Analysis Who Is The Barometer?

[JayPea14]

R. Gray........Wingard,Polec & Ryder. Daylight between last 3. Dixon is always solid a is why I didn’t choose him.

Agree, Dixon always has a crack...depends more so on the fact that the ball needs to get to him cleanly and quickly

 

[Dalfino]

I wouldn't say R. Gray or Dixon because either of them can have a ripper of an individual game yet we can still get pantsed, case in point Dixon literally carrying us through the first half of the elimination final and Robbie Gray through the entire 2016 season.

I'd say Wines, Ryder and Polec. I really think people underrate Polec's first half of the year - at his best, he should be ranked amongst the games' elite. Ryder was brilliant all season but let it slip in a final and cost us big time. Wines was also brilliant in the first half of the year alongside Ebert, but slowed towards the end of the year which resulted in our midfield copping a few hidings (Essendon and Crows) and a few other poor performances (St. Kilda, Melbourne, elimination final)

I reckon we played our best footy in the first half of the year. Beat Sydney in Sydney, destroyed Freo, Carlton, Brisbane and Gold Coast (which could all have been triple-figure margins), completely blanketed Hawthorn for a half of footy and nearly beat Geelong in Geelong and the Crows. I believe that Wines and Polec being on-song helped with that form.

 

[Peck]

Only one option for Watts and it isn’t even Jack Watts.

He gets my vote anyway

 

[Ando39]

Dixon for me. Largely because if he is firing then its a good chance that our team is giving him good supply and playing well. If we're talking about a player who acts as a barometer for no sense or reason, then I'd go Polec.

 

[G3TWOTYAD3S3RV]

Agree, Dixon always has a crack...depends more so on the fact that the ball needs to get to him cleanly and quickly

If it doesn’t he’ll go find it with a bit of push & shove. The gorilla we wanted since Tredrae.

 

[G3TWOTYAD3S3RV]

I wouldn't say R. Gray or Dixon because either of them can have a ripper of an individual game yet we can still get pantsed, case in point Dixon literally carrying us through the first half of the elimination final and Robbie Gray through the entire 2016 season.

I'd say Wines, Ryder and Polec. I really think people underrate Polec's first half of the year - at his best, he should be ranked amongst the games' elite. Ryder was brilliant all season but let it slip in a final and cost us big time. Wines was also brilliant in the first half of the year alongside Ebert, but slowed towards the end of the year which resulted in our midfield copping a few hidings (Essendon and Crows) and a few other poor performances (St. Kilda, Melbourne, elimination final)

I reckon we played our best footy in the first half of the year. Beat Sydney in Sydney, destroyed Freo, Carlton, Brisbane and Gold Coast (which could all have been triple-figure margins), completely blanketed Hawthorn for a half of footy and nearly beat Geelong in Geelong and the Crows. I believe that Wines and Polec being on-song helped with that form.

Every teams needs that guy who can do something special in crucial times. We have one maybe two. R.Gray & Wingard.

 

[RossFC]

Dixon for mine. He's our forward line leader.

 

[GreyPower]

Hartlett.

 

[TeeKray]

Ryder is clearly our most irreplaceable player but leaving that aside I've gone for Dixon. He seems to be getting better and better and he carries the team on his shoulders with his presence and leadership when he's on song. If he can play 8-10 games somewhere near that level he produced in the WCE final, we're top 4 locks.

 

[FishingRick04]

Sam Gray, when he's influencing we are winning, when's he's not we aren't!

 

[skanker08]

Westoff because you know a storm is brewing when he's in the back lines 2 minutes into the first quarter ☺

 

[Power Raid]

I'd suggest our tackle count

 

[PhoenixPower]

Polec gets my vote.

 

[Amarula]

Rockliff, because he'll be the mid with the capacity to play well enough to keep us in the game if the rest of the team is off. And to play well to a losing ruck. And to bring those around him into the game. He's our insurance against getting crunched by a very physical midfield.

Ryder, because when he plays well, especially around the ground, he seems to add about 10-15% to the effectiveness of the whole team, whether the rest of the team is good, bad or indifferent.

Hartlett, for similar reasons to Janus: because quick precise transition from defence is so important, and because he'll only play well if the defence is doing well as a unit so he'll be a barometer for how the defence is going.

 

[LK Metro]

I reckon Jonas...if he is playing well as a tall, we just go better as a unit down back...we do well down back, everything else seems to fall into place (except delivery into F50 - oh and goal kicking). Great season this year a reflection of that, crap year last year likewise.

Then Polec.

Then Ebo or Ryder in my view.

 

[cmpower]

Dix when he's on, he's hard to stop.

Gray is clutch, when someone needs to stand up. You know he'll be there

 

[El_Scorcho]

A barometer is a measurement device, not the catalyst for our performance.

Given that, i'd say Westhoff. When we're up and about he just seems to find more of the footy and destroy teams, but he's very rarely the reason we're up and about, and he usually needs to go on the side of a milk carton when we're getting killed.

 

[Boxx]

Jack Watts playing in the Josh Jenkins role will kick 40-50 goals this year... So, if he gets going he will be a major factor as to how we will fair in 2018!

 

[Byrons Firen]

1. When Chad Cornes is up and about everyone knows it. He is really invested in the outcome of games and can show a bit more emotion than the players.

2. When Travis Boak plays well, we win.

3. Tom Jonas. Tommy chips in as the third man in the big contests, provides the ‘45’ get out option, and brings some physicality. When Tommy is in the game for extended periods, we play well. We he drifts in and out, we are inconsistent.

In answer to your points

1 Chad's 'emotion' is imo counter productive to measured smart organised footy. Losing the GF to Sturt was inexcusable.
Basically not in love with Chad to the obvious degree of others on here

2 Our skipper has struggled to impact games for too long. Hopefully he's fit n raring to go this year. Would like to see his DE%
improve

3 If TJ aka 'the fist' is "in the game for extended periods" it means we're spending too much time defending

To take the next step in 2018 i'd like Ken to modify his high press and sort out our clearances. Get Thompson to tell/show us
more of how our neighbours go about ball movement and field positioning.
Player barometers
Ryder
Polec
Howard

 

[Trewth]

Justin Westhoff has always been our barometer. He only ever plays well when the team is playing well. Honestly, can anyone name a game where he starred but we comfortably lost? He’s the canary in the coal mine.

 

[Enviable Tradition]

Watts and Polec for mine.

They provide the quality forward delivery that we so badly lacked last year. It us where we broke down in all our bad losses.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[1954]

Incoming players like Rockliff, Motlop and Watts should definitely improve the team, but in my opinion it's a bit too early to pick any of them as `the barometer ' until we see what happens when they pull the jumper over their heads in the real stuff.

Of the known quantities there are a number of barometers, eg Ryder when he is jumping all over the oppo ruck from the very first bounce, Dixon, but depending of course on how far he has to go to get the ball, Polec, when he is running hard and regularly firing 50 metre darts into the forward 50, R. Gray, Wines etc, etc.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

A barometer is a measurement device, not the catalyst for our performance.

Given that, i'd say Westhoff. When we're up and about he just seems to find more of the footy and destroy teams, but he's very rarely the reason we're up and about, and he usually needs to go on the side of a milk carton when we're getting killed.

Its a device that measures pressure - atmospheric pressure so it probably should be used to explain who handles high and low pressure well.

 

[Janus]

I can think of several games when Westhoff has been the only difference between us winning and losing when he drops back into defence because the team is playing rat s**t. People talk about the second half against West Coast in Perth but ignore the first half when he was repelling attacks due to our midfield not clicking (a portent to what would happen in the elimination final).

Besides, Westhoff got 10 votes out of a possible 25 in the B&F when we were getting creamed by Essendon, and we lost by 80+. Which meant in the coaches eyes he played well enough and wasn’t “on the side of a milk carton”.

 

[Forzaport]

If by barometer the meaning is "plays well = Port usually win; has quiet game = Port usually lose" then the player that probably best followed that pattern in 2017 was SPP with Broadbent and Clurey not far behind.