Past Troy Menzel

[Jeremias]

2. Troy Menzel

DOB: 22/9/1994

Height: 187cm

Weight: 78kg

Draft History: Pick 11 (Carlton), 2012 National Draft

Recruited From: Golden Grove/Central District

Debut: Round 8, 2013 vs Port Adelaide

2014 Forecast:

 

[Jeremias]

http://www.carltonfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/4311/newsid/151476/default.aspx

Pick 11: Troy Menzel, Central Districts
Rogers says: We rated him the second best player in the draft. He has played senior footy, he kicks goals and he dominates games. That's what we want.

"Menzel could have gone pick two, possibly even pick one. Both of his knee injuries were collision injuries. We think we can get him up and going pretty quickly and that he can have an impact straight away. It changed a bit during the week, things can change so quickly, but we felt two days ago we would get him and we were pumped." - Carlton national recruiting manager Shane Rogers

http://www.carltonfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/4311/newsid/151655/default.aspx

Left-footed medium forward with exceptional goal sense both on the run and with set shots. Starred for the Australian U18 team on the European tour earlier this year.

His vision and awareness are elite, which helps him win the ball and make quick, accurate decisions with his disposal.

 

[Jeremias]

Here's what a few of BigFooty's 'resident experts' have to say about Troy.

Knightmare -

#11 Carlton- Troy Menzel (SA – Mid/Fwd)
Height: 187cm, Weight: 77kg, DOB: 22/09/1994
Recruited from: Central District
Style: Steve Johnson
Player comparison:
Range: 2-12
Profile: Troy is the younger brother of Cat Daniel Menzel and is every bit as talented if not more so with greater midfield capabilities but like his brother has similarly had his injury troubles and concerning is that despite his tender age he has had LARS which may/may not concern clubs but knowing how many have had knee injuries post LARS (most frequently to the other knee) I do have injury concerns. On talent Menzel is every bit a top 10 quality prospect and will no doubt get drafted high as a result. Troy has probably played more through the midfield than his brother but as a forward is equally adept and dominant at u18 level. Troy is a highly productive midfielder/forward who stand out because of his awareness and decision making under pressure, is one of those players who is always composed and uses the footy well. Skill level excellent by both hand and foot. Athletically Troy is excellent with his combination of speed, agility and endurance which is very exciting. Even with this athleticism Troy doesn’t rely on it and is a really natural footballer rather than a pure athlete and because of this I see a strong future ahead of him at AFL level. Has also like Daniel showed great ability forward of centre and can hit the scoreboard as he showed during the u18 champs, great finisher around goal and like his brother is an excellent marking target. I suggest this is where he will start his career and with some luck hopefully he can work his way into a midfield rotation.

Chris25 -

8. Brisbane - Troy Menzel (186cm midfielder - Central Districts)

By now, everyone knows about Troy Menzel and his knees. And it is those knees which will effectively decide where he gets picked on draft day. Because fully fit, he would be a top 5 selection without a second thought. He is arguably one of the most talented players on offer, both up forward and in the midfield. He showed what he could do up forward in the first two weeks of the U18 Championships, when he kicked 15 goals in two of the best games the Championships have seen. And he continued that form back in the SANFL, being a regular goal scorer for Central Districts in the league side. His kicking is absolutely top notch, as is general feel of the game. I tend to think he will largely be a forward at AFL level, but one who can have stints in the midfield. He'll play a similar level to Steve Johnson and Alan Didak, and who wouldn't take them in the first round? He can turn a game in a matter of minutes. But the issue is of course his body. He was hampered by a groin injury in the middle of the season, and obviously has his knee history. Personally, I'm not too concerned about the LARS surgery. Troy says it has been holding up well, so who am I judge considering I'm not a surgeon. The minor setback a few weeks ago may well stop some teams from taking him, but he'll be a bargain pick for a finals team. AFL Comparison: Steve Johnson.

Quigley -

Pick 12 – Greater Western Sydney

GWS can pretty much afford to just go with whoever takes their fancy. They along with Gold Coast are the two teams picking around this area who can afford to take a punt on Menzel. GWS and GC are so stacked with young talent that if they waste a highish pick on a high risk high reward type who doesn’t work out it is not going to be too detrimental to the development of the team as a whole. There is a lot of talk of Menzel going as high as the Bulldogs as 5 and 6 but for me that is too big a risk. 12 – 14 is the range for him I think.

Troy Menzel
DOB: 22/09/94 Ht: 187 Wt: 77

Those who have seen a lot of Menzel love him and rate his potential through the roof. That potential comes with a massive risk given he had LARS surgery to repair his knee previously. LARS has fallen out of favour especially with younger athletes because it seems to greatly increase the chances of it happening again. Also if you have had LARS chances are strong that you would be unable to have a conventional operation if the injury reoccurred. Menzel tweaked his knee in the Central Districts finals loss and whilst it appears as though it was nothing serious it does drive home the major concerns with him. Troy is also the brother of Daniel who has also been beset with injury problems throughout his AFL career to date. So there is every chance that Troy could end up a player who never reaches his full potential because of injury issues. If I was picking for a team in the first round that sort of risk scares the bejezus out of me. For that reason I think he goes to one of the two teams with multiple first round picks and squads good enough to take the risk on him – GWS and Collingwood. Gold Coast at 12 is also a possibility.

Menzel stepped into the medium forward spot vacated by Mayes and he started with a bang against Tasmanian and the NT kicking 15 goals 1 behind in those games. He then suffered a hamstring injury (could be a theme for his career) and missed the rest of the Champs. He came back after the Champs though and finished the year strongly for Central Districts in the SANFL which would have reassured the recruiters to some degree (at least until he had another tweak).

Comparisons are regularly made to Steve Johnson and Alan Didak and if you watch him play you can definitely see them as being warranted. Menzel is a mobile medium forward with great goal sense who seems to read the game just that much better and quicker than those around him. He knows what is going to happen before it does and he adjusts whilst before others have a chance to react. He can get up the field and win it in the midfield although like Johnson and Didak I see him doing this on a spot rather than full time basis. He is most dangerous as a goal scorer and the team that picks him up would not want to inhibit that by playing him too far back.

He has very nice hands overhead and is an excellent contested mark for his size. He is not a big leaper for the ball but rather judges the ball in the air exceptionally well and cleverly uses his body to nudge and make room for himself to mark. For someone his size he is surprisingly good from behind having an array of tricks that allow him to protect the drop zone or keep the man from influencing the contest.

Speaking of tricks he is a proponent of many of the dark arts of ball control around goal. He knows where the goals are and how to get the ball there. That can be by a banana, an around the corner kick, bouncing it along the ground or via a set shot. Whichever way he does it he is very good at finding the middle gap between the sticks. He is a left footer with pretty good but not textbook technique. On his set shot he has a bit of a high release but he kicks down the line of the ball very well. His technique is nowhere near similar but he has that sort of Saad directness of his kick for goal. On the run he is also a dead eye dick and I would probably put him behind only Mayes in this regard from this draft class. He has good feel on his field kicks and excellent vision. Going into 50 he leads his forwards excellently and puts it where they can get it and the opposition can’t. I would say he is up there with the best kicks into 50 in this draft.

Athletically he is a bit of a mixed bag. I don’t think he is a big jump nor does he have high top end speed. In NFL parlance he is quick but not fast. He is very agile though and makes good use of his elusiveness during games. He is a swerver rather than a stepper through traffic. His endurance is solid but needs some work to get it up to AFL standards. He is not a particularly solid guy but his body control and strength in the contest belie that and as he bulks up I think he could be a real handful even for AFL guys bigger than he is.

Overall this is a very smart footballer who without the injury concerns should be right at the pointy end of this draft. As it is I would have him falling somewhere in the middle to late first rounds and the team who gets him will be praying for his hugely risky knee to turn out like Selwood’s hugely risky knee.

Snoop Dog -

# 5 West. Bulldogs
Troy Menzel
Central Districts
187cm / 77kg / ‘94
Love watching this kid play and fans will become a fan favourite. Learnt a long time ago with Joel Selwood and Chris Judd that you don’t write players off because you are worried about past injuries. Reports are this kid has coped well and structurally his knees are fine. That aside this kid is a top 5 prospect and is every bit the Nat Fyfe type player in the making. Huge amount of x factor and has genuine positional scope. Reads the play as well as anyone, his agility and evasiveness are terrific and his ball use is elite. Top 3 player in the draft for mine. Macrae is a chance here as well but I would think he is the best on the table at this point. Stringer, Wines or Macrae?

 

[Silvagnis]

Menzel hoping for a draft knees-up

''He marks it well. He kicks it well. He reads the game well. He kicks goals,'' was one recruiter's assessment. ''There's not too much he doesn't do well.''

''He seems like a quiet kid. He seems low key, but get him onto the ground and there's a bit of Jekyll and Hyde about him,'' said another recruiter. ''He has the attitude of a driven, competitive player. He gives me the impression he likes to have an impact.''

''The thing in the back of my mind is that there hasn't been too many cases where a club has ruled out a player for medical reasons and had it work out in their favour. People said no to Joel Selwood and no to Chris Judd and there's example after example of players where everyone's said 'don't go there' and they've been fine,'' said one recruiter. ''Granted, there's a disclaimer there depending on what the injury is. But there's a lot of players who've proven those opinions wrong.''

'That's the crux of what happens next,'' said one club doctor who has seen his scans. ''If the holes are too big, which is likely, then he could have LARS after LARS after LARS. My take on it is, this kid is 18. If he plays 10 years, he could lose two. But depending on his talent, those eight years could be very, very good years. Could that still make him a top 10 pick? Of course it could.''

''That's the big thing for me,'' said one recruiter. ''Every player's going to be challenged in some way after you draft them, so for me it's not a question of how he's going to stand up medically, but whether he's resilient enough to do all the things he needs to do to manage his body, and how he holds up if he gets injured again.

''If it does happen one, two or more times, how does he cope with that? But again, I think about other players. Malceski's just kicked the winning goal on Saturday, and I think that's a salient point to the story.''

Menzel hoping for a draft knees-up

 

[Silvagnis]

http://www.sportingpulse.com/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&client=1-3289-35005-0-16809898&pID=190804305&pname=Troy Menzel&news_task=DETAIL

His performances playing against men in the SANFL are nuts. Hits the scoreboard at every level.

Sheehan urges Suns to pick Menzel

"If he was available, I would be saying: 'Yep, go Menzel'," Sheehan said yesterday.

"He kicked nine goals in the first game of the nationals and six goals in the next and he has had two years of senior footy in the SANFL.

"He can win the ball in any area and is a proven senior forward."

"He could be anything," Toumpas said. "I've seem some things he has done at training that obviously no one else has seen.

"He is a great player and he could go a long way and whatever club is lucky enough to get him will be pretty happy."

Sheehan urges Suns to pick Menzel

Young guns from the South aiming at draft

''He's such a good player that it gets frustrating at times,'' Mayes says of Menzel.

''When he's kicking nine goals in a game and you're sitting over on the opposite flank you start to think, 'hang on, can I have a go'? But he's such a good bloke. He trains hard and does everything the right way.''

Young guns from the South aiming at draft

 

[Jeremias]

Troy featured in Kevin Sheehan's top 30.

http://www.gwsgiants.com.au/assets/files/Downloadable documents/top 30.pdf

Troy Menzel
Position: Medium Forward
Height: 187 cm
Weight: 78 kg
DOB: 22/09/94
Club: Central Districts/Golden Grove

AFL Profile:
Left-footed medium forward with exceptional goal sense both on the run and with set shots. Kicked
nine goals vs Tasmania and six goals vs NT in sensational fashion in first two games of the 2012
NAB AFL Under 18 Championships before a groin injury interrupted his season. He starred for the
Australian U18 team on the European tour earlier this year. Brother of Geelong Cats’ Daniel and
member of the AIS-AFL Academy.

NAB AFL Combine Results: Didn’t test due to recent knee injury however has previously tested
with the AIS-AFL Academy. 20m Sprint - 3.07 secs, Agility - 8.36 secs

X-factor: “His vision and awareness are elite, which helps him win the ball and make quick
accurate decisions with his disposal.”

Q&A with Troy Menzel:
What type of player are you?
I’m a creative, hard-running player who is always looking for the best option.
What are your strengths as a footballer?
My strengths are my versatility, competiveness and creativity.
What parts of your game would you like to improve?
I would like to improve my skills by hand and foot. My defensive work rate and fitness.

 

[Bradschi]

was watching an interview and i think he said he is just recovering from tweaking his PCL at the moment?

 

[Silvagnis]

Daniher's diary

After a strong start by the AIS-AFL Academy including a first half five-goal haul from Troy Menzel, the European Legion came out firing early in the second half providing a contested and entertaining game of football.

Daniher's diary

Mixed Menzels

"I was pretty young at the time, but they thought I was a suitable candidate to try it," he said.

"So far, so good and hopefully I won't have any problems in the future.

"I've been really good with all of that. I haven't had any problems at all with the LARS and it's been about two years now. I've been quite happy with it."

Menzel finished with 19 possessions and nine marks to go with his goal tally of 9.1 in a performance that earned the praise of coach Brenton Phillips.

"Every time the ball went inside forward 50 he seemed to be on the end of it or setting something up for a teammate," Phillips said.

"He's a very smart forward and he knows where to run to and where the right spaces are.

"His work rate was very good and while he kicked nine, there were some really good chases to keep the ball inside forward 50 as well."

"We came out with the right mindset and the boys really showed what we're going to be made of this year," Menzel said.

"It was a really great four-quarter effort and I was lucky enough to get on the end of a few, which was nice."

Mixed Menzels

SA to feature in early draft picks

He made his return in the Centrals' reserves last week and kicked two goals.

"Troy had a few weeks off there, but he just knows right away where to find the footy and does a couple of special things," Phillips said.

SA to feature in early draft picks

 

[zeeCFC]

 

[Jeremias]

Carlton recruit Troy Menzel shows talent to burn

IF you have a few minutes spare and want to watch some elite talent, go to YouTube and type in the name Troy Menzel.

You will find a young man playing for gun SANFL team Central District in games where he kicks goals from outside 50m on the run, others inside 50m where he seems to find space that shouldn't exist and a couple from the boundary just for good measure.

Then there is the ability to take a strong overhead mark, his 190cm frame giving him that extra height for a midfielder/forward, or sweeper from half back if required.


But most importantly of all, Menzel, 18, wins the ball when it comes into his area and rarely gets beaten one on one.

Fap.

 

[Silvagnis]

"This kid can seriously play, but he's so much different to his brother. He hunts the footy, he can play on the ball, he can play as that medium to tall forward because he's got a great leap and he reads the play so well. A nice left foot kick. I know there's been a lot of talk about his knees with the recos and LARS surgery and tying it in with the knee injuries of his brother, but I think you're going to have some problems when you shoot up as quickly as he has - he's grown considerably in recent times. Got all-round talent and is just a great kid as well". Scott Stevens, Central District development manager.

 

[Silvagnis]

LARS was right move: Menzel

 

[HARKER]

It's all about the knees for Menzel, although it was a hip complaint that kept away from participating in full pre-season training.
January saw him not even allowed to kick the ball, so he's coming from some way back yet there are already some signals that we may see him sooner than later.

Enough has been written about the quality of the kid as a player, but just as importantly is for the individual he is.
Talk is of a great kid with a very mature attitude in everything he does and one that doesn't understand the notion of failing
We may expect to see Troy played on a forward flank early in his career but it's likely to be the midfield where we'll see him most through the course of his career.

I know I'm not the only one, but I just can't wait to see Troy in full flight.

 

[Sin City]

I think he hit the post three times in his practice match the other day. Unlucky, but to be getting three very close scoring shots in half a game is an encouraging sign.

 

[Jeremias]

There's been a bit of talk lately that he may be a surprise inclusion for tomorrow evening, but I just can't see the sense.

We know he's an enormous talent but I don't know that we'd be keen to rush him into senior action on the back of a limited preseason.

Seems to make far more sense to me if we were to start him at VFL level and look to bring him into the senior side if his form warrants it once his fitness is up to scratch.

 

[fortynine]

There's been a bit of talk lately that he may be a surprise inclusion for tomorrow evening, but I just can't see the sense.

We know he's an enormous talent but I don't know that we'd be keen to rush him into senior action on the back of a limited preseason.

Seems to make far more sense to me if we were to start him at VFL level and look to bring him into the senior side if his form warrants it once his fitness is up to scratch.

That suprise inclusion talk came out of nowhere, it was some rumour started by Supercoach-orientated Facebook groups claiming to have 'inside' information. Everywhere else I've seen it has basically sourced it back to that same original facebook post.

Like you said, he's had a limited preseason and only played a couple of halves in two reserve practice matches. If there was ANY truth to the rumour I could only see him making it as a sub, and even then it's too risky, as he may need to be activated earlier than late in the 3rd / early 4th quarter.

I would love him to be cherry-ripe for the second half of the year, especially if our forwards are having issues adapting to the new gameplan or being too predictable, someone with his level of freakish natural talent and X-Factor would definitely be of huge benefit.

 

[HARKER]

Troy had a good game against Werribee on the weekend and even though he didn't collect many possessions, he always looked to be a good mover and dangerous in the forward line.

Troy took a terrific mark on the wing but also missed a mark he really should have taken giving him another shot at goal.

All in all, it's terrific just to see him up and about considering the non-existent pre-season he had. Can only get better from here.

 

[zeeCFC]

The Menz is stirring!

 

[fortynine]

4 majors from Menzel today! For anyone who made it down to the game today, how did he look?

 

[Salaryman]

Hard to learn much from today. Bendigo were witches hats...everyone in on the act...that said seven shots on goal a solid return

 

[HARKER]

Tried hard to get into the right position today and some good leads were ignored.

Just feel that the last quarter and a half became a "every man for himself" scenario and even for the strong win against an ordinary side, Webster may not be completely content.

Got crunched badly between Mitchell and a few other talls in the second quarter and was quite winded excusing himself off the ground.

He's improving slowly and just doesn't seem to be full speed just yet, which is a good thing.

 

[ODNBlue]

Tried hard to get into the right position today and some good leads were ignored.

Just feel that the last quarter and a half became a "every man for himself" scenario and even for the strong win against an ordinary side, Webster may not be completely content.

Got crunched badly between Mitchell and a few other talls in the second quarter and was quite winded excusing himself off the ground.

He's improving slowly and just doesn't seem to be full speed just yet, which is a good thing.

Pretty exciting!

 

[Salaryman]

great hands to take a mark in front of his eyes at full pelt on the lead...nearly squeezed the air out of the ball

 

[Bradschi]

I hope there is some highlights from the VFL game later this week.

 

[Silvagnis]

Geelong might have the right idea in using a forward/mid (Caddy)as their sub. A footballer instead of a gutrunner or speedster. Wonder if we could copy this tactic and use Menzel as our super sub in the second half of the year. This could be a good way of easing Troy into senior football after an interrupted pre-season.