AFL Rd 9 2024 Pre Game Prognostications Carlton vs Melbourne

[kruddler]

I am not sure where you find Marchbank and Martin are being rested they have being rested for 5-6 years.

You are comparing players that will be lucky to get 10 games out of them per season to 200+ game players over the age of 30

The point is, why do we play players until we break them.
Yes, some are more fragile then others.
Some are taller than others.
Some are faster than others.
Some are stronger than others.

Find out the attributes of the player and play to their advantages and cover their weaknesses.
If a weakness is their longevity, or durability, cover for it. Rest them when you need too.

Both Martin and Marchbank are very good players when they are fit....we just don't see it enough. So rather than keep doing the same thing and expecting different results, change the way we approach them......and everyone.

Doesn't have to be limited to them. Many on here were suggesting we rest cripps a couple years ago when he was clearly injured. But the club kept insisting everything was fine, and we got a half-fit cripps for the whole year, rather than being without him for 2-3.....7 weeks or whatever it needed to be to get him back to a 'fit' level where he could perform.

I've heard Marc Murphy talk about this, and its something he didn't realise until later in his career.
Players would have surgery as a 1st call to 'fix' something if it meant they could play a week earlier than had they simply sat out and rested. These surgeries can lead to further issues down the track and potentially do more harm than good in some instances.
We are obsessed with getting back and playing THIS WEEK at the expense of next week, next month or next year. Why?

As mentioned, Geelong are leading the pack in this regard. Resting Danger, Hawkins, Cameron, Selwood......hard to find some bigger names in the comp than them, but they find a way to rest them and do ok......most likely because they rest them is why they do ok. So why do we think we know better than them?

Be smarter with how we deal with our players, our seasons depend on it!