Sounds like a good cop bad cop scenario to me.. (Throw in the one year contract only)
Think youll find Lance wouldnt mind being a dog.(But you are right on one account....time will tell )

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Lance for a top dog draft pick & player perhaps?

Lance spends time down back because he isnt contributing in the forward line.
Some posters are giving a personal analysis of where Lance is with his footy and what his value is to the team.
This involves using statistics and using actual details on Lances year.
It's a bit different to the head in sand approach.

No one is picking on Lance, if his record doesnt flatter him, that's hardly the fault of anyone here.

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Looking forward to seeing our potential realised.

Lance cant play Pagans paddock type roles..he isnt fit enough or in the same class as Carey...Carey was an out and out champion who could take chest marks sitting on players heads and split packs open allowing the Harveys, Abrahams etc to run onto the footy..Lance doesnt play like that so I dont get the connection between him and the Pagans Paddock game plan..which is based on hard running and good work ethic.
Its not be about picking on Lance he just ist suited to that style plan...I think Lance needs to move on for his own good regardless of what or who at the club think of him..

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"When you have the attitude of a champion, you see adversity as your
training partner."
- Conor Gillen

Why does everyone persist with the "Pagan's gameplan is to just kick it to a champion CHF" line of argument?
Pagan's gameplan put simply is fast movement of the ball into the 50 to our forward line's advantage.

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa

Yes to a 2-3 man forward set up as everyone else has cleared out of the forward 50. Thus the term Pagans Paddock. It is the flood with fast movement of the ball out of the defensive 50 into the forward 50. It has worked three times in the history of the game. 1971 with Hudson and Hawthorns 1996 and 1999 with Carey and north. Each time it won a grandfinal it was against weak opposition. Coaches now just set someone loose in you defensive half and the ball ends up rebounding back over your head as quick as you put it in there. It requires and exceptional forward to carry this off. They are few and far between . The game set up he had in the last 1/4 of Ess and hawks games and the entire richmond game is far better. Give yourself as many options up forward as you can it is harder for the opposition to man up on you and if they flood back then the game is at least played in your half of the ground as that is where all the players are . Its simple really someone just needs to get it through Pagans head.

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If you allow the Government to change the Laws in an emergency
They will create an Emergency to change the Laws

You don't have to employ "Pagan's Paddock" to be following his gameplan which is fast entry inside 50 with minimal stuffing around with the ball.
How many times has "Pagan's Paddock" actually been seen since he's been at Carlton other than the standard flood (which almost every team employs with varying frequency).

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa

Sydneyblue, good point.

If you look back to the 98 grand final - you will notice that Adelaide won only after they cleared out the numbers in the midfield and put them in the forward line.

ie instead of about 8 players in the midfield the half forward flankers moved back into the forward line thereby allowing Adelaide's midfield the room to run riot over North.

If you look at the game on the weekend - Carlton's midfield was dominant - it had room and the forward line had multiple options. Stevens/Scotland and Kouta should be a match for any midfield if playing to form. it almost looked effortless for the blues on the weekend. Whether i want them to win this weekend though is debatable.

Thats fine Wojee provided you dont turn the ball over and have the ability to keep the ball in your forward fifty when it gets there. Our problem is all our ball deliverers are flooding back into our defensive fifty and there is not enough time for them to push forward to deliver the ball to the forwards. How many times have you seen Stevens - campo - Lappin - Walker- houlihan all great with the ball in their hands sitting down back picking up possessions and the ball being delivered into the forward fifty has been done via Waite - prendagast johnson - Scotland - French - wiggins - kouta etc none of whom are blessed with good ball skills.
Our lack of defence and the inability of our taggers to apply pressure to the oppositions gun midfeilders has forced Pagan to push guys back who should not be there. He should recognise this and change his gameplan to suit. Like he did against Richmond

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If you allow the Government to change the Laws in an emergency
They will create an Emergency to change the Laws

You've basically just stated that our lack of accountability in our midfield is forcing Pagan to push players behind the ball. This has been a problem all year, and against teams with good midfields (ie Not Richmond on the weekend) it'll always be a problem until we can get another one or two top class, accountable midfielders.

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa

I'd keep him if he accepts the paycut.Defence may be an option.He must improve his kicking.I have never seen a guy who hook a ball like that since BakerFinch at the 1st a tSt Andrews

Wojee, i think you have nailed him.
Thatsd exactly why were playinh with so many behind the ball because as Sydney Blue is correctly stating... the midfield is unnacountable so were playing 'catch up football ' in effect.Campo out of the midfield , >>midfield more accountable and the more midfield pressure (See Simpsons and Benticks tackle count) and all of a sudden were breaking even and better.. and looking much more positive.

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Sydney Blue,

If you look at the way we played against Richmond, we usually played with a fairly limited forward line with key targets in Fev, Fisher and Waite with a lot of space. Our midfield managed to move the ball quickly without over-possessing. That's the key - Pagan is not just about bombing it to CHF; I've gone over this ground before - but i'll say it again.

Bombing to CHF is NOT the Pagan game plan. It's about quick movement into the forward line delivering the ball to the forward's advantage. Having Fisher there helps because he can take marks.

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"A good composer does not initiate. He steals."

- Igor Stravinsky

Synbad you do not want your ball users doing the in and under stuff you want them delivering the ball to the forwards. To many times in the last couple of years DP has allowed match ups where unaccountable players like Kouta Campo and Stevens have been matched up on the opposition gun midfeilders . These guys get plenty of possessions but you get hurt twice as bad going the other way. Our problem has not been our guns it has been our wiggins, sporn , bannister , prendagast , johnson and co whose job in the side is to shut down the opposition guns. They have not be able to carry it out all game and thus we a competitive for parts of games but eventually get run over. This then forces DP to push Campo Stevens- whitnal back to cover . On the weekend our best negating players simpson and Bentick played - so this allowed Stevens to drift forward- campo to take on a new role down back and the whole side looked better. You see the talent is there what our side needs is a couple of good taggers -another ruckmen and another good backmen

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If you allow the Government to change the Laws in an emergency
They will create an Emergency to change the Laws

Sydney Blue, you can't have 5 midfielders assigned to nothing but stopping and 3 assigned to nothing but earning easy possies. The power teams of Brisbane and Port (premier teams) have been based on an extensive list of accountable skilled footballers. This ain't American football where you can have such a segmented midfield view and swap the defensive / offensive over.

Carlton has very few complete midfielders, if any. Kouta and Campo are nowhere near it, as much as I lvoe Kouta, Stevens tries but is best outside. You mention bentick and simmo but both are young, emerging, and Simmo is there for his breaking speed, not as a tagger.

You say its the fault of some, and not others, but in myview it's the fault of all of them. We have so many 1 dimensional footballers now that midfield matchups are very difficult. Pagan (and any coach) are hamstrung. It worked against the Tigers because our playmakers were able to get free - Kouta and Stevens.

Sydney Blue winning the ball inside has nothing to do with tracking back and defending your man.
We have TWO guys in particular who dont do it and the whole team suffers as a result.
There is nothing wrong with Campo being a 700k outside wingman vice captain and premiership player if he ran with his man defensively...

Thats why he was back pocket on the weekend.
Most expensive back pocket player in the history of the game.

Thats why we won...

But not enough class to bowl over Port this week...

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We could argue for ever but there is no secret that the game is won or lost in the midfeild. Every game every week is decided by your midfeilds ability to deliver the ball to your forwards. If your side has not got the ability to shut down the opponents midfeild you get smashed. We have tried to use players that are no capable of shutting down players in that role. Ie Campo -Kouta and Stevens. Yes they are the three highest paid players in the side but they are not there for this role. They are there to create scoring opportunites and break sides apart. Every good side in the comp has players that sit on them run with them and even pick up possessions through them. We do not have anyone like this. ie - Bret Kirk- Ling- Guera- Baker etc none of whom are blessed with tons of ability but do a role.
Synbad to use your terms - you let your Downhill skiers ski and you leave the dirty work to others.

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If you allow the Government to change the Laws in an emergency
They will create an Emergency to change the Laws

Guerra?

Sydney the modern footballer is expected to do it all, like Kirk, Carr, Roger James, McLeod. We have too many types that can't do it, including Stevens and aKouta, and definitely Campo. You wanting to blame the young taggers is not right - yes they should be better players but the problem is across our midfield, not just Wiggins, Bannister, Sporn etc.

Midfield a key no doubt, but Sydney you cannot afford to field a team made up of taggers mixed with downhill skiers, one dimensional football and different roles for different folks is long gone.

why has brisbane dominated the last 4 years?

akermanis, black, lappin, voss, hart, power..... you can't afford this sort of talent and numbers on the paddock unless they are prepared to get the ball, do something special with it andwhen they do not have it, negate every chance the opposition has or might have. Brisbane have been outstanding because of the quality of the midfield....quality being the all round package.

"Bret Kirk- Ling- Guera- Baker etc none of whom are blessed with tons of ability but do a role." Unlike the brisbane guys, i can't see any of the above playing in a premiership this year. (and if Guera does it might be in a forward pocket).

however in 2005 the team likely to win the flag will be a unit that consists of Judd, Cousins (how good is that guy when he doesn't have the ball?), Stenglein,Braun, Kerr, Fletcher......there goes another six quality all round midfielders

Thank Wiggins for that, I was beginning to think that I was the only one who understands Pago Pago's gameplan.

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"One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people's minds." - Frank Zappa