Don't know if this has been discussed much yet, but:
I really think the last few weeks have been as good as I have seen these two in combination. There have been times when they used to spoil each other going for marks but this is not happening now.
I look back to the 2009 finals - especially the Prelim, and that's when I though Hawk came of age. Then came 2010, and Pods expolded on the scene. I kinda think this unsettled Tom - in that he was no longer sure what his role in the side was. Almost as if he plays better when he is "the man" or "top banana" if you will.
It would seem this has been sorted out now. No more Tom in the ruck. Pods still kicking some goals, but also providing those searching leads when we are more than a kick away from a shot at goal. The Hawthorn game was fantastic - Pods played a key role in separating the Hawthorn backmen, whilst also taking some good marks up the ground.
The other benefit of not having them both contest a mark around 30m out is that when the ball did fall to ground in those situations, we were too top heavy and the defnce ran it out too easily. I still see this as a weakness in our game but it's not as bad now.
We won the GF last year without Pods - some suggest his substitution even helped the balance of the side. Maybe true, but I think now we have the benefit of actually making it work. Tall contested mark options are gold in finals pressure. I'm liking what I see at the moment.
I really think the last few weeks have been as good as I have seen these two in combination. There have been times when they used to spoil each other going for marks but this is not happening now.
I look back to the 2009 finals - especially the Prelim, and that's when I though Hawk came of age. Then came 2010, and Pods expolded on the scene. I kinda think this unsettled Tom - in that he was no longer sure what his role in the side was. Almost as if he plays better when he is "the man" or "top banana" if you will.
It would seem this has been sorted out now. No more Tom in the ruck. Pods still kicking some goals, but also providing those searching leads when we are more than a kick away from a shot at goal. The Hawthorn game was fantastic - Pods played a key role in separating the Hawthorn backmen, whilst also taking some good marks up the ground.
The other benefit of not having them both contest a mark around 30m out is that when the ball did fall to ground in those situations, we were too top heavy and the defnce ran it out too easily. I still see this as a weakness in our game but it's not as bad now.
We won the GF last year without Pods - some suggest his substitution even helped the balance of the side. Maybe true, but I think now we have the benefit of actually making it work. Tall contested mark options are gold in finals pressure. I'm liking what I see at the moment.
