Retired # 5: Brent Stanton - Announced retirement - 24/8 - Now a development coach at Carlton - 10/10

Doss

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Stanton is my favourite player but even I can admit that he has declined a fair bit in the second half of the season. He was doing actually rather well in the first half but people seem to be selective in their memories when it comes to Stanton.

Round 2 vs Hawthorn- 25 touches, 8 marks, 7 tackles and a goal
Round 3 vs Carlton- 25 touches, 6 marks and 3 goals (Tagged hard by Curnow who usually beats him)
Round 4 vs Fremantle- 32 touches, 6 marks (Was a standout along with Heppell in a losing side)
Round 5 vs St. Kilda- 29 touches, 9 marks and 3 goals (Our best mid and kicked 2 in the last quarter to give us a chance)
Round 6 vs Collingwood- 32 touches, 7 marks, 7 tackles and a goal (BOG in the first quarter and was along with Heppell our two best players)
Round 8 vs Brisbane- 25 touches, 8 marks (Was solid without being spectacular)
Round 9 vs Sydney- 26 touches, 3 marks (Tagged by Cunningham and did ok)
Round 10 vs Richmond- 27 touches, 9 marks and 5 tackles (Good game in a comprehensive win)

Second half of the season, he did struggle. Very patchy form I will admit.
Those stats in the first half of the season are actually, very very good.

I recall him being by some margin our best player in the St Kilda nadir.
 

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un_eggs

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Faded in the second half of last season too if my memory serves me correctly. I haven't given up on him. I reckon they need to change his fitness program to pace out his season more efficiently. I think he might use up all his juice too early in the year. Now that he is nudging 30 he shouldn't be pushing himself too hard in the pre-season. He'd still be top 5 at the club for fitness even if he dropped his loading by 20%. Something different/drastic needs to be tried or I can see his career flatlining. Certainly a move to permanent back or forward might work where he simply pushes up and back all day.
 

rines

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Stanton is my favourite player but even I can admit that he has declined a fair bit in the second half of the season. He was doing actually rather well in the first half but people seem to be selective in their memories when it comes to Stanton.

Round 2 vs Hawthorn- 25 touches, 8 marks, 7 tackles and a goal
Round 3 vs Carlton- 25 touches, 6 marks and 3 goals (Tagged hard by Curnow who usually beats him)
Round 4 vs Fremantle- 32 touches, 6 marks (Was a standout along with Heppell in a losing side)
Round 5 vs St. Kilda- 29 touches, 9 marks and 3 goals (Our best mid and kicked 2 in the last quarter to give us a chance)
Round 6 vs Collingwood- 32 touches, 7 marks, 7 tackles and a goal (BOG in the first quarter and was along with Heppell our two best players)
Round 8 vs Brisbane- 25 touches, 8 marks (Was solid without being spectacular)
Round 9 vs Sydney- 26 touches, 3 marks (Tagged by Cunningham and did ok)
Round 10 vs Richmond- 27 touches, 9 marks and 5 tackles (Good game in a comprehensive win)

Second half of the season, he did struggle. Very patchy form I will admit.
Understand your point... however in the modern game.. 25 touches + a goal.. is pretty much 'average' for a midfielder.. which is what Stanton has become.. average.

The point end of the tough conversation is asking... can Stanton become a tough inside mid that creates 10+ clearances per game (Watson, Myers)? can Stanton become the line breaking x-factor outside mid that kicks a goal and creates 2-3 others per game (Zaka/Goddard/Heppell)? can Stanton break the lines by kicking 50m bombs or shooting a 35m handball to space (Hibberd)?

I agree with everything others have said.. right now Stanton is in our best 22.. but the question is whether he will have a role next year after you consider the development of Z Merrett, J Merrett, Gleeson, NOB, Dalgleish etc..

Modern footy says you take the following into a game:
3 key backs (or 2 key and 1 mid-size)
1 lock down small defender
2 attacking HB defenders (should/may also rotate through the midfield)

1 Ruckman

7 'attacking' midfielders (should be able to either play back or forward as well)
1 Tagger

3 key forwards (at least 1 who is mobile and can lead up the ground)
1 goal kicking small forward
1 defensive forward (to lock down on opp. attacking HB)

1 KPP 'cover' or 2nd Ruck
1 sub/impact player/utility

So Stanton is a midfielder, we tested him at HB and he is not attacking enough.. and can't play a 'lock down' role.. he can't play defensive forward or goal kicking small forward and can't play the sub/impact role and wasted as a tagger.

So there are 7 spots available that Stanton can fill.

Right now we have:
Clear top 3:
Watson
Heppell
Goddard

Then most would probably put:
Zaka
Myers

So that leaves 2 spots open in your midfield. (Currently Stanton fills one of them). And you have the following to choose from:
Stanton
Z Merrett
J Merrett
Fantasia
Gleeson
NOB
Ashby
Aylett
Gregory
Colyer
EKav
Browne
Edwards
Melksham
Dalgleish
+ 2-3 draft picks this year.

Can you honestly say that you are 100% confident that Stanton remains in the top 2 out of that list of 14-17 players? No, they are not currently all 'past him' and some of them will NEVER pass him. I am simply suggesting there is a good chance that at least of them will go past him (based on exposed form) in the next 12-18 months. Hence why he is tradeable.
 

kelvin_sheedy

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Unfortunately we can't carry a team with all of Watson, Heppell, Myers, Goddard, Chapman, Stanton, Zaharakis,Howlett, Hocking. Not enough pace or two way running there.

Stanton and Howlett are the 2 that fall out. Tough decisions need to be made for us to move forward.

Look at Ryan O'keefe this year.
The Hawks have dropped Sewell the past 2 years. They've changed their midfield mix and added 3 or 4 quick quys.
Geelong moved on Chapman and Pods. They are a quick side now and are still a top 4 side.
Jack, Hannebury, Parker, Kennedy, McVeigh... how do they compare to Stants?

He could get another good few years with the young quick developing sides like GC or GWS. Its time to part ways.
 

matty lloyd the champ

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Understand your point... however in the modern game.. 25 touches + a goal.. is pretty much 'average' for a midfielder.. which is what Stanton has become.. average.
25 possessions and a goal is considered average these days? Goddard, Myers and Zaka don't average those numbers so I'm not sure how you can consider those numbers as "average".
 

matty lloyd the champ

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Those stats in the first half of the season are actually, very very good.

I recall him being by some margin our best player in the St Kilda nadir.
All the hyperbole about him having a terrible season is exactly that. I'll cede that he has been average but not horrendous like some seem to think.

It seems that more emphasis is placed on performing well at the end of the season rather than the start. Not sure why that is.
 

lenny2013

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Stanton is my favourite player but even I can admit that he has declined a fair bit in the second half of the season. He was doing actually rather well in the first half but people seem to be selective in their memories when it comes to Stanton.

Round 2 vs Hawthorn- 25 touches, 8 marks, 7 tackles and a goal
Round 3 vs Carlton- 25 touches, 6 marks and 3 goals (Tagged hard by Curnow who usually beats him)
Round 4 vs Fremantle- 32 touches, 6 marks (Was a standout along with Heppell in a losing side)
Round 5 vs St. Kilda- 29 touches, 9 marks and 3 goals (Our best mid and kicked 2 in the last quarter to give us a chance)
Round 6 vs Collingwood- 32 touches, 7 marks, 7 tackles and a goal (BOG in the first quarter and was along with Heppell our two best players)
Round 8 vs Brisbane- 25 touches, 8 marks (Was solid without being spectacular)
Round 9 vs Sydney- 26 touches, 3 marks (Tagged by Cunningham and did ok)
Round 10 vs Richmond- 27 touches, 9 marks and 5 tackles (Good game in a comprehensive win)

Second half of the season, he did struggle. Very patchy form I will admit.
Yep Stants stats thrived when we were playing the high possession game plan, when we spent 75% of the game chipping the ball around in our back half, nice easy uncontested possessions in the back half that usually amounted to fa other than a healthy stats sheet.
 

Benno30

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All the hyperbole about him having a terrible season is exactly that. I'll cede that he has been average but not horrendous like some seem to think.

It seems that more emphasis is placed on performing well at the end of the season rather than the start. Not sure why that is.
Last time I checked the finals were played at the end of the year.
 

rines

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25 possessions and a goal is considered average these days? Goddard, Myers and Zaka don't average those numbers so I'm not sure how you can consider those numbers as "average".
As previous post just stated, those stats were inflated by the 'high possession' game we were playing.

I would be very surprised if Stanton is in our top 15 at the B+F.

And again, I will re-iterate, it is not about what Stanton is producing NOW... it is about what he can produce over the next two or three years. Heck.. if he was crap then he wouldn't have any trade value.. that is the point. You don't get something for nothing (well not now that Freo and gone and grown up) in the trade room.

Of the commodities we have to trade that may give us a better outcome.. Stanton is top of my list. A good player who could add value to some teams but who has probably reached his limit. Looking like he will be squeezed out of our line up at some point in the next 18 months.. and could allow us to get back into the second round of the draft. The problem being, that I don't actually think he would have that much trade value because, outside of EFC BF Board, he is simply not that highly rated.
 

matty lloyd the champ

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Last time I checked the finals were played at the end of the year.
Which he has been in our bests in all finals, aside from the one against North. I was referring to the second half of the season.
Yep Stants stats thrived when we were playing the high possession game plan, when we spent 75% of the game chipping the ball around in our back half, nice easy uncontested possessions in the back half that usually amounted to fa other than a healthy stats sheet.
I've watched him closely in every game this year and I can say it is quite the opposite. The amount of touches he had in the back half was no different to the amount in previous years. You can challenge me on that but I admittedly watch him like a hawk every time he plays. Probably to the detriment of my enjoyment of the game.
 

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BRANXDON

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Which he has been in our bests in all finals, aside from the one against North. I was referring to the second half of the season.

I've watched him closely in every game this year and I can say it is quite the opposite. The amount of touches he had in the back half was no different to the amount in previous years. You can challenge me on that but I admittedly watch him like a hawk every time he plays. Probably to the detriment of my enjoyment of the game.
Each to their own, but if I was to watch stants so closely every game i'd lose my **** even more than I do now. No offence ;)
 

yaco55

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There are a few myths in footy and one is that Stanton has elite endurance - You can smash beep tests but can translate that onto the footy field - Unsure that Stanton has consistently translated his endurance into games, especially in the last quarter of games - Strange thing is that Dempsey is criticised for his lack of endurance, but he somehow runs out games strongly - Have seen Dempsey surge and surge in the last quarter.
 

Bunk Moreland

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There are a few myths in footy and one is that Stanton has elite endurance - You can smash beep tests but can translate that onto the footy field - Unsure that Stanton has consistently translated his endurance into games, especially in the last quarter of games - Strange thing is that Dempsey is criticised for his lack of endurance, but he somehow runs out games strongly - Have seen Dempsey surge and surge in the last quarter.
I wouldn't mind betting Stanton is no. 1 or very close to it in distance covered.

No idea where we could get the data.
 

yaco55

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I wouldn't mind betting Stanton is no. 1 or very close to it in distance covered.

No idea where we could get the data.
But at what pace are you covering X distance ?

Are you running to the right spots or is it dead running ?

I continually read that Gumbleton had elite endurance for a tall, but I never saw it in a game - Players like Brown and Riewoldt would run their defenders into the ground in the last quarter - Sometimes elite endurance is hidden.
 

Vander18

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There are a few myths in footy and one is that Stanton has elite endurance - You can smash beep tests but can translate that onto the footy field - Unsure that Stanton has consistently translated his endurance into games, especially in the last quarter of games - Strange thing is that Dempsey is criticised for his lack of endurance, but he somehow runs out games strongly - Have seen Dempsey surge and surge in the last quarter.
Mental strength is a big part of it....Rob Harvey never won a time trial at st kilda, just kept pushing and pushing himself in games.
 

daffo

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Stanton is a bit of a slow plodder now but we have a lot of players like that in our team. If we get another couple of outside runners he would be ok. I wouldn't be completely against trading him but I doubt we would get much for him.

I woud rather we keep our own home grown talent.
 

rines

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Mental strength is a big part of it....Rob Harvey never won a time trial at st kilda, just kept pushing and pushing himself in games.
This and this.

So many champions are defined by that ability to give 'one more effort' even when they are spent. Some of the best included Voss and Buckley.

I saw one game in particular when Buckley had probably run close to 30km.. had probably spent all of 3 minutes on the pine (didn't have many rotations back then) and it was deep in the last. Ball was down the other end and Buckley was 'resting' in forward pocket and was down on his haunches.. I thought he was gone... then there was a quick kick out of defence.. and I swear Bucks got up, ran 150m to make a contest for the ball, beat 3 defenders.. shovelled it onto his boot forward and then chased his own kick and made another contest down the wing.. another Pies player kicked it on the ground.. and wouldn't you know it.. Buckley was on the end of that as well.. he ended up kicking a point.. but it has always stuck with me that he just found a way to 'get there'...

And you are spot on.. Harvey was one of the best examples of it ever.. its like these blokes knew how to get every last drop of energy out of their bodies and they did it every weekend.
 

Donakebab

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As previous post just stated, those stats were inflated by the 'high possession' game we were playing.

I would be very surprised if Stanton is in our top 15 at the B+F.

And again, I will re-iterate, it is not about what Stanton is producing NOW... it is about what he can produce over the next two or three years. Heck.. if he was crap then he wouldn't have any trade value.. that is the point. You don't get something for nothing (well not now that Freo and gone and grown up) in the trade room.

Of the commodities we have to trade that may give us a better outcome.. Stanton is top of my list. A good player who could add value to some teams but who has probably reached his limit. Looking like he will be squeezed out of our line up at some point in the next 18 months.. and could allow us to get back into the second round of the draft. The problem being, that I don't actually think he would have that much trade value because, outside of EFC BF Board, he is simply not that highly rated.
Prepare to be surprised.
 

bombersfan4000

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trade to Melbourne for clark
he would be at essendon for 2 years find an excuse then leave
like he did with the lions, wanted a trade back home to WA, then the demons game him a nice offer, so he signed with them.
he played a few seasons with the demons now wants out again, on the back on all of the support the club game him!
does Essendon really want a soft c*&* like that at the club
 

RearNaked

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TEAM MIR!!!!!!!!!
he would be at essendon for 2 years find an excuse then leave
like he did with the lions, wanted a trade back home to WA, then the demons game him a nice offer, so he signed with them.
he played a few seasons with the demons now wants out again, on the back on all of the support the club game him!
does Essendon really want a soft c*&* like that at the club
soft cock for soft cock we would only need him for 2 years then it will be the herp era
 
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