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#gosaintas wrote:He has kept some good players quiet, no doubt, but he's not the future and we aren't playing finals so I'd move him on now and let a more accomplished player learn the craft. Poor decision makers can't play in the backline. He panics too often. Same thing with Gilbert. He either plays up the ground or at Sandy.
Completely agree I have no love for Geary as above. The guy is like having a gutsy 'frank spencer' running around its comical. He played ok last week but all he had to beat was Ballantyne who has done nothing for the last 18 months. I wonder how many goals Betts will kick this week before AR loses his Geary love and moves him off Betts? Betts has always had the wood on Geary yet they send him to him time after time.
The fact that AR backs his players in to do a job is a positive, but not to the detriment of winning IMO.
Maybe get to a game one day instead of watching on TV. I find it incredible you can critisise any player when you probably have not seen the team live all year.
Watching on TV it is impossible to see how he organises the backline and reads the play.
But pot away. I reckon the coach and people who actually see the game live have a better idea of his worth.
Get over it cause he will be around for seasons to come.
The 2 players under pressure will be McKenzie and Sinclair, neither of whom have shown that they should be first choice selections to date and will need to consolidate at VFL level producing match influencing performances consistently and earning the label "an AFL player playing at VFL level" (which appears to be where Acres is at).
In regards Geary, noting that most refer to his efforts with ball in hand as a concern (correctly in my view but I would add that some of his defensive work is poor), the impact of playing him with these deficiencies is that we have been forced to play Montagna back to provide the penetrating carry and ball use out of the back half that Geary can not.
If you look at sides that have had our measure, the damage caused by mid sized defenders matched against our small forwards has been there for all to see starting with the Western Bulldogs, then to GWS.
In both those matches those mid sized defenders won the contest and ran the ball forward, creating over laps and with penetrating run and disposal.
So against those sides we have a deficiency and we are wasting a resource because the player who can not so deliver remains in the side and we then have to play Montagna back to achieve what the Western Bulldogs and GWS (for starters) achieve.
These days it is not just subduing your opponent - it is more significantly what you contribute to run and ball use particuarly when you are playing behind centre and in the mid field.
And, just to add, in comparison to Gilbert, Gilbert takes the play on with ball in hand (and, like all others does not have a 100% disposal efficiency in providing that run, carry and disposal) plus, as per last weekend was seen deep in attack, deep in defence and in the mid field so can be deployed as last week confirmed bringing a bigger body able to impact on the contest.
So in static events, Gilbert was rotating between a deep defensive accountability, in a forward pocket and at the centre bounce.
Whilst D-mac was quiet I'd love to see him get one more game so I'm hoping he stays in. Reckon if fit billings will be an automatic selection so I think he'll come in for Sinclair which is a bummer as we know Sinclair has class...he just didn't impact at all last week.
Opposition rebounds out of our forward line have been a problem, and it would seem that AR thinks that Lonie and Acres have a lot of work to do on their defensive forward game, and probably Sinclair needs to pick up in that area too. I was thinking Murdoch might be a good pick as a half forward, as he has a stronger body than the other three mentioned and probably can play a defensive forward role better. We do lack a strong half forward flanker who can play above their weight.
Whilst D-mac was quiet I'd love to see him get one more game so I'm hoping he stays in. Reckon if fit billings will be an automatic selection so I think he'll come in for Sinclair which is a bummer as we know Sinclair has class...he just didn't impact at all last week.
Then there is Webster and Acres to think about!!
Good problem to have...
While D-Mac was quiet early I thought in the last quarter when the game was on the line he was good.
I would keep him in the team ahead of Murdoch.
stkfc1 wrote:No change. Webster and Billings could use a run in the 2s. Neither setting the world on fire. Murdoch played well and deserves a run. Sinclair and DMac both get another chance IMO but would want to show a bit more.
I watched the tape of our game against the Shockers but only the first 20 minutes of the first qtr and the whole last quarter (I couldn't go through the second or third qtrs again) and Murdoch and Sinclair did not touch the ball until the last two kicks of the game - NO JOKE - Did not touch the ball in all that time.
Having said that I don't reckon you should bring someone in for only the one week unless they were truly pitiful.
So you only watched the bits where we absolutely dominated and one of our defenders didn't get a touch.
Macquarie Dictionary Word of the Year for 2023 "Kosi Lives"
stkfc1 wrote:No change. Webster and Billings could use a run in the 2s. Neither setting the world on fire. Murdoch played well and deserves a run. Sinclair and DMac both get another chance IMO but would want to show a bit more.
I watched the tape of our game against the Shockers but only the first 20 minutes of the first qtr and the whole last quarter (I couldn't go through the second or third qtrs again) and Murdoch and Sinclair did not touch the ball until the last two kicks of the game - NO JOKE - Did not touch the ball in all that time.
Having said that I don't reckon you should bring someone in for only the one week unless they were truly pitiful.
So you only watched the bits where we absolutely dominated and one of our defenders didn't get a touch.
Lol. Analyse a players whole game on 3/8ths of it.
Wonderful.
I only watched Paddys mark. He is better than Plugger.
Acres, Templeton etc will need to wait for a bad loss and obvious drop in form for a like for like player or injury imo. Just how it is with a mostly fit squad.
Con Gorozidis wrote:All of the pro Gilbert commentary is based on some 'theoretical' reasoning. Why he ought to be good.
None of it address the actual reality that averaging 16 disposals as a 29yo free-wheeling/unaccountable midfielder is poor.
Unaccountable midfielder is a bit harsh...what does that mean anyways, that he doesn't run both ways and defend/do his 1%ers? Gilbert would make his fair share of tackles i reckon, he's an excellent tackler! He doesn't play 100% in the middle so you wouldn't expect him to gather really big posession counts. He's certainly been a good contributor for us this year imo
IF you were at Docklands last Sunday you would have noted that in fixed plays (Centre bounces) Gilbert was lining up successively in the full back line and then in the full forward line.
He was also on occasions around the static ball event.
So I have great trouble reconciling a "free wheeling mid-fielder" reference and any subsequent relevance.
