Even as he is performing atm if any of Hurley, Hooker, Ambrose, Ridley and arguably even Redman get injured then Francis will be first in line (especially with Dea and Gleeson sidelined).
I canāt imagine a scenario where Dea plays ahead of Francis.
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Dea would be more likely than Francis to come in if Ambrose gets injured. Thereās your scenario.
I donāt think so. Dea got monstered against Richmond late last year, by blokes like Caddy.
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Caddy was epic last year.
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Didnāt it happen for most of last year?
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Are you serious?
They were making Francis wait.
Anyhow, i think Dea would also be behind Gleeson, Redman and Ridley. Francis could play that spot too.
How? It doesnāt affect the general play. I mean, once the ball is bounced, the 6-6-6 set up is gone. Just like that.
This reminds me, a guy told me that the rucksā supercoach scores would be affected by the 6-6-6 set up in a bad way. ā ā ā ā ā ā ā 6-6-6 set up 
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90%, likely 100% that Francis is not getting a game is due to fitness. Itās a massive flaw, I donāt know how you improve that during season. Maybe a running program from here until the bye? Who knows.
As for Langford, itās possible fitness may be an issue. I know that his tog has been relatively low, not sure if itās fitness but he has some serious flaws to work out before questioning his fitness.
My gut feel (hahaha) is that he has other things to work on, besides stamina, and thatās not why heās doing a tour of the VFL.
The answer to your question is quite simple. The 6/6/6 has prevented teams from stacking their backlines and has seen the end of the +1.
That of course doesnāt mean that a player canāt leave his man to go 3rd up. Hurley often does this. But Hurley still has to focus on his man first before deciding to give Hooker or Ambrose support.
The +1 never had to make that assessment. Traditionally they have been roaming around plucking any high ball in sight. This simply isnāt happening.
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Absolutely.
His challenge will be, once he gets that shot, making himself undroppable.
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Wouldnāt mind seeing Francis play forward if that opportunity presents itself before he gets the chance to come back into the team in defence.
He would be a super dangerous forward still
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Compare
David Myers 29 years 106 games 191 cm 88 kg
Kyle Langford 22 years 37 games 191 cm 90 kg
Aaron Francis 21 years 10 games 193 cm 92 kg
Who has played the most exciting games over their journeys ?
I recall some big goals Myers has booted in his over 100 games, not much of what Langers has done over his 37 games, but many of the 10 games of Francis has been memorable, for his marking, reading the play and great kicking.
Francis could be a champion and while I admire anyone who gets to play for the Bombers, both Myers and Langford will be serviceable at best. I cannot see a spot for either Langfors or Myers in our best 22, but do see one for Francis.
I see.
The traditional leading (but not leading very far) half forward.
Silly me.
Be surprised if itās fitness. Think it has more to do with form. Given the benchmark set last year, Francis has been so, so this year. Heās done his job but it seems the coaches want more. Externally it feels like theyāre being tough on him, and not āgiftingā him any games. Personally, Iād leave him in the team to help develop continuity.
That would be great news for Francis if he was a midfielder. Unfortunately heās competing for a spot in a pretty talented back line.
At the start of the bounce, yes, but like I said, as soon as the ball is bounced, everything is back to normal ā to go defensive, teams just put two players on the wing on the defensive side, and mids can force a stoppage and create a defensive set up with one or two loose defenders.
Also, I would be surprised if there was a decrease in the stats for intercepting marks.
Yeah i agree with this. And a lot of those centre clearance inside 50s float straight over the intercepting defenders heads and go straight to the key forward/defender.
Not the point. Francis has star quality and has shown much more than Langford in his short career.
Some argue that Langford is not a midfielder and should be used as a forward; but he does not have great pace, is not an elite overhead mark and is not a quick decision maker. He kicks well and competes, but we have much better forward options.
Aaron Francis 21 years 10 games 193 cm 92 kg
Michael Hurley 28 years 160 games 193 cm 92 kg
Cale Hooker 30 years 175 197 cm 101 kg
Mason Redman 21 years 4 games 187 cm 87 kg
Martin Gleeson 24 years 69 games 191 cm 84 kg
Jordon Ridley 20 years 4 games 192 cm 84 kg
Brandon Zerk-Thatcher 20 years 0 games 195 cm 86 kg
Michael Hartley 25 years 41 games 198 cm 101 kg
These eight players are competing for perhaps 5 spots in the best 22; assuming that Saad and McKenna are lockdowns for defence spots. Hurley and Hooker are also lockdowns, so 3 spots remain.
Francis is the same size as Michael Hurley, he is a better mark and kick than Hurley, and will develop into a key position player in coming years, but today his competitors for a spot in the team are Redman, Ridley and Gleeson. If you look at the Collingwood forward line, you may play Redman, Ridley and Gleeson before Francis, but with West Coast or Adelaide, you may play Francis before the three of them.
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