Just a reminder why Naughton should stay Forward

[anfo27]

I'm in the keep him forward camp. He does need to improve his kicking but don't people remember what his field kicking was like in defence? I never wanted him to get the ball because he invariably would make a howler. At least as a forward he can take a mark, go back & use a kicking routine that he can stick to & improve.

[GVGjr]

I'm in the keep him forward camp. He does need to improve his kicking but don't people remember what his field kicking was like in defence? I never wanted him to get the ball because he invariably would make a howler. At least as a forward he can take a mark, go back & use a kicking routine that he can stick to & improve.

My guess is that if he possessed a fluent kick he might have gone top 5 in his draft. He isn't a bad kick for goal but there is some work to do no doubt. He was thrown forward when Bevo finally realised the need to kicking winning scores
Play him a bit closer to the goal and his conversion rate should improve especially now that he knows he is being played forward

[comrade]

You'll all jump aboard the Naughton Defence train after Cordy & Keath get pummelled for weeks on end

[GVGjr]

You'll all jump aboard the Naughton Defence train after Cordy & Keath get pummelled for weeks on end

Then why didn't we go harder at getting a 1 v 1 defender during the trade period?
We could have targeted Howard, who would have suited us, with a bigger deal

We can also play Trengove but wait, that won't happen

[jeemak]

So we all agree we should play a player we don't actually have on the list (assuming Trengove's papers are stamped) as the key lockdown defender so Naughton can play forward.

Sounds great.

[GVGjr]

So we all agree we should play a player we don't actually have on the list (assuming Trengove's papers are stamped) as the key lockdown defender so Naughton can play forward.

Sounds great.

As a club do we even accept we have a challenge in that area? Lewis Young and Alex Keath will have to adapt their games much like Naughton had to when he moved forward.
We are one game into the season and have suddenly in this thread identified a problem that we actually discussed during the trade period that didn't seem to be a big issue at the time. A few of us cautioned that we were trading for players that weren't necessarily a perfect fit for us. That's not knocking the players but Keath for example wasn't necessarily a 1 v 1 defender and that's what we appeared to be lacking.

Is one game sufficient to determine that Young, Cordy and Keath aren't exactly what we need given Trengove seems to be in the back of the queue?

I'd be playing Trengove or at least giving him some chances

[bornadog]

As a club do we even accept we have a challenge in that area? Lewis Young and Alex Keath will have to adapt their games much like Naughton had to when he moved forward.
We are one game into the season and have suddenly in this thread identified a problem that we actually discussed during the trade period that didn't seem to be a big issue at the time. A few of us cautioned that we were trading for players that weren't necessarily a perfect fit for us. That's not knocking the players but Keath for example wasn't necessarily a 1 v 1 defender and that's what we appeared to be lacking.

Is one game sufficient to determine that Young, Cordy and Keath aren't exactly what we need given Trengove seems to be in the back of the queue?

I'd be playing Trengove or at least giving him some chances

We have to remember, in the second half of last year, we had the least goals scored against us. We can't just look at round one this year.

If the midfield is playing well, then defence doesn't come under pressure. I really believe we need to develop Young as our Key one on one backman, with Trengrove the backup for either ruck or Full back.

[jeemak]

The issue is we've been horribly exposed in the middle in our two most recent (and important) matches, and I'm not sure our midfield can be trusted to show up week in, week out. I'd play Trengove as well, but if he's out of favour then we need to figure out what our best option is and I don't think it's Young.

Picking up Keith was the right move, he improves our list and every team could do with an elite interceptor so I don't see how that enters the discussion.

[GVGjr]

The issue is we've been horribly exposed in the middle in our two most recent (and important) matches, and I'm not sure our midfield can be trusted to show up week in, week out. I'd play Trengove as well, but if he's out of favour then we need to figure out what our best option is and I don't think it's Young.

Picking up Keith was the right move, he improves our list and every team could do with an elite interceptor so I don't see how that enters the discussion.

Keath is a great addition but we questioned during the trade period if he would be asked to be that 1 v 1 defender we thought we might need given Cordy's form had declined

[anfo27]

The issue is we've been horribly exposed in the middle in our two most recent (and important) matches, and I'm not sure our midfield can be trusted to show up week in, week out. I'd play Trengove as well, but if he's out of favour then we need to figure out what our best option is and I don't think it's Young.

Picking up Keith was the right move, he improves our list and every team could do with an elite interceptor so I don't see how that enters the discussion.

Our midfield was destroyed both games. You could have Naughton, Lake & Rick Kennedy down there & we still lose those games comfortably. Better defenders give us a better chance but if midfielders have time & space to hit a target inside 50 then it doesn't matter what the defenders name is, he doesn't have a chance.

[Twodogs]

I think this sums it up for me.

Aside from Chris Grant, the player we all universally agree is or best modern day player (which means best player we have seen in our colours for most considering how long ago Whitten occurred), we have never seen a key forward at the club with this much potential as a key forward. Our pick 1 and pick 2 key forwards in Boyd and Schache have never looked close to the player we think Naughton could be (aside from maybe one GF performance). We cannot underestimate how rare an opportunity this is for us.

Yes Naughton would be great in defence, he has already shown that. But the role we need in defence is the lockdown defender on the power forwards. What a waste. If Naughton goes back he should be the one we are pushing to be the dominating pay your opponent no respect intercept marker. I guess the kind of hybrid role we recruited Keath for. What we need is someone who can play his role and lock down the main forward, what someone like Roughead does at the Pies, or Talia does at the Crows etc. Naughton can certainly play that role or a role helping whoever does that (Trengove maybe if Beveridge didn't lose his magnet), but what a waste when you see his ability up forward.

Look at the recent Premiership defences. Astbury was Richmonds big lockdown defender, Barass/Schofield did the job for West Coast, Astbury and Grimes again, Hamling and Roberts. None of these guys had to be amazing, they just had to perform in their role and be assisted by the aerial intercept defenders. Richmond had Vlastuin and Grimes, West Coast had McGovern, Richmond had Rance and we had Wood. If we plug our current lineup into that then Keath projects as the mobile intercept option, we just need to find someone who is good one on one and not a liability with ball in hand. Naughton is that, but he is so so so much more than that.

Besides, if this season goes ahead in October or whatever I am very comfortable with us taking some risks and trying this gameplan we seem to have created over summer. Give Naughton 17 games to have a real go at it up forward and see if he can take another step forward, give Keath and whoever else makes up our defence a chance to develop into their roles and see if they can make it work. If it fails we have an off season where we can grab some athletically decent and appropriately disciplined delistee to have a go at filling the role. Aside from Talia it isn't as if any of the above mentioned guys were high draft picks.

I don't think that you don't have to go back to Whitten. Kelvin Templeton was a better player than Chris Grant. Two Colemans, one Brownlow in a career that was done by the time he was 22.


Chris Grant was great. Bloody great, but KT was better.

[bornadog]

2019 Goals

[Jam Donuts]

I don't think that you don't have to go back to Whitten. Kelvin Templeton was a better player than Chris Grant. Two Colemans, one Brownlow in a career that was done by the time he was 22.


Chris Grant was great. Bloody great, but KT was better.

I have to agree with you there, KT without injury would have gone on to be one of the best forwards of all time, as it was he was the first KPF to win a brownlow, (I may be wrong).

[Twodogs]

I have to agree with you there, KT without injury would have gone on to be one of the best forwards of all time, as it was he was the first KPF to win a brownlow, (I may be wrong).

He was. Lockett, Quinlan and Dunstall have since repeated it. That's good company to be ahead of.

If it weren't for that bloody knee injury he would have been considered the greatest player of all time.

[Axe Man]

He was. Lockett, Quinlan and Dunstall have since repeated it. That's good company to be ahead of.

If it weren't for that bloody knee injury he would have been considered the greatest player of all time.

Pretty sure Piggy didn't win a Brownlow. Did come second a couple of times though.