Team selection disection

[Thryleon]

What I was hoping to highlight, is how important the older blokes are to our side, and irrespective of how well players come on, the 1st tier will absolute be the first names written on the team sheet most weeks.  The fact that there are others relatively cemented on there too, is quite irrelevant to whether or not they get selected and you will find the youngsters will only keep the mature players out if they REALLY kick on and become not just decent performers, but 4 quarter players each and every week. 

We are very thin for mature, experienced top liners, and they will be in the mix for selection most weeks.

Look at this back bone, and pick your starting 22:


--BP-------------------FB-------------------BP

HBF-------------------CHB-------------------Simpson

Wing------------------Murphy------------Thomas

HFF-------------------Casboult---------------Wright

FP----------------------FF---------------------FP

Followers: Kreuzer-----E. Curnow--------------Mid

Int: 1-----------2----------3----------4



There is plenty of space for the kids and there, and whilst I can appreciate that many have pencilled in Cripps Im not writing him in here, because he is ahead of schedule and we need to be thinking a little bit more about that, when we look at our team, because the second you start dropping the likes of the above names, for kids, all of a sudden Cripps effectiveness will be reduced because he is no longer worried about his own game, but having to lead the line (Murphy, Kreuzer and Daisy are underated in this facet) and whilst Cripps might relish it, its not something we should take for granted.

Prophetic.  In fact this thread has been very much all valid and proven correct.  The biggest issue I have is that the folk in the stands, can see this stuff coming, yet the club has failed to entertain it.

I should keep a level head and listen to my inner self a bit more and perhaps not let my emotions get in the way of clarity of thinking.

In any case, with our injury list mounting, we need to get the following players as mainstays, and maybe give the kids a bit more VFL time:


Alex Silvagni
Sam Rowe
Andrew Phillips
Jed Lamb
Matt Shaw
Sam Kerridge
Matthew Lobbe

They don't have to all play together, but we are far too uncompetitive and might need to get a few more battle hardened bodies in the team to prevent demoralising situations that have been playing out at senior level thus far.

What I similarly worry about is that the same issues will likely play out at VFL level (demoralising performances) due to a lack of senior battle hardened bodies at this level too, so its a real balancing act that we are in unfortunately as a washout of the heavy turnover of the list.