AFL Player # 7: Indefatigable Zach Merrett (c) - 3x AA 🏅🏅🏅 4x Crichton Medallist 🥇🥇🥇🥇

[Beerfish]

Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent 2027
My Boy Draft 2024: Pick 10, I Remember Bluey

 

[Halftimehero]

He must be running somewhere?

 

[Mr Mojo Risin]

He must be running somewhere?View attachment 980900

Will was excellent this year, only 18 months into an AFL environment (ignoring Port years ago). Far from the most talented, one of our hardest workers and seems to play the role asked of him hence his top 10 finish the BnF.

Never going to be the best player and likely to always be in the last few selected in a top 4 team, but very happy with Will.

 

[Yoda_]

tehe

Snelling averages 94 metres per possession whilst Zac Merret averages 44.2 metres per possession. Stark contrast between what is poor and what is elite.


All good to be an elite runner but where the * are they running too in order to win there possessions?

 

[EnolaGay]

tehe

Snelling averages 94 metres per possession whilst Zac Merret averages 44.2 metres per possession. Stark contrast between what is poor and what is elite.


All good to be an elite runner but where the fu** are they running too in order to win there possessions?

That could very well support the claim that Zac doesn't work hard enough defensively to get to the correct positions or chase the opposition?

 

[Lore]

That could very well support the claim that Zac doesn't work hard enough defensively to get to the correct positions or chase the opposition?

There are a lot of variables not least of which being the part of the ground you play in and the relative number of disposals that can be expected for that role.

An inside mid tends to get a lot of handballs in congestion and will rack up 30 touches from their 10km. A full forward might get 14 for the same distance.

 

[EnolaGay]

There are a lot of variables not least of which being the part of the ground you play in and the relative number of disposals that can be expected for that role.

An inside mid tends to get a lot of handballs in congestion and will rack up 30 touches from their 10km. A full forward might get 14 for the same distance.

Yes, that too.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

If Rutten is actually driving high standards he should be picking a leadership group that can do that with him, not the players.

Its absolute horseshit. In what job or organisation does anybody pick their own leaders? It wouldn’t work.

I mean of course you want people who work well with and relate to the players, but are our coaches really not close enough to the players to know who those people are?

 

[MattyB3150]

The

Its absolute horseshit. In what job or organisation does anybody pick their own leaders? It wouldn’t work.

I mean of course you want people who work well with and relate to the players, but are our coaches really not close enough to the players to know who those people are?

The leadership group is a joke really. Bring back the old days with a captain and vice captain only. I think some clubs just have that.

 

[citizen-erased]

The

The leadership group is a joke really. Bring back the old days with a captain and vice captain only. I think some clubs just have that.

leaders will lead. group or not.
I like the idea of a C & VC.
I really like the idea of Merrett (C) & McGrath (VC) in 2021
Mcgrath as the representation of the young core that is our future, and Merrett as the guy between them and the older group (Whoever is left)

 

[I Remember Bluey]

I don't remember seeing this in this thread, so I thought I would post it even though it is from September 2020.
It gives a good insight into Zach.

No Cookies | Herald Sun

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www.heraldsun.com.au

September 7th 2020
My Story: Zach Merrett on life away from football, being ousted from Essendon’s leadership group and how his mum is one of his greatest inspirations
Every teenage draftee is buzzing when they arrive at an AFL club. But imagine walking into Essendon at the end of 2013. Zach Merrett reveals what it was like inside the Bombers and the ‘bizarre’ day his teammates were banned.

My interest in sport lies just as much off the field as it does on it.
I’ve been doing a diploma of leadership and management and a Certificate 3 in fitness, and it’s an area outside of footy that I’ve grown more and more passionate about in recent years.

Last off-season was my fourth leadership and personal development study tours, which I’ve really enjoyed.

I’ve been lucky enough to attend 10 or 11 world-class universities, Nike colleges, NFL teams and NBA teams in that journey and been able to meet some really well-respected sports admin people and players in the industry around the world.

I was even fortunate enough to meet the San Francisco 49ers executive vice-president of football operations in my last trip, which was an amazing experience.

It’s something I really want to try to continue – that development and trying to learn holistically over there over the many years that I have left playing, and then ideally I would love to work in some form of sports management or administration at a club if the opportunity arises.

I’m doing a lot of stuff in the background now to build my resume while I’m playing.

Our chief executive Xavier Campbell is someone who has definitely been a role model in the last few years around this sort of stuff.

He’s been able to open some amazing doors for me overseas and in Australia and we’ve had some really good chats around his journey and ways I need to grow and improve and using my time in footy to work on them.

He’s definitely someone I’ve developed a really strong relationship with.

I’m a massive sports fan generally. I just really enjoy watching all sports, especially American sports in the NFL and NBA.

I’m a huge Damian Lillard fan, from the Portland Trail Blazers.

The way he carries himself and his ability to keep fighting in a team that isn’t as loaded as other teams is amazing.

He’s not as big as LeBron James and Kevin Durant, but he’s certainly still one of the favourites in the NBA and the way he goes about it is how I try to model myself a bit.

I love watching him, and his press conferences and the way he speaks.

How he’s constructed his life and his personality is really enjoyable.

I’m a Cleveland Browns fan in the NFL, so it’s been a long road of disappointment for us for about 10 years, but hopefully there’ll be a bit of a shift. In summertime, the cricket is definitely my favourite time of the year. I love the Big Bash and the Tests, and really love the contest between bat and ball in a Test match, especially when the ball is new.

MUM’S STRENGTH
Growing up in Cobden, my brother, mum and dad were very close and we had my grandparents a kilometre up the road.

I was really fortunate to have a tight-knit family in a small community, which has developed me to the person I am now and kept me really down to earth.

I’m grateful for a lot.

Dad is really hardworking and made sure Jackson — who is another massive supporter — and I got everything we ever wanted.

My mum, Cathy, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when she was 23.

She and dad, Herbie – his name’s Greg, but no one calls him that – were engaged at the time.

Just to see the way they interact, his patience and care for mum has been incredible and something I’ve learned from first-hand.

Mum’s fighting ability to get on with things is something that drives me a lot and inspires me in training and harder sessions or games when it does get a bit tough.

MS is a debilitating and pretty isolating illness as it is, so with this year being forced into shutdown and not having any social connection has made it pretty tough on her.

But obviously she definitely can’t afford to get COVID.

It’s been challenging but with dad’s support and a lot of Facetime from here in the hub, it makes it a bit easier.

THE ‘OTHER’ BOMBERS
Cobden is just past halfway from Melbourne to Warrnambool, with a population of around 2000.

Cat Gary Rohan is from there too, and for me it’s where a love of footy – and cricket, too – started from a young age.

I was actually only reflecting on this on the bus on the way to the game last week.

My older brother Jackson played Auskick, and dad was a co-ordinator there so I was able to tag along from the age of about four or five and have a kick even though I wasn’t old enough.

I then played junior footy for the Cobden Bombers, and my first game was a night game when I was about eight or nine in the Under 12s. So I’ve always been wearing red and black.

The buzz and excitement I had driving to the ground was just huge, and from that moment on, the passion for competing and playing and trying to win every game with my mates was the best part.

We only played in one or two finals from memory – I don’t even think we won one – and I never won a best-and-fairest or anything like that. I played a bit of interleague but wasn’t selected in the Under 15 and Under 16 representative teams.
It was more about the fun – I loved Tuesday and Thursday night trainings and being there and hanging around watching the seniors train.

We were the closest team to Melbourne, so most of the opposition teams were down Warrnambool way or further, so every Saturday we’d jump in the car and watch the Under 19s, reserves and seniors all around the area.

We’d listen to Rex Hunt on the way home, and then junior footy on Sundays so it was a pretty consistent routine every winter.

I played my first senior game when I was about 16, and played eight or nine games including a grand final but we lost. It gave me a bit of a taste of playing against grown men – I just sat in the forward pocket and kicked a couple of goals, but it was a fun experience to see how the Cobden community got around the senior footy team because they were winning.

It was pretty special, and it’s great to be a part of games like the Powercor Country Festival game like today against the Cats and recognise the contribution of small towns to footy.

I grew up as a pretty big Doggies supporter, so the 1997 and 1998 seasons got a fair run on the VCR.

Dad and Jackson both went for North, so we got a good few years of highlights.

LANDING AT THE HANGAR
Jackson getting drafted to the Bombers at the end of 2011 gave me a bit of hope that maybe I could have a crack.

I was boarding at Melbourne Grammar and playing TAC Cup at the Sandringham Dragons.

Based off no real intel, they took me on for the pre-season and I didn’t go to well in the first time-trial, but that was when I really locked in and focused on the fitness side of things and knuckled down.

What awaited me at Essendon from the end of 2013, I couldn’t have scripted if I’d tried.

When you get drafted, you’re so excited.

I’d been able to see through my brother what was happening with the saga, but to see it first-hand daily from my first day there was something else.

I just figured it was normality, and that having cameras in the carpark each and every day was something that every club experienced all the time.

I was so ready to try and prove myself firstly to my teammates and coaches and was so zoned in and excited to be at an AFL club.

There was a lot of noise, but guys like Jobe Watson and Brendon Goddard really were able to shield us a fair bit.

January 11, 2016 is a day I’ll never forget. It was the day that the 34 guys who had been involved in 2012 learned their fate.

It was just bizarre. They were off-site, but then the rest of us were at the club.

After the ruling, I remember walking to the back of the hangar – I sat there for about 20 or 30 minutes in sheer disbelief. Were we even going to keep playing that year? What’s next?

It was BJ’s ability to pull everyone back in and realise that we had a role to play to keep working and building something forward to give hope and optimism to the guys that would eventually return.

It was our job to provide hope and allow the supporters to be proud of the group again. That was the motivation.

NO TITLE NECESSARY
The start of this season was a strange period of time.

I’d been part of the club’s leadership for four years and vice-captain for three.

When we got presented the new program that was going to be undertaken, I really quickly identified that it probably wasn’t suited as much to my characteristics or how I go about performing.

Once the results came back, I wasn’t in as much shock as I was at the time – it was more when the program was presented a few months earlier.

Merrett says he doesn’t need a title to be a leader. Picture: Getty Images
It became a much bigger deal than it was for me and the club. We were pretty clear as a group of what we were trying to get to and the guys that were picked were picked for a reason and I’m someone who is fully supportive of those five.

It’s the old cliche that you don’t need a title to be a leader, but it’s true.
Joe Daniher, myself and Orazio Fantasia have all certainly bought in and we’re proud to keep trying to be really good leaders for the younger boys.

HUB NO HOLIDAY
This will be a season we tell our grandkids about.

It’s been enjoyable in some ways, but hard in others.

Winning and losing has a bit to do with it as well. It can be difficult with guys out of contract and there’s stuff that we can’t really control – there’s so much that’s been different about this year.

That’s something that will be playing on a lot of players’ minds, so I think there’s definitely been a heightened level of anxiety and stress just as a general rule for everyone in the hub.

I’ve enjoyed the difference, with shorter quarters and a shorter season, you don’t have as much time so I’ve tried to maximise everything.

You do also build relationships with guys that you wouldn’t normally spend a lot of time with, just because you are here and eating meals together three times a day, training a lot and playing table tennis and golf together a lot more.

Merrett’s girlfriend Alexandra recently joined the club’s Queensland hub. Picture: Mark Stewart.
That’s certainly been a big plus, but there’s been trying times as well where you do question what you’re doing up here for such a long period of time.

My girlfriend Alexandra came up about four or five weeks ago, so it’s been good to have a bit of an outlet away from footy, just to bounce ideas off and potentially vent to at times has been really nice. It’s been great to have her up here.

Hopefully we can sneak into the eight and we’ll have a few more weeks here in Maroochydore yet.

Edit: Apologies if it has been posted before, and delete if necessary.

 

[Mercurial89]

Its absolute horseshit. In what job or organisation does anybody pick their own leaders? It wouldn’t work.

I mean of course you want people who work well with and relate to the players, but are our coaches really not close enough to the players to know who those people are?

Not many people pick their boss, but most people choose their leaders, someone who they follow or who inspires them. That goes for all walks of life.

Dyson can wear the C and deliver as many post match and pre match speeches but if he doesn't have the players respect they wont follow him and they wont listen.

<insert player here> can win the hard ball, stand up for his team mates and kill himself on the training track and on the field and not be anywhere near the leadership group that a coach or football department will install, and players would follow them into a burning building.

I dont necessarily think giving players too much choice in a team is a good thing, but they need to be the ones who elect or appoint as a leader.

 

[Howard Moon]

The

The leadership group is a joke really. Bring back the old days with a captain and vice captain only. I think some clubs just have that.

dont forget the DVC or getting to toss the coin on your birthday...

 

[Unfazed]

I don't remember seeing this in this thread, so I thought I would post it even though it is from September 2020.
It gives a good insight into Zach.

Joe Daniher, myself and Orazio Fantasia have all certainly bought in and we’re proud to keep trying to be really good leaders for the younger boys.

That line doesn't bode well for his future at Essendon.

 

[DERO]

he is not going anywhere.

 

[jmoo wan]

he is not going anywhere.

Has he returned to Melbourne?

 

[DERO]

Has he returned to Melbourne?

I managed to get him a work permit.

 

[Maxabillions]

7 news just said Collingwood are very interested

 

[Lore]

7 news just said Collingwood are very interested

I doubt there's a club that isn't interested, but regardless Brasher says he's not going anywhere. About 3 minutes in:

Brasher promises 'brutally honest' review

President Paul Brasher has provided an update following a scheduled Board meeting.

www.essendonfc.com.au

 

[Beerfish]

Well what would he know?

 

[vass44]

I want to keep Zach - but - we need to shed some of our mosquitoe fleet which includes Zach, Shiel, Parish and McGrath and get a couple of big bodied mids. Zach had lots of currency and for once we should try cash in rather than Dodoro putting his head in the sand and being unreasonable... wonder if Dodoro is any relation to Dan Andrews..??!!


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[DERO]

I want to keep Zach - but - we need to shed some of our mosquitoe fleet which includes Zach, Shiel, Parish and McGrath and get a couple of big bodied mids. Zach had lots of currency and for once we should try cash in rather than Dodoro putting his head in the sand and being unreasonable... wonder if Dodoro is any relation to Dan Andrews..??!!


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

I don't see the benefit of trading good mids just because they are small. Richmond's mids are small... Prestia, Edwards, Cotchin, Lambert, Bolton, Graham etc.. Dusty and McIntosh are a bit bigger but the rest are short people.

 

[Bjchan13]

I still want Zach to show he's on board long term. The only way he can do that is by signing a new contract. If not, get some more picks in and let him go. Yes, we might finish bottom 4 and get a high compo pick if he we keep him a year and he leaves as a free agent. Id rather not waste the midfield minutes, possibly slow the development of players who do want to committ or have another will he/wont he year hanging over the playing group. It should be a clear, fresh start for everyone next year. No Worsfold, no Joe. Truck with a young committed group who are ready to build something together. So we need to find out if Zach is in or out.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

I still want Zach to show he's on board long term. The only way he can do that is by signing a new contract. If not, get some more picks in and let him go. Yes, we might finish bottom 4 and get a high compo pick if he we keep him a year and he leaves as a free agent. Id rather not waste the midfield minutes, possibly slow the development of players who do want to committ or have another will he/wont he year hanging over the playing group. It should be a clear, fresh start for everyone next year. No Worsfold, no Joe. Truck with a young committed group who are ready to build something together. So we need to find out if Zach is in or out.

I’m not that fussed. We can’t really demand it. Plenty of players backs themselves to run down their contract and then get a bigger pay packet. It’s fairly standard business. Brasher said he’s given no indication he wants out. If he does, different story.

 

[Bjchan13]

I’m not that fussed. We can’t really demand it. Plenty of players backs themselves to run down their contract and then get a bigger pay packet. It’s fairly standard business. Brasher said he’s given no indication he wants out. If he does, different story.

Joe and Saad didnt give any indication either. They both said their preference was to stay late in the season before asking for a trade. Its up to us as a club to get on the front foot and get a read on our players and their intentions early so we can plan and make adjustments. Its been reported Zach has a massive extension sitting in front of him. If hes unwilling to sign it now, id be asking why. If you can get to the bottom of the reasons now you can adjust offers, you can get an insight into what our best player sees wrong with with the club/culture, or you can explore trade options. When your team is in the flag hunt it doesn't matter so much because its for the here and now and you've got bigger fish to fry than worrying about 1 players contract. Us, nowhere near a flag and about to embark on a rebuild of list and culture, need to get to the bottom of any underlying issues and find out who wants to be a part of the future.

 

[citizen-erased]

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