I almost think that it's no longer 'what you are going to do about it' that changes from team to team but more 'how we do something about it'BAM! (shhhh) wrote:The way I end up thinking about gameplans, from a players perspective, those are the 3 issues, the questions to ask are then:Mr Magic wrote:What was the saying Jeansy used to use when talking about how footy is played?
There are 3 things you need to know about a game of footy
1. You have the footy
2. They have the footy
3. The footy is in dispute
Without ever actually seeing one, I would imagine every coach of an AFL team bases his gameplan around those 13 words.
1. Where is the footy? (forward line, HFF, wing, centre, HBF, backline)
2. What's my job in this situation? (man up, zone, run to create space, be an option out back, lead)
The gameplan is the summary of how the answers to those questions for 18 players tie together.
Given the way teams move together up and down the field these days, #1 complicates Jeans' theory much more than when it was originally voiced. I suppose you could say the original 3 things are still true, but the poignant question of "what are you going to do about it" has changed.
Watching the first quarter on Saturday night sheeted home to me the obvious conclusion that Hawthorn flood equally as much as we do and my mind went back to last year's shocking game at the MCG when we seemed to bear the brunt of the 'Football World' for causing it.
IMHO, Hawthorns predeliction to play their HFFs up on the defensive side of the wing so as to create their 4 man 'Buddy Box' guarantees a 'negative' style game if you as coach decide not to follow those 2 HFFs up the field, but keep them in their normal positions.
You look at our backline and you assume we are running 2 extras behind the ball, when in fact all we have done is keep our 6 defenders in the backline. Of course when we win control of the footy down back we end up running into a 'wall' of Hawks due to their extra 2 men. Hence the sideways, backwards possession game.
Sides may have the most attacking style of 'gameplan' but you don't get to play in a vaccuum and therefore whta your opposition is doing has great bearing on how you play.