Strategy What is the new game plan?

[theridge]

Commentators and media talk about freo implementing a new game plan and that it hasn't quite clicked yet. But what is the new game plan?

In 2012 I could see a clear new defensive type of style that was low scoring but this year it doesn't seem as clear (to me anyway). In no way is this a melt thread it's more for the people that can see the tactical side better than others to help explain what our style is.

Also is this new style something other teams are doing? Are we trying to play a hawthorn style? And once this style clicks, will we be found out quickly because it is what other teams are playing also?

To build towards finals, a team has to be innovative. Hawthorn are the benchmark and do go against the trend of defensive and contested football at time with great reward. They are ahead of the curve. I just don't know if Ross is that way inclined. Please note that I am a big fan of Ross. Although leaving Collins on Kennedy so long seemed dumb.

 

[Scham]

I can only guess that it's to get a top 3 draft pick without anyone thinking that we're tanking.

 

[theridge]

I can only guess that it's to get a top 3 draft pick without anyone thinking that we're tanking.

We're doing a great job then. Chipping in defense then bombing to a 1on3 is all I can see.

 

[Latro]

With the quality of players in the team currently any game plan would look bad. The game plan from 2013 would look as bad.

 

[wehavethepassion]

Why have we moved away from the plan that made us a feared side 2012-2015.

 

[meima]

Why have we moved away from the plan that made us a feared side 2012-2015.

We do not move away, the other side break open 2012-2015 game plan .

 

[schnoods]

Why have we moved away from the plan that made us a feared side 2012-2015.

Sub rule and interchange caps makes it harder to sustain manic pressure to create stoppages. We relied on Sandiland's dominance in the ruck and our clearances to get our opportunities at scoring.

The whole run and spread has killed our game plan from a defensive point of view, our lack of line breaking has killed us offensively as the opposition just sets us up for the long high kick down the line.

We were figured out last year and only once this year it worked against Port.

 

[Arcassius]

During the pre-season they were practising sharp fast ball movement, and low worm burners. It completely failed to transfer during games though. We revert back to kicking high and long to a contest (or to space) at times when under pressure.

Right now we're over using handballs - and getting caught on turnovers, but it looks like what they are attempting to do is pick their way through a press. Our structures aren't working though to support this. Today for instance we had too many people going up for a contest rather than one person staying down to pick up the spill (we started the game with someone staying down, and we were in the game at that point). Sometimes our guys will spoil each other, or make a poor decision to handball to a guy under pressure. The theory is to pick our way through a press - in practise we handball and kick around until we turn it over.

I think having our structures well understood - enables our players to know where each of them will be in relation to one another - which will clean up our transitions. Right now, we're disorganised.

The second thing is that we don't have the same fitness base of last season, and our classy ball users are rotating through the midfield at times in roles that don't suit their skillsets. Walters for example has been spending more time in the midfield, but it has had a negative effect on his kicking (remember the game where he kicked OOB twice in a row). With Fyfe back it will help straighten our midfield up. With a greater fitness base, our guys will be less affected by fatigue when kicking. Remember that it's not something they can do anything about during the season, as they only do minimal training during the season as the main priority is recovery. The base is built in the pre-season. We'll improve.

 

[Admiral Byng]

Also, the 10 m rule opens up the play a bit and makes manic pressure harder.

The game plan seems to be reliant on getting the ball from a turnover and moving it forward very quickly. Play on on where possible and take risks. Catch the opposition defender out of position and all that.

Problem is that seems to be only about 20% of game time. We don't seem to have a plan B for the rest when the opposition flood back and clog up the space. This where we chip sideways, backwards or go the long bomb. We don't seem to have a plan for turning slow and static play into a shot at goal.

 

[Arcassius]

Also, the 10 m rule opens up the play a bit and makes manic pressure harder.

The game plan seems to be reliant on getting the ball from a turnover and moving it forward very quickly. Play on on where possible and take risks. Catch the opposition defender out of position and all that.

Problem is that seems to be only about 20 of game time. We don't seem to have a plan B for when the opposition flood back and clog up the space. This where we chip sideways, backwards or go the long bomb. We don't seem to have a plan for turning slow and static play into a shot at goal.

I think the handball heavy approach is our plan for congestion. Use a mix of short kicks and handballs to work through the press then the long bomb inside 50 from 60-75m out. The problem is we're a bit static, and even then short leads aren't honoured. Langdon got into space quite a few times and was ignored. Seeing players like Ibbo hold up play instead of kicking to a player in space waving like a madman kills me.

Today there was a period of play where Stephen Hill was yelling 'Up' (I presume he wanted it high down the line to where we had some talls waiting), and yet the kicker ignored it, kicked to a different contest and it was turned over. Our players just need to get on the same page.

 

[theridge]

We don't seem to go down the middle much, be it good opposition defense or lack of leads. We seem to get stuck in the defensive pockets and flanks. Today we were losing ground and getting forced back then we did the bail out kick to Clarke or sandi which was so obvious.

 

[Carnthedockers]

Today I saw a team hell bent on fast, play on play, but at all the wrong times. Its all well and good to implement that game style, but you need the options down the line, and the skill to execute. The amount of times we blindly played on and ran into trouble, or kicked down the throat of the opposition was very difficult to watch. Its all about decision making and poise, we have neither.

 

[salim malik]

The new game plan is getting ready for next seasons game plan. Its an early start to pre season.

 

[Tonga Bob]

 

[meima]

The new game plan is getting ready for next seasons game plan. Its an early start to pre season.

And get rid of both Clarke and Hannath so no more talk about them.

 

[Kunna17]

I think the game plans very hard to execute when our confidence is down, and shines through a lot clearer in our bigger wins.
We're looking to move the ball quickly, by handball and by foot, and get the ball to a player with time+space ahead of them to run into.
Unfortunately against better quality defense, we have struggled to get in space, and thus struggled to hit up leading forwards with lace out kicks as players are panicked and end up bombing the ball long. This seems to result in the ball turning over CONSTANTLY and our forwards being hesitant to lead at the ball in fear of it being kicked well over their head, and players with just enough space to create, feeling pressured and overusing the handball. We need more pace and better footskills for the gameplan to work, however most importantly, our contested ball numbers must improve, so we have the confidence to attack from contests and spread, rather than defending out of fear of losing.
I believe the biggest problem is the lack of confidence in each other causes the gameplan to fall apart altogether.
We need to tweak the gameplan, but stick to an attacking mindset and this comes from forward structure, there should be those long bail out options, HOWEVER these would preferabbly be one on ones, and the other forwards lead at the ball/fat side (with at least 2 players always remaining a kick ahead of the long down the line option), and those who lead up at the ball come back to crumb for the longer kick. If I was playing as a forward in our side, I would not lead at the ball either, as you are almost never used, and defending for the opposition is easy as they are able to zone off their players who lead up and create a numbers advantage for the longer/safer kick.
* I do not think our new gameplan will work with an extra defender as each opposing player must be made accoutable and we need to create more 1on1 targets and less pack options for ourselves*

 

[freoextra]

I have a new game plan we can go with. Kick it to that really tall new ruckman that played last week, gotta work better than our previous plans this year.

 

[Kram]

I don't bother to ask these sort of questions anymore..

 

[meima]

I don't bother to ask these sort of questions anymore..

That is BF postie new game plan.

 

[WilloTree]

Play 18 blokes behind the ball, finally get ball, see no one in front of you, hack it forward (because your playing 18 blokes behind the ball), get out-marked 3 on 1 (again, because your playing 18 blokes behind the ball), give up on that and chip it into a defensive pocket - literally the least dangerous part of the ground. rinse - repeat.

 

[yakamoto]

Our new game plan is so complex and obscure that not even Clarko has been able to work it out. In fact it's so cunning that you could pin a tail on it and call it a fox.

 

[Cobbler]

We use to always chip it out to the right from a behind. Now, we sometimes chip it out to the left.

Ross and the squad worked feverishly on this throughout the pre-season. Bit disappointed this hasn't been picked up on at all by us.

The rational is why chip to the right and bang it down the wing to a contest, when we can now chip it left and bang it down the wing. This simple strategy has effectively opened up 100% of the field as opposed to 50%. This intuitive game plan change on paper should've resulted in 50% more opportunities going forward.

It also made us less predictable. Opposition players would be 'Oh no... are they going to go left or right into the defensive pocket'. Mad scramble would ensue and before they knew what happened Barlow would receive the 'Joe the Goose' and walk into an open goal.

We have also employed a different center square set up. Instead of the boring Sandilands down to X and they bang it long, we thought we'd do a bit of rope a dope. Palm it to the opposition player and hit the bodies hard. Collect the spill and proceed forward. The old 'strip and rip' play from the early 80s when center square battles were at their most ferocious. The problem was Griffin and Clarke were so adept at their rucking duties they gave it to the opposition in too good a spot, effectively killing our midfield from being able to pound bodies. I hear it is why Ross has been too frustrated with Griffin and Zac, they literally play into the oppositions hands too well.

Ross has stated 'preseason can't come soon enough'. I'm led to believe he has a new kick in strategy which involves a a kick in to self and short chip to the right or left. This doubles our kick in strategies. He also has new center square set ups intended that include the 'hot potato' method of the late 90s which sees us continue to handball backwards into our defensive 50m. There we will lose the ball, but our pressure will be enough to see the opposition scramble a behind and we use one of our 4 set plays to run the length of the field in what Ross will be the pioneer of in the 5 point play.

These plays will be hard to counter.

In Ross we trust.

 

[Gekko71]

...you could pin a tail on it and call it a fox.

...or a donkey!