Three things you've learned. Round 22, 2021 v Hawthorn at Tassie

[Twodogs]

Three things, go for it

[bulldogtragic]

1. I’m ashamed after that
2. Something seems seriously wrong a5 the club to explain this
3. Three more losses are coming
4. We need to trade JJ and his $600,000 salary
5. We need to recruit 2 rucks
6. We need a replacement for Bruce, such as Tom Lynch
7. I’d be open to trading Bailey Smith
8. What a waste of 19 games to get primed for top spot and now going straight sets
9. Hannan is a fumble merchant
10. Our mids don’t like defending
11. Bevo doesn’t seem to counter move the oppo coach
12. We pick and choose when to go
13. Under pressure, we tend to crack

[Vred]

1. Sack Bevo
2. Sack assistant coaches
3. recruit a *!*!*!*!ing ruckman.

[Testekill]

1. Something is rotten in the suburb of Footscray

2. Wood needs to fall on his sword and retire; he's cooked and he was never a defender that relied on intelligent positioning to win contests. Without his athleticism he's nothing.

3. Bevo's postition is dangerously becoming untenable, another embarassing finals and he's got to be in the gun.

[AshMac]

1. It’s a long season full of uncertainty and it looks like it’s taking its toll

2. We’ve made two mid table teams look too 4 in consecutive weeks with a weak and uninspired contest on the ball

3. Blown the best chance we’ve ever had of a minor premiership - chance we could be playing round 1 finals in Geelong or Adelaide

[DOG GOD]

1. Our fwd set up is the worst of the top 8
2. We will be lucky to win another game in 2021
3. If Bevo won’t play a #1 ruck, then find a coach who will

4. Hard to believe there’s a 90% chance we will finish 5th.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

1. We've run the gauntlet the last couple of weeks bringing in guys underdone from long absences, Dunkley, Treloar and Vandermeer. This hasn't worked. Let's hope it's not a sunk cost, and they hit their straps next week.
2. We're usually at our best backs to the wall, amazing to think that we should still have a good chance of securing a top 4 spot but be in such an underdog position, but two losses in consecutive weeks - and the manner they occurred, makes that a reality.
3. Our vulnerabilities are on display when our midfield can't do the job that is tasked of them. They simply must show some defensive accountability at centre bounces next week.

[whythelongface]

1. Sack Bevo
2. Sack assistant coaches
3. recruit a *!*!*!*!ing ruckman.

Geez I know we are all pissed but why would you sack Bevo? Who would you replace him with?

[Vred]

Geez I know we are all pissed but why would you sack Bevo? Who would you replace him with?

A coach who will play a ruckman and not go into a game with a mentality to ''well lets just HOPE to half the ruck contest''. Not. Lets go in with the mindset of WINNING the ruck contest, and not throwing our A grade mid fielders in there, like Bont and Macrae.

It's madness. His had 5 seasons to get this sorted and it's still the thing holding us back the most.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

A coach who will play a ruckman and not go into a game with a mentality to ''well lets just HOPE to half the ruck contest''. Not. Lets go in with the mindset of WINNING the ruck contest, and not throwing our A grade mid fielders in there, like Bont and Macrae.

It's madness. His had 5 seasons to get this sorted and it's still the thing holding us back the most.

I don't think it's as simple as that.
Yep we should have more ruck depth. That's not actually on Bevo. That's on Power and the recruiting team.
When you hear Bevo speak, he also acknowledges the importance of the ruck role. But without options his hands are tied. And therefore he's left to try and find a way to limit our weakness in that area. For the most part of the season that's worked, because our mids have worked hard to mitigate. They've not done that the past two weeks.

[bulldogtragic]

I don't think it's as simple as that.
Yep we should have more ruck depth. That's not actually on Bevo. That's on Power and the recruiting team.
When you hear Bevo speak, he also acknowledges the importance of the ruck role. But without options his hands are tied. And therefore he's left to try and find a way to limit our weakness in that area. For the most part of the season that's worked, because our mids have worked hard to mitigate. They've not done that the past two weeks.

I see it the other way. Power will recruit players if Bevo will play them. If Bevo won’t play them, recruiting them is illogical. This predates Power to include JMac. Bevo has wanted to bend the will of the comp to play just one ruck and for a while there was some traction. Interviews at the time said there was a specialist committee of coaches, Dalrymple and JMac discussing what the league would do with rules and potentially going to ‘last touched’ and thus reduce ruck contest by 50%. He’s gone is with a skinny kid in Tim and Dunks (nearly losing him) and a bunch of poor options. Rucks have been traded so freely over the passed few years and the best we did was a 34yo injury plagued one whose only played 6.5 games.

The argument that it gives us an extra mid which makes us quicker and more skilled can be made.

But JMac who I don’t rate and Power who I do rate are not the impediment to getting better rucks or any rucks.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

I see it the other way. Power will recruit players if Bevo will play them. If Bevo won’t play them, recruiting them is illogical. This predates Power to include JMac. Bevo has wanted to bend the will of the comp to play just one ruck and for a while there was some traction. Interviews at the time said there was a specialist committee of coaches, Dalrymple and JMac discussing what the league would do with rules and potentially going to ‘last touched’ and thus reduce ruck contest by 50%. He’s gone is with a skinny kid in Tim and Dunks (nearly losing him) and a bunch of poor options. Rucks have been traded so freely over the passed few years and the best we did was a 34yo injury plagued one whose only played 6.5 games.

The argument that it gives us an extra mid which makes us quicker and more skilled can be made.

But JMac who I don’t rate and Power who I do rate are not the impediment to getting better rucks or any rucks.

I've not heard anything from Bevo that would suggest he doesn't rate a ruckman that fits in with his preferred game plan. So I think Power would've had his blessing to try and find a ruckman that fits the profile for the game plan Bevo wants to employ.
I have no information as to whether we've tried to recruit other ruckmen .
I am confident that the 'Dunks in ruck' stuff has been overplayed. I don't think that was Bevo's go to.. rather a mitigation tactic.

I don't think Power is an impediment to getting better rucks and I am really confident, at least in the last 2 years that Bevo would've relished recruiting a ruckman that could fit in and augment the list build and game plan we currently have.

[bulldogtragic]

Not sure we will change each other’s minds. I do think we agree we need to get active. I think we need to get two rucks and move Tim’s magnet to ‘forward’.

[comrade]

Bevo would definitely be having significant input on who we trade in, every coach does.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

Not sure we will change each other’s minds. I do think we agree we need to get active. I think we need to get two rucks and move Tim’s magnet to ‘forward’.

100% in agreement with that.

Given our list profile, there might be a really hard conversation to be had in coming weeks about whether or not we go chips in on Darcy or prioritise addressing the ruck dilemma, and it really is a dilemma, no doubt.
Darcy doesn't help us for 3-4 years potentially.
We're in a big window right now and our work in centre square is the one thing that is holding back our game plan and potentially a shot at a premiership.

I know you are open to Bailey Smith being expendable if a great offer came our way.
I contend Bailey Smith is out of form ( that's still a thing isn't it? Even Chris Grant was out of form) but his talent and upside is undeniable and a massive part of our game plan holding water.
He's not for sale from my perspective, he, as a 20 yr old, needs to work on his deficiencies. I think its more likely than not, he can do this.

If we don't try and move him on, what other things could we do to get adequate ruck support in? Can we do this and still acquire Darcy?