Position Ruck Discussion
- Thread starter IDIG
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I'm pretty interested in ROB. I'm not too concerned by 'who' he scored against. The fact he beat up on 'non-elite' rucks sounds ok to me....so he should. No one beats up on the best rucks. If I went ROB it would be on the basis that he goes 105 ish maybe as a floor? but with some upside if he has a purple patch early? As a stepping stone to Gawn, who is closer to 700k, the fact ROB starts at 500k with some value is what appeals. He does have the last bye too.......I think even a minimal natural improvement achieves 105 easily - maybe even just that little bit more fitness - can he get to 110+ is the qn. I'm not so sure.
ROB's played 22 games - Rowan Marshall has played 33 games.
ROB has a huge tank and gets involved around the ground in disposal chains which are clearly key to a big score.
Not saying pick him over Gawn (I'm Gawndy atm as well) but I'm open to this pick for sure. I like it more than other options but I can see why people aren't keen as well. I don't think his HTA% is anything to get too excited over
ROB's played 22 games - Rowan Marshall has played 33 games.
ROB has a huge tank and gets involved around the ground in disposal chains which are clearly key to a big score.
Not saying pick him over Gawn (I'm Gawndy atm as well) but I'm open to this pick for sure. I like it more than other options but I can see why people aren't keen as well. I don't think his HTA% is anything to get too excited over
Yeah I find it an interesting case that some people raised the point that he monsters the lower tier ruckman as a negative whereas the same trait is highly valued in Grundy and Gawn.
If Gawn doesn’t get up for round 1, he’ll be my replacement. Faces a lot of those mid tier rucks early in the year to give him the best shot at closing the price gap.
If Gawn doesn’t get up for round 1, he’ll be my replacement. Faces a lot of those mid tier rucks early in the year to give him the best shot at closing the price gap.
The point I’ve made on ROB might be slightly different to some others, and I think it ties in to your second point nicely.
My view is that better/fitter rucks often monster second choice or tired opponents in the second half of the year. This is obviously good for point scoring, but if you believe this is a systematic thing, it means that full year averages may not paint the full picture - ie perhaps we should expect someone like ROB to score better in the second half of the year, assuming he remains one of the less battered rucks at that stage. That could make him (or almost anyone else) less appealing as a stepping stone to Gawn, because the opportunity to score really well in 1H is not as strong. It’s like a batsman facing tired bowlers - it’s easier going, but they have to be tired out first!
Your point about mid tier rucks in ROB’s early draw mitigates this and might even neutralize it if a couple of injuries fall his way. My theory - and it’s only a theory - would be that it’s not so much the mid tier players that make the difference, it’s when you come up against makeshift/third choice rucks, or decent second choices who have been shouldering responsibility as first ruck for a while and are performing more like third choice options by that stage.
As I say, I haven’t run all the numbers on this, although I will likely do some more of this if Gawn doesn’t look like being a good starter.
My view is that better/fitter rucks often monster second choice or tired opponents in the second half of the year. This is obviously good for point scoring, but if you believe this is a systematic thing, it means that full year averages may not paint the full picture - ie perhaps we should expect someone like ROB to score better in the second half of the year, assuming he remains one of the less battered rucks at that stage. That could make him (or almost anyone else) less appealing as a stepping stone to Gawn, because the opportunity to score really well in 1H is not as strong. It’s like a batsman facing tired bowlers - it’s easier going, but they have to be tired out first!
Your point about mid tier rucks in ROB’s early draw mitigates this and might even neutralize it if a couple of injuries fall his way. My theory - and it’s only a theory - would be that it’s not so much the mid tier players that make the difference, it’s when you come up against makeshift/third choice rucks, or decent second choices who have been shouldering responsibility as first ruck for a while and are performing more like third choice options by that stage.
As I say, I haven’t run all the numbers on this, although I will likely do some more of this if Gawn doesn’t look like being a good starter.
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I was thinking still Comben - if he's the best R-F donut to loop Grawndy, I can't really see why things change if he has a teammate R-F who also looks viable as a rookie?
If anything I think it provides a touch more ruck cover ... if Comben is good for looping Grundy and Gawn, I think that implies he plays late enough to cover at least one of the two guns most weeks (by switching Xerri and Comben) in the event of a late out.
Maybe I'm missing something though?!
If anything I think it provides a touch more ruck cover ... if Comben is good for looping Grundy and Gawn, I think that implies he plays late enough to cover at least one of the two guns most weeks (by switching Xerri and Comben) in the event of a late out.
Maybe I'm missing something though?!