Does everyone think Hickey will be 1st choice ruck over Naismith?... subject to fitness of course.
Does everyone think Hickey will be 1st choice ruck over Naismith?... subject to fitness of course.
The eternal connundrum "what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object" was finally solved when David Hasselhoff punched himself in the face.
My personal opinion is Naismith's impact is over rated. His mobility around the park is poor and will be even worse with his injuries and age. I've mentioned it before but I remember a couple of finals where he was blown away by McEvoy and Zac Smith, neither of whom are what would be considered elite.Originally Posted by Bloody Hell
Given our struggles in the ruck and him being constantly injured, many have held him out as the saviour - the mythical "tap ruckman" who's just going to present it on a platter to our mids. I don't think he is as:
1) doubt he can stay fit for long enough.
2) doubt he is actually good enough.
Cunningham is the new Nick Smith. Not sure how you can leave him out.
Fb - Cunners, Melican, Rampe
Hb - Lloyd, Mccartin, Mills
C - Dawson, Rowbottom, Blakey
Hf - Heeney, Franklin, Mcdonald
Ff - Papley, Reid, Hayward
Foll - Hickey, Kennedy, Parker
Int - Stephens, Hewett, Sinclair, Mcinerney
Emg - Campbell, Gulden, Florent, Fox
It would do Mcdonald good to play him as a third tall up the ground until he is bigger and stronger and more able to play closer to goals. Sinclair and Reid can take that duty while reinforcing our ruck stocks with Hickey. Have Dawson on a wing to impact where needed, and Heeney HFF so he can also help in midfield. Mcinerney gets in over Florent, but that could change if he has second year blues. No rush to get the two academy lads in - we already have a pick 5 in Stephens and he benefitted from not playing straight away.
With a fully fit list that is a pretty good team. Emergencies: Hayward, Ling, Hewett, COR. With Gould and Gulden thereabouts too.
But for Round 1: we won't have Naismith, and Buddy is doubtful. Not sure whether Campbell will be selected after a good pre-season or whether he will need to build his tank. Also, not sure if we will want to give Ling and Gould a chance to strut their stuff so we can see their mettle before making contract calls on them. If that is the case, I think McInerney hasn't cemented his place in the best 22 yet. He was starting to break out late in 2020 but hasn't done it consistently enough to be a lock yet.
All opinions are not equal. Some are a very great deal more robust, sophisticated, and well supported in logic and argument than others. -Douglas Adams, author (11 Mar 1952-2001)
Ruck rankings when all fit: Naismith, Hickey, Sinclair.
What I like about the squad is that we have 25-30 options ready to go or nearly ready to go. We can change up or adjust teams week to week to suit the opposition, game plan as required for each match day. (assuming most a fit to play*)
Robust options to swing forward or back and tall or short, attack or defend. Tempo footy I call it. What I have noticed is that attacking sides only have 3-5 weeks up then then fail. Only attack is not sustainable as at some stage defence is required.
I would rest buddy, Reid, Rampe and Kennedy from R1 as we normally blood kids in early rounds and give them a go.
Best on the paddock by round 6.
Settled team by round 18 (and it is to early to call a round 18 team)
Push hard to the finals and give the other top 7 sides a shock is 21.
This season we missed Buddy, Hewett (Rampe for 30% of the year) and a ruck.
We hopeful the new kids push hard and get a few games out of the aging players
Swan to be 5th - 7th on the rise is my prediction and hopes!
* Hopefully the new fitness coach is on his A game and we keep the squad ready to go all year! (Thanks Richmond and as reported in the media somewhere, he may be the recruit of the year!)
Rod_
I remember a grand final when the only time we looked vaguely competitive was when he was in the middle.
My opinion is objective truth in its purest form
As an alternative to the usual best 22, I thought I would post my worst 22. Naismith has been excluded due to injury. O'Riordan and McInerney are also in my best 22 (since we only have 42 fit players), with Fox just marginally behind O'Riordan (the hardest choice for me).
It gives some indication of those vying for spots in the senior team and is a fair reflection of team depth.
My apologies to those not familiar with my team format, which has 3 midfield lines and no bench.
FB: O'Connor Brand Gould
HB: Fox Carruthers O'Riordan
CB: Clarke McInerney Ling
MI: Bell Warner Taylor
CF: Sheather Ronke Campbell
HF: Wicks McDonald Gulden
FF: Gray Amartey McLean
Ruck: Sinclair
What's CF and CB?
If the above worst 22 is intended to fill us with confidence in the depth we have, then it has had the opposite effect on me. I would not miss any one of those named if they weren't in our best 22.
Although our three recent draftees look incredibly promising.
Centre Forward and Centre Back
It wasn't intended to fill anyone with confidence. It was simply as I said, it shows who will be pushing for spots and is a reflection of our depth.
I think it's a strong worst 22, with Gray the only player I see as a near certain delisting next year. The rest are reasonable backups and developing players, some with a lot of promise.
It's worthwhile looking at team delistings and retirements for all the clubs just to see how many ordinary players were being carried across the competition. In that respect, I think our depth looks good.
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