Qld Under 18 team 2013

[footymaad]

Thought we need a new thread for this years campaign. Last year was the most successful for several years, and although didn't lead to many draftees, several boys now playing in NEAFL so still a chance over next couple of years if perform well (like the unexpected drafting of Oxley last year)

Don't know as much about this years squad - my contact was with the group of boys who were 18 last year. Anyone have much knowledge of this years squad?

I realize game on Sat was the first game they have played together so don't expect too much in terms of result, but by all reports the disappointing thing in the loss to a TAC cup team by over 100 points was the lack of intensity / effort.

Anyone at the game with thoughts? Or with more knowledge of this age group? I gather there were a few missing from the Qld team - Tickner, Dawson, maybe others. With them back and a few more games together, how competitive should the squad be this year?

 

[smy1305]

Disappointing to say the least i reckon FM - thats a massive loss for a State team (albeit a little depleted) but playing a TAC side all the same... Bit of a wake up call and my info was that they were told about it too post match!!

 

[fabulousphil]

Disappointing to say the least i reckon FM - thats a massive loss for a State team (albeit a little depleted) but playing a TAC side all the same... Bit of a wake up call and my info was that they were told about it too post match!!

Have nothing to do with 18's, but i do know that Victorian teams are picked with one thing in mind, and that is winning, in comparison even WA age state teams are picked with future development in mind.

Victorian teams also play a very physical style that is not often seen in other states, they often play on smaller grounds, pick boys that would be considered more physically developed than what would be consdered normal at that age, and of course the Vics consider themselves the bees knees at footy, and expect victory.

 

[Speedyunit]

Thought we need a new thread for this years campaign. Last year was the most successful for several years, and although didn't lead to many draftees, several boys now playing in NEAFL so still a chance over next couple of years if perform well (like the unexpected drafting of Oxley last year)

Don't know as much about this years squad - my contact was with the group of boys who were 18 last year. Anyone have much knowledge of this years squad?

I realize game on Sat was the first game they have played together so don't expect too much in terms of result, but by all reports the disappointing thing in the loss to a TAC cup team by over 100 points was the lack of intensity / effort.

Anyone at the game with thoughts? Or with more knowledge of this age group? I gather there were a few missing from the Qld team - Tickner, Dawson, maybe others. With them back and a few more games together, how competitive should the squad be this year?

why was the coaching staff from last year change?

 

[smy1305]

Academy's wanted far more say in how the side was coached I was told Speedy - fair enough too I spose. Their programs (and the ppl who run them) live and die by numbers drafted and if they feel that there is greater chance of boys being drafted by being coached a specific way then so be it.

Not sure Fabulous that Cannons came up here specifically to win as the game stood for nothing didn't it? (actually did count for points in their TAC comp) I reckon it just showed that there are probably 100 boys in Vic that are better than our best 22. That is right now of course - in a couple of years, with a bit more better footy under their belt, our boys could jump quite a few rungs.

 

[Breretonisahood]

Academy's wanted far more say in how the side was coached I was told Speedy - fair enough too I spose. Their programs (and the ppl who run them) live and die by numbers drafted and if they feel that there is greater chance of boys being drafted by being coached a specific way then so be it.

Not sure Fabulous that Cannons came up here specifically to win as the game stood for nothing didn't it? I reckon it just showed that there are probably 100 boys in Vic that are better than our best 22. That is right now of course - in a couple of years, with a bit more better footy under their belt, our boys could jump quite a few rungs.

Agreed. Vic depth is unbelievable, partly because their best athletes only play AFL, very few bother with union or league. Also, different club level coaching too. Much less emphasis on drills and set plays, more on core skills and basic game sense. This makes gelling easier in rep sides. Watched a few U16 club games in Vic- unlike even Div 1 AFLBJ, everyone could play. Still, I reckon the best 5 or 6 QLD U18s (eg Conway, Tickner, Rutledge and a couple of others) would do well in Vic side. A late starter Rogerson of Morningside looks good also.

 

[smy1305]

True Brereton - any kid who made AA (like Tickner last year) is no doubt in the mix. Our depth of player is obviously nowhere near the major footy states.

 

[Speedyunit]

True Brereton - any kid who made AA (like Tickner last year) is no doubt in the mix. Our depth of player is obviously nowhere near the major footy states.

Tickner will have to learn how to train before he could be seriously touted as draftable, spends to much time self diagnosing injuries, this lack of training is being noted. However has the natural ability to be draftable and potentialy play afl footy just needs to strengthen up his body and mind. Still cant believe he went back and played club 18s last year this was ordinary mangement from all involved at Noosa, i understand he couldnt attend many Noosa senior trainings but shouldve played senior footy not 18s.

 

[smy1305]

Agree on all counts Speedy - durability is an underrated characteristic I reckon. And yes, Noosa were negligent last year in their handling of both Tickner and Freeman. Very disappointing and I know there were quite a few Noosa people very frustrated by how it all panned out.

 

[Breretonisahood]

Tickner will have to learn how to train before he could be seriously touted as draftable, spends to much time self diagnosing injuries, this lack of training is being noted. However has the natural ability to be draftable and potentialy play afl footy just needs to strengthen up his body and mind. Still cant believe he went back and played club 18s last year this was ordinary mangement from all involved at Noosa, i understand he couldnt attend many Noosa senior trainings but shouldve played senior footy not 18s.

Doesn't sound too good. If he's physically and mentally fragile, he will never be drafted or rookie listed. I notice that unlike other U18 Lions academy boys he rarely plays as a top-up for the BL reserves.

 

[Jacob Jackson]

Thought the qld boys did quite well against vic metro on Sunday! Especially considering they had an undermanned team I thought, are Ellis, holland, mills, cornish and Brennan all injuried? Especially mills, im pretty sure hes number 22, and he was great against calder in the backline. we will him what happens next game.They would all be in the full strength team surely! A few talls from qld against vic looked way out of sorts.
I like the looks of Rutledge, Rogerson, tickner, weller however.

 

[Speedyunit]

Thought the qld boys did quite well against vic metro on Sunday! Especially considering they had an undermanned team I thought, are Ellis, holland, mills, cornish and Brennan all injuried? Especially mills, im pretty sure hes number 22, and he was great against calder in the backline. we will him what happens next game.They would all be in the full strength team surely! A few talls from qld against vic looked way out of sorts.
I like the looks of Rutledge, Rogerson, tickner, weller however.

cornish wont make it

 

[Breretonisahood]

Thought the qld boys did quite well against vic metro on Sunday! Especially considering they had an undermanned team I thought, are Ellis, holland, mills, cornish and Brennan all injuried? Especially mills, im pretty sure hes number 22, and he was great against calder in the backline. we will him what happens next game.They would all be in the full strength team surely! A few talls from qld against vic looked way out of sorts.
I like the looks of Rutledge, Rogerson, tickner, weller however.

Rogerson has really come along in the last year or so. He was often overlooked for rep teams when younger and has recently moved from Morningside to Redland looking for opportunities. I've watched this group of boys since U12s and its incredible how players change over time, although Rutledge and Tickner have been standouts since U12s. BTW, I think it was the Vics that were missing players, wasn't it?

 

[chikka ferguson]

Vic had their top 14 players not playing. Qld did play reasonable footy at stages.Not sure the coach should be abusing umps from the box..Freeman took some top marks.

 

[Jacob Jackson]

Yeah vic were missing a fair few but this is a thread just for qld that's why I asking.

 

[switchingplay]

Tickner will have to learn how to train before he could be seriously touted as draftable, spends to much time self diagnosing injuries, this lack of training is being noted. However has the natural ability to be draftable and potentialy play afl footy just needs to strengthen up his body and mind. Still cant believe he went back and played club 18s last year this was ordinary mangement from all involved at Noosa, i understand he couldnt attend many Noosa senior trainings but shouldve played senior footy not 18s.

Don't tarnish everyone with the same brush speedy! I was the 18's coach at Noosa last year and despite countless discussions with the senior coaching panel trying to promote not only Tickner, but also others deserving of a game, unless you were in the bubble of 25 or so players, u weren't getting a game. I had a confrontation before Rd 1 with the Skipper about his and Freemans exclusion and was told others had done more work and despite arguing they had been at State trainings, not on the couch, they weren't interested. Regularly during the year I spoke with Fletcher about giving these kids a go, only for it to fall on deaf ears. It got to the stage where I agreed for them both to play at Morningside in the 2's, at the expense of playing with me, to gain exposure. I was hauled in too a meeting for this and given a please explain and told them in no uncertain terms as to why it happened. This was a meeting Fletcher was supposed to attend but didn't. He runs his own show there and that's fine its his prerogative. Its biting them on the arse now! Having said all that Cain certainly does not help himself with his inability to train consistently. The problem with some of these kids is that they expect to be cherry ripe every time they hit the track or game and those of you who have played long enough know this is rarely the case!

 

[Dogwarna]

Thought the qld boys did quite well against vic metro on Sunday! Especially considering they had an undermanned team I thought, are Ellis, holland, mills, cornish and Brennan all injuried? Especially mills, im pretty sure hes number 22, and he was great against calder in the backline. we will him what happens next game.They would all be in the full strength team surely! A few talls from qld against vic looked way out of sorts.
I like the looks of Rutledge, Rogerson, tickner, weller however.

None of the above mentioned are nowhere near the best 22.. Maybe Brennan but he is a 19 yr old and was injured after Archie Smith smashed him at training.. And I would play Kristelly or Pruess instead of Brennan. They had a couple in the team on Sunday that probably were off the pace. I am not interested so much in the opposition but more about the brand of football our kids played. The academy training over summer and the game education has provided the players with the tools to hopefully play a entertaining and draftable brand of football showcasing the kids best skill set. An example is the way there fwd line structure is set with the 3 talls, Freeman, Hammelmen and Tickner, the running patterns always allows one of these to hit up at the ball and if not used he drags one from behind so on and so on, whilst the 3 rd heads into back space. Now if you use Freeman as Jordan Bourke last yr, they just kicked long down the line to Bourke who was always against 3,4 and sometimes 5 defenders. No structure

 

[footymaad]

No doubt last year the focus was too often on kicking to Bourke deep. But was a different setup with Bourke staying deep, Tickner when fit roaming forward 50 and third tall like Wardle being the lead up, link player further up the ground. Cameron not fit for most of last years carnival which no doubt affected the planned forward setup. Plus maybe bit more focus on smaller forwards - eg Colmen Broome had a few good games forward last year. Maybe not as entertaining / open, but was effective in the end in getting 3 wins and one loss by a goal, with the players they had.

This year for talls have Freeman as overage 19yo and 2 AIS boys in forward line, so realistically should be better than last year when had Bourke, 17 yo not fully fit Tickner, no Cameron ( or when he played an unfit one straight in after injury) , and Wardle filling in for Cameron's role after initially training to play in the backline ...

Challenge last year against better teams was alwaysgetting ball out of the backline quickly / efficiently to the forwards - was no different on Sat against Vic Metro missing most of their best players. Ball was locked in Vic Metro 50 for long periods - defence did well - but if metro had kicked straight score would have been much worse. Did look good when went forward quickly to tall forwards one on one in fine conditions, but challenge will be to do this more consistently bringing ball from the backline, in potentially cool, wet, windy conditions in Tas and Melbourne.

Have to build your game plan around the players you have available - if they have the team to play a more open freflowing style this year, that probably does help showcase the best players more effectively. But have to ensure the team is competitive first. Certainly weren't for several years before last year. Last year played a style based on defence / defensive pressure across the ground which suited the group that year and got better results. Didn't get many drafted, but not sure would have done any better playing a different style with that group of boys?

As others have said previously, in most years, apart from the couple of best prospects each year, Qld boys probably more likely to be drafted at 19 or 20 after a good year or two in NEAFL.

 

[smy1305]

Kristelly is a greatly improved footballer Dog - has taken a couple of small steps from a big kid in a goliaths body to being a young man in that body. Hardened up, is very good below his knees funnily enough and just needs to learn how to position himself for a few pack marks. Great listener and great kid imo. Do you reckon Freeman will be a key fwd/back or a ruckman in due course? At 6'6 or so it is a short ruckman these days!!

 

[smy1305]

Is always that $64 question Footymaad - the style of play vs draftable footy but potentially bigger losses. Must admit I don't know the answer myself!!

 

[smy1305]

And fortunately for Kristelly he has had the faith of the senior coaching panel at Maroochy playing him rather than worrying about whether he was in a select 25 like Switching alluded to with Tickner and Jono last year at noosa. He has also been embraced by the senior players who have been fantastic with all the young kids who have played for the Roos this year - on occasions had 3 16yr olds in the side + a few 17yr olds and still remaining competitive.

 

[Jacob Jackson]

Agree with footymaad, the structures are a lot to last years squad, possibly due to change in coaching staff. I like the look of the 3 man triangle of rotation lead set up the forwards have. However I think number 26 (think its hammelman) is way to soft at the contests and backs out of a few, it was frustrating at times to see that. Especially when tickner was going hard at the contest.

Noticed a short backline too, wonder if that was a tactic. And when rotations were down in the last quarter with freeman and tickner were cramping. No one had the ability to play both ends. Do we have any that can play both ends that's a tall that played or didn't play?

 

[kittycat12]

None of the above mentioned are nowhere near the best 22.. Maybe Brennan but he is a 19 yr old and was injured after Archie Smith smashed him at training.. And I would play Kristelly or Pruess instead of Brennan. They had a couple in the team on Sunday that probably were off the pace. I am not interested so much in the opposition but more about the brand of football our kids played. The academy training over summer and the game education has provided the players with the tools to hopefully play a entertaining and draftable brand of football showcasing the kids best skill set. An example is the way there fwd line structure is set with the 3 talls, Freeman, Hammelmen and Tickner, the running patterns always allows one of these to hit up at the ball and if not used he drags one from behind so on and so on, whilst the 3 rd heads into back space. Now if you use Freeman as Jordan Bourke last yr, they just kicked long down the line to Bourke who was always against 3,4 and sometimes 5 defenders. No structure

Might pay to know a bit more on how Brennan has been going this year. Has played every NEAFL game at Broady and reguarly taking contested marks and recently kicking goals when resting forward. The club has done a great job with developing Brennan and would easily be the best available even if 19. Has had a few clubs fly up to watch him already.
Results against the other Div 2 clubs are probably relevant as the Div 1 clubs are significantly better even with rested players and it just gives a guide for the standard they need to get to or maintain.

 

[Speedyunit]

Agree with footymaad, the structures are a lot to last years squad, possibly due to change in coaching staff. I like the look of the 3 man triangle of rotation lead set up the forwards have. However I think number 26 (think its hammelman) is way to soft at the contests and backs out of a few, it was frustrating at times to see that. Especially when tickner was going hard at the contest.

Noticed a short backline too, wonder if that was a tactic. And when rotations were down in the last quarter with freeman and tickner were cramping. No one had the ability to play both ends. Do we have any that can play both ends that's a tall that played or didn't play?

Wardle as a 19 year old cover three key positions

 

[Vards]

Tickner will have to learn how to train before he could be seriously touted as draftable, spends to much time self diagnosing injuries, this lack of training is being noted. However has the natural ability to be draftable and potentialy play afl footy just needs to strengthen up his body and mind. Still cant believe he went back and played club 18s last year this was ordinary mangement from all involved at Noosa, i understand he couldnt attend many Noosa senior trainings but shouldve played senior footy not 18s.

I don't think he self diagnoses. All boys in the AIS have been told to report any injury no matter how big or small, then the physio/doctor will tell them whether they can train or not. He has had a PCL strain which kept him from training for a few weeks. He then came back and played 2 games for Brisbane ressies. The first one was ordinary but in the second he showed some good form only to roll an ankle in the last quarter. This sidelined him again for 2 weeks. He is very keen to get on the training track and trains at 100% when on the track. The lack of training is a concern but it certainly is through no fault of his own. This kid will be a gun when fully fit. He doesn't seem to take a backward step as seen against Vic Metro. very hard at the ball and a good set of hands. Also showed a good turn of pace. A bit hard saying he needs to learn how to train.