Draft Review 2008 - Re-do the 2008 draft

[Ambrosia]

Hill shouldn't be in the top 10, disappears if he gets any attention at all from opposition, also Hurley is a dud skill-wise.

Are you serious?

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

I'd say his kicking skill is the only area of the game he let's himself down in.

 

[Ambrosia]

I'd say his kicking skill is the only area of the game he let's himself down in.

Really from what I have seen he is one of the best ball users at the club.

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

From what I've seen this year he's shanked his set shots left, right and never centre.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

That was mainly set shots, field kicking, he is very good, he looks like he has gotten over his goal kicking troubles so that's good.

 

[Ambrosia]

From what I've seen this year he's shanked his set shots left, right and never centre.

Goal kicking and ball use are two different things but 11 goals 2 points in the last two matches suggests he has rectified the issue.

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

I'm not sure about that, his technique - particularly his ball drop - with set shots looks a bit questionable.

 

[docker_champ29]

Hill shouldn't be in the top 10, disappears if he gets any attention at all from opposition, also Hurley is a dud skill-wise.

Have you ever seen Hill not get attention from the opposition? He gets more attention than basically any other player in the league. Teams often base their whole team defense around him because he is that effective.
He is having a fantastic year regardless and can't see how he could not be top 10. Although it is a fantastic draft pool.

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

Have you ever seen Hill not get attention from the opposition? He gets more attention than basically any other player in the league. Teams often base their whole team defense around him because he is that effective.
He is having a fantastic year regardless and can't see how he could not be top 10. Although it is a fantastic draft pool.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

...

Wait, you're being serious?

Spare me.

 

[The Fact]

I'm not sure about that, his technique - particularly his ball drop - with set shots looks a bit questionable.

Lucky thats all been sorted out now

Goal kicking and ball use are two different things but 11 goals 2 points in the last two matches suggests he has rectified the issue.

And this is also very true his field kicking is great and by the looks of it he has sorted out his goal kicking

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

His technique is still the same - it's not that big a deal; look at Cloke and Buddy - but it would make him even better.

 

[docker_champ29]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

...

Wait, you're being serious?

Spare me.

If you have ever bothered to watch a freo game in depth or with any intelligence you would realise it's true you condescending w***er.

As soon as Hill is given the ball the any space in front of him there will be a fremantle shot on goal most times.

 

[Sin City]

Have you ever seen Hill not get attention from the opposition? He gets more attention than basically any other player in the league. Teams often base their whole team defense around him because he is that effective.

Reckon Judd, Ablett, Pendlebury, Franklin etc might have something to say about that.

 

[docker_champ29]

Reckon Judd, Ablett, Pendlebury, Franklin etc might have something to say about that.

I understand that there are plenty of better players than Hill (atm anyway ) but not many quite as influential given space. Opposition teams definitely do have a strong focus on blocking the space in front of him when possible.

 

[ThePuppetMaster]

If you have ever bothered to watch a freo game in depth or with any intelligence you would realise it's true you condescending Moo.

As soon as Hill is given the ball the any space in front of him there will be a fremantle shot on goal most times.

So teams base their whole defensive plan around a player who'll get it 17 times a match and less than that if he has a heavy tag?

 

[larson]

I understand that there are plenty of better players than Hill (atm anyway ) but not many quite as influential given space. Opposition teams definitely do have a strong focus on blocking the space in front of him when possible.

I almost agree with this. If he gains possession of the ball with a bit of space within 80m of goals, it will almost be a goal every time. Such a smooth player and deadly when able to run.

 

[Knightmare]

I'd go with:

1. Nic Naitanui (When Dean Cox retires this guy will take over as the face of the league the no.1 player in the comp)
2. Michael Hurley (Considering what he has done shouldn't be this high, but I expect him to develop into a top 3 KPF)
3. Dayne Beams (Has been Collingwood's best midfielder this year. Reads the ruck taps as well as any in the comp)
4. Steele Sidebottom (Like Beams has had a serious season and has rivaled Swan and Pendlebury with form)
5. Tom Rockliff (Ball magnet and scary player. Midfield, forward. Doesn't matter. Like Swan will find it anywhere)
6. Phil Davis (Assumed a VIC club and he stays. I expect he will develop into a top 3 league key defender)
7. Rory Sloane (Gets better every year and love his tackling game)
8. Jack Redden (Tackling machine and undervalued mid)
-- Call me crazy but I'll go with the two others few if any will include but I expect in 2-3 years time will be in the conversation as being among the very best in the 2008 draft --
9. Jack Watts (I still have faith that he will still develop... into a key defender. Not a guy you rate up to this point and hasn't done anything yet but I'm confident in 10 years time he will still go down as a very, very good player)
10. Lachlan Keeffe (The guy hasn't even played 15 games but that doesn't matter. Assuming he comes back healthy from his knee reco I expect Keeffe to go down as one of the very best from this draft. Call it bias, call it watching the team every week but up until injury Keeffe was BY A LONG WAY Collingwood's most reliable key defender (yes better than Reid, Tarrant and Brown - by a LONG SHOT) and won just about every matchup he encountered. To put this in context I had him in my top 5 for the Collingwood B+F up until injury so if he can build upon and improve upon the form he showed this year I think he can be the next Dustin Fletcher in this league. Time and time again from the most unlikely positions he gets his long arms in when you think he just has no right to and looks to have completely lost the contest. One I expect in 2-3 years time will have people talking assuming healthy)

 

[bombermick]

Some interesting nominations there, KM. I was impressed with Keefe early this year, and he could prove to be a massive bargain, although he doesn't have Fletcher's kicking skills. Davis showed great glimpses at the Crows, but has been average at GWS. That's perhaps just a reflection of playing in a terrible side.

Call me biased but I'd include Zaka and you forgot - I assume - Shuey.

 

[Sidebottom2Beams]

Some interesting nominations there, KM. I was impressed with Keefe early this year, and he could prove to be a massive bargain, although he doesn't have Fletcher's kicking skills. Davis showed great glimpses at the Crows, but has been average at GWS. That's perhaps just a reflection of playing in a terrible side.

Call me biased but I'd include Zaka and you forgot - I assume - Shuey.

I'd have Zaha in Reddens spot due to his injury this year dropping him a little, as for Shuey i wouldn't have him in the top 10. Even this year he has kicked 14 golas but 8 of those have come against GWS and GC and he averages under 22 possessions if you remove those two games, they have padded his actual numbers. Those players rated by KM play better more often with the exception of 9-10 at the moment.

 

[Knightmare]

Some interesting nominations there, KM. I was impressed with Keefe early this year, and he could prove to be a massive bargain, although he doesn't have Fletcher's kicking skills. Davis showed great glimpses at the Crows, but has been average at GWS. That's perhaps just a reflection of playing in a terrible side.

Call me biased but I'd include Zaka and you forgot - I assume - Shuey.

Keeffe's reliable by foot and well above average for a 204cm guy in this regard but you are right, few are gifted with the kicking penetration Fletcher has.

With Davis it makes things allot harder when playing on a team filled with 1st year players. In four or so years time when GWS become finalists he will look allot better than he does at present.

So many others could easily get a mention. After the top 5 I consider that next group very even through till about 25. Some might argue after pick 1 it's even and I wouldn't blame them for coming to that conclusion.

The exclusion of Shuey was no oversight. One of the best midfielders from the 2008 draft and one of West Coast's many high level mids. Why I don't rate him super highly relative to the others is his decision making ability. When pressured can at times look a class below and for this reason I have him below a number of the other high production mids of this draft. Certainly after that top 5 is in the next band and I wouldn't blame anyone for having him in the top 10 but wouldn't be my first choice of the 2008 mids.

 

[bombermick]

Keeffe's reliable by foot and well above average for a 204cm guy in this regard but you are right, few are gifted with the kicking penetration Fletcher has.

With Davis it makes things allot harder when playing on a team filled with 1st year players. In four or so years time when GWS become finalists he will look allot better than he does at present.

So many others could easily get a mention. After the top 5 I consider that next group very even through till about 25. Some might argue after pick 1 it's even and I wouldn't blame them for coming to that conclusion.

The exclusion of Shuey was no oversight. One of the best midfielders from the 2008 draft and one of West Coast's many high level mids. Why I don't rate him super highly relative to the others is his decision making ability. When pressured can at times look a class below and for this reason I have him below a number of the other high production mids of this draft. Certainly after that top 5 is in the next band and I wouldn't blame anyone for having him in the top 10 but wouldn't be my first choice of the 2008 mids.

Fair enough. So far I'd say Nic Nat, Hurley, Beams, Sidebottom and Sloane look like becoming stars; if they haven't already. Then there's a decent gap to the likes of Redden, Rocky and Shuey, with Watts the great unknown.

Keefe is like Hooker, an effective stopper, but he's never going to get the kudos he deserves on BF or in the media.

 

[Old Skool]

I'd go with:

1. Nic Naitanui (When Dean Cox retires this guy will take over as the face of the league the no.1 player in the comp)
2. Michael Hurley (Considering what he has done shouldn't be this high, but I expect him to develop into a top 3 KPF)
3. Dayne Beams (Has been Collingwood's best midfielder this year. Reads the ruck taps as well as any in the comp)
4. Steele Sidebottom (Like Beams has had a serious season and has rivaled Swan and Pendlebury with form)
5. Tom Rockliff (Ball magnet and scary player. Midfield, forward. Doesn't matter. Like Swan will find it anywhere)
6. Phil Davis (Assumed a VIC club and he stays. I expect he will develop into a top 3 league key defender)
7. Rory Sloane (Gets better every year and love his tackling game)
8. Jack Redden (Tackling machine and undervalued mid)
-- Call me crazy but I'll go with the two others few if any will include but I expect in 2-3 years time will be in the conversation as being among the very best in the 2008 draft --
9. Jack Watts (I still have faith that he will still develop... into a key defender. Not a guy you rate up to this point and hasn't done anything yet but I'm confident in 10 years time he will still go down as a very, very good player)
10. Lachlan Keeffe (The guy hasn't even played 15 games but that doesn't matter. Assuming he comes back healthy from his knee reco I expect Keeffe to go down as one of the very best from this draft. Call it bias, call it watching the team every week but up until injury Keeffe was BY A LONG WAY Collingwood's most reliable key defender (yes better than Reid, Tarrant and Brown - by a LONG SHOT) and won just about every matchup he encountered. To put this in context I had him in my top 5 for the Collingwood B+F up until injury so if he can build upon and improve upon the form he showed this year I think he can be the next Dustin Fletcher in this league. Time and time again from the most unlikely positions he gets his long arms in when you think he just has no right to and looks to have completely lost the contest. One I expect in 2-3 years time will have people talking assuming healthy)

It's hard to discount bias here.

 

[larson]

It's hard to discount bias here.

Keefe in the top 10 is crazy. A good solid player but no club is ever going to pick him in front of Zaharakis and Shuey, or even Ziebul and Hill.

 

[Slattery_20]

I'm not sure about that, his technique - particularly his ball drop - with set shots looks a bit questionable.

From my POV, you don't rectify a technique issue in one week. Confidence played a massive part.

Every time he's in the back half he distributes it beautifully, and these last two weeks he's suddenly a good kick at goal again - like he was in his first 2 years, when he only swung forward and probably had a bit more freedom.
He was stabbing at it, not kicking through.

He was struggling to cope with the pressure, leading the forward line. He won't be a Lloyd/Dunstall like set shot, but he should be a pretty good one nonetheless.

 

[Slattery_20]

It's hard to discount bias here.

Very, very, very optimistic.
He was commendable for a few months there, but as far as I can see Keeffe's played about 5 worthwhile games, and still isn't best 22, and this is his 4th? year now. Which would put him no further ahead than fellow young talls like Simpkin, Daniel Stewart or Delaney.

Reckon the Pies would be pretty happy if he even ends up being a consistent role player, like Zac Dawson's been, down back.