It looks like, after the normal early-season footy game of follow the leader, some sanity has returned.
The Cats’ high 200-plus handballs per game works great for them. They are the competition pace-setters, and early on, the other clubs were tempted to follow everything they did.
But as the season has progressed many teams are handballing less than they were earlier in the year.
Kicking is again king, if it suits your personnel.
I made a comment last Friday night that the Dream Team points of three for a kick and one for a handball need to be adjusted, because the ball-carrying and accurate kicking of Blues skipper Chris Judd was incredibly valuable.
His former teammate, Eagle Daniel Kerr, was the exact opposite. Kerr continually won the footy in tight, but the fantastic tackling pressure of his young opponent Aaron Joseph forced him to hurriedly and ineffectively handball.
So many handballs these days are purely to prevent being penalised for holding the ball. It is not a question of what is right or wrong. It is a question of what works for a specific team.
The Crows had 212 handballs and 178 kicks and won. The Eagles had 196 handballs and 163 kicks and lost. The Brisbane Lions had 136 handballs and 202 kicks and won comfortably. They had Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw to kick to.
Carlton had high kicks (205) and 180 handballs, kicked 16 goals and won well. The Blues had Brendan Fevola as their forward 50 target.
There is no such thing as a perfect game plan. The best game plan is the one that is in line with your team's strengths and weaknesses.
For Geelong, flicking the ball around by hand works. For others, kicking more and handballing less will be the way to go.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
