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Would love that, but right now he seems to have been sidelined for a month, with no information forthcoming from the club. So who knows. Our issue is particularly acute among small and medium sized players (as opposed to talls where a McLean or Ladhams or Edwards might be able to step in). You’d really say only Cleary could step up with confidence.
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Yeah, it's a bit problematic. There's Cleary, who really is an inside mid, that sometimes gets thrown into the side as a pressure forward. Then there's Lloyd, who was pretty good in the forward half late last season, but is obviously on the last legs of a distinguished career, and I'm not sure why he didn't play on the weekend? Or there's Corey Warner, who's played some pretty good games in the position, without ever looking like he's going to be one of the first picked. And personally, I'd like to see him tried in the VFL as a lock down, small defender. With Cunningham injured, we probably need another one besides Wicks, and I suspect that Warner has the speed and discipline to do it successfully.Comment
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Yes, I forgot about Warner, silly me. (I also probably assumed Lloyd was in the 23 for now.)
I think I'd also given Bice the spot down back. He mightn't be as tight defensively as you'd want - but I figure our back seven starts with McCartin, Melican, Mills, Blakey, Wicks, Bice and then either Ramps or Serong, depending on whether they want to play Serong on a wing.
Like you, I'd 'like' Warner to succeed, as he seems like a committed, desperate footballer who's trying to get the best out of himself. He's as fit as anyone at the club, physical, determined and clearly exceeds at the level below. I do wonder about his foot skills and decision making coming out of defence (or anywhere really). I just hope for his sake he's not one of those players that is too good for VFL but not quite got the talents required to make it in the AFL, which is what he currently looks like to me. I'd be thrilled if he proved me wrong.Comment
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While I did really like the idea of trying to turn Wicks into a small defender, I did have similar misgivings. I thought he might make a fair few poor choices when rebounding, and perhaps more importantly, giving away dumb frees in front of goal. But so far, I think the move has been a huge success. And I think some of those misgivings, may have stemmed from small forward often being a frustrating position to play. That is, no matter how hard you try, the ball may not come your way, and no matter how hard you chase, skilled rebounders get the ball clear anyway. So, there must be a temptation to blaze away when you do get the ball, even if the better option was a short pass to a team mate in the clear. Or you might be tempted to give an opponent a whack, when you eventually catch him.
Whereas the role of a small defender, is to essentially cause frustration. That is, you need the athleticism to stick with the best small forwards and the desire to do so. The options with the ball might be a bit easier as well? Instead of choosing between a low probability shot or a higher probability pass, the option for a defender is generally getting the ball to someone who's in the clear, or booting it long down the line. So, less chance of burning your team mates, which might be the biggest knock on Corey. He might also have a similar personality to Wicks, who does seem to take pleasure in stopping opponents from successfully performing a role, that he never quite mastered himself.
Of course, now that I've made that case, they'll probably just pick Corey in the Campbell role, where he'll only be partially successful, before returning to the VFL, where he'll play some quality games as a midfielder.Comment
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