Draft Review 2010 - Revisit the 2010 Draft

[Jobe Watson]

. Under pressure when no one was around him and he hit Hanson on the chest 15 metres out from goal? Or in the last when he had a bounce and try to kick to a team mate 20 metres in the clear - missed and we kick the game winning goal? A lot of pressure my foot. He was clear both time. As long as Atley goes when it is his turn and while Heppell continues to pull out of contests I know who I want on my team.

No one around him? lol - he recieved a handball under pressure, he was against the boundary line with an opposition player closing in. Yes, it was a crap kick, but not as bad as Hansen's kick seconds later. And that second kick wasn't to a man '20 meters in the clear' - Baguley had a man following 2 meters behind, and another opponent a few meters in front of him. Heppell was forced to kick to a contest and it didn't pay off; that isn't a turnover.

And how is Atley supposed to squib contests when he doesn't get to them? I did laugh at him fumbling then not going in hard enough vs. West Coast in the elimination final, which directly cost you a goal. Even your own supporters pointed that embarrassing moment out.

 

[mufassa]

No one around him? lol - he recieved a handball under pressure, he was against the boundary line with an opposition player closing in. Yes, it was a crap kick, but not as bad as Hansen's kick seconds later. And that second kick wasn't to a man '20 meters in the clear' - Baguley had a man following 2 meters behind, and another opponent a few meters in front of him. Heppell was forced to kick to a contest and it didn't pay off; that isn't a turnover.

And how is Atley supposed to squib contests when he doesn't get to them? I did laugh at him fumbling then not going in hard enough vs. West Coast in the elimination final, which directly cost you a goal. Even your own supporters pointed that embarrassing moment out.

Every single player fumbles. Carey, Ablett Snr and Jnr and Matthews included. Only a very few totally pull out of a contest - and of those that do most only do it once because if the embarrassment that follows. Twice takes things to a new level.

 

[The Prosecutor]

Every single player fumbles. Carey, Ablett Snr and Jnr and Matthews included. Only a very few totally pull out of a contest - and of those that do most only do it once because if the embarrassment that follows. Twice takes things to a new level.

Heppell was called out of that first contest you speak of by Hardingham.

 

[Jobe Watson]

Every single player fumbles. Carey, Ablett Snr and Jnr and Matthews included. Only a very few totally pull out of a contest - and of those that do most only do it once because if the embarrassment that follows. Twice takes things to a new level.

Just like every player turns the ball over. Cotchin cost Richmond a game by turning the ball over under no pressure in defence against North. Are his foot skills now poor?

 

[Daz]

There seems to be a myth that Atley is quicker than Gaff but I don't see that. Gaff tested a little quicker and I remember games at u18 level when Atley tried to chase down Gaff but he couldn't close the gap.

You really think Gaff is as quick as Atley?




Gaff is one paced. He struggled in the one game I saw him get tagged (Rd 23 I think it was). I suspect he'll be similar to Stanton in that respect. Outside players without explosive pace are reasonably easy to contain, no matter how beastly their engine is. His disposal isn't anything special, either. It's consistent without being deadly. Atley's is not too dissimilar.

 

[mufassa]

Heppell was called out of that first contest you speak of by Hardingham.

Yeah and I bet you are excited about Santa visiting all the good girls and boys in a month time.

If he did not do the exact same thing against us then you may have had a case.

 

[mufassa]

You really think Gaff is as quick as Atley?




Gaff is one paced. He struggled in the one game I saw him get tagged (Rd 23 I think it was). I suspect he'll be similar to Stanton in that respect. Outside players without explosive pace are reasonably easy to contain, no matter how beastly their engine is. His disposal isn't anything special, either. It's consistent without being deadly. Atley's is not too dissimilar.

Not very fast and can't kick.

 

[yaco55]

With a DE of 80% his foot skills are poor is a myth. Gaff had a great year and is on the way to becoming a superstar but to make rubbish up about Atleys kicking is poor. At 17 Atley could be one of the big steals of this draft.

I don't look at DE to decide if someone is a good kick - My eyes tell me.

 

[The Prosecutor]

Yeah and I bet you are excited about Santa visiting all the good girls and boys in a month time.

If he did not do the exact same thing against us then you may have had a case.

I'm referring to the North one.

I would know considering I was five meters away and distinctively heard Hardingham call him out of it.

 

[Donakebab]

Stop turning every thread into a Heppell vs Atley shitfight you petty campaigners.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

You really think Gaff is as quick as Atley?




Gaff is one paced. He struggled in the one game I saw him get tagged (Rd 23 I think it was). I suspect he'll be similar to Stanton in that respect. Outside players without explosive pace are reasonably easy to contain, no matter how beastly their engine is. His disposal isn't anything special, either. It's consistent without being deadly. Atley's is not too dissimilar.

Clearly you haven't watched him play enough, not only has he tested better than Atley, but often burns off players for example Robert Murphy (despite running himself into the ground). His disposal by foot but especially decision making is solidly better than Atley's. One of the cleverest users on our team. It is also a myth he is overly conservative etc., led the league for long kicks.

The same off season hyping from NM supporters, when will most of you start rating your players realistically? Atley is good, not great. Gaff is close to the best performed from his draft group and will only improve. Already one of the better outside mids in the comp, you severely underrate his ability.

 

[Daz]

Clearly you haven't watched him play enough, not only has he tested better than Atley, but often burns off players (despite running himself into the ground). His disposal by foot but especially decision making is solidly better than Atley's. One of the cleverest users on our team. It is also a myth he is overly conservative etc., led the league for long kicks.

The same off season hyping from NM supporters, when will most of you start rating your players realistically? Atley is good, not great. Gaff is close to the best performed from his draft group and will only improve. Already one of the better outside mids in the comp, you severely underrate his ability.

I've seen plenty of Gaff. However, The fact that you're quoting draft camp stats suggests to me that you're not too familiar with Atley.

Certainly not debating that. The issue I contended was about leg speed which is an area where he two are not even comparable.

At the moment Gaff barely ventures more than 20m away from the boundary line. He's by far the most outside player in the comp. Now he's very good at it but I expect to see other players with more natural ability surpass him in the coming years. He doesn't have any absolutely elite attributes other than his tank. I also struggle to see him dealing well with a tag.

The best comparison I have is Ryan Bastinac (a somewhat poor man's Gaff) who stepped into AFL seamlessly because of his endurance but is slowly being overtaken by some players as they develop better aerobic capacities.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

I've seen plenty of Gaff. However, The fact that you're quoting draft camp stats suggests to me that you're not too familiar with Atley.

Certainly not debating that. The issue I contended was about leg speed which is an area where he two are not even comparable.

At the moment Gaff barely ventures more than 20m away from the boundary line. He's by far the most outside player in the comp. Now he's very good at it but I expect to see other players with more natural ability surpass him in the coming years. He doesn't have any absolutely elite attributes other than his tank. I also struggle to see him dealing well with a tag.

The best comparison I have is Ryan Bastinac (a somewhat poor man's Gaff) who stepped into AFL seamlessly because of his endurance but is slowly being overtaken by some players as they develop better aerobic capacities.

His decision making is absolutely elite.

Very, very smart player. Certain people didn't expect him to advance much this year and he did. In fact I think he will continue to do so. He has a tonne of physical development left and had a solid inside game as a junior, as he fills out this will become a feature and IMO he will end up a very complete player.

At the moment, the only mids/flankers from the same draft that I think may overtake him are Swallow and Bennell.

 

[swansfan51]

Yes Gaff has been very good and has consistently performed at a high level. He is on track to become the 3rd best midfielder in the draft, which is crazy as that's exactly the position he was drafted in...

 

[mufassa]

I'm referring to the North one.

I would know considering I was five meters away and distinctively heard Hardingham call him out of it.

Lindsay Thomas was 1 meter away and heard no such thing.
What about the Geelong one?

 

[GarnerSmash]

I don't look at DE to decide if someone is a good kick - My eyes tell me.

I suggest you use two eyes instead of one.

 

[NiceCunnington]

Gaff is a better player than Atley at the moment. He is a fine young player and already very important to WC.

To claim that Gaff is quicker than Atley is absurd. You will struggle to find a single other person to go with you on that one.

It's well known that, for some unknown reason, Atley tested poorly for speed at the combine. You are struggling if that's your argument. If you watch him play for five minutes you'll see that he's absolutely lightning.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

Gaff is a better player than Atley at the moment. He is a fine young player and already very important to WC.

To claim that Gaff is quicker than Atley is absurd. You will struggle to find a single other person to go with you on that one.

It's well known that, for some unknown reason, Atley tested poorly for speed at the combine. You are struggling if that's your argument. If you watch him play for five minutes you'll see that he's absolutely lightning.

He is fast, but not that fast. No faster than someone like Nicoski.

Gaff is deceptively quick and often burns off so call pacy players. I remember him easily beating Murphy to the ball and then burning him off in his first year to kick a goal.

Calling him one paced is absurd.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

. He doesn't have any absolutely elite attributes other than his tank. I also struggle to see him dealing well with a tag.

What about the ability to constantly get the footy, find space and use the ball well?

 

[DivideandMultiply]

What about the ability to constantly get the footy, find space and use the ball well?

Doesn't fit with his argument that Atley will soon be the better player, so it doesn't count.

BTW, how are some NM fans claiming that Atley is the best young HBF in the league or that he will leapfrog Gaff to be one of the best midfielders from the 2010 draft group, yet seem to be completely ignoring Heppell. Either in defence or the midfield I think Heppell has demonstrated so far that he is far likely to be the better player of the two in either position.

A bit of toe, or agility is no guarantee of greatness, nor are they the only factors that demonstrate raw talent.

 

[Daz]

What about the ability to constantly get the footy, find space and use the ball well?

Found it 18.4 times a game playing as a genuine lockdown defender on the best smalls in the comp. Can't ask him to find more of the footy than that. There's also nothing wrong with his ball use anymore.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

Found it 18.4 times a game playing as a genuine lockdown defender on the best smalls in the comp. Can't ask him to find more of the footy than that. There's also nothing wrong with his ball use anymore.

I was saying Gaff has those attributes.

 

[Daz]

I was saying Gaff has those attributes.

Apologies.

He's not an elite user of the footy. He's reliable. He finds space and gets to the ball largely due to his tank, which I'd already acknowledged as elite.

Right now Atley's getting his footy at half back and Gaff is getting his on the wings. The one who develops the best contested ball winning game will end up the better player IMO. Both will get tagged and uncontested players don't do well with tags, no matter how fit they are.

 

[placebo]

Gaff is one paced. He struggled in the one game I saw him get tagged (Rd 23 I think it was). I suspect he'll be similar to Stanton in that respect. Outside players without explosive pace are reasonably easy to contain, no matter how beastly their engine is. His disposal isn't anything special, either. It's consistent without being deadly. Atley's is not too dissimilar.

Completely wrong. Watch him closer next year, really good turn of pace when needed.

His disposal is very solid but his decision making is elite, would be one of the best at the club. He's an outside player yes, but performs well when drawn to a contest. Also goes back with the flight of the ball countless times.

 

[CallumBartlett]

You managed to name all of the Lions draftees in this post I see, quite remarkable. What aspect of Polec's game has he shown at a higher level than say Harley Bennell?

I'm under no illusions as to the Lions worth in that top 20, at the moment I don't think any of the 4 (Karnezis, Lester, Green, Polec) have shown enough to be in that top 10 or even the top 20. My point is both Green and Polec obtain the ability to become in the top 10, even the top 5. Both extremely quick, quite talented by hand and foot, good readers of the game but haven't shown enough as I said due to injury, form issues and trying to find positions in the team. Karnezis could find space in a telephone box, great set of hands and fantastic shot for goal, he's not Tom Lynch or Sam Day but could be in the top 15/20 one day, if he's not already. Lester I have my issues with but provides us with good depth and in hindsight to pay 28 for him, wasn't a bad result. I am under no illusions as I said that any of these guys are Day's, Bennell's, Parker's, Swallow's etc at the moment, but my point is it is still quite early to tell.