Brisbane has
been experiencing numerous problems on and off the field for over a decade and
2017 sadly has not been any different for loyal Lions supporters.
New coach
Chris Fagan will need time to truly bring his game plan to fruition but for the
time being he has to work with a team that he had inherited from Justin
Leppitsch.
Although he
cannot be completely at fault for the way the Brisbane defence is set up, he
needs to make adjustments to his back six for the remainder of the season. He
has reduced the average amount of points conceded per game from over 130 down
to 122 but clearly there is more work to do.
One of the
problems with the defence is that he has too many makeshift defenders. Ryan Harwood,
Daniel Rich, and Sam Mayes have been used as running defenders in the
post-Michael Voss era and they have been out of their comfort zone more often
than not.
Harwood has
played a couple of times for the NEAFL side and he has kicked nine goals in two
games as a small forward so hopefully this convinces Fagan to shift the
25-year-old out of defence.
Rich has
been used in defence but for all the time he has spent in the defensive 50, his
defending has not improved. Despite the modern game’s emphasis on having
defenders with elite kicking skills, Rich has been prone to errors in the back
line and his talent would serve Brisbane better on the wing or as a small
forward.
Mayes also
suffers from a similar issue to Rich. He is better off operating as an outside
midfielder or a small forward instead of providing dash from the back and he
also lacks the attributes of a specialist defender.
In addition
to the problems in the running defender roles, the Lions lack two established
key position defenders and the youngsters in those positions are operating in
roles that don’t bring the best out of their characteristics.
Harris
Andrews has had to play in the same role Daniel Merrett used to play in and
play one-on-one on the opposition’s best key forward. The 20-year-old has
displayed discomfort while playing man-on-man and he has played his best footy
as a loose defender who can play take intercept marks.
Daniel
McStay also plays as a tall defender but he has arguably performed better when
he is swung to the forward line. So far Fagan has used him primarily in
defence, perhaps due to the lack of better options to support Andrews.
Since the
premature retirement of Justin Clarke, Darcy Gardiner has played as the third
tall in defence but in his fourth season of AFL footy, he does not look like a
player capable of having a long-term career. His judgement is poor, gets beaten
by opponents regularly, and has poor disposal of the ball.
With a
flawed defensive set-up, the lack of natural defenders, and an insipid back
line coach in Murray Davis, Fagan cannot fix the Brisbane defence
instantaneously. Youngster Sam Skinner is yet to make his AFL debut but Fagan
could try him as a key defender depending on his knee.
As things
stand, more defensive experimentation might be required, and close attention on
the defenders in the NEAFL should be considered. Nick Robertson and Tom Cutler should
hold onto their defensive roles and hopefully young half-back Alex Witherden
makes debut before the season ends.
Fagan will
need to work closely with list manager Dom Ambrogio during the draft period to
find the right players who can slot naturally into defensive positions because
it seems that the Lions are clogged with players more suited to midfield or
forward roles.
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