Too Many Left Footers

[chuckie]

After we suprised everybody and made the 1996 Grand final, the following year wasn't as successful, because according to several opposing coaches we had to many left footers in our team.
What they were saying was that each time a leftie got the ball the good opposition knew which way they were going to turn which made it difficult for us to switch play.
After watching the last couple of years and again the game on Saturday night this might be the case again, we are just so slow at moving the ball forward no wonder Hall got frustrated.

Hope I didn't offend the catholics with the header.

[DeadlyAkkuret]

Hall will be happy that he has another excuse.

[Go Swannies]

I don't agree. Against Carlton I think we were just very rusty - fortunately they were rustier. And we were playing the Saints on Saturday and it was like kicking across the Great Wall of China getting out of defence. First week we're complaining about McVeigh kicking to no-one in our forward 50 and this week we're in trouble for taking our time to pick a way forward through the Saints' defence.

I reckon that a Roos/Longmire coached teach will always play the odds methodically rather than blazing away so get used to us working our way forward (crab-like) with some degree of patience. When opposing fans complain you just have to tell them that if their team played man-on-man it wouldn't be possible - or necessary.

[satchmopugdog]

For some reason mechanically left footers seem to have a good kick, a smoothness of the swing of their leg or whatever, some of the best kicks are left footers. So you have to balance up the downside which is the fact they are often really one sided as against the benefit of the good kick.

[ugg]

After we suprised everybody and made the 1996 Grand final, the following year wasn't as successful, because according to several opposing coaches we had to many left footers in our team.
What they were saying was that each time a leftie got the ball the good opposition knew which way they were going to turn which made it difficult for us to switch play.
After watching the last couple of years and again the game on Saturday night this might be the case again, we are just so slow at moving the ball forward no wonder Hall got frustrated.

Hope I didn't offend the catholics with the header.

Can you explain why the opposition wouldn't know which way the right footers would turn?

[Triple B]

Can you explain why the opposition wouldn't know which way the right rooters would turn?

Good point....both times

[ugg]

Good point....both times

Cursed virtual keyboard.

[Nico]

Can you explain why the opposition wouldn't know which way the right footers would turn?

That is just one of the quirks of the game. I am a left footer and we left footers find it a lot harder to turn onto our right foot and indeed make some sort of reasonable contact, whereas most right footers seem to adapt a lot better to kicking on their left. Therefore the illusion might be that right footers are able to avoid tackles better. It is a fact that coaches tell players to stand on the left hand side of lefties to force them onto their right foot and force errors.

Lefties seem to be able move in a wider arc and appear to get more distance and penetration with their kicks.

If you are looking up the ground it is better that the lefty plays on the right hand side so he can swing into towards the centre and into space, yet it doesn't seem to be as critical for right footers to play on the left side.

I could never work out Leo Barry. He so often had a ton of space to his left, however his brain mostly told him to instinctively go right so it always appeared that he was dodging a player. He did this so often even though he was an absolute dunce on his right foot. It was almost as if an opposition player to his right was a magnet to him.

Yet in basketball lefties have a distinct advantage because no matter how hard opponents try, they go to the person's right hand side, even when it is clear they are left sided, probably because there are not many left hand basketballers. When I have seen this it is almost as if players are completely bamboozaled by a leftie.

[Robbo]

Having a lot of left footers was a big problem for Hawthorn in 2008!

[smasher]

Kicking has become one of the most important things at draft camp these days.Players are expected to be equely good with each foot.

[sfan]

So rate the kicking of the new recruits. I also think Jack is a poor kick. Just short dinky 30m passes most of the time. McGlynn also had poor disposal from his first two games. The Saints first few goals were from very poor kicking turnovers.

[giant]

ROK has developed a right foot of some variety, even Kirky goes with the right sometimes (and is helped in comparison because his left is pretty ordinary too!). The lefties have traditionally been helped by the "half turn", the ability that many lefties cultivate to turn half on to the right before moving back on the left (players fall for it every time!) but it's a lot less useful when you're moving forward with the ball, so guys like Mattner and Mal look very predictable coming out of defence sometimes.

[big bear]

After we suprised everybody and made the 1996 Grand final, the following year wasn't as successful, because according to several opposing coaches we had to many left footers in our team.
What they were saying was that each time a leftie got the ball the good opposition knew which way they were going to turn which made it difficult for us to switch play.
After watching the last couple of years and again the game on Saturday night this might be the case again, we are just so slow at moving the ball forward no wonder Hall got frustrated.

Hope I didn't offend the catholics with the header.

The Pope is a Saints supporter.

[Matty10]

The Pope is a Saints supporter.

Surely the Blood Stained Angels are a more heavenly choice!

[Primmy]

Surely the Blood Stained Angels are a more heavenly choice!

Oh lordy. Its official. We are going stir crazy.

Are we there yet?