Jack agree with Patto, a very suspect top 20 selection at the time and proven so 6 years on. Patto has come along way though IMO he was a mediocre Junior footballer at best. He was more a CHF that could ruck in teh forward line (Drew Petrie) than a full time ruckman... who knows what he drafted him for.
Simmonds.
I'm sorry he looks unfit, he's slow, he's kicking efficiency is suburban standard, his leap/ruck work is consistent with our ladder position 15th/16th in the AFL.
Band Aid option 1:
Rotate Polak/Tuck in centre bounce then pushing fwd with Vickory going around the ground.
Band Aid option 1:
Play Browne/Vickory rotating full time ruck with Polak/Moore filling up when needed.
You wont convince me in a million years that Simmonds staying was the right decision. I have huge respect for Troy and wish he was more competetive but he is a below par, unfit 30+ ruckman who hasn't beaten a top 8 ruckman since maybe 2006-07 at best.
Yes he may have a crack but so would I. And it's irrelevant when your jogging in the centre of the ground whilst a ball up is being contested by 1 Carlton Ruckman and 0 Tiger Rucks. It was Troy more often than Vickory at fault. Vickory spent maybe 30% of game in our fwd 50. Simmonds was 100% ruckman all game. The only thing I could think of was that it was Hardwicks plan of our defensive zone having Troy stay in the centre square as a big body...
Portecting our young rucks is a fine excuse but Troy wasn't the correct bodygaurd. I'd have been happy to see Tuck get beaten 100% of the time in the rucks and compete around the ground then see Troy win 20% of ruck contests and then big a log of skin floating around the middle of the ground..
It just was a bad call.