Damien Hardwick On SEN This Morning

[TonyTheTiger]

Gotta say I am agreeing with Dimma here, no harm in playing Jack further up the ground, his reading of the play and particular the drop of the ball is fantastic. He rarely is beaten for a mark and if he doesn't take it, always seemed to create a contest last year.

Jack will get the best defender each week, guaranteed, if he then proceeds to run up the ground the defender will either go with him, leaving one of Vickery, Miller, Post or whoever one out in the goal square against the second or possibly third best defender, or the defender will allow him to run off leaving another player to pick him up, which Jack will then proceed to take screamers on the wing and towel up whoever he comes into contact with.

 

[smasha]

Hardwick doesn't want us too one dimensional so I think it's a great move.

 

[Tigers of Old]

Jack at FF is fine and it works.
What we need are other avenues to goal.
That's the problem as I see it anyway.

 

[KnightersRevenge]

Not sure what DH is thinking and in the subterfuge of modern footy he is un-likely to spell it out. Our HF line has been a shambles for a long time. Richo papered over the cracks with his outstanding mobility and freakish marking ability. But without something to strengthen our HF line the ball rebounds from our forward fifty too easily - even with Jack in there. I guess that is some of what DH is trying to look at improving and maybe using the greater Riewoldt to help him do it?

 

[Tiger74]

Jack at FF is fine and it works.
What we need are other avenues to goal.
That's the problem as I see it anyway.

Maybe with the new sub role, the resting ruck will start playing the role of the stay at home FF (given their access to the bench will be now limited).

 

[billyb#40]

Started JR on a wing in one game for 2 or 3 minutes to get him free so he could be a bit on the merry go round and still spend a lot of time at FF
He is a little slow and a shortish kick to be playing too far up the ground for too long.
But rotations are all the thing.
I am looking forward to the other young talls improving, Vickery, Griffiths, Post and maybe Rance could all have an impact for a time.

 

[mld]

Maybe with the new sub role, the resting ruck will start playing the role of the stay at home FF (given their access to the bench will be now limited).

That's what I'm thinking, we won't have the luxury of a permanent FF.

 

[Opulentus Tigris]

His role won't change dramatically from last year. I recall on a number of occassions Jack taking possession of the ball on the wing. In fact I believe he took a screamer against the Aints on the wing. Lots of hysteria for nothing. Move on.

 

[michael roach]

I don`t believe we are neccessarily getting him leaner and fitter to move him further up the ground permanently,it`s more to give him the tools to break the double and triple teaming more often.

Teams worked out he was our only avenue to goal therefore put 2,3 and 4 players on him to stop him.

At times he will play Full Forward and if he dominates then fantastic,but if he`s getting crowded and triple teamed like late last year now we can get him to get on his bike and run up the ground in the Richo/Nick Riewoldt mould.


We were far too one dimensional last year and opposition teams found it easy to plan for and stop so getting him fitter and more mobile just gives us more options and adds another string to our bow.

 

[Scoop]

Because 80 goal Coleman medalists at 21years old are as rare as hens teeth. Why would you want to mess with that?

After decades, we finally get the best player in the comp at a specific position, and what do we do? We decide to slim him down and move him to another spot.

Yep. Classic robbing Peter to pay Paul.

The doubt with JR moving up the ground is that they can slim him down all they want but he is may simply be too slow. His reading of the play, body positioning and general nous are outstanding so would seem to me that he is better suited closer to goal. This doesn't necesary preclude creating more avenues to goal which many seem to suggest.

Yep.

Jack at FF is fine and it works.
What we need are other avenues to goal.
That's the problem as I see it anyway.

Yep. Leave him at his best spot FF and get a CHF. If you move him to CHF don't you have to find a FF anyway?

I still think it is smoke and mirrors. Jack's role may vary slightly but I think he will play almost the exact same role of 2010.

I don't understand changing one of the few success of 2010. May as well move Martin to a back pocket while we are at it.

 

[RedanTiger]

When Dimma talked about JR slimming down and moving further upfield, what crossed my mind was the comment Sheedy made a long time ago about Hird.

Hird was one of the best CHFs in his early years but Sheddy decided not to build him up to allow him to compete on more equal physical terms with a big CHB.
When asked about it, Sheedy replied that if he built up Hird and played him as a CHF, Hirds career would be shortened by years.
A few years after that when Hird had gone to more of a midfield role he built up one year and got lots of injuries. He decided to slim down and had few further stress injuries.
Same was true of Buckley.

Think this is the exact reasoning about Jack. Personally don't want him carrying too much weight simply to compete on strength terms with Fullbacks or to play the classic strong CHF role.
Think Dimma still sees Jack as a third tall that would be virtually unstoppable one-on-one, same as Richo but a better kick.

 

[Barnzy]

This just doesn't make sense. Riewoldt is the reigning Coleman medalist and and our best attacking option and Hardwick wants to play him further up the ground?

I can see this move backfiring badly and Riewoldt reverting to a similar role as last year by midseason and desperately trying to add more bulk so he stops getting pushed around by defenders.

Agree.

 

[Leysy Days]

Navy believes some punters are reading too much into this. He's hardly turned lost a stack of weight.

Hardwick rightly INO needs the option of rolling JR a bit higher in the forward line on the days he's not having an influence or when he needs to rest the No 2 ruck (Post, TV) close to goal so as to keep the midfielders rotating through the bench.

Jacks fitness wasnt a strength last year. When it drops away you can see his 2nd efforts & defensive pressure naturally lag as his legs are spent.

Combine that with the fact he will be doing some more running in some games because of the above, its the right thing to get his fitness levels up even if it means dropping a touch in weight INO.

Every club is doing the same.

 

[Super9Nova]

yeah chillax everyone. I'm confident Jack will be a great player no matter what. try to forget the traditional field positions of the past. who was Collingwood's spearhead last year???

 

[ozmadman]

Surely the new interchange rules are a big part of this. All teams will need more flexibility and it seems this is what Dimma is after. And the small amount of weight he's lost won't mean that suddenly he's no good as a stay at home FF when it's needed.

 

[frickenel]

Learning from past mistakes perhaps Re:Richo.

Exactly right in my opinion!

Anyone who has footage of Richo mid 90's when his weight was around 97kg will see a player that still took a heap of contested marks but could turn sharper than Franklin today! He still maintained his pace and stamina with the extra weight, but in terms of mobility to turn, he lost heaps with the extra weight!

Also cast your mind back to Jakc last season. When he started kicking bags, he started to hang around the square more. Once he did this the goals started to dry up. Then Dimma got into him about getting on his bike and goals started coming again!

I thinkhe'll kick as many from up the ground as he will anchored to the square! Furthermore if we can spread our goals, then we'll be less predictable as a team and more dangerous!

 

[Tigermad2005]

He is just going back to his playing wt at the start of last year.
It has been said time and time again that he got to big towards the end of the year. : :

 

[thejinx]

We came 15th last year, with Jack winning the Coleman.

So having a Coleman medalist doesn't necessarily help us win. We're here to win games, not worthless individual medals.

I'd rather be less predictable, and spread the goals around,, rather than having Jack kick them all.

 

[fastin bulbous]

Playing Jaaaack at FF makes us far to predictable and one dimensional, he had a standout year for us but you can guarantee clubs will drop a floater over the top every time we go forward if he's stuck at FF all year. He'll end up with 40/ 50 goals and the rest of the club will kick dribbles.
Jaaacks right up there with the best mids for footy smarts in controlling play and setting up structures etc. Getting Jaaack a bit more aerobicly fit and mobile with his talent, backed up with Griff and High Def as more conventional KPPF with crummers makes us extremely versatile and much more dangerous.
Opposition coaches won't be able to squat on one player to shut us down, our mids will have plenty of one on one or solo options to choose from.
Once the club gets this sort of setup properly structured in you could easily expect three key options like say Jaaack, Griff and High Def to each get probably 30 plus goals per season and a grouping of smalls getting 15 plus. Far better scenario to have multiple scoring options each game then just sitting it on Jaaacks head and praying.
Reckon it's a ripper decision by our coaching dept.

recon you're a smart poster

 

[Elmer]

This just doesn't make sense.