Seth wrote:
I think most can hold mitigating factors alongside measured expectations and even accounting for that Smith has come up a long way short for a sustained period. Like having your first choice hand picked spine available for most games and then still looking like strangers. We can bemoan or rationalise the inability to recruit as needed in the pack but even when we do have Field position and momentum it's been awful end products more often than not. There's been plenty of opportunities for smith to demonstrate that we're going in the right direction despite mitigating factors but the things he can control are full of holes too.
Spine can't show what it can do without us being able to apply any pressure and control possession at all. Our error count is killing us (again). Also Frawley as part of that spine, and to a lesser extent the others, have at times been a big part of the error count.
I would agree with you in that RS recruited and coaches these players, and as a unit I don't think they're delivering. Having said that: Croft is real quality I'm a fan of his; he needs better support to show real form though. Ackers I'm reasonably happy with, he's consistent. Frawley is too rocks and diamonds for my liking; he doesn't offer enough on the good side to outweigh the kicking in particular. Miller... conundrum there; when he has space he's MOM candidate every game. Really like his skill level at the line. We need to stop him kicking though, it's not rocket science and that side infuriates me.
