Re: Best 22 in 21
Reply #46 –
Birchall doesnt/didnt defend he is purely a rebounder IMO.....Gibson played taller against certain opponents where he could use his pace and fitness and thats why he was handy vs Buddy but you wouldnt have him on players like Lynch, Hawkins, Dixon and expect him to cope. I think one of our main problems is small defenders and finding ones who can defend and not just rebound.
Saad doesnt like having to man up, Docherty and Simpson both like to work of their man and thats why small forwards have worried us over the years.
I'm interested in our round 1 team and wanting to know can we get away with a player like Marchbank down back vs one of the Tigers smalls given they only play two KP forwards with four smalls and Martin every now and then.
You really have to adjust your backline each week to get the match ups right and you probably need a back 8-10 who you can pick from to find the right combo's.
EB what cunning kents like Clarkson and Hardwick do is come up with styles and tactics you mention above that force the other mob to match up to them or try and contain them. Why can't our mob come with something radical and left field to keep the oppo guessing for a change. Carlton coaches always try and make the players conform to something they can't execute well enough for long enough. Come up with radical tactics that match the strengths and assets of our group that will cause problems for others.