View Full Version : 43. Bachar Houli
Great young player, Hope he wins the NAB award...
Boris_Bewick
1 Apr 2008, 16:13
Who else is with me in saying houli got hard done by?
I just thought i would post this because i think the way in which the supercoach points were awarded on the weekend made me think - is it rigged?
Houli managed a 26 disposal game and only scored a 65
Johnson scored 5 goals (3 of them were imo lucky, the ball spilling out the back) and managed 182 points.
I just think that maybe the Herald Sun pay extra points to players that are more "famous" then others. I know some will disagree, as they do have a system in which points are awarded, but i still think there are ways to "cheat" it. maybe a "hard ball get" is payed to those of greater status more often?
From what I know about Champion Data, the reason Johnson's score was so high was because he kicked them in very important stages in the match, while the scores were still very close. If it's the last quarter and you kick 3 goals to keep your side in a close game, and eventually win, it is going to score you a heap more points.
Houli showed some real class against the Kangas but he got a lot of the ball in the 2nd half when we were up by a fair margin. The touches you get when the game is over aren't nearly as important as say, 3 goals to win the game by a couple of points, like Johnson's were. Houli was great but had far less impact on the game than Johnson did.
BabyBombers
1 Apr 2008, 19:26
Bacher is an absolute star and I see him being a really important leader at our club and for the AFL. I teach at a school with a high number of Muslim students , with a lot of them not being into the AFL (which I find disappointing :thumbsd:) But they all no Bacher Houli and think he is great. Fantastic to see him playing and I hope he does well for the rest of the season and becomes the rising star. Congratulations Bacher.:thumbsu::)
lamaros
11 Apr 2008, 22:42
Houli needs to harden up a whole heap and LEARN HOW TO HANDPASS.
:mad::mad::mad:
hateitorlovett13
11 Apr 2008, 23:03
If you want to have a go at anyone for being soft, look at Stanton. The number of times I have seen him play for the free kick tonight and drop the ball, hence sacrificing it to the opposition, has been nothing less than disgraceful. Might be getting it a lot, but is considerably worse than Bachar, who will improve with time. Remember he's played under 10 games, Stanton is a completely different story.
Litmanen
12 Apr 2008, 00:00
If you want to have a go at anyone for being soft, look at Stanton. The number of times I have seen him play for the free kick tonight and drop the ball, hence sacrificing it to the opposition, has been nothing less than disgraceful. Might be getting it a lot, but is considerably worse than Bachar, who will improve with time. Remember he's played under 10 games, Stanton is a completely different story.
Poor form bagging Stanton all the time.. We've got to accept that he's not an in and under player but more a distributer.. played well tonight and kicked 3 goals.. He's not an elite (top midfielders in the league) player and the sooner people accept that the better.. Tough on Houli too, he was good tonight, will be a very good player and uses the ball well (generally). Lovett needs to take a hard look at his kicking skills, too laconic at times.. cost us
Houli needs to harden up a whole heap and LEARN HOW TO HANDPASS.
:mad::mad::mad:
Are you ____ing serious?? have you seen how far and accurate his handpass is?
lamaros
12 Apr 2008, 00:56
Are you ____ing serious?? have you seen how far and accurate his handpass is?
Yes. His quick short handpassing around opponents is very bad. He turns it over like that too much.
KING-JAMES
12 Apr 2008, 11:30
Yes. His quick short handpassing around opponents is very bad. He turns it over like that too much.
Thats what happens when u have and attacking game plan that has a high element of risk. His handball skills look some of the sharpest at the club.
Smyth94
12 Apr 2008, 11:32
I was surprised to look at the stats this morning and see that Bach had 10 kicks 11 handballs, watching him play, it looked like he had about 15 handballs and 5 kicks.
He has such a beautiful kick I wish he would put away the handball and kick it more often.
lemon chicken
12 Apr 2008, 12:08
Yes. His quick short handpassing around opponents is very bad. He turns it over like that too much.
Any worse than Watson? In his second season and is more creative than most of blokes around him. Cant believe that people can constantly sing Dyson praises and knock someone like Bachar.
lamaros
12 Apr 2008, 14:04
Watson makes stupid decisions with his handball at times, but otherwise he is very good. Houli makes good decisions more often, he just can't execute them as well in pressure situations with his handballs.
It's not a knock on him as a person, but just something I think he needs to work on.
His tackling is a bit soft still. He's a very good spoil and not a soft player, but he doesn't pin them as hard in the tackle and lets them get the ball away. If he takes it a bit harder it'll be good.
Really picked up his game after a shocking first quarter last night though (I think there was one handball miss that resulted in a goal for WB after that) so credit to him.
Milkman_Joe
12 Apr 2008, 15:47
He has such a beautiful kick I wish he would put away the handball and kick it more often.
True, however, he is instructed from his coach to handball as it encourages players to run and keep possession.
Gus2Gumby
12 Apr 2008, 18:49
super.star
:D
Houli needs to harden up a whole heap and LEARN HOW TO HANDPASS.
:mad::mad::mad:
You must be as blind as a bat or "got something" personally against Houli.:mad::mad::mad:
Houli is way better handballer than nearly anyone in our side. Some Richmond supporter who saw the match yesterday even started a thread about it.
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?t=432185
Remember you telling me that my suggestion of playing Pears and Reimers as stupid one week. Then you go on and suggest the very next week that we should bring in Pears and Reimers. You must be a confused person, You must be confusing Pevrille or Watson for Houli.
Go check your eyes. Glasses may help you.
sens_bombers
12 Apr 2008, 21:33
Great game by Houli last week. Super impressed so far this season.
lamaros
12 Apr 2008, 21:36
Making stuff up that people never said just to suit yourself only works when there isn't a record of what they did say. I suggest you try and find the point I suppoesdly said these things if you expect anyone to believe them. Good luck on your impossible task.
Houli cannot handball short distances well in traffic/under pressure.
He's still got a lot of work to do on his decision making when he's in traffic.
All the same, he's devastating when he's in space, and he certainly has the knack of finding the football.
Making stuff up that people never said just to suit yourself only works when there isn't a record of what they did say. I suggest you try and find the point I suppoesdly said these things if you expect anyone to believe them. Good luck on your impossible task.
Houli cannot handball short distances well in traffic/under pressure.
This is my suggestion for Carlton game:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505051&postcount=107 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505051&postcount=107)
This is your "stupid" reply:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505712&postcount=108 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505712&postcount=108)
This is you suggesting Pears to make his debut the next week:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10617227&postcount=56 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10617227&postcount=56)
lamaros
13 Apr 2008, 15:39
This is my suggestion for Carlton game:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505051&postcount=107 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505051&postcount=107)
This is your "stupid" reply:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505712&postcount=108 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10505712&postcount=108)
This is you suggesting Pears to make his debut the next week:
http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10617227&postcount=56 (http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showpost.php?p=10617227&postcount=56)
No there is me suggesting that taking out Laycock and putting in Pears and Hislop and Reimers would be stupid. This means the the suggestion is stupid as a single suggestion, not that each part of the suggestion would be stupid if made by itself.
And then there is me suggesting that Pears may debut due to him being in the emergencies.
Nothing about Reimers, nothing about Pears or Reimers not being worthy to debut.
You might want to learn about context.
S.C[BANKS]
18 Apr 2008, 23:39
Who agrees?!?!?:thumbsu::thumbsu:
Kicking, composure and star factor is there.
and his only 19!! :p
sens_bombers
18 Apr 2008, 23:41
I love him. A future star baring injury.
aintplayin03
18 Apr 2008, 23:49
A lot of people were bagging him last week, but you cannot ignore his pace and skill. Needs to chuck his head over the ball a bit more, but did that well tonight and is looking very good!
Roy boys
18 Apr 2008, 23:51
Obvious class but as previous poster said a tendency to knock the ball rather then getting his head over it & grabbing the footy, also a little thing i think his handballing is occasionally poor but his still a great talent.
TheBrownDog
19 Apr 2008, 00:10
Looked great tonight.
Covers ridiculous amounts of ground.
retroparty
19 Apr 2008, 17:25
Probably our best midfielder ATM. I hope he wins the rising star!
He really stood out last night.....was all over the place, seemed to be in all the action......I love watching him play...
Smyth94
26 Apr 2008, 10:44
He has this obsession with moving into the corridor, I know thats what he's instructed to do but he does it even when its not the best option and its starting to creep into his game too often.
It got to the point where yesterday he had the ball running towards our F50 and being a left footer all he had to do was move to the left to shape up and drill a pass. He actually moved into the corridor and to his detriment forced himself onto his wrong side.
Bash will be a great player, but he's getting too predictable for me, I want to see some more flair and be prepared to take more risks and kick more. He's up there with our best kicks so use it to your advantage - All will come with increased confidence and maturity.
He's weak minded in my opinion.
He's an awesome talent when he's got space to move, but in traffic he's extremely prone to poor decision making and his tackling at crunch moments yesterday was very poor.
He'll be fine, but he's still got a long way to go before he's anywhere near complete.
Smyth94
26 Apr 2008, 13:28
He's weak minded in my opinion.
He's an awesome talent when he's got space to move, but in traffic he's extremely prone to poor decision making and his tackling at crunch moments yesterday was very poor.
He'll be fine, but he's still got a long way to go before he's anywhere near complete.
He's got this obsession with handballing to a teammate which is all good when its the right option but he's being doing it when he should really kick.
Slattery_20
26 Apr 2008, 14:58
He's weak minded in my opinion.
He's an awesome talent when he's got space to move, but in traffic he's extremely prone to poor decision making and his tackling at crunch moments yesterday was very poor.
He'll be fine, but he's still got a long way to go before he's anywhere near complete.
That's not how I'd put it
(but I know what you're getting at)
IMHO just looks & plays like a talented youngster rather than a seasoned pro. It will come.
daveyboy3
29 May 2008, 15:19
Any word on Bachar and his virus during the week? I've been waiting all week for him to be announced injured.
Slattery_20
29 May 2008, 22:33
Listed as an in
bipolarbeaR
30 May 2008, 11:58
Once his levels of nutrition get back up he will be playing like he was in round 1 :)
Remember he had that Muslim fast thing for like 2 months?
bomber69
30 May 2008, 13:55
Once his levels of nutrition get back up he will be playing like he was in round 1 :)
Remember he had that Muslim fast thing for like 2 months?
Thats in September lol.
Which means we could be minus Bachar for this years Grand Final!
Houli2Gumbleton
31 May 2008, 00:27
His disposal tonight was magnificant
Bombers42
31 May 2008, 03:05
Thats in September lol.
Which means we could be minus Bachar for this years Grand Final!
lol, will miss him on that final day in september alright.
Good game genst the crows tonight also
Darealrath
31 May 2008, 14:49
Great to see him do well in the centre square. He's the type of player we need doing well in there to make the most of Watson.
bomber69
1 Jun 2008, 13:45
7 Clearances, VERY few mistakes, futre star!
Slattery_20
1 Jun 2008, 17:58
lol, will miss him on that final day in september alright.
Good game genst the crows tonight also
I'm sure this will be posted elsewhere, if you'd be bothered to look. He's received dispensation to basically excuse him from Ramadan should it clash with footy commitments.
yep, Il Maseri got that as well, he'll be fine.
Love this kid, works so hard on the training track and you can see it when he plays. You know he'll always play within the rules, keeps himself fit and healthy (doesn't drink). I remember when we picked him up so late in the draft i was rapt. Expecting him to go top 20 for sure. he used to win the b/f for his comp every single year
You still see him down at Spotswood on Saturdays, he watches his mates in the 18s, the ressies & the seniors.
The amount of young Lebanese kids strewn across the juniors is incredible - some are just insanely talented.
He's a fantastic role model & I hope he becomes a star. Love watching him play.
He's a fantastic role model & I hope he becomes a star. Love watching him play.
Thats another added bonus about him.
I read before he got drafted that which ever club picks him will get an extra 5000 members in 5 years. Another bonus for the club.
Thats another added bonus about him.
I read before he got drafted that which ever club picks him will get an extra 5000 members in 5 years. Another bonus for the club.
Well down at Spotswood, where I play, there's been a dramatic increase in Lebanese juniors. They're flooding the teams, and they're dominating - one Omar Abou-Zeid won the U12A's league best and fairest last year, and there's some other quality ones as well.
I reckon the influx of Lebanese players is directly due to Houli's success - he was probably one of the first Lebanese or Muslim players to play down at Spotswood.
They all wearing Essendon jumpers?
They all wearing Essendon jumpers?
There's three kids who have real Essendon shorts & one who wears a jumper - obviously donated from Houli himself.
As for the others..
From what I can remember, there's 2 Carlton supporters, 1 Collingwood supporter, and a couple of Richmond supporters.
I think the rest are Bombers fans :thumbsu:
IsDonIsGoodes
8 Jun 2008, 21:35
houli's using the ball as well as anyone at essendon. has plenty of time and cool under pressure, maybe doesn't get as many hard balls as you'd like for a future midfielder but plays the quarterback role pretty damn well
Bombers42
9 Jun 2008, 04:02
yer played well, and as he gets more involved he will certainatly improve
Jonesy1987
10 Jun 2008, 02:29
This kid needs more credit, has been playing great football, have feeling he will turn into that star mid we have been longing for.
Ranked 5th among rising stars in Total Inside 50's
Ranked 8th among rising stars in Total Kicks
Ranked 1st among rising stars in Total Handballs
Ranked 2nd among rising stars in Total Disposals
Ranked 3rd among rising stars in Total Tackles
Ranked 10th among rising stars in Inside 50s Per Game
Ranked 1st among rising stars in Handballs Per Game
Ranked 2nd among rising stars in Disposals Per Game
Ranked 9th among rising stars in Tackles Per Game
Bombers42
13 Jul 2008, 03:04
Why isn't Houli playing?
loopy_cam
13 Jul 2008, 03:40
Injured. OP apparently.
Hopefully returning soon. Can anyone confirm?
The Dustbin
24 Jul 2008, 08:44
Bachar Houli today sought specialist advice in Sydney for an ongoing groin problem. Team manager, David Calthorpe said the consultation would result in a decision on whether to operate on the injury which has sidelined Houli for a number of weeks.
“We decided to seek the surgeon’s advice as to whether we would continue the rehabilitation process that Bachar is currently undertaking or have surgery,” Calthorpe said.
If the advice is to operate, Houli will return to Sydney next week for surgery and then undertake a rehabilitation process which will see him ready to return for the first week of pre-season training.
essendonfc.com.au
Missed him through the midfield this year. Hopefully will be fit next year. I'm really a big fan of this bloke.
Groin operation rules Houli out for season
Thursday, 24 July 2008
Craig Rowston for essendonfc.com.au
Page 1 of 1
Bachar Houli will have a groin operation in Sydney on Wednesday and will miss the rest of the season.
Team manager, David Calthorpe, said the 19-year-old visited the surgeon this week and was told he needed an adductor release.
“He has the early signs of osteitis pubis,” Calthorpe said.
“Fortunately, we discovered this quite quickly and are dealing with it now so we can get him up for the start of the pre-season.
“Bachar is looking at a minimum of eight weeks before he is right to go again so, obviously, that is the end of his season.”
Houli has played 13 games for Essendon after being taken with pick No. 42 in 2006.
Calthorpe said, by treating the injury early, the Round 1 rising star nomination will recover quicker and avoid further damage.
“Some players try and manage it and get through the season but, with the situation we are in at the moment with him, our best option is to get Bachar in and have the procedure now so he can have a full pre-season for us,” Calthorpe said.
“We have had a couple of success stories with dealing with this injury early including Heath Hocking this year and Leroy Jetta last year.
"Both players have come back without any set-backs from that procedure and come back bigger, fitter and stronger."
Calthorpe said Bachar showed some good early season form but, line-line with how the team was traveling as a group, his form dropped off but was starting to return.
"He was starting to really forge himself as a prominent player for us so it is unfortunate this happened to him," he said.
“If we get him fixed now it will give him every opportunity to have a full pre-season and get back into it and get his spot back in the side in 2009.”
http://www.essendonfc.com.au/images/07/r8-gsp-30-l.jpg
Bachar Houli pumps the ball long into attack
http://www.essendonfc.com.au/news/news.asp?nid=5955
Matty Lloyd18
25 Jul 2008, 21:04
Mate its unfortunate he had to have the groin operation but do you reckon he'll show potential next year?
Just got a pretty big wrap about being a role model to Muslims on Enough Rope by Walled Aly.
jetta2davey
30 Aug 2008, 09:07
i am so excited about Houli, is the only young midfielder on our list that i am sure will be a superstar, many others have the capabilities of getting there but i can't be sure just yet.
you can't be 100% sure that he'll be a superstar.
IMO he is one of the only young players in our side that has the potential to become an A Grade player. Reimers might and maybe Longergan/Myers but apart from that, we have plenty of good B-C grade kids.
you can't be 100% sure that he'll be a superstar.
IMO he is one of the only young players in our side that has the potential to become an A Grade player. Reimers might and maybe Longergan/Myers but apart from that, we have plenty of good B-C grade kids.
You're right in saying that you can't be 100% certain.
However, Houli has only shown us about a quarter of what he is really capable of. He is an ultra-professional, you talk to anyone that knows "Bash" and they'll tell you how hard he works - dedication will never be a problem.
I watched him kick 8 or so goals in a GF for Spotswood, most of them running from outside 50, once he gets his confidence up and running, he can become a very, very dangerous goal kicking midfielder
Ryder Is God
4 Sep 2008, 20:42
He still looked great early on in the season with his beautiful long kicks. He seemed to look nervous out their and was unsure of his decision making.
His confidence will only get better.
Everyone knows that Bachar is the only muslim in the AFL and that Ramadan (Fasting month) is on in September. Would Bachar be able to cope not eating or drinking if we played finals? It'd be impossible.
What are your thoughts?
Ben the Gooner
6 Sep 2008, 13:17
This came up when we drafted him. An Islamic leader said that it would be acceptable for him to delay Ramadan until after the finals.
Bachar Houli
6 Sep 2008, 13:29
Everyone knows that Bachar is the only muslim in the AFL and that Ramadan (Fasting month) is on in September. Would Bachar be able to cope not eating or drinking if we played finals? It'd be impossible.
What are your thoughts?
We break our fast at around 6.05 and it goes up by 1 minute everyday so if it was a night game it wouldn't be a problem but if it's a day game he can just skip one day and do it after Ramadan.
We break our fast at around 6.05 and it goes up by 1 minute everyday so if it was a night game it wouldn't be a problem but if it's a day game he can just skip one day and do it after Ramadan.Thanks Bachar. :p
Slattery_20
6 Sep 2008, 16:18
Everyone knows that Bachar is the only muslim in the AFL and that Ramadan (Fasting month) is on in September. Would Bachar be able to cope not eating or drinking if we played finals? It'd be impossible.
What are your thoughts?
That's come up about 50 times
I read about it before the draft, when Essendon became interested in him before the draft, after the draft, before his first season, and during this year as well. It'd be back in this thread at least once
Bachar is progressing nicely and spent some quality time in the backline. His defensive skills are improving but I have one concern. He has a strong endurance base and can run out games better than most, but he gets too many possessions in the second half of games. This could be because he cant win enough contested footy and is more effective in the second half when the heat has gone off the game.
Was curious as to what people thought about our drafting of Houli.
How much did Houli being Muslim effect his draft position? If he weren't Muslim, how much further up the draft would he have been selected?
We drafted him at 42nd overall, which I think is a bargain. I'm very happy we picked him up!
Sorry if this has been discussed before, if so, anyone care to direct me toward a past discussion? Ta
Ryder Is God
27 Sep 2008, 12:37
There were questions over his durability, I highly doubt the fact that he's Muslim would make him drop in the draft.
bomberstomake8
27 Sep 2008, 12:51
There were questions over his durability, I highly doubt the fact that he's Muslim would make him drop in the draft.
yeah he was a steal at 42. however i do think him being muslim may have had a small effect. clubs would have been aware of the issues that come with fasting etc especially because from memory he needs to fast in september which could prove critical in a finals series.
Ryder Is God
27 Sep 2008, 12:54
He's already explained that he can adjust his lifestyle for football.
blues4flag
27 Sep 2008, 16:49
yeah he was a steal at 42. however i do think him being muslim may have had a small effect. clubs would have been aware of the issues that come with fasting etc especially because from memory he needs to fast in september which could prove critical in a finals series.
It's an issue now, but every year the month of Ramadan is 10 days earlier. By the time Essendon are a threat again, he'll be fasting the month of June. ;)
Or you know, he'll do what he did during the draft camp......
BabyBombers
27 Sep 2008, 17:56
yeah he was a steal at 42. however i do think him being muslim may have had a small effect. clubs would have been aware of the issues that come with fasting etc especially because from memory he needs to fast in september which could prove critical in a finals series.
Teaching a number of Muslim students they fast during daylight and eat when the sun has gone down. I also heard Bacher say that he can modify this with permission from his elders. He is an inspiration for a number of young Muslims and a very positive role model for all. Looking forward to him being in ripping form next year.
yeah he was a steal at 42. however i do think him being muslim may have had a small effect. clubs would have been aware of the issues that come with fasting etc especially because from memory he needs to fast in september which could prove critical in a finals series.
Yeh you have actually clarified what I was trying to say. I wasn't trying to suggest his religion could be an issue but I was more referring to the way clubs felt (maybe a bit scared/non-commited) about wanting to commit to a player where religious customs may interfere with footy schedules etc.
Wasn't there an issue years ago with a Richmond player where religious customs were interefering with footy? I think, was it Ezra Poyas and the issue had something to do with playing games on a Saturday?
As mentioned it shouldn't be an interference and I don't think it will cause any problems. I'm glad Essendon have been the first to embrace another culture into football and hope Houli has inspired more young Muslims and shown them that they can play AFL.
Slattery_20
28 Sep 2008, 22:04
yeah he was a steal at 42. however i do think him being muslim may have had a small effect. clubs would have been aware of the issues that come with fasting etc especially because from memory he needs to fast in september which could prove critical in a finals series.
You clearly didn't read my post 3 above yours
It's been discussed ad nauseum
bomber69
5 Oct 2008, 18:40
He was very injury-prone as a youngster if I recall, which put a few clubs off.
james_omahoney
5 Oct 2008, 18:48
If I was in recruitment for the Bombers I'd be ecstatic that Houli IS muslim - what comes with that is additional interest in the club because of his background, and an extremely disciplined young man who doesn't drink, take drugs or abuse his body. The positives would outweigh any obstacles such as ramadan. Very happy with Houli :).