What We Learned from Last Week's Grand Final
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WHAT WE LEARNED FROM LAST WEEK’S GRAND FINAL NICK BOWEN, ASHLEY BROWNE, CAMERON NOAKES, PETER RYAN, CALLUM TWOMEY any elements of a You can bet some new awarded at a centre bounce premiership team’s understanding about the science or in the centre square? winning formula of recovery will leap forward. And Could a high kick when a team is infl uence the shape psychological expertise is likely surging forward (think of the high Mof the next season. to receive the recognition inside ball used in rugby) be a way to force Normally, trend-watchers have football clubs it deserves. And it’s a score late in a tight game, or even only two hours of Grand Final certain strategic thinking around the beat a zone? football to determine what will be game will only increase. Whatever happens today, the next fashionable the following season. Here are some left-fi eld ideas chapter promises plenty. Today’s game The replay makes football watching that ought to be considered after will only heighten the intrigue as double the fun, with twice the watching last week’s game. we take a sneak peak at what factors amount of intrigue. Could a team move the ball might interest AFL clubs in 2011. Defensive presses, one specialist forward by dribbling it along the ruckman and one back-up, ground to make best use of ground- THE UTILITY IS A defenders being tagged, any level skills while also quelling the COACH’S DREAM number of midfi elders, the need opposition’s marking defenders? to focus on goalkicking and the Could selecting fresh legs every Brendon Goddard seemed need to kick more, are just some second week be a way for clubs capable of answering St Kilda of the trends to emerge from with deep lists to maximise their coach Ross Lyon’s prayers all over last week’s drawn Grand Final. run and advantage? the ground last Saturday. Who knows what the replay will Could we see the huddle used in In the midfi eld, he won the ball throw forward? a forward line when a free kick is almost at will. He racked up 31 34 AFL RECORD visit afl record.com.au ARGF2 p034-047 What we learned.indd 34 30/9/10 12:17:47 PM WILDCARD: Brendon Goddard’s superb high mark in the last quarter evoked comparisons with the great Alex Jesaulenko and underlined the value an elite utility off ers his coach. XXXXXXX: XXXXXX XXXXX AFL RECORD visit afl record.com.au 35 ARGF2 p034-047 What we learned.indd 35 30/9/10 12:52:40 PM A successful WHAT WE LEARNED team needs a strong possessions and fi ve clearances, Fremantle’s Matthew Pavlich Players who ball-winning and Swan, St while fi ve times he won the and Hawthorn’s Luke Hodge, can win centre combination in Kilda’s Hayes or hit-out as the third-man up at who starred as an undersized clearances are the middle Leigh Montagna, around-the-ground stoppages. centre half-back in the 2008 invaluable, as a Hawthorn’s Sam In defence, he took kick-ins, Grand Final. quick clearance Mitchell, Essendon’s rebounded the ball from the In one sense, we’re simply and surge inside Jobe Watson, the Lions’ Saints’ defensive 50m arc six talking about champion players 50 helps forwards trap the ball. Simon Black, Carlton’s Chris times – the third highest tally because you don’t earn that title Watching Collingwood’s Judd, Geelong’s Joel Selwood for the game – and, with two by being one-dimensional. Look best four on-ballers (Darren and Gary Ablett (now with Gold minutes remaining in the game, at how Gary Ablett jnr has proven Jolly, Luke Ball, Dane Swan Coast), or the Bulldogs’ Matthew made a critical spoil, punched just as dangerous on the forward and Scott Pendlebury) up Boyd so valuable, and confi rms Chris Dawes’ shot for goal across line as in the midfi eld this year, against the Saints’ ruckman the point that a successful team the boundary line, rather than kicking a career-high 44 goals. (Michael Gardiner or Justin needs a strong ball-winning concede a behind. But players such as Goddard Koschitzke) and Lenny Hayes, combination in the middle, And in attack, Goddard twice who can play ‘tall’ are the Brendon Goddard and Nick working together, understanding took strong pack marks; the wildcards coaches most dream Dal Santo, was to see two great each other’s patterns. fi rst in the third quarter and about having at their disposal. mini-teams going head to head. The best individuals – say, the second – high enough to Goddard offers Lyon the added Last Saturday, when either Judd, Ablett, Swan and Hayes evoke comparisons with Carlton fl exibility of an extra key position team managed clean clearances – also hurt the opposition when great Alex Jesaulenko’s classic option in attack or defence. – generally through Hayes or they spread, making quick, mark from the 1970 Grand And players who can soar to Swan – the game swung in that smart decisions about where to Final – in the fi nal term. On take speccies up forward, and team’s direction. run to create space. And they both occasions, he converted then make match-winning Late in the second quarter, know the system of play their his subsequent shot for goal. spoils in defence, are rare indeed. Swan found space in the centre team is implementing, being Goddard’s performance square and Collingwood disciplined enough to push back underlined just how much YOU CAN’T UNDERPLAY threatened to take over the game. when required. fl exibility an elite utility offers THE IMPORTANCE In the second half, with Farren his coach. OF WINNING CENTRE Ray tightening up on Swan, THE ERA OF TWO Having risen to the game’s CLEARANCES Hayes began to get clean breaks SPECIALIST RUCKMEN upper echelon in the past two and the game turned in the MIGHT BE OVER seasons, he is retracing the Both the Saints and the Magpies Saints’ favour. footsteps of past star utilities are prepared to press up as The centre clearance puts The omission of Ben McEvoy such as Jesaulenko, Malcolm they move the ball forward to pressure on the opposition’s from St Kilda’s team as a tactical Blight (North Melbourne), ensure it stays in their respective defensive structure, with players response to Collingwood’s Gary Ablett snr (Geelong), attacking halves. forced to fi ght one-on-one, Darren Jolly-Leigh Brown ruck Terry Daniher and James Collingwood has kept the without the support the third combination signalled the end of Hird (Essendon) and Anthony ball inside its forward 50 longer man zoning off or tracking clubs playing two ruck specialists. Koutoufi des (Carlton). than any other team this season across can provide. This makes With high interchange Today, Goddard’s utility and it leads the competition in centre-square specialists such as rotations, clubs can no longer contemporaries include inside-50 differentials. the Magpies’ Ball, Pendlebury afford to have two players in one team who each play only 50 per cent of the game. Two of the 22 must now play around 80 per cent of the game each, switching between ruck and forward roles and allow midfi elders to rotate on and off the bench enough to keep their intensity high. Geelong indicated it had adopted this policy by playing Tom Hawkins alongside Brad Ottens. Fremantle has used Michael Johnson as a back- up for Aaron Sandilands and Melbourne went with Mark Jamar as a solo ruckman. One impact of the structural change is that it makes experts at the third-man up tactic more important than ever. St Kilda has always excelled at the art of third-man up at stoppages. Lenny Hayes and Brendon Goddard have both the leap and timing to NO SPACE: Dane Swan was rise above a ruck contest and restricted to just 21 touches either grab the ball or knock last week and, when he did it forward. It’s a tactic that gain possession, Saints such looks easy, but it takes skill and as Clinton Jones and Adam Schneider ensured he was teamwork to execute well. always under pressure. Last Saturday, after half-time, with Michael Gardiner injured 36 AFL RECORD visit afl record.com.au ARGF2 p034-047 What we learned.indd 36 30/9/10 12:40:22 PM WHAT WE LEARNED and Justin Koschitzke in the ruck, the two Saints used their VERSATILE: The days of teams fi elding two specialist expertise in that area to deny ruckmen could be over, with Jolly and Brown the chance to more mobile back-up players give their midfi elders fi rst use such as Jason Blake and Leigh of the football. Brown providing coaches with greater fl exibility. Goddard had fi ve hit-outs and Hayes three but, more importantly, they bashed into the Collingwood ruck duo, limiting the chance they had to knock the ball down to the advantage of Dane Swan or Scott Pendlebury. The tactic was also assisted by the umpires letting the play go, apparently unwilling to pay free kicks for holding the ball. Hayes, in particular, worked hard to get his hands on the ball fi rst and dish it off in the way Graham ‘Polly’ Farmer did when he reinvented the art of ruckwork in the 1960s. With so many players around the ball at stoppages, the ability to clear the area and put runners into space might in the near future be a function of mid-sized players with good leaps.