We've all had our ten cents worth on here about what the team should be, what our tactics should be, etc etc.
If it was you at the helm - what would you do this week against North Melbourne - and why?
For me, of our best half dozen or so players last week, four or five were 21 or less - so they all stay in the team and will do until the end of the year.
I would also do something really crazy and play people in their best position (ie Dempsey, Lonergan, Gumbleton, Zaharakis, McVeigh, Welsh).
B McVeigh Fletcher Welsh
HB Lovett-Murray Hooker Hocking
C Zaharakis Lonergan Dempsey
HF Colyer Hurley Winderlich
F Davey Gumbleton Monfries
R Ryder Watson Prismall
I Bellchambers Melksham Howlett Reimers
Ins Welsh, Prismall
Outs Neagle, Stanton
My instructions would be to throw yourself at every contest, chase down every loose ball, crash into your own team-mates if you have to but just go after the pill. Slide in low and force a ball up if you have to. Do not let the opposition get easy possessions from clearances, as that's what's killing us at the moment.
Hurley and Gumbleton I want as essentially stay at home forwards - Gumbleton to start from the goal-square, to give us an 'out' - the high ball to the square. Hurley can lead up but no further than about 70m from goal.
Davey and Monfries also to play pretty much exclusively within 80m of goal except when tracking opponents back up the field.
The game plan is to get the ball to Dempsey and Zaharakis who are two of our best kicks - who I want clearing packs thanks to shepherds and bumps as I don't want either of these guys to have too much defensive responsibility at all - it's just not in their DNA.
Lonergan and Howlett to give Watson a cut out in the middle as they are hard at it - and guys like Winderlich and Colyer to be running around the defensive side of packs - either to pick off opposition attempted clearances or to get the ball on the receive and kick it long to guys like Hurley and Gumbleton.
Man on man in the back half - that means you Mark McVeigh and Andrew Welsh - just do a job on Thomas and Campbell and don't worry about getting a kick yourselves.
If ANYONE handballs to a man standing still they get dragged straight away. That's not in the new Ossie gameplan.
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
The moment the opposition midfield starts to get on top, Reimers gets the job of doing a tag on whoever's getting the most of the footy - probably Swallow or Harvey.
All sounds so easy, right? Basic footy principles and all that.
Disect as required.
![Wink :wink:](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)
EDIT: Thanks to WH for pointing out I had left out Prismall and Melksham, I have amended my team accordingly.
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)