View Full Version : 30. James Sellar
http://images.theage.com.au/2011/11/30/2808421/art-svSELLAR-420x0.jpg
ND pick 54
Height: 196cm
Weight: 98kg
DOB: 24-03-1989
Debut: 2008 - Rd 7 (delisted by Adelaide in 2011 after 21 games).
Prendergast says:
Neil (Craig) has coached him for the last five years so we did seek his opinion and Todd Viney as well because he was an assistant coach in Adelaide. We were able to have some valuable insight into James and that helps in making that decision.
Club Profile (http://www.melbournefc.com.au/players/playerprofile/jamessellar/tabid/8357/playerid/23843/category/senior/season/2011/selected/bio/default.aspx)
Demonwiki (http://demonwiki.org/James+Sellar)
2012 Season Preview
After being delisted last year by Adelaide the career of the Sellardoor looked closed. A gamble by the Dees at pick 54 in last years national draft means that it is now at least ajar.
We lost a disgruntled Warnock and gained a potentially revived Sellar for a slightly lower pick. It's probably not possible to lose out of this either way and initial perception was that Sellar may be a little more versatile than Warnock.
Being young with fire in the belly but having a grasp of the AFL system, Sellar could be quite serivceable in a less institutionalised team than we had under Bailey. Another player prepared to use their body and get in the way of opponents down back is never a bad thing.
From the pre-season reports Sellar has been pushed, literally if an elbow in the back to make him run harder at training is anything to go by. His response at the time "you're not ****en helping" also suggests a hint of agro which if controlled would be a welcomed addition to our backline.
The stand out performance was clearly against Collingwood. Observers stated that he looked like he belonged out there and he racked up enough possessions to suggest he could be more than just a stopper on bigger players but time (along with the serious stuff) will tell. On that day quite a few of our players looked ok before our fortunes changed the next 2 weeks against the Hawks and Power.
It comes down to this. The club got him for a reason. With Frawley the only other main big body down back there is a platform there for Sellar to get games if he puts in. There will be times where he is outclassed and times where he'll try to do too much in order to prove himself. His applicability may be on a weekly basis depending on opponent but he's fit and ready to go and Neeld's mantra is we don't die wondering so I expect us to get an insight into the Sellardoor sooner rather than later.
Even Crows supporters say the main issue was that he was thrown all over the field and didn't get a chance to cement a spot playing in 1 position. Could really benefit from time playing purely down back.
Happy Birthday Jimmy J. Sellar!
Round 2 vs West Coast
Sellar got the call up this week and seemed to be in it early (like so many others) but fizzled out as the game went on. At times he floated up the wing and according to AFL stats played as a CHF but didn't really have a presence for a bigger type. In any case his defensive impact was minimal on a day where all the opposition forwards but Kennedy had their way.
Stats: Marks 3, Kicks 3, Handballs 7, Disposal Efficiency (%) 90.00, Tackles 1, Frees For 1, Frees Against 0
Touch and go if he plays next week. McDonald being a late in for Martin played with purpose despite some poor kicking at times so he could possibly bump Sellar out of the team next week against the Tigers.
Captain Jack
8 Apr 2012, 04:52
So did he play as a defender or forward? Or neither?
So did he play as a defender or forward? Or neither?
From what I could tell mostly defence but with our lack of corridore use it is hard to pick our structure at times.
Demon JP
8 Apr 2012, 10:48
Also had to play in the ruck which probably wasn't ideal
Also had to play in the ruck which probably wasn't ideal
How much rucktime do you think mate?
Round 3 vs Richmond
After a game where we probably had too many talls, Martin's dropping after the Eagles game was possibly Sellar's saving grace for a spot against the Tiges.
Starting off in defence he didn't look to uncomfortable although the scoreboard possibly flattered us at half-time. It looked like a CHB start to the game and he was busy even if he didn't rack up many possessions.
Whether it was due to loss of structure or a genuine forward move our 1 and only goal from that forgettable 3rd quarter was off Sellar's boot.
He did some ruck work once again although it wasn't anything of note with Jamar taking up a fair amount of the brunt with 34 hit-outs.
It seems to be a jack-of-all-trades approach so far with Sellar even though he starts off from defence. I thought he looked a little slow around the clinches (as expected) but he was by no means on his own.
Stats: Marks 4, Kicks 6, Handballs 3, Tackles 2, Frees For 1, Frees Against 0, Sausage rolls 1, Hitouts 4.
Does he play this week against the Dogs? It's touch and go. If he can keep getting away with these generic roles he's playing then maybe as the Dogs don't have the tallest forward line but not a great situation to be in and we'll need speed.
High Flying Flag
23 Apr 2012, 08:43
I was considering wanting him dropped, but I've changed my mind. The guys has played ressies all his life, I'm happy to give him half a season to see why he was rated so highly.
High Flying Flag
28 Apr 2012, 23:30
Makes a contest, and it's great to punch, but not all the time.
Will come good with confidence, Adelaide screwed him.
Round 4 vs Western Bulldogs
Unlike previous weeks, Sellar looked to start up forward from the outset. He presented as well as he could - to the point that he got in the way of Clark a couple of times. It was obvious that he hadn't had much time to work on his game with the other forwards though and the numbers were not too flattering even if our midfield struggled to supply decent ball.
Stats: Marks 1, Kicks 3, Handballs 1, Disposal Efficiency (%) 25.00, Tackles 2, Frees For 0, Frees Against 0
All in all he failed to take any advantage of a depleted dogs defence. 1 mark as a mostly tall forward option on the day tells the tale.
Round 5 vs St Kilda
The wet didn't suit him lets be frank.
He toiled around half back at times, had an obligatory stint in the ruck and worked hard to get in on the action when we worked the wing not afraid to get down low and use his body. In a game where we lifted our intensity all over the ground Sellar looked the part at times when it was scrappy but just couldn't make an impact.
More often than not he got wrapped up when he gained possesion which limited his effective disposals or just couldn't get a free possesion. Dunn was subbed off for Sylvia in the 3rd quarter but I think Sellar would have been the more appropriate option.
Stats: Marks 0, Kicks 2, Handballs 6, Disposal Efficiency (%) 75.00, Tackles 2, Frees For 1, Frees Against 0
Martin's absence since the Tigers game has probably given Sellar a bigger prominence than he currently deserves but I'm not sure how much longer he can keep getting a spot with these current contributions. The Cats next week will be hard, nimble and uncompromising - they'll run rings around him.
cSylvia
29 Apr 2012, 13:02
Competed well - Cant fault his effort but seriously never looked like taking a mark when we really needed it. Happy to have him in the team when Clark isn't available but doesn't look like a long term solution at all.
Round 6 vs Geelong*
Not only was Sellar Slow, He DIDN'T have a crack, Didn't Take One Mark, and Only Laid one tackle and had 4 disposals.
He Provided no contests with Marks - Unless the contest was being a flog, He laid 1 Tackle - Pretty Awesome for a back playing Forward, as Tackling is something that Backmen are meant to be really well skilled in. and ended up with 5 hitouts.
His stats were: 0 goals/behinds, 4 Disposals, 3 Kicks, 1 Handball, 0 Marks, 1 Tackle. 5 hitouts.
He's useless.
'SuburbanMe' assisted with this week's review.
High Flying Flag
6 May 2012, 21:09
I feel sorry for him: He just wants to succeed. Did you see how he ran when Clark booted it to him, trying to peel off for the goal? Unfortunately, he's doing little more than dent his confidence with what he's serving up. There's a good player there somewhere, go back to Casey and be considered towards the middle of the year :thumbsu:
SuburbanMe
6 May 2012, 21:30
I feel sorry for him: He just wants to succeed. Did you see how he ran when Clark booted it to him, trying to peel off for the goal? Unfortunately, he's doing little more than dent his confidence with what he's serving up. There's a good player there somewhere, go back to Casey and be considered towards the middle of the year :thumbsu:
I Agree with this. Even though My Comments may seem harsh - they are true. He couldn't get a game with Adelaide not because there was too much talent there - it was because he couldn't perform.
As you suggest HFF - in the 2's and see how he's going mid year - otherwise, run him in the 2's for the year (unless injuries screw us), and belt him over the preseason to get his speed, hand and foot skills up, as well as his decision making.
Watts Cops a smashing over the way he looks at times on field, and while some of the criticism is warranted, He's harshly dealt with. Sellar on the other hand - hasn't really shown Anything so far and there's no real talk of how he's going. He needs to have a run in the 2's and go from there. If he doesn't perform in the 2's - Delist and slap Neal Craig around the head for suggesting him.
Regardless of how my comments portray my view - I actually hope he get's going. He's got good height and a good strong build, just needs to work on his whole game.
High Flying Flag
6 May 2012, 21:41
Well said mate.
Craig has screwed him over by not playing him at Adelaide, and then giving him a free ride here to date.
The guy loves the club from what I can see, and he's worth persevering with.
FWIW with Watts, people only say that because of unrealistic expectation of a Messiah
As you suggest HFF - in the 2's and see how he's going mid year - otherwise, run him in the 2's for the year (unless injuries screw us), and belt him over the preseason to get his speed, hand and foot skills up, as well as his decision making.
Why not start belting him now? Do a mini-pre-season of all day skills work and running for the next 4-5 weeks and see if there's any improvement. If there is, play him into match practice at Casey and then let him loose. I really don't understand why clubs feel they have to wait until the pre-season to sort those kind of issues out.
FantasticShirt
8 May 2012, 18:02
I really hope Sellar succeeds at Melbourne. He's a really nice guy who had apparently had some fairly serious personal issues that really impacted on his time at Adelaide. No doubt impacting on his performance and confidence. I didn't really think he was used too well in his time at Glenelg (a big problem with the SANFL system where Port/Crows have no say in how they are used at the SANFL clubs).
I hope he can go on and achieve a decent career. Can't say i've been overly impressed with what he's dished up for Melbourne so far though. :o
Bartram_Class
8 May 2012, 19:19
The interesting thing is, like Meesen before him, you can see the traits that resulted in him being drafted so highly.
He is quick when he gets going, agile, a strong body and not the worst set shot. Yet for whatever reason, hasn't all clicked together yet.
SuburbanMe
9 May 2012, 09:54
Why not start belting him now? Do a mini-pre-season of all day skills work and running for the next 4-5 weeks and see if there's any improvement. If there is, play him into match practice at Casey and then let him loose. I really don't understand why clubs feel they have to wait until the pre-season to sort those kind of issues out.
Well that's part of what I was actually saying by playing him in the VFL. Get Games into him, then CONTINUE the smashing in the off season.
Which ever way it's done - just do it ya know?