Game Day Richmond v Geelong at Swinburne Centre 11am 8/6 - No Stream

Reckon thats been his highest count if hes lucky - more like averaging 12 possies as an inside player which is low. Im not losing faith long term but hoping to see some improvement in the backend of the season in terms of raw numbers.
Have a look at the post I put up this morning which links in all the post game comments up to last week for Rileys games. For most of the games he has had 16-19 disposals with most of them contested possessions winning. What he doesn't get a lot of is the uncontested outside ball that turns those 16-19 disposals into 22-25 possession games. Once he starts doing that there are going to be some embarrassed posters looking for somewhere to hide.
 

tony__montana

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Have a look at the post I put up this morning which links in all the post game comments up to last week for Rileys games. For most of the games he has had 16-19 disposals with most of them contested possessions winning. What he doesn't get a lot of is the uncontested outside ball that turns those 16-19 disposals into 22-25 possession games. Once he starts doing that there are going to be some embarrassed posters looking for somewhere to hide.


Ok hes averaging 16 possessions a game as a pure inside mid and I was out by 4, it's still concerning for a player that has never gotten big numbers in juniors.

I dont know if that last crack was intended for me or others(or both) but why would people be embarrassed about expressing concern for a high draft pick who seems to be having trouble finding the ball? Personally, I'd be more embarrassed about backing in a CEllis after 5 years of s**t, than expressing concern about a player who is struggling to find the pill :)
 
Ok hes averaging 16 possessions a game as a pure inside mid and I was out by 4, it's still concerning for a player that has never gotten big numbers in juniors.

I dont know if that last crack was intended for me or others(or both) but why would people be embarrassed about expressing concern for a high draft pick who seems to be having trouble finding the ball? Personally, I'd be more embarrassed about backing in a CEllis after 5 years of ****, than expressing concern about a player who is struggling to find the pill :)
Riley is capable of winning his own footy, what he hasn't developed yet is the ability to win the easy uncontested possessions that turn 16 disposals into 25+. Got no problem with people raising concerns about him, I do have issue with people writing him off as a bust already barely halfway through the kids debut season.

As for backing Ellis, I'll back every kid who pulls on our jumper until such time that it's clear that they aren't going to make it.
 

tony__montana

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Riley is capable of winning his own footy, what he hasn't developed yet is the ability to win the easy uncontested possessions that turn 16 disposals into 25+. Got no problem with people raising concerns about him, I do have issue with people writing him off as a bust already barely halfway through the kids debut season.

As for backing Ellis, I'll back every kid who pulls on our jumper until such time that it's clear that they aren't going to make it.


He needs to develop the ability to find more ball. Some people say he never was a big numbers player at junior level so are naturally concerned that translates to the top level. While its still too early to be writing him off, I think its fair enough that some people are concerned about him.

Ellis was cooked after 2 seasons, could clearly see he wasnt up to the pace of AFL.
 
Feb 4, 2008
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Chol in for Towna.
I’m keen to see what he has at AFL level. Strength could be his main issue against big kpd and ruckman at AFL level, but has some other tricks up his sleeve that could make him a difficult match up

I can see a certain logic to most of the club's selection decisions. What we lack, especially in Rance and Astbury's absence, is someone to play on the really big forwards. What we know is Balta can play the ruck/forward role to good effect. What we need answers to is can Balta become a key beckman, and now is a good time to find out. Then it follows that it is worth finding out whether Chol can play the role Balta was playing effectively. if Chol can be effective in that role then at worst you increase his value for a trade, at best you have two guys in your team who can bring a point of difference to the ruck/forward role, at least one of which can play key defence as well.

One problem with working out Chol is the lack of precedents to go by. There are only two significant native Sudanese players around Chol's height to have played the game, but both would appear to offer good precedent when assessing Chol. Aliir squared and Majak Daw are the two of course. Aliir showed great potential early but it was only at the age of about 23 he really stamped himself as a gun beckman, and now I would think he would be in the best handful in the competition at that position. Daw played for years as an in and out ruck/forward but at the ripe old age of 27 North decided to try him in defence and he was brilliant. Who knows at what point along the age spectrum he might have proved suitable for that role had he played there sooner.

Chol will be 23 next year so is nearing that time that the precedents suggest key defence for him. I know the club has played him a year in defence I think when he was 19 or 20 and he didn't set the world on fire but I wonder if he might be better at it now. Also of course just because the only other two known precedents have fired in key defensive posts once their bodies matured, it doesn't mean Chol will do the same. But this is one stone I would not be leaving unturned in the next year or so. The other possibility for Chol is trying him as a one out ruckman in the AFL. Twice he has done it in the VFL, twice he has been best on ground....

Whatever is the case with Chol, I don't think we will see him at AFL level this week because he has only a 5 day break after a full match in the ruck.
 
He needs to develop the ability to find more ball. Some people say he never was a big numbers player at junior level so are naturally concerned that translates to the top level. While its still too early to be writing him off, I think its fair enough that some people are concerned about him.

Ellis was cooked after 2 seasons, could clearly see he wasnt up to the pace of AFL.
At junior level he spent most of his time as a forward rather than in the midfield, hence not getting big numbers at that level. We've brought him in to be a midfielder who can get first hands on clearances and get the ball going our way. As I've said previously, he spends the entire VFL games playing on ball and only has breaks on the bench rather than resting forward. That says that they want him focusing solely on learning how to play midfield. As the season has progressed he has started to get better at spreading from the contest, but still has work to do. After the bye I'd expect to see him getting more uncontested possessions once he has freshened up along with the rest of the first/second year players.
 
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Has he nominated in previous drafts UW93?

Yeah, but no one knew who he was. He will this year, will come down to whether there’s enough interest. He knows where the goals are, gets in the right spots, reads the game well, covers around 14-15km on a regular basis for local club Noble Park when he plays midfield, and has good pace.
 
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Yeah, but no one knew who he was. He will this year, will come down to whether there’s enough interest. He knows where the goals are, gets in the right spots, reads the game well, covers around 14-15km on a regular basis for local club Noble Park when he plays midfield, and has good pace.
What does he think of being a Tiger?
 
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The VFL guys are doing so well. And lots of kids getting AFL experience. Looking good that side of it all.

Reckon the RCD discussion is a bit premature. The club obviously reckons his position is inside mid bull. To some extent it's a new role for him - full time that is. And obviously he doesn't have the tank. So that he is regularly getting 15+ possessions is good stuff. That he hasn't yet got those extra possessions and the link-up play is worrying, a bit.

I reckon that he might take a bit longer to get ready. He'll learn the inside mid role this year. Over the next year get more outside as well. But adding a genuine AFL tank and muscle will take 2-3 years at least. SO I'm just hoping to see a few 20 possession games this year. Then regularly 20 odd next year and starting to rip the game apart in stints. 2021 he should be challenging for a firsts role - if he does the required work.
 
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As described by McRae....

Riley Collier-Dawkins

Eight disposals, three marks, two tackles, three inside-50s & two rebound-50s

“He had to play a bit more forward this week. He came into the game with a bit of illness and fought really hard for us.”

When a player throws in one performance with output well below(or above) what is normal for him there is often a clear reason to explain it. So the lack of 20+ possession games when playing in the midfield may be a legitimate area of concern to be worked on, but the sudden drop to an 8 disposal match is probably not much to worry about, given illness and a slight change in his role could explain it. For now I would just take RCD as being on the same tangent he was on before this match happened.

I haven't given up hope that we might see sharp improvement from this bloke in the later part of this season, but would definitely expect him to improve nicely over the next year or two. Some of the things I have seen him do look too good for him not to make it as an AFL player at some point, in some role...
 
Fraser Turner

26 disposals, six clearances, one goal, three inside-50s & two rebound-50s

“Continues to accumulate possessions at this level. Played through the wing and even a little bit of inside midfield during the last quarter—five clearances, kicked a goal. He’s a really nice player in the making for us.”

Shai Bolton

25 disposals, 11 tackles, nine clearances & one goal

“Returned from the AFL, played inside midfield and was really pleasing for him to come back and influence the game, both offensively and defensively. He kicked a goal, but his 11 tackles was a feature, 16 contested possessions of his 25. He looks ready to bounce back to AFL level.”

Mav Weller

22 disposals, seven tackles, eight clearances & four rebound-50s

“Continues to play good football as an inside midfielder for us…hard at it, hard to play against and his strong body around the contest had a significant impact for us. He had a great game.”

Nathan Broad

19 disposals, six spoils & four rebound-50s

“Returned from the AFL and got 19 disposals as a defender. Six spoils was a stand-out, and his four rebound-50s. His contest stuff looked strong as well, so it was a pleasing return to VFL footy.”

Derek Eggmolesse-Smith

16 disposals, nine marks, four tackles & six rebound-50s

“Continued his good form with 16 disposals. Used the ball really well and had six rebound-50s. His contest work also stood out. Another player in good form.”

Connor Menadue

15 disposals, six marks, four tackles & six handball receives

“Played through the wing and a bit off half-back. Was really influential in his leadership and his directing, he’s playing his role really well, he’s playing really good footy for us.”

Mabior Chol

15 disposals, 22 hit-outs, five clearances, six tackles & two goals

“Took on the reins as No.1 ruck. He had a big ask against four ruckmen in the opposition team, and ‘Marbs’ was going at it by himself. He was outstanding, he had 15 disposals, five clearances and kicked two goals. When he plays like that he looks like an AFL player, and what he brought was really important in the end result.”

Oleg Markov

13 disposals, six marks, three tackles & four rebound-50s

“Got better as the game wore on as he returned from illness. He started to really express himself on the ground with his run-and-carry and bounce. I love it when he plays like that, so that was pleasing to see.”

Jake Aarts

13 disposals, four marks, five tackles, three inside-50s & one goal

“Played as a forward and had multiple opportunities to kick goals in the second quarter. He ended up with 1.2 and kicked one (goal) on the siren. His contest stuff really stood out, and he had 13 disposals and five tackles which was a really good performance from Jake.”

Riley Collier-Dawkins

Eight disposals, three marks, two tackles, three inside-50s & two rebound-50s

“He had to play a bit more forward this week. He came into the game with a bit of illness and fought really hard for us.”
 
Feb 4, 2008
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Chol in for Towna.
I’m keen to see what he has at AFL level. Strength could be his main issue against big kpd and ruckman at AFL level, but has some other tricks up his sleeve that could make him a difficult match up

Ok I will take a loss on this one, I didn't think Chol would be used at AFL level this week but ultimately you were correct. The way Balme operates, every reason to think it is strategic as well and not a result of Soldo being ill. I am intrigued to see how this ruck pairing goes, Chol/Balta I presume share the duties. Though it could yet be Chol does it alone and Balta plays key defence, but I doubt it.

Not expecting the world from Chol but after two clear BOG's when used as main ruck in the VFL over the last 3 weeks, we might have some legitimate cause for optimism.
 

Charlie Pannam

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Ok I will take a loss on this one, I didn't think Chol would be used at AFL level this week but ultimately you were correct. The way Balme operates, every reason to think it is strategic as well and not a result of Soldo being ill. I am intrigued to see how this ruck pairing goes, Chol/Balta I presume share the duties. Though it could yet be Chol does it alone and Balta plays key defence, but I doubt it.

Not expecting the world from Chol but after two clear BOG's when used as main ruck in the VFL over the last 3 weeks, we might have some legitimate cause for optimism.
Can’t really claim this one M R - Chol gets his chance as a result of Soldo’s misfortune, it’s taken some extreme circumstances to make it happen.
 
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