Training 2022 Pre-season

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briztoon said:
I don’t believe anyone wants any player delisted.

I believe everyone wants every player to succeed.
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Dalions said:
I don’t get that impression when reading here sometimes.
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There are definitely some posters who view a particular player's continued residence on our list as almost a personal insult. This is very rare though - less than half a dozen in total these days.

OTOH there are also plenty of posters who say what they expect or think the club will do, and something like "delist Eli" (or CEY) ends up with a lot of voices endorsing it but that's different from wanting him to fail.
 

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jonnobackpocket said:
Not wanting someone to succeed and having doubts over their ability to contribute at AFL level are 2 different things.
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This is a really good point and absolutely true.

This is going to be an important year for a lot of the fringe players who have gotten a mention. We are likely to be competing for a premiership and if two of three of those guys take couple of steps forward then suddenly we are right at the pointy end. The competition is going to be pretty intense and personally I hope we get a chance to see quite a few of them in the firsts. Fages has a tendency to stick with his favourites even if they are out of form and I hope he changes that a bit this year. A lot of guys are playing for their careers this year and if the form is there in the reserves I hope they are given the chance to show what they can do at AFL level.

Even guys like Matho are not out of contention. I had pretty much written him off a couple of years ago at AFL level but he has improved year on year and is not really far away even from a spot in a midfield as strong as the Lions. I do think he is probably relying on an injury to Lyons or Neale to get a shot as adding him to those guys really does result in our midfield lacking running power. I would say he was close to being the best VFL midfielder last year and if he can translate that there is no reason why he could not make it.

Ely improved his running out of sight last offseason and it was a 50/50 call whether he got a round 1 game based on preseason form. In the reserves I have still not been convinced and I have not really settled on what position he could make his own. He does not seem to get to the right spots to receive whether on the inside or out. He has worked hard on his game though and if he can improve a bit on where he was last offseason you have to think he is not far away from getting a chance.

Sharp surprised me with his physicality and his skills but his lack of explosiveness was a bit disappointing. When he was up to full speed no-one was catching him but he was only average over the first 20m or so. He is another who needs to learn where to run to receive if he is going to really succeed at the next level. Prior got plenty of chances last year but also needs to work on getting more of the ball. Does a lot of things pretty well but nothing at an elite level. He will be fighting with a few like Sharp for a spot.

Madden and Payne I think are already AFL standard players and just need a bit more experience to really break out. Hopefully they get it early. Ainsworth has also shown he is a very capable AFL defender and if he can improve his skills over the time he has been out he will absolutely be at the front of the queue for a spot.

Ah Chee has been given every chance in the world and has had some nice games but for 9 games out of 10 he is just an average AFL level player who comes in and does a reasonable enough job to warrant a spot. He has been tried both back and forward and has not really made either his own. With everyone available I would not have him in my 22 but given an injury or two he is a solid player who will do reasonably well. He has not done enough though for me to not give away his spot in hope someone gives us more.

Cockatoo was an impact player who gives us a level of physicality that would worry other teams. They will hear the footsteps when Cockatoo is playing. The problem last year was that he could only run out a quarter before being knackered for the rest of the game. If he can get his fitness up to an acceptable level then I play him otherwise I let others take the spot. We can't afford to carry a passenger for three quarters of a game.
 
briztoon said:
Pretty much what dlanod and jonnobackpocket said.

I want to see Ely and every player succeed. But that is different whether I believe a player will succeed or stay on the list.
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I wasn’t speaking about anyone specifically but I don’t think we can really safely assume everyone’s feelings are similar to our own. There can be some pretty nasty things said on here and other social media at times.
I remember a few years ago saying that if we continue to play Ryan Lester and Rohan Bewick in the best 22 then we will never go forward as a football club. I am happy to eat my words with Ryan Lester as he has become a fantastic Clubman and played some pretty decent footy over the last couple of years.
Currently, I have said a few times that I am not a CEY fan and at this stage of his career I do see him as a bit of a list clogger. But I would be happy to eat my words there too.
 
Quigley said:
Sharp surprised me with his physicality and his skills but his lack of explosiveness was a bit disappointing. When he was up to full speed no-one was catching him but he was only average over the first 20m or so. He is another who needs to learn where to run to receive if he is going to really succeed at the next level. Prior got plenty of chances last year but also needs to work on getting more of the ball. Does a lot of things pretty well but nothing at an elite level. He will be fighting with a few like Sharp for a spot.
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Makes it sound like Sharp needs to beat himself out for a spot. That would be impressive.
 
Each fringe player who retains a spot on the list comes at the cost of another player losing their spot. What comes across sometimes as "death-riding" one player might be borne out of a fondness for another player and a desire to see that second player succeed, with the knowledge that there might only be one spot available.

I do think there is a small minority of posters who do make it personal and sometimes come across as wanting to be proven correct in their assessment. Shouldn't tar everyone with that brush though.

Then again, I am always surprised at the vitriol though in discussions such as the match day threads. Certain players cop quite personal attacks for not performing to expectations. I definitely don't understand hate like that directed towards our players.

Back to Ely, he's a bit like Tom Joyce last year in that I'd like to see more of him as there is definitely something there, but would find it hard (at this early stage) to delist many others ahead of him. I feel like last year was particularly brutal in terms of delistings given the disruption and lack of reserves footy in the previous two years. And I reckon we'll have delistings this year who might also feel like circumstances have prevented them having an opportunity to shine. And its always different at successful clubs - we had so many years where fairly average players kept spots on the list because they were the "least worst" of our potential delistings. Last year, we definitely delisted players who had good arguments for another year (and this year will be the same).

I do try to keep an open mind until the end of the season though. I find the "whose career is on the chopping block" type conversations to be a bit premature at this time of year. We'll know a lot more by about July (assuming reserves footy occurs!).
 
I like to think of the players not in the top 22 each week as the underdogs, the battlers, the fighters, the down trodden or the outcasts. My favourite player is most often among these. It's something like just .04 of all players that play Aussie Rules end up on an AFL list so to me every player is a good player. Skinner has been my favourite player since i went to the first training session and saw him, my my that kid had a big bum and legs, he looked a brut so I followed him. He is a battler, knee after knee, chance after chance, all the media saying this would be his year - then gone. I follow him still on social media, we exchange a few messages and he seems a great bloke. I saw Matho's first practice match, Rocklif tried him out and Matho threw him to the ground, oh that kid wont take a backward step I'll follow him. I saw Payne's first practice match agains the Swans and he really gave it to Buddy Franklin, what a monster then effectively he was out for 2 years with shin splints. The stars are the stars they do their thing but for me, give me the battlers, the up and coming, the fighters. To see Kiddy Coleman run-through his first pack and the 'lights go' on as an AFL backman, Sharp do a full length of the field support run, Cockatoo play with a smile from ear to ear just because he is out there - these are the things that I look for each season. Im grateful each year to see the the fighters and rarely do I ever see a player that doesn't seem to want to really be there and - maybe Polec is the last I remember and though it doesn't matter or not if they are there they don't seem to be appreciating the opportunity.
 
Clarkythelion said:
I like to think of the players not in the top 22 each week as the underdogs, the battlers, the fighters, the down trodden or the outcasts. My favourite player is most often among these. It's something like just .04 of all players that play Aussie Rules end up on an AFL list so to me every player is a good player. Skinner has been my favourite player since i went to the first training session and saw him, my my that kid had a big bum and legs, he looked a brut so I followed him. He is a battler, knee after knee, chance after chance, all the media saying this would be his year - then gone. I follow him still on social media, we exchange a few messages and he seems a great bloke. I saw Matho's first practice match, Rocklif tried him out and Matho threw him to the ground, oh that kid wont take a backward step I'll follow him. I saw Payne's first practice match agains the Swans and he really gave it to Buddy Franklin, what a monster then effectively he was out for 2 years with shin splints. The stars are the stars they do their thing but for me, give me the battlers, the up and coming, the fighters. To see Kiddy Coleman run-through his first pack and the 'lights go' on as an AFL backman, Sharp do a full length of the field support run, Cockatoo play with a smile from ear to ear just because he is out there - these are the things that I look for each season. Im grateful each year to see the the fighters and rarely do I ever see a player that doesn't seem to want to really be there and - maybe Polec is the last I remember and though it doesn't matter or not if they are there they don't seem to be appreciating the opportunity.
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Delightful post Clarkythelion!
 
Mighty Lions said:
I think the ones who wanted him delisted would also be happy to see him play senior footy and give us his best game.
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Yep, agree. It’s not about wanting players delisted. It’s people, myself included, passing their own judgement (and let’s face it that’s what Big Footy is) on the likelihood of a player making the grade or not.


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com
 

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