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

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

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.

Want to add Jobe Watson to that list? He didn't exactly bloom early yet he won a Brownlow Medal.

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.

Harsh criticism considering the bloke has only played 13 AFL games.

I thank my lucky stars that you're not in a position of authority at our Football Club.

 

[yaco55]

Going by Lloyd's match review O'Brien will be around in 2016. You offer a one year deal. hoping for further improvement in 2016 but also knowing 2016 is a decent draft

 

[ManWithNoName]

Want to add Jobe Watson to that list? He didn't exactly bloom early yet he won a Brownlow Medal.


Harsh criticism considering the bloke has only played 13 AFL games.

I thank my lucky stars that you're not in a position of authority at our Football Club.

So what's your point? Because one player came good after a long while we should keep every player who shows nothing for what, 6 years? Great list management!

 

[Vindicater]

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.

I don't think he is a dud. I just think he is a depth player who should not be getting games when 2 of Hocking, Heppell and Watson are in the team.

His job is to get under packs and get the ball out. At the moment he makes our midfield too slow and gives us too much of what we allready have.

 

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

So what's your point? Because one player came good after a long while we should keep every player who shows nothing for what, 6 years? Great list management!

My point is, players can develop successfully over time when given the opportunity. Not saying he will necessarily win medals, just saying I personally think it's too early to call him a dud.

 

[ManWithNoName]

My point is, players can develop successfully over time when given the opportunity. Not saying he will necessarily win medals, just saying I personally think it's too early to call him a dud.

4 years on an AFL list and he's still showing nothing. How much time do you give players?

 

[BrunoV]

Going by Lloyd's match review O'Brien will be around in 2016. You offer a one year deal. hoping for further improvement in 2016 but also knowing 2016 is a decent draft

I was and am still firmly in the 'why the * can't Kav get a game as a inside midfielder' camp but he's clearly cooked and O'Brien is doing a reasonably good job of taking his opportunity. It does seem a strange time to de-list O'Brien now that he is showing that he is quite a capable midfield accumulator (even if it is in the more free flowing games). I can't see how he does not get another year to try to improve further.

 

[bombreys]

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.

A 22 year old with four years on the list really isn't that young.

He's a ball magnet, but his disposal is atrocious. He looks to be petrified of being tackled or any type of body contact, and turns the ball over after panicking if an opponent is within 2m of him.

If I was in charge I'd probably give him one more year (mainly due to lack of AFL experience) to see if he can figure it out just due to his ability to find the pill, but he's got some serious work to do.

 

[Paul_Barnard]

I think he has shown enough to get another year which is symbolic of where the list is at the moment.

 

[eth-dog]

He's a big bodied inside mid that can't take a tackle or body contact.

 

[Antho]

Soft as butter, gets cheap possessions, does nothing with them, and is an outside mid masquerading as an insider. Straight out dud.

 

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

4 years on an AFL list and he's still showing nothing. How much time do you give players?

Enough time to play more than 13 games.

 

[ManWithNoName]

Enough time to play more than 13 games.

4 years is long enough to play more than 13 games.

 

[Mr_McBoogerBalls]

4 years is long enough to play more than 13 games.

Good chat

 

[Zach Package]

So I have a theory.

Nick's been having private sessions with someone at the club, but they're not working on tackling or kicking or trivial nonsense like that, Nick's been going somewhere deep in the bowels of the TVSC (probably to the room in between the drug lab and where the mole people live) and someone who's probably Neil Craig has been using the Ludovico technique on him. And all he's being shown is endless footage of backwards handballs. Backwards handballs behind a running teammate, backwards handballs over the head of a stationary teammate, backwards handballs hammered into a teammate's chest from 80 cms away, backwards handballs to the feet of a teammate, all kinds of rubbish backwards handballs.

Seriously...what the f*** is wrong with him, he could grab the ball from the hitout and have both sides giving him a guard of honour to the front of the centre square and he'd still handball it 4 feet behind Michael Hibberd who's streaming forward.

 

[CBombers17]

So I have a theory.

Nick's been having private sessions with someone at the club, but they're not working on tackling or kicking or trivial nonsense like that, Nick's been going somewhere deep in the bowels of the TVSC (probably to the room in between the drug lab and where the mole people live) and someone who's probably Neil Craig has been using the Ludovico technique on him. And all he's being shown is endless footage of backwards handballs. Backwards handballs behind a running teammate, backwards handballs over the head of a stationary teammate, backwards handballs hammered into a teammate's chest from 80 cms away, backwards handballs to the feet of a teammate, all kinds of rubbish backwards handballs.

Seriously...what the f*** is wrong with him, he could grab the ball from the hitout and have both sides giving him a guard of honour to the front of the centre square and he'd still handball it 4 feet behind Michael Hibberd who's streaming forward.

For those that have seen him play VFL is this what he does at that level or is he just playing first option football at the higher level (totaly understandable with so few AFL games)?

 

[ManWithNoName]

Delist.

 

[BrunoV]

So I have a theory.

Nick's been having private sessions with someone at the club, but they're not working on tackling or kicking or trivial nonsense like that, Nick's been going somewhere deep in the bowels of the TVSC (probably to the room in between the drug lab and where the mole people live) and someone who's probably Neil Craig has been using the Ludovico technique on him. And all he's being shown is endless footage of backwards handballs. Backwards handballs behind a running teammate, backwards handballs over the head of a stationary teammate, backwards handballs hammered into a teammate's chest from 80 cms away, backwards handballs to the feet of a teammate, all kinds of rubbish backwards handballs.

Seriously...what the f*** is wrong with him, he could grab the ball from the hitout and have both sides giving him a guard of honour to the front of the centre square and he'd still handball it 4 feet behind Michael Hibberd who's streaming forward.

I'm not going to VFL games any more because it's just become another source of annoyance. We have some seriously ******* stupid people in our footy department.


Edit: just to clarify, I am not saying that I think this is what is happening obviously Jack is being creative about making a point. I am saying that people should watch Kav set play up with each of his 25 quality disposals in the wet against the Dogs last week.

 

[Runk]

The things I noticed about Nick last night as I kept an eye on him were that 1; his prescence on the ball has little to no effect on a contest and this might be in part to a) inexperience & b) absolutely no muscle on his body whatsoever & 2; he is simply too slow for this fast moving game.
He's a novice, was not a high draft pick and is simply filling a role left vacant by a MASSIVE player in Jobe Watson. Ultimately if we're expecting him to be anywhere near that standard we're kidding ourselves. He's doing the best with what he's got.

 

[Runk]

He's a big bodied inside mid that can't take a tackle or body contact.

He has no muscle on him. How the * does that happen?? Put him in the gym ffs at the least.

 

[Phone]

No issue with an one year contract here if other bolder moves are made

 

[BrunoV]

No issue with an one year contract here if other bolder moves are made

Like re-signing Bellchambers?

 

[Phone]

ugh

 

[ManWithNoName]

Posted this in the autopsy thread but I want to expand on it so I'll put it here:

Played as an inside mid and was at the bulk of stoppages when he was on the ground. Had less contested disposals than Cale Hooker.

Was on the ground for only 80% of the game. The only players with less (besides the two vested players) were Chapman, Hocking and Howlett. Was consistently stationary when he needed to push to create an option.

Ran around all night seemingly not accountable for anyone, at one point I saw him telling Melksham to get on Deledio rather than doing it himself.

2 tackles.

1 mark.

2 inside 50's, 1 rebound 50.

Doesn't get the ball in close. Doesn't provide an option on the outside. Doesn't provide physical pressure. Doesn't have a tank. Doesn't have any defensive side to his game. He doesn't actually do anything.

He's done.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

It's just so ridiculously clear he's not an AFL player.