defensive weakness

[striker 9]

what do you guys think of our defensive line up?

Is Vidmar the answer to our weak defence? -

Is O'Grady going to keep his spot?

and what about Clakey..what do we do with him? - he's the fittest guy there, he's every where except whe he should have been!

It seems that Wilko and Tomasevic are the only ones worth keeping.

[Perm]

i thought on saturday night when viddie came on, alot of the answers were solved and there werent as many lapses in defence as the first half.
Newcastle played the basic boot and chase using the speed of Coveny (sorry about spelling) and it did show our pace at the back (or lack thereof)
Tomasevic was strong and Wilko, as always is impressive.
Clarkey was out of sorts a bit, but how much did he save our hides last season?! im sure he will provide the same service this season
O'Grady, ive never really been a fan of him, but after that goal, i think he is O'Gravy!

yes viddie will be the answer to our "weak" defence and im sure we will see the same lineup in the back until Viddie is much more fitter to play the full 90, and also maybe Boogs in there as well once fit.

[Ursus]

Clarke and Viddie in the middle.
Wilko and Vuko, right and left.
I guess they will play Sully sharing with Viddie seeing how Stringers will be suspended this Sat.

[dragonlady]

i think clarky had a shocker this week. the guys all heart but he sure has some dodgy tackles. i don't know if o'grady has the leadership to run the back line. big fan of wilko.

[lawrielawrie]

afrosean said:

i thought on Saturday night when viddie came on, alot of the answers were solved and there werent as many lapses in defence as the first half.

Except for the 2 laspes of his own. I watched highlights of the game and they showed the 2 incidents and his was made to look very average.

Having said all that when he is fit and sharp we will have a very classy player. You could tell from a couple of little things he did on Saturday he is a cut above.

I have said in other threads our Marque player should play in the Center. I couldn't disagree with Ursus and his line up. I trust Lawrie will be trying out all sorts of permutations to get it right for the start of the season.

We still have one warm up match to go. Quite an important one none the less.

[DJ]

Agree with Ursus.

Wilko.......Clark........Vidmar........Tomasevic

I think Vidmars experience at the back along with Clarkys pace will be a good mix, Wilko was awesome on the right last year and I think Tomasevic has shown already that he will be more defensively minded that what Heff was last year.

O'Gradys height can get him out of trouble sometimes but he turns like a bus! Great squad player but wouldn't be my first choice centreback.

[Andy]

tomasevic on the left, clarky on the right, wilko and vidmar on the centre. i reckon thats our best defensive line up. i think Wilko makes a better centre-back than clarky even though he played there all of last season.

[pjennings]

By the end of the season I think it will be
Wilko.......Boogs........Vidmar........Tomasevic

[Andy]

pjennings said:

By the end of the season I think it will be
Wilko.......Boogs........Vidmar........Tomasevic

Clarky should beat Nigel Boogard for a spot in the middle of the defence.

[brett]

andyj said:

tomasevic on the left, clarky on the right, wilko and vidmar on the centre. i reckon thats our best defensive line up. i think Wilko makes a better centre-back than clarky even though he played there all of last season.

I agree.

Lawrie has clearly shown he wants Wilko in the middle where the action is. All indications seem to point to him being central this season with Clarky on the right.

Frankly, I agree. It's time for Wilko to grow into a truly classy centre-back and follow in Meggsi's footsteps.

Clarky will get up and down better than Wilko as a fullback so the whole backline will have more balance too.

[Farthing]

wyomingtiger said:

andyj said:

tomasevic on the left, clarky on the right, wilko and vidmar on the centre. i reckon thats our best defensive line up. i think Wilko makes a better centre-back than clarky even though he played there all of last season.

I agree.

Lawrie has clearly shown he wants Wilko in the middle where the action is. All indications seem to point to him being central this season with Clarky on the right.

Frankly, I agree. It's time for Wilko to grow into a truly classy centre-back and follow in Meggsi's footsteps.

Clarky will get up and down better than Wilko as a fullback so the whole backline will have more balance too.

Plus Wilko is still very young and he will improve alot over the next few years and he will grow into a very strong center back.

I dont think he will be the quiet achiever this year, i agree with you tiger he will follow in meggsi's footsteps, wilko for the Johnny Warren medal

[Andy]

I just hope that he stays with the mighty mariners for the long term. Instead of following in Meggsi and Heff's footsteps.

[greenpoleffc]

I think Wilko and Danny will be the next 2 to head overseas. Wilko in the middle with Vidmar has to be the way to go.

O'Grady looked well off the pace on Sat night, too slow and with the high line we play, he is always going to get caught out.

[Andy]

I didn't actually realise until last saturday how quick Wilko is. He had all of the jets strikers well beaten in pace!

[Jesus]

I think clarke may return to the middle, since a true right back is a bit lacking. And wilko is strong there, and clarky not so much. Though wilko may be a better defender, on the total form, we are better off for now at least with clarky in the middle, in my opinion.

[Ursus]

I agree with Jesus. Wilko may be our best defender but Clarkey looked lost on the right. Where last season he was comfortable in the middle. Hopefully he was just having a bad night. Time will tell.

[NOMESSSS.]

I think O'grady is solid in the back, i dissagree with all of you i think we need him back there, most of those mistakes were not his fault and he was there to clean up the mess from some of the other players mistakes. Which he is good at doing.
We can't afford to lose O'grady in the backs.

[striker 9]

the goal Jets scored was a defensive mistabe by O'grady.

also, your fav player - Spenny- has a shocker!

[Farthing]

Yes i think O'grady is very solid in the back, i have gained alot of respect for him after the way he has been playing in the pre season. when he started agianst Queensland last year i had my dobuts about him but he has proven to me how good he is, it is almost impossible for someone to beat him to a header as well he is so tall.

Plus he is great for the last 10 minutes to chuck him up front if u need him.

He is a great asset to our back line, but if we are playing clarky on the right i cant see stringers getting ahead of wilko and viddycent, but i guess he could play on the right. i dont know it will be hard for lawrie to pick the backs, but not as hard as the midfield

[brett]

ursus said:

I agree with Jesus. Wilko may be our best defender but Clarkey looked lost on the right. Where last season he was comfortable in the middle. Hopefully he was just having a bad night. Time will tell.

I'd say give it a few games and we'll see how it pans out. Remember Brad Porter has had to play right back for a lot of the pre-season. Clarky may just need a few games there to find his feet.

Another option there is Ossie if he gets squeezed out of the midfield selection logjam that is looming likely. He should be finding his way onto the teamsheet somewhere and would offer something more Heff-esque going forward.