Sandilands Happy To Keep Playing

They must have changed the stat. Back in about 2010 Sandilands was averaging about 5-6 a game.

 

Gawn has the profile and celebrity + is based in melbourne. if Gawn has a half decent season he'll romp it in.

 

This video of Lyon talking about centre square strategy against the Dees goes some way to illustrating just how valuable Sandilands is.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/video/afl/afl/lyon-breaks-down-dees-plan!618758
When you know you're going to win the tap you can sacrifice numbers at the stoppage to aid spread and shore up your structures. In the past we've regularly given up a body in midfield to create a defensive sweeper on the back of Sandilands.
And yet some observers still try to say a tap ruckman has no intrinsic value.

 

Gawn is gonski. Who else is there to take the mantle from him this year?


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Watched some of the GC game last night. Commentators made the call that Witts is currently the number one ranked ruckman in the league.

Despite how much I love our modfield unit, my biggest fear for the team is an injury to Sandlilands.

 

Mumford should be the favourite currently, he has had a standout start to the year.

 

I think Pruce from North goes alright - will be a great contest with Sandi this weekend!

 

Does Pruess ruck? I haven't seen much of the Kangas this year but thought he was just playing forward?

 

Yes - they have been playing him about 70/30 in ruck and using Goldstein up forward more. Will be a good contest.

 

Sandi has slowly but surely added contested marking to his arsenal.

We are much more competitive and predictable side from point kickins when he is out there, alot of talk made of our struggles out of d50 last year, having the man mountain as an ever present aerial threat creates space for pinpoint passes to free freo jumpers as the oppostion sag toward Sandi.

 

I may be a little biased but to me sandi should have been aa ruckman about 8 out of the last 10 years
This years shaping up as number 9

 

Sandi is clearly by a long way...the best ruck in the league. I hope he plays for at least 3 more seasons. If we are on the up...he will continue.

 

He has amazing longevity for a big guy. I reckon st least 1 more year after this

 

I noticed Fyfe and Hamling were often stationed in the Sandi pack outside d50 during kick-ins also- all our best contested markers in one spot does make it very obvious. Really wish we'd choose a designated kicker though. Whoever is closest seems like a silly strategy to me, unless you move quickly which we don't seem to. Maybe Weller, good kick, unlikely marking target and he can also run the ball if he needs to?

 

Agree 100% with this I have been saying it for some time. Really since Duffield left we have just had this "whoever is closest" strategy which has cost us goals in the past from dumb kick ins.

Needs to be not only our best kick(s) but also smart footballers who can see how the game is set up in front of them. This dumb little chip to the back pocket that seems to be our default is a recipe for leaving no other option but a long bomb to the boundary.

Would love to see someone who could regularly hit a target 50 or more metres away in the corridor - would then make teams think instead of just loading up on the wing where they know the ball will invariably end up.

 

Thought Croz was superb at kick-ins late last year - which is one of the reasons I thought he'd be playing @ HBF. But now he has gone and been dangerous up forward. I know Ryan did his kick-ins for his VFL team so maybe he's a future option? Even when kicking to Sandi (and the pack), a good kick can still be a major difference to him having an advantage with his height or not (trying to stay on thread topic ). Hate seeing Spurr, Ibbo etc doing kick-ins - just not a high percentage chance of success when they do.

 

Houli is a great kick, not sure his corridor courage is well remembered by Tiger fans