VFL Past #54: Nick O'Brien - returning to play for Essendon VFL in 2017!

[Blazeit]

TBH I think he deserves another year. Perhaps I'm biased because we went to the same high school (and Marty Gleeson for those playing at home), but the fact he can find the ball so often (albeit with little damage) is encouraging. Plus our depth for inside mids has really been found out this year.

Maybe he'll do a Jobe on us? Hit up Melksham for some boxing classes after Jake's delisted

 

[eth-dog]

I see him as a very poor man's Heppell.

Fixed.

 

[ant555]

I see him as a poor man's Heppell.

poor mans Heppell would fit as well.

 

[Antho]

Very, very average footballer. Delist. Gets a heap of cheap possessions and doesn't do anything with them. Poor kick and not much better at hand-passing. Jobe was a terrible kick for a long time but he was always a brilliant hand-passer. O'Brien's just filler. A list clogger with zero tricks.

 

[7zark7]

Please don't shoot me down for my comments. Can you all remember in 2005/2006 when Jobe started to get more senior footy? He was wonderful at getting in the right spots and finding the footy but was still knocked from pillar to post for his terrible disposal. He worked on that and look where that got him.

Is there any chance that NOB is worth holding onto for the same reason?

 

[CBombers17]

Please don't shoot me down for my comments. Can you all remember in 2005/2006 when Jobe started to get more senior footy? He was wonderful at getting in the right spots and finding the footy but was still knocked from pillar to post for his terrible disposal. He worked on that and look where that got him.

Is there any chance that NOB is worth holding onto for the same reason?

100% worth it.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Please don't shoot me down for my comments. Can you all remember in 2005/2006 when Jobe started to get more senior footy? He was wonderful at getting in the right spots and finding the footy but was still knocked from pillar to post for his terrible disposal. He worked on that and look where that got him.

Is there any chance that NOB is worth holding onto for the same reason?

Nick O'Brien is not Jobe Watson. This is his 4th year on the list and he's shown nothing. His disposal, his decision making, his running are still nowhere. Yes sometimes you'll keep a player and he'll come good but you can't keep a player who's shown nothing after so long like NOB has. Cheers for your efforts, but delist.

 

[Bombers36]

Please don't shoot me down for my comments. Can you all remember in 2005/2006 when Jobe started to get more senior footy? He was wonderful at getting in the right spots and finding the footy but was still knocked from pillar to post for his terrible disposal. He worked on that and look where that got him.

Is there any chance that NOB is worth holding onto for the same reason?

I definitely think so. Hes done more than some other listed players like Kav & Browne, and has more upside than J.Merrett and a few others in the team in my opinion

 

[kelvin_sheedy]

NOB > KAV, Dalgleish, Aylett.

 

[eth-dog]

NOB > KAV, Dalgleish, Aylett.

Except in the fact that he's not.

 

[Bombers36]

Except in the fact that he's not.

Cant agree with this Eth. I know stats aren't everything, but he's well ahead of other guys on the list of similar age and number of games;-

O'Brien Games - 13, Ave disposals - 17.4, Goals - 0.3, Tackles - 1.8, Marks - 2.8
Browne Games - 11, Ave disposals - 10.6, Goals - 0.4, Tackles - 1.3, Marks - 2.6
Kav Games - 11, Ave disposals - 11.1, Goals - 0.2, Tackles - 2.4, Marks - 2.3
Steinberg Games - 10, Ave disposals - 10.9, Goals - 0, Tackles - 1.9, Marks - 2.8

 

[Antho]

Please don't shoot me down for my comments. Can you all remember in 2005/2006 when Jobe started to get more senior footy? He was wonderful at getting in the right spots and finding the footy but was still knocked from pillar to post for his terrible disposal. He worked on that and look where that got him.

Is there any chance that NOB is worth holding onto for the same reason?

Difference is that Jobe had assets. He was always a brilliant, creative hand-passer. Nobby has no assets.

 

[Antho]

I definitely think so. Hes done more than some other listed players like Kav & Browne, and has more upside than J.Merrett and a few others in the team in my opinion

Browne? Lol. Browne had a more promising 5 minutes of footy in the Port game than Nobby's had the whole time he's been playing.

 

[Antho]

Nobby is taking Browne's spot. Browne is a far better player with a lot more tricks and a fair bit more toe.

 

[CBombers17]

Hes young, got a great attitude to learn, leader, big unit and can find it - in traffic - 30 times a game at AFL level.

Delist.

 

[eth-dog]

Cant agree with this Eth. I know stats aren't everything, but he's well ahead of other guys on the list of similar age and number of games;-

O'Brien Games - 13, Ave disposals - 17.4, Goals - 0.3, Tackles - 1.8, Marks - 2.8
Browne Games - 11, Ave disposals - 10.6, Goals - 0.4, Tackles - 1.3, Marks - 2.6
Kav Games - 11, Ave disposals - 11.1, Goals - 0.2, Tackles - 2.4, Marks - 2.3
Steinberg Games - 10, Ave disposals - 10.9, Goals - 0, Tackles - 1.9, Marks - 2.8

I don't know why Steinberg is in this discussion. There's also the fact that O'Brien has never had sub affected games, whereas the other two have had half their games as sub/subbed out.

O'Brien gets more of the ball but that helps the opposition more than it helps Essendon. Take away Kav's sub affected games and his stats look about the same as O'Brien's.

 

[Antho]

Hes young, got a great attitude to learn, leader, big unit and can find it - in traffic - 30 times a game at AFL level.

Delist.

He's 22, no tricks, does no damage and doesn't even win that much hard ball anyway. Just an accumulator who does absolutely nothing. His one contribution this year was a loopy pass to Daniher that a squib named Lumumba should have had the balls to spoil.

 

[Runk]

Would delist others before him. I'm no fan, don't get me wrong, but adds a touch more depth than Kav, et al IMO. One year only.

 

[BrunoV]

Thought he was pretty good against Gold Coast.

Possessions may not be everything but he is a midfield accumulator which is something we are not blessed with.

It will all come down to whether he can develop the power or finesse to attack from stoppages and congestion.

He has to get 1 more year to work out whether he can put the theory of his size into practice. I don't think I've seen him win one possession as a result of throwing his weight around.

 

[Cransberg23]

Needs to learn to find a target without turning backwards. If he can do that he has the potential to be an ordinary midfielder in a mid table side.

 

[Ambrosia]

Having watched the replay I would still delist him. He doesn't use his size to impact a contest so we are left with a slow outside midfielder who uses the ball poorly.

Look at his stat line against GC. 1 CL 8 CP 0 CM 2 T. Thats rubbish for a midfielder of his size.

 

[MarkG]

He knows how to get where the ball is and appears to have a big tank.

Disposal may be a case of more time in the faster paced AFL.

Can also play as a stopper.

Definitely worth persevering with.

 

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

You're all expecting a 5 star player out of an inexperienced kid who is only now finally getting his chances on the big stage (a kid I might add whom is racking up disposals)

I'm not saying the kid has exactly set the world on fire, but his performances haven't warranted these sorts of negative reactions.

I really hope the players don't read BF sometimes.

 

[srobbo]

This bloke is average.

So he gets 30 (mostly meaningless)touches in a dead rubber game & all of a sudden he's worth hanging onto??

Bet he get's 15-16 this week v Tigs.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Keeping players like O'Brien is systematic of the decision making that has seen this club achieve nothing for over 10 years.

He's a dud. He's shown nothing that suggests he'll ever become something yet we all want to keep him because maybe he'll turn it around. It's like Richard Cole. Or Jay Neagle. Or Courtney Johns. Or Jake Melksham. Or Henry Slattery. Or Mark Bolton. Or Sam Lonergan. Or Ricky Dyson.

Players that have shown absolutely nothing. And yet we keep them in the hope they'll turn it around. Because it's the easier decision. And so we keep them. And because we've kept them, we either play them in the 1's, where they continue to spud it up. Or we play them in the 2's, in the hope that they'll magically turn it around one Saturday afternoon in Frankston.

Enough is enough. Stop trying to tread water or we'll continue to achieve nothing. He's not good enough. He's not shown anything to suggest he'll be good enough. He can rack up touches against a borderline NEAFL side for a team that averages more disposals per game than every side bar Hawthorn and Sydney. And yet despite all this ability to find the ball, only 3 Inside 50's and 2 tackles. He's an inside mid who only had 8 contested disposals. He doesn't actually DO anything. He's not good enogh. He will not be good enough. Therefore, delist him.