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Damien Hardwick
- Thread starter Tigers of Old
- Start date
The Demons this year have changed their midfield style,instead of 2-3 player's charging in to extract it,they now only send in 1 with the other's ready to receive or apply pressure ,they do it well ,but also helps to have a top ruck man .
The soft cap reductions have hurt more than anything.
We had built the perfect club before covid.
Assistant coaches, Strength & conditioning, mindfulness, player welfare..all diminished.
It takes a toll.
We had built the perfect club before covid.
Assistant coaches, Strength & conditioning, mindfulness, player welfare..all diminished.
It takes a toll.
The players look not only cooked but confused. We have been defensively poor all year too. I think we've been trying to over correct things but at the moment it looks like we have no system.
If I was Damien Hardwick I would sit the boys down and
tell them to forget everything they've been told / taught during the past few months and
play, on repeat, on the big screen, a collection of our best games during the past 4 years. over and over again until it all comes back to them.
tell them to forget everything they've been told / taught during the past few months and
play, on repeat, on the big screen, a collection of our best games during the past 4 years. over and over again until it all comes back to them.
I think Dimma got spooked and without the experienced and quality assistance around him to steady the ship he has panicked and created a total mess. Shows on the park as well.
As he's been saying for the last 4 years he should have just stuck to the process and believed in the system. This whole thing about our game plan being found out is *smile*. Elite pressure is never found out. I don't care how good you are, when you can apply manic pressure the opposition will crumble. Dimma should have stuck with out style but made the necessary changes in personnel on the field to regenerate the hunger and intensity. He has stuck loyal to certain players and that has been the downfall.
Going away from what the players have lived and breathed for 4+ years has created an absolute shitfest. Players look completely confused with what they need to do now and that is when the mental fatigue sets in.
When you are playing 2s and going well but you are continually missing out on selection with senior players stinking it up each week then you open yourself for playing group issues. Was fine while we were dominating as there was no excuse to whinge. Think that might be the main issue with his playing group atm. 2s players coming in know they are on borrowed time when the senior players return from injury regardless of their form. Ala players like George still getting games. Aarts. Players like Houli coming straight back in. To me the players just don't look as connected as other years. That brotherhood seems to have fallen away.
As he's been saying for the last 4 years he should have just stuck to the process and believed in the system. This whole thing about our game plan being found out is *smile*. Elite pressure is never found out. I don't care how good you are, when you can apply manic pressure the opposition will crumble. Dimma should have stuck with out style but made the necessary changes in personnel on the field to regenerate the hunger and intensity. He has stuck loyal to certain players and that has been the downfall.
Going away from what the players have lived and breathed for 4+ years has created an absolute shitfest. Players look completely confused with what they need to do now and that is when the mental fatigue sets in.
When you are playing 2s and going well but you are continually missing out on selection with senior players stinking it up each week then you open yourself for playing group issues. Was fine while we were dominating as there was no excuse to whinge. Think that might be the main issue with his playing group atm. 2s players coming in know they are on borrowed time when the senior players return from injury regardless of their form. Ala players like George still getting games. Aarts. Players like Houli coming straight back in. To me the players just don't look as connected as other years. That brotherhood seems to have fallen away.
Completely agree with the above.
Dimma did say pre game that we are going back to the richmond blueprint. Might take a few weeks to get it up and running.
Big test for Dimma.
There are a lot of issues, clearly.
But I didn't see much chipping sideways last night. What I did see was similar to the StKilda game - lots of players bombing it long because they had no choice. No one running past, no one presenting. No options.
Somehow I don't think Dimma has been instructing the players to form a pack with their opponents up the wing so we can go for the long bomb.
I also don't think Dimma has been telling them to switch play (which all teams do in an attempt to find some space) but make sure you do it slowly and make sure there aren't free players down the line on the fat side because we wouldn't want that.
I remain unconvinced that Dimma has instructed the players to stop taking space and reducing the opposition's options - the new rules have made this harder, but the new rules have not made it impossible. The positioning may be a bit different with the new rules but the sides who are playing well are still blocking space and reducing their opponent's options.
Reduce the level of pressure we put on opponents when they do have possession? Nah, don't think Dimma has been issuing that instruction either.
For one reason or another the players are not putting the work in to do these things. They have not adapted to the changes in the rules which require tweaking, not radical change.
Something is amiss, hopefully they can reset and find some form.
DS
But I didn't see much chipping sideways last night. What I did see was similar to the StKilda game - lots of players bombing it long because they had no choice. No one running past, no one presenting. No options.
Somehow I don't think Dimma has been instructing the players to form a pack with their opponents up the wing so we can go for the long bomb.
I also don't think Dimma has been telling them to switch play (which all teams do in an attempt to find some space) but make sure you do it slowly and make sure there aren't free players down the line on the fat side because we wouldn't want that.
I remain unconvinced that Dimma has instructed the players to stop taking space and reducing the opposition's options - the new rules have made this harder, but the new rules have not made it impossible. The positioning may be a bit different with the new rules but the sides who are playing well are still blocking space and reducing their opponent's options.
Reduce the level of pressure we put on opponents when they do have possession? Nah, don't think Dimma has been issuing that instruction either.
For one reason or another the players are not putting the work in to do these things. They have not adapted to the changes in the rules which require tweaking, not radical change.
Something is amiss, hopefully they can reset and find some form.
DS
correct - Dimma wouldn't be telling them to bomb blindly. The bombing blindly is the outcome, not the intention. A result of not having any other option.
my theory is we've gone away from our game gradually and are now trying to come back to it. But the cohesion and running patterns and instincts & anticipation are all out of sync and it's become a mess. And the harder we try the worse it looks.
No doubt we started to move the ball slowly and started to chip the ball around to retain possession a few weeks ago. First signs to me were the bulldogs game.
With this comes a change in our positioning and more importantly our running patterns. A split second hesitation to leave your man to run to support or to apply pressure makes a huge difference. Everyone starts to second guess themselves and their team mates. And it snowballs.
And in a system and process based team such as ours cohesion and synchronicity is one of the most important ingredients.
Dimma has always said we are a process driven team and that we need to trust the process. Seems he started to doubt this himself and went away from it.
I’d really love to know exactly what Hardwick’s game plan instructions are to the team to really understand where it’s going wrong. It was 1970’s football for a while last night as the players ran out of ideas & options as you well described.
its not the coach or the 'process' or our Richmond system .if you cant handball a ball 10 meters and hit a target .................then ....................we will continue to produce this rubbish
Don't want to be comparing Essendon to us, but the way they're starting to move the ball around and swarming the opposition, while we slowly become a mess reminiscent to 2016, I can't help think that we should have done more to keep Caracella. Ball movement is his specialty and unfortunately we are seeing the results.
Hoping Dimma and the senior players were taking notes.
Hoping Dimma and the senior players were taking notes.
in the cold light of day it is clear.
we can't spread from stoppage.
injuries to Lambert, Prestia, Edwards, Cotchin. the captain can't trust his hamstrings, he's done. Martin is carrying.
this is why Dimma tried to slow the game down. to conserve petrol tickets and use a three-pronged attack. second to the ball and slingshot from HB.
I can see why he did it, but in hindsight it was wrong.
so whilst I agree 100% with Harry (good posting), the problem is no midfield.
we were smashed on the outside last night. obliterated. this problem won't be fixed by a resumption of chaos.
it can only be fixed at the draft and trade table.
we can't spread from stoppage.
injuries to Lambert, Prestia, Edwards, Cotchin. the captain can't trust his hamstrings, he's done. Martin is carrying.
this is why Dimma tried to slow the game down. to conserve petrol tickets and use a three-pronged attack. second to the ball and slingshot from HB.
I can see why he did it, but in hindsight it was wrong.
so whilst I agree 100% with Harry (good posting), the problem is no midfield.
we were smashed on the outside last night. obliterated. this problem won't be fixed by a resumption of chaos.
it can only be fixed at the draft and trade table.
