2018 Rd 4: Carlton vs North Melbourne in Hobart

[Lods]

a few times in a couple of weeks? Is that it? Sos used to get in those contests a few times each quarter, every quarter, every week.

Thats my point. Its a skill that can not be utilised as much as it could in the past.

I'm not dismissing it as useful, but think about it this way.
How many forwards kick goals from set shots off a lead.
How many forwards kick goals from pack marks.
....joe the goose..
...free kicks...

vs

How many forwards kick goals from winning a 1 on 1 wrestle with their opponent?

Compare that to 2 decades ago.
Big difference.

Yes, tackling is another issue but how many times do you see a Fraser Brown vs Wellman tackle in a game and how many times do you see a chase down tackle from behind in a game?
The latter is far more frequent and requires speed. Hence why it is ranked above almost all else in todays game.

My point is that we rarely win these contests.
Our tackles are easily brushed aside and apart from a couple of players (Curnow, Cripps) we rarely break tackles.
We are a physically weak side...part of that is youth...and strength is a variable that can be improved significantly from age 18 to 22..whereas speed is pretty much settled.

While in the current game the trend may be for speed (and I'm not discounting that) we know trends change.

But really ...How many of these rely on speed?

How many forwards kick goals from set shots off a lead.
How many forwards kick goals from pack marks.
....joe the goose..
...free kicks...

Probably the player on the lead...but that's more about reaction time than speed.