Beau Wilkes

[Con Gorozidis]

Hanging out for Sunday.... It makes for interesting watching.

so final team selection is on friday 5pm?

[dcstkfc]

I actually reckon one bloke we miss from a purely defensive view is Raph. Very good at getting the hand in and spoiling.

[Teflon]

[quote="joffaboy


Not even a quality defender. We are a Zac Dawson type down. Not dissing Zac, but like it or not, he leaves a big fat hole in our defense.

The bigs at WCE and Collingwood showed what is going to happen to our defence this season if an opposition get a fair run at clearances, which is right on the cards as we are thin on ruckmen.

The good news about the kids at the Zebra's on the Weekened has papered over the cracks. We look ordinary at stoppages and undermanned down back.[/quote]

This is what worries me also.

I read with interest Lyon at Freo suggesting they'll be going "tall" in fwd line this year with Pav expected to spend most of his time there also....made me wonder are we about to see sides regularly playing 3 talls and what that would mean to a defence like ours who lets face it, one out, struggles. Our defence is good as a unit - not one out....and yep, unless McEvoys tap work improves 70%....we will rely on our mids sharking ball for much of this year....

Must say I am expecting some sides to get hold of us this year and score heavily fast .....and we havent been acustomed to that for some time...

[hAyES]

It's all about team defense. I have no idea who the key backmen are for Hawthorn but they were incredibly close to playing in a GF. I agree that winning the clearances helps a lot and I think it's an area we're really going to struggle with again this year but if teams are going to play a few talls it should work to our advantage because we'll be able to rebound it pretty quickly.

[bobmurray]

After reading this thread all i can say is...it could be a very long season with the window slammed shut.....

[bergholt]

As for the last 10 years, Kosi was flying until injuries derailed his career, namely missing the majority of a season with a fractured skull, that had him fainting and all sorts of s***. Unless you've been through that sort of s*** yourself, plus all the other injuries he's had, I don't think you're in a position to be trashing his output for us.

i like kosi, but that's a s*** argument you're making there. i can't criticise his output because i haven't had the injuries he's had? what? sure, he may well have done as well as anyone could have under those circumstances, but that doesn't mean he's necessarily been any good.

[AnythingsPossibleSaints]

As for the last 10 years, Kosi was flying until injuries derailed his career, namely missing the majority of a season with a fractured skull, that had him fainting and all sorts of s***. Unless you've been through that sort of s*** yourself, plus all the other injuries he's had, I don't think you're in a position to be trashing his output for us.

i like kosi, but that's a s*** argument you're making there. i can't criticise his output because i haven't had the injuries he's had? what? sure, he may well have done as well as anyone could have under those circumstances, but that doesn't mean he's necessarily been any good.

That's fair enough. I didn't word it particularly well. I was responding to someone saying he'd been a "huge disappointment" for 10 years, which I think is harsh given what he has been through. It's been "hugely disappointing", just as it was to see Goose and X and Bally not reach their full potential, after really severe injuries, but I think it's very harsh to say he's been a "huge disappointment".
He has put his body on the line in a big way for our club numerous times and it could have cost him in a big way personally and physically. Hearing about all the supposed concussion related suicides in the NFL of recent times, who knows how badly those knocks to the head have affected him.

[bergholt]

That's fair enough. I didn't word it particularly well. I was responding to someone saying he'd been a "huge disappointment" for 10 years, which I think is harsh given what he has been through. It's been "hugely disappointing", just as it was to see Goose and X and Bally not reach their full potential, after really severe injuries, but I think it's very harsh to say he's been a "huge disappointment".

yeah, fair enough, i'd probably agree with that. it's disappointing for everyone, i'm sure not least kosi himself.

[BigMart]

I would suggest Bally would be pretty comfortable with his achievements....... Goose is still going around.

[matrix]

Hanging out for Sunday.... It makes for interesting watching.

so final team selection is on friday 5pm?

hope not
how on earth are you supposed to pick a supercoach side ffs
absolute joke

[Gershwin]

As for the last 10 years, Kosi was flying until injuries derailed his career, namely missing the majority of a season with a fractured skull, that had him fainting and all sorts of s***. Unless you've been through that sort of s*** yourself, plus all the other injuries he's had, I don't think you're in a position to be trashing his output for us.

i like kosi, but that's a s*** argument you're making there. i can't criticise his output because i haven't had the injuries he's had? what? sure, he may well have done as well as anyone could have under those circumstances, but that doesn't mean he's necessarily been any good.

That's fair enough. I didn't word it particularly well. I was responding to someone saying he'd been a "huge disappointment" for 10 years, which I think is harsh given what he has been through. It's been "hugely disappointing", just as it was to see Goose and X and Bally not reach their full potential, after really severe injuries, but I think it's very harsh to say he's been a "huge disappointment".
He has put his body on the line in a big way for our club numerous times and it could have cost him in a big way personally and physically. Hearing about all the supposed concussion related suicides in the NFL of recent times, who knows how badly those knocks to the head have affected him.

And I was too harsh by saying "huge disappointment". Kosi is actually one of my favourite players for his committment to the team and appears to be a great bloke. It is just so frustrating that as a second draft selection in 2000 he has struggled to have a significant impact - and I know all the reasons why.
I'm just wondering whether it is time to play Wilkes as the main strong bodied forward.
But the way teams are structuring, Kosi will almost definitely play and be the forward who rucks for 20% of the game. No-one wishes him well more than me.
The AFL Prospectus states:
"Koschitzke was a poor target inside 50, grabbing a mark 13% of the time he was used - the lowest percentage of the 64 players that were kicked to at least 40 times during the H&A season. Koschitzke spent some time in the ruck, but his percentage of ruck contests won rated as poor, while his hitoout-to-advantage was below average."

[SainterK]

Difference this year to last, a solid preseason, one of only a few he has been able to enjoy over the journey.

I can recall that Kosi was brought back far too early last year, it was ridiculous actually. Ankle surgery, then further surgery because of an infection. Then suddenly he is back far earlier than anticipated? I'm a fan, but even I remember watching him v Brisbane thinking 'why on earth is he out there'

[gringo]

Kosi had no preseason last year and was missing or underdone for large parts of it. I think Kosi should get more out of himself with a full preseason and slimmer build. I know we have been waiting a while but if he could do a 50 goal season again it will go a long way towards rebuilding our attack.

Roo can only get better after 2 years of little output. i think we will also go a range of different goal scorers under Scott probably a little like Carlton more mids/ smalls kicking at goal. Collingwood are good at the peppering approach and back their press to keep the ball in their forward half, you would expect he will use similar.

[AnythingsPossibleSaints]

I would suggest Bally would be pretty comfortable with his achievements....... Goose is still going around.

Their careers haven't been anywhere close to what they almost certainly would have been if they'd had a decent run with injuries, though. I mean Bally won a B&F at 21, in a side that played in the Prelim (after coming 2nd, at 20, the year before, when we were a kick off a granny) and was looking like being one of our "all time greats" and Goose was more than holding down a key position at 20 and 21, in teams that made the prelims. He was better at 20 and 21 than he is now, at an age that they're usually at their peak.

[BigMart]

Bally has had two very good years at the pies.....but forget that, he has something he may never have got...that's why he'd be comfortable....

Goose was really resigned to the scrap heap in 2010....now he's getting a game as a key back....we don't really have one....