The silver lining to injuries

[Boogie Knights]

A lot has been said of our injuries and how much better we would be if fully fit, but I'm not sure this is entirely true...

If Elliot was fit for round 1, would Stevo have played? Would our forward structure be what it is now with the swoop squad playing pressure footy and raffling a bag?

If Reid wasn't hurt, would we have seen how good Checkers was as a key forward, contributing just as strong a marking presence, while delivering 2nd and 3rd efforts and pressure that Reid isn't capable of?

If Wells wasn't hurt, would we have seen the beast that Sier has become? (yes he came in for Treloar, but with a fit Wells, that's one slot back on the midfield depth chart Sier falls)

If Aish hadn't gone down, would we be seeing the resurrection and reinvention of Mayne?

If our backline wasn't so decimated, would we have seen how good Langdon can actually be?

With every injury, there has been an opportunity, and each opportunity has been taken!

Out of our current (thus far) unchanged finals side, the only player I could find room for that isn't currently there is Dunn.

I know there'll be support for Elliot, Moore, and even Wells in that group, but on the strength of the current group, I can't find a spot for them.

We're in good shape and should back the current 22 for the flag!

[HAL]

How many? As good as most, better than some.

[Pies2016]

Good post B K.
So many sliding door moments and “ what if “ moments in our season.

You see it a lot in footy when a club is ravaged by injury, the fast tracking of players really sets up that club in the following season. We got our injuries early and we found out a bit about other players along the way. Hard to believe that we will likely go into a G F without having made a change through the finals.
There’s already a thread about the impact of Treloars injury and the domino effect that unfolded when he came back.
Sometimes I wonder if the injuries to Dunn and Shaz have actually improved our back six mobility and ground ball retention in our backline. Obviously the injuries have been sporting tragedies for these guys but the win loss reality is we have still managed very good footy without them. Full credit to everyone at the club involved for staying focussed and preparing their replacements to come in and not miss a beat.

[Cam]

Great post BK that shows a wealth of football knowledge. Very pertinent and valid points. It's a bit like the old motivational guru mantra "Often you have to give up someone good to get something better."