BIG FOWARD LINE STRUCTURES

[dee man]

its with great interest that i have noted most clubs have gone about recruiting a number of big key fowards this year and believing this alone is the key to success.
i know im out of the game now but i still think i know a little.not alot but a little bit about the game.
have always believed you if you get the right mix and it can lead to success but constantly teams go about it in the wrong fashion and go for all talls like most of the teams this year.
i always find it interesting how coaches set their foward line structures up with three and four big fellas up front hoping to stretch the defences of the opposition teams based on the fact most only have two big defenders and a third who has to be able to play out of his size range.
good theory but they all seem to fall into the trap of structuring three of them deep with one pushing up the ground.
this is a trap in the A grades for a number of reasons.
Not enough space to lead into
Easy for the opposition to fall back taking the space
Teams with big foward structures have a tendancy to be told bomb it in long and high
Not enough smalls to get front and centre because they give this job to their smaller midfield players
Not enough height and strenght around the key CHF area
You would think Agraders are smart enough to pick up the game plan quickly and negate the big fellas involvement and influence

if coaches want to go about the three/four big man foward structure i believe their better off going with one deep and the other two/t higher up the ground leading towards the wings.brings the bigger defenders up the ground,out of the danager area,opens up the corridor their for opening the space required for the leading foward and more room for the smalls.also allows for the foward line to be able to turn the big fellas into key defensive players if their is a turnover.most will disagree but you see teams doing the all deep to many times and they become to predictable.i believe if you have these structures have a rotating foward line of arond 8 players and throwing the opposition into confusion with also using the wings as a starting point for big key fowards.
then again,im sure i will be asked WHAT THE HELL IM ON

[The Dark Knight]

Some excellent points in there D-Man that coaches should take into consideration. I've always thought the following structure is quiet an effect one and is used by a many clubs in various grades.

Having your Full Forward start out of the goal square with a small or medium sized forward along side him or depending on the situation possibly another key forward instead.

Then you have your centre half forward playing across half forward along side the other forward pocket a small/ medium sized player that has been pushed up.

You have your Half forward flankers then, starting up on the attacking side of the wing and playing as "attacking wingmen" across the middle and half forward

Finally you have your wingmen starting and playing on the defensive side of the centre, giving them the opportunity to push back hard into defence and help out, and also be a important option when coming out of defence.