Traded #10: Aaron Francis - Traded to Sydney w. Pick 42 + Future fourth rounder for Pick 37. Thanks Frang!

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Contract Status: Out of contract 2022
Injury Status: n/a

My Boy Draft 2022: Pick 29, Mr Bultitude
 
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Listening to the post match presser. Worsfold being asked why Francis hasn't played yet this year; explains that he plays a similar role to either Hurley or Goddard.

Now that the season is shot, surely we play Francis in Goddard's spot?

With Ambrose pinging his hamstring it shouldn't matter. It will force Hurley to play a more defensive role, which we all know is what he desperately needs to keep doing, so Franky slots nicely into the intercepting 3rd tall. Noice.
 
Aug 15, 2011
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The time is right whether leaving ir staying.

7 rounds to build a currency. He right now compares to BJ are just so different players.

Lets find even more rebound, intercept and kicking ability to our backline.
 

NAB777

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Listening to the post match presser. Worsfold being asked why Francis hasn't played yet this year; explains that he plays a similar role to either Hurley or Goddard and that he's basically just waiting his turn.

Now that the season is shot, surely we play Francis in Goddard's spot?

I didn't see the Worsfold presser, but if he said that, Goddard should retire. We need to get games into our future players.
 
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With Ambrose pinging his hamstring it shouldn't matter. It will force Hurley to play a more defensive role, which we all know is what he desperately needs to keep doing, so Franky slots nicely into the intercepting 3rd tall. Noice.

The team will look a lot better with Hurley playing a more defensive role. His level of experience means he should be able to beat a gun forward AND chip in to help others. Just like Rance.

Now we allow Francis to play as an intercept until he has enough experience to do both. Ambrose can come back as a tagger .
 
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???

Hurley has already been playing a more defensive role. If anything Hookers been sagging off more frequently.

Redman is Goddard 2.0 and we fit him, Goddard and Hurley in the side with success earlier this year... But we can't with Francis?
 

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???

Hurley has already been playing a more defensive role. If anything Hookers been sagging off more frequently.

Redman is Goddard 2.0 and we fit him, Goddard and Hurley in the side with success earlier this year... But we can't with Francis?

Hooker sags off when it is allowed because he's a gun at reading the play, but he's still been playing the #1 role on the big forwards.
 
???

Hurley has already been playing a more defensive role. If anything Hookers been sagging off more frequently.

Redman is Goddard 2.0 and we fit him, Goddard and Hurley in the side with success earlier this year... But we can't with Francis?

Redman is a genuine half back flanker and elite runner, Goddard and Francis are both similar in that they don't function structurally as smalls, do their best work in the air and are designated kickers.

It makes sense to me that they're saying that he's the heir apparent to Goddard because I've always seen more Goddard in him than Hurley, I just hope he is understanding of that and that Goddard either retires or is able and willing to transition into a different role to fit him in.
 
I want to see him play as well but I will say this. He would have got burnt yesterday. If you go back and look through his VFL games one thing that stands out is he does spend a lot of time just watching the game after the ball leaves the area and his second efforts around a contest / stoppage are limited. Has been fantastic reading the ball coming in and peeling of his player to intercept it but he also gets caught out of position a lot. He gets away with it to a degree in the VFL as the pace of the game is different and you get time to recover.
My heart hopes he does get a game this week but I am not going to be annoyed if he does not as although his form has been really good his current weakness is something that can be exposed in the AFL. Not that he is the only bloke on the list who can be found ball watching.
 
Jun 11, 2007
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I want to see him play as well but I will say this. He would have got burnt yesterday. If you go back and look through his VFL games one thing that stands out is he does spend a lot of time just watching the game after the ball leaves the area and his second efforts around a contest / stoppage are limited. Has been fantastic reading the ball coming in and peeling of his player to intercept it but he also gets caught out of position a lot. He gets away with it to a degree in the VFL as the pace of the game is different and you get time to recover.
My heart hopes he does get a game this week but I am not going to be annoyed if he does not as although his form has been really good his current weakness is something that can be exposed in the AFL. Not that he is the only bloke on the list who can be found ball watching.
He's a perfect replacement for Goddard.
We would lose/gain nothing from the second efforts, but aerially he is far better.

It will take time. His first few years in the AFL i fully expect to see some goals slip through because of his approach to the game. But eventually i can see that translating into a weapon off HB (like Sicily, Rance, Lever, etc) where locking down their man is second to stopping the ball when it comes into our 50.

Given how much we suck at guarding the goal side when it hits the deck anyway, id rather have him in there cutting the ball off.
 
He's a perfect replacement for Goddard.
We would lose/gain nothing from the second efforts, but aerially he is far better.

It will take time. His first few years in the AFL i fully expect to see some goals slip through because of his approach to the game. But eventually i can see that translating into a weapon off HB (like Sicily, Rance, Lever, etc) where locking down their man is second to stopping the ball when it comes into our 50.

Given how much we suck at guarding the goal side when it hits the deck anyway, id rather have him in there cutting the ball off.

So we are telling BJ to retire . Thanks for all your efforts. Sorry we ****ed you over because of our past. Thanks for holding the side together in 2016 but you best give it away now despite making a massive effort to improve the weak parts of your game. We are going to play a young bloke who is not ready .

IMO we do not keep BJ next year despite his footy being not too bad but right now it would be rather poor form to just move him along at this stage. On top of that I doubt they have given up on finals. They have only just been beaten in a game they have played really well in. Despite my personal opinion as someone on the outside looking in and thinking they will be 1 or 2 wins short I have to say the culture of the club is in real trouble if they have chucked in the towel on finals despite there being limited wiggle room left now.
 
I should add that yes BJ does not defend well but he does not simply ball watch either. He gets caught out because his instinct attack mode. His positioning tends to be an offensive position and he is bloody good at it as well. Francis gets caught out of position because he stops and is not thinking of the next phase of play.
 

eDPS

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I’ll wear the consequences of his endurance not being up to it, we won’t make finals and playing Francis won’t change that outcome at all, atleast give the supporters something to look forward too for the future.

The media wouldn’t bring him up if his form didn’t warrant selection, I can tell you right now teams like Geelong and Sydney would be giving him a go at the very least because they have shown a willingness to reward the form of younger players in the Reserves and most of them have repaid the faith.
 
I’ll wear the consequences of his endurance not being up to it, we won’t make finals and playing Francis won’t change that outcome at all, atleast give the supporters something to look forward too for the future.

The media wouldn’t bring him up if his form didn’t warrant selection, I can tell you right now teams like Geelong and Sydney would be giving him a go at the very least because they have shown a willingness to reward the form of younger players in the Reserves and most of them have repaid the faith.
What other choices do we have? Ridley..? Dea? (Is he injured or just rested?) They seem to consider Francis as a KPD, not a third tall/medium defender type. I think Dea and Ambrose have a more accountable style of play than Francis too.
 

eDPS

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What other choices do we have? Ridley..? Dea? (Is he injured or just rested?) They seem to consider Francis as a KPD, not a third tall/medium defender type. I think Dea and Ambrose have a more accountable style of play than Francis too.
I couldn’t give two shits about them being more accountable both Ambrose and Dea are solid depth players at best whereas if Francis can fix his endurance he should become a bonafide star. With Woosha saying Goddard and Hurley are keeping him out that would suggest they see him as a 3rd tall sweeper type which he is.
 
I couldn’t give two shits about them being more accountable both Ambrose and Dea are solid depth players at best whereas if Francis can fix his endurance he should become a bonafide star. With Woosha saying Goddard and Hurley are keeping him out that would suggest they see him as a 3rd tall sweeper type which he is.
I was hoping you'd say he has been sufficiently accountable in the VFL :'( Everyone said Saad wasn't accountable either when we got him...

At any rate the selection committee are running out of options, sooner or later the kid will get a chance by default if this injury list keeps going the way it has been.
 
Jul 15, 2008
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I was hoping you'd say he has been sufficiently accountable in the VFL :'( Everyone said Saad wasn't accountable either when we got him...

At any rate the selection committee are running out of options, sooner or later the kid will get a chance by default if this injury list keeps going the way it has been.
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I really cannot believe D_P_S did not respond with this...lift your game man! :p
 

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