You're the Coach: Question #6

[mjp]

You have the magic touch - you are the MAGIC MAN.

Brisbane came at you hard a couple of weeks back but by 3/4 time the game was done - your mids and half backs absolutely strangled them - aside from that 5 minute burst in the second - and the end result was a dominating (if somewhat less than overwhelming) 27 point win. Inside 50's were +16, clearances +21 and scoring shots +12....possessions an other-worldly +132 and if there are any concerns right now, well, they would be related to how such possession dominance is not being reflected by MASSIVE wins.

Well, that's not exactly true. Your recruit Rory Lobb hasn't had a touch for two weeks - hasn't gotten close to it - and his woes are no doubt contributing to the overall score-board trevails. AND there is the issue with Duryea (concussion protocol) and Gardner is on a watch-list for his ankle - the doc is talking a syndesmosis injury and that MIGHT be 6-8 weeks...and those two have been your most reliable defenders. I guess Josh Bruce got a few touches in the VFL but most of them came after half-time when he was swung forward...O'Brien is available but...

THEN there is the 'real' problem that needs addressing. English has been playing well but is battling a sore knee - some tenonitis that the Doc says he can 'play through' but some weeks are going to be better than others...and vs Brisbane he could hardly jump at all. The Doc also says that even if he takes a month off it might not be long enough to resolve it...it might - but it might not. So - does he keep playing, do you need to bring in Sweet...what's the plan??

Basically, there's a lot going on. So let's here it:

: English problem.
: Gardner problem.
: Duryea problem.
: Lobb problem.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem.

Oh - and this week's game is on THURSDAY against an Adelaide side that has (to everyone's surprise) won 3-in-a-row...so whatever you're gonna do, do it QUICK.

[josie]

Don’t play injured players if it comprises their well-being or exacerbates their ability to recover eg.a 4 week recovery blows out to 8 if they play on

Sweet in for English
O’Brien in for Gardener (I didn’t think O’Brien was as bad as most thought last year and if Keath & Jones are doing ok it eases pressure on him a bit)
Cleary/Gallagher/Crozier/Buku (or whomever we’ve been grooming as a lockdown defender for opposing small forwards) for Duryea
If it’s an effort issue with Lobb bring in Bruce, otherwise back Lobb in to turn it around

[Happy Days]

You better believe Lobb is going in the ruck.

[hujsh]

You better believe Lobb is going in the ruck.

https://frinkiac.com/video/S06E21/EPb7hegSrmaqQSmZqe7H0SHC0is=.gif

[Happy Days]

https://frinkiac.com/video/S06E21/EPb7hegSrmaqQSmZqe7H0SHC0is=.gif

But actually though. The thing about paddling for the school rowing team is it actually is a paddling and a lot of people forget that.

[FrediKanoute]

Rest English - its a long season - bring in Sweet
Give Bruce first dibs to replace Gardy
Doc is harder to replace, so maybe look at the matchups and see who he would have played on and whether there is anyone who could be a better match up rather than just doing a positional play.

[Grantysghost]

Start Lobb at CB in ruck.

Then he pushes forward and a mid rucks around the ground.

4 headed monster.

Duryea easy replacement Cleary or someone.

Gards bring in whomever is playing better in the twos out of Bruce and TOB.

4. Win.

[Mofra]

I've dealt with knee tendonitis and 1 week off will do absolutely zero for Timmy. Get him on the single leg slang board squats to mitigate the pain a bit week to week. He plays through as there's virtually no chance for damage.

Lobb to the VFL for a week - selection integrity matters.
Sweet takes the centre square bounces and 60-70 of rich time. Timmy plays close to goal and no 2 ruck.

Keath and Jones as KPDs, TOB as intercept.

Is JJ fit? Crows are flush for small forwards but they're attack first, defend second types.

[mjp]

I've dealt with knee tendonitis and 1 week off will do absolutely zero for Timmy. Get him on the single leg slang board squats to mitigate the pain a bit week to week. He plays through as there's virtually no chance for damage.

Lobb to the VFL for a week - selection integrity matters.
Sweet takes the centre square bounces and 60-70 of rich time. Timmy plays close to goal and no 2 ruck.

I am so down with this plan...love the way you have thought it through.



Is JJ fit? Crows are flush for small forwards but they're attack first, defend second types.

You can make the call on JJ as you're the coach and I didn't mention him. But I guess you're saying you're sending him back to cover for Doc??

Is anyone going to address the possession ==> scoring question 'cos I have a feeling you are going to need to address that.

It isn't just about moving magnets around.

[meenies]

Basically, there's a lot going on.

: short turn around
: English problem.
: Gardner problem.
: Duryea problem.
: Lobb problem.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem.


Rest English. 4 day turn around as well as going to Adelaide.
In Sweet.
Darcy is already in. Plays back.
Extra smallish player in for Gardner.
Not too concerned with Lobb yet.
Sounds like the forwards not leading in own patterns; chemistry not there yet;
delivery inside is 2022 style - going backwards, chipping sideways, taking time moving forward - so maybe the feeders are not following game plan yet - plan on; kick low darts; "use legs" (Rowan Smith's favourite words); not enough communication by the next person in the chain.
I liked Gallagher and Crosier is the match sims I have seen. They have been solid in VFA. One of them to replace Duryea. Preference Gallagher as Bevo likes taking a new kid on a road trip and not being the sub first up. Maybe Cros as Sub.

[mjp]

Sounds like the forwards not leading in own patterns; chemistry not there yet;
delivery inside is 2022 style - going backwards, chipping sideways, taking time moving forward - so maybe the feeders are not following game plan yet - plan on; kick low darts; "use legs" (Rowan Smith's favourite words); not enough communication by the next person in the chain.


So...that sounds like you've defined the problem.

And identified a potential solution.

Now what do you DO???

[meenies]

So...that sounds like you've defined the problem.

And identified a potential solution.

Now what do you DO???

Short week - so maybe one day of recovery and review the previous match/mistakes. Break down the game plan needs to be followed. Coaches to discuss if game plan too complex or some players not executing the plan - maybe under too much pressure to, not sure of how to execute it, know what to do but just not following directions (approach these individually), or other reasons.
One day of practice - concentrate on game plan simulation.

[1eyedog]

English out Bruce to FF and Lobb in the ruck.
Duryea out Scott to small defender
Gardner out Darcy back as cover.

Sink or swim boys there is no plan B.

Sweet is a non-event if Lobb is fit.

[Matjoh]

So, our mids and half backs absolutely strangled them and Inside 50's were +16, clearances +21 and scoring shots +12! So whats the problem? Typical bulldog stats. No problem. Winning. Crows won 3, just, but beat noone and havent won 4 in a row for years. Tim's sore, rest him for a cuppla weeks or so as per doc.. Lobb not performing forward - he gets Tims ruck spot interchanging with Sweet. [If he fails again out]. Gardner sore, rest him too. Darcy in for Gardner. Crozier = clone for Duryea.

[Mantis]

English out Bruce to FF and Lobb in the ruck.
Duryea out Scott to small defender
Gardner out Darcy back as cover.

Sink or swim boys there is no plan B.

Sweet is a non-event if Lobb is fit.

If Sweet can be effective in the ruck it will allow us to continue to play Lobb as a forward which is where he’ll the most benefit to the team… and it’s why we recruited him,

[bornadog]

The issues:

:English problem.
: Gardner problem.
: Duryea problem.
: Lobb problem.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem.

* Sweet comes in for English, but the share of ruck duties is increased for Lobb

* bring in TOB as third back and Jones and Keath to take on the talls

* Treloar to backline to cover for Doc, and either West or Garcia to take some midfield turns.

* Lobb per above

* Inside 50 we are +16, so opportunities are there but not taking them. May have to go a little smaller, so when Lobb is in ruck, Sweet sits on bench, and another small plays forward - West, VDM,Garcia or McNeil

[Mantis]

The issues:

:English problem.
: Gardner problem.
: Duryea problem.
: Lobb problem.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem.

* Sweet comes in for English, but the share of ruck duties is increased for Lobb

* bring in TOB as third back and Jones and Keath to take on the talls

* Treloar to backline to cover for Doc, and either West or Garcia to take some midfield turns.

* Lobb per above

* Inside 50 we are +16, so opportunities are there but not taking them. May have to go a little smaller, so when Lobb is in ruck, Sweet sits on bench, and another small plays forward - West, VDM,Garcia or McNeil

I don't get or like this move.... If Sweet plays he needs to play 80+ % game time as a ruck as his forward craft is extremely limited when compared to both English & Lobb. Having Sweet sit on the bench for extended periods just robs the team of a rotation.

[1eyedog]

If Sweet can be effective in the ruck it will allow us to continue to play Lobb as a forward which is where he’ll the most benefit to the team… and it’s why we recruited him,

But Lobb hasn't touched it down there for a number of weeks and like Bevo I feel Sweet does not do enough around the ground to warrant selection.

[MrMahatma]

: English problem - If he can play, I'd play him but prob a bit more time fwd. Share that with Bruce. It's not ideal but we'll adapt.
: Gardner problem. I think we can cover Adelaide's fwds with Jones & Keath, so I'd bring in Crozier (experience)
: Duryea problem. Cleary gets the crack here.
: Lobb problem. VFL. Bruce takes the fwd role and support ruck. As soon as Lobb looks like getting a few touches he'll be back.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem. Hopefully Bruce allows for some chemistry. We'll review and if need be will go shorter in the coming weeks.

[Go_Dogs]

Ok, my crack:

Lobb and English move to 50/50 forward/ruck time for the game. If this helps, we will persist with similar for a few weeks.

I’m going to swing Darce back and give Gardner a rest - we need him cherry ripe for later in the year.

Cleary in for Duryea.

A bit more method into the F50. I want us to do whatever we can to have Bont, Daniel and Treloar making entry kicks. Lower the eyes, we’ve got Timmy up front now who is good on the lead. Naughton back closer to goal for a week too. Marra to roam a bit higher and try to use his acceleration to open pockets for space behind him for short angle entries. Dale and Williams getting on the chain for some long goals. Just some tweaks and we can turn this around.

[mjp]

A bit more method into the F50. I want us to do whatever we can to have Bont, Daniel and Treloar making entry kicks. Lower the eyes, we’ve got Timmy up front now who is good on the lead. Naughton back closer to goal for a week too. Marra to roam a bit higher and try to use his acceleration to open pockets for space behind him for short angle entries. Dale and Williams getting on the chain for some long goals. Just some tweaks and we can turn this around.


SO (and I don't mind the answer) there is some magnet moving going on.

But you're the COACH, not the board man...we have 4-days. What are you gonna DO??

[soupman]

You have the magic touch - you are the MAGIC MAN.

Brisbane came at you hard a couple of weeks back but by 3/4 time the game was done - your mids and half backs absolutely strangled them - aside from that 5 minute burst in the second - and the end result was a dominating (if somewhat less than overwhelming) 27 point win. Inside 50's were +16, clearances +21 and scoring shots +12....possessions an other-worldly +132 and if there are any concerns right now, well, they would be related to how such possession dominance is not being reflected by MASSIVE wins.

Well, that's not exactly true. Your recruit Rory Lobb hasn't had a touch for two weeks - hasn't gotten close to it - and his woes are no doubt contributing to the overall score-board trevails. AND there is the issue with Duryea (concussion protocol) and Gardner is on a watch-list for his ankle - the doc is talking a syndesmosis injury and that MIGHT be 6-8 weeks...and those two have been your most reliable defenders. I guess Josh Bruce got a few touches in the VFL but most of them came after half-time when he was swung forward...O'Brien is available but...

THEN there is the 'real' problem that needs addressing. English has been playing well but is battling a sore knee - some tenonitis that the Doc says he can 'play through' but some weeks are going to be better than others...and vs Brisbane he could hardly jump at all. The Doc also says that even if he takes a month off it might not be long enough to resolve it...it might - but it might not. So - does he keep playing, do you need to bring in Sweet...what's the plan??

Basically, there's a lot going on. So let's here it:

: English problem.
: Gardner problem.
: Duryea problem.
: Lobb problem.
: Inside-50 ==> Goal ratio problem.

Oh - and this week's game is on THURSDAY against an Adelaide side that has (to everyone's surprise) won 3-in-a-row...so whatever you're gonna do, do it QUICK.

I like this scenario.

Statline is bang on for Bulldogs under Bevo. High effort, lower than expected reward. His sides don't necessarily see the fruits their labour deserves, and it has cost us in the past. I do think a big part of it is personnel focused, I think a genuine opportunistic ground level forward would do wonders for our scoreboard impact. We are great in the air, have some real dynamic players and yes Weightman, but if we could upgrade the impact of the Vandermeer spot into a genuine goalscorer that would help immensely, not just in the extra 1-2 goals they would generate but the impact down the chain.

The good news is we are dominating, and despite the margin not being as big as it should be it's still comfortable. Hard to tell in this scenario what the quality of our I50s are, but knowing our propensity to go for the long bomb to the goal square in previous years hopefully we can simply not do that all the time and use one of our big targets as a moving target.

As for Lobb, we are probably approaching the halfway point at this stage. I'd be generally happy to stick with him, while it seems the forwardline is not working as hoped with him in it it's also not not working. With an emphasis on using leading options and not just banging it long and deep maybe Lobb will see a better return, especially as he seems good at this. In addition a bit more ruck time would have the two way benefit of relieving English a bit, and getting Lobb involved around the ball more. I wouldn't be keen on dropping him at this stage, I imagine Darcy is probably in the mix already, and Bruce is stinking it up in the backline so I'm not gonna drop him into a winning forwardline.

Gardner problem sucks, especially as he is a good tall option for Thilthorpe who i think will be good this year. In this scenario I'd have Keath and Jones as the main two key defenders, with Walker and Fogarty as the other key forwards. I think I'd bring Darcy in as the other, and hope his height will enable him to take enough intercept marks to help offset the danger their small forwards present.

No Duryea sucks with Rankine and Rachele, Richards gets whichever is most in form and then once the game starts whoever is most dangerous, the other we work Dale and Daniel through and aim to get more out of the matchup than they do.

English problem sucks, but based on above opinions he can just keep playing through it until the Dr says that's unadvisable. Lobb getting some extra minutes may help, I don't know. I think it's just one of those injuries where yu just hope for the best.

[comrade]

Naughton back to replace Gardner. Richards to take over the small defensive role but it won’t matter as much because Naughts just dominates down there now so life becomes much easier as a Dogs defender.

Bite the bullet and rest English for a month, back Sweet in as the 70% ruck and tell him to just smash and compete. Like a Wish version of Toby Nankervis but for some reason it works.

Lobb becomes the main key forward now and because we’re no longer so Naughton centric, with the extra space and freedom he finds touch. When required to take some ruck contests, Darcy and Marra provide dangerous tall options.

The inside 50 thing, I have no idea. Pick the most natural forwards we have rather than shoe horning excess mids or utility types down there. So play Lobb, Darcy, Marra, Weightman, and probably Mitch Hannan and Rhylee West. Maybe Riley Garcia but he’s a long term mid imo. Isn’t Charlie Clarke a forward? Maybe give him a crack? Yeah, you can see why our forward line struggles to score - that is a very hit and miss group of players but it’s the best we’ve got.

DO NOT play McComb down there (or at all I guess).

DO NOT play Baker or Crozier or Smith (Bailey and Roarke) or Treloar down there. Pick players who have shown ability to be dangerous inside 50, don’t treat the forward line as a resting place for players who should be in the midfield or on a flank.

[Go_Dogs]

SO (and I don't mind the answer) there is some magnet moving going on.

But you're the COACH, not the board man...we have 4-days. What are you gonna DO??

Do some light drills kicking entries in at angles (perhaps similar to the round the clock drill GVG has described) with a dummy lead, space, neat kick, get the blokes we want doing it, practising it together and some work on the mock up field indoors showing our running patterns, ball movement, dummy leads and space clearing. It’s a team game - play your role lads and this plan will work, we’ll share the spoils across the season