The Challenge

[larrikin]

Hey all,

I thought I might issue a challenge to all Eagles fans that might cause a bit of controversy and discussion amongst us.

I challenge any fan to rank EVERY player on our list (Mike Sheehan style). All rankings are to be completely subjective but you should put some thought into every ranking - because someone will question you!!!!!!

My list is coming very soon

[Sera]

Gezz, it’s a tough thing to do! I’ll give it a shot… this is how I see them at the moment.

Gardiner – Premier ruckman in the comp
Cousins – Still our best all-round midfielder
Embley – A revelation, an amazing year
Judd – Explosive midfielder who could be #2 by the end of 2004
Kerr – Very under-rated player, his hard-ball gets are important
Fletcher – Stepped up big time this year
Wirrapunda – Without injury he would be higher
Matera – Important goal sneak
Chick – Versatility is the key
Hunter – Did some important jobs in defence this year
McDougall – Has it all, just needs to step up
Gaspar – I rate him, without injury he would be higher
Jones – If he kicked straight he would be higher
Cox – Sound backup ruckman
Glass – Still improving
Braun – Fantastic end to the year, should probably be higher
Green – Played some good games, needs to be more consistent
Sampi – Heir to Matera
Morrison – Played some good games but faded badly after injury
Collica – Sound negator but lacks run
Banfield – Slowing by the year
Chambers – Lacks accountability
Wooden – Wet weather specialist
Carroll – Not sure what to say really
Jakovich – A shadow of the player he once was
Seaby – The next AFL ruckman to step up
Staker – Amazing agility for 195cm
Selwood – Nice height and can run all day
Humm – Like his attack on the football
Lynch – Just needs a chance to show what he can do
Munro – Probably lucky to be this high
Nicoski – Fantastic year in the WAFL
Adkins – A disappointment
Beeck – Nice skills for a big guy
Hansen – Needs to bulk up
Johnson – Struggled in the WAFL IMO

[daddy_4_eyes]

*Cousins - One of our best players EVER.
*Gardiner - Best ruckman in the AFL, and our only proven quality tall
*Embley - Versatility makes him invaluable. Can win games off own boot
*Wirrpunda - Without him, a counter-attack would be but a dream
*Kerr - Invaluable when it comes to winning the hard ball. His 1st half against Essendon was arguably better than Judd's 5-goal effort against Brisbane
*Judd - Potential to be best player in the AFL. Needs consistency, but that comes with age
*Fletcher - Quality player, with glimpses of superstar abilities
*Matera - Scores goals, creates goals, makes the most of every opportunity. Virtually a one man forward line for last 2 yrs
*Jones - Works hard, plays for the team, love his hair cut
*Glass - Without him we'd have Carroll at FB. Important to our team
*Chick - Leads by example. Team orientated. Has class to boot
*Sampi - If he gets to play midfield, he'll be a gun. Wasted in the forward line IMO
*Cox - Does adequate job covering for Gardiner. Still improving.
*Hunter - Hard at it, and possesses skills too. Needs to focus more on ball not on opponent
*McDougall - Has us all excited. Could be the KPP we've been looking for
*Gaspar - Injured too much. Needs to get over them
*Braun - Provides depth to our midfield
*Jakovich - Provides creativity at HF. Average player nowadays, but occasionally plays that superb game
*Staker - Developed very fast for a tall. May jump a fair few spots by end of 2004
*Banfield - A shadow of himself. Too slow to play midfield or defence, not enough class to play forward.
*Green - A good HBF. Nothing more at this stage
*Wooden - Tries hard, just lacks natural ability
*Chambers - Has natural ability, lacks physique.
*Collica - Dropped off in 2003. At peak, would be a lot higher on list
*Carroll - Tries hard, but lacks a footy brain.
*Morrison - Used to be great, but knees screwed everything up.



These guys can be ranked in any order. All have potential, but are yet to show anything. I won't rank them as WAFL form and potential are not indicators of what they could become.

*Seaby
*Selwood
*Beeck
*Hansen
*Johnson
*Lynch
*Humm
*Munro
*Nicoski
*Adkins
*Beeck
*Hansen
*Johnson