The players that I believe need to be in fringe territory come mid-season for us to be taking steps forward are Stevens, Doughty and Reilly. Remember the thing about replacing good players with better ones. Stevens is versatile and has fought hard to get where he is, but we have exceptional defenders in Bock and Rutten, and our forward line is no longer going to need the switch-up imo. We'll have Davis developing and assuming Hentschel can hit the ground running, he offers more attacking flair and can slide back. Otten's absence might, MIGHT, create a window for Stevens to last a little longer particularly if/when Davis runs out of puff, but Young will have a say in this too.
Doughty is chalk and cheese compared to the timid player we had running around years back, but we can't sit and pretend that he is a footballer of genuine talent. The image I can't get out of my head since the end of our 09 campaign is him getting wrapped up by Ben Johnson. It was symbolic; while Mackay, Tippett and Vince were shining lights under pressure, our hard-working but modestly talented types were not.
Reilly has either under-delivered or simply isn't all that talented in the first place, maybe a touch of both. When the pace is frenetic Reilly is slow to react and the skills, usually so polished, go out the window. There have been a few exceptions but we need those to become the norm. He needs to prove himself quickly and decisively this year, and that means staying on the park to give himself that chance too.
Aggressive list and selection management is a big part of winning a premiership. You may not agree with my opinions on these players specifically, but harsh decisions will be made either way. These just happen to be blokes that I think will be in the firing line.
Doughty is chalk and cheese compared to the timid player we had running around years back, but we can't sit and pretend that he is a footballer of genuine talent. The image I can't get out of my head since the end of our 09 campaign is him getting wrapped up by Ben Johnson. It was symbolic; while Mackay, Tippett and Vince were shining lights under pressure, our hard-working but modestly talented types were not.
Reilly has either under-delivered or simply isn't all that talented in the first place, maybe a touch of both. When the pace is frenetic Reilly is slow to react and the skills, usually so polished, go out the window. There have been a few exceptions but we need those to become the norm. He needs to prove himself quickly and decisively this year, and that means staying on the park to give himself that chance too.
Aggressive list and selection management is a big part of winning a premiership. You may not agree with my opinions on these players specifically, but harsh decisions will be made either way. These just happen to be blokes that I think will be in the firing line.
) should try to be objective as groupthink has a way of taking over 
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