Rnd 15 - vs West Coast Eagles at SCG, 4:35 PM, Saturday 24 June 2023

[Maltopia]

Sorry for the delay in posting this - looks like the team selection for this round has been a hot topic judging by the number of posts on the matter in the Rnd 14 match thread.

So Wicks is clearly out (of his mind) and we have five senior players who were recently injured who trained and should be available for section: Mills, Heeney, T McCartin, McDonald and Franklin.

If Tex can kick 10 on the Eagles, surely it would be wonderful to see Franklin wind back the clock and match or exceed the eight he kicked against the Eagles in 2018. I watched that match (on the telly) and it was a glorious display.

So who comes in?

I would imagine Longmire would put all five of the players back.

Thinking:

Mills in for Sheldrick or McInerney
Heeney in for Wicks
Tom McCartin in for Francis
McDonald in for Buller
Franklin in for Hayward, Clarke, or if that is too tall, then McLean is the unlucky out.

So my ins:

Mills, Heeney, Tom McCartin, McDonald and Franklin

My outs:

McInerney, Wicks, Francis, Buller and Hayward.

But Hayward as someone else has postulated, probably has compromising pics of Longmire so will stay in the team and McClean will probably be omitted instead.

[RogueSwan]

The way the season is panning out, we should only bring back fully fit players. If there is any doubt, then rest them an extra week (or two).
Although, this week would almost be like coming back through the 2's

Sent from my Pixel 7 using Tapatalk

[i'm-uninformed2]

McDonald is apparently still a couple of weeks away.

[707]

Let's not get complacent, Norf was getting thrashed by everyone last year and this year but in both those games we were lucky and extremely lucky to escape with a win.

So WC has been thrashed by everyone so far this year except for their single win in round 2 against GWS by 19 points in Perth - yes, I had to look it up LOL

I doubt the MC will bring back all those players at the one time given some have had substantial lay offs.

Heeney has only missed one so he's a likely if fit, Franklin likewise will return if ok but on the down side will run into a returning Barrass. Of the longer term injuries, Mills is the one I reckon they'll definitely bring in.

Suspect Tom Mc and Logan McDonald will be given a VFL run with restricted minutes.

Out: Wicks, Clarke, Buller In: Heeney, Mills, Franklin

[liz]

Clarke wasn’t in the team last week so he can’t be an out.

[Roadrunner]

Clarke wasn’t in the team last week so he can’t be an out.

Thanks Liz- I started to doubt my sanity when I saw 707 post that!
As Mal said, Wilbur has led a charmed life as he has something on Horse that keeps him in no matter what😊
Outs: Wicks, Francis, JMac, Hayward
Ins: Mills, Buddy, Isaac, Dyl.
Sub: Corey

Play McLean in the backline.

[Thunder Shaker]

Play McLean in the backline.

An interesting idea. Given the weakness of the opponents, this could be an opportunity to play one or two players in different positions. Playing McLean in defence is worth trying. Many of our best defenders in the past 20 years were recruited as forwards. McLean could be next, but we won't know if we don't try.

[Thunder Shaker]

The easy the station is panning out, we should only bring back fully fit players. If there is any doubt, then rest them an extra week (or two).
Although, this week would almost be like coming back through the 2's

It seems more like a mid-season practice match.

I agree that players should only return if fully fit. If they need to pass a fitness test before selection, they should be rested another week or play in the VFL.

[Markwebbos]

Surely the obvious move for Longmire is Mills to defence?

Does Hayward really need to be dropped, in which case he makes if Heeney is able to return with concussion protocols etc?

Hope the Wombat stays in? And that Buddys knee needs another week?

[Ludwig]

Waiting for news on the injury front. One near certain change is Heeney in for Wicks. Other comments to this point:

• McLean to defence is a good idea, but doubt it will happen, since I'm the only one who has suggested this. I don't think the coaches are planning on this move, just yet. In any case, the time to do would be when McDonald and Amartey are both fit and playing.
• Franklin is our worst key forward. I would even put him behind Buller. At least Buller stopped Andrews from intercept marking. I don't mind Franklin as the sub, but playing Franklin is a sign we are tanking. I can't see the point of playing Franklin when we have 10 games left to work out how we want the team to look next year. We want to see how McDonald, Amartey, McLean and Buller would go as our KPF group next season, playing either 2 or 3 of them in a game.
• McInerney was our 6th highest ranked player last game according to the AFL ranking system (which I think may be run by Champion Data, so someone might be able to verify this).
• Sheldrick was ranked #5 by the same system, and shouldn't be dropped, although he's the most obvious one to be cut when Mills returns. Tough call.
• Hayward won't be dropped. He hasn't missed a game in 2 years. He's having a decent year.
• Against the Eagles, it wouldn't be a bad idea to replace Francis with Arnold to get him some AFL exposure. That spot will be taken once McCartin returns.

[caj23]

It seems more like a mid-season practice match.

I agree that players should only return if fully fit. If they need to pass a fitness test before selection, they should be rested another week or play in the VFL.

You obviously haven’t seen Longmire coach for the last 11 years

Senior players return via the seniors regardless of how injury prone they are or how long their lay off has been

[Maltopia]

You obviously haven’t seen Longmire coach for the last 11 years

Senior players return via the seniors regardless of how injury prone they are or how long their lay off has been

Apart from Cunningham last year. He is a senior player as he is in the leadership group.