Round 10, 2008 - Dogs v Hawks match preview

[Dry Rot]

The Doctor is out on the road so he's asked to post his diagnosis of this cracking game:


Get ready folks for the blockbuster of the season - this should be an exhilarating game!

MATCH:

Hawthorn vs Western Bulldogs
Saturday May 31st, Aurora Stadium, Tasmania.

2:10pm (local time)

FORM THIS SEASON:

Bulldogs - 7 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss

Hawthorn - undefeated as at round 9

They have handed out floggings to Melbourne and Collingwood. They gave Adelaide a 7 goal belting and secured narrow wins (2-3 goals) against middle of the road teams such as; Port, Kangas, Tigers, Lions and Freo (before they were a laughing stock).

Last week they overcame a surprisingly determined and competitive Melbourne side who led for much of the game.

Impressively they have won everywhere from Tassie to Subiaco and they won these playing morning, noon and night.

PLAYERS MISSING:

Hawthorn Injury list

Lewis?
Hodge
McGlynn
Guerra

Bulldogs Injury list

West
Higgins

LAST MEETING: Round 21, 2007

W Bulldogs 5.3 8.3 10.6 10.7 (67)
Hawthorn 1.7 6.9 13.14 22.19 (151)

W Bulldogs: L.Gilbee 3, L.Darcy 2, D.Giansiracusa, A.Cooney, J.Akermanis, W.Skipper, F.Ray

Hawthorn: L.Hodge 6, J.Lewis 4, J.Roughead 3, B.Dixon 3, L.Franklin 2, R.Campbell, G.Birchall, C.Brown, C.Young

BEST:W Bulldogs: West, Eagleton, Giansiracusa, Cooney, Cross, Gilbee, Lake, Johnson, Boyd

Hawthorn: Sewell, Mitchell, Hodge, Lewis, Crawford, Franklin, Brown, Birchall, Young, Guerra, Gilham

Crowd: 32,734 at Telstra Dome on Sunday, 26th August

The Dogs were on top early then got obliterated. This game was played at the height of our much publicised late season fade out. The finals bound Hawks got on top after ¼ time and seized control of the midfield and dominated after half time. We were crap. Aside from that game the Bulldogs won in 4 of their previous 5 encounters. This includes beating them earlier in the season at the MCG. We won it by 17 without playing all that well.

PLAYERS UNDER THE PUMP:

Bulldogs

Cam Wight – struggled against the Roos and maybe time for a rest. No ideal matchup for him so I query who he would play on.

Gilbee - needs to lift.

Williams - maybe he was rushed back too soon but in time will become an important player. I'd like to see him in the midfield at some point, knocking over some Hawks.

We need another runner for this gaame, so I hope we'll see one of Harbrow, Ward or Stack for Wight or Williams.

Hawks

No real standouts - most Hawthorn players have credits in the bank although one or two would make way for Lewis and/or Hodge if fit.

STYLE:

The Dogs and Hawks are the highest scoring teams in the comp. Each have excellent midfields and forwards with arguably middle of the road defences.

I like the way Hawthorn play. They play a tough, uncompromising style and like to get good numbers around the ball, especially between the 50m arcs. They back each other up strongly and their attack on the ball is fierce. They also like to attack the man and are prepared to test the resolve of the match review committee with their physical approach to the opposition.

One thing they do better than anyone is attack through the middle of the ground. Their midfielders and half backs will swarm like bees to the contest area, not necessarily the contest. They excel in the stoppages where Mitchell and Sewell are in the competitions elite at clearing the ball. When they win possession the Hawks will handball their way quickly through traffic in any direction until they find runners such as Bateman and Young in space then deliver to their killer bees, their wonderful key forwards, Franklin, Roughhead and Williams.

They defend the middle corridor very well with this swarm when they lose the ball. They are quite prepared to concede the boundary and flanks often forcing teams to go wide. Dopey teams will then try and chip their way around the boundary to get through. Meanwhile the Hawks will take their midfield swarm into the back half if it gets that far and make it difficult to get easy shots on goal. Goals against the Hawks are hard earnt.

Despite the quality of the Hawthorn midfield they do not kick many goals. Buddy, Roughie and Willo kick all their goals. Could this be their Achilles heal? If we can contain 1 or 2 of them we should win. Another thing about Hawthorn is they don’t seem to have much versatility either especially if Hodge is missing. On the other hand we can fling our players almost anywhere if we need to change the shape of the game.

The Dogs have obviously improved in the stoppages. Hudson is our key man to stop the Hawks from getting first use. We need a big game from him. We will also need to run harder than we have at any other time this season and be prepared to kick long and back our forwards to win their respective battles.

KEY DUELS:

Boyd v Mitchell

Disconnecting Mitchell from the rest of his team mates looms as possibly the most important match up decision for our match committee. Mitchell is the queen bee of the Hawthorn midfield and needs someone who can not only go with him and negate his influence but a player capable of hurting him the other way. Boyd is our man but he must be disciplined and not get caught ball watching or Mitchell will give him the slip. Don’t think Addison or Callan are ready for this one yet.

Cooney v Sewell

This match up probably works in reverse to the one above for Hawthorn. Cooney will be there biggest concern. Sewell is a great tagger and has a terrific work ethic and discipline. He is also very proficient in the clearance dept. Cooney however has been able to shrug off tags and is one of the competitions leaders in winning the contested ball. Even if he can’t he can go forward and become a danger man.

Lake v Roughead

Old fashioned big marking forward vs old fashioned big marking full back. Possibly the most exciting duel of the game. For us to win we need to beat 2 of their 3 key forwards. I’ll back Lake on the basis of good consistent form over a long period and the benefit of extra experience in big games. Who gets Williams will be interesting. I’d go with Hargrave first up.

Addison v Bateman

This may surprise some and it may not happen but I would like to see it happen. Bateman is a great runner and the Hawks chief distributor to their forwards. I’d like to cut this supply line off and Addo would be my man for this important task.

Morris v Franklin

How do you stop a man who can do almost anything? You can’t, but you can make it bloody difficult. Morris will stick to him like glue as we know. He will probably get beaten as Franklin will still kick 4.6 on a bad day but he will be our most accountable and most likely to curb his impact on the game. In the first meeting last year Franklin wiped the floor with Wight in the first ¼ before Hargrave and Lake popped over for a visit. Perhaps a solid physical work out early could unsettle him. It’s a pity we don’t have Grant there to cut off the angles or be third man in. So will Rocket look to play a loose man in the Buddy zone? The Hawks go through Buddy a lot so it wouldn’t surprise me if he does. If that’s the case I expect it will be a good ground level player like Gilbee as Franklin is arguably as good on the ground if not better than he is in the air.

Murphy v Gilham

Gilham is vastly underrated and like Murphy is a clever user of his body in a contest. He may not be the first choice for Murphy, this task may go to Croad or Brown. I’d be happy with either of those two as I think we would get the advantage. Gilham, however, has good footy smarts and will be tough to beat in the air. He is also a highly effective user of the ball so we will need Murphy to apply plenty of defensive pressure. This would be a fascinating battle.

WHO WILL WIN & WHY?

If this was at Telstra and no Hodge I’d be backing the Dogs by 20. The Hawks though have a lot of momentum at the minute and play Aurora very well. I expect them to get the points in a tight one if Lewis and Hodge play. Having said that I don’t fear them that much, and the Dogs will pip them if they are missing Lewis and Hodge.

And as the season wears on I expect them to increasingly feel the pressure. While they have a great first 22 I don’t see much experienced depth and a few injuries will wobble them.

For us to win we have to effectively shut Mitchell down and reduce the effectiveness of Bateman. This will dry up the supply to the Hawk forward line but it’s a huge ask. This match should be a pearler.

[Go_Dogs]

Great preview, looking forwards to this one.

[DOG GOD]

Great post Doc....hope we come to play in a BIG way.

[LostDoggy]

Superb read. Great work!

[GVGjr]

I'd like to explore the Cooney on Sewell match-up because it's not one that I would go with but I do see the logic.
I rate Sewell as more damaging than Mitchell and I'd have Boyd locking on him.
If Mitchell is to be exploited it would be with someone with the leg speed of Cooney

Thoughts?

[bornadog]

Great Preview Doc


Lewis and Crawford will play this week. Hodge is still a few weeks off. Stewie Dew is still to pass a fitness test.

I am not sure about Morris on Franklin, mainly due to the height difference, but then again he has done it before. We have to stop their midfield feeding Franklin and Roughhead.

Boyd should pick up Mitchell and maybe Eagleton on Sewell.

[Mantis]

I'd like to explore the Cooney on Sewell match-up because it's not one that I would go with but I do see the logic.
I rate Sewell as more damaging than Mitchell and I'd have Boyd locking on him.
If Mitchell is to be exploited it would be with someone of the leg speed of Cooney

Thoughts?

I think this is a match-up that Hawthorn would instigate.

[1eyedog]

Great Preview Doc


Lewis and Crawford will play this week. Hodge is still a few weeks off. Stewie Dew is still to pass a fitness test.

I am not sure about Morris on Franklin, mainly due to the height difference, but then again he has done it before. We have to stop their midfield feeding Franklin and Roughhead.

Boyd should pick up Mitchell and maybe Eagleton on Sewell.

I am also concerned here but Lake needs to go to Roughhead as he does not have the engine to go with Buddy. Morris toweled up Reiwoldt in the Saints game so he can do it. I do not personally like the idea of Williams or Wight playing on Buddy but one of them may have to.

[dog town]

Well sumarised Doc.

It is going to be fascinating to see how Eade gets us to play this.

The key to the hawks good start this season has been the success of the midfield zone they are playing. It is not a new thing in the AFL they have simply taken it a step further. I saw them do it a bit last year but this year they are actually sacrificing defenders to join in with the zone from kick ins. They are that confident that they can restrict the opposition forward thrusts that they push players up from behind. The bad news for us is that teams have found it incredibly hard to get through at times this season. If you try and chip and handball through the corridor they are well drilled enough to force an error and then burn you on the rebound. They will just close in on you and constrict you until you cough the ball up. I know Rocket sent up a team to watch Hawthorn play Port in Tassy two weeks ago. I wonder what they learnt?

The key has to be very quick ball movement. Port did it pretty well for a half but lost control at the stoppages. Port took the ball wide quickly and used pin point disposals to create holes in the hawks "cluster'. I dont think we should neccesarily aim to go wide but we are good enough to work through it and open up some running lanes through the middle once we get wide and in space.

The positives I see in this match up is that we can certainly score heavily against Hawthorn if we are able to get the ball forward often enough. We will really trouble them up forward. We have a line up of very dangerous forwards who are pretty clever and efficient. The hawks backline really relies on complete midfield dominance and two pretty simple players in Croad and Campbell. Both are great in straight lines but can struggle when you turn them around. We can certainly kick a winning score if we get the supply.

We cant rely on us completely unravelling the midfield zone they have been employing. We also need to win the stoppages (big ask) and generate plenty of forward thrusts from that area. If we can win the ball from these situations we can give our forwards excellent one out opportunities.

I wouldn't mind a bit of pre meditated aggression against them early. They are prone to losing the plot and it could give us a flyer.

Morris will go to Franklin. Mark it down. He has the closing speed and agility to atleast compete with him. Buddy generally gets you in 3 ways. Either a straight up lead at the ball carrier, a lead to the fat side (usually followed by a nudge under the ball), or a big horse shoe lead where he pushes right up the ground turns the defender around then blows them away running back towards goal. Morris will compete with him in most of these aspects. Hargrave is my second choice. He did a really good job on him when we beat them last season. He ran off him continually making him accountable and was very aggressive towards Buddy. We need our backline to work together to combat the entire Hawthorn forward line. If they work for each other then we can keep them quiet. Would love to see Timmy Callan throwing himself into the hole if they dont use his man.

Harris to Roughhead

We can win this game. We just have to go flat out all day.

[bornadog]

I am also concerned here but Lake needs to go to Roughhead as he does not have the engine to go with Buddy. Morris toweled up Reiwoldt in the Saints game so he can do it. I do not personally like the idea of Williams or Wight playing on Buddy but one of them may have to.

True, Riewold is 196cm same as Franklin.
Roughhead is 193cm, Lake 195cm, Williams 196cm, Morris 190cm

[bornadog]

The other match up will be on Mark Williams. Will Hargrave pick him up or Callan?

[hujsh]

The other match up will be on Mark Williams. Will Hargrave pick him up or Callan?

I like the Hargrave matchup. Has that extra bit of reach that will be useful

[Topdog]

I would like to see our midfielders be really aggressive early too DT. They can easily lose the plot and if it results in some free kicks and / or 50m penalties than it is worth a shot.

I'd like to see Addison in the middle harassing Sewell because if we let this guy win the balls he will hurt us.

Bateman is another guy we will need to worry about and I'd like to see Griffen matched up on him.

[LostDoggy]

Who do you think Callan will take? And who do you think will get dropped this week - Wight?

I would like to blood one of our young eager players - maybe Ward.

[Dogs 24/7]

Nice write up Doc. Lake on Roughead is an interesting match up but I think that leaves us exposed with Franklin. What would be plan B if Franklin beats Morris?

[Dogs 24/7]

Who do you think Callan will take? And who do you think will get dropped this week - Wight?

I would like to blood one of our young eager players - maybe Ward.

Would Callan lack the agility to go with Williams?

I'd hold Ward back a bit longer. Tassie isn't the spot for him to debut and I think a home game would be ideal.

[1eyedog]

The other match up will be on Mark Williams. Will Hargrave pick him up or Callan?

Yep Hargrave better in the air and quicker over 20 paces IMO

[Sockeye Salmon]

Gilham will have to go with Minson, I don't see what other option they have. croad to take Hahn, Brown to Johnson. Who gets Murphy? Who gets Welsh?

All we have to do is give them enough ball to do the damage.

[Mantis]

Gilham will have to go with Minson, I don't see what other option they have. croad to take Hahn, Brown to Johnson. Who gets Murphy? Who gets Welsh?

All we have to do is give them enough ball to do the damage.

Would Birchall get Murphy? Are his defensive skills good enough?

[Ozza]

Wondering if anyone could possibly tell me when this game will be replayed on Foxtel?

I won't be able to see the game - as I'll be playing at the same time - but would obviously like to see the game at some stage - even it it comes on very late Saturday or during the week.

Cheers.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Fine preview Doc:

I particularly liked the description of Mitchell as the queen bee, I think thats pretty apt. Hawthorn take there lead from Mitchell - they are super confident, agressive and in your face with hardly a brain amongst them.

I am wondering if we will go Cross head to head with him, and have Boyd shut one of there are other key play makers down, perhaps Lewis.

Although GVGjr is wondering if Cooney might go to Mitchell to exploit his speed. Would Cooney lose Mitchell too frequently.

What chance Sewell to Griffen?

[LostDoggy]

Wondering if anyone could possibly tell me when this game will be replayed on Foxtel?

I won't be able to see the game - as I'll be playing at the same time - but would obviously like to see the game at some stage - even it it comes on very late Saturday or during the week.

Cheers.

This is the earliest replay I could find on their TV Guide:

01:30 pm - 03:30 pm
Tuesday June 03 2008
Fox Sports 1

[1eyedog]

Nice write up Doc. Lake on Roughead is an interesting match up but I think that leaves us exposed with Franklin. What would be plan B if Franklin beats Morris?

There are only two options after Morris, Wight or Williams. It may be that Wight doesn't go down to Tassie as Rocket wants to play Williams so if Morris fails, it may be up to an underdone Williams. I think Shaggy is a great match up for Mark Williams but he may be the only other option is Buddy is unleashed.

[Rocket Science]

gee...how handy would an in-form Everitt be right now?

[Ozza]

This is the earliest replay I could find on their TV Guide:

01:30 pm - 03:30 pm
Tuesday June 03 2008
Fox Sports 1


Thanks Mutts.
Unfortunately thats some sh1thouse timing!!!
I miss the Fox Footy Channel days!!

[westdog54]

Whilst I enjoyed reading the Doc's preview I have one question about it: Were we really on top early? On the scoreboard perhaps we were but IIRC Hawthorn were still playing very well and it was only Franklin's abysmal kicking keeping us in the contest.

Agree that Morris is the most logical match-up for Franklin, if there is any such thing. As far as I'm concerned Franklin is far more dangerous at ground level than he is in a marking contest, this is where Morris will do well. He has the pace, agility and toughness to be competitive on the ground, something Lake would struggle with.

One question mark I had over Franklin (having seen little of him) was his ability to follow his man/work up the ground. Last week I saw him run to full back to help clear the ball out, 20 seconds later he was having a shot at goal (which he naturally missed). Whoever does take him will be blowing very hard by full time.

For mine the best way to beat Franklin is to shut down his supply. We'll beat him in the midfield, not in the backline.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Agree that Morris is the most logical match-up for Franklin, if there is any such thing. As far as I'm concerned Franklin is far more dangerous at ground level than he is in a marking contest, this is where Morris will do well. He has the pace, agility and toughness to be competitive on the ground, something Lake would struggle with.

One question mark I had over Franklin (having seen little of him) was his ability to follow his man/work up the ground. Last week I saw him run to full back to help clear the ball out, 20 seconds later he was having a shot at goal (which he naturally missed). Whoever does take him will be blowing very hard by full time.

For mine the best way to beat Franklin is to shut down his supply. We'll beat him in the midfield, not in the backline.

I think thats an accurate take on Franklin, we need someone who can run with him and stop him getting his crumbing or running goals.

Its a huge test of our midfield this week and our ability at the stoppages. I think we'll get a really good guage of where we are at in that area. Obvioulsy they would be stronger with Hodge in the team, but West has been a stoppage magician his whole career. I'd like to see Ward come into the team.

[KEN]

Western Bulldogs ruckman Peter Street is a good chance to play his first AFL match for the year against Hawthorn on Saturday at Aurora Stadium in Launceston.

Street, 28, managed just 12 matches last season and succumbed to a knee injury late in the year.

While he has recovered from the injury, he had been stuck playing for the Bulldogs' VFL affiliate Williamstown because of the success of twin towers Will Minson and Ben Hudson, who was one of the club's high profile recruits this year.

But with the Hawks considered strong at the stoppages, Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade said Street would be looked at for selection later this week.

"Pete's probably in career-best form consistency wise. He's been playing very well for Williamstown and he'll come into strong consideration this week because of the rucks and stoppage work of Hawthorn so he's right in the mix."

"And I think he's enjoying his footy at the moment which is great.

"So he hasn't been forgotten about, he's still in our plans."

Eade said Steven Tiller, Jarrad Harbrow, Josh Hill and Callan Ward will all also push for selection.

[bornadog]

Wondering if anyone could possibly tell me when this game will be replayed on Foxtel?

I won't be able to see the game - as I'll be playing at the same time - but would obviously like to see the game at some stage - even it it comes on very late Saturday or during the week.

Cheers.

You can go to https://www.foxtel.com.au and click tv guide, then search the game.

other than the live match this Saturday, it is repeated on Tuesday June 3rd at 1.30pm.

[Bulldog Revolution]

Western Bulldogs ruckman Peter Street is a good chance to play his first AFL match for the year against Hawthorn on Saturday at Aurora Stadium in Launceston.

Street, 28, managed just 12 matches last season and succumbed to a knee injury late in the year.

While he has recovered from the injury, he had been stuck playing for the Bulldogs' VFL affiliate Williamstown because of the success of twin towers Will Minson and Ben Hudson, who was one of the club's high profile recruits this year.

But with the Hawks considered strong at the stoppages, Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade said Street would be looked at for selection later this week.

"Pete's probably in career-best form consistency wise. He's been playing very well for Williamstown and he'll come into strong consideration this week because of the rucks and stoppage work of Hawthorn so he's right in the mix."

"And I think he's enjoying his footy at the moment which is great.

"So he hasn't been forgotten about, he's still in our plans."

Eade said Steven Tiller, Jarrad Harbrow, Josh Hill and Callan Ward will all also push for selection.

Nice find KEN, that would be a very interesting selection were it to happen

I'm one of the few board members that thinks Street is a better player than he is given credit for. I know he has weaknesses but I think he directs his taps better than many others do.

[DOG GOD]

The problem with Street is that if he's not rucking then he's sitting on the pine as he is useless anywhere else. Someone his height SHOULD be able to sit in the goal square and let them drop it on his head, but he cant do it with any success.

[1eyedog]

The problem with Street is that if he's not rucking then he's sitting on the pine as he is useless anywhere else. Someone his height SHOULD be able to sit in the goal square and let them drop it on his head, but he cant do it with any success.

I saw him play full forward at Kardinia Park quite a few years back, went ok on the lead and has a decent set of hands?

[Rocket Science]

The problem with Street is that if he's not rucking then he's sitting on the pine as he is useless anywhere else. Someone his height SHOULD be able to sit in the goal square and let them drop it on his head, but he cant do it with any success.

I agree Streety could be employed as a resting tall forward, but I'd argue his lack of success is mostly because he's seldom been used in that role with any sort of regularity. One only need refer to Minson to see the fruits, however modest to date, of employing blokes in certain roles consistently and with deliberate intent.

Street's height is a clear advantage, he has a pretty clean pair of hands, can take a decent contested grab, and to my mind is actually pretty reliable kick, particularly with set shots. If nothing else he can treat long bombs as ball ups and tap to his crumbers.

He's obviously prone to exploitation when the ball hits the deck, especially when accountable forwards are the go these days, but that can be countered with the right supporting cast when he cameos in front of goal, and correct disposal into forward 50.

I reckon the idea's got legs.

[Go_Dogs]

I agree Streety could be employed as a resting tall forward, but I'd argue his lack of success is mostly because he's seldom been used in that role with any sort of regularity. One only need refer to Minson to see the fruits, however modest to date, of employing blokes in certain roles consistently and with deliberate intent.

Street's height is a clear advantage, he has a pretty clean pair of hands, can take a decent contested grab, and to my mind is actually pretty reliable kick, particularly with set shots. If nothing else he can treat long bombs as ball ups and tap to his crumbers.

He's obviously prone to exploitation when the ball hits the deck, especially when accountable forwards are the go these days, but that can be countered with the right supporting cast when he cameos in front of goal, and correct disposal into forward 50.

I reckon the idea's got legs.

I'm not really keen on the idea of Street resting as a forward. If we want an extra player to play tall in the forward line, throw Wight down there. He's taken some good grabs up forward and kicked a few goals this year, and I've generally been impressed with his ability to conjure goals (his soccer off the ground in the goal square earlier in the year a good example).

If Street does come in, it will simply allow for him and Hudson to share the ruck duties and bench duties and possibly drop back after the ruck contest in front of the Hawthorn forwards, and Minson to spend the whole game as a permanent forward.

If we don't bring Street in and there is not an obvious match up for Wight down back, he could be used up forward as well as Minson, and take the forward role when Minson has to go into the ruck.

I think I'm leaning towards keeping Wight in at this stage of the week...but who knows how I'll feel tomorrow. ;)

[Mantis]

Is there a chance we play Williams on Roughead instead of Lake? (I assume we will be playing Morris on Buddy)

When we beat them early last year Lake played a sensational game as he was allowed the luxury (??) of picking up Boyle for most of the game rather than Roughead or Buddy. He zoned off Boyle and took alot of contested marks as the 'third man up' which helped cut off many of Hawthorn's forward thrusts.

Hawthorn really play only 2 tall forwards so if we use this tactic it may see Lake picking up Williams.

Is this a possibility and would it work?? I suppose if it is or does Clarkson would try to counter this tactic.

[Happy Days]

Callan should go to Rioli, or help Dale on Buddy

[LostDoggy]

See opposition player focus on Chance Bateman -- he is far and away their most damaging midfielder this year, getting the ball into their F50 six times a game and averaging almost 3 goal assists a game, miles ahead of any of his other midfield compatriots. To give you a comparison, the elite attacking centremen in the game only average around 5 inside-50s and less than 1.5 goal assists a game. (Murph is our inside-50 leader with around 5.5 and 1.5 goal assists a game). He has been their best on ground at least three or four times this year already (overshadowed by Buddy-hype, of course), and with most of their midfield injured, shut the guy down and they won't post a score. Buddy will go looking for kicks in the backline and middle, and that's where we can afford to have him.

Our best tagger -- Callan, Boyd, Eagleton??! -- should go to Chance and just sit on him. Literally. All game. None of their other midfield guys (apart from Crawf, who is probably injured) are elite kicks anyway and Lakey should mop up the errant long bombs coming in.

I say it again, break even on the inside-50s and we'll win EASILY (as if the Dogs ever do anything easily). The Hawks kick like madmen -- they've scored 132 behinds to their 159 goals ('accuracy' of only 54%), so if you let them blaze away 20 times they'll only score 11 goals.

PRESSURE, PRESSURE, PRESSURE. It'll be good to see some quality tackling this week.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Is there a chance we play Williams on Roughead instead of Lake? (I assume we will be playing Morris on Buddy)

When we beat them early last year Lake played a sensational game as he was allowed the luxury (??) of picking up Boyle for most of the game rather than Roughead or Buddy. He zoned off Boyle and took alot of contested marks as the 'third man up' which helped cut off many of Hawthorn's forward thrusts.

Hawthorn really play only 2 tall forwards so if we use this tactic it may see Lake picking up Williams.

Is this a possibility and would it work?? I suppose if it is or does Clarkson would try to counter this tactic.

Didn't Williams kick 6 on Harris in 2006?

I like the idea if Lake could play on someone less dangerous.

I like Shaggy for Williams.

[Mantis]

Didn't Williams kick 6 on Harris in 2006?

I like the idea if Lake could play on someone less dangerous.

I like Shaggy for Williams.

2005.

I like Shaggy for Williams too.

Who does Tom Williams play on if Morris goes to Buddy and Lake goes to Roughead?

[Mofra]

2005.

I like Shaggy for Williams too.

Who does Tom Williams play on if Morris goes to Buddy and Lake goes to Roughead?

Tommygun has to go to Boyle, and I'm worried that hell get carved up - could even see Boyle running back goalside & taking marks as Roughy dummy leads to get Lake away from the square.

I still don't rate the Hawk's backline that highly, their gameplan helps them alot so getting the ball in quickly should work in our favour - the Hawthorn opposition scores more goals per F50 entry than almost any other side, so statistically you can mount an argument that they are one of the worst backlines in the comp.

[Mantis]

Tommygun has to go to Boyle, and I'm worried that hell get carved up - could even see Boyle running back goalside & taking marks as Roughy dummy leads to get Lake away from the square.

I still don't rate the Hawk's backline that highly, their gameplan helps them alot so getting the ball in quickly should work in our favour - the Hawthorn opposition scores more goals per F50 entry than almost any other side, so statistically you can mount an argument that they are one of the worst backlines in the comp.

Boyle isn't even playing so I doubt this will happen....

[Mofra]

Boyle isn't even playing so I doubt this will happen....

Oops :o

If the Hawks rest a ruckman forward I would guess Williams could go to Campbell/Taylor, although Gilbee's best football was played on resting ruckman (in 2005, he was our only player to play on an opposition ruckman from every team!).

The other option is to play Williams on Roughead & have Lake play the Fletcher/Scarlett type goalkeeper role, 3rd man up in contests as he judges the ball better than almost any other defender in the comp.

[bornadog]

Oops :o

The other option is to play Williams on Roughead & have Lake play the Fletcher/Scarlett type goalkeeper role, 3rd man up in contests as he judges the ball better than almost any other defender in the comp.

I think this is what will happen, with Shaggy on M.Williams. and Morris to pickup buddy.

[The Pie Man]

gee...how handy would an in-form Everitt be right now?

I saw Andrejs take a nice mark for Willy on the weekend, sadly that doesn't make a solidy day - Tiller earned a recall with his performance (Josh Hill was good too)

I'm guessing Tom Williams is the Buddy Plan B if his reach gets the better of Morris - or Lake to Buddy (who could play a bit more physical on him, I swear Buddy's VERY loose, he needs to be tested) and Williams to Roughead

Franklin is so loose, I can see the Hawks making a GF in the next few years and Buddy out until 4am on the Thursday night before it boozing....loose

[hujsh]

See opposition player focus on Chance Bateman -- he is far and away their most damaging midfielder this year, getting the ball into their F50 six times a game and averaging almost 3 goal assists a game, miles ahead of any of his other midfield compatriots. To give you a comparison, the elite attacking centremen in the game only average around 5 inside-50s and less than 1.5 goal assists a game. (Murph is our inside-50 leader with around 5.5 and 1.5 goal assists a game). He has been their best on ground at least three or four times this year already (overshadowed by Buddy-hype, of course), and with most of their midfield injured, shut the guy down and they won't post a score. Buddy will go looking for kicks in the backline and middle, and that's where we can afford to have him.

Our best tagger -- Callan, Boyd, Eagleton??! -- should go to Chance and just sit on him. Literally. All game. None of their other midfield guys (apart from Crawf, who is probably injured) are elite kicks anyway and Lakey should mop up the errant long bombs coming in.

I say it again, break even on the inside-50s and we'll win EASILY (as if the Dogs ever do anything easily). The Hawks kick like madmen -- they've scored 132 behinds to their 159 goals ('accuracy' of only 54%), so if you let them blaze away 20 times they'll only score 11 goals.

PRESSURE, PRESSURE, PRESSURE. It'll be good to see some quality tackling this week.

I hope that was a joke

[The Pie Man]

I hope that was a joke

I actaully liked the reference to Lake as 'Lakey' - might have to work that into my game day vocab...

Anyone notice Eagleton bears an uncanny resemblance to slain hitman Andrew 'Benji' Vianmin - if you hear anyone yelling 'Benji' at Dogs games when Eagleton's bearing down on 50, it's likely my brother & I

[Raw Toast]

I hope that was a joke

Eagleton as a tagging option is certainly not a joke - a few years ago he got back into the team as a tagger, and quite a few have commented on the decent job he did on Harvey (the early KO helped, but player's who've been concussed can still come back and play a dominant game as Sam Mitchell did against the Power two weeks ago).

If Eagle on Bateman means that Eagle spends a bit more time in the back half that should be ok, because we need someone who can kick the ball and create run coming out of defense.

[1eyedog]

Eagleton as a tagging option is certainly not a joke - a few years ago he got back into the team as a tagger, and quite a few have commented on the decent job he did on Harvey (the early KO helped, but player's who've been concussed can still come back and play a dominant game as Sam Mitchell did against the Power two weeks ago).

If Eagle on Bateman means that Eagle spends a bit more time in the back half that should be ok, because we need someone who can kick the ball and create run coming out of defense.

In all seriousness yes it is. Sure Eagleton has been right up there since the Freo game with his tackling (has been in the top 3 with Crossy most weeks) but a few reasonably defensive acts do not make you a renowned tagger. He has obviously been told he needs to get more defensive or else he is out. He is by nature an outside player who has certainly lifted his defensive work rate over the past month, but he needs to do this for a long period of time to get any credit as a tagging option from me.

[Rocket Science]

Agreed.

It's wonderful that after a decade in the biz Eagle's decided to add the tackle to his armoury of skills but a handful of tackles per game doesn't necessarily make up for what I perceive as his continually slack marking of opponents around the ground. His man still gets too many easy touches through the middle for mine.

That all sounds very harsh I suppose and it's pleasing to a degree to see him attempt to re-fashion his game, but he needs to be more diligent about it and continue to improve in this area.

[LostDoggy]

Quite a little debate back there around a throwaway name that I just chucked in. I just threw Eagleton's name in the hat because he was used to tag Harvey last week and I don't think any of us saw THAT coming.

Having said that he did a okay job, I suppose...

[Rocket Science]

Some blokes are just lightning rods for opinion I suppose. Eagle's certainly one of them.

It's a particularly pertinent issue this round because, in the view of many including Rocket himself, the battle to beat the Hawks' forward line will probably need to be won in the midfield, ie: applying consistent pressure and restricting supply.

To pull that off, Eagle, and the rest of his midfield mates for that matter, need to buy into this approach as a disciplined, cohesive unit.

[Bumper Bulldogs]

Would Callan lack the agility to go with Williams?

I'd hold Ward back a bit longer. Tassie isn't the spot for him to debut and I think a home game would be ideal.

I'ld like to see Callan as the loose man and maybe gilbee go to williams as mark will not have the motor to chase Lindsay all day. shaggy would be second just to run off and use the use up the fuel tank.

[1eyedog]

I'ld like to see Callan as the loose man and maybe gilbee go to williams as mark will not have the motor to chase Lindsay all day. shaggy would be second just to run off and use the use up the fuel tank.

I hear ya, but I think Williams is just a little to smart with the reading of the ball through the air for Gilbee, don't get me wrong, Gilbs is quite underrated above his head imo, but he's not in the same class as Williams there. I like Shaggy on Williams. I know what you are saying with blowing out Williams' fuel tickets as it can be done, but if Clarkson gets Gilbee sitting on Williams Clarko will put Williams straight into the goal square and Williams could have 3 or 4 before half time. Williams will play too deep for Gilbs and we will lose much of our run from half back if we play him there. Get Gilbs on a HB flank.

[LostDoggy]

He has been their best on ground at least three or four times this year already (overshadowed by Buddy-hype, of course), and with most of their midfield injured, shut the guy down and they won't post a score. Buddy will go looking for kicks in the backline and middle, and that's where we can afford to have him.

I say it again, break even on the inside-50s and we'll win EASILY (as if the Dogs ever do anything easily).

PRESSURE, PRESSURE, PRESSURE. It'll be good to see some quality tackling this week.

Anyone want the lotto numbers?

[GVGjr]

Anyone want the lotto numbers?

Actually yes. Great call by the way, I thought of that very post late in the game.

[LostDoggy]

Who saw that coming?

Haha TCD, don't want to keep blowing my own horn here, but if you look through some of my posts I've been saying this about the Hawks game all week:

My point -- Hawthorn midfield don't kick goals:
Buddy and Roughie kicked 9 goals between the two of them, and the Hawks only ended up with 12 goals and 14 shots on goal all up.

My point -- the Dogs will come out snarling after last week, and pressure and tackling will be the key:
Dogs belt the Hawks in the hard-ball gets and tackles and kill the Hawks' run completely.

My prediction -- Dogs by 34 points, Johnno to kick the first goal:
Dogs won by 32, Johnno kicked the second goal.

My prediction -- Franklin to have a shocker after a good first quarter
Buddy ended up with 5 but he kicked most of them in the first and second quarter, and in the second half he kicks a shot out on the full, and drops a couple of sitters.

I can safely say I saw it coming. :)

[1eyedog]

Haha TCD, don't want to keep blowing my own horn here, but if you look through some of my posts I've been saying this about the Hawks game all week:

My point -- Hawthorn midfield don't kick goals:
Buddy and Roughie kicked 9 goals between the two of them, and the Hawks only ended up with 12 goals and 14 shots on goal all up.

My point -- the Dogs will come out snarling after last week, and pressure and tackling will be the key:
Dogs belt the Hawks in the hard-ball gets and tackles and kill the Hawks' run completely.

My prediction -- Dogs by 34 points, Johnno to kick the first goal:
Dogs won by 32, Johnno kicked the second goal.

My prediction -- Franklin to have a shocker after a good first quarter
Buddy ended up with 5 but he kicked most of them in the first and second quarter, and in the second half he kicks a shot out on the full, and drops a couple of sitters.

I can safely say I saw it coming. :)

Hey Lantern, you should take ledge's username:)

[The Pie Man]

Franklin had 3 of his goals gifted to him, Tom Williams was super. While it cost him a few goals, Tom wasn't scared to leave his man and create another option. Could be a real turning point in his career. The team too, hopefully after that they'll believe we belong in the top 4 and can genuinely challenge