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AFLW 2024 - Round 9 - Indigenous Round - Chat, game threads, injury lists, team lineups and more.
Training 2021 Pre Season training watch
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tommyk72
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Mitchell Gunno and ?
Steven Tyler
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Sicily
tommyk72
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- Jun 4, 2016
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For all the positive vibes coming from the preseason report missing these three players will hurt big time at the start of the year.
Most teams in the AFL can go from being very good to average when you take out the three most talented players.
Even top teams like the Tiges and Geelong fall back to the pack pretty quick if their stars (Dusty, Hawkins, etc) aren't playing.
And Sicily, Gunners and Mitchell are easily our top three.
We will need to temper our expectations for 2021 with this understanding.
KermitJagger
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Wouldn't say easily our top three but they're 3 of our best across 3 lines, that's what makes it difficult. Particularly with Gunners and Sic that's leadership gone too.
Hopefully the Clarko focus on game plan will be able to stem the bleeding until we get at least some of these guys back. Hoping for some career starts to the year for certain players also.
- Jun 11, 2013
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my goal for getting enjoyment out of the HFC this season isn't winning games (though of course it's nice) but will be watching the development of some of our young players and hopefully career-best years for guys like Chad, JOM etc.
so i'm not too fussed by the loss of Sic, Gunston and Titch in terms of ladder position as im expecting a 12th-16th anyway. the biggest problem is that they themselves are a joy to watch and i'll miss seeing titch racking them up, sic taking great grabs and gunston kicking goals
but it presents a great opportunity for 1-2 new players to put their hands up which is exciting when you're not contending for finals/a flag
so i'm not too fussed by the loss of Sic, Gunston and Titch in terms of ladder position as im expecting a 12th-16th anyway. the biggest problem is that they themselves are a joy to watch and i'll miss seeing titch racking them up, sic taking great grabs and gunston kicking goals
but it presents a great opportunity for 1-2 new players to put their hands up which is exciting when you're not contending for finals/a flag
Brant
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I'm not discounting what you're saying, but it may not quite be that bad.
We were without Sicily for a large part of 2020 anyway & we'll now have a fit Impey playing HBF. We have Skrillex & Day (& now DGB) to play HBF & with BigBoy @ CHB, it's likely our most stacked line on the field.
Gunston - yeh, it's a bad as you said, if not worse... just gotta hope that an improved midfield performance & better game plan gives the forwardline (as a unit) more cohesion instead of relying on the brilliance of one guy.
We've gone a long time without Mitchell before & other guys stepped up. We can't replace him, but it'll hopefully only be for a month (or less). Remember that we played 2020 with a saboteur-in-ruck* & largely without wingmen. The performance improvement by rectifying this may cover the loss of Mitchell - maybe???
*Cegs was injured so not his fault, but everything he went near in the middle in 2020, went to garbage. He's so much better than that & a fit Ceglar in 2021 will be huge for us.
It’s the most I’m excited for a season since ‘07-‘08. I enjoy the journey just as much as the destination.
The 3 absentees just add to the excitement.
The 3 absentees just add to the excitement.
hawkdork83
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- Dec 10, 2020
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How long is Mitchell out for? I thought it was just round 1?
Mitchell is a jet, but I'm not 100% sold he is in our top 5 most important players. Worpel, O'Meara, Shiels and Cousins play similar.
Gunston and Sicily are irreplaceable for us. Losing Wingard at any point on-top of this would make us a bottom three team imo.
Getting Impey back to his best is really important. He is one of the very view line breakers we have and we missed him badly last year. Hartigan is a decent footballer, but the thought of Hartley playing full-back scares me. Frost tends to give away too many holding frees when playing on bigger opponents.
Mitchell is a jet, but I'm not 100% sold he is in our top 5 most important players. Worpel, O'Meara, Shiels and Cousins play similar.
Gunston and Sicily are irreplaceable for us. Losing Wingard at any point on-top of this would make us a bottom three team imo.
Getting Impey back to his best is really important. He is one of the very view line breakers we have and we missed him badly last year. Hartigan is a decent footballer, but the thought of Hartley playing full-back scares me. Frost tends to give away too many holding frees when playing on bigger opponents.
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Iceman!
Brownlow Medallist
If Mitchell is anything close to being ruled out for round 1 this far out i doubt he will be ready for round 2.
I also agree with where you are coming from but it is worth remembering just how putrid our midfield was last year. Could go entire quarters without winning centre clearances and teams were just waltzing it out of the middle.
Losing our best player over the past 4 years is pretty huge.
With restrictions easing after today, I fully expect a minimum of 3 training reports on Friday.
hawkdork83
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That's fair. But Mitchell Mitchell missed all of 2019 and was honestly a shadow of himself last year. He just had zero impact with his possessions I felt and was a big part of our one-paced, overly ball hunting minded midfield.
Obviously I know he was coming back from a major injury so he couldn't be expected to be the same player, but with another interrupted pre-season are we going to get the 2018 version?
I'm not ruling that out at all, but I just think he has slipped from being in our top 5 most important players as a result. I think Worpel is more important at present, especially if he plays like his last five games of 2020 before injury. And as frustrating as Jaegar is, he is a different type of midfielder that has some pace and can hit the scoreboard. In many ways we are still waiting for him to break out and if he can, he lifts this side further than Tom imo.
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Each to their own but I had more excitement heading into the 2014 and 2015 seasons than I do now. Shit football side, key players hurt, dickhead state politicians will lead to fixture chaos and who knows if we'll even be able to attend many games.
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Iceman!
Brownlow Medallist
Yeah he missed all of 19 and we ended up missing finals after finishing to 4 the previous year and you are right Mitchell was no where near his best last year but was still comfortably our best midfielder.
I love Worpel but what is he better at currently?
Mitchell averaged more disposals, marks, contested possessions, clearances, score involvements, meters gained and went at much higher disposal efficiency
and they averaged the same goals, inside 50's, goal assists.
This is while returning from the broken leg and playing with a cooked shoulder all year. I struggle to see an argument you can make for Worpel being more important.
Ned Ryerson
Future Captain
Well shit - I was only one square off winning HODGEYROAD Stream of Negativity Bingo. Oh well, there's always tomorrow.
hawkdork83
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Worpel took out the Crimms medal at 20, and along the way setting a league record for most disposals by a player 20 or under. He was frustrating last year, but his last five games prior to injury I felt he was at his best again. Second year blues would be fair.
A personal opinion, but I think he is set to take another leap forward in 2021. I see him as critical towards how we rebuild as a club. I also prefer that he takes the game on and tackles to hurt. This is not saying I am not a Mitchell fan, I am, but his possessions are in the back half with so little impact. Last year anyhow.
Tom impacts games by weight of numbers. Worpel has a follow me attitude that we need in 2021. He has mongrel.
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Iceman!
Brownlow Medallist
Look i can agree Worpel is more important to our future but that is not what was originally stated.
Worpel was brilliant in 2019 as Mitchell was in 18 and was our second best played whilst inured in 20. Getting him fit is hugely important to us as a team if we want to be winning games next year.
The impact thing i just disagree with. If Worpel impacts games more the numbers would back that up but they don't. He doesn't hit the scoreboard any more than Mitchell and has less score involvements.
By the end of the year who knows who will be better, i love both of them but currently Mitchell is arguably our best player and i do not think you can argue Worpel is in the top 3.
Ned Ryerson
Future Captain
Another thing about Mitchell's absence is I think it gives Cousins a chance to prove himself worthy of a place in the side. I think he showed good progression last year and will only be 23 at the start of this season. Despite the shortened quarters last year he increased his average disposals and clearances in a side that was struggling. I don't think Cousins will ever be a world-beater - but he could be at a Brad Sewell level of consistently getting his job done. While I don't like Mitchell being injured at all, I am glad Cousins gets a crack at round 1 to show he belongs.
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Cousins is a lot better of a player than people give him credit for. I'm happy for him best 22.
KermitJagger
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I'm still tentative on Cousins. Watched him closely in the games he played, he seems to struggle when it comes to putting together the offensive and defensive sides to his game.
Good example was Essendon - offered a lot in attack when we were winning, but was a bit of a witches hat when Essendon were getting clearances at will. On the flip side he's had impressive games where he is accountable for his opponent but he's a non factor offensively.
hawkdork83
Cancelled
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I honestly didn't rate him before his last six games in 2020. He was probably our best midfielder in that period and showed far more pace and skill than I thought he had. By pre-season reports he is performing strongly.
With or without Mitchell, it would be a backwards step not to play him early and build on this momentum and confidence he is gaining at the level.
