Players I don't have in my best 22?
Bellchambers
Gleeson
Goddard
Zaharakis
Baguely
Stewart
J Merrett
Bird
Hocking
Howlett
McKernan
+ there's a bunch of kids waiting in the wings.
Great depth. Here’s hoping all players on the list play to their potential!
Wow, everyone must have you on ignore or someone would have beaten me to respond.
Baguley, Goddard and Zaka though are definitely best 22, and I reckon the selection committee will back me on that too.
Maybe you just don’t like Zaka and you prefer flashier players ahead of Bags and you hate it that Goddard is from St Kilda or you just think he isn’t part of the future, dunno.
Players I don't have in my best 22?
Bellchambers
Gleeson
Goddard
Zaharakis
Baguely
Stewart
J Merrett
Bird
Hocking
Howlett
McKernan
+ there's a bunch of kids waiting in the wings.
Great depth. Here’s hoping all players on the list play to their potential!
Wow, everyone must have you on ignore or someone would have beaten me to respond.
Baguley, Goddard and Zaka though are definitely best 22, and I reckon the selection committee will back me on that too.
Maybe you just don’t like Zaka and you prefer flashier players ahead of Bags and you hate it that Goddard is from St Kilda or you just think he isn’t part of the future, dunno.
How the hell you dont have Zaka in ya best 22 is beyond me. I may be able to handle the other 2 older blokes but Zaka is going to have a great year
We’ll get a clear 22 once preseason finishes I reckon as opposed to the notion that the 22 being hard to pick.
There are clearly players in my initial 22 that I’m worried about since it ■■■■■ up our run and balance. We’ll see. It’s a marathon not a sprint this year.
We need Hooker back for his intercept marking and to sure us up defensively. Trying to make forwards out of Hurley and Carlisle didn’t work and I’m not sure it will work for Hooker. I’m also not sure that hoping Ambrose, Hartley or Brown can fill a KPB will work for us either. They are third talls at best and I’d have Ambrose ahead of the other two at this stage.
We need another natural forward to help Joe. Francis showed in his junior career that he has talent as a forward. We need a classy spine that we can build a premiership team around and I think that Hurley, Hooker, Francis and Daniher is good enough. Small forwards are now looking good and we will have sufficient mid-sized forwards from our resting mids and hopefully Laverde.
McGrath should be a gun small defender and we have enough half-back flank options. The midfield is looking pretty deep now and hopefully some of the draftees can improve that further.
Francis has talent to burn and just needs his body and tank to get to AFL standard. If that jigsaw piece can fall into place so to should the entire puzzle and we will be a very good side. Francis is the missing link, that’s what I learned tonight.
We need Hooker back for his intercept marking and to sure us up defensively. Trying to make forwards out of Hurley and Carlisle didn’t work and I’m not sure it will work for Hooker. I’m also not sure that hoping Ambrose, Hartley or Brown can fill a KPB will work for us either. They are third talls at best and I’d have Ambrose ahead of the other two at this stage.
We need another natural forward to help Joe. Francis showed in his junior career that he has talent as a forward. We need a classy spine that we can build a premiership team around and I think that Hurley, Hooker, Francis and Daniher is good enough. Small forwards are now looking good and we will have sufficient mid-sized forwards from our resting mids and hopefully Laverde.
McGrath should be a gun small defender and we have enough half-back flank options. The midfield is looking pretty deep now and hopefully some of the draftees can improve that further.
Francis has talent to burn and just needs his body and tank to get to AFL standard. If that jigsaw piece can fall into place so to should the entire puzzle and we will be a very good side. Francis is the missing link, that’s what I learned tonight.
Hartley showed last season that he is better than third tall defender material. This year we get Hurley back to help him and the others out, he will do even better.
FB: Ambrose Hartley Dea
HB: Gleeson Hurley Kelly
C: Colyer Watson Stanton
HF: Zaharakis Daniher Tippa
FF: Fantasia Hooker Green
R: Leuenberger Heppell Z.Merrett
I: Goddard Laverde Parish Baguley
E: from Francis Langford Bellchambers Howlett McGrath McKernan and Stewart
Gee that backline is absolutely glacier slow. Not sure what the viable alternatives are though tbh.
Yeah I don’t disagree with you. I actually still think that Tippa should play on a HBF and create some run. This probably means that Dea is pushed out, though I like his composure so I didn’t want to to do that.
I think Gleeson looks a bit quicker this year, and McGrath will also play plenty of games so that may also help.
I’m assuming Bags, Myers & Langford play to their potential and Lav gets fit. I know Goddard will play but his lack of pace & defensive actions concern me as much as others. Regardless, best 22 is a myth that never happens so if Goddard is the 23rd player picked he would still play 15+ games.
This team has JoeD rucking for 5-10 minutes each qrter. It’s difficult to imagine a forward line with both Hooker & Belly - but we’ll either wear Leuny out or risk Joe’s knees if he rucks in the centre square. Around the ground Joe should be ok rucking briefly as he can stand off & jump over the top. Maybe Hooker could do the centre square restarts when Leuny is resting?
FB: Ambrose Hartley Dea
HB: Gleeson Hurley Kelly
C: Colyer Watson Stanton
HF: Zaharakis Daniher Tippa
FF: Fantasia Hooker Green
R: Leuenberger Heppell Z.Merrett
I: Goddard Laverde Parish Baguley
E: from Francis Langford Bellchambers Howlett McGrath McKernan and Stewart
Gee that backline is absolutely glacier slow. Not sure what the viable alternatives are though tbh.
Yeah I don’t disagree with you. I actually still think that Tippa should play on a HBF and create some run. This probably means that Dea is pushed out, though I like his composure so I didn’t want to to do that.
I think Gleeson looks a bit quicker this year, and McGrath will also play plenty of games so that may also help.
And those sides don’t have Bags! Which I don’t think is necessarily wrong.
An alternative backline would be shorter, similar to what we played last year (and so did the Bulldogs). So:
FB: Dea Ambrose Gleeson
HB: Kelly Hurley Bags/McKenna/McGrath/Morgan/Walla/Fantasia/ etc.
Ambrose blankets one key tall, Hurley the other, Gleeson and Dea try and intercept mark.
Can’t fathom how people are putting Dea out of their sides. One of the finds of the season last year, composed and strong in the contest and was great again last night. He’s in my side as a lock. It’s up to guys like Gleeson, McKenna, McGrath and so forth to work their way in ahead of him.
B: Dea - Hartley - Baguley*
HB: Tippa - Hurley - Goddard
C: Zaharakis - Watson - Parish
HF: Fantasia - Hooker - Brown
F: Laverde - Daniher - Green
R : Luenberger - Heppell - Zerrett
Int: Stanton - Kelly - Langford - Colyer
EMERG : Ambrose* - Myers - Hocking - Gleeson - McKenna - Stewart
■■■■■■ tough. in fact toughest it’s been for a long time. I feel Bags & Ambrose are fighting for the one spot and to be fair to Ambrose he’s probably currently winning the race, but Bags has it for now. I feel we need Tippa down back for the time being because it looks like a slowish defence without him and our forwardline has plenty of pacy options with Faz, Green & Colyer already. The beauty is we can move Tippa around as needed. Colyer comes off the bench for some pace, whilst Brown is fighting for his spot.
Very, very tough on Hocking but I can’t fit him in the side and Myers needs match practice and we’ll reevaulate in a few weeks.
FB: Ambrose Hartley Dea
HB: Gleeson Hurley Kelly
C: Colyer Watson Stanton
HF: Zaharakis Daniher Tippa
FF: Fantasia Hooker Green
R: Leuenberger Heppell Z.Merrett
I: Goddard Laverde Parish Baguley
E: from Francis Langford Bellchambers Howlett McGrath McKernan and Stewart
Gee that backline is absolutely glacier slow. Not sure what the viable alternatives are though tbh.
Yeah I don’t disagree with you. I actually still think that Tippa should play on a HBF and create some run. This probably means that Dea is pushed out, though I like his composure so I didn’t want to to do that.
I think Gleeson looks a bit quicker this year, and McGrath will also play plenty of games so that may also help.
And those sides don’t have Bags! Which I don’t think is necessarily wrong.
An alternative backline would be shorter, similar to what we played last year (and so did the Bulldogs). So:
FB: Dea Ambrose Gleeson
HB: Kelly Hurley Bags/McKenna/McGrath/Morgan/Walla/Fantasia/ etc.
Ambrose blankets one key tall, Hurley the other, Gleeson and Dea try and intercept mark.
This could work, though I like the idea of Hartley and Ambrose playing negating roles and Hurley being the thied defender who floats around the contest looking to intercept and rebound.
We acknowledge our midfield lacks a bit of legspeed given jobe, hepp, stants, myers, hocking are all a bit slow. We have some slow KPs who make up for this shortcoming with other skills - hooker, ambrose.
Dea, Kelly & Goddard might as individuals deserve a game but if we also have a lack of pace around the edges then we’ll never beat the best.
Hence mcgrath, laverde, green who are also borderline selections but add some speed need to play for team balance.
B: Dea - Hartley - Baguley*
HB: Tippa - Hurley - Goddard
C: Zaharakis - Watson - Parish
HF: Fantasia - Hooker - Brown
F: Laverde - Daniher - Green
R : Luenberger - Heppell - Zerrett
Int: Stanton - Kelly - Langford - Colyer
EMERG : Ambrose* - Myers - Hocking - Gleeson - McKenna - Stewart
■■■■■■ tough. in fact toughest it’s been for a long time. I feel Bags & Ambrose are fighting for the one spot and to be fair to Ambrose he’s probably currently winning the race, but Bags has it for now. I feel we need Tippa down back for the time being because it looks like a slowish defence without him and our forwardline has plenty of pacy options with Faz, Green & Colyer already. The beauty is we can move Tippa around as needed. Colyer comes off the bench for some pace, whilst Brown is fighting for his spot.
Very, very tough on Hocking but I can’t fit him in the side and Myers needs match practice and we’ll reevaulate in a few weeks.
Brown is an interesting option, l think other players are ahead of him, for any suitable position. Doesn’t impact the scoreboard enough to be a forward threat.
It seems like everyone had the same best 22 a month or so ago, with only a few minor variations.
Now it’s all a bit ‘throw the magnets in the air.’
So many different line-ups, strategies, types of team, and it’s difficult to call any of them ‘wrong.’
Again, team selection night is going to suck here.