diesel95 wrote:
we usually select three or even four smalls even if one is playing off the bench. Foggerty, Motlop, Durdin all played together a lot throw Fantasia and Owies in the mix for mids who play small. Williams can tackle etc but more of a medium tall and mid than a small i think. How you fit Haywood and Ainsworth in i’ll leave to the MC for round zero (geez the round zero concept is one of the more egregious conceits coming out of AFL House in the last few decades and that is saying something).
Motlop seems to please the MC so i can’t see him missing out a lot but it’s great to have selection dilemmas with AFL players hitting good form in the VFL.
With regards to your last line, I don't think we recruited Byrne because the MC are pleased with Motlop, and White and Fogarty. Motlop was accredited and selected for doing a lot of selfless running in Vossy's 2025 Game plan. As did Fogarty, as did Durdin.
I think our new HHF Ainsworth will be playing that HHF role, for longer, with better footy IQ and a knack of winning his own ball than Motlop, Fogarty, and White. I think Evans will be first drop IF he isnt in the team. Fogarty wont play much in his final contract year. I think Evans ill stay ahead of Motlop.
We played 4-5 small forwards (Williams No 1, Fogarty (defensive staple), Motlop, White, Fantasia or Evans when we didnt have much choice, because we had too many forwards out injured: medium size Cottrell, Hollands., who would be auto selections, as would smallE, Smith, let alone marking targets missing like Kemp, McKay or O'Keefe, all missing against Pies game, for example. I don't know anyone who thought our 3-4 smalls were a successful combo. Was selected out of desperation and lack of choice imo. Injury really hurt us in 2025, and 2024, and early 2023, and late 2022.
As for Motlop's cameos in the midfield mix, I think they were just that: cameo. He may have had a ball bounce his way and off he went, which looked good, once or twice, but he can't win his own ball, not break tackles, nor has any tricks, like a side step. He needs to improve a lot to avoid the inevitable delisting end of 2027....imo
Williams, Ainsworth, Evans, in that order, and I expect Byrne will "earn" an opportunity to show his class and bag of tricks in 2026 too. Good luck to Motlop, and other than his 2 goals in the win against Demons in that Final, Ive haven't seen enough to be convinced he's AFL quality.
Lets not forget our injury list last year, and the fact we couldn't find a home for him...and the fact we ADDED a class small forward to the plethora of smalls on our list.
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When the boys light up.
thanks frank