Changes for this week against the Kangeroos

[saint patrick]

Assuming Lenny is treated conservatively ...my guess is

Out: Lenny In: Dal

Milne and Stevens some chance as well.Not sure where Kosi ,Gardi and Bakes are at but more than likely will be rested until after the break.

[borderbarry]

From latest reports Lenny and Kosi will be right this week. Outs for me would be =
C. Gardiner for Kosi..
Geary / McQualter for Milne/ Dal Santo.

[fonz_#15]

who is stevens?

[matrix]

who is stevens?

i think he plays for carlton

[fonz_#15]

who is stevens?

i think he plays for carlton

yeah thought so..isn't one on our list

[Sobraz]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

I'd keep mini in, has done ok in his 2 games IMO...

Out: C. Gardiner (this is a must), Geary, CJ
In: Kosi, Dal, Milne

[True Blue Sainter]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

I'd keep mini in, has done ok in his 2 games IMO...

Out: C. Gardiner (this is a must), Geary, CJ
In: Kosi, Dal, Milne

Why would you drop CJ? His last few weeks he's been in our top 6-7 players.

[fonz_#15]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

i know who jack steven is...i wish our supporters would just take the time to learn his name and say it properly.

[matrix]

apparently lennys was a back related hamstring...which explains the ice on the hammy.
he'll be in this week....as long as he is fit and can get thru the whole game.

[fonz_#15]

although i don't want any risk of re-injury, a half fit lenny would still be our best player, if we only get half productivity (output) from him when compared to his 1 quater last week we would still get about 8 possies per quater

[saint patrick]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

i know who jack steven is...i wish our supporters would just take the time to learn his name and say it properly.

Point taken Fonz ...just slipped an S in where I knew it didn't belong...it is Monday morning Bro

[fonz_#15]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

i know who jack steven is...i wish our supporters would just take the time to learn his name and say it properly.

Point taken Fonz ...just slipped an S in where I knew it didn't belong...it is Monday morning Bro

haha no worries at all, the mind is a little sharper than most, been up since bloody 4.30

[Sobraz]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

i know who jack steven is...i wish our supporters would just take the time to learn his name and say it properly.

yeah gotchya.. Agree also, but what about calling him steven jack... really throws a spanner in the works... damn double christian name people..

[Armoooo]

Would love it if Jack Steven could get his debut but he is still another pre season away, having said that though if we are unable to make the ifnals I would love to see him get a go round 22 just as a reward for a great season in the 2's.
Make no mistake Steven will be a star, we just need to manage him properly...
My ins/outs would be...
In: Milne, Dal Santo, Kosi
Out: C.Gardiner, McQualter, Hayes?/Gwilt

[Sobraz]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

I'd keep mini in, has done ok in his 2 games IMO...

Out: C. Gardiner (this is a must), Geary, CJ
In: Kosi, Dal, Milne

Why would you drop CJ? His last few weeks he's been in our top 6-7 players.

CJ has been ok, and i have respect and appreciation for the way he goes about it, but he just doesnt hurt teams at all, and will always be indecisive with his decision making and skills..

he is a good backup, but with a few first choice players out, i think mini and eddy are better options to keep their spots..

[True Blue Sainter]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

I'd keep mini in, has done ok in his 2 games IMO...

Out: C. Gardiner (this is a must), Geary, CJ
In: Kosi, Dal, Milne

Why would you drop CJ? His last few weeks he's been in our top 6-7 players.

CJ has been ok, and i have respect and appreciation for the way he goes about it, but he just doesnt hurt teams at all, and will always be indecisive with his decision making and skills..

he is a good backup, but with a few first choice players out, i think mini and eddy are better options to keep their spots..

I personally think CJ gives a bit more to the team than both Mini & Eddy at this point, due to his extra yard of pace and his ability to apply forward pressure. I don't think RL will drop him as he excels in the areas that RL rates (tackling, forward pressure, all 1%ers), even if his disposal and decision-making let's him down at times (as it does with Blake, R Clarke etc).

I'd like to see:

In: Kosi, Dal
Out: Geary, Allen

Steven in for Hayes if he doesn't come up.

[Seaford_Saint]

Why on earth would anyone think that Kosi has the right to just waltz back into the side?? what has he done since the practice matches finished to warrant that level of respect??

He can share rucking duties with Rix in the 2's as far as i'm concerned.

[jill]

Agree with Seaford_Saint
Kosi needs to earn his place in side not just be an automatic selection!

[meher baba]

I personally think CJ gives a bit more to the team than both Mini & Eddy at this point, due to his extra yard of pace and his ability to apply forward pressure. I don't think RL will drop him as he excels in the areas that RL rates (tackling, forward pressure, all 1%ers

Gee, I think the idea that CJ "excels" in anything is a bit over the top.

Also, I think those posters who go on and on about how CJ's disposal has improved must bear in mind that it has gone from being a total embarassment to being about as good as you would expect from the average 15 year old midfielder: that is, he can now deliver slow kicks to the chests of unmarked players. BJ he ain't.

He is, and will remain, a good backup player. But - unless (as has just happened) the coach is sending top flight players to the VFL to make a point - the idea of CJ ever winning a spot on the basis of form/talent ahead of players like Dal or Milne is simply laughable.

Think about Geelong's game against the Eagles on Saturday night. If you close your eyes, you can just imagine a Dempster or Birss or perhaps even a Geary or a Gwilt running around as part of that performance. But a CJ?? Never.

[The_Dud]

Kosi needs to come in if fit, we NEED a strong target in the forward line, we won't be able to get away with the disarray that was our forward line last week, again this week

so my in's would be: Kosi, Dal, Milne

out: C Gardiner, and two of Allen, McEvoy, Eddy, Geary

[spert]

CJ has earned his spot, and I wish a few others in the team would work as hard in contests, but Gardiner may go and maybe Geary. Milne responded to the challenge by being BOG in the Scorps, and that's how you earn a senior game, but who knows about Dal. Kozi should have run in the Scorps rather than an auto selection for the seniors, and Rix might as well get a run in the seniors as he is working hard and playing good team football, and North's rucks are a bit weakened at the moment.

[BAM! (shhhh)]

who is stevens?

jack steven.... wont come in, not ready yet, although has plenty of potential..

I'd keep mini in, has done ok in his 2 games IMO...

Out: C. Gardiner (this is a must), Geary, CJ
In: Kosi, Dal, Milne

Why would you drop CJ? His last few weeks he's been in our top 6-7 players.

CJ has been ok, and i have respect and appreciation for the way he goes about it, but he just doesnt hurt teams at all, and will always be indecisive with his decision making and skills..

he is a good backup, but with a few first choice players out, i think mini and eddy are better options to keep their spots..

Got to admit, looking at CJ's statline surprised me. My perception had been that he'd reverted to form with his kicking - he just never looked confidant in going by foot, but he was apparently up in the mid 80s for efficiency, and his yearlong rating is at 77%, which is pretty good for a mid/forward (though that needs to be taken with a grain of salt in a Saints team where everyone gets possessions in the back half where the % tends to be higher).

Given the improvement in the crucial baseline skills, I really like what CJ adds in other areas. his workrate is good, he chases and tackles, he finds the ball... and importantly, he's comfortable handballing on the run, which is IMO an area the Saints tend to execute in poorly which is crucial to building their offense in the style they play.

On topic, I'd guess that if Hayes stays in, the guys in danger of making way for Dal are Geary (he's learning, he'll be back, but not in any kind of form so some 2nds time might do him well) or Eddy (good job of getting the ball, needs to use it better, prefer him to get a bit more of a taste but probably depends on what role Lyon sees him playing).

I think that if Gardiner and/or Kosi is on the cards, McEvoy might struggle to stay in - was pretty happy with what I saw of him, but when the game was in the balance, it didn't seem Lyon had the confidence to use him... I imagine he's up against Allen, but I'd say Allen has an edge, he played more, got more ball, and from what mistakes he made, can be expected to improve with game time. Joey didn't gain that many disposals, but he was only just below his opponent (Bell) who he kept to 18 while racking up 8 tackles! I imagine he'll be going up against Brent Harvey this week.

I'd suggest that With Kosi, it might be worth giving him a run at Casey to make sure he can run out a game after the knee. Charlie Gardiner probably did just enough, as there's nobody to threaten his spot right now (R Clarke? let the forum wars begin... ) - I can see X giving good value in that spot through speed, marking and being another guy to ratate through the midfield, but like Kosi, if we're going to play a game that demanding on endurance, he should ensure his fitness at Casey after soft tissue.

[saintsRrising]

I agree with your post....


However...

McEvoy might struggle to stay in - was pretty happy with what I saw of him, but when the game was in the balance, it didn't seem Lyon had the confidence to use him... .

McEvoy actually had a slight injury in the last quarter and so that is why he did not play.



...another aspect is that M Gardiner may be up selection.

If so then he would come in for McEvoy.


At this stage I would bring Kosi back via Casey...Kosi is another Saints who has not been applying himseld hard enough in the seniors and needs to be given the message that 4 quarter efforts rather than cameos are required.

[LTN16]

I would make no changes this week.

I don't believe in giving the young blokes(Eddy, Allen, McEvoy) just one game to see what they have at the top level. Better off giving them 2 or 3 games in a row and it would be great for their confidence.

Maybe swap C.Gardiner for Dal Santo but otherwise apart from that I would make no changes.

[vacuous space]

[Clinton Jones'] yearlong rating is at 77%, which is pretty good for a mid/forward (though that needs to be taken with a grain of salt in a Saints team where everyone gets possessions in the back half where the % tends to be higher).

We're down pretty much across the board in terms of efficiency. Lenny, Ball, Dal - all down. Roo, Kosi - down. Goddard, Sam Fisher, Gram - down. Most of those guys are down significantly too. We have to be one of the worst teams in terms of putting together an effective chain of disposals. My personal view is that has something to do with our team imploding its structure at the slightest sign of opposition. I50s are useless if there's no setup to exploit them. Rebounding is impossible if there's no one to rebound to. I think our players' efficieny rating is suffering under our current system. At least when Jones turns the ball over, he usually does it forward of position, so can help to cover his mistakes.