GVGjr
23-03-2019, 07:46 AM
Just to give some context on a discussion about Brad Johnson on the Bailey Smith thread
Brad Johnson reveals game style concerns for Western Bulldogs (https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2019-fox-footy-podcast-brad-johnson-reveals-game-style-concerns-for-western-bulldogs/news-story/83e7f6a9ba9c6632436d67f50e88d9c2)
Western Bulldogs legend Brad Johnson believes coach Luke Beveridge’s game plan will struggle to stand up against most AFL sides this season, predicting his former club could endure a long build despite winning the premiership only three years ago.
The Bulldogs have been one of the hardest teams to get a read on during the off-season, with the club failing to build on its fairytale 2016 success and overseeing a surprising decrease in average age since the flag.
There were some danger signs during the recent JLT Community Series, losing both of their games to Gold Coast and St Kilda — two teams many think will finish below the Dogs in 2019.
Asked on the Fox Footy Podcast whether he was worried about his former side’s 2019 prospects, Johnson — the Bulldogs’ games record-holder — said: “I am actually.
“I’m a bit concerned about what I saw throughout the JLT and losing the games they did. St Kilda were a lot tougher than the Dogs around the ball, they physically took it to the Bulldogs — and that’s hopefully a big wake-up call for them as a club in terms of what they need to turn around themselves.
For me, their game style just doesn’t seem to be able to stack up to where footy is going at the moment. I think Luke Beveridge needs to potentially make a lot of changes off the back of what we saw in the JLT.”
One of Johnson’s biggest concerns is the Bulldogs overusing the ball by hand, highlighted by the fact they finished with more handballs than kicks in both JLT losses.
Johnson was particularly troubled by the numbers of Toby McLean, who accumulated three kicks and 16 handballs against the Suns before racking up three kicks and 15 handballs against St Kilda.
“You’ve got a lot of guys that win a lot of football: (Jack) Macrae, (Lachie) Hunter, (Mitch) Wallis, ‘Libba’ (Tom Liberatore), McLean — they’re all winning 30 to 40 disposals per game. But a lot of their ball is handball and a lot of it is back out of congestion and then they continue to go back — one, two three — before they even look at going forward,” Johnson said.
“McLean’s the one for me … He’s not a handball player. He’s the type of player that we’ve known is forward of centre and is creative by foot, sets up goals and kicks goals. His game is something that needs to be adjusted significantly for him to have a real impact this year.
“There’s a lot for the Dogs to work on, especially if they get corridor ball. They seem to push it really wide and not go forward when there is time and space to do that.
“I’d stack my (SuperCoach) side with Dogs players because they’ll rack up points. But in terms of the way the game’s played, I think they need to have a huge adjustment, especially through the midfield.”
The Bulldogs named the youngest 22-man team in the league across every home and away round last season. They enter 2019 with the sixth-youngest list in the competition.
Johnson said the prospect of the Bulldogs finishing in the bottom six for the second straight year — just three seasons after their stunning premiership success — was a “concerning shift”.
“Go back to 2016, they finished seventh and they win the flag from seventh. For me, it was the progression from seventh,” he said.
“I didn’t expect them to win the flag over the last two years, but to go from seventh, maintain seventh, maybe become a top-four side last year and then you start to grow towards a flag over this year, next year or the following year — that’s how it evolves these days.
“The reality is it’s going to be another long build for them. To win a flag in 2016 and not play finals for two years and potentially a third year now, they’ve got a lot of work to do.
“It’s not good enough from where they were in 2016.”
Brad Johnson reveals game style concerns for Western Bulldogs (https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2019-fox-footy-podcast-brad-johnson-reveals-game-style-concerns-for-western-bulldogs/news-story/83e7f6a9ba9c6632436d67f50e88d9c2)
Western Bulldogs legend Brad Johnson believes coach Luke Beveridge’s game plan will struggle to stand up against most AFL sides this season, predicting his former club could endure a long build despite winning the premiership only three years ago.
The Bulldogs have been one of the hardest teams to get a read on during the off-season, with the club failing to build on its fairytale 2016 success and overseeing a surprising decrease in average age since the flag.
There were some danger signs during the recent JLT Community Series, losing both of their games to Gold Coast and St Kilda — two teams many think will finish below the Dogs in 2019.
Asked on the Fox Footy Podcast whether he was worried about his former side’s 2019 prospects, Johnson — the Bulldogs’ games record-holder — said: “I am actually.
“I’m a bit concerned about what I saw throughout the JLT and losing the games they did. St Kilda were a lot tougher than the Dogs around the ball, they physically took it to the Bulldogs — and that’s hopefully a big wake-up call for them as a club in terms of what they need to turn around themselves.
For me, their game style just doesn’t seem to be able to stack up to where footy is going at the moment. I think Luke Beveridge needs to potentially make a lot of changes off the back of what we saw in the JLT.”
One of Johnson’s biggest concerns is the Bulldogs overusing the ball by hand, highlighted by the fact they finished with more handballs than kicks in both JLT losses.
Johnson was particularly troubled by the numbers of Toby McLean, who accumulated three kicks and 16 handballs against the Suns before racking up three kicks and 15 handballs against St Kilda.
“You’ve got a lot of guys that win a lot of football: (Jack) Macrae, (Lachie) Hunter, (Mitch) Wallis, ‘Libba’ (Tom Liberatore), McLean — they’re all winning 30 to 40 disposals per game. But a lot of their ball is handball and a lot of it is back out of congestion and then they continue to go back — one, two three — before they even look at going forward,” Johnson said.
“McLean’s the one for me … He’s not a handball player. He’s the type of player that we’ve known is forward of centre and is creative by foot, sets up goals and kicks goals. His game is something that needs to be adjusted significantly for him to have a real impact this year.
“There’s a lot for the Dogs to work on, especially if they get corridor ball. They seem to push it really wide and not go forward when there is time and space to do that.
“I’d stack my (SuperCoach) side with Dogs players because they’ll rack up points. But in terms of the way the game’s played, I think they need to have a huge adjustment, especially through the midfield.”
The Bulldogs named the youngest 22-man team in the league across every home and away round last season. They enter 2019 with the sixth-youngest list in the competition.
Johnson said the prospect of the Bulldogs finishing in the bottom six for the second straight year — just three seasons after their stunning premiership success — was a “concerning shift”.
“Go back to 2016, they finished seventh and they win the flag from seventh. For me, it was the progression from seventh,” he said.
“I didn’t expect them to win the flag over the last two years, but to go from seventh, maintain seventh, maybe become a top-four side last year and then you start to grow towards a flag over this year, next year or the following year — that’s how it evolves these days.
“The reality is it’s going to be another long build for them. To win a flag in 2016 and not play finals for two years and potentially a third year now, they’ve got a lot of work to do.
“It’s not good enough from where they were in 2016.”