WB Game Day V Sydney Swans R17 2021

[merantau]

The comments were relating to us needing to settle on our best 22 leading into the finals. Not one of the space cadets on the panel is likely to be aware that at least 5 of our front liners have been unavailable for many weeks with long term injury. They are happy to tell us how decimated Richmond have been every single week however. Complete lack of research.

You are dead right. We have been without key players for an extended period and have been forced to play English far more than we would have liked in the ruck. I REALLY hope Martin comes back fit and firing.

[GVGjr]

Watched Footy Classified today. We are most changes for any side in the league, with 41 players gone through the best 22 ( according to them). They made the point that at this time of the year, we really need to settle our positions.

I wonder what Hayes did to get placed on the rookie list after being delisted and what he hasn't done this year to get a senior game?

[Axe Man]

I wonder what Hayes did to get placed on the rookie list after being delisted and what he hasn't done this year to get a senior game?

I can't answer why he was retained, but he's been playing half back at VFL level this year and as we all know it is one area of the ground we are well stocked in. Also most of our first choice small/medium defenders have barely missed a game

[Danjul]

You are dead right. We have been without key players for an extended period and have been forced to play English far more than we would have liked in the ruck. I REALLY hope Martin comes back fit and firing.

Not true.

21, 17, 16, 15. The number of goals the Dogs kicked when Sweet was used in the ruck. 4 great wins before he was banished after his first bad game. These were higher than the scoring when Martin rucked (apart from the North blowout) and much higher than recently.

No matter how you dice it the ruck debacle has been chosen, not forced.

[jeemak]

I wonder what Hayes did to get placed on the rookie list after being delisted and what he hasn't done this year to get a senior game?

I have no idea. We should probably give more players a go because 41 is definitely not enough to show we are open to playing lots of players and testing what they can do.*

*Sorry mate.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

Not true.

21, 17, 16, 15. The number of goals the Dogs kicked when Sweet was used in the ruck. 4 great wins before he was banished after his first bad game. These were higher than the scoring when Martin rucked (apart from the North blowout) and much higher than recently.

No matter how you dice it the ruck debacle has been chosen, not forced.

You and statistics should not be allowed in the same room as each other. The cherry picking, the misrepresentation of correlation as causality in order to produce confirmation bias here is off the charts.

[Danjul]

You and statistics should not be allowed in the same room as each other. The cherry picking, the misrepresentation of correlation as causality in order to produce confirmation bias here is off the charts.

Sorry but your vague dismissal of facts you either don’t like or understand became irrelevant when you claimed the reason we lost to Melbourne wasbecause of empty stands.

[merantau]

Not true.

21, 17, 16, 15. The number of goals the Dogs kicked when Sweet was used in the ruck. 4 great wins before he was banished after his first bad game. These were higher than the scoring when Martin rucked (apart from the North blowout) and much higher than recently.

No matter how you dice it the ruck debacle has been chosen, not forced.

Yes, you are right. What I should have said was we omitted to play specialist ruckman Sweet and relied on an option that has a history of failure. Big difference.

[bornadog]

Yes, you are right. What I should have said was we omitted to play specialist ruckman Sweet and relied on an option that has a history of failure. Big difference.

I thought English was BOG on Sunday, but of course this meant we had a lack of man power in the F50.

Having said that, English could have had at least 3 goals but didn't kick straight, or long enough

[Bulldog4life]

Personally until the Gawn game I thought Sweet had done alright and a lot of woofers seemed to be happy with his performances. Received 2 coaches votes against Ryder. Was one of the reasons after half time in the VFL why we won last weekend. Finished up with being in our best and had more hit outs than Sinclair. He has improved each year he has been with us. Can take a good grab and is a steady shot for goal. Furthermore who doesn't Gawn beat most weeks.

[DOG GOD]

We know certain players get more chances than others. This is part of the problem.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

We know certain players get more chances than others. This is part of the problem.

I'm not sure we do know if that is part of the problem. Unless we have direct insight into why some players get more chances than others we are just making up a narrative that suits our own biases. And that's fine, its the internet we are allowed to speculate, its fun. But I don't think equates to actually knowing this is a part of the problem.

I'm pretty confident that if the MC were able to publicly speak to selection decisions in detail, they would have some pretty good responses to the queries we have.

[DOG GOD]

I'm not sure we do know if that is part of the problem. Unless we have direct insight into why some players get more chances than others we are just making up a narrative that suits our own biases. And that's fine, its the internet we are allowed to speculate, its fun. But I don't think equates to actually knowing this is a part of the problem.

I'm pretty confident that if the MC were able to publicly speak to selection decisions in detail, they would have some pretty good responses to the queries we have.

The question I need answering is, does the MC committee prefer to play a player (English) where he is far better served fwd/ruck, as a ruck/fwd, than bring in a genuine ruck prospect, that in turn, keeps our 3 headed monster alive ?

Seems to me they pick the best 22 than can on the park, and then move the chess pieces to accomodate. Sometimes that’s well and good but it doesn’t always work that way.

We pick players like Scott and Hannan who don’t do much to the eye, but obviously run to the right spots and keeps the coach happy. Are they guaranteed top 22? No way, but they serve a need. Surely sweet as a genuine ruck allowing English to play his BEST role, is better for the team overall ? I don’t get it.

[comrade]

Surely sweet as a genuine ruck allowing English to play his BEST role, is better for the team overall ? I don’t get it.

That's the trade off we're currently accepting because the MC must believe Sweet in the ruck/English forward is a net negative compared to English in the ruck. I don't necessarily agree with that choice but it's kind of pick your poison at the moment. Either option is unlikely to be good enough to beat Melbourne or Geelong in a final (though I do believe we would have eked out a win v Geelong if Sweet was rucking and English was playing forward more in that game).

[soupman]

That's the trade off we're currently accepting because the MC must believe Sweet in the ruck/English forward is a net negative compared to English in the ruck.

And the MC probably did choose the better option, at least last week. English had 22 touches and 21 hitouts, was competitive in the ruck, good around the ground, and generated 3 set shots. Not playing Sweet didn't cost us this game, why should it cost us the next? Yes I know the argument is that he could have played forward, but I am unsure he would have had a better game than that there (he has only had more than 3 scoring shots 4 times in his career), and we gambled on the JUH and Bruce combo having a bigger influence on the game than English forward with an out of form Sweet in the ruck.

I agree that two rucks is preferable, and I'm as frustrated as anyone about our reluctance to fix this issue (and do not rate ENglish as a long term option in the role) but I'm not happy to just play any ruck. Sweet has been fine when played, as in he hasn't been a negative, but his ruck work has been just ok (against a bunch of mostly mediocre ruckmen), and his ability to impact the game through other means has been virtually non existent. It isn't as if we aren't playing someone like Lloyd Meek who was genuinely good when he played.