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My match preview, submitted this afternoon for deadline and just published on the SportsAustralia.com website-- and hence, my thoughts on the match (which, in all honesty, aren't too different from what I've been saying on here all week, either, so the report should come as no surprise)...
Enjoy!
http://sportsaustralia.com/articles/apr03/artid110.html
Thompson's squad choices run risk of Cats being overrun, again
Friday April 18, 2003
Written by William Olson
Geelong Correspondent
Geelong's on-field efforts seem to be getting better with each and every passing week, but the quest for what has so far been an elusive first win of the season has been hampered by any among a variety of shortcomings in coach Mark Thompson's gameplan, as Thompson attempts to rectify the situation entering the Round 4 showdown against Melbourne at Skilled Stadium in Geelong on Saturday.
The marked improvements in the Cats' efforts between their Round 2 defeat to North Melbourne and their loss last weekend against Collingwood were clear to see through the first three quarters of the game against the Magpies at the MCG-- a willingness to work together, marginally better delivery of the ball into the forward lines, and an overall better execution of the fundamental points of the game.
Note that those improvements were viewed "through the first three quarters", as it says in the above paragraph. Where they blew it against Collingwood-- in general, although there were certain players who didn't do their jobs, and more on that in a minute-- was that there wasn't really anyone available to match up against the Magpies' tall options in Anthony Rocca and Chris Tarrant, among others. And for whatever they lacked in height, the physical intensity of that certain pack of defenders ranging from Matthew Scarlett, Ben Graham, Brent Grgic and Darren Milburn did not factor its way into picking up the slack.
Therefore, small leads of two, five and seven points through each of the first three quarters were lost as Collingwood, doing what all championship-calibre teams should be capable of doing against teams they have an advantage over, turned up their game when it mattered most.
So what does this observation-- admittedly, Monday Morning Quarterbacking at its worst, done as many as five or six days after such a bitter defeat-- have to do with this weekend's game against Melbourne?
Quite frankly, with the squad which Thompson named on Thursday evening, the Cats run the risk of being overdone by an opposition's tall forward-line options once again.
Thompson has drafted in four changes to the side which lost against Collingwood-- in are James Bartel, James Rahilly, Will Slade and David Clarke, with Charlie Gardiner, Steve Johnson, David Spriggs and Mitchell White making way-- but while the Cats imaptiently await the return of tall defender Tom Harley from a niggling heel bruise that has caused him to miss each of the first three games of the season and keeps him out for the Melbourne clash, there is nothing in their defence that addresses any of the probable matchups with the Demons' apparent edge in height.
In the meantime, there are a whole host of questions that need to be addressed.
Will the back line of Grgic, Scarlett and Sanderson, with possible help from Graham and Milburn, be able to contend with James McDonald, David Nietz and Russell Robertson? And underneath, will David Johnson be an adequate shadow against goalsneak Adam Yze?
The matchup against Nietz, last year's Coleman Medal winner as the AFL's top goal-kicker, is most concerning for Cats supporters. Nietz, at 193 centimetres, towers over any and all of Geelong's defenders, so it will be up to the likes of Graham and Scarlett in the centre of the defence to try once again and make up for the matchup in terms of an approach of physical intensity instead of one of pure height.
And then there's the matter of Ben Graham. When Thompson took the captaincy away from him in favour of Steven King's leadership abilities, the move was done in the hopes that Graham would be able to regain what was once a steady form without having the burden of leadership hounding his on-field efforts. Yet while Graham did have moments of good play in the first half against Collingwood, there were at least two incidents in the third quarter which prompted the Magpies to have the impetus to win the match in the final term, where they outscored Geelong eight goals to nil.
In fairness, Graham was taken off towards the end of the third term with a leg strain, and it was Thompson's decision to bring him back on the ground in the final quarter in an effort to heal the team's overall bleeding. Whether that was a bad coaching move could be debated, but the bigger picture is that Graham's present form doesn't do much to inspire his teammates, which is a particularly scathing critique considering the relative inexperience the Cats possess, with as many as eleven players having played fewer than 50 games of AFL footy.
Perhaps if Graham fails to raise his game against the Demons, Thompson should seriously entertain the option to send his former captain down to the reserves for at least a fortnight, where Graham can work on getting his form and confidence back with Geelong's high-flying VFL side.
So what will it take to beat Melbourne, a team which hasn't beaten Geelong around the shores of Corio Bay since 1988? King, in a show of leadership-by-example, spoke out midweek about needing some help in the ruck, despite his performance of 40-plus hitouts against Collingwood being typical of his usual dominance at the position so far this season.
King's motivation is for himself to be able to go forward as another tall option in attack.
"For the team's benefit, it is better sometimes to go forward and have a spell to freshen up and have more influence when I do go back there," King told the club's official gfc.com.au website earlier in the week.
"I'd like to spend time up forward as well and try to provide an option to kick some goals as well. At the end of the day it is whatever the match committee decides. I am just happy to do my part," added King.
However, at the end of the day, King will have to go at it alone in the ruck once again, as Thompson opted for no other tall players-- such as Paul Chambers, Peter Street, Henry Playfair or young gun Matthew McCarthy-- to be available for selection in those players' status in the Cats' reserves.
But Thompson did make some interesting choices in his projected starting lineup, in the hopes of gaining a tactical edge before the opening centre bounce.
Cameron Ling moves from the centre of the ground to a ruck rover position, backing up King and Joel Corey in that endeavor, Clarke goes alongside Gary Ablett Jr. and Kent Kingsley at full forward in the hopes that he can utilise his speed and quickness to his advantage against Melbourne defenders Nathan D. Brown and Luke Williams, as will be the case for Bartel coming off the interchange bench, and Cameron Mooney being dropped back to centre half-forward from a usual full-forward position.
But once again, the matchup of Kingsley against former Cat Clint Bizzell and Ryan Ferguson in the middle of the Demons' defence will be a key - as long as the likes of Graham and Rahilly, Peter Riccardi and an in-form Ben Chapman can deliver the ball in from the flanks to those in the forward lines.
So instead of matching Melbourne strength for strength in the height matchups in the forward battles, Thompson has apparently decided to opt for gaining an advantage per his team's speed, quickness and versatility.
If and when Geelong emerge victorious against Melbourne, such moves could make Thompson look like a genius. But if the Cats meet with another defeat, an 0-4 record could hit out at their overall confidence, and it might mean it could be a while before they gain that elusive first win of the season.
Enjoy!
http://sportsaustralia.com/articles/apr03/artid110.html
Thompson's squad choices run risk of Cats being overrun, again
Friday April 18, 2003
Written by William Olson
Geelong Correspondent
Geelong's on-field efforts seem to be getting better with each and every passing week, but the quest for what has so far been an elusive first win of the season has been hampered by any among a variety of shortcomings in coach Mark Thompson's gameplan, as Thompson attempts to rectify the situation entering the Round 4 showdown against Melbourne at Skilled Stadium in Geelong on Saturday.
The marked improvements in the Cats' efforts between their Round 2 defeat to North Melbourne and their loss last weekend against Collingwood were clear to see through the first three quarters of the game against the Magpies at the MCG-- a willingness to work together, marginally better delivery of the ball into the forward lines, and an overall better execution of the fundamental points of the game.
Note that those improvements were viewed "through the first three quarters", as it says in the above paragraph. Where they blew it against Collingwood-- in general, although there were certain players who didn't do their jobs, and more on that in a minute-- was that there wasn't really anyone available to match up against the Magpies' tall options in Anthony Rocca and Chris Tarrant, among others. And for whatever they lacked in height, the physical intensity of that certain pack of defenders ranging from Matthew Scarlett, Ben Graham, Brent Grgic and Darren Milburn did not factor its way into picking up the slack.
Therefore, small leads of two, five and seven points through each of the first three quarters were lost as Collingwood, doing what all championship-calibre teams should be capable of doing against teams they have an advantage over, turned up their game when it mattered most.
So what does this observation-- admittedly, Monday Morning Quarterbacking at its worst, done as many as five or six days after such a bitter defeat-- have to do with this weekend's game against Melbourne?
Quite frankly, with the squad which Thompson named on Thursday evening, the Cats run the risk of being overdone by an opposition's tall forward-line options once again.
Thompson has drafted in four changes to the side which lost against Collingwood-- in are James Bartel, James Rahilly, Will Slade and David Clarke, with Charlie Gardiner, Steve Johnson, David Spriggs and Mitchell White making way-- but while the Cats imaptiently await the return of tall defender Tom Harley from a niggling heel bruise that has caused him to miss each of the first three games of the season and keeps him out for the Melbourne clash, there is nothing in their defence that addresses any of the probable matchups with the Demons' apparent edge in height.
In the meantime, there are a whole host of questions that need to be addressed.
Will the back line of Grgic, Scarlett and Sanderson, with possible help from Graham and Milburn, be able to contend with James McDonald, David Nietz and Russell Robertson? And underneath, will David Johnson be an adequate shadow against goalsneak Adam Yze?
The matchup against Nietz, last year's Coleman Medal winner as the AFL's top goal-kicker, is most concerning for Cats supporters. Nietz, at 193 centimetres, towers over any and all of Geelong's defenders, so it will be up to the likes of Graham and Scarlett in the centre of the defence to try once again and make up for the matchup in terms of an approach of physical intensity instead of one of pure height.
And then there's the matter of Ben Graham. When Thompson took the captaincy away from him in favour of Steven King's leadership abilities, the move was done in the hopes that Graham would be able to regain what was once a steady form without having the burden of leadership hounding his on-field efforts. Yet while Graham did have moments of good play in the first half against Collingwood, there were at least two incidents in the third quarter which prompted the Magpies to have the impetus to win the match in the final term, where they outscored Geelong eight goals to nil.
In fairness, Graham was taken off towards the end of the third term with a leg strain, and it was Thompson's decision to bring him back on the ground in the final quarter in an effort to heal the team's overall bleeding. Whether that was a bad coaching move could be debated, but the bigger picture is that Graham's present form doesn't do much to inspire his teammates, which is a particularly scathing critique considering the relative inexperience the Cats possess, with as many as eleven players having played fewer than 50 games of AFL footy.
Perhaps if Graham fails to raise his game against the Demons, Thompson should seriously entertain the option to send his former captain down to the reserves for at least a fortnight, where Graham can work on getting his form and confidence back with Geelong's high-flying VFL side.
So what will it take to beat Melbourne, a team which hasn't beaten Geelong around the shores of Corio Bay since 1988? King, in a show of leadership-by-example, spoke out midweek about needing some help in the ruck, despite his performance of 40-plus hitouts against Collingwood being typical of his usual dominance at the position so far this season.
King's motivation is for himself to be able to go forward as another tall option in attack.
"For the team's benefit, it is better sometimes to go forward and have a spell to freshen up and have more influence when I do go back there," King told the club's official gfc.com.au website earlier in the week.
"I'd like to spend time up forward as well and try to provide an option to kick some goals as well. At the end of the day it is whatever the match committee decides. I am just happy to do my part," added King.
However, at the end of the day, King will have to go at it alone in the ruck once again, as Thompson opted for no other tall players-- such as Paul Chambers, Peter Street, Henry Playfair or young gun Matthew McCarthy-- to be available for selection in those players' status in the Cats' reserves.
But Thompson did make some interesting choices in his projected starting lineup, in the hopes of gaining a tactical edge before the opening centre bounce.
Cameron Ling moves from the centre of the ground to a ruck rover position, backing up King and Joel Corey in that endeavor, Clarke goes alongside Gary Ablett Jr. and Kent Kingsley at full forward in the hopes that he can utilise his speed and quickness to his advantage against Melbourne defenders Nathan D. Brown and Luke Williams, as will be the case for Bartel coming off the interchange bench, and Cameron Mooney being dropped back to centre half-forward from a usual full-forward position.
But once again, the matchup of Kingsley against former Cat Clint Bizzell and Ryan Ferguson in the middle of the Demons' defence will be a key - as long as the likes of Graham and Rahilly, Peter Riccardi and an in-form Ben Chapman can deliver the ball in from the flanks to those in the forward lines.
So instead of matching Melbourne strength for strength in the height matchups in the forward battles, Thompson has apparently decided to opt for gaining an advantage per his team's speed, quickness and versatility.
If and when Geelong emerge victorious against Melbourne, such moves could make Thompson look like a genius. But if the Cats meet with another defeat, an 0-4 record could hit out at their overall confidence, and it might mean it could be a while before they gain that elusive first win of the season.
) Yze, still, is someone I fear might sneak in behind the full-forwards and score some goals.
In any event, Chapman has been one of Geelong's better players so far in the young season.
