Toast Andrew Gaff - 250 Games

[VicBased]

Onya Gaffy and congrats. It's been a good solid innings.

 

[The wily weagle]

So Gaff's milestone game is this weekend yeah?

I am sure the boys will lift for him, after all, the squad has a splendid record of digging deep for club champions in milestone matches........

Well done to get to 250

 

[Doashuey]

Great achievement. Agree his guts is well underappreciated. He is not a strong tackler, never has been, but he never shirks, never short steps and will put his body on the line every time it's his turn. Anyone who calls him soft doesn't understand footy.
Congrats Gaffy, hope you get your body right and find a role that suits you next year.

 

[RookiePick]

Yeo is a dual AA that can play mid, go forward to kick a goal or go back to HBF. He knocks embley out straight up and challenges both Shuey and Mainey. Gaff stays as a pure wing.

Yeo knock out Embers? I think not.

Top boxer is Andrew.

Also has a Norm Smith.

 

[flamingEMBERS]

Great clubman and has achieved some great personal feats while at the club.

I feel if we get him to drop some kilos and play him on the wing again, he could return to some old form in ‘23

 

[Bleedblueandgold]

Gaff should definitely return to the wings.

 

[HoneyBadger35]

* sake can’t believe I forgot about this. Should have been the lone thing in the OP. Might sticky it just to be safe.

 

[squashface]

* sake can’t believe I forgot about this. Should have been the lone thing in the OP. Might sticky it just to be safe.

View attachment 1457445

That video remains the greatest thing to come out of this club and I'm including all of our flags

 

[RookiePick]

That video remains the greatest thing to come out of this club and I'm including all of our flags

It's no Boris the Chicken TBF.

 

[AndysAngels]

Fifth all-time for brownlow votes for our club too with 109, behind Priddis (149), Cousins (141), Matera (126), Kerr (114). Pretty bloody good career.

 

[UseR2006]

 

[Keys]

Would love if he could get back somewhere close to that elite running wingman

 

[The_Eagles]

There’s 5 spots in a starting midfield

Kemp, Matera, Cousins, Judd, Kerr are locks

Embley, Mainwairing, Shuey, Gaff and Yeo are fighting for spots on the bench

Hurn Glass McGovern
McKenna Jakovich Yeo
Matera Kerr Gaff
LeCras Kennedy Cousins
Ph Matera Sumich Cox

Naitanui Judd Kemp

Worsfold Shuey McIntosh Embley


Mainwaring Brennan Lewis Darling Wirrpanda Hart Pyke Evans Sheppard Turley

 

[wce4premiership]

Gaff I have a soft spot for, but his quality of possession has taken a hit the past 2-3 years.

He works so well in a free flowing game because his constant movement allows him to be free almost all of the time. We haven't had free flowing football since probably 2019, since then we became very much clearance specialists with Naitanui's resurgence but he still had some great games.

I do think he can play better next year. That could be through a positional change or perhaps just a full pre-season without injury and a better defined role as the younger mids take charge more.

I see the talent in the way he gets the ball in contests, he's not strong enough to be an inside mid but if the ball is in his vicinity he will grab it cleanly and fire off a handball where others would fumble. He's got the talent but not the strength.

He's lost some pace, not that he was ever fast but he does look to be labouring this year when on the run.

I have always admired his courage, there's courage in running hard, there's courage in playing as an inside mid when you're not built for it, there's courage in training to such an extent that you are able to be in a position to run more than anyone else in the game (except Scully in his prime).

I feel like he has a role moving forward, he would do what it took to make the team better regardless of his stat line. I want him to tidy up his disposal a bit and find his vision again to find the loose target.

TLDR - Want him in the team, hope the coaches/he can get the best out of himself because he's a talented player.

 

[UseR2006]

Hurn Glass McGovern
McKenna Jakovich Yeo
Matera Kerr Gaff
LeCras Kennedy Cousins
Ph Matera Sumich Cox

Naitanui Judd Kemp

Worsfold Shuey McIntosh Embley


Mainwaring Brennan Lewis Darling Wirrpanda Hart Pyke Evans Sheppard Turley

Comparing the stats makes for quite an interesting look..



Gaff definitely gets way more ball than both of Embley or Matera but didn't hurt as much going forward.
In saying that though as a pure run and link between the defense and forwards he's been amazing.
I'd take all 3 in the all time team, always have one on the bench.

 

[Matera92]

Comparing the stats makes for quite an interesting look..

View attachment 1458281

Gaff definitely gets way more ball than both of Embley or Matera but didn't hurt as much going forward.
In saying that though as a pure run and link between the defense and forwards he's been amazing.
I'd take all 3 in the all time team, always have one on the bench.

That free kick differential between the three players shows everything that's wrong in the modern game.

 

[amazingjoshy]

Never been happy with how much the club paid to retain him in 2018. My opinion is you don't pay the big bucks to the sort of player he is, but that's the clubs fault not Gaffs. No doubt he's been one of the best pure wingman in the league through his career (when played there), and is def in the conversation for wing in our best 22 of all time

Some of his stat lines are ridiculous. Rd 15 2018 he had 37d, 6m, 7t and a goal, followed by 41d, 6m, 3t and 2 goals in Rd 16.
Though still reckon his best game for the club was the 2019 SF vs the Cats. Almost single-handedly got us in front in the 3rd qtr.

 

[HawkerHurricane]

Embley > Gaff

IMO

Embley's goal kicking and versatility gives him the edge

immediately thought the exact same thing

 

[Bort Cummings]

I read the Stocks puff piece on the WCE site, and noticed this:

"He has often played under physical duress, as he has done this year where a problematic ankle has been a significant impediment to the veteran maintaining the standards he has set across his glittering [he forgot to write 'career' here.]'

I recall a couple of people saying he was looking laboured around the ground, and this also leads to questions around why we would keep playing him instead of getting games into someone like SPS or O'Neill in a nothing season, but might explain why his gut running seems to have fallen away.

Anyway, good luck to him in game 250 - hope he breaks the milestone game hoodoo. We've been spoiled to have seen some freakish players over our history, and I think Gaff is sometimes judged against players like the guy who wore number 3 before him. He's been a solid clubman and was one of the best wingers in the comp at one point (easy to forget he made AA in '18 despite missing 3 regular season games for the punch).

Hope he can get on top of whatever's ailing him and get back to something like the 2018 version next year.

 

[RookiePick]

Reading about Gaff plus innumerable other examples over the years...

Our match committee really reminds me of Ripley driving the APC in Aliens.

Zero mechanical sympathy.

 

[UseR2006]

 

[YeoGabbaGabba]

Stayed loyal to us and stuck with us when we supported him through the Brayshaw saga despite the boys bringing the cup home, with it being reasonable for him to go to North with that ridiculous contract offer. Regardless of what is said about him, he will always have my respect

 

[triplegee]

Well done Gaffy.

Say what you like about his current output, which is clearly in large part due to his body letting him down, but he's given his all for our club. And for that, he will always be an Eagles legend in my eyes.

Through some of our darkest days, he turned up and gave it everything, often being the sole bright spot.

Thank you Andrew.

 

[WCErevival]

Reading about Gaff plus innumerable other examples over the years...

Our match committee really reminds me of Ripley driving the APC in Aliens.

Zero mechanical sympathy.

Someone needs to photoshop Simmos head over Gormans as all the marines start dropping like flys. The movie could represent our season quite well.

 

[Shifty1]

Congrats to Gaffy. Been a fantastic player.

I haven't looked at any stats or anything but it always felt to me that he wasn't quite the same player after getting that dog hit from Jonas in 2016. His great 2018 notwithstanding.