Team vs Geelong

[Kong]

To be fair, Kelvin is one of the few posters who have any balance on the Myers issue.
He doesn't overtly criticise him. He merely points out to those posters who think he is the next coming of Jesus Christ that they might have to tone down their thinking.

Agree to firmly disagree.

He has been ordinary this year and if anyone goes and posts what a good season he has then they are entitled to have it thrown back in their faces.

Nobody has said he's had a good season.

I (and Kelvin) really hope he comes good but don't try and tell us that he is going to be a superstar or he played a good game when so far he has shown absoloutly nothing to indicate it.

Again, nobody has. I said he's been OK defensively. Nothing more. Nobody's tried claiming anything too much beyond that, either. Anyway, this issue's been done to death, and I've been a part of this thread being derailed, so let's get it back on track.

How about those Cats, ey?

 

[Boucks09]

I'm sorry but I'm very surprised that nobody else (bar 1) has any concerns over the fact that we are losing two running defenders this week and bringing in 2 in and under midfielders/forwards who are not 100% match fit.

I agree that McVeigh and Skipworth are in our best 22 at the moment and should be in the side...but at the expense of 2 running defenders?

The only way we are going to beat Geelong is to play to our strengths: run, carry, take risks and run some more. We lose arguably the best at it from defense in Dempsey and Lovett Murray and bring in two players who probably havn't broken a line all season and will be playing midfield/forward.

That is not a criticism on McVeigh or Skipworth as that is not their role, but surely we would want to keep our side balanced and atleast bring in either:

- a running defender
- a stopping defender to free up a Houli type player

The fact is we are not going to be able to stop Geelong getting 50+ Inside 50's. But I argue we should place as much importance on running the ball back out of defense and setting up a lot of goals on the rebound in addition to improving our clearance work. With Dempsey and Lovett Murray out and nobody in to fill their roles we are losing plenty of drive out of defense.

I've just got a bad feeling that we are too worried about Geelong's strong bodies in the clearances and are deviating away from our gameplan. If McVeigh is fit to play who should have replaced Lonergan. The suggestion that he will play back is ridiculous.

With these two inclusions we now have the following groups of midfielders:

In and unders: Watson, Lonergan, Hocking, McVeigh, Skipworth
Runners: Lovett, Winderlich, Stanton, Dyson

Given that Houli and Slattery will be given lock down roles on the likes of SJ, they will be forced to play accountable football first, attacking rebounding football 2nd.

I've just got a fear that we are going to run out of legs by including two players who won't be able to play a huge amount of game time, at the expense of two fit runners.

I'm hoping that either Myers or Nash comes in for Skipworth:

Myers - frees up Houli to play the Dempsey role
Nash - to play the Dempsey role

Guess we will have to wait and see, unless Knighta has another plan up his sleeve? (e.g. Dyson/Stanton to play HBF).

 

[Kong]

Boucks, what do you think of Winderlich, Stanton (and perhaps Dyson as well) rotating between the middle and half-back line? Both have the run & dash ability that Dempsey has, and are both penetrating kicks. Winderlich is brilliant at 'breaking the lines', so I reckon he'd be a great replacement for Dempsey. This could also work with McVeigh and Skipworth filling the then-void left in the midfield and forward line.

 

[Skeeta Olly]

I'm sorry but I'm very surprised that nobody else (bar 1) has any concerns over the fact that we are losing two running defenders this week and bringing in 2 in and under midfielders/forwards who are not 100% match fit.

I would. I would also say that Myers would have to come in. But...well....do we really want to go there again..

 

[Boucks09]

Boucks, what do you think of Winderlich, Stanton (and perhaps Dyson as well) rotating between the middle and half-back line? Both have the run & dash ability that Dempsey has, and are both penetrating kicks. Winderlich is brilliant at 'breaking the lines', so I reckon he'd be a great replacement for Dempsey. This could also work with McVeigh and Skipworth filling the then-void left in the midfield and forward line.

Yeah Whomb I agree they are all viable options to do that role of Dempsey from the back half. But are we not then 'robbing peter to pay paul' so to speak? Who then would play the Lovett Murray role down back (remembering that is where he has played the last 2 weeks)?

Those three you mentioned in particular have been great in the midfield for us and also have the ability to kick goals (something that is crucial as our forwards are going to have a tough night). I agree Skipworth will probably play most of the game up forward with he and McVeigh rotating through the midfield.

I'm just one for structure and consistency within the side. For that reason I see bringing in 'like-for-like' players rather than creating a situation in which other players are then forced to play out of position.

For mine I would have preferred a scenario such as:

Ins: McVeigh, Skipworth, Daniher
Outs: Dempey, Lovett-Murray, Lonergan

At least then you are bringing in a running defender type (Darcy can do that), and replacing a midfielder and swigman with two high quality mids/forwards.

 

[Skeeta Olly]

Ins: McVeigh, Skipworth, Daniher
Outs: Dempey, Lovett-Murray, Lonergan

At least then you are bringing in a running defender type (Darcy can do that), and replacing a midfielder and swigman with two high quality mids/forwards.

With your thoughts on Darcy.

Yes, he can break the lines. He showed against Kangaroos that he could do that, it's just his disposal was absolutely shocking. It might have been because he had no one to kick it to, or he panicked.

I would say I'd rather Myers to do a lock on one of Geelong's minor forwards, like a Byrnes. Freeing up Houli.

 

[lamaros]

Boucks, what do you think of Winderlich, Stanton (and perhaps Dyson as well) rotating between the middle and half-back line? Both have the run & dash ability that Dempsey has, and are both penetrating kicks. Winderlich is brilliant at 'breaking the lines', so I reckon he'd be a great replacement for Dempsey. This could also work with McVeigh and Skipworth filling the then-void left in the midfield and forward line.

Dyson is a near cert, given he's played down there a bit already this year, has the pace, and has a good kick. Winders is better closer to goal, so I don't expect he'll be there as much, but might have a turn also.

I see it more as things being the same, with McVeigh playing more forward, moving Zaha on the ball a bit more when needed, and with Skipworth playing more back.

Stanton has had a few poor weeks so maybe they'll try something new with him this go around, he's not as useful to the side when we're playing well, as the spaces in the midfield open up and we often run the ball through without him, maybe he'll get a bit more of a defensive role this time around.

 

[Kong]

I'm just one for structure and consistency within the side. For that reason I see bringing in 'like-for-like' players rather than creating a situation in which other players are then forced to play out of position.

For mine I would have preferred a scenario such as:

Ins: McVeigh, Skipworth, Daniher
Outs: Dempey, Lovett-Murray, Lonergan

At least then you are bringing in a running defender type (Darcy can do that), and replacing a midfielder and swigman with two high quality mids/forwards.

Yeah all good points. I was also of the opinion we should've brought in Daniher to fill Lovett-Murray's role. I would've been tempted to bring in Myers to take over Houli's lock-down role, freeing up Houli to play Dempsey's. However this might be, as you pointed out, messing around with players' roles a bit too much.
Perhaps they resisted bringing in Daniher for fear of Geelong's big bodies.

 

[SirJimi05]

Yeah all good points. I was also of the opinion we should've brought in Daniher to fill Lovett-Murray's role. I would've been tempted to bring in Myers to take over Houli's lock-down role, freeing up Houli to play Dempsey's. However this might be, as you pointed out, messing around with players' roles a bit too much.
Perhaps they resisted bringing in Daniher for fear of Geelong's big bodies.

This is exactly what i said to my mate when Dempsey got injured.

 

[nighthawk]

McVeigh isn't underdone at all. IIRC he was asked whether he wanted to play AFL or VFL last week, and he opted for the latter just so there was no risk he was underdone. Read the following thread to see just how good McVeigh is feeling.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/77817/default.aspx

So it's really only one underdone player, but I think Skipworth will be fine.

Structurally, I agree with the idea we can put some more running type players from the midfield into the half-backline, and some more strength into the mids will come in handy against Geelong.

 

[rioli brownlow]

McVeigh isn't underdone at all. IIRC he was asked whether he wanted to play AFL or VFL last week, and he opted for the latter just so there was no risk he was underdone. Read the following thread to see just how good McVeigh is feeling.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/77817/default.aspx

So it's really only one underdone player, but I think Skipworth will be fine.

Structurally, I agree with the idea we can put some more running type players from the midfield into the half-backline, and some more strength into the mids will come in handy against Geelong.

i would go with the final 4 spots. mcveigh,skipworth,bellchambers and lucas

 

[AndyLesPaul]

Lucas instead of Jetta?

 

[Phat Toni]

I'm no Myers hater, but that video was certainly not impressive.

Was exactly what I was thinking. Didn't hit too many targets.

 

[Phat Toni]

Im pretty sure McVeigh is capable of playing defence. In fact Im certain of it.

Would have thought so considering about his first 120 games were played there... I would like to see him match up on SJ, dempsey would be the best option alas that's not going to happen and I hear people calling for Houli, Slatts, Myers and even Nash to match up on him... God help us if any of those match-up's happen. McVeigh is the only one that can compete with SJ when the ball is either in the air or on the ground.

 

[bomberstomake8]

I'm sorry but I'm very surprised that nobody else (bar 1) has any concerns over the fact that we are losing two running defenders this week and bringing in 2 in and under midfielders/forwards who are not 100% match fit.

I agree that McVeigh and Skipworth are in our best 22 at the moment and should be in the side...but at the expense of 2 running defenders?

The only way we are going to beat Geelong is to play to our strengths: run, carry, take risks and run some more. We lose arguably the best at it from defense in Dempsey and Lovett Murray and bring in two players who probably havn't broken a line all season and will be playing midfield/forward.

That is not a criticism on McVeigh or Skipworth as that is not their role, but surely we would want to keep our side balanced and atleast bring in either:

- a running defender
- a stopping defender to free up a Houli type player

The fact is we are not going to be able to stop Geelong getting 50+ Inside 50's. But I argue we should place as much importance on running the ball back out of defense and setting up a lot of goals on the rebound in addition to improving our clearance work. With Dempsey and Lovett Murray out and nobody in to fill their roles we are losing plenty of drive out of defense.

I've just got a bad feeling that we are too worried about Geelong's strong bodies in the clearances and are deviating away from our gameplan. If McVeigh is fit to play who should have replaced Lonergan. The suggestion that he will play back is ridiculous.

With these two inclusions we now have the following groups of midfielders:

In and unders: Watson, Lonergan, Hocking, McVeigh, Skipworth
Runners: Lovett, Winderlich, Stanton, Dyson

Given that Houli and Slattery will be given lock down roles on the likes of SJ, they will be forced to play accountable football first, attacking rebounding football 2nd.

I've just got a fear that we are going to run out of legs by including two players who won't be able to play a huge amount of game time, at the expense of two fit runners.

I'm hoping that either Myers or Nash comes in for Skipworth:

Myers - frees up Houli to play the Dempsey role
Nash - to play the Dempsey role

Guess we will have to wait and see, unless Knighta has another plan up his sleeve? (e.g. Dyson/Stanton to play HBF).

i agree on the two running defenders issue but we dont really have anyone that can fill the void. myers is a possibility but his job offensively has been poor this year. i still would have included him above skipworth

going back to round 2 last year we didnt play too bad but we were pushed around by the superior strength of the geelong players, im guessing the theory with bringing mcveigh and skipworth in is that they are two strong bodied players who can hold there own in the middle

 

[Skeeta Olly]

NO Defenders.

Final Team



B: H.Slattery Pears Houli
HB: Stanton McPhee Hooker
C: Dyson Hocking Zaharakis
HF: Monfries Neagle Lovett
F: Davey Lloyd Lonergan
R: Ryder Watson Winderlich
INT: Bellchambers Skipworth Jetta McVeigh
EMG: Lucas Myers Nash

 

[Tonycam*]

So looking forward to this one , You guys are a class side. going to be one of the games of the year in my opinion. Good luck guys , lets hope it live upto what we expect

 

[PatrickBateman]

So looking forward to this one , You guys are a class side. going to be one of the games of the year in my opinion. Good luck guys , lets hope it live upto what we expect

While I agree to an extent, "one of the games of the year" is a bit far fetched. I think Essendon need to play a little more defensive than usual against the Cats... leave the corridor open at your peril!! Should be a great spectacle. Bombers play very good brand.

 

[Boucks09]

Would have thought so considering about his first 120 games were played there... I would like to see him match up on SJ, dempsey would be the best option alas that's not going to happen and I hear people calling for Houli, Slatts, Myers and even Nash to match up on him... God help us if any of those match-up's happen. McVeigh is the only one that can compete with SJ when the ball is either in the air or on the ground.

He played there because he wasn't good enough to cement a spot in our midfield. We are all about building a side as we have seen with playing Hooker, Daniher and Pears on the best forwards and Bachar and Myers playing defensive roles.

Putting McVeigh on SJ would achieve nothing at all both for the team's long term development and for helping us win this game.

 

[Darealrath]

McVeigh had to come in. Can't have a player of his calibre playing twos.

People forget how good a player he is. Is an automatic upgrade on NLM (and he's had a good season) whilst Skippy is a slight downgrade on Dempsey.

Overall, positives outweigh negatives IMO.

I don't forget how good he is, I just got the impression from Knights comments after the VFL game that McVeigh could have done with another run before coming back.

 

[Skeeta Olly]

McVeigh rates himself at 100%.

I believe, if we didn't suffer the two loses, we could have had no changes.

 

[Donakebab]

He played there because he wasn't good enough to cement a spot in our midfield. We are all about building a side as we have seen with playing Hooker, Daniher and Pears on the best forwards and Bachar and Myers playing defensive roles.

Putting McVeigh on SJ would achieve nothing at all both for the team's long term development and for helping us win this game.

Are you crazy? One slight adjustment for one game. If we beat the best team over the last 3 years it would do wonders for the teams confidence which would in turn help with the development of the team. Players play better when they are confident. Duh.

 

[FrankGrimes]

that video of myers didnt really give me a lot of confidence.. seems to miss a lot of targets uner little or no pressure...

 

[Boucks09]

Are you crazy? One slight adjustment for one game. If we beat the best team over the last 3 years it would do wonders for the teams confidence which would in turn help with the development of the team. Players play better when they are confident. Duh.

So you seriously think that McVeigh will play defense against Geelong? Come on.

Ofcourse we are going to try and win the game but at what expense? Dempsey could've played if it was a final. We could've taken a risk with Lucas..hell Reimers and Laycock could've also played.

The fact is that this is no different to last week against Richmond in terms of Premiership points. Yes it would be great to beat the best team of the last 5 years but at what expense? I feel it would be better for our long term development to play the same way we have all year. That will provide us with a better guide as to where our side is at. That means no wholesale changes (i.e McVeigh playing back).

McVeigh will not play back this week. Absolutely no chance in hell.

 

[lemon chicken]

This is why we drafted Myers.

[youtube]mZymacYaAhE[/youtube]

Seems the fever + some more height has slowed him down as tad.

Two things. He picks the ball up off the ground and runs with pace, no longer existant. And seems to have a different kicking action. If he has OP, get it fixed coz at the moment he isnt showing us why we drated him.