New Look Midfield?

[SaintBot]

Now before you shoot me down saying this will never work, this is just me throwing around a shocking idea.


On Friday night we were clearly killed in the second half by the Eagles midfield, notiably Priddis and Cousins.

With Ball running with injury, Dal Santo suffering massive tags, Harvey not quite his old self (but still excellent!) and Montagna out of form I was just looking at who else could have a stint in the centre square, chasing the ball around the entire field.

We could always go and do the predictable thing and play our 2nd tier players: Birss, L.Fisher, Thompson (used to be able), McQualter, etc in the middle.

Or could we become a completely unique team by playing big barstards through the middle of the ground. Therfor we completely dominate the physical side of the centre breaks. Now i dont mean we should go and throw some player like Barry Brooks in the middle as rover. I mean we should play our skillful, enduranced, quickish, mobile big boys in the middle.

By this I mean players like: Jason Blake (if he learns to win the ball), Samuel Fisher, Sam Gilbert, Brendon Goddard (who already does play midfield), Jimmy Gwilt (if he improves in the bucketloads), Nick Riewoldt, etc.

Imagine if an opposition onball division at the start of a game came into the middle only to be confronted by Justin Koschitzke (Ruck), Nick Riewoldt (Ruck Rover), Lenny Hayes (Rover) and Sam Gilbert (Centre). I can imagine it would cause a few matchup headaches.

But then people will complain that we then lose our CHF in Riewoldt or our key defender in Gilbert but really we could replace them. WE have plenty of key forwards waiting for their chance to come into the side. We also have our defenders, true not as many, who would relish at the chance of being given a shot in Gilberts or Sammy Fishers 'absence'.

Iv seen this work plenty of times in junior footy, and yes i respect that junior football is a completely different game but i could see it working at the top level. Or maybe it already has, and i just am to ignorant to notice?

Thoughts?

[plugger66]

May work in junior football but not in the AFL. Onballers are a special breed as are forwards and backs. Only Blake and Gilbert IMO could ever be onballers.

[Oh When the Saints]

Interesting theory.

You would have to have the correct player type.

I reckon Nick Riewoldt and Sam Gilbert are capable of playing such a role, but not other "big" players ...


Whether it's a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul, I don't know ...

[Unforgiven]

I like the idea, has its positive's and negatives like anything though. My worry is then we would overload on talls, and if we have all these bigs in the middle, where do the guys who they replace go to?. You can't have ball, lenny, dal etc making up your back line or flanks. You want them in the action.

I think Sam Fisher would be an excellent mid though

[Halo Halo]

Im not sure it would work!!

And Leigh Montagna out of form?? Surely you wouldnt write him off on one game.. He goty the most possies against the Dockers.

Sure he wasnt great on Friday night but wasnt too bad on Friday night against the Eagles..

[Saints Premiers 2008]

i have wanted to see roo play around the ground much more as his size and engine would suit

however this depends on having kosi fit and firing and our ruck stocks

maybe having roo run around the ground for a while whilst kosi is at chf???

so with roo running around up and down the field in the guts this could further work over his opponent and work better for the leads for when he is playing chf

if bj was fit he would be playing in the center - he is going to be a star midfielder - exactly what we need

[Unforgiven]

i have wanted to see roo play around the ground much more as his size and engine would suit

In what role? Yeah I think Roo could roam around the ground, being a link man, getting 25 touches a game and so many marks. Though there is no way he could play a similar role to Goodes. Roo has the engine of a midfielder+ though is not as agile and quick as a mid.

Roo at CHF is much more valuable than around the ground.

[woooosaints]

i think sam fisher would make an awesome CHF strong mark thumping kick i dont know but his accuracy but that can be worked on

[Quixote]

Gilbert surely.

I was hoping he'd be switched to Cousins in the second half as a hard creative tag.

Needs to improve his foot-skills - but that tackle on Judd.

Bang.

[ben_fff]

J.Brown played a game through the midfield last year I'm pretty sure... and I'm pretty sure he got a good 25 - 30 disposals, it was either last year or the year before. He was running hot for the brownlow at the time.

[bigcarl]

good thinking saintbot. we need more of it otherwise the club becomes predictable and mediocre.

i think gilbert definitely and bj possibly. also possibly gram and raphael.

riewoldt is too valuable doing what he is doing, though if you wanted him more involved around the ground he could play wing very well.

[ben_fff]

I've always wanted Goddard in the middle, especially now he has the size, he can be a Ricciuto or Buckley type player for us.

[Solar]

I like it, but add them to the midfield.

A midfield of hayes, dal, joey, roo, gilbert, gram then add mini as the tagger/run with and a developing armo and perhaps eddy/geary/howard.

To start with perhaps bringing allen and watts in to play as half forward and move roo into the middle and say seeya to voss.

A forward line of
milne Watts x
Allen Gehrig Ball

send kosi down there to rest while clarke/rix rucks and I think that this would allow us different modes of attack. Let G have a run around. Learn to go to the leading allen and see how this works.

Roo goes onto the ball and tell him to gut run and have a ball in the centre. Same with gilbert. Get gilbo to tag foley and learn to play midfield.

[Otiman]

Because we have quite a few big talls pushing through for selection (Watts, Brooks, Allen) - Putting Kosi back and Roo on the ball/wing might just get our overall efficiency up.

[Unforgiven]

Goddard and Sam Fisher would make awsome CHF's or big blokes in the middle I reckon.

[plugger66]

Because we have quite a few big talls pushing through for selection (Watts, Brooks, Allen) - Putting Kosi back and Roo on the ball/wing might just get our overall efficiency up.

No we would be replacing stars with unproven or very ordinary players. Roo is in the top 3 CHF in the AFL and Fraser is in the top 10 FF. AS onballers they wouldnt be in the top 50.

[Animal Enclosure]

Gram & BJ are destined to be big parts of the midfield rotation in the future. As I've posted elsewhere, I reckon it's well overdue to get Gram really into the action. He's got that explosive pace that we lack (with the exception if Joey) & could be the goal kicking midfielder that we crave.

[SaintBot]

No we would be replacing stars with unproven or very ordinary players. Roo is in the top 3 CHF in the AFL and Fraser is in the top 10 FF. AS onballers they wouldnt be in the top 50.

i dont think anyone suggested playing Gehirg in the midfield

[plugger66]

No we would be replacing stars with unproven or very ordinary players. Roo is in the top 3 CHF in the AFL and Fraser is in the top 10 FF. AS onballers they wouldnt be in the top 50.

i dont think anyone suggested playing Gehirg in the midfield

Sorry about that but just as bad putting Kosi back IMO>

[bigcarl]

i think gilbert would be very good in there. deceptively quick, strong and good evasive skills. also an outstanding tackler. wins most of the one-on-ones in which he is involved. needs work on his kicking on the run, but that will come. he tends to kick a few grubbers.

gram? who knows. definitely worth a try. he is a booming kick and has quick hands. would certainly pump the ball forward quick and direct if he can get it.

raphael. perhaps. i'm convinced this kid has the talent to be very good. whether the application, dedication and work ethic is there is another thing.

bj. yes. already very good wherever he plays. would be great on the ball and, like gram, would make every single disposal count.

throwing these guys into the midfield rotation would perhaps weaken the backline a bit. then again it would open the doors for a few young prospects to grab a spot

[Sam23]

I've always wanted Goddard in the middle, especially now he has the size, he can be a Ricciuto or Buckley type player for us.

Not quick enough.

He's a forward imo.

[nicko016]

It's not a bad idea but you definately still need your true midfielders to be spending the majority of the time in the centre. Gilbert, Goddard, Riewodlt and Sam Fisher could all spend some time through the midfield but

Riewodlt is a CHF and we need him to play the majority of the time there. However, he should play as a roaming CHF pushing up the ground with occasional stints off a wing. By having him push up the ground and occasionaly on the ing it alows Kosi to spend much more time up forward as a more F50 CHF.

Sam Fisher may be good through the midfield but for me his ideal position is HB on the 3rd or 4th tall really attacking off HB. This is dependent on Maxy and Goose playing.

Gilbert I think is the only one capable of playing full time midfield. He could be damaging playing off a wing like Andrew Embley picking up 20+ touches especially with his pace.

I'm not really sure where Goddard's best position is. It'd be great if he could play like Koutifideous but I don't think he's capable. So therefore some time on the wing and as a lead-up HF like Ryan O'Keefe.

All these players would be able to find the ball out in space but put them all in the centre and we'd struggled with the clearences and contested balls. What we need is the development of a few hardnuts like an Armitage who gives off the impression that he's pretty quick but yet an inside player. One of those tough, quick, penetrating kicks.

[saintsRrising]

A few thoughts...on extra mids.

FIRSTLY..We need more mids.....as part of the reason that we tire is not just lack of fitness...but also lack of enough mids on any given day to share the load and rotations.

BJ... aprat from his beautiful kick one of his main strengths is that he is a beautiful reader of the play and is a very smart footballer. so while he can play asa HFF...I think his best value is down back.

Gram...I think that he is good enough to play asa mid...not Ball like but in the dal role....but while the Matrix is a deft dodger...Gram can use his pace to break open play...following by his booming kick. Gram n the outsode of packs becomesa great link man.......an wet dream material is IF gradi gets right and taps the ball to gram scooting past and away on the outside!!!


Roo Never struck me as a ball winner at ball ups (either as in side or outside player)...BUT yes once the ball has been bouunced and the ball is in general play roo can and has played as an extra mid. His great aerobic capacity also is well suited to constant run.........and what can allow him to play more time there is that we have several talls that can play forward,,,,but having 3 out once there all the time is too cumbersome.

I can imagine two off GTrain, Kosi, Watts as permanent tall forwards with Roo playing as a floater...sometimes forward...sometimes back.


Gilbert Not many game yet...but yes has shown flashes of being able to break through packs..and has good inside skills. In addition he is superb tackler with pace....and so having him in the heat of the action will more fully exploit that tackling skill. While Gilbert stays skinny this may bea good use of him....til he gains more beef and becomesa key defender.

Which to digress away from the midfield discussion...Gilbert may be our next full back as he has the pace to combat leading FFs. His run would be great at CHB...but Goose and sam can be used as CHB's (and even BJ)...but their lack of oace limits their ability against quick full forwards.


X Needs to be developed so that he can spend more time taking midfield rotations. His pace in the middle would bea great tool to hame. He is basicallya flanker at present but MUST step up.

Howard The wild card...great athlete, but football wise still looks very raw....and so I would not expect much in 2008...but 2009..maybe????

L Fisher bakes will miss the start of 2008, and attard most likely all of it. We NEED another midfield tagger.....and leigh fits the role....but needs to bost his aerobic capacity.


Mini Missing in action this year...hopefully he can recover his career with a huge pre-season. I think it was St Mart who commented that Mini had probably muscled up to much.

Armo Justa lad, but fitness is his main shortcoming. A big preseason will see him get some games in 2008..but he will still be young.

Geary Has shown some good indications of late...perhaps enough to be eleavted at seasons end. If he works hard he MAY come into the mix.

Ball Last and most importantly of the midfielders. His injury this year has seen his impact asa mid greatly reduced so much that RL has often played him asa smal forward. We can only hope that the surgery that he will have will ectify whatever is ailing him...but it may not. Make no mistake however...a 100% fit Ball would makea BIG difference.




But yes there is more......Gardi....may or may not come back But if he can then he could makea huge difference.

Bart of the reason why cousins and Priddis played so well was the superb feeding they got from Cox.

Kosi must continue to work on his ruckwork which is stilla long way short of what is required to be considered atrue ruckmen. Under Clarke he seems to be improving though..