Analysis 2018 List Management discussion Part 1 (continued in Part 2 - see OP for link)

[Soapy V]

Your gonna love seeing him line up against Richmond in round 1

Start of the year doesn't worry me. If Daisy and a few others are still in by years end, then I have concerns

IMO this is the year of real transition. As others step up Thomas Casboult Kerridge Rowe Wright Lamb will be more and more depth players. Trying to get games into all these kids whilst staying competitive will be an interesting juggling act

 

[Davey33]

The coach says he can ruck mate selected to do the relief rucking all season so take it up with bolts not me . 34-18 on the season is saying you arent seeing it . All you see is a few missed easy shots . And the young forwards when they merit games through fitness and form will get a game irrespective of whether Casboult is there or not . You need to get over the grudge you have for Casboult....

Missed many more than a FEW easy shots. That stat does not include all the out of bounds on the full-go back and see how many of those there were.
Besides don't forget how many missed shots were at crucial times in games.
While I appreciate his service I look forward to the time when he is not guaranteed a spot in the 22- not because I have any sort of grudge against him rather because I want the best for the cclub and I think with some of the guys comi along we're fast approaching that time

 

[Benaly28]

Thomas is a quality player, so there shouldn't be any real surprise there. The trick will as usual be, getting that going on game day.
Good to see someone dropping him into the start team, as that may likely be the case, as with Casboult, Wright and maybe even....get ready...Kerridge.

Is Kennedy a certainty though? Limited pre-season.

Who does Kerridge get a game in front of?

 

[HARKER]

Who does Kerridge get a game in front of?

Kennedy?

I don't know. Haven't seen enough pre-season to make any statements with comfort, although I do know that experience is required through the main team.

 

[bmaurizio]

Thomas was a quality player circa 2010. Has hardly justified a spot in the firsts imo.

Agree regarding Thomas , a ridiculously bad trade an unconscionable move previous recrituing department will never escape the wrath of Bagger supporters.
Obviously Bolton has to redeem best possible from our predicament but the Thomas trade has left an empty and bitter feeling .

 

[Iamcarlton]

Missed many more than a FEW easy shots. That stat does not include all the out of bounds on the full-go back and see how many of those there were.
Besides don't forget how many missed shots were at crucial times in games.
While I appreciate his service I look forward to the time when he is not guaranteed a spot in the 22- not because I have any sort of grudge against him rather because I want the best for the cclub and I think with some of the guys comi along we're fast approaching that time

Understand what your saying but until the time comes when he's either pushed out of the side or his performances drop to a level to not have him picked in the side i dont see the point in singling him out . People are simply scapegoating him because of yes again a few easy shots or as stated previously their own frustrations . I dont care if he's 10 metres out from goal or 50 out his tally reads 34-18 . He's not the only one to kick it out of bounds and until someone can show me not only his statistics for this instance but all oob records for all players we shouldnt assume he's any worse than most players. Therefore i shall stick with 34-18 which is a very good conversion rate that cant be denied .

 

[Soapy V]

Who does Kerridge get a game in front of?

If the Back 7 is Weitering Marchbank Plowman Jones Williamson Byrne plus Simpson
Kruezer in the ruck
Tall forwards Casboult/McKay Silvagni Charlie

That leaves 11 spots and 3 on the bench (one spot for a tall. ASOS/Macreadie)

I think SPS Fisher Kennedy Cripps Murphy Wright Dow Curnow Pickett Lang Garlett are our midfield/fwd running definites for Rd One. Kerridge Cuningham Thomas Mullett Shaw Polson O'Brien Lamb Graham may be fighting for only three spots maximum

 

[ShanDog]

Agree regarding Thomas , a ridiculously bad trade an unconscionable move previous recrituing department will never escape the wrath of Bagger supporters.
Obviously Bolton has to redeem best possible from our predicament but the Thomas trade has left an empty and bitter feeling .

He was an FA, not traded for. But agreed - wasn't the smartest acquisition we've made...

 

[Soapy V]

He was an FA, not traded for. But agreed - wasn't the smartest acquisition we've made...

cost us the Betts pick didn't he if not Betts himself?

 

[Benaly28]

Kennedy?

I don't know. Haven't seen enough pre-season to make any statements with comfort, although I do know that experience is required through the main team.

I agree with you about experience not sure Kerridge is a player I’d play.Simpson,Murph,Plowman,Jones,Krez,Wright,Levi,Ecurnow even Daisy for exp.fill the rest of the team with our young talent.

 

[Soapy V]

I agree with you about experience not sure Kerridge is a player I’d play.Simpson,Murph,Plowman,Jones,Krez,Wright,Levi,Ecurnow even Daisy for exp.fill the rest of the team with our young talent.

Casboult is 28 and 100 games, Also Weitering Marchbank Cripps Lang Kennedy even Charlie & Silvagni aren't babies anymore. They will start stepping up. ASOS as well will probably play most games

 

[The Smoking Gun]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

 

[CJMB]

Casboult is 28 and 100 games, Also Weitering Marchbank Cripps Lang Kennedy even Charlie & Silvagni aren't babies anymore. They will start stepping up. ASOS as well will probably play most games

I’m not sure we can play all of Weitering, Jones, Marchbank, Plow, ASOS, Charlie, Levi, Harry and Jack at the same time.

Even without ASOS that group of talls might be too much. That being said Bolts did say he’s not so worried about trends and would pick the team to play to our strengths so we may see us more closely represent Adelaide in composition than Richmond.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Soapy V]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

Great description. Brodie Smith recently re-signed

 

[Soapy V]

I’m not sure we can play all of Weitering, Jones, Marchbank, Plow, ASOS, Charlie, Levi, Harry and Jack at the same time.

Agree. I thought last year we were too tall in many games. I think we will play 2 of Harry Casboult & SOS. Charlie will play a lot of midfield

 

[The Smoking Gun]

Great description. Brodie Smith recently re-signed

So he did....at the start of Feb. Glad you're on the ball Soapy V

 

[ctacp]

While you're probably right, IM going to suggest that perhaps what some of the posters were saying/thinking is that we should and thankfully now CAN hope that soon he will be fighting for his spot because lets face it although he's been serviceable he's far from a the KPF we so desperAtely need and will not become that star anytime soon.
As others have mentioned we need someone who can take things to the next level and hopefully MAc is that man.

I think if we can get a full forward to perform Levi’s job becomes easier. Last few seasons our plan has been “kick it to Levi & hope he’s having a day where he’s marking them like beach balls”. He’s a huge frame running heaps trying to get to position for that bombed in kick, usually with a few extra’s tagging him. He’d be absolutely stuffed when he does have shots on goal. Important player to our structure I believe.

 

[TooBlue14]

Agree regarding Thomas , a ridiculously bad trade an unconscionable move previous recrituing department will never escape the wrath of Bagger supporters.
Obviously Bolton has to redeem best possible from our predicament but the Thomas trade has left an empty and bitter feeling .

It’s not really as bad as it may of looked 2-3 years ago. Realistically we would of had a pick directly after our first round (if the AFL weren’t biased as * and given us an end of first or second) and we could of picked one of the following

Macarthy - no thanks would’ve in freo by now
Zac jones - I like.
Lang - we’ll look here (so fixing another mistake)
Luke Dunstan - nope
Blake acres - maybe???
Apeness - nope

Later picks which nobody else picked inside 20.

Crouch
Merrett
Lobbe

Side note - how the * did we pick Cameron Giles when ben brown was on the board.

 

[TooBlue14]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

Great work BUT your review of Lang don’t seem to have any track watching evidence but you’re basing it on stats from darcys time at Geelong. I thought you were going to give some insight other than just an opinion. I don’t mean to be harsh but I could of wrote that and you’re definitely accurate but you lead in with you watched them at training and I was assuming more insight.

 

[Arr0w]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

Great write up!

The only thing i would say about Lang, fracturing a fibula, would make it difficult to cement a spot in 2017. He is only a young, 22, if he gets his body right, he will be a steal for a 4th round downgrade

 

[TD2010]

I would be considerably less than impressed if that were to eventuate.

Ace, hold your scorn. If he's fit and ready to go the coaches will pick him. He's a very smart footballer that runs both ways. And he gets better the longer the game goes on. Hang in there, try to forget the dark beginnings and you might be pleasantly surprised.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[CJMB]

Agree. I thought last year we were too tall in many games. I think we will play 2 of Harry Casboult & SOS. Charlie will play a lot of midfield

Didn’t Bolts say the other day that Charlie is going to play as a forward to focus on his craft and just do the occasional mid rotation from time to time?


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Jimmae]

If the Back 7 is Weitering Marchbank Plowman Jones Williamson Byrne plus Simpson
Kruezer in the ruck
Tall forwards Casboult/McKay Silvagni Charlie

That leaves 11 spots and 3 on the bench (one spot for a tall. ASOS/Macreadie)

I think SPS Fisher Kennedy Cripps Murphy Wright Dow Curnow Pickett Lang Garlett are our midfield/fwd running definites for Rd One. Kerridge Cuningham Thomas Mullett Shaw Polson O'Brien Lamb Graham may be fighting for only three spots maximum

You named 11 to begin with Soap, so the 11 you named before your bench suggestions would make a full team.

Bit of a lightweight midfield as a result.

Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm???

That'd be because he is: stands about 186 now, I think?

 

[ferrisb]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

Your post earnt a like.

Your use of Serge back up the ladder deserves a dedicated

 

[TerryWallet]

Only managed to view the one training session down at South Melbourne this off-season. Just some random flognostications.

Keep tabs on the following:

• Charlie Curnow - Forget the talk about "looks a beast" (which he does) and "looks ripped" (which he also does), the thing that really impressed me was that he really looks exceptionally strong and developed through the core now. Expect a more powerful player in terms of being able to shake off a would-be tackler like Robert Harvey used to do. Once he gets a real handle on what he's capable of, Charlie will start putting some really exciting quarters together during the 2nd half of the season.
• Jacob Weitering - Another who's matured through the core over summer and walks with renewed purpose. Looking forward to seeing him quietly taking over games with his intercept marking and directing traffic out of the back half.
• Harrison Macreadie - Even though he'll need another preseason or two to fully develop into his physical potential, his body shape has changed quite noticeably over the summer and now resembles that of an AFL footballer. Has good acceleration, excellent speed, strong endurance, a nice side step and reads the flight of the ball very well. I expect him to force his way into our best 22 during the first half of the season. Given that Rowe & ASOS aren't longterm solutions and that Marchbank & Plowman have proven to be somewhat injury-prone, talk of trading Macreadie is pure nonsense.

Walking the tightrope:

• Darcy Lang - I'm nowhere near as bullish about Lang's prospects as many on this board. Despite being serviced by a very dominant contested midfield which included the likes of Selwood, Dangerfield, Duncan, Menegola, Guthrie, etc, Lang only managed to find himself with the ball in his possession 15 times per game on average. That's one less time than the contact-shy Boekhorst managed to get on the end of the chain and we were missing Cripps & Ed from the equation just to put it in some perspective. Credit where credit's due, one area that Lang really developed during 2017 was the defensive side of his game. While some may point to a lack of opportunity at the Cats, one needs to remember that the likes of Bews, Murdoch, McCarthy & Parsons were often preferred options and none of those players are exactly known for "lighting it up". There's a reason why SOS refused to part with more than a 4th Round pick in a shitty draft for Lang and until he begins to produce on a regular basis I see him as another "stocking filler" in the mould of Sumner, Lamb, Phillips, Smedts, Shaw, Gorringe, Buckley, Boekhorst, Jaksch, etc. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.
• Harry McKay - Really needs to find a way to get his body right. All the potential in the world means diddly squat if you can't get on the park. While McKay's in absolutely no danger of being delisted any time soon, SOS isn't one to sit on his hands and young Harry may find himself having to contend with more than just Ben Silvagni looking to leapfrog him. Harry performing well may just prove to be the difference between SOS using our first pick on a KPF such as Lukosius, Williams or one of the King Bros or spending it on a mid such as Bytel, Walsh or Rankine.
• Andrew Phillips - When up and running big Sauce is a very good tap ruckman, but therein lies the problem.....how to get him up & running??? Injury & Phillips seem to go hand-in-hand, and even when fit Phillips needs plenty of work under his belt before he hits his stride. Was the drafting of De Koning the first sign that SOS has shifted his gaze elsewhere???

Much ado 'bout nuthin':

• Lachie Plowman - Bemused how many people here can't fit young Lachie into their best 22, generally because of height. Interesting fact was that last season he was generally matched up against small forwards where he excelled and IMO was our second best defender behind Docherty. Given that 2017 was easily Plowman's best season and his kicking is rated as elite, I can't see me pushing him out of my best 22 any time soon.
• Matty Wright - Another who's under-appreciated and under-valued, most probably because we picked him up as a delisted free agent. As a small forward who can also play as a genuine midfielder no one else on our list approaches his output inside F50. Not Murphy, not Garlett, not Pickett, not Lang, not SPS, not Fisher, not Cuningham.....no one. "If only Levi could kick straight"....."Jack's figures would look so much better if he kicked 25.11 instead of 19.17" I hear everyone say. In a world where accuracy in front of goal is spiralling down the S-bend Wright flushes it 78% of the time and is an elite kick at goal. My biggest complaint about Matty Wright is that we don't use him enough inside 50. When and if SPS, Fisher, Garlett, Pickett, Cuningham and/or Lang demonstrate they can perform that role better than Wright then they can have his spot, but not before. At this stage he's light years ahead of our other small forward/mids.
• Jack Silvagni - Given JSOS wasn't expected to play any senior footy for 2 years after we drafted him, fair to say 28 games later that he's ahead of the curve most of us would've set for him after he was drafted. In many ways his future could be tied to the fortunes of Harry McKay. Should SOS choose to cover his bases due to a lack of performance from McKay, drafting players such as Lukocius or Williams along with the BOSS could prove fatal for Jack's future at the Blues.

New Blood:

• Paddy Dow - Barring injury will definitely play Round 1. Is it just me or does Dow look taller than his allotted 184cm??? Certainly looks taller than O'Brien who is listed at the same height. Reads the ball off hands or feet quicker than most so expect a lot of intercept possessions from him. Needs to tidy up his kicking though.
• Lochie O'Brien - Will need to spend some time at VFL level to improve the contested side of his game before being unleashed at AFL level. No one expects him to become a Crippsesque inside beast, but you'd like to think he'd have a good chance of ending up with the ball in a one-on-one contest. Already has the disposal skills, speed and endurance to cope at AFL level. Would expect to see him debut at some point this season.
• Tom De Koning - Highly contentious taking this kid with Pick 30 for mine based upon what I saw of him at the U18 Champs. Was there a case for taking a developing ruckman??? Sure.....but a project player with Pick 30??? Not sure he has the natural aggression to play the role and he certainly doesn't have the endurance required. On the positive side, he does have good hands, leads up hard and fast at the ball carrier when playing up forward and is a nice kick. Would much rather SOS had taken another contested (balanced or inside) mid here. Having said that, here's to hoping De Koning makes every post a winner.

Wild Cards:

• Jarrod Pickett - According to the scribes Pickett's had a strong preseason and elevated his fitness levels considerably. Always looks a much better player when he presents up at the ball carrier rather than forever ducking out the back looking for the lazy gimme over the top. Would much prefer seeing him play percentage football by playing in front where he remains in the contest should the ball be spoiled or deflected from its intended path. Important year for Pickett.
• Jarrod Garlett - Did you know that 50% of Garlett's possessions in his 2nd year at the Suns were contested??? Has very strong hands in the stoppage does Mr Garlett and is quite adept at ripping the ball out of an opponent's grasp. Wouldn't mind seeing him handed over to Fraser, Amos & Stanton to be developed at VFL level as a balanced mid. While Garlett would seem to have all the attributes to perform this role my main queries concern whether he has the endurance and the ability to find enough of the ball to warrant using him in that position. Had a very ordinary year at WAFL level last year so has the job in front of him with the step up in class. As for the ******* hair-do??? FMD.

Treading Water:

• Don't panic if SPS, Fisher, Macreadie &/or Williamson don't seem to make much headway this season. Think most second year players find the preseason a genuine slog while their bodies still try to cope with the increased workload. Just ask Weitering, SOSOS & Cunners.
• People will need to temper their expectations of Matthew Kennedy after having a heavily disrupted preseason. May be well into the 2nd half of the season before he begins to really display his wares.

List Needs:

• 2 X KPF - Not yet sold on Harry, SOSOS is a work in progress and Kerr is a project player.
• 4 X Contested Mids - 2 Inside Mids & 2 Balanced Mids. Still think our midfield is easily the weakest part of our team and those currently on our list really suck when it comes to running both ways and applying defensive pressure. You can have 2 Rances, 3 Levers and 4 Dochertys in the back half, but unless the midfield are prepared to do their share the defence will always struggle.
• 2 X Quality Ruckmen - Notice the use of the word "quality" as opposed to "project" Ruckmen.
• I know Kinghtmare copped a caning for giving SOS a D+ for his draft efforts this year, but I don't think he was all that far off the mark. Between his trading & drafting I could only give him a "C". Last season we finished 17th for clearances, 17th for inside 50s and last for goals scored. For me this emphasised our need for contested mids (both balanced & inside), yet out of the 12 players SOS bought into the club he could only snare 2.

Trade Targets:

• Brodie Smith (Crows RFA) - There aren't many running defenders you'd put in the same "elite class" (and I don't throw that phrase around lightly) as Docherty, but Smith is certainly one of them. Given that the Crows are up to Pussy's Bow with their TPP and Smith will be coming off a knee reco means he may not get the contract he's hoping for. Potentially frees up Williamson or Byrne to play up on a wing or in the middle. Nice size with excellent speed, endurance and exceptional disposal by foot who can play tall or small. Would be surprised if something like $1.75m-$2m over 4 years wouldn't get the job done.
• Mitch Wallis (Doggies RFA) - One who genuinely flies under the radar of supporters from opposition clubs. I find myself tossing up whether to rank him as an "A" or "B" grade inside mid, but around 75% of his disposals result in retained possession. So not only does he find the ball in the stoppage, but 3 times out of 4 he does something positive with it. There's nothing overly flash about Wallis, he just runs all day and gets the job done without fuss or fanfare. The Wallis blood runs deep down at the Western Oval and he's considered a heart & soul player there so I'm not sure how easy it would be to get him to move. Think you'd need to offer at least $500-$550k for 4 years to make it happen. I suspect these are the deals we acquired Agresta to assist with.

Draft Targets:

Way too early for this, but I'll take a stab based upon what I think we still need.

• 1st Rounder - Best Mid available. Adding Rankine/Walsh & Wallis to SPS, Dow, Fisher, O'Brien, Cripps & Kennedy would really make for a pretty strong midfield.....well at least on paper anyway.
• 2nd Rounder (1) Best Available Ruck. Can't see Williams being available this low down, but Riley Bowman may well be. Probably the best performed underage ruck from last years TAC comp.
• 2nd Rounder (2) Will probably be forced to take the BOSS as a Father/Son here.

Still think we'll find it pretty tough this year, but expect the likes of Weitering, Charlie, Cuningham and, to a lesser extent, SOSOS to get hold of some games in the second half of the season. Next year will be the time we begin to Serge back up the ladder. Would much prefer to see how Garlett, Macreadie, Kerridge, Dow, O'Brien & Lang perform in the JLT series before naming a Round 1 potential 22.

Expansive footy based post. I agree with a lot of it. And disagree with bits n pieces of it. Which is the fate of any good expansive footy post.

Def agree with your summation. 2019 is the start of the serge. One more year of green/greening shoot spotting first.