_RT_
Not A Minion
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2006
- Posts
- 50,445
- Reaction score
- 103,408
- Location
- Southern Stand Punt Road End
- AFL Club
- Richmond
- Staff
- #1
Excitement
When was the last time we all went to games expecting to see some exciting play from our side. I don't mean watching Houli or Rance charge out of the back line thinking Christ I hope they hit a target, I mean excitement where we had someone who could do a few things and get the crowd involved and fired up. The last time I truly felt excitement going to games was in 2011-2012. Back then we had Dusty charging into packs grabbing the ball, fending off a couple of opponents and then charging away and hitting a laser pass into the 50. We also had Deledio playing across HB opposite Houli and running our of the back line breaking lines and kicking long into F50 more often than not hitting Jack on the tit or setting it up for Jack to sit on someones head and that got the crowd going.
Speed
After our finals exit Hardwick said that he knew what we needed and we as fans all believed we knew what we needed. Outside speed was the call and come draft time we went out and we recruited speed. Unfortunately for us one of those speedsters in Drummond has been injured and is out for the year. Another speedster in Deledio has been missing since round 1 and it's noticeable that outside Houli and Titch we're really lacking some line breakers, but we do have a few of them in VFL that have shown some good signs and maybe it's time to reward some of these kids with a crack at senior level. The guys I'm talking about are in particular are Castagna Menadue & Short. Sure they might be rookies but they go any worse than some that have played for us this year.
Flair
In a similar vain to the lack of excitement, where has the flair gone from our side. There just seems to be no emotion or flair about us at the moment. Back in 2012-13 we had Martin Deledio Houli Edwards White & Foley who took the game on by looking to get the ball at HB and then run at the opposition and break lines. Now it seems like outside Houli Edwards and Deledio when he plays there is no flair to our game. Round 1 we had McIntosh Houli Deledio & Edwards running down the wings taking multiple bounces and driving long into the F50. Since then only Deledio has been missing and yet our run and carry seems to have dried up completely. It's pretty much become a case of get the ball at HB go short to the wing, then get the handball back and then go short to the boundary out on the HFF, then wait before going long to an outnumbered forward like Jack or Griffiths or Vickery in the pocket then watch as the ball gets rebounded out the other side. I believe that the inclusion of the likes of Castagna and Menadue as well as the return of Deledio & Conca will help add more run and carry to the team. However before that happens Hardwick removing the shackles that seem to be placed on Cotchin and Martin and given them back their ability to play with flair might just help as well.
Hardness
Saturday night the Hawks beat the Roos, not just on the scoreboard but also in the trenches and it started early. Lewis collects Goldstein and Hodge decks Swallow, while both acts probably get them suspended, it sets the tone for the rest of the team, but it's not just them either. Take a look at the likes of Sydney Fremantle & Port and tell me the players from those sides that you hear being labelled as soft front runners. Personally I can't think of one player. Every player that takes the field for these teams knows that without failure they are expected to put their bodies on the line when it is time to go.
At our club who do you look at and say they have genuine hardness and sets the tone. Morris is kamikaze like but I don't think he instills fear in the opposition. Cotchin is one who fits the ball, willingly throws himself into contests and tries to set the standard for the team but he is often on his own in that regard. We're trying to make Martin a beast of a midfielder having worked on his tank to go with the ball winning ability but it will take some time for it to come together for him. There are a few others in the VFL that fit the bill in regards to having a willingness to wear contact, but their skill set just doesn't match what we want. Perhaps it's time that we take stock and say you know what, having the likes of an Arnot Thomas Dea in the side might be what is needed. These blokes might not be the most skillful players on our list but I've never seen any one of them take a backwards step when a contest was there to be won. Maybe using these guys as the grunts in the side will help in allowing the likes of Cotchin Martin & Miles to do a bit more work on the outside of packs rather than having to continually try and break away from inside a pack.
Of those areas the ones that we can address this year are the first 3, unless we're willing to give those hardnosed lesser skilled players a decent run. As I mentioned we've got the players with the excitement factor and flair & we've got kids who have speed and skills. So why not give them a crack and remove the shackles that sees the team more often than not going around in circles. Over the next couple of months I'd like to see us work towards getting the following side on the park:
B: Castagna Astbury Chaplin
HB: Houli Rance Deledio
C: B.Ellis Vlastuin Conca
HF: Martin Griffiths Lennon
F: Riewoldt Vickery Edwards
R: Maric Cotchin C.Ellis
INT: Menadue Miles Hunt McIntosh
IMO that side addresses the 3 issues above that can be fixed this year. We bring in some speed across the ground. Deledio back to HB gives us that run and carry flair we've been missing, Vlastuin into the middle gives us a bit more hardness in the middle while starting Martin and Edwards up forward adds a little bit of flair to the side
When was the last time we all went to games expecting to see some exciting play from our side. I don't mean watching Houli or Rance charge out of the back line thinking Christ I hope they hit a target, I mean excitement where we had someone who could do a few things and get the crowd involved and fired up. The last time I truly felt excitement going to games was in 2011-2012. Back then we had Dusty charging into packs grabbing the ball, fending off a couple of opponents and then charging away and hitting a laser pass into the 50. We also had Deledio playing across HB opposite Houli and running our of the back line breaking lines and kicking long into F50 more often than not hitting Jack on the tit or setting it up for Jack to sit on someones head and that got the crowd going.
Speed
After our finals exit Hardwick said that he knew what we needed and we as fans all believed we knew what we needed. Outside speed was the call and come draft time we went out and we recruited speed. Unfortunately for us one of those speedsters in Drummond has been injured and is out for the year. Another speedster in Deledio has been missing since round 1 and it's noticeable that outside Houli and Titch we're really lacking some line breakers, but we do have a few of them in VFL that have shown some good signs and maybe it's time to reward some of these kids with a crack at senior level. The guys I'm talking about are in particular are Castagna Menadue & Short. Sure they might be rookies but they go any worse than some that have played for us this year.
Flair
In a similar vain to the lack of excitement, where has the flair gone from our side. There just seems to be no emotion or flair about us at the moment. Back in 2012-13 we had Martin Deledio Houli Edwards White & Foley who took the game on by looking to get the ball at HB and then run at the opposition and break lines. Now it seems like outside Houli Edwards and Deledio when he plays there is no flair to our game. Round 1 we had McIntosh Houli Deledio & Edwards running down the wings taking multiple bounces and driving long into the F50. Since then only Deledio has been missing and yet our run and carry seems to have dried up completely. It's pretty much become a case of get the ball at HB go short to the wing, then get the handball back and then go short to the boundary out on the HFF, then wait before going long to an outnumbered forward like Jack or Griffiths or Vickery in the pocket then watch as the ball gets rebounded out the other side. I believe that the inclusion of the likes of Castagna and Menadue as well as the return of Deledio & Conca will help add more run and carry to the team. However before that happens Hardwick removing the shackles that seem to be placed on Cotchin and Martin and given them back their ability to play with flair might just help as well.
Hardness
Saturday night the Hawks beat the Roos, not just on the scoreboard but also in the trenches and it started early. Lewis collects Goldstein and Hodge decks Swallow, while both acts probably get them suspended, it sets the tone for the rest of the team, but it's not just them either. Take a look at the likes of Sydney Fremantle & Port and tell me the players from those sides that you hear being labelled as soft front runners. Personally I can't think of one player. Every player that takes the field for these teams knows that without failure they are expected to put their bodies on the line when it is time to go.
At our club who do you look at and say they have genuine hardness and sets the tone. Morris is kamikaze like but I don't think he instills fear in the opposition. Cotchin is one who fits the ball, willingly throws himself into contests and tries to set the standard for the team but he is often on his own in that regard. We're trying to make Martin a beast of a midfielder having worked on his tank to go with the ball winning ability but it will take some time for it to come together for him. There are a few others in the VFL that fit the bill in regards to having a willingness to wear contact, but their skill set just doesn't match what we want. Perhaps it's time that we take stock and say you know what, having the likes of an Arnot Thomas Dea in the side might be what is needed. These blokes might not be the most skillful players on our list but I've never seen any one of them take a backwards step when a contest was there to be won. Maybe using these guys as the grunts in the side will help in allowing the likes of Cotchin Martin & Miles to do a bit more work on the outside of packs rather than having to continually try and break away from inside a pack.
Of those areas the ones that we can address this year are the first 3, unless we're willing to give those hardnosed lesser skilled players a decent run. As I mentioned we've got the players with the excitement factor and flair & we've got kids who have speed and skills. So why not give them a crack and remove the shackles that sees the team more often than not going around in circles. Over the next couple of months I'd like to see us work towards getting the following side on the park:
B: Castagna Astbury Chaplin
HB: Houli Rance Deledio
C: B.Ellis Vlastuin Conca
HF: Martin Griffiths Lennon
F: Riewoldt Vickery Edwards
R: Maric Cotchin C.Ellis
INT: Menadue Miles Hunt McIntosh
IMO that side addresses the 3 issues above that can be fixed this year. We bring in some speed across the ground. Deledio back to HB gives us that run and carry flair we've been missing, Vlastuin into the middle gives us a bit more hardness in the middle while starting Martin and Edwards up forward adds a little bit of flair to the side
