Jele wrote:I feel like we underestimate the variety of shapes being thrown at outside defenders and the quality of playmakers in exploiting space out wide. Most teams condense their defence in an effort to try and win the middle, so there is always the potential of numbers out wide if the attacking team can get on the front foot in the middle and give their halves enough space to make plays.
As an admittedly biaised fan, i think Souths, and Cody Walker in particular, have been exceptionally good at exploiting those opportunities for a couple of years now. Reynolds straightening up inside gives Cody the space to do so. The games they lose have been those where they have been dominated in the middle and haven't had those front-footed opportunities, not because any particular team's outside backs have 'solved' how to defend against them. I'm more interested to understand how defensive lines react to both halves being on the same side of the field, which Souths do a lot.
Next meet up come along for some beers so we can have the 2 hour discussion on cause and effect of both halves on one side