Time to blood Wells and Ballin

[geoffeagle]

These two have been consistantly among the best in our Premier League this season and with the finals not far away they should be given an opportunity in case we have further injuries in the forthcoming weeks.
Both are sound defenders and have good attacking skills.
Wells at 97kg could give Kennedy a much needed rest and Ballin for either Monaghan or Dunley.
Ballin is still unsigned for next year whereas Wells was recruited on a two year contract from the Bulldogs.
Wells with another offseason under his belt will be at around 102kg for next year and could easily be the replacement for the retiring Ben Kennedy.
I feel that both of these players would benefit from the opportunity to play First Grade.

 

[Matabele]

When it comes to Ballin - I couldn't agree more!

I haven't seen a lot of Wells but I intend to have a good look at him this weekend wether he be in 1sts or PL.

 

[Nutzcraw]

We have a team who is 19 rounds into a 26 round season sitting 5th on the ladder...

Do we need to change anything really??

 

[Matabele]

you can always improve.

 

[earl]

i dont think a change Nuts, just as geoff is saying.
What happens come week one of the finals when we really need a win and we have injuries.
You may find PL players having to step up to first grade but not have played in 1sts before.A debut in finals time would be very daunting.
I like what Smith used to do a few years back.When Parra would substtue late in the game they would purposly play one man short to get a feel in case someone got sin binned.You can never be too prepared.

 

[Nutzcraw]

you can always improve.

Is letting a first grade player rest so we can blood PL players for next year an improvement???

Why jeopardise our standing on the ladder for next year??

Why would we not want to do everything we could to win it this year??

Keep your strongest players on the park where possible i reckon, they are footy players paid to play football EVERY week.. so it should be like that.

I like what des has done.. he tried to blood Cuthbo and Burns early in the year so they could spend the rest of the year in Firsts... it back fired on him for one of them but when he saw that he wasn't cutting it in Firsts we still had plenty of time left in the season

 

[Kiwi Eagle]

We have a team who is 19 rounds into a 26 round season sitting 5th on the ladder...

Do we need to change anything really??

If it involves anything to do with dropping Dunley then yes

 

[Fluffy]

I agree - give the players a taste

I said the same thing about cuthbo last year. Give him a taste so he can identify his shortcomings and work on them over the off season. They chose not too, then when he gets the call up he has a couple of small problems that need some attention and im sure will work on it over the off season - just 1 year later than it should have been.

 

[Nutzcraw]

I understand what geoff means... but i just think you should keep your strongest 17 on the field every week

 

[earl]

i see your point Nuts.
Double edge sword. Damed if you do , damned if you dont.
you make a good point Fluff in regards to Cuthbo.
I spose we dont have too many games left where you dont mind losing. These are good games to blood players. Not as much pressure on them.
I reckon this is what happend to Joe Williams and Jamie Soward. Thrown straight into 1sts where their weakness were found very quickly and exploited. Need time to discover and fix these weaknesses before you rely on them week to week.

 

[Nutzcraw]

Yeah you pretty much hit the nail on the head of what i should have said at the start.... it's too late now to blood players... the competition is too tight and getting a finals spot in that top 6 is just about essential if you want to win it

Blood players at the start of the year that way we can either clean up the mess or if they go good keep em there or if they just replace someone who is injured when they get back just drop them back into PL and they will know what to expect when they step up again later in the year

 

[toovs]

why is king there every week is not one of our best thats for sure

 

[Barks]

now that Rose is showing something, I'd say King, bryant and Lulu should be looking over their shoulders, as one will be missing in the finals

can only be a good thing.

 

[Canteen Worker]

I can't understand why we played five props on the rotation. Surely a second rower gives us more flexibility.

For Ballin to get a run you need to drop either Monaghan or Dunley. For Wells to get a run it is one of the favoured sons. I can't see it happening this year. Cuthbo should be in the mix too!!

 

[Guest]

Surely either wells or Cuthbo off the bench would be better value than 10 minutes from deadwood.

 

[Fluffy]

what happens when we get an early injury to a anyone bar hooker or prop?

we have no one on the bench to cover

 

[byso]

I reckon if Dessie read this he would PISS himself

 

[Canteen Worker]

I hope Des has better things to do than trawl around this or any other forum.

How far away is North Head??? :wall: :wall: :wall:

 

[Ryan]

The way Dessie uses the banch at times is VERY strange.
Maybe Willow will get BK's spot next year.

For some reason, I'm starting to get a scary feeling Matai will play Lock. I just can't see the poor guy battering 200+ metres out of his frame each week.

He gets injured (yet plays on) pretty frequently in the centres.

As for Ballin and Wells...I'd say yes to both for sure. If it's a full str team, Willow's defensive bonuses get taken away with him coming on with 10-15 minutes to go. It would be better to have Cuthbo / Wells...someone who can offload, and add some X factor.

 

[Garts]

I have not seen much of Wells but what I have seen looks promising. Need to pay more attention at the next PL game.

As for the bench I agree with Ryan, we need someone with some X factor. A wide running Cuthbo could provide that. I see no point in having Willow on the bench only to get 15 minutes at the death.