Simple fix for old problem

[Penelope]

not much point in kicking long if the opposition are set up to defend it.

thats why good sides will chip the ball in an attempt to switch the play to find space and move the ball to where the opposition isnt, or find the overlap

this relies on two things. good skills and more importantly work rate to create the options. Mostly what we have seen this year when we switch the play in the back half is the opposition working harder than us to get into the space. the poor bugger with the ball looks up and sees nothing so has to go short again, and the whole process repeats itself with everyone going bat crap and screaming about why we chip it around.

we have become a lazy side, not a slower side. as smokey pointed out, the only speed we have lost from last year is white, and he hardly played a full game.

Our workrate is deplorable. we dont work hard enough to get numbers to the contest, to set up our defensive structures correctly or hard enough to get into space to create options. That is the crux of the our problem and is the major difference from last year.

The side is lazy, not slow.

[tony_montana]

 

[Diocletian]

I thought we lacked pace overall when White was still on our books and needed to bring in more.

Still generally advantageous for a side have good leg speed, not just when you have the ball but also when you don't. Especially when you play a gamestyle like ours that leaves you more open to the quick counter attack.

[YellowandBlackBlood]

I thought we lacked pace overall when White was still on our books and needed to bring in more.

Still generally advantageous for a side have good leg speed, not just when you have the ball but also when you don't. Especially when you play a gamestyle like ours that leaves you more open to the quick counter attack.

Exactly! 

[eliminator]

I thought we lacked pace overall when White was still on our books and needed to bring in more.

Still generally advantageous for a side have good leg speed, not just when you have the ball but also when you don't. Especially when you play a gamestyle like ours that leaves you more open to the quick counter attack.

Fair call. We have not for a long time been a particularly quick side.

[DCrane]

Good thread.
Agree with Al about the peeling off thing. It looks good and wins you games if your engine room is firing, but ours isn't, so everyone needs to pitch in.

In fact we usually burned teams off with pace so the 'slowness' has to have come from either lack of application, lack of fitness or much more likely, both.

Yep agree these are the 2 main issues. The mental application is just not there and as a result the chemistry is shot. Fitness I think a bit less so, but it sure looks like we've been caught short this year. Things were wrong from the start with the delayed Maric op and now we have our captain playing through an ankle which is minimum 2 but usually 3. Fitness staff have a lot to answer for.

Now going back to the issue of speed, I know it does not need to be said yet again but I can't help it. Losing Matty White for no compo was a disgraceful decision by the club. His contract was so low that he was deemed not to be worthy of compensation by Papa Demetriou! And we still couldn't sign him! Unbelievable.

I thought we lacked pace overall when White was still on our books and needed to bring in more.

We did but there wasn't much on offer, which is why Port couldn't believe their luck on such a cheap signing.

 

[Judge Roughneck]

At the end of the day. Due to the way the game has developed into a running festival with rubgy overtones

If you are slow you gotta be really good. Sam Mitchell / Greg williams

[Owl]

Unplugged, I thought our issue under Wallace was that we had a lot of fast players that used to get pushed around too easily, couldn't win their own ball and the crying back in those days was, 'we are too soft', too many flankers, too many skinny kids lol

[YellowandBlackBlood]

Unplugged, I thought our issue under Wallace was that we had a lot of fast players that used to get pushed around too easily, couldn't win their own ball and the crying back in those days was, 'we are too soft', too many flankers, too many skinny kids lol

Listening to Richo the other day it seems like Wallace changed the game plan so often the players couldn't perfect anything.....

[Stripes]

i think it as much mindset as leg speed.

too may playing wanting to run to a position to receive a cheap kick rather getting numbers to the contest.

one incident that stuck in my mind was Ellis running with his opponent towards a one on one. his opponent went straight to contest to create a two on one while Ellis ran forward of the contest. no prizes for guessing the outcome. (Pretty sure the neighbours heard all about that)

Hardwick highlighted a similar incident where three richmond players peeled off rather than getting to the contest, while their Dons counterparts did. again not hard to guess the result.

All the leg speed in the world is useless if the player has no intent of getting to the contest.

Add to that, we have only lost 1 fast player from last year's senior side - White who often played as a sub - yet last year we didn't look slow and we certainly didn't play slow.  In fact we usually burned teams off with pace so the 'slowness' has to have come from either lack of application, lack of fitness or much more likely, both.

I think you are right here Smokey - we were not a slow team last year yet with minimal changes this year we suddenly look slow. Realistically I believe it has more to do with the opposition denying us space and time. We have been forced to play more accountable, man-on-man football which some of our players are not suited for. Our normal stoppage structure has been broken down by our opposition and we no longer have the outlet players free to then kick it wide to players like Ellis and Grigg. Realistically Cotchin is well down on his 2013 output because he is being tagged mercilessly with Lids effectiveness down on last year due to his injury.

Maric's absence has also hurt. He would always create space around contests and is unpredictable with his tap work. Hampson tends to tap to the same spots and same people which is easy to defend whereas Maric would often target the players like Conca, Jackson and Edwards who would then move it on quickly to a sprinting Cotchin. This was hard to combat.

Thomas and Hampson are slow inclusions and do not run and spread from stoppages. For all the statistical benefits these guys bring they are missing the intangibles or footy smarts to create the run we need.

Injuries to key players are still hurting too

[Judge Roughneck]

Perhaps if get players get hurt they should be rested instead of be played with injury for the long term good 

[Stripes]

Perhaps if get players get hurt they should be rested instead of be played with injury for the long term good 

That's sometimes harder than you think when their replacement is a long way behind. Sometimes a injured quality player is still better than an average bit player.

I agree with you though at this stage of the season. The season is shot so might as well start looking to next year and the future and periodically resting players like Lids, Cotch, Jackson, Hampson etc to get over their injuries and at the same time giving those VFL players that deserve it a chance. We've finally brought in Miles and I hope they give Helbig and some of the other players that have been on the list for a while a shot too. Time to see if they will make it or not.

[Judge Roughneck]

Perhaps if get players get hurt they should be rested instead of be played with injury for the long term good 

That's sometimes harder than you think when their replacement is a long way behind. Sometimes a injured quality player is still better than an average bit player.

I agree with you though at this stage of the season. The season is shot so might as well start looking to next year and the future and periodically resting players like Lids, Cotch, Jackson, Hampson etc to get over their injuries and at the same time giving those VFL players that deserve it a chance. We've finally brought in Miles and I hope they give Helbig and some of the other players that have been on the list for a while a shot too. Time to see if they will make it or not.

And injuryed good player is often better than. A fit poor player yes.

But playing the good player with injury perhaps means you are to feck up the body of said good injured yet playing footballer.

Long term a poor option

[Stripes]

Perhaps if get players get hurt they should be rested instead of be played with injury for the long term good 

That's sometimes harder than you think when their replacement is a long way behind. Sometimes a injured quality player is still better than an average bit player.

I agree with you though at this stage of the season. The season is shot so might as well start looking to next year and the future and periodically resting players like Lids, Cotch, Jackson, Hampson etc to get over their injuries and at the same time giving those VFL players that deserve it a chance. We've finally brought in Miles and I hope they give Helbig and some of the other players that have been on the list for a while a shot too. Time to see if they will make it or not.

And injuryed good player is often better than. A fit poor player yes.

But playing the good player with injury perhaps means you are to feck up the body of said good injured yet playing footballer.

Long term a poor option

No doubt but with players with injuries that just need to be managed and are unlikely to get any worse by playing them such as Lids or Maric then that's where the question on selection comes into it.

[YellowandBlackBlood]

Perhaps if get players get hurt they should be rested instead of be played with injury for the long term good 

That's sometimes harder than you think when their replacement is a long way behind. Sometimes a injured quality player is still better than an average bit player.

I agree with you though at this stage of the season. The season is shot so might as well start looking to next year and the future and periodically resting players like Lids, Cotch, Jackson, Hampson etc to get over their injuries and at the same time giving those VFL players that deserve it a chance. We've finally brought in Miles and I hope they give Helbig and some of the other players that have been on the list for a while a shot too. Time to see if they will make it or not.

And injuryed good player is often better than. A fit poor player yes.

But playing the good player with injury perhaps means you are to feck up the body of said good injured yet playing footballer.

Long term a poor option

No doubt but with players with injuries that just need to be managed and are unlikely to get any worse by playing them such as Lids or Maric then that's where the question on selection comes into it.

They may not get worse but they definitely won't get better.