Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

[dog town]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Say we are at full strength, rough estimates of our CBAs? There's 300% CBA time to share around...

- Bont av 81% this year and went alright! Would be cool to be able to see him go fwd a bit like Trac but we really struggle without him there (and he is the best player in the league playing in the middle)
- Libba av 78% and needs to play in the middle if he is healthy enough to play. Like Bont, we really struggle without him in the guts

So that leaves 140% for the rest and we have Adz, Macrae, Baz, Sanders, possibly Daniel (av 19%) and Harmes (if tagging there).

How do we split that time up? Where do Adz, Macrae and/or Baz play when not inside? What about Sanders (seems like he is in)? That quartette would have to spend majority of combined time outside the middle. I think footy is changing with inside mids. If they aren't guns/playing majority of time inside, they are a bit like a 2nd ruck. Need to offer actual value elsewhere.

I think us playing small forwards who aren't suited to it/just trying to fit in all the mids/mids really unhappy to play there is a big concern in terms of maximising our talent. It's a bit reverse Moneyball atm for mine. We have a lot of 'names' to fit in, but are we filling in actual roles to help the side win footy games or looking good on paper?

Perfectly captured my main concern for this year. The guys with versatility are the ones we don’t really want to move.

[Sedat]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

- Bont av 81% this year and went alright! Would be cool to be able to see him go fwd a bit like Trac but we really struggle without him there (and he is the best player in the league playing in the middle)
- Libba av 78% and needs to play in the middle if he is healthy enough to play. Like Bont, we really struggle without him in the guts

If we over-rely on Bont yet again (and Libba) in 2024 to be our emergency break glass options at stoppage/clearances, that is a savage indictment on the rest of the senior core of midfielders. They have no choice but to raise their games, especially to allow Bont to move forward more and become as destructive a player on the scoreboard as Petracca and even prime 2017-2020 Dusty.

What is the point of Macrae, Treloar, Smith (and also bringing in Harmes) if they cannot make a significant impact in the midfield and at stoppages? It might sound harsh but it is obvious that we need to be far more agile and far less predictable in our midfield mix, and we must expect/demand far more from the rest of the senior midfield group. Bont and Libba shot the lights out for us in 2023 and it wasn't even good enough to make finals let alone make top 4 and contend for a flag.

[Mofra]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Harmes plays - we don't target senior players without a specific role in mind.
I still am yet to be convinced by this move, especially with Sanders looking good and West returning in excellent shape

[jeemak]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Harmes plays - we don't target senior players without a specific role in mind.
I still am yet to be convinced by this move, especially with Sanders looking good and West returning in excellent shape

Injuries and form always play a part. Let's see who puts avoids bad patches in each.

Like others I don't see how being so homogenous in our CBA/ clearance set ups helps us in any way. If the coaching group can't learn the folly of it I'll change my tune on them.

[Happy Days]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Harmes plays - we don't target senior players without a specific role in mind.
I still am yet to be convinced by this move, especially with Sanders looking good and West returning in excellent shape

Giving him a game in March because we intended to give him one in the previous October kinda sounds like sunk cost fallacy to me. I’m cool with him not playing and never playing if there’s guys who are better than him.

[SquirrelGrip]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

What's going to be interesting in Round 1, and then particularly for the whole year is where Bont plays. He's an absolute pro with how he prepares but he has missed most of the pre-Christmas training, the period which is always the key preparation for the next year. With this is mind, in Round 1, does he only spend 50% in the middle then increase slowly as the season progresses.

He's no doubt our best player and best mid - the best in the AFL - but I wonder if the team as a whole is better if he mixes his roles for the season? He might still have 50% CBA but could be lethal across half forward and allowed to do whatever he wants. Pavlich, Fyfe, Martin, Petracca, Hird, Goodes ....

[mjp]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Perfectly captured my main concern for this year. The guys with versatility are the ones we don’t really want to move.

See - it's more like we're scared to move them cos we aren't sure of what the next result will be. The following players should all be attending CBD's most weeks. I've got 16 in my list and wanted to include Naughton.

Bont
Daniel
Liber
Macrae
Coffield
Richards
Dale
B Smith
Poulter
West
Sanders
Weightman
Treloar
Daniel
Harmes
Scott

[Sedat]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Harmes plays - we don't target senior players without a specific role in mind.
I still am yet to be convinced by this move, especially with Sanders looking good and West returning in excellent shape

Agree that Harmes will play more often than not, but I actually think this is a good thing for our midfield mix. He is team-oriented and defensive-minded to a fault, and our 2022-2023 midfield mix sorely lacked these types. He is also agile and flexible enough to contribute elsewhere (half-forward, wing) when he is not part of the midfield.

[meenies]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

What's going to be interesting in Round 1, and then particularly for the whole year is where Bont plays. He's an absolute pro with how he prepares but he has missed most of the pre-Christmas training, the period which is always the key preparation for the next year. With this is mind, in Round 1, does he only spend 50% in the middle then increase slowly as the season progresses.

As a left-field suggestion, I would like to see Bont at CHB or a back flank. Particularly when the opposition team starts a run-on (2 goals in a row).

For many games last year Bont seemed to go where he needed to be and many times that was in defence to be an interceptor. A move like this was good for Chris Grant, why not use Bont in this role (part time) as well.

[mjp]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

A move like this was good for Chris Grant, why not use Bont in this role (part time) as well.

You have to remember though, Chris Grant was a forward with the yips - Bont is the best clearance player in the game (and we count on him forward of the ball).

I don't mind it for 5-10 minute stints (in fact, I think it should happen every game for at least a bit of time) but I don't think it's a break glass, stop a run-on solution.

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

With Baz out, Harmes/Sanders become more important.

[GVGjr]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

With Baz out, Harmes/Sanders become more important.

Possibly Bramble as well. It's never the right time to say this but we could potentially add another player via the LT injury option now.

[Grantysghost]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

With Baz out, Harmes/Sanders become more important.

Yep get on Sanders for rising star.

[hujsh]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Possibly Bramble as well. It's never the right time to say this but we could potentially add another player via the LT injury option now.

No stress about not having a slot at the MSD (not that there was any doubt someone would get injured)

[Bulldog Revolution]

Re: Best/Starting 23, Round 1 2024

Possibly Bramble as well. It's never the right time to say this but we could potentially add another player via the LT injury option now.

Macraes form becomes critical also