- Aug 24, 2000
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The Rover - football's unsung hero
Concept originally discussed on the excellent Unofficial AFL Ranting Board:
www.elevenoclock.com/forums/aflranting/
and
www.roarpower.com
I have argued for about 12 months that Clinton King's value to Richmond's midfield goes well beyond his actual ability as a footballer.
In fact I have been on this 'rover' bandwagon (I dreaded using that word actually!) since 1995 when Richmond had a genuine rover (former back-pocket Chris Bond) for one full season and made the finals, only to fall out of the finals the following year after sending Bond to Fremantle.
Looking at the ideal scenario, centre square set-up for any team, you have a ruckman, ruckrover (or tagger), centre and rover. Each should play a different role, working together as follows:
The ruckman taps the ball forward to the rover (who is facing towards the oppositions goal). The rover then handpasses (NOT kicks) quickly to either the centre, or one of the two wingmen who is running pass to receive.
This results in an unpressured kick by the centre/wingman into the forward line. Meanwhile, the ruck rover prances around the field and picks up possessions here and there, or tags an opposition midfielder.
The key part of this equation is the rover - a player who needs the following qualities: the ability to read the tap of the ruck, quick hands, and a willingness to take heavy knocks in heavy traffic. Ratten is a prime example.
The rover does not need to be a good kick at all (he handpasses usually), or a strong mark, so he is rarely looked at as the team's star. But I reckon that a quality rover, working with a quality ruckman makes a midfield, and is worth his weight in gold. The reality is beautiful kicking wingmen are much easier to find than good rovers.
Using Richmond as a classic example, Richmond has only had one genuine rover since Dale Weightman (Bond in 1995), and has made the finals only once.
In 2000 Clinton King joined Richmond, playing as a genuine rover. Suddenly Joel Bowden is getting quick handballs out of traffic, and passing to Richmond forwards with no pressure. Bowden looks like a star - the Tigers win 6 in a row!
Then Clinton King (along with tagger, and '2nd' rover D. Kellaway) goes down with a serious leg injury. Bowden suddenly[/b] loses form and the Tigers disappear from the finals race.
Coincidence??? I think not.
Likewise, I reckon that Ratten makes Camporeale look good. If Camporeale gets 30 possessions, you can bet that as many as half of them are handball receives from Ratten.
Some ruck rovers are so good that they end up playing a rover role and a ruck rover role: Voss and Kelly being the obvious examples. But a team that doesn't have a player who can cop that first possession and knock, and dish out a handball to a pretty boy wingman, is not going to seriously challenge for a premiership.
So next time someone rabbits on about how good Camporeale, or Bowden, or Harford, or Hird, or Woewodin, or a host of other pretty boy ruck rovers and wingmen are - think about who did the hard work to make them look good.
And one warning to non-Tiger fans - if Clinton King and Duncan Kellaway play 22 games for Richmond in 2001, the Tigers WILL make the finals.
*I should declare that I never played as a rover - I was a full back or back pocket. I have no bias on this topic with regard to positions on the field.
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TT - Obligatory bad-tempered Richmond supporter
Concept originally discussed on the excellent Unofficial AFL Ranting Board:
www.elevenoclock.com/forums/aflranting/
and
www.roarpower.com
I have argued for about 12 months that Clinton King's value to Richmond's midfield goes well beyond his actual ability as a footballer.
In fact I have been on this 'rover' bandwagon (I dreaded using that word actually!) since 1995 when Richmond had a genuine rover (former back-pocket Chris Bond) for one full season and made the finals, only to fall out of the finals the following year after sending Bond to Fremantle.
Looking at the ideal scenario, centre square set-up for any team, you have a ruckman, ruckrover (or tagger), centre and rover. Each should play a different role, working together as follows:
The ruckman taps the ball forward to the rover (who is facing towards the oppositions goal). The rover then handpasses (NOT kicks) quickly to either the centre, or one of the two wingmen who is running pass to receive.
This results in an unpressured kick by the centre/wingman into the forward line. Meanwhile, the ruck rover prances around the field and picks up possessions here and there, or tags an opposition midfielder.
The key part of this equation is the rover - a player who needs the following qualities: the ability to read the tap of the ruck, quick hands, and a willingness to take heavy knocks in heavy traffic. Ratten is a prime example.
The rover does not need to be a good kick at all (he handpasses usually), or a strong mark, so he is rarely looked at as the team's star. But I reckon that a quality rover, working with a quality ruckman makes a midfield, and is worth his weight in gold. The reality is beautiful kicking wingmen are much easier to find than good rovers.
Using Richmond as a classic example, Richmond has only had one genuine rover since Dale Weightman (Bond in 1995), and has made the finals only once.
In 2000 Clinton King joined Richmond, playing as a genuine rover. Suddenly Joel Bowden is getting quick handballs out of traffic, and passing to Richmond forwards with no pressure. Bowden looks like a star - the Tigers win 6 in a row!
Then Clinton King (along with tagger, and '2nd' rover D. Kellaway) goes down with a serious leg injury. Bowden suddenly[/b] loses form and the Tigers disappear from the finals race.
Coincidence??? I think not.
Likewise, I reckon that Ratten makes Camporeale look good. If Camporeale gets 30 possessions, you can bet that as many as half of them are handball receives from Ratten.
Some ruck rovers are so good that they end up playing a rover role and a ruck rover role: Voss and Kelly being the obvious examples. But a team that doesn't have a player who can cop that first possession and knock, and dish out a handball to a pretty boy wingman, is not going to seriously challenge for a premiership.
So next time someone rabbits on about how good Camporeale, or Bowden, or Harford, or Hird, or Woewodin, or a host of other pretty boy ruck rovers and wingmen are - think about who did the hard work to make them look good.
And one warning to non-Tiger fans - if Clinton King and Duncan Kellaway play 22 games for Richmond in 2001, the Tigers WILL make the finals.
*I should declare that I never played as a rover - I was a full back or back pocket. I have no bias on this topic with regard to positions on the field.
------------------
TT - Obligatory bad-tempered Richmond supporter
