Training 12.01.09

[cmndstab]

Obviously it's a late draft pick, but someone like Rockliff has been chosen as a small forward, surely?


Yeh, he has played midfield but realistically he's been selected as a small forward from the outset.

 

[NTRabbit]

Obviously it's a late draft pick, but someone like Rockliff has been chosen as a small forward, surely?


Yeh, he has played midfield but realistically he's been selected as a small forward from the outset.

Taken by the Lions in the PSD (ie very late in the draft, meaning they had nothing better to do with the spot) as a low risk project player, and that project will be to try and make a goal scoring midfielder out of him.

 

[norwood98]

Small Forward is for players who want to be in the midfield, but are too lazy to be able to run out a full game there - Douglas now, Vince before him. Porplyzia was the exception to the rule last year, with his busted wing.

Why would we shuffle Mackay, who has already proven himself a first 22 midfielder, into the lazy player slot? If we did that, that would mean cutting Douglas from the team and replacing him with Dangerfield or Otten, and Mackay really doesn't seem like he has the right predatory instincts to be a crumber.

It's a pretty important position these days because the small forward locks the ball in the forward line and applies pressure to the opposition defenders who usually outnumber him considerably so he needs to be really quick and has to beat more than one opponent. We have plenty of midfielders but no natural small forwards who are ready.

 

[NTRabbit]

It's a pretty important position these days because the small forward locks the ball in the forward line and applies pressure to the opposition defenders who usually outnumber him considerably so he needs to be really quick and has to beat more than one opponent. We have plenty of midfielders but no natural small forwards who are ready.

I think you're mistaken; the nature of the game has changed, and the old concept of the small forward is vanishing - nobody has drafted them for some years, instead opting to use goal kicking almost/failed midfielders who can switch into the rotation in an emergency - or just use the actual midfield to fill the role, as we have.

This concept of "forward pressure" is no longer solely the realm of the small forward, it's a tactic applied by every player on every part of the ground.

 

[KUNG FU]

I think you're mistaken; the nature of the game has changed, and the old concept of the small forward is vanishing - nobody has drafted them for some years, instead opting to use goal kicking almost/failed midfielders who can switch into the rotation in an emergency - or just use the actual midfield to fill the role, as we have.

D Thomas & C Yarran are on the line...

This concept of "forward pressure" is no longer solely the realm of the small forward, it's a tactic applied by every player on every part of the ground.

Fev takes a piss on that comment. Sure, we are moving into an era where utility is a highly rated skill, but lets not forget the importance of position! Every player still has their strength and weaknesses. No tall forward is ever going to a tackling machine.

 

[NTRabbit]

D Thomas & C Yarran are on the line...



Fev takes a piss on that comment. Sure, we are moving into an era where utility is a highly rated skill, but lets not forget the importance of position! Every player still has their strength and weaknesses. No tall forward is ever going to a tackling machine.

Thomas is another recruited to be a midfielder, but even the Pies fans will tell you they've been hoping he has used this preseason to develop his missing tank.

Just because Fev is a lazy bastard doesn't mean I'm wrong; on the contrary, look at Walker - 190cm tall forward who was kept out of the Adelaide team because of his lack of application of pressure.