Player Watch #13 Clayton Oliver – UNPRECEDENTED 4 x B&F, 3 x AA, 2 x AFLCA Winner and Premiership Player

Imo technically he isn’t a bad kick but has zero confidence and most of his passes are just hacks forward like Brayshaw.

Nah, he's terrible, below average field kick, below average set shot.
 

Topkent

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2018 ALL AUSTRALIAN/2019 s**tKICKER

Speaking of s**t Kicking....Seriously tho, the bloke can't kick for s**t, this insistence on trying to use him as pinching hitting/resting forward must stop.
He also takes very little marks around the ground and when Fyfe Dusty and Martin go forward they own the 50. Don't need a bloke who's more concerned with his stats than actually trying to win the game holding up a spot in the 50
 
He also takes very little marks around the ground and when Fyfe Dusty and Martin go forward they own the 50. Don't need a bloke who's more concerned with his stats than actually trying to win the game holding up a spot in the 50

Yep, he brings us no use as forward whatsoever
 
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Nah, he's terrible, below average field kick, below average set shot.
On ability he’s well above average. One of very few to register a perfect goal kicking score in the combine. He’s just deteriorated this year
 

Cannon82

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He kicks the same way that this bloke bowls.



That bloke would 100% get me out. May he have great success in all things.

Kudos to you for finding a televised competition that's worse than the WBBL, too. I didn't think such a creature existed.
 

Topkent

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That bloke would 100% get me out. May he have great success in all things.

Kudos to you for finding a televised competition that's worse than the WBBL, too. I didn't think such a creature existed.

They did an interview with him at Lords. He's Romanian I think and I loved his qoute. " My bowling is s**t but I love cricket, I not care I have fun"
 

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That bloke would 100% get me out. May he have great success in all things.

Kudos to you for finding a televised competition that's worse than the WBBL, too. I didn't think such a creature existed.
If you look up ‘nude delivery’ on the inter web it should bring that clip up.
Questionable action too, more elbow bend than Murali.
 

AjsGuns

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i have been to a few training sessions (little cousins are mad melb fans) he litreally hits players 55-60m lace out in drills - a beautiful kick.

Reckon you blokes are being harsh, his your second best player by a considerable margin and his 22..

I still rate him as one of the best 5 or so under 24 midfielders in the competition (Bont, Cripps, J Kelly, Oliver and Mcluggage). Reminds me of Bont in 2017-2018, he had such a massive year in 2016 that people thought he "sucked" in 2017 and 2018. We also went from premiers to non finalists in those years, which made people rank him much more harshly. Now in 2019 Bont is going to be AA and win the AFLCA champion player of the year award. Even in a down year for Oliver, his probably still been in the top 20 or so midfielders, after being in the top 6 last year.

Oliver is your best midfielder I have ever seen at Melbourne and I'm 29.
 
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Sylvia Saint

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When he came into the team, and for the vast majority of his first three years, his hands were simply amazing. As good as I've ever seen.

This year, he handballed like every other Melbourne player: Too short and to the ground.

Forget the debate about his kicking and marking, that was never his forte. He needs to get his handball game back to the elite level it was.

He had a decent year by a 22 year Olds standards, but a bad year by Clayton Oliver's standards. Really bad.
 
Pretty much what Gerard Healy mentioned yesterday. Melbourne need to get the tape measure out this preseason because all we do is handball into trouble. Oliver is a ball winner but what's the point of getting it if the free player is a metre away and the next is a metre away constantly passing into trouble. I'm going to switch codes look at rugby league how would a team go huddled around the ball making 500cm passes they would be easily stopped and then once the opposition is in possession they throw 3 metre passes and stretching the opposition leaving gaps im defense to score freely. You would think it's a simple fix.
500cm > 3 metres :p

Obviously agree with your point though
 

markm106

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Clayton Oliver is actually a good kick. This year more than ever he is extremely rushed. By hand and foot. Seems a little if the lace this year with his limited pre season possibly impacting.
We have an elite player here. Also the lack of spread from clearances an issue.
 
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That bloke would 100% get me out. May he have great success in all things.

Kudos to you for finding a televised competition that's worse than the WBBL, too. I didn't think such a creature existed.
I've seen blokes bowl like that in lower grades from time to time & they always seem to get a wicket.
 

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i have been to a few training sessions (little cousins are mad melb fans) he litreally hits players 55-60m lace out in drills - a beautiful kick.

Reckon you blokes are being harsh, his your second best player by a considerable margin and his 22..

I still rate him as one of the best 5 or so under 24 midfielders in the competition (Bont, Cripps, J Kelly, Oliver and Mcluggage). Reminds me of Bont in 2017-2018, he had such a massive year in 2016 that people thought he "sucked" in 2017 and 2018. We also went from premiers to non finalists in those years, which made people rank him much more harshly. Now in 2019 Bont is going to be AA and win the AFLCA champion player of the year award. Even in a down year for Oliver, his probably still been in the top 20 or so midfielders, after being in the top 6 last year.

Oliver is your best midfielder I have ever seen at Melbourne and I'm 29.

Happy to have opposition posters come in to respectfully contribute. Good post.


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Reckon he suffers from playing with guys who aren't as quick thinkers/don't have as quick reflexes as he does. I mean, can you imagine him playing for West Coast and dishing off these super quick handballs to players that would normally get tackled at the dees and be seen to be flatfooted, but that at the Eagles would flick it on to another player in space, creating a potent forward transition. He's a gun that needs other players at his level to really show his worth.
 

Topkent

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Reckon he suffers from playing with guys who aren't as quick thinkers/don't have as quick reflexes as he does. I mean, can you imagine him playing for West Coast and dishing off these super quick handballs to players that would normally get tackled at the dees and be seen to be flatfooted, but that at the Eagles would flick it on to another player in space, creating a potent forward transition. He's a gun that needs other players at his level to really show his worth.
Except it wasn't a problem last year or the year before.
 
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Right. This is the Clayton Oliver thread

Yeah, it's relevant to my point. Our other players are heaps shitter, therefore aren't able to capitalise on the quick thinking work that Oliver does...thereby making his work look a lot more s**t than it would if he were playing in a good midfield.
 

Topkent

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Yeah, it's relevant to my point. Our other players are heaps s**tter, therefore aren't able to capitalise on the quick thinking work that Oliver does...thereby making his work look a lot more s**t than it would if he were playing in a good midfield.
Completely disagree. Maybe we have stopped moving on the outside because they know as soon as Oliver gets the ball he's gonna be firing a handball off and there's no point trying to make position. He hasn't even been close to AA discussion this season and just because you've been good doesn't mean you get a pass for being s**t. He generally gets first hands on Gawns taps so if he's just flicking it out carelessly it really does effect the rest of the teams ability to move the ball
 
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Completely disagree. Maybe we have stopped moving on the outside because they know as soon as Oliver gets the ball he's gonna be firing a handball off and there's no point trying to make position. He hasn't even been close to AA discussion this season and just because you've been good doesn't mean you get a pass for being s**t. He generally gets first hands on Gawns taps so if he's just flicking it out carelessly it really does effect the rest of the teams ability to move the ball

Yeah I agree he's not close to AA contention. Being pretty harshly judged for a player that in a down year has still averaged 30 touches a game, at 22 years old. Still been one of our better players amongst a team that has had a dogshit year with so many passengers. He has a few deficiencies that he needs to work on which I have no doubt he will. Nothing wrong with his kicking, he just needs to stop rushing his kicks. He'll be a star mate, and is the least of our worries.
 

Topkent

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Yeah I agree he's not close to AA contention. Being pretty harshly judged for a player that in a down year has still averaged 30 touches a game, at 22 years old. Still been one of our better players amongst a team that has had a ******* year with so many passengers. He has a few deficiencies that he needs to work on which I have no doubt he will. Nothing wrong with his kicking, he just needs to stop rushing his kicks. He'll be a star mate, and is the least of our worries.
30 touches a game isn't an impressive stat anymore mate especially when 22 of them are handballs that go 1m to a bloke that gets tackled. Petracca has done more that Oliver this year from 10 less disposals per game I'd guess.

Least of our worries is one way too look at it, but if he regresses back to a good player and doesn't become a star then we don't progress. It's all well and good to kick the bottom 5 players on the list as the reason we are s**t but facts are your best players need to play well for you to be good. There's more of a need for Oliver Tmac May Gawn Salem Viney etc to play well next year than ANB Stretch Hannan Hunt etc
 
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30 touches a game isn't an impressive stat anymore mate especially when 22 of them are handballs that go 1m to a bloke that gets tackled. Petracca has done more that Oliver this year from 10 less disposals per game I'd guess.

Least of our worries is one way too look at it, but if he regresses back to a good player and doesn't become a star then we don't progress. It's all well and good to kick the bottom 5 players on the list as the reason we are s**t but facts are your best players need to play well for you to be good. There's more of a need for Oliver Tmac May Gawn Salem Viney etc to play well next year than ANB Stretch Hannan Hunt etc

You're not wrong that our best players need to improve, but in particular I'd say Tmac, Viney, Brayshaw, May just to name a few need much more of a kick up the arse than Oliver. Have you seen the best teams play footy, a lot of them create space from a chain of quick Oliver-esque hand balls that initially are in congestion but then find a way on the outside to a speedy runner (which we definitely lack). Our problem is that first handball that Oliver dishes off goes to a bloke who cannot make a decision immediately and hence gets tackled. To use the West Coast example again, Oliver would dish off a quick handball to a flat footed Shuey who then has the skill to fire off a handball on the outside to Yeo. We have players slower than treacle.
 
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