Can we win a premiership in the next few years

[big tone]

I really think we are heading in the right direction. Just need a bit of luck with these new recruits and a couple of others to come on and become really good players for us. Our core is as good as any.
We need guys like Grigg, Houli and Batch to be replaced with better more reliable kids.
Players like Griffiths, Elton, Vickory, McBean and McKensie need to stand up and give us another REAL avenue to goal. Our forwardline needs real work and our game plan getting it in there needs work too.
Is DH good enough to take us all the way, not sure, don't think so but like some players he is getting better the more he is in the roll. Hopefully he learns from this year and plans around our strengths and not try and reinvent the wheel. We have some real stars that just need to be played in the right positions. I think DH needs a big year though, scraping into a final and getting killed probably won't be enough. Although I am suspect on if the club has the balls to move him on.
Need some early wins next year to get some confidence and hopefully the rest will take care of itself. Get into top 4 and be in form at the right time and anything can happen.

[The Big Richo]

Not elite enough off field for mine.

Starting with Hardwick and his assistants, the fitness and conditioning staff and the recruiting and development staff put us too far behind the best before we start.

[Andyy]

Imo we need:

1 proper power forward (?McKenzie)
1 proper forward/ruck (?Griffiths/Vickery)
1 proper ruckman (because I think Maric will break down)
3 more quality mids (including a gun free agent asap)
1-2 more quality rebounding HBF's (similar to Birchall)

[Mr Magic]

Need a couple of boys to click at the same time and by my oath we can.

[(•))(©™]

Need lithium

[(•))(©™]

And a partridge in a stuffn pear tree.

[mat073]

Cart before the horse....real question should be can we win a final.

[tigs2011]

Cart before the horse....real question should be can we win a final.

Which is precisely why at this point we can't win a GF. We poo our pants in any old final. 

[Willy]

hard to say - in 2007, 2008 most people were saying the pies were no where near a premiership side, good honest team without any stars, good enough to finish 5-8 but not good enough for the big dance. They made the finals several yrs in a row and morphed into a very solid unit and funnily enough some stars were discovered/came to the fore.

You have to learn to crawl before you walk - if we can make finals again this season we are definitely building towards it and as our club becomes battle hardened, who knows where it will lead?

Astute post

[Judge Roughneck]

Imo we need:

1 proper power forward (?McKenzie)
1 proper forward/ruck (?Griffiths/Vickery)
1 proper ruckman (because I think Maric will break down)

The thing is ; the chances are at least one of Griffiths, McBean, McKenzie, Vickery will come good ... so rfc should be right in that regards maybe - Maric having a good run with the football injury gods is vital of course.

3 more quality mids (including a gun free agent asap)

1-2 more quality rebounding HBF's (similar to Birchall)

there are only 18 spots in the side / and 3 rotations

many of that 18/21 is for KPP

7-8? or so. so that leaves 10 'runners' or a dozen

Deledio - top shelf
Cotchin - top shelf
Miles - top shelf
SEdwards - top shelf

...

Vlastuin
Ellis'
Conca
Fyfe
Martin

etc

...

its like reak madrid - you can have billions of dollars of players on the list but you can only put 11 on the park so at the end of the day 

[Diocletian]

SEdwards - top shelf

[Judge Roughneck]

 

[Andyy]

Imo we need:

1 proper power forward (?McKenzie)
1 proper forward/ruck (?Griffiths/Vickery)
1 proper ruckman (because I think Maric will break down)

The thing is ; the chances are at least one of Griffiths, McBean, McKenzie, Vickery will come good ... so rfc should be right in that regards maybe - Maric having a good run with the football injury gods is vital of course.

3 more quality mids (including a gun free agent asap)

1-2 more quality rebounding HBF's (similar to Birchall)

there are only 18 spots in the side / and 3 rotations

many of that 18/21 is for KPP

7-8? or so. so that leaves 10 'runners' or a dozen

Deledio - top shelf
Cotchin - top shelf
Miles - top shelf
SEdwards - top shelf

...

Vlastuin
Ellis'
Conca
Fyfe
Martin

etc

...

its like reak madrid - you can have billions of dollars of players on the list but you can only put 11 on the park so at the end of the day 

For me you need 6 KPP's.

1 lean forward - Jack Riewoldt
1 power forward - ? McKenzie
1 forward/ruck relief - ? Griffiths/Vickery

3 key defenders, at least one with a big body - Rance, Astbury, Chaplin

Then you have another 3 medium/small fowards (?Lennon, ?Gordon, ?Lloyd, otherwise rotating midfielders IE Lids/Martin), another 3 medium/small defenders/rebounders (Morris, Houli, Grimes).

That gives you 12 blokes.

1 ruckman - Maric.

Last 9 players need to be midfielders/wingmen


1. Cotchin - A grade
2. Deledio - A grade
3. Martin - A grade
4. Ellis - B grade (could become A grade)
5. Vlastuin - C/B grade (needs to improve on a poor 2014 but I have faith in this bloke)
6. S Edwards - B grade (very handy player, excellent hands and some great tricks up his sleeve)
7. Miles - B grade (great pickup, but a shame we're turning to an 80kg kid to be the inside wrecking ball)
8. Foley - C/B grade (must improve or cut)
9. Conca - C/B grade (must improve or cut)

The definite upgrades here for me are Foley and Conca, unless they can play out of their skin next year.

You can cut Gordon, maybe cut Lloyd although I think he has upside to come, Lennon too early to decide. But if none of those 3 make it I'd honestly consider leaving at least 2 of Cotchin/Deledio/Martin in the F50 as mid/small forwards. This is why we need more mids!!

If blokes like Lambert come through that's great, otherwise I want a gun like Shiel or even Dangerfield.

[the claw]

Cart before the horse....real question should be can we win a final.

Which is precisely why at this point we can't win a GF. We poo our pants in any old final. 

lol we poo our pants in any important game yet alone finals.

in a list of 44 we need about a   third  12 - 15 players to be elite A grade or very good B grade.and they need to be proven none of this potential b/s.
the only current players who fit the bill are.
Deledio, Cotchin, Maric, Martin, Miles, Rance. lose any two or three of the 6 and the seasons over as happened this yr.
some who show signs vlastuin,b  ellis i put him here to save arguments, and theres hope lennon and c ellis can get there. every other player is C grade,  a battler, or juniors who we just dont know.

we dont have a v/good 2nd kpf. we dont have a v/good 2nd kpd, we have just one decent ruckman and hes near 30. we lack inside mids with basically all the work load on just cotchin and miles.
we have soft weak pricks in abundance we lack one quality sml/med fwd who is not  needed in the midfield. we have panic merchants and poor kicks in the back half and they are regularsgetting games because there is so few coming thru from below forcing them out.

lol a premiership in 2 yrs. oh to be so naieve, we will do very well just to stay in the 8 over the next few seasonshat will only happen if we get our fair share of kids developing and forcing the hacks out.

[the claw]

For me you need 6 KPP's.

1 lean forward - Jack Riewoldt
1 power forward - ? McKenzie
1 forward/ruck relief - ? Griffiths/Vickery

3 key defenders, at least one with a big body - Rance, Astbury, Chaplin

Then you have another 3 medium/small fowards (?Lennon, ?Gordon, ?Lloyd, otherwise rotating midfielders IE Lids/Martin), another 3 medium/small defenders/rebounders (Morris, Houli, Grimes).

That gives you 12 blokes.

1 ruckman - Maric.

Last 9 players need to be midfielders/wingmen


1. Cotchin - A grade
2. Deledio - A grade
3. Martin - A grade
4. Ellis - B grade (could become A grade)
5. Vlastuin - C/B grade (needs to improve on a poor 2014 but I have faith in this bloke)
6. S Edwards - B grade (very handy player, excellent hands and some great tricks up his sleeve)
7. Miles - B grade (great pickup, but a shame we're turning to an 80kg kid to be the inside wrecking ball)
8. Foley - C/B grade (must improve or cut)
9. Conca - C/B grade (must improve or cut)

The definite upgrades here for me are Foley and Conca, unless they can play out of their skin next year.


You can cut Gordon, maybe cut Lloyd although I think he has upside to come, Lennon too early to decide. But if none of those 3 make it I'd honestly consider leaving at least 2 of Cotchin/Deledio/Martin in the F50 as mid/small forwards. This is why we need more mids!!

If blokes like Lambert come through that's great, otherwise I want a gun like Shiel or even Dangerfield.

now do the simple exercise of mirroring what you think is needed positionally in the ones in the twos. to get  list numbers needed rather than just a best 22. ie those 6 kpps become 12.