Changes to R22 Against North Melbourne

[Mel_C]

Was there a VFL game or a scratch match on the weekend? I guess this will determine whether Warner comes in.

I haven't heard anything about how bad the Mills injury is. If there is any doubt he won't be risked. I know from experience how long it takes to recover from even a small Achilles tear.

[Aprilbr]

We win a number of games in a row, then lose one game. Apparently that means its time for wholesale changes based on the comments by some above. I don't see that happening. A couple of changes is all that is likely to happen, especially given that those missing out currently have limited practice games due to Covid/returning from injury.

[Markwebbos]

I thought Mills injury is a tendon injury that flared up due to too much rest / lack of load stuck in a hotel room. So he actually needs to do more not less to recover,

Otherwise we surely need to find the players that are finals capable.

Which has to mean Stephens goes.

I’d love to have another look at the Chad, Logan, Amartey and Melican. Not sure the MC will though.

[MattW]

Out - experimentation. Time for this is done. We need stability now on.
In - Playing players in their best positions. Dawson wing, Gulden half forward, JMac wing, Blakey HB, Hewett midfield.

Replace - Stephens with Warner. Wicks with Campbell.

On notice - Rowbottom - out if Mills fit.

Question - Is Sam Reid providing or will he provide better structure in the finals or Amartey?

Brilliant.

[mcs]

Keep it simple.

Assuming Warner had another run on the weekend and they are comfortable he is fit
Warner, Mills in.

Stephens, Rowbottom out.

[Bangalore Swans]

We win a number of games in a row, then lose one game. Apparently that means its time for wholesale changes based on the comments by some above. I don't see that happening. A couple of changes is all that is likely to happen, especially given that those missing out currently have limited practice games due to Covid/returning from injury.

Changes need to happen.

Rowbottom, Stephens and Wicks are not deserving of a place in next weeks team.

Not sure on Mills fitness, but I think Chad and Campbell can definitely give more than the above three.

[The Runner]

I said it's time to bring Melican for Fox a fortnight ago to rebalance the backline and got told off. It's the right move and needed with footy left before finals.

Mills if right for Rowbottom. Unfortunate for him, he's had two games that aren't fair to judge him by, but it's like you like.

Warner should be good now, and in for Stephens.

Anyone else would just be for a rest.

[Captain]

Mills and Warner for Stephens and Rowbottom would be my changes.

Buddy might need a rest. Would be keen to see McLean come in for him.

[barracuda]

Changes need to happen.

Rowbottom, Stephens and Wicks are not deserving of a place in next weeks team.

Not sure on Mills fitness, but I think Chad and Campbell can definitely give more than the above three.

I think we all know you don’t rate these players.

[Bangalore Swans]

I think we all know you don’t rate these players.

Not correct:

I was very Bullish on Stevens. I talked him up in a big way. I feel like a fool after last week performance. I think a lot of people on here were puzzled that in the last quarter he let that Saints defender run straight through him without having to change direction. He just needed to put his body in the way and show intent. He did neither.

I think Rowbottom is out of form at the current time. I think he has good strength, is brave, gives a good physical contest (contrast to Stephens) and when confidence marks it well and kicks through the ball well.

We need to get him fit and confident. Think this will happen in early 2022.

Wicks for mine has not delivered much the last couple of weeks. Always seems to get picked due to his specialised position and lack of positional competition for his place. Papley who plays a similar position wins around 4 times the number of one on one compared to Wicks. I’ve got to be careful in criticising Wicks as he is an absolute favourite on Red and White. If I’m not careful a Wicks page will be set up like the Rowbottom page and I’ll relentlessly attacked by his army of supporters.

I look forward to Barracuda making a strong case for the retention of Rowbottom, Stephens and Wicks.

[Matty10]

Buddy might need a rest. Would be keen to see McLean come in for him.

As a point of development or to give time to a viable option in case Franklin gets injured in September?

McLean showed some promise with his marking early, but I am not yet convinced that he can stand up when needed. He reminds me a little of Ben Brown in the way he attacks the ball. He jumps or stands with his arms straight up. This works well when there is no body contact but is much less effective in a contest. It was particularly noticeable in the first Freo game (from memory) where he was seemingly unable to break even in his marking contests and bring the ball to ground (making it an all or nothing scenario in a game where he was getting beaten in the air).

Can body work like this be taught? Perhaps, and I imagine that is what he would need to demonstrate at training to give the coaches confidence that he can be a worthwhile option.

I don’t get to see them train so I can’t make that judgement, but if Franklin were to go down, I would probably bring in Amartey, who has more athleticism and physicality in his attack on the aerial contest, to wax with Reid as the deeper option.

[Faunac8]

Not correct:

I was very Bullish on Stevens. I talked him up in a big way. I feel like a fool after last week performance. I think a lot of people on here were puzzled that in the last quarter he let that Saints defender run straight through him without having to change direction. He just needed to put his body in the way and show intent. He did neither.

I think Rowbottom is out of form at the current time. I think he has good strength, is brave, gives a good physical contest (contrast to Stephens) and when confidence marks it well and kicks through the ball well.

We need to get him fit and confident. Think this will happen in early 2022.

Wicks for mine has not delivered much the last couple of weeks. Always seems to get picked due to his specialised position and lack of positional competition for his place. Papley who plays a similar position wins around 4 times the number of one on one compared to Wicks. I’ve got to be careful in criticising Wicks as he is an absolute favourite on Red and White. If I’m not careful a Wicks page will be set up like the Rowbottom page and I’ll relentlessly attacked by his army of supporters.

I look forward to Barracuda making a strong case for the retention of Rowbottom, Stephens and Wicks.

Poor you being victimised like that ???? you make valid points about these changes and I tend to agree with your comments it’s a shame you choose to deviate from reasonable opinion to declarations so often on other occasions . Oh that and your sycophantic posts anointing your alter ego as the font of all knowledge.

[barracuda]

Not correct:

I was very Bullish on Stevens. I talked him up in a big way. I feel like a fool after last week performance. I think a lot of people on here were puzzled that in the last quarter he let that Saints defender run straight through him without having to change direction. He just needed to put his body in the way and show intent. He did neither.

I think Rowbottom is out of form at the current time. I think he has good strength, is brave, gives a good physical contest (contrast to Stephens) and when confidence marks it well and kicks through the ball well.

We need to get him fit and confident. Think this will happen in early 2022.

Wicks for mine has not delivered much the last couple of weeks. Always seems to get picked due to his specialised position and lack of positional competition for his place. Papley who plays a similar position wins around 4 times the number of one on one compared to Wicks. I’ve got to be careful in criticising Wicks as he is an absolute favourite on Red and White. If I’m not careful a Wicks page will be set up like the Rowbottom page and I’ll relentlessly attacked by his army of supporters.

I look forward to Barracuda making a strong case for the retention of Rowbottom, Stephens and Wicks.

Actually I think Wicks should be dropped. He is clearly tired having played 19 games out of a possible 20. Given it is his first year of the full workload he has made a great contribution but is not playing as well as he was earlier in the year. I guess I am just tired of hearing you say the same things over and over. It would not be the end of the world if Campbell took over his spot and he focussed on getting ready for next year.

[Captain]

As a point of development or to give time to a viable option in case Franklin gets injured in September?

McLean showed some promise with his marking early, but I am not yet convinced that he can stand up when needed. He reminds me a little of Ben Brown in the way he attacks the ball. He jumps or stands with his arms straight up. This works well when there is no body contact but is much less effective in a contest. It was particularly noticeable in the first Freo game (from memory) where he was seemingly unable to break even in his marking contests and bring the ball to ground (making it an all or nothing scenario in a game where he was getting beaten in the air).

Can body work like this be taught? Perhaps, and I imagine that is what he would need to demonstrate at training to give the coaches confidence that he can be a worthwhile option.

I don’t get to see them train so I can’t make that judgement, but if Franklin were to go down, I would probably bring in Amartey, who has more athleticism and physicality in his attack on the aerial contest, to wax with Reid as the deeper option.

It’s definitely a coin toss between McLean and Amartey. Nice to have them both.

I went with McLean given he is a different type to Reid, more of that power forward, and I was really impressed with his games early in the season when replacing Buddy. His last few games were poor and I’m hoping some confidence in the reserves might mean he is ready to go now.

Either way, it’s a nice position to be in that if Buddy is rested (or goes down) we have a couple of tall, marking options.

[Ludwig]

I said it's time to bring Melican for Fox a fortnight ago to rebalance the backline and got told off. It's the right move and needed with footy left before finals.

I've been on this for a while as well. Our defence has been as poor as I've seen it for some time. We need to make adjustments.

I would love to keep Stephens in for another game, even though he performed poorly last week. I don't think he was given a fair shot of succeeding.

Thought Rowbottom was good in the first half, but faded badly after half time. Whatever his problem is, he doesn't seem capable of pushing through a full game atm.

I would also like to see Campbell and Wanner come into the side.

If we look at teams that changed a lot the past week, changing personnel didn't seem to hinder their winning chances, as most did quite well, especially the Giants and Saints. I'm okay with resting players and continuing to experiment. We don't have the right formula just yet.