We won clearances - No Sandilands!!

[Mudd]

we may not have won the taps but i don't recall seeing taps going straight to an opposition opponent tonight that cost us clearances/goals.

deboer and lower definately make a difference around stoppages though so if we do get a healthy sandi back it will be interesting to see how that combo goes.

 

[tacopavlich]

we may not have won the taps but i don't recall seeing taps going straight to an opposition opponent tonight that cost us clearances/goals.

deboer and lower definately make a difference around stoppages though so if we do get a healthy sandi back it will be interesting to see how that combo goes.

Griffin never got near it enough to have a chance at hitting it to anyone. If it wasn't for DeBoer and Lower, we would have been killed tonight.

 

[kp junior]

Griffin never got near it enough to have a chance at hitting it to anyone. If it wasn't for DeBoer and Lower, we would have been killed tonight.

So now we're sharking the opposition ruckmen, and winning the clearances? If winning the hitouts mean you lose the clearances, we may as well not play a ruckman, and have an extra sharking midfielder in there. Would be fun to watch anyway

 

[Sman-21]

Did anyone see our kick ins from points?
Many times it was kicked long towards Griffin and Clarke and i cant remember them taking a single mark from any of them.

That is where Sandi is missed more than anywhere else.
Around the ground long kicks to contests.
If he doesnt mark it he atleast makes it impossible for opposition to mark it.
Something Griff and Clarke cant do.

 

[Freo2012]

So now we're sharking the opposition ruckmen, and winning the clearances? If winning the hitouts mean you lose the clearances, we may as well not play a ruckman, and have an extra sharking midfielder in there. Would be fun to watch anyway

Problem with this is with no ruck in the bounces the opposition ruck take it clean and tap to advantage or possess and handpass. Need tall to put pressure on (just as opposition continually do to Sandi).

I do believe we are better off with Griffin/Zac rather than Sandi rucking - Sandi is too predictable to opposition and Sandi doesn't look for our mids at all - watching Sandi it appears there's no ruck planning at all - he has absolutely no awareness of where Freo mids are or will be (or worse case and Sandi doesn't care as long as he wins the tap). With G/Z our mid's have at least an even chance of getting the clearance. It seems with Sandi the opposition always read him far better. And if G/Z can improve in contested marking (or knocking to advantage) around the ground overall the team IMO will be far better without playing Sandi - with 2 truly athletic rucks and our mids having at least an even chance of getting the clearances.

I know Sandi is sacrosanct and been a great player for the club but I don't think he has really been as valuable as many want to believe. For whatever the reason Freo has not been able to capitalise on the advantage that Sandi should have provided.

Edit: whoops, just read back Silverscope said it all already, and better

 

[malpaso]

Did anyone see our kick ins from points?
Many times it was kicked long towards Griffin and Clarke and i cant remember them taking a single mark from any of them.

That is where Sandi is missed more than anywhere else.
Around the ground long kicks to contests.
If he doesnt mark it he atleast makes it impossible for opposition to mark it.
Something Griff and Clarke cant do.

Bullshit watch the game again, I can remember Griffin and Clarke both taking marks from kick-ins (Clarke at least 2), if it wasn't the initial kick-in it was definitely the second out of the 50.

 

[malpaso]

May as well play Clarke and Bradley on this theory..

 

[tacopavlich]

It seems with Sandi the opposition always read him far better.

Doesn't make sense though does it? Says more about our midfielders than Sandilands if we can't read our own player better than opposition. With Lower and DeBoer we did well in clearances even with losing the hitouts, don't see any reason this wouldn't be so with Sandilands in the side unless our own players decide to get lazy expecting Sandilands to do everything.

 

[Kenny_01]

M

 

[theGav56]

So, how about we play Sandilands, and ask him to lose the hitouts; Man we'd just dominate the clearances and the opposition won't know what hit them.

 

[Freo_4eva]

^^ He doesnt have to lose them... just pick and choose which ball-ups he wants to tap to keep everyone guessing