Swans vs Giants Solitary Pre-season Match

[KTigers]

How much more time do we give Melican to be consistent.

I would think another three or four years minimum. There's no reason why he shouldn't be given the same amount of time given to Sam
Reid & Gary Rohan. It's more of a journey than a destination.

[rickmat]

I have contacted the Swans to ask for any update on the pre-season Reserves games, who played, who played well and those coming back from injury. Fingers crossed we get some information.

[Ludwig]

Pretty much reached his level on incompetency. You can throw Will Hayward into that basket.

"Hey Lewie, any room in there for me?"

[giant]

I suspect if Allir wasn't traded, Melican would be depth.

I didn't have him best 22 before Allir went, but there's no one else. He is serviceable - as noted he has bad days, but his good days are good. Maybe with time he will be more consistent. He's 24.

You mean the Allir that was BOG for Port Adelaide on the weekend? Sigh.

[giant]

I agree re Sam. He looked slow and out of sorts yesterday (along with Rampe, Heeney, Hewitt, Bell)..

We just need to find a taller forward line setup as we were mauled by the taller Giants defence. Hope we don't put too much pressure on McDonald, but he did look good when he came on in the second half.

From Horse's press conference comments, got a feeling in H1 on Sunday they were prepping for a wet/dewy Gabba in a couple of weeks time when it won't make sense to go tall. Just a guess but.

[MattW]

I think that Melican missed having Lloyd in the back line. Campbell will be a good replacement for Mills, however with Rampe being rusty exposed Melican.. MaCartin is a keeper in the back line, agree could be AA. Fox is a toiler.. Giants forwards played well and got the rub of the Green...:-)

Our forwards were to small for the delivery in the first half. Kick high and hope... McDonald provided a marking option after half time when the Giants had a snooze. Reid is not a solution for ruck and forward. (Not sure there is a fit for him unless Melican is outplayed and we need a 3rd tall defender. Off the bench, but needs to be fit and hungry!)

Wicks, Gulden, Warner and McDonald all put their hands up high for a start. Campbell is a lock.

Depth is looking good at this stage.

I agree Warner looked sharp. Stevens and McInerney

I still believe that O'Roirdan will fit into the back line during the year.

At risk of missing starting team Reid, Clarke, Sinclair, Haywood, Ling,

Hickey is serviceable! (bigger tank than Sinclair)

Rusty

Heeny, Rampe, Dawson.

Mills will need to improve for me to be sold on his new position. Young mids may force him to return to the back line.

Rod_

Another great contribution, Rod.

[MattW]

From Horse's press conference comments, got a feeling in H1 on Sunday they were prepping for a wet/dewy Gabba in a couple of weeks time when it won't make sense to go tall. Just a guess but.

Yes, his comment about not knowing the weather in Brisbane in two weeks time stood out as odd.

[liz]

I think that Melican missed having Lloyd in the back line. Campbell will be a good replacement for Mills, however with Rampe being rusty exposed Melican.. MaCartin is a keeper in the back line, agree could be AA. Fox is a toiler.. Giants forwards played well and got the rub of the Green...:-)

Our forwards were to small for the delivery in the first half. Kick high and hope... McDonald provided a marking option after half time when the Giants had a snooze. Reid is not a solution for ruck and forward. (Not sure there is a fit for him unless Melican is outplayed and we need a 3rd tall defender. Off the bench, but needs to be fit and hungry!)

Agree our forward line was too short for the delivery, but I'm not convinced it was adding McDonald that changed things around so much as a change in delivery. The point at which we started to get back into the game was towards the end of the second quarter when Dawson burst through the middle and put the ball straight onto Parker's chest. It was almost like the rest of the team went "oh, maybe we should try kicking to a player..."

I think Dawson is wasted in defence. I understand that they think his long kicking is an advantage, but he never looks at ease there. But move him forward and his ability to deliver the ball to the advantage of a forward starts to make a big difference. Buddy can do the same - if he ever gets back out onto the paddock - and I'm looking forward to McInerney forcing his way back into the side for the same reason. On limited viewing Errol and Braedon seem like they understand that's kinda the point.

Mills will need to improve for me to be sold on his new position. Young mids may force him to return to the back line.

I've been a long-time member of the "Mills is wasted in defence" brigade, but I confess I found it hard watching that game to squash the question in my mind - as our defence was in disarray and our more seasoned centre bounce brigade stationary and flat-flooted - of whether he might not be better where he's been. Of course, it's too early to determine, but the zip of Florent, Rowbottom and Warner was more exiting to watch than Mills, Kennedy and Parker standing and watching the Giants clear the ball to the outside with ease.

[troyjones2525]

What about Kaiden Brand? He looked pretty solid in defence in his 2 games last year before he got injured. I would like to see him in there in Melican fails again.

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[Legs Akimbo]

Agree our forward line was too short for the delivery, but I'm not convinced it was adding McDonald that changed things around so much as a change in delivery. The point at which we started to get back into the game was towards the end of the second quarter when Dawson burst through the middle and put the ball straight onto Parker's chest. It was almost like the rest of the team went "oh, maybe we should try kicking to a player..."

I think Dawson is wasted in defence. I understand that they think his long kicking is an advantage, but he never looks at ease there. But move him forward and his ability to deliver the ball to the advantage of a forward starts to make a big difference. Buddy can do the same - if he ever gets back out onto the paddock - and I'm looking forward to McInerney forcing his way back into the side for the same reason. On limited viewing Errol and Braedon seem like they understand that's kinda the point.





I've been a long-time member of the "Mills is wasted in defence" brigade, but I confess I found it hard watching that game to squash the question in my mind - as our defence was in disarray and our more seasoned centre bounce brigade stationary and flat-flooted - of whether he might not be better where he's been. Of course, it's too early to determine, but the zip of Florent, Rowbottom and Warner was more exiting to watch than Mills, Kennedy and Parker standing and watching the Giants clear the ball to the outside with ease.

I don't think he's wasted in defence. He's an elite defender. I suspect he'll find his way back there soon. We have other options in the middle.

[graemed]

I think Rod is mostly right in these comments.

Generally speaking, we are being a bit harsh on some players. Melican can be vulnerable covering players on the lead. He takes some time to adjust to reading the play. He has some things that need improvement, but chances are that he'll find his rhythm once the season gets underway in earnest. Most of the problems in our backline stemmed from missed coverage in the zone defence, something to be expected with a young inexperienced team.

Reid plays a solid game as a 2nd tall defender. We shouldn't expect him to be a Buddy Franklin replacement. Our whole forward line is a work in progress and going through a transition. It will take a couple of years and we need Franklin playing to a high standard to help smooth out the transition.

I get a sense that Longmire has a good feel for where we are as a team and has taken a good approach to the season. Leadership, starting from the head coach, will be more important than individual performances. We are going to have a lot of players developing their games on the go. The management of their development and expectations will be critical.

I'm not concerned about selection issues, knowing that we are a work in progress and not every part of the game plan will gel from the get go. There's going to be lapses in efficiency and drop offs in form along the way.

I think we're on the right track. I'm approaching the season with patience and optimism.

While it’s certainly true that Melican did not have a great game, it’s worth remembering that the rules have been engineered to assist teams going forward and that defenders now have an almost impossible role if the midfield cannot control clearances.

Patience is the key here.

I’ve always thought that Melican reminds of Reg and like Grundy needed Ted to truly believe in himself mature into a great defender with McCartin next to him and Rampe et al, nearby I think that he too can become both more reliable and a real asset. He has genuine pace, is a good kick and mark, is blessed with true courage and loves the club after a horrible run with injuries.
He has his faults like Reg he gives away silly free kicks under pressure and can be too player conscious instead of focusing on his strengths.

[Captain]

Of course, it's too early to determine, but the zip of Florent, Rowbottom and Warner was more exiting to watch than Mills, Kennedy and Parker standing and watching the Giants clear the ball to the outside with ease.

It's hard to admit, but I agree with this. Definite changing of the guard needed.

[i'm-uninformed2]

I've been a long-time member of the "Mills is wasted in defence" brigade, but I confess I found it hard watching that game to squash the question in my mind - as our defence was in disarray and our more seasoned centre bounce brigade stationary and flat-flooted - of whether he might not be better where he's been. Of course, it's too early to determine, but the zip of Florent, Rowbottom and Warner was more exiting to watch than Mills, Kennedy and Parker standing and watching the Giants clear the ball to the outside with ease.

To be fair to Mills, this is a coaching mistake. Our centre bounce mix should never include more than two of Kennedy, Mills and Parker at once. That's too static and slow a grouping. They have other choices in Rowbottom, Florent, even Blakey at times that give us the capacity to both win the ball, but burst away with it.

[AnsweredPrayers]

Sitting on the flank, I've spent a lot of time watching Melican. He usually protects the inside 50 by letting his opponent get in front of him and take an uncontested mark outside 50. I get this is effective, in the sense the guy probably can't score and it gives defenders time to set up behind the ball, but it leads to a deep inside 50 and the occasional long range goal.

IMHO he needs to follow the guy out more often and make it a contested possession. On balance, I feel he's just too defensive. With the new standing the mark rule, I'm not sure his current strategy will hold up. The increased speed of play won't allow the defenders behind him time to set up, and the opponent will find targets more easily because you can't protect the corridor.

[bloodspirit]

Sitting on the flank, I've spent a lot of time watching Melican. He usually protects the inside 50 by letting his opponent get in front of him and take an uncontested mark outside 50. I get this is effective, in the sense the guy probably can't score and it gives defenders time to set up behind the ball, but it leads to a deep inside 50 and the occasional long range goal.

IMHO he needs to follow the guy out more often and make it a contested possession. On balance, I feel he's just too defensive. With the new standing the mark rule, I'm not sure his current strategy will hold up. The increased speed of play won't allow the defenders behind him time to set up, and the opponent will find targets more easily because you can't protect the corridor.

That's a neat observation. Surely, assuming you're right, that's down to the coaching - not Melican?