Changes for Round 19 v Freo

[TheBloods]

I said to my wife after the 2018 Hawks game that Ben Ronke or Buddy Ronke as he became known would never play a game like that again. He also had a game that year against North in 2018 where he kicked 5. Maybe he is 2 hit wonder like Billy Ray Cyrus. In between those two iconic games there have been many games where he’s been quieter than Westfield Bondi during a lockdown.

You can see and feel the talent in Stephens. You can see the speed, the lovely left foot arc and the great kick that he can be there. Maybe like Blakey and Rowbottom they need to keep backing him in. Build Stephens’s confidence and belief and very quickly you’ll have a player.

I would be backing him over Ronke based on the fact that he is a much better technical footballer and has huge upside. I would be certainly backing Stephens over James Bell.

I would be interested in the opinion of TheBloods in the Stephens v Bell v Ronke debate as he has very sound opinions on our young players.

I dont see it as stephens v bell vs ronke

Bell and ronke are both playing so we obviously want huge pressure in our fwd half . that has nothing to do with Stephens who is a wing

i am a believer , he has great natural talent as you say and if best course of action is to harness it in the VFL then i trust the coaches will make the right decision . No idea why we bothered with Ronke though as we know what he can offer and its not great . One great game 3 years ago has kept him ont he list , he wouldve been delisted by now if not for that night at the G

Im less POd about Stephens omission than i am about rowbottom's inclusion . He is seriously average but he gets countless chances that others dont and made worse by the fact he played 2 games last week . Dumb decision. Team is travelling great atm but watch it cost us carrying these liabilities

[TheBloods]

Stehpens suffers from the exact same thing as Rowbottom , too passive and not willing to take the game by the horns . They are young but they play like they are young , rather than using JMAC as a comparison to save myself being accused of being too positive , i will use BLAKEY who i have criticised in the past as an example . His confidence is sky high and he wants to make the team better . He does not think of himself as a 3rd year player trying to learn some role , he thinks of himself as a BLOOD who will take charge of a situation and make things happen on the footy field for himself and for the team. He plays fearlessly as do many other young swans. Stephens and Rowbottom do not do this and that is why they wont be there come finals

[i'm-uninformed2]

Did you ultimately piece it together as coherence returned?

No. The best I ever established was after two seperate pubs, I said I was off to try to meet a woman I knew in Melbourne but given she said she never heard from me that night, I clearly decided cuddling a hedge was sufficient.

[Nico]

Well, the 'one hit wonder' comment on Ronke and the fact that you are not privy to what goes on behind the scenes re: his rehab, just shows that this post is flawed. Stephens and Ronke have obviously been given a path to follow by the club and it seems only one is succeeding with that task at the moment and has duly been rewarded. I like Stephens but if he's having the thoughts you've attributed to him.....I can't see why the Swans would commit to him. The ball is in his court....he has to rise to the challenge he's been set.

They play 2 completely different roles, so it's difficult to assess why one is in and one is out as a comparison. Plus they were both late call ups last week anyway so maybe they think it is time to give Ronke a run.

[AB Swannie]

I’m a fan of Ronke’s effort and defensive pressure. In our old system, he would be ok. I’m worried that in our new system and style of play, his foot skills will be sorely exposed. I hope he proves me wrong but he is potentially at Ryan Clarke levels for field kicking.

[Faunac8]

Dumb decision. Team is travelling great atm but watch it cost us carrying these liabilities

Yes if only the match committee deigned to obtain your opinion before selecting the teams each week how much better would we be ?
Of course that would leave you with no Swans player to denigrate so you may have to find new whipping boys.

[Captain]

Feels like we have gone backwards picking Ronke. I would rather play an extra tall in Amartey or McDonald.

Stephens is unlucky and I would prefer him to Rowbottom.

Can’t wait to have Harry and Mills back though.

[Ludwig]

I’m a fan of Ronke’s effort and defensive pressure. In our old system, he would be ok. I’m worried that in our new system and style of play, his foot skills will be sorely exposed. I hope he proves me wrong but he is potentially at Ryan Clarke levels for field kicking.

It's funny that I see Ronke so differently. I think his foot skills are great and his game vision is also good. He's very quick, so should fit nicely into our current system. I felt that although he tried to apply pressure, he wasn't very effective in doing so. He was too easy to run around and didn't stick many tackles.

Ronke is an alternative to Wicks, but Wicks has such a strong defensive game that he doesn't have to do much offensively to prove his worth in the side.

Ronke will have to put in a very good performance to take that spot away from Wicks, but it's nice to have 2 able competitors for the job. Both Ronke and Wicks have midfield potential as well, but we don't really need that in the team. Furthermore, as defensive forwards, they should be able to make the transition to small defender if the quality of their game is up to it.

Our forward pressure game is so important to the team's success. With only McCartin as a true tall defender, our undersized defence needs our forward pressure to slow down the opposition rebound to allow extra numbers to get back and help cover mismatches.

[AB Swannie]

It's funny that I see Ronke so differently. I think his foot skills are great and his game vision is also good. He's very quick, so should fit nicely into our current system. I felt that although he tried to apply pressure, he wasn't very effective in doing so. He was too easy to run around and didn't stick many tackles.

Ronke is an alternative to Wicks, but Wicks has such a strong defensive game that he doesn't have to do much offensively to prove his worth in the side.

Ronke will have to put in a very good performance to take that spot away from Wicks, but it's nice to have 2 able competitors for the job. Both Ronke and Wicks have midfield potential as well, but we don't really need that in the team. Furthermore, as defensive forwards, they should be able to make the transition to small defender if the quality of their game is up to it.

Our forward pressure game is so important to the team's success. With only McCartin as a true tall defender, our undersized defence needs our forward pressure to slow down the opposition rebound to allow extra numbers to get back and help cover mismatches.

You have probably watched a lot more reserve football than me and so may see this side of his game differently. However, at AFL level, his career disposal efficiency (56.9%) and kicking efficiency (52.5%) is well below average. As a comparison, the much-maligned Ryan Clarke has higher career averages of 70.5% and 61.9% respectively.

Again, I hope you're right and he has a blinder but if he performs by foot the same way as he has averaged for his previous 34 games, he will turn the ball over as many times as he hits a target.

[Blood Fever]

It's funny that I see Ronke so differently. I think his foot skills are great and his game vision is also good. He's very quick, so should fit nicely into our current system. I felt that although he tried to apply pressure, he wasn't very effective in doing so. He was too easy to run around and didn't stick many tackles.

Ronke is an alternative to Wicks, but Wicks has such a strong defensive game that he doesn't have to do much offensively to prove his worth in the side.

Ronke will have to put in a very good performance to take that spot away from Wicks, but it's nice to have 2 able competitors for the job. Both Ronke and Wicks have midfield potential as well, but we don't really need that in the team. Furthermore, as defensive forwards, they should be able to make the transition to small defender if the quality of their game is up to it.

Our forward pressure game is so important to the team's success. With only McCartin as a true tall defender, our undersized defence needs our forward pressure to slow down the opposition rebound to allow extra numbers to get back and help cover mismatches.

Used to shudder when Ronke got the ball in the defensive part of the ground. Hope he has improved his foot skills. Like his speed, effort and pressure and he can kick a goal. Good luck to him today.

[AnsweredPrayers]

I seem to remember Ronke was just rounding into form when he got injured. I'm excited to see what he can bring in the forward line. When he's up and about he's an exciting player to watch.

Its that time of year to press for the finals and pick best available, not to get games into players who are long term prospects. If players like Stephens and McDonald want a game they need to earn it.

[joeykanga]

I seem to remember Ronke was just rounding into form when he got injured. I'm excited to see what he can bring in the forward line. When he's up and about he's an exciting player to watch.

Its that time of year to press for the finals and pick best available, not to get games into players who are long term prospects. If players like Stephens and McDonald want a game they need to earn it.

I seem to remember the same and I’m sure Im his vfl comeback ganes he’s played around the ball …
He seems to do whats expected of him and hence his leapfrog over a few others that might take more time to develop

[Ludwig]

You have probably watched a lot more reserve football than me and so may see this side of his game differently. However, at AFL level, his career disposal efficiency (56.9%) and kicking efficiency (52.5%) is well below average. As a comparison, the much-maligned Ryan Clarke has higher career averages of 70.5% and 61.9% respectively.

I didn't know his kicking stats were so poor. I always had the impression he was a good kick, especially for kicking goals on the run.

[MattW]

I didn't know his kicking stats were so poor. I always had the impression he was a good kick, especially for kicking goals on the run.

I agree he can kick well, but I think his issue has been poise. Panicking with the ball, kicking too early or handballing to players who are under pressure. That's what I'll be looking for from him today (and his tackling).

Meanwhile, ahem, Hayden McLean is our sub today.

[AB Swannie]

I didn't know his kicking stats were so poor. I always had the impression he was a good kick, especially for kicking goals on the run.

The funny thing is that one of the few stats where he is considered to be above league average is goal accuracy - 52.4%.