Jason Ball to FF

[barry]

Could Ball become our FF next year in a role similar to Brisbane's lynch to prolong his career (ie. see out the year).

Our ruckstocks are fairly high at the moment with Doyle Jolly and Goodes, and Jase was a forward earlier in his career.

This might free up MOL for a pocket or flank.

[Sanecow]

Sounds good to prolong his career, except Ball makes a better ruckman than fullforward IMHO (I don't have stats, this is just my gut feeling). Stats supporting or refuting this opinion are welcome.

[swansrule100]

didnt paul salmon for instance feel the ruck helped his career last... its more demanding up forward??

[liz]

I'd rather see Doyle spend more time up forward when he's not rucking and have Ball drop back. Ball isn't quite in the Goodes mobility league when it comes to ruckmen but he's still pretty good around the ground.

At the moment he has a better understanding of positioning and is a stronger, more consistent mark than Doyle. Doyle seems to do OK when standing in the goal square but Ball presents far better as an option for the kick-in or reading the play across half-back.

[swansrule100]

so we are going to have jolly doyle and ball in the one team???

[Sanecow]

Originally posted by swansrule100
didnt paul salmon for instance feel the ruck helped his career last... its more demanding up forward??

I guess rucking around the ground isn't that tough; the centre bounce is a bit brutal though. But then at FF, you get manhandled by every goon in the league.

[Ryan Bomford]

Originally posted by liz
I'd rather see Doyle spend more time up forward when he's not rucking and have Ball drop back.

That's how I see it too. Doyle and Jolly are the candidates to move forward when they're not rucking. Ball will rest down back giving the defence some added height and marking depth.

[barry]

I would have thought the extra miles covered by a ruckman, and the barrage of leading forwards crashing into your back as you "plug the hole" would make the ruckman far more injury prone than a FF.

[swansrule100]

i dont really see how all three ruckman fit into one team.... leaves us with three slow people

[robbieando]

Originally posted by swansrule100
i dont really see how all three ruckman fit into one team.... leaves us with three slow people

Easy, one on the bench resting, one at Full Forward resting and providing another forward option and the other one surprisingly playing in the ruck

Rotate as planned and there you have it, a sure fire plan to play three ruckmen in the team. Honestly we are lucky that Doyle is a good mark and set shot for a forward and that Ball is a converted Full Forward. Remember he is a premiership Full Forward and really never played in the ruck that much until he became a Swan and we traded for him as Lockett's replacement.

Still with the injury history of both Doyle and Ball we'll be lucky to get many chances to play 3 ruckmen.

[swansrule100]

hmmm but i dont know seems to be a waste of position.... robs us of an extra running player

but im sure it will work out

[ScottH]

Here is balls record with West Coast where he played mainly as a forward.

Year	No.	Games	Kicks	Marks	H.Balls	Disp	Goals	Pts	H.O.	Tack
1993	29	1	2	1	2	4			2	
1994	26	16	131	63	75	206	10	8	58	15
1995	26	22	208	128	87	295	48	35	38	14
1996	26	13	110	66	53	163	25	13	35	9
1997	26	14	87	58	81	168	7	6	55	21
1998	26	20	178	89	109	287	20	11	218	13
1999	26	16	100	65	75	175	4	4	135	7

[NMWBloods]

Ball came to us as a forward - he was thrown into the ruck as we needed assistance there.

[Wil]

There was only one goal Ball needed to kick last season...

[liz]

Originally posted by Wil
There was only one goal Ball needed to kick last season...

In the final wash-up, though, it didn't affect where we finished on the ladder. And while it might have switched around the Saints and Lions on the ladder, I suspect Brisbane would have beaten St Kilda in the first week of the finals had the game been played at the 'G rather than the Gabba, so it probably didn't have any real impact on the way the season finished up.