Even though I scored six more points than I did in Round 5 (1,639), I dropped seven places to 347th in the Lions’ Group.
At least my trades didn’t burn me like last week, with both my new recruits - Brett Deledio and Adam Treloar - justifying their selection in my team with solid scores.
What hurt me in the end were late withdrawals from Grant Birchall (Hawthorn) and Jason Porplyzia (Adelaide) - neither of whom I had cover for on the bench.
I guess it identifies my sever lack of depth, which will be my main focus for improvement in the coming rounds.
The other thing you can never predict is who each team’s substitute is going to be - and if you start the match in the green vest, chances are you’re only going to get about 30 minutes of game time.
And it’s fair to say that my ‘Polka Specials’ have been hurt so far in 2012 by the subs.
I should probably also mention Tom Rockliff’s Dream Team efforts over the past couple of weeks, given he’s scored a massive 279 points in his past two games.
Rocky gave me heaps when I overlooked him at the start of the season, and I’m obviously paying for it now.
POLKS’ TIP FOR THE WEEK
I’m finding out the hard way that it’s critically important to have an emergency on your bench in case of a late withdrawal.
It’s getting harder and harder for players with niggles to get themselves up for games these days - I should know after missing out on the past couple of games with a minor ankle injury.
Players are generally given right up until the last minute to prove their fitness, so you’ll probably find more players being withdrawn late from games.
For that reason, it’s always best to have some back-up on the bench.
LIONS PLAYER RANKINGS (ROUND 5)
1. Tom Rockliff - 136
2. Simon Black - 103
3. Ben Hudson - 96
4. Jed Adcock - 87
5. Jack Redden - 84
LIONS PLAYER RANKINGS (OVERALL)
1. Tom Rockliff - 561
2. Jed Adcock - 428
3. Jack Redden - 422
4. Simon Black - 419
5. Pearce Hanley - 414
LIONS GROUP RANKINGS (ROUND 5)
1. Paul ‘R’ Bears (Paul) - 2,205
2. PHammers (Paul) - 2,194
3. Egg ? Face (Slapstick Sid) - 2,168
4. Team Crack Crack (Jason) - 2,157
5. Bacon Sandwich (Simon) - 2,147
LIONS GROUP RANKINGS (OVERALL)
1. Bruisers (Robert) - 10,512
2. kkkirkalicious (Dave) - 10,464
3. Indomitables (Brad) - 10,448
4. Spidey’s Spiders (Clint) - 10,444
5. TheFJCruiserIsMine (Michael) - 10,400
