Delisted #19: Shaun Edwards - Rookied by Sydney, now retired from AFL - 22/9

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yaco55 said:
Any chance that application is part of talent - Anyway hoping he can do a Gary O'Donnell.
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It's a fair point but I suppose the difference is that the innate abilities being referred to by other posters cannot be learned whereas the characteristics you are talking about are almost exclusively learned.

Mentioning O'Donnell and Edwards in the same breath is absurd. You're talking about a guy who forged a career on the back of determination and discipline to overcome moderate 'talent' in the same breath of as a kid with kicking and ball handling ability together with athletic talents that are genuinely elite.

They have the opposite quality.


Ambrosia said:
Would be an excellent Winderlich replacement with his height and pace.
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I had not thought of Edwards as a Winderlich replacement...great idea. We've got plenty of options at half back and his struggles with the defensive side of the game won't be as significant in our forward half.
 
No, you are born with talent or you are not.

Edwards was definitely born with it. He just hasn't yet learnt to utilise it.
 

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Doss said:
No, you are born with talent or you are not.

Edwards was definitely born with it. He just hasn't yet learnt to utilise it.
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I wouldn't even say that. He simply hasn't adapted to the demands on players off the ball in AFL as it is played in 2014-2015.

If were were as late as 2005-2009, he'd have played 100 50 games by now. He is a freak.




Edit: 50 is more than enough in 4 years with a good run with injury.
 
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kelvin_sheedy said:
Running fast and looking flashy doesn't equate to talent.

At this point in his career Edwards does not have the talent to play afl.
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Runs fast, great hands, good leap, excellent skills. I'd say that's a fair bit of talent. Problem is he rarely puts it all together at the same time, and his defensive work ethic isn't up to scratch.
 
My GOD comparison is apt - Both 4 years in the system for limited senior footy - I must have watched half of GoD's 70 or 80 games in the reserves - At that stage he appeared to be a solid, if somewhat limited player - By the way where did Edward's place in the VFL/NEAFL b and F ?
 
eth-dog said:
Runs fast, great hands, good leap, excellent skills. I'd say that's a fair bit of talent. Problem is he rarely puts it all together at the same time, and his defensive work ethic isn't up to scratch.
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The reason he rarely puts it together is he struggles to do it under pressure.

Real talent is the ability to do it under pressure. Not in the park or at training.
 
yaco55 said:
My GOD comparison is apt - Both 4 years in the system for limited senior footy - I must have watched half of GoD's 70 or 80 games in the reserves - At that stage he appeared to be a solid, if somewhat limited player - By the way where did Edward's place in the VFL/NEAFL b and F ?
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Edwards finished 9/10th in the BnF from memory
 
kelvin_sheedy said:
The reason he rarely puts it together is he struggles to do it under pressure.

Real talent is the ability to do it under pressure. Not in the park or at training.
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What? You're pulling things from your ass now Kelvin. Does it under pressure often. Was excellent in the last quarter vs Frankston, against Box Hill he was good under pressure and against Port at Port Melbourne, which is one of the most hostile grounds you'll see.
 
eth-dog said:
What? You're pulling things from your ass now Kelvin. Does it under pressure often. Was excellent in the last quarter vs Frankston, against Box Hill he was good under pressure and against Port at Port Melbourne, which is one of the most hostile grounds you'll see.
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Was at that game. Kicked a beauty goal on the run from outside 50 that stays in my memory. He is loaded with natural footballing talent.
 
With seeing very little of him bar highlights which always look good.

Who would those who have seen him at VFL level compare him to in the AFL in regards to similar attributes ect? How does he compare to Lewis Jetta?

Im a big believer we need speed in our team as i have mentioned before, however i think with a tip year from Dempsey coupled with Colyers last season form and the addition of Cooney we could have enough there but more the merrier.
 

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Keystone agony said:
With seeing very little of him bar highlights which always look good.

Who would those who have seen him at VFL level compare him to in the AFL in regards to similar attributes ect? How does he compare to Lewis Jetta?

Im a big believer we need speed in our team as i have mentioned before, however i think with a tip year from Dempsey coupled with Colyers last season form and the addition of Cooney we could have enough there but more the merrier.
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Across HB he's like Dempsey at the same age. Across HF he's more like Andrew Lovett, really.
 
Lol at all the different definitions of talent!
The common usage (for those who don't seem to know), is that talents are the attributes that you were born with and/or come naturally without effort. Pretty much everything else is work ethic and the ability to learn.
Edwards has the talent necessary for AFL, but it remains to be seen if he can learn the rest of the attributes that make up an AFL player which will include establishing a solid work ethic.
Jetta was an interesting case whereby he had the talent and (belatedly) the work ethic, but seemed to have an inability to learn the defensive game plan. I'd also suggest that he struggled to learn how to make best use of his talents in an AFL setting. For someone so quick, he didn't seem to have the spatial awareness to know when he could use his speed.
As such AFL players have to have talent first, then they need to learn how to make the most of their talents. After that they need be able to learn to plug the gaps in their abilities which includes learning the game plan. Those last three elements require a sufficient work ethic.
Some people are able to learn extremely well, which is why they can make so much out of such limited talents.
This all adds up to a recipe for life in general. Don't worry about your talents because you might be able to do almost anything if you work hard enough and are able to learn quickly. A great example was John Franklin, who was famous for achieving enormous success despite a serious mental deficiency whereby his brain worked much much slower than everyone else. He worked extremely hard to find ways around his issues and then played towards his strengths.
 
kelvin_sheedy said:
How many games will he play this year?

How many players make it that are "long term projects"?
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From our team alone Dempsey and Hooker off the top of my head. You've embarrassed yourself enough already, give it a rest.
 
kelvin_sheedy said:
How many games will he play this year?

How many players make it that are "long term projects"?
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Jimmy Stynes won a brownlow. Mike Pyke premiership ruckman, Tajh Kennelly premiership player. Dean Brogan premiership ruckman. Mark Blicavs doing well at Cats. These were all project players.

On a different note there are more examples of players who took longer to get opportunies at top level. At Essendon O'Donnell and Wallis are examples - played years in ressies before becoming senior premiership players.
 
eth-dog said:
From our team alone Dempsey and Hooker off the top of my head. You've embarrassed yourself enough already, give it a rest.
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How many games had Hooker and Dempsey played in their first four years - Lot more than Edwards - Which suggests they had better AFL type talent.
 
efcboy said:
Jimmy Stynes won a brownlow. Mike Pyke premiership ruckman, Tajh Kennelly premiership player. Dean Brogan premiership ruckman. Mark Blicavs doing well at Cats. These were all project players.

On a different note there are more examples of players who took longer to get opportunies at top level. At Essendon O'Donnell and Wallis are examples - played years in ressies before becoming senior premiership players.
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GOD is the best example - Wallis didn't play much in his first 4 years, though he was injury plagued.
 
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