The end of year cannon - who should be fired into the sun?

I don’t want to get into a borish argument about semantics. That’s your bread and butter.

In my opinion we have one player on our list whose most natural position is key forward. Yes, Hooker is very capable as a key forward, which I acknowledged.

Who are these other key forwards you’re taking about? Are you including Stewart, Lang and Lav?

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There are not many so called key forwards anymore. People consider Joe a key forward and yet he spends a fair amount of the game roaming forward of the 50. Stewart is a key forward but spends most of the game roaming the ground. Hooker is actually the one who spends more time up forward and yet even he roams the ground.

I don’t think key forwards are the current thing. We have mobile forwards and we have three tall mobile forwards and a bunch of mobile small forwards/mids.

Adelaide were the best side this year and have Walker, Jenkins and McGregor. Lynch is closer to a key forward than Stewart. GWS play with Cameron and Patton and sometimes Lobb too. I think we are a bit light on for key forwards. Personally I’d be playing Francis as a permanent forward, but I suspect that the coaches think differently.

Walker is the same as Joe in that he roams quite freely outside the 50. Jenkins is a truck whose only ability is to stand in the goal square waiting for cheap shots in the last 1/4. For the rest of the game he is a liability.

We have half a dozen or more tall guys who can play as marking targets - the semantics don’t matter. I don’t think it makes any difference whatsoever what natural position guys started with, saying Hooker is not a forward is childish at best.

Did I say Hooker was not a key forward? I said it isn’t his natural position and that we are playing him there because we have no other options.

Who are these other key forwards you speak of anyway?

I agree. Smack has had many chances. The round 1 game against Hawthorn had me thinking that he may have turned the corner. He played well. But he stank it up after that only showing glimmers of what he can do. He is a known quantity. I am in favor of giving someone else a go.

I just cant believe the amount of people who want to return Hooker to the backline. He absolutely fulfilled the brief he was put there for and has room for improvement. Just think to this time last year or even this time 2014. We did not have a 40 goal forward (In 2014 at least. Only Jo Dan kicked more than 40 in 2016). People would have been all over themselves to get a forward that could do that.

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And you’re having a go at me for pedantry?

I don’t give a crap who “naturally” plays key forward. Clearly, neither do the coaches.

Fact is we have a plethora of guys who can play that role on a given week - anything else is superfluous.

lol did you swallow a dictionary HAP?

awesome thread lads… no need to stop now.

Just want to say, anyone advocating keeping smack doesn’t watch our vfl games, let alone afl. you can’t keep a not quite tall enough ruck/forward on the off chance he has a brilliant game ever so often.

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Review session after the port game:
Woosh: “listen cale I know you just took a bunch of contested marks, kicked 5 and dragged defensive numbers away from our other targets. Those things are all positives.
But really you’re not a natural forward because you played your first 6 years of afl as a back man. Try going back in time a bit, some guy on a forum is not happy”.

Same story with Stewart not being a “key forward”. Who gives a crap, he presents consistently and marks and kicks goals. You wouldn’t ideally drop him deep forward at his current weight, but that’s not the role we need.

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The signing of S_K’s son, young Lavender, spells “the end of Smack.” So long and thanks for all the fish.

I’m not sure just yet.

We are talking about someone coming from a long way back both game sense and physically/AFL fitness wise. As per Draper. Smack might survive one more year. Then we go to the young tyros.

Especially as both can be kept off the main list still.

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I didn’t notice Ken McGregor. Maybe I need to watch the Crows more closely.

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Awkward height - yes. But great leap/athleticism makes up for it.
Goes missing totally but does have periods where he is a game winner.
Not best 22 of course. But if TBC and Leuy are injured together, what are we going to do? Play Joe 100% in the ruck? Bring in Draper for full time ruck duties having never been exposed to an AFL game? We had this issue at the start of the year until TBC was fully fit and could rest Luey.

He’s there for depth so unless we recruit a ready made ruck option, he is needed until Draper or someone else is available as backup.

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Should trade to Brisbane - He could drive Hodge home :slight_smile:

You shouldn’t have 27 going on 28 year olds as depth.

Well, not when they have McNernan’s level of ability.

So what option would you suggest?