Player Watch Matt Crouch - Re-Signed to End of 2025

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

I actually think that because M Crouch has been sub so much assists him in this particular comparison.

I haven't done the statistical analysis, but it always seems that subs rack up between 7-15 possessions in a quarter and a half of football which averages out to over 25 touches a game.

In most cases the sub comes on fresh when the other players are tired and its easier to accumulate the ball.

I reckon that happens sometimes but equally (more?) often the sub struggles to pick up the pace of the game and has minimal impact

 

[spexau]

Can see him being another priddis. Both left footers and both contested, in and under, heavy possesion midfielders. The kids a ripper.

He's a better kick than Priddis imo.

 

[whattagun07]

I was only just thinking this on the weekend (Priddis comparison).
Elite extractor and seems to have bloody good vision and quick hands. Will need to show it across a few more games, but well on his way to being a Priddis MkII which we should be very excited about.

 

[Drugs Are Bad Mackay?]

Better hair

Can't wait til they start alongside each other in the centre square at the first bounce of a game

 

[1990crow]

Doing well but I don't think we'll see his best for another 2 years. A couple more preseasons and he'll be able to match it with the best both running and physically.

 

[AFC979810]

I reckon that happens sometimes but equally (more?) often the sub struggles to pick up the pace of the game and has minimal impact

You might be 100% right. As I said - it was purely an observation I have noted in the past. Might have a quick look at our subs this year and their possession totals as sub and as a regular player (both adjusted to a hypothetical 100% Gametime).

 

[DroppingTheBall]

I reckon that happens sometimes but equally (more?) often the sub struggles to pick up the pace of the game and has minimal impact

Then pick the right sub, someone who won't struggle so.

 

[DJ75]

I expect that M Crouch is going to have a very good career and rack up a lot of possessions.

However, he has been vested a lot for a reason.

Let me ask this, would West Coast be a better team if they had two Priddis' in the same team and both playing midfield all game?

 

[Archie87]

M.Crouch is a far better kick than Priddis. I saw him at SANFL level a few times last year and it quickly became apparent the pre-draft knocks on his kick were complete myths. He's not a Luke Hodge 50-metre grass cutter/bullet type kick by any stretch but he's a very neat kick of the footy and puts it in good spots when he has time.

 

[Rory Walkerfield]

M.Crouch is a far better kick than Priddis. I saw him at SANFL level a few times last year and it quickly became apparent the pre-draft knocks on his kick were complete myths. He's not a Luke Hodge 50-metre grass cutter/bullet type kick by any stretch but he's a very neat kick of the footy and puts it in good spots when he has time.

I haven't seen any sanfl action, but even what I've seen at afl level I like. Unlike most young guys, he doesn't tryto worm burn a 40 meter pass, but rather pops it into space for the marker to run onto it. Weighs the ball well.

 

[spexau]

I haven't seen any sanfl action, but even what I've seen at afl level I like. Unlike most young guys, he doesn't tryto worm burn a 40 meter pass, but rather pops it into space for the marker to run onto it. Weighs the ball well.

He's no Grigg

Certainly knows how to put the ball to advantage of the leading player which helps his disposal efficiency.

 

[Pdub]

Who said he was a bad kick pre-draft? The club's recruiters said that they rated his kick higher than his handball. The only knock I heard about him pre-draft was his pace and endurance.

 

[Paladin]

I expect that M Crouch is going to have a very good career and rack up a lot of possessions.

However, he has been vested a lot for a reason.

Let me ask this, would West Coast be a better team if they had two Priddis' in the same team and both playing midfield all game?

Of course they would! You wouldn't want 22 x Matt Priddis but the guy is an outstanding player.

 

[cmndstab]

I reckon that happens sometimes but equally (more?) often the sub struggles to pick up the pace of the game and has minimal impact

This is also just an observation with no basis in data, but my feeling is an engine room player usually does a decent job as sub because they're straight into the action. Whereas a player who comes on as sub in a pocket or down back usually struggles.

 

[FantasticShirt]

Who said he was a bad kick pre-draft? The club's recruiters said that they rated his kick higher than his handball. The only knock I heard about him pre-draft was his pace and endurance.

Pace and endurance was certainly the major knock on him. I don't remember anything about him being a bad kick.

 

[spexau]

Pace and endurance was certainly the major knock on him. I don't remember anything about him being a bad kick.

At full flight he's not exactly slow. He'd be faster than Thommo and Lyons. Probably more being able to perform repeat sprints is an issue.

 

[Skippos]

As much as I appreciate the analysis I think it's only fair to say that the more games you play as sub the higher your disposals per minute will be, in general. You play a quarter or a quarter and a half and when you get on, you're far fresher than everyone. You play with the intensity and tank of it being Q1 while everyone else is flaked as they've run 10 ks already. The game is that much slower that it allows a junior who's still finding their feet to find their feet quickly. It's also often junk time so to compound the fatigue everyone else has suffered, there's not the manic pressure that we see when the game is on. Look at Karl Amon on the weekend. He's a second year non elite junior who's a very outside player. Outside players rarely rack it up in general - he had 9 touches and 1.1 in a quarter - not because he's a 36 touch a game player but because the heat, pace and intensity was out of the game.

I'd be interested to see Crouch's disposal per minute stats in games where he was the sub vs in games where he wasn't. My guess is that it's stark.

Someone like Angus Brayshaw for example is 'elite' in SuperCoach points per 100 minutes. A week or two when I checked he averaged more SC points per minute than Joel Selwood. Is that because he's a better supercoach player than Selwood? Nope - it's because he was the sub so much and was subbed out at the moment he began to flag fatigue wise and likely would have vanished out of the game. In his full games he was benched more often than anyone else too so when he was on, he was fresher. Now that he's playing full games as opposed to being the sub his average per minute is falling because he's not just freeloading when it's 'easy time'

I suspect as crouch begins to play consistently without the vest his DPM will staggeringly fall. It'll still be excellent as that's the kind of player he is and always will be - but not next level kinda stuff perhaps because Junior Crouch just isn't a next level prospect.

 

[spexau]

He's played 4 games with TOG of 70%+ at 21.75 average disposals so you're probably right there.

EDIT: Actually he only averaged 73.75% TOG so if you take that to 100% then he averages just under 29.5 disposals per 100% TOG.

 

[DJ75]

Of course they would! You wouldn't want 22 x Matt Priddis but the guy is an outstanding player.

I don't think that they would. Balance in the midfield is key.

 

[Freddy Bassett]

Has Crouch just won a Brownlow?

Seriously he is looking the goods and is showing some fantastic signs...

But I think some of the comments on here are way over the top...

I hope he can string together a good month and then I will join in the circle jerk

 

[Wood_Duck]

I love Matt Crouch, but he will need to be a lot more than an accumulator if he is to become a star footballer.

 

[FAITH]

comparisons to priddis are pretty good, actually they look identical in many ways.

 

[VSTone]

they've got a kit bag of attributes - but is longevity and application in that kit bag? time will tell how much the the crouch brothers want it?

 

[Geoffa32]

Was impressed the way Crouch creates good positive play from a clearance.

 

[VSTone]

Was impressed the way Crouch creates good positive play from a clearance.

a footy brain