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Past Sam Sheldon (2007-2012)

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Haggis McHaggis said:
Might be an idea to watch, rather than rely on a stats sheet. He did a good whack of defensive work. I don't know who records 'pressure act' stats, but they'd probably be worth comparing to the listed effective tackles.
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Had 12 pressure acts. Which puts him equal 5th for the Lions and equal 12th for the match. So a pretty good effort. If you combine tackles with pressure acts he drops a fair way down the list.
 
jackess said:
Had 12 pressure acts. Which puts him equal 5th for the Lions and equal 12th for the match. So a pretty good effort. If you combine tackles with pressure acts he drops a fair way down the list.
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But career wise Sheldon has averaged 2.2 tackles in 33 games compared to the redoubtable Polkinghorne's tackle average of 3.1 in 54 games.

Actually,in his first 9 games this year Sheldon averaged 3.2 tackles per game which is almost identical with Polkinghorne's 3.3 in his 15 games of 2010...Polks is sitting on 3.9 in 15 games this year.. (Footywire stats).
 
I think the main thing here is that Sheldon is actually showing signs of development. This is the 2nd week in a row where he has actually been a target up forward on contributed on the scoreboard, not just doing a defensive job and not get any of the ball. He could always do a defensive job, but his problem was he couldn't do anything else. He would keep someone honest, but only have like 6 touches himself and never look dangerous. He has been good the last 2 weeks with his leading and kicking at goal.
 

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Playing pretty damn well.

He still looks pre-pubescent and is very slight but still manages to hold his own in contests.

If he can maintain his current form for the rest of the year, a new contract beckons. Better start hitting the gym and the solarium CousinJed.
 
Sheldon firing again
By Michael Whiting
12:46 PM Mon 11 Jul, 2011

"I was lucky enough to stay on this year, had a good pre-season and had to earn my spot back which I've done, and now I'm just trying to stay in there and do my role."

"I thought I had to do something different to get in the team so they moved me to the forward line in reserves and the opportunity came up in the seniors," Sheldon said.

"It's a hard spot. I've got massive respect for guys like (Steve) Johnson from Geelong, Cyril Rioli, that play that role to the best it can be played. At times it can become no man's land because you're caught in the middle and it's going over your head all the time. I think I'm learning it and getting the hang of it."

sheldon9.jpg
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People say "hit the gym" but i'm pretty certain he would have been hitting the gym since he started his career. Maybe he needs to increase the amount of calories he consumes so he can actually start growing.
 
Fairley said:
People say "hit the gym" but i'm pretty certain he would have been hitting the gym since he started his career. Maybe he needs to increase the amount of calories he consumes so he can actually start growing.
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They aren't telling Sheldon to hit the gym. ;)
 
Looked better down back in the second half against the crows. Had about 10 games in the forwardline without proving himself as a forward. I say give him a couple of games in the backline to see if he can't cement his spot in the starting 22.
 
jackess said:
Looked better down back in the second half against the crows. Had about 10 games in the forwardline without proving himself as a forward. I say give him a couple of games in the backline to see if he can't cement his spot in the starting 22.
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Number 3 played most of his games in 2009 and 2010 loitering around the backline and he didn't really have any impact.

As for cementing his place in the side, he's played every game since Rd.8 this year and I think that Voss has him pencilled in as first man picked, irrespective of form.
 

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While it could be argued that he is coming off a fairly low base, Sheldon seems to be showing improvement. 15 disposals, 9 marks and 4 tackles is quite respectable for a small forward.
 
Most of his touches were when he was playing in the backline. Most were cheap ones as well. He also gave away a stupid free in the first quarter for holding onto the tackle for too long which cost the team a goal. Considering they loss by 5 points that free really hurt in the end.
 
The Lions have been very patient with Sheldon as he has elevated himself from a D-grader to a C-grader throughout the course of the year. Tonight was probably the best game of his career, laying some quality tackles and kicking a couple of goals. He also does pretty well in situations where he is outnumbered, holding the opposition up or even gaining possession himself. A few more games like that and he will be threatening to become a B-grader.
 
It has probably been stated previously, but being the son of a Carlton gun, must have been a pretty weighty start to an AFL career. If not in the minds of those watching, but perhaps his own expectation. Look how we would salivate in 20 yrs if Blacky had twins boys in the system like Crawf at Hawthorn may have. Maturity and a bit of self confidence may be the difference between his improvement this year and his last few. I hope he can continue.
 

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Having him play forward does two things.

Firstly, he lifts the tackling inside 50. Banfield aside, this hasn't always been our strong suit but we seem to be getting more stoppages inside forward 50. This is what the better clubs excel at.

Secondly, he has improved his work in the contested situation, doing better are getting first hands on the footy. He doesn't always win the footy but he's quite willing to get in and under.

Where he lets himself down is that he still misses too many targets, by hand and foot. He also lacks penetration with his kicking, which means he needs to be within about 40m of goal to have any impact.

I like the description - turning from a D grader to a C grader. The improvement is incremental, but it is noticeable. I would say he's still a fair way off being a B grader though!
 
The above pretty much sums it up. Was critical of his game last week, and he responded really well. Despite his couple of shanks, he's contributing on the score board, and is crucial in the overall defensive structure.
 
POBT said:
Another period of 2 steps forward, one step back for Sheldon. I thought he was ordinary last night after a pretty good game last week.
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I didn't think he was that bad. A poor forward 50 entry was highlighted early in the game, but he also was able to set McGrath up for one of his goals and he kicked a goal himself. He was credited with seven tackles which was the most of any player on the ground.

Not as good a game as last week, but with quality opposition you'd expect the going to be a bit tougher. According to fanfooty his opponent was Simon Buckley, who didn't do a whole lot. Ideally he'd be getting more of the ball, but overall I would say he was reasonable.
 

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Past Sam Sheldon (2007-2012)

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