McKernan, in a full strength forward line, only needs to provide a contest and relief in the ruck. That’s it. He doesn’t need to be brilliant, just a contest.
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You could say that of all players.
yeah to an extent. But the point I was making is that him drifting in and out of games isn’t so much of a problem in a fully fit forward line as his role will be a lot less critical. He wont need to do the stupendous stuff.
Your love for Belly rivals my love for Langers.
Yep. People need to look at other clubs fwd rucks and realise they are rarely the star kpf and not be expecting that of him.
In the case of the grand finalists…
WC - Vardy
Pies - Cox
At ground level he is way above those two as well which helps for fwd pressure.
Smack has capacity to be a 2 goal a game fwd, which would make for a 40+ season which is fantastic output. He also as you say just had to contest hard to ensure opposition defenders don’t pick off intercept marks/we get ball ground for our dangerous smalls.
And as a 2nd ruck he provides important chop out and we don’t lose out in clearances either as his follow up is great.
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That passage of play (against north) summed up his career to date.
HOW EVER MANY METER DRAPER
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I’d be content with him kicking 1 a game and not getting beaten by his opponent. If he’s halving his contests and bringing Walla/Raz/Smith et al into play I’m happy. We are striving to be a forward half turnover team and that style of football is hugely predicated on F50 contests and pressure at ground level.
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Mitch Brown is an interesting one if Daniher is fit. Daniher does his best work when he can roam around, and I think Brown is best when he provides that lead up option and link up player.
Not sure if there is a spot for him if Daniher is fit.
Well that depends on the pre season to come. One strength that Mitch has the Smack (for instance) has to work on is that he competes well and he was consistent. I have no buy in on either player. Whatever makes the club a greater success. But given we a talking about break out seasons I thought I would mention a) Mitch had a really good 2018 and b) if his form was to continue and improve into 2019 he could be a contender for a break out year.
They both worked well together this year for a no name forward line. In fact the injury to JD turned out not to be the horror show it could have been. It helped that our midfield stepped up and became better at getting inside 50’s.
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Why? Tom copped massive odium when he was asked to be #1 ruckman in 2015 after Ryder flicked off, but quite clearly Tom was recovering from a serious ankle injury then developed a foot stress fracture. Ironically 2016 gave him a chance to recover 100% from his foot problems. Since round 9 2017 he has been powering ahead with career high 20 games in 2018. But still a lot of fans seem to think he plays for Essington.
BTW, I also reckon Langers has made a massive transformation from the HFF he was when drafted to a big body inside mid, who can also cause damage on the scoreboard. It could be a breakout year for him . I hope so.
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In a lot of ways he is the very personification of Essington. Injury plagued. Capable of so much more than he has delivered at times. Dominates certain games and goes completely missing in games you’d expect him to dominate. I’ve not looked at numbers but I reckon there’d be a strong correlation between his form cycles and our for cycles.
However his best is excellent and he is a sublime (if a little predictable at times) tap ruckman who is very good when drifting forward. He’s hugely important to us and a very likable sorta fella.
Hoping he stays fit for next year, dearth of ruck cover aside, his best for ~22 weeks will be hugely influential on our season.
I wasn’t having a crack at Belly. Last season he was excellent.
I just admire your passion for the big guy!
You do like to post about him a lot 
Cometh the day, cometh the hour…cometh Berzerk and the Riddler‼️😉
There will be if JoeDan assists Belly with ruck work.
OK, I understand. I have noticed he seems to tire late in some games and is still jumping at the end of others.
I think its generally recognised that we need to watch his loadings to get the best out of him. Its hard to know, but many players have off days be it niggles, good opposition, poor recovery, short turnaround etc etc.
He mightn’t need as much management of his load next season. It was the first time in a while he’d played most of the season at AFL level. Hopefully he’s built his match fitness to a harder level
from AFL site, and they lead with Aaron. He definitely made a splash at end of the season and all eyes are on him.
Will Aaron arrive?
The Bombers used pick No.6 on Aaron Francis at the 2015 NAB AFL Draft, but have so far only gotten 10 games out of the high-marking defender in three years. However, the last five of those came to finish the 2018 season and he showed great promise with his smarts in the air, penetrating kicking and game-turning traits. He needs to make next season his breakout year, and the Bombers need him to as well. They moved Brendon Goddard out of the club knowing they could fill his role across half-back, and Francis has genuine star factor when up and going. If he can lift his consistency and have a strong pre-season anything’s possible.
Others to keep an eye on: Last year Andy McGrath had his first real taste of the midfield at AFL level so will be better for that experience in 2019, while Jayden Laverde looms as a wildcard. If he can piece together a full season without injury, then there’s a spot for him as a big-bodied half-forward and midfield option who can make an impact. – Callum Twomey
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Just watched Andy McGrath’s preseason interview on the bombers website.
Spotted Hartley, Zerk and Mckenna with the defensive coaches having a bit of a meeting…
then in the other group Stringer, Mcgrath, Mynott, Mutch, Clarke, Guelfi
and…FRANCIS!
#PreseasonMidfieldHype - does look to have made some fitness gains (body shape) during the offseason, if he could develop as a genuine midfield option over the next 3-4 years… possibilities are endless. He does need to put together a consistent 2019 as a def first though.
(Walla and Ridley were also in the group)
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At the very least, they’re probably trying to get him as fit as possible