ablett to sort out in Rnd 4 at home.
X Factor, do we have it at all?? Who is the last lions player to take a hanger? we seem to be a conservative bunch.
Merett to FB and Browny up forward will make a big difference, a long break so no excuses this time. We did play well against Freo in both games last year so I am looking forward to a good game, Lions by 10pts.
X Factor, do we have it at all?? Who is the last lions player to take a hanger? we seem to be a conservative bunch.
Merett to FB and Browny up forward will make a big difference, a long break so no excuses this time. We did play well against Freo in both games last year so I am looking forward to a good game, Lions by 10pts.
GingerGreatness
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+43.5 start for us. Mmmmm, don't mind that line tbh.
Couldn't find any larger font Bob?
Gee irel - think you've been a bit harsh. Not on the Lions effort last week, but on yourself in terms of preview writing - was a very good read
- love the no nonsense, hard line approach - very Harvey esque, so themed in well with this game.Can't believe I'm typing this but just want Browny to get through this game unscathed and get a few miles in his legs. The entire footy world will be talking about his face this week and "what ifs" to the point that I'm jittery. Want my faith in the big untouchable, unbreakable, unbelievable footy machine restored to full working order. Go JB!
Had Thursday night been closer I would be reasonably confident but with the big loss and blacky being out I'm not sure we can notch up the win.... That being said I will still chuck $20 on the lions just in case
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I was one who described us as a running team, but i should probably clarify. I don't necessarily see us having a game plan based on run and carry, so much as being mobile, moving the ball quickly by foot through players running to and through space.
Obviously its not rocket science, all teams endeavour to run in support of each other but i think the reliance on JB has resulted in us being too static up forward, and that needs to change.
Obviously its not rocket science, all teams endeavour to run in support of each other but i think the reliance on JB has resulted in us being too static up forward, and that needs to change.
