Opinion OFFICIAL: Josh Walker traded for Brisbane's 2016 3rd Rd pick (Jansen = steak knives)

Mar 6, 2014
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Yeah it is weird. Because they were so glowing then. What the hell has changed so much? It's like he overheard a conversation with someone saying "nice bloke, tries really hard, will be a good seat warmer til Vards is up and about and then we can dump him." Feel like he is always being envisaged as second string, as opposed to having a place and a role like Kersten (who, like Stevie, might be another "in trouble" in part because of the Menz Machine).
I think a lot of it is mental, as you've said, JC- his goal kicking had improved earlier this year but he suddenly lost a lot of confidence in that area, which is sad. Not sure what the problem is but, if a change of club helps him reach his potential, then I'm all for it. it'd be a real shame because he has a great love of the club but he needs to do what's best for his career.
 
Mar 6, 2014
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Could be because he had 5 possesions for the night....... Well that's the stats in the paper say.
Walker had 5 contested possessions in 40% game time- Hawkins had 8 possessions (4 contested) in 97% game time.
here are their comparative stats:

Walker- 40% game time.
5 disposals at 80% DE. 5CP (4K, 1HP), 3 marks (1 contested), 1 Mark I50, 2 I50s, 1 clanger, 1 of the team's 4 goal assists

Hawkins- 97% game time.
8 disposals at 62.5% DE. 4CP (4K, 4HP), 1 mark (0 contested), 1 Mark I50, 0 I50s, 6 clangers, 1 tackle, 2 goals

Make of that what you will.
 

Catsmaninamerica

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Stats are deceiving terry. Walker
Has a complete inability to hurt the opposition with the ball. I have a good mate who's on the recruiting staff at freo - I joking asked
If he'd take walker off our hands a week ago. His response "every club knows bes available and no one wants him" now clearly freo need a
Forward - PAv is done. But walker isn't what anyone wants, and there's a reason for that.
 

Lana

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Jul 23, 2010
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Stats are deceiving terry. Walker
Has a complete inability to hurt the opposition with the ball. I have a good mate who's on the recruiting staff at freo - I joking asked
If he'd take walker off our hands a week ago. His response "every club knows bes available and no one wants him" now clearly freo need a
Forward - PAv is done. But walker isn't what anyone wants, and there's a reason for that.

The same could be said about Taberner, ask your mate about him, teams don't want Walker because every team has their own "Walker" on their list. There simply isn't 36 competent Key forwards in the AFL. At some point you just take what you can get.
 

Catsmaninamerica

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The same could be said about Taberner, ask your mate about him, teams don't want Walker because every team has their own "Walker" on their list. There simply isn't 36 competent Key forwards in the AFL. At some point you just take what you can get.
Exactly. And the truth is until Clark and Stanley went down walker was never gonna play 1's - he's a backup forward on a minimum contract. And that's how he plays. I've realised that most of life's disappointments come from unrealistic expectations.

So with walker - understand tht he's not a senior afl forward. He's a good vfl player. No crime in that! But don't have an unrealistic expectation. He's never gonna win you a game or kick 8 in a game. He'll kick 5 in a mauling of the substandard lions. Cos that's vfl intensity and opposition. As next year if es still on the list - if Clark, Hawkins, Vardy ad Stanley are fit, he'll play vfl all year.
 

Lana

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I've realised that most of life's disappointments come from unrealistic expectations.

I love this quote, it's sig worthy, I'm going to steal it.

So with walker - understand tht he's not a senior afl forward. He's a good vfl player. No crime in that! But don't have an unrealistic expectation. He's never gonna win you a game or kick 8 in a game. He'll kick 5 in a mauling of the substandard lions. Cos that's vfl intensity and opposition. As next year if es still on the list - if Clark, Hawkins, Vardy ad Stanley are fit, he'll play vfl all year.

Guys like Walker have their part to play when they're selected, if you are wanting a 50 goal a year forward that you build a forward-line around you're looking at the wrong guy(keeping with the theme of disappointment coming from unrealistic expectations). But there is no reason he couldn't develop into a 25-35 goal a year forward that's a good foil for Hawkins. That does enough that the other team has to put a defender next to him. Wouldn't be the worse player to achieve that.

You're right in that he's not first choice, if three of those four players are available he won't be play. But he has one advantage, that he hasn't broken down due to injury. At some point next year we're going to need him at AFL level to just fill a conventional forward-line structure and I'll be glad we have him.

Kersten is going to have the same problem getting games now that Menzel is back. Unless Johnson gets retired.

Either way I'd be giving them both another contract, even a two year deal if the cost per year is lower. Most of the time your best 22 players doesn't give you your best team. And they can fill important roles in the teams structure even if there output is less the desired, since the right structure makes the other players jobs easier for them. For example preventing Hawkins from being double teamed.
 
Mar 6, 2014
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Stats are deceiving terry. Walker
Has a complete inability to hurt the opposition with the ball. I have a good mate who's on the recruiting staff at freo - I joking asked
If he'd take walker off our hands a week ago. His response "every club knows bes available and no one wants him" now clearly freo need a
Forward - PAv is done. But walker isn't what anyone wants, and there's a reason for that.
he hurts them if he's used as a forward target in the way that Hawkins is being used. Maybe the Cats are foxing and are trying to keep him on their books?


... just kiddin' ;)
 

Scottland2007

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Walker had 5 contested possessions in 40% game time- Hawkins had 8 possessions (4 contested) in 97% game time.
here are their comparative stats:

Walker- 40% game time.
5 disposals at 80% DE. 5CP (4K, 1HP), 3 marks (1 contested), 1 Mark I50, 2 I50s, 1 clanger, 1 of the team's 4 goal assists

Hawkins- 97% game time.
8 disposals at 62.5% DE. 4CP (4K, 4HP), 1 mark (0 contested), 1 Mark I50, 0 I50s, 6 clangers, 1 tackle, 2 goals

Make of that what you will.
Hawkins stats are funny. 8 possesions, 6 clangers (indicating a crap night) then 2 goals.
 
Nov 7, 2010
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Stats are deceiving terry. Walker
Has a complete inability to hurt the opposition with the ball. I have a good mate who's on the recruiting staff at freo - I joking asked
If he'd take walker off our hands a week ago. His response "every club knows bes available and no one wants him" now clearly freo need a
Forward - PAv is done. But walker isn't what anyone wants, and there's a reason for that.
Your mates a dick head.If not at Geelong he will get a gig somewhere else.
 
Aug 2, 2012
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"I've realised that most of life's disappointments come from unrealistic expectations."


I love this quote, it's sig worthy, I'm going to steal it.

.

The mods should include it as an official sub-header for every post-match review thread when we lose.
After those games it's nearly always the over-optimistic who then post the most fantastical flights of idiocy.
 
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I find all this negativity funny...I remember when alot of Geelong supporters bagged out hawkins, and then blicavs. Give the guy time to develop, he might come good.
The supporters who thought Hawkins couldn't play were morons. No one thought Blicavs couldn't make it, just questioned his position as a ruckman and why he was never given more time in the vfl to learn the craft. Walker doesn't have the ability like brown, McCarthy and Baldwin before him. Playfair had more ability than Walker.
 
Nov 7, 2010
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How do you guys not see it? He wont make it.
22 years old 30 games over half played out of position good tank sound body and some up side,will he be A grade no B grade doubtfull,the question of make it is one that baffles me, what is make it? and when has some one actually seen as made it.
 
Jun 2, 2006
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Walker had 5 contested possessions in 40% game time- Hawkins had 8 possessions (4 contested) in 97% game time.
here are their comparative stats:

Walker- 40% game time.
5 disposals at 80% DE. 5CP (4K, 1HP), 3 marks (1 contested), 1 Mark I50, 2 I50s, 1 clanger, 1 of the team's 4 goal assists

Hawkins- 97% game time.
8 disposals at 62.5% DE. 4CP (4K, 4HP), 1 mark (0 contested), 1 Mark I50, 0 I50s, 6 clangers, 1 tackle, 2 goals

Make of that what you will.

Pretty easy to compare these two, considering their pay packets!
 

Lana

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Jul 23, 2010
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"I've realised that most of life's disappointments come from unrealistic expectations."

The mods should include it as an official sub-header for every post-match review thread when we lose.
After those games it's nearly always the over-optimistic who then post the most fantastical flights of idiocy.

Ouch, I perceive myself as being quite the optimist, I don't believe it's a requirement for "fantastical flights of idiocy". Plenty of the pessimists see a poor performance as a confirmation of those prior complaints. They are just as guilty as any turned optimists.
 

Tristan34

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Apr 10, 2015
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The supporters who thought Hawkins couldn't play were morons. No one thought Blicavs couldn't make it, just questioned his position as a ruckman and why he was never given more time in the vfl to learn the craft. Walker doesn't have the ability like brown, McCarthy and Baldwin before him. Playfair had more ability than Walker.

Didn't walker kick 5 goals in round 18???
So he can kick goals...
 
Mar 6, 2014
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The supporters who thought Hawkins couldn't play were morons. No one thought Blicavs couldn't make it, just questioned his position as a ruckman and why he was never given more time in the vfl to learn the craft. Walker doesn't have the ability like brown, McCarthy and Baldwin before him. Playfair had more ability than Walker.
Oh there were a HEAP of posters who said Blicavs wouldn't make it, Seeds- as well as refused to acknowledge that he was better learning on the job in the seniors, he was such a quick study.
 
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The supporters who thought Hawkins couldn't play were morons. No one thought Blicavs couldn't make it, just questioned his position as a ruckman and why he was never given more time in the vfl to learn the craft. Walker doesn't have the ability like brown, McCarthy and Baldwin before him. Playfair had more ability than Walker.
Forget Marcus he shouldn't be on that list 5 games and look at the rest.
Walker 31 games for 32 goals 19 behinds.Still on the list age 22
Brown the bloke everyone tells me is a great kick 15 games for 9 goals 9 behinds so you can put that down as bullshit.Delisted age 24
McCarthy 22 games for 24 goals 13 behinds delisted at age 24.
Playfair 52 games at Geelong kicked 29 goals 21 behinds,left Geelong at age 24 and went to Sydney played 16 games for 14 goals 11 behinds retired age 27.
As you can see If you indeed want to Walkers a better set shot on goal than the lot gets more opportunities and is two year younger.Josh was also the youngest to debut.
 

Lana

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When looking at shot accuracy you can't just stick with Goals and Behinds, it is necessary to look at how many shots the players take that don't register a score. While has a comparable Goal scoring percentage, a significant amount of his shots don't result in a score. My theory is that people perception of accuracy is more affected by how frequently a player messes up rather than there goal kicking percentage. A good example of this is comparing the Goal kicking accuracy of Lonergan(in 2008) and Mooney (in 2009) both at the time had the perception of being ordinary kicks for goal, even though Lonergan had a respectable 56% goal accuracy it is because on averaged a shot that didn't result in a score every second week. While Mooney who earned his reputation had an awful goal kicking percentage of 46% was similarly missing all scores with a set shot almost every 2nd week. In recent weeks Walker has had a particularly poor run of shots including multiple out on the fulls which naturally makes people doubt his goal kicking skills.

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