Bring Back Bernie.

[Wood_Duck]

Since leaving Adelaide Bernie has proved himself to be an A grader of the competition. Was watching him yesterday and couldn't help but wonder whether Matt Crouch will ever be the footballer Bernie is.

Did we make a mistake trading Bernie for pick 20?

 

[Mr_Moogle]

Too early to make a call on Crouch.

Also as much as I love Bernie, he was way too comfortable at the Crows. The move to Melbourne has motivated him to become a better player.

 

[Wood_Duck]

At a time when our skills clearly suck, I find it quite painfull watching Bernie running around for the Demons, he has some of the best skills in the comp.

 

[Smoooothy]

he needed the move as much as we needed to get rid of him. happy to see him do that well. he hasn't had a year like this one since 2009. that speaks volumes IMO

 

[crows dude]

Should have never let him go. Kills me to see him for Melbourne

 

[splat868]

Tough one to call.

Mostly because Bernie turns 30 this year.

I would love to still have Bernie at the Crows, but will he still be playing when we challenge fo a premiership?

He will probably be in his last year or 2 in 2017.

 

[FantasticShirt]

Bad call. Unfair on Matt Crouch call. Short term memory call.

Bernard frustrated the hell out of me in his last couple of years. He routinely went missing and seemed lazy. I think the coaching played a role, and I'm not convinced Sando used him well (or got the most out of him), but I think you're forgetting that he was far far away from his best under the latter half of Sando's reign.

In the end it's still disappointing to lose him, and I think he would've dominated under Walsh, but we traded a good older player for a decent draft pick that allowed us to secure a good younger player. I don't think we can complain.

 

[simmo97]

he needed a change and we could not go 2yrs in row without a 1st or 2nd round pick.
The question people should ask did we pick the right player and we need to remember the club was
not going to offer him a new contract at the end of 2014 anyway.

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

Trading him was the right but tough call IMO.

Not playing M Crouch repeatedly when our midfield has been average and we're about to lose Thommo... very wrong.

At the moment it's like the Tambling trade.

Trading Vince and NOT playing the bloke we got for him is dumb.

 

[jackster83]

Credit to Vince for turning his career around. He actually looks like a footballer since he lost the puppy fat he carried while he played for us.

Trading him was the right decision. Not trading other perennial disappointments like Mackay, Henderson and VB was the wrong decision.

 

[King Elvis]

Trading him was the right but tough call IMO.

Not playing M Crouch repeatedly when our midfield has been average and we're about to lose Thommo... very wrong.

At the moment it's like the Tambling trade.

Trading Vince and NOT playing the bloke we got for him is dumb.

This is it.

We all love Bernie, but he was lazy for us. I suspect he might've been a different player under Walsh, but that wasn't a factor at the time.

Trading him and not playing the guy we got for him is moronic.

The other mistake is trading Bernie while retaining guys like McKay, Wright and Hendo. And this BS about them not wanting to go is irrelevant - Bernie didn't want to go either.

 

[Elite Crow]

Trading him was the right but tough call IMO.

Not playing M Crouch repeatedly when our midfield has been average and we're about to lose Thommo... very wrong.

At the moment it's like the Tambling trade.

Trading Vince and NOT playing the bloke we got for him is dumb.

But Sando got to have a party, playing Crouch is secondary

 

[Cap]

This is it.

We all love Bernie, but he was lazy for us. I suspect he might've been a different player under Walsh, but that wasn't a factor at the time.

Trading him and not playing the guy we got for him is moronic.

The other mistake is trading Bernie while retaining guys like McKay, Wright and Hendo. And this BS about them not wanting to go is irrelevant - Bernie didn't want to go either.

amen to this post.

 

[rocket18]

He will look back in shame on his time with us, coasted along in the comfort zone for far too many seasons.

Took far to long to mature and get the most out of himself on a consistant basis.

We would love to have a focused Bernie giving it his all playing for us, unfortunately he played way to many mediocre games and hence got the heave ho.

Crouch for 10 years versus Bernie for 3 or 4 more years coasting along, non fired - no contest.

 

[skoobydoo]

Rightly or wrongly I still keep seeing it as a Trigg/Vince thing. Bernie was no worse than some of the come'n go performances of players still in our squad. Would have been happier for the Trigg departure, Walsh arrival and then see what Bernard did with his career. He needed some coach and club faith and love. We lost something homegrown good!

 

[Eagleboy2011]

Bernie was a heart and soul player for the crows. Can you trade out culture? I don't know. I am more than happy with Crouch Jr. He is the future. I just wonder what else we could have done at the time. We stuffed up the year before giving away our first available pick (42) for Angus Graham. Was not even up to SANFL standard.

 

[Cap]

Rightly or wrongly I still keep seeing it as a Trigg/Vince thing. Bernie was no worse than some of the come'n go performances of players still in our squad. Would have been happier for the Trigg departure, Walsh arrival and then see what Bernard did with his career. He needed some coach and club faith and love. We lost something homegrown good!

difference is, he had an offer on the table, the others don't/didn't.

 

[Drakescoffeecake]

Everyone is forgetting how lazy he was in the years before he left. He's 30 soon and is only now producing some good footy in a shitty Melbourne midfield. Love Bernie but the time was right to move on. Happy to see him do well but it is by no means a backfire.

 

[pjcrows]

No. It was the right call under the circumstances.

 

[TheMetricSystem]

Since leaving Adelaide Bernie has proved himself to be an A grader of the competition. Was watching him yesterday and couldn't help but wonder whether Matt Crouch will ever be the footballer Bernie is.

Did we make a mistake trading Bernie for pick 20?

Would have loved to have seen how he responded playing for Walsh. It was a mistake the way he was traded, not so much the trade itself.

I think the mistake might turn out to be the type of player we took at pick 20. No disrespect to Matt as I think he'll be a good player, just not the type we needed.

I expect Bicks will be in here soon to shout at me!!

 

[footy4ever]

Nope. Time at AFC was up. Was way too comfortable and complacent.

Loved Bernie like everyone else did, but was wasting his talent at AFC.

Crouch jnr will never be as skilled as Bernie but he'll give everything all the time.

Whether that will make him a better player….

 

[TheLeftFist8]

For the next 11 rounds we need to give Thompson some extended time off in patches and give M Crouch or Lyons a DECENT crack at it.

We are not winning the flag in the Thompson era and tough calls need to be made.

 

[DD#23]

Would have loved to have seen how he responded playing for Walsh.

I was actually going to make a thread on this the other day but the other names I had in mind are escaping me at the moment.

 

[JP Sauce]

I was actually going to make a thread on this the other day but the other names I had in mind are escaping me at the moment.

LJ? Which other talented players have we gotten rid of recently?

McKernan? Petrenko?

 

[dylan123]

Vince actually played some decent games of footy in his final year at the Crows, at least in the second half of the season. Not to the level he is currently playing at Melbourne, I guess playing in the guts full time compared to the role he was playing at Adelaide was part of the reason for this.

No doubt he's lifted a level since leaving the Crows but I'd still much rather him in the side compared to a number that still get games today.

I guess what I found so annoying about this trade at the time (still do) is we flicked off one of the few guys that could actually kick the ball on our list, a midfielder who could kick goals. Something we lack in both foot skills and midfielders hitting the scoreboard (doesn't feel like we have many goal kicking mid at least). I guess the likes of Mackay wouldn't have got us a pick at 20 or whatever it was that Vince got us.


Good to see him going well, but we should never have lost him in the first place had it not been for Trigg.