Let's try a midget fleet forward line

[bergholt]

Not sure if this is some sort of record, but last night goals were scored only by:

Dal Santo (185cm)
Cripps (183cm)
Jones (183cm)
Steven (180cm)
Milne (176cm)
Schneider (175cm)

Weighted average goal height of 179.7cm. No talls or even mediums kicked goals.

Coincidence? Or does it speak to a bigger problem?

Why wouldn't we just play one tall forward (Riewoldt) with five smalls around him? We haven't found another tall or medium who can kick goals anyway.

It couldn't be worse than these options we've tried so far:
- playing Kosi when unfit
- playing Johnson, Archer or Stanley; who by and large are anonymous
- playing Gilbert forward, he's bereft of confidence and can't kick
- playing Gwilt forward; good player, but proven not to be a forward
- playing Dempster or Raph forward, waste of time
- playing Blake forward, where he fills space but does little else
- playing Goddard forward; he doesn't get a touch and gets frustrated

Our other problem is that we just don't seem to have enough run and grunt around the guts. Picking more useless talls is unlikely to help that. So let's try getting as much run as possible into the side, changing midfielders forward for a rest at times, and reducing the height of the team further.

OUT: Gilbert, Johnson
IN: Ray, Ledger/Polo

Gilbo can play some games in the twos to get back to some semblance of form. More than any other player in the team he's actually a liability when not playing well. Johnson wasn't horrible but doesn't fit into my new structure.

Both Ledger and Polo can kick a goal, find the ball and do a job. I don't know if Ledger can do it at AFL level, but at this point I'm willing to take a chance on him. I don't know if Polo's any good but I'm willing to take a chance on him also.

What other options are there?

(Don't suggest Siposs - do you really think he'll get a touch, given the way we're getting the ball into the forward line?)

[BallBanger]

Forget Polo, along with gamble and many many others...wasted draft picks further reducing positive future.

[bergholt]

Forget Polo, along with gamble and many many others...wasted draft picks further reducing positive future.

i haven't seen him in a st kilda jumper yet, so i'm going to give him two senior games before writing him off. just because gamble looks bad, doesn't mean polo necessarily will. maybe he's the next farren ray?

[Dr Spaceman]

Forget Polo, along with gamble and many many others...wasted draft picks further reducing positive future.

i haven't seen him in a st kilda jumper yet, so i'm going to give him two senior games before writing him off. just because gamble looks bad, doesn't mean polo necessarily will. maybe he's the next farren ray?

Fair call.

[asiu]

Let's try a midget fleet forward line

the mosquito fleet running onto the ball pinged over the wall into an empty forward line (or include fev as a the only stay at home)


finally , some effn thinkn ... onya 99

[bergholt]

the mosquito fleet running onto the ball pinged over the wall into an empty forward line (or include fev as a the only stay at home)

that's essentially it. you'd have to think it's one way to combat the pies' zone - bang it in to space, have enough pace to get to it before they do or fight them for it.

[noob]

I like the idea.

[bergholt]

Why wouldn't we just play one tall forward (Riewoldt) with five smalls around him? We haven't found another tall or medium who can kick goals anyway.

i don't wanna blow my own trumpet too much, but i think this is worthy of more consideration. can anyone tell me why it's not worth a try?

Our other problem is that we just don't seem to have enough run and grunt around the guts. Picking more useless talls is unlikely to help that. So let's try getting as much run as possible into the side, changing midfielders forward for a rest at times, and reducing the height of the team further.

[footynut]

Keep Riewoldt in the side, he'll be right with a light week on the track. However I'd move him back to CHB, play a small mobile forward line including Johnson at FF.

Imagine the pressence Riewoldt could have in the backline, a couple goals a game, game saving marks and quality delivery into the forward line.

[stevie]

Bin laden would've been handy in a forward pocket - no one has marked him for years...

But apparently he's hasn't come up for this week. A bullet to the left hammy, if you believe the US govt

[Dr Spaceman]

Bin laden would've been handy in a forward pocket - no one has marked him for years...

But apparently he's hasn't come up for this week. A bullet to the left hammy, if you believe the US govt

Two weeks?

[borderbarry]

To the left hammy? More likely the back of the head.

[plugger66]

5 smalls may be ok if all of them had pace but even then it would struggle. Rooy needs at least another tall forward for the tall backs to go against otherwise he will be competing against 2-3 talls all the time. The reason I say this is our small forwards would be required up the ground so the backs will just zone off them. We certainly havent 5 good enough smalls for clubs to worry about anyway. We will play as our 5 forwards, 2 talls like Rooy and probably Kosi plus 3 smalls including a group of Mini, Steven, Schneider and Milne. None of those have burst pace at all so it is no use trying to be like Blues.

[Sainternist]

To the left hammy? More likely the back of the head.

yeah, head injuries are nasty. not entirely sure kosi ever fully recovered from his. we might have to scrap the idea of promoting osama.

[stevie]

To the left hammy? More likely the back of the head.

yeah, head injuries are nasty. not entirely sure kosi ever fully recovered from his. we might have to scrap the idea of promoting osama.

Unless he washes up at Seaford...

[gringo]

Gamble looked good at geelong where he was the last of a fleet forwards. Polo may be star, he has been injured and needs to make up some fitness. It really pisses me off when we write players off on here. Eddy and Geary are universally canned on here one because as an injured warhorse he didn't star in the second grand final. Nick Riewoldt looked like s*** in both and nobody attacked his worth as a player. Eddy is still at the point in his career that he is meant to take the next step. All the negativity and venom directed his way will filter back to him and effect the way he approaches his footy.

I expect people want our young guys to come on but most would think that the fans on here delight in their failures. They may not be Lenny Hayes or Gary Ablett but they may have what we need on offer.

[dcstkfc]

Bin laden would've been handy in a forward pocket - no one has marked him for years...

But apparently he's hasn't come up for this week. A bullet to the left hammy, if you believe the US govt

No what the club really needs to do is to find out if either if Osama's knees are functional, because Lenny only needs one. Let the harvest begin I say!

[Dr Spaceman]

Bin laden would've been handy in a forward pocket - no one has marked him for years...

But apparently he's hasn't come up for this week. A bullet to the left hammy, if you believe the US govt

No what the club really needs to do is to find out if either if Osama's knees are functional, because Lenny only needs one. Let the harvest begin I say!

Think you'll find he's suffering from a serious case of "water on the knee"

[bergholt]

5 smalls may be ok if all of them had pace but even then it would struggle. Rooy needs at least another tall forward for the tall backs to go against otherwise he will be competing against 2-3 talls all the time.

i reckon he's competing with two or three now, and mostly because the structure and delivery cause him to be static all the time. or the ball is dumped on his head. i'm talking about getting him out of the 50 much of the time, and when he is in there it should be because the ball is moving quickly and the defense is (possibly) disorganised.

at least if there are smalls around him then they should be able to get away from the other tall backs. creating a few mismatches shouldn't hurt, and ideally we should be able to exploit them.

The reason I say this is our small forwards would be required up the ground so the backs will just zone off them. We certainly havent 5 good enough smalls for clubs to worry about anyway.

agreed, but as long as they're worried about three then the other two can pop up. half their time will be spent in the midfield and around half-forward anyway, but at least it gives us the chance to get an outnumber in the midfield and move (relatively) quickly on the way back.

play these four: milne, schneider, steven, mcqualter. add in one of montagna, dal santo, armitage, cripps when resting; also consider players like ray, polo, heyne, peake, gram, gamble, depending on who's needed elsewhere.

it just seems to give us more flexibility all over the ground. at the moment we're really predictable and that's not working.

[Dr Spaceman]

Is the title of this thread politically correct?

Don't they prefer to be called Dwarfs?




....... or is it Little People

[Sainternist]

Is the title of this thread politically correct?

Don't they prefer to be called Dwarfs?




....... or is it Little People

i think they generally prefer to be referred to as oompa loompas.

[Dr Spaceman]

Bin laden would've been handy in a forward pocket - no one has marked him for years...

Disagree.

Although he has been known to have an impact on occassions, he does "go missing" for long periods.

[dragit]

I'd like to see Riewoldt roaming around on a wing. Have Kosi or Archer leading out of the goal square, making a contest. At the drop it would be good to have even numbers, goal-kicking crumbers Milne, Schneider, Steven, Cripps, McQualter + a resting mid...
If Riewoldt is not making an impact he would surely be dragging 2 or 3 oppososition along with him, he needs to get his hands on the footy to restore some confidence, the dropped chest mark last week said it all.

[desertsaint]

Is the title of this thread politically correct?

Don't they prefer to be called Dwarfs?




....... or is it Little People

i think they generally prefer to be referred to as oompa loompas.

only in england. in kansas they call them 'munchkins'.

[Furphy]

We tried the idea in the early 80's under Jezza, didn't work.