Best 22 for 2016

[strikes91]

Is Trent West the man that replaces Stef Martin if he goes down? Any chance of seeing West line up whilst Martin IS playing?

Otherwise, who is the Lions back up ruck and will they play alongside Martin?

I think Leppa said any one of West/Smith/Freeman/Close would help out Stef

Josh Walker is the man. Will help out Martin during the matches

[Ringo]

Is Trent West the man that replaces Stef Martin if he goes down? Any chance of seeing West line up whilst Martin IS playing?

Otherwise, who is the Lions back up ruck and will they play alongside Martin?

I think Leppa said any one of West/Smith/Freeman/Close would help out Stef

Josh Walker is the man. Will help out Martin during the matches

Wondered about him Strikes seeing as though Schache will start Rd 1.  Will not surprise to see all three of Merrett, Andrews and Walker help out.  Stef had 90% TOG last NAB so has the tank to have a long stint.

[vossy12]

http://www.lions.com.au/video/2016-03-21/inside-the-den-schache-surprise

Leppa confirming that Schache will be starting against Eagles in Round 1.

Excellant! Cant wait to see him in action

[SilverLion]

Wrote this up the other day, hopefully we can get this lineup at least once this season  ;)

FF: J. Green/J. Schache/L. Taylor
HF: A. Christensen/J. Walker/D. Zorko
C: D. Rich/T. Rockliff/R. Bastinac
HB: P. Hanley/J. Clarke/H. Andrews
FB: R. Harwood/D. Merrett/T. Cutler
FOL: S. Martin/D. Beams/M. Robinson
IC: T. Bell/R. Lester/M. Paparone/J. Freeman

Depth:
- S. Mayes
- D. McStay
- R. Bewick
- D. Gardiner
- C. Beams
- M. Close
- R. Mathieson
- J. Jansen
- B. Keays
- T. West
- N. Robertson
- J. McGrath
- J. Paine
- M. Hammelmann

Need time to develop:
- J. Clayton
- J. Watts
- E. Hipwood
- S. Skinner
- L. Dawson
- J. McGuinness
- C. Hanley
- A. Smith
- H. Beasely
- B. Evans
- R. William

[GoLions]

Yeah reckon that's just about spot on. Maybe McStay in for someone, perhaps Lester. Harwood and Cutler on the flanks, Andrews in back pocket, Hanley in centre, Bastinac to bench, Paparone other back pocket.

Must say, was pretty disappointed in Mayes on the weekend. Barely saw him all game, and that mo was filthy!

[Ringo]

Nice Team - Woul;d probably have McStay in there somewhere possibly at the expense of Freeman if you do not follow GL logic.

Only other change maybe Claye Beams for Lester but just my opinion that beams is the better.

Mayes was real rubbish on Sunday and deserves to be dropped.

[SilverLion]

How Mayes played reminds me a bit of how Aish played last year, he looked very disinterested. I'd drop him not only for his rubbish game, but also to make him realise that he has to earn his spot in the team, rather than have it gift wrapped to him because he is more proven than someone like a Robertson, Jansen etc.

My view is that we can only play 3 of Schache, Walker, Freeman, McStay and Close in our best 22. Schache held his own in his first game, and will only get better with time. Walker did what he needed to this week, providing an option inside 50 and when he didn't mark it, he made a contest which brought the ball down for the likes of Christensen and Taylor on multiple occasions. As such I see Schache and Walker as locks for the best 22. The other three all have upside, and each offers something the others do not. Freeman is good at leading up. Close is bulkier, making him a better contested grab. McStay can swing back if needed, something I could not see the other two doing.

I guess with that last spot it really depends on the opposition but, for at least the majority of the time, I would go Freeman, as I see him developing into a very handy third tall forward. I'm hoping he becomes what Cornelius could have been. However, with Clarke out indefinitely, it would seem McStay would be his most logical replacement, and as such he will get his chance to prove himself again this year, only this time down back. He could quite easily be ahead of Freeman by the end of the season.

Regarding the back pockets, back flanks and wings, I would put Andrews on the 3rd tall forward (of course with Clarke out, he will have to take the 2nd tall, a good test for him). So if the 3rd tall starts on a flank, thats where Andrews starts. If the 3rd tall starts in the pocket, thats where Andrews starts. If the opposition has no 3rd tall, then I would put Paparone on and take Bastinac off, a move which would put Hanley on the wing, and play Andrews as the loose. Because of this, he and Cutler will be rotating positions frequently, so yeah, it could easily work out that Cutler is on half back the majority of the time. The reason I would play Harwood in the back pocket is solely because I love how Hanley can generate that run of half back (much like Rich can, however I prefer him on a wing due to his excellent ball use which is vital for netting effective inside 50s), something Harwood rarely does. Harwood can still go to half back, if Hanley goes off for a rest, in which case I would bring Paparone on and put him in the pocket.

I love the way Lester goes about it, and although he may not be the most polished footballer, he goes about his job week in week out, and rarely puts a foot wrong. Think MacMillan from North. Claye is unlucky not to be in my best 22, however he could quite easily end up putting himself ahead of Lester come the end of the season, and I'll admit he hasn't had much of a chance at the elite level yet due to his horror run of injuries so this could be his year.

My advice for Leppa:

- Never play Christensen and Taylor in the midfield, and only do so if there are injuries.
- Do not play Mayes until he shows that he actually wants to be at the club.
- Never, EVER, play Sauce, Andrews or McStay in the forward line.
- Rest Martin in the forward line instead of taking him off, he could be an asset up forward.
- Rotate Freeman and Close depending on form.
- Rotate Lester, Bewick, Claye and possibly Gardiner depending on form.
- Designate Cutler, Harwood, or if we're getting belted and need to play him there, Rich, to take the kick outs.
- Work on our inside 50 entries. We have a good enough forward line to score well now, we just deliver it to them properly.
- Have a back-up plan if, heaven forbid, Martin goes down.
- Tell Taylor that he is a great player, and could be a fantastic player if he worked on his decision making.
- Get Christensen and Mathieson to give the rest of the club a training session on 'pulling a Selwood' ;D.

Editted for grammar and re-wording.

[nrich102]

Some good stuff in there mate, I like it a lot. Just the one thing, I think you assume that McStay will be used predominantly as a forward, I think Leppa sees him as a defender who can occasionally swing forward. Not so sure on my own option around McStay million tho.

Also I think Freeman has the body to play as the no. 1 target, but him and Schache will be a very good combo in years to come.

[GoLions]

- Designate Cutler, Harwood, or if we're getting belted and need to play him there, Rich, to take the kick outs.

Oh my god yes. Who was taking them on the weekend, seemed to just be whoever was closest, and always seemed to end up in the hands of an Eagles player!

[SilverLion]

Some good stuff in there mate, I like it a lot. Just the one thing, I think you assume that McStay will be used predominantly as a forward, I think Leppa sees him as a defender who can occasionally swing forward.

Cheers mate. Think you might've overlooked this line though ;):

- Never, EVER, play Sauce, Andrews or McStay in the forward line.

I suppose you could play him up forward, but I'd only do that if Walker, Schache or Freeman went down. Even then I'm not so sure as I'd still play Close there ahead of him, especially since we need McStay to hold up Clarke's spot whilst he's out.

Oh my god yes. Who was taking them on the weekend, seemed to just be whoever was closest, and always seemed to end up in the hands of an Eagles player!

Realised that myself, it wasn't pretty gifting them goals like that.

[nrich102]

 :-[ :-[ Well now I look like an idiot  :-[

[LF]

You know what's handy as well,covering a forward the whole game.I was at the game and the Eagles were kicking our end in the last quarter,I know the game was all but over but in the last quarter I could not understand why Kennedy was standing on his own with no defender on him,cost you guys a couple of goals.

[Ringo]

You know what's handy as well,covering a forward the whole game.I was at the game and the Eagles were kicking our end in the last quarter,I know the game was all but over but in the last quarter I could not understand why Kennedy was standing on his own with no defender on him,cost you guys a couple of goals.

This is where we really miss Sauce organising the defence structure - Reckon we also would not have had 2 talls going for spoils and leaving Hill unattended if he was there.  just an observation.

[strikes91]

I was impressed with McStays game. Would have him in the team

[Ringo]

I was impressed with McStays game. Would have him in the team

+1 Mayes the only really disappointiment from Rd 1.  Think both Harwood and Cutler will benefit from Sauces return.