Welcome Another Irishman: Stefan Okunbor

[Goggin Our Best]

All these posts - hes got great size - who cares - look at Jansen - he was huge for a midfielder - and he was no good at all - where as Caleb Daniel - the bloke in the helmet for the Scrays - is 4 foot nothing - but he is a very good player - talent is the key

It was a bit like - back in the day - recruiting Architects - what was the most important thing - " Can they Draw " - in other words - have they got natural talent .

 

[Ratcat]

All these posts - hes got great size - who cares - look at Jansen - he was huge for a midfielder - and he was no good at all - where as Caleb Daniel - the bloke in the helmet for the Scrays - is 4 foot nothing - but he is a very good player - talent is the key

It was a bit like - back in the day - recruiting Architects - what was the most important thing - " Can they Draw " - in other words - have they got natural talent .

It's not a sub 180cm competition.
Caleb is to small.

 

[Farmer2Goggin]

All these posts - hes got great size - who cares - look at Jansen - he was huge for a midfielder - and he was no good at all - where as Caleb Daniel - the bloke in the helmet for the Scrays - is 4 foot nothing - but he is a very good player - talent is the key

It was a bit like - back in the day - recruiting Architects - what was the most important thing - " Can they Draw " - in other words - have they got natural talent .

Bit harsh on JJ as we never played him in the 1's and he did play a few solid games for the Lions with mid 20 possessions before injury got to him - far from being no good at all
Okunbor is clearly a punt but from what he's showed at training he's giving it a real crack - you can't ask for more than that.
He's a fair chunk of a bloke and an athlete to boot so happy to get behind him and wish him all the best.

 

[David the Cat]

I wish him the best too....but he's got a long way to go

 

[Turbocat]

I wish him the best too....but he's got a long way to go

After Blitz and MOC .. they must have an idea on what type they think they can get a return from.. I thought we would be lucky to get a game from Blitz...and 2 B&F's later .....

 

[Max Milburn]

There's more to Stefan than size and athleticism.
He is a very good Gaelic footballer.
His highlights shows skills that translate well into AFL.
He can take a good grab and reads the play.
His transition to our game is already going well, judging by the footage at training of his oval ball kicking.

 

[Rimbaud82]

Do they tackle in the Irish game it looks like touch to me.

No not like AFL tackles, but it's certainly not touch either...

You can only play at the ball, unless it is shoulder to shoulder in which case it's fair game.

 

[Shai]

There's more to Stefan than size and athleticism.
He is a very good Gaelic footballer.
His highlights shows skills that translate well into AFL.
He can take a good grab and reads the play.
His transition to our game is already going well, judging by the footage at training of his oval ball kicking.

I found it interesting that his skills as a Gaelic footballer and his physique have been questioned in this thread (as in, just another good junior).

He's way more than that, quality defender who can move into the midfield.

Yes he may take time to adjust but I believe the investment will pay dividends.

 

[Cool Cat]

No not like AFL tackles, but it's certainly not touch either...

You can only play at the ball, unless it is shoulder to shoulder in which case it's fair game.

Some nice hip and shoulders in there. Going by that footage it might actually end up being a more physical game than aussie rules in a few years with the way we are (unfortunately) heading.

Thanks for posting, its obviously more vigorous than i thought it was.

 

[Rimbaud82]

Some nice hip and shoulders in there. Going by that footage it might actually end up being a more physical game than aussie rules in a few years with the way we are (unfortunately) heading.

Thanks for posting, its obviously more vigorous than i thought it was.

Don't think we will ever reach aussie rules levels of physicality, as long yous continue to allow the tackle! But gaelic is somewhere in the middle ground between aussie rules and soccer, definitely still a tough, physical sport...even where there is no shoulder bump, the nature of players grabbing and striking at the ball means you have to be strong in the tackle anyway:

 

[Rimbaud82]

I found it interesting that his skills as a Gaelic footballer and his physique have been questioned in this thread (as in, just another good junior).

He's way more than that, quality defender who can move into the midfield.

Yes he may take time to adjust but I believe the investment will pay dividends.

Yeah I am not sure where that has come from, he's not a super exciting forward like Mark O'Connor was for Kerry (or David Clifford and Sean O'Shea for players still back here) but this is a big loss for Kerry, he's a very talented footballer. Man of the match in the Munster minor final, and Munster U20 player of the year.

 

[Turbocat]

No not like AFL tackles, but it's certainly not touch either...

You can only play at the ball, unless it is shoulder to shoulder in which case it's fair game.

what size ground is this played ... , what time of year does your season run. My first thought is this would be better to watch than AFLX

 

[Rimbaud82]

what size ground is this played ... , what time of year does your season run. My first thought is this would be better to watch than AFLX

Pitches for gaelic football are 130m to 145m length, and 80m to 90m width. So bigger than a soccer or rugby (or AFLX) ground. Season has started now and is in week 3 (the National Football League runs February to April), it's still taken seriously and isn't quite a pre-season event (it's the second most prestigious) but it is followed by Provincial Championships (there are four provinces in Ireland, these run through May and June) and then the most important of all the All-Ireland Football Championship with the final usually in August.

Very big game this weekend between Dublin and Mayo, you should try catch that if you are curious. It's not a weird sideshow like AFLX at least!

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

I'm not sure how Okunbor will end up as a player but I'm certainly not going to write him off after learning a valuable lesson in doing the same after seeing Blicavs ply his trade 3 or 4 times. I gave him absolutely no chance of making it and I won't make the same mistake twice.

 

[Turbocat]

I'm not sure how Okunbor will end up as a player but I'm certainly not going to write him off after learning a valuable lesson in doing the same after seeing Blicavs ply his trade 3 or 4 times. I gave him absolutely no chance of making it and I won't make the same mistake twice.

At least you had some evidence ... I scrubbed him before seeing him. Something like ..he will be lucky to play a game and if he does it will be to justify his recruitment ...

There have been enough examples now to say that people with a certain background seem to be able to adapt .. not all to elite levels but it would not surprise me to see this StefanO get a game or 50.

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

At least you had some evidence ... I scrubbed him before seeing him. Something like ..he will be lucky to play a game and if he does it will be to justify his recruitment ...

There have been enough examples now to say that people with a certain background seem to be able to adapt .. not all to elite levels but it would not surprise me to see this StefanO get a game or 50.

On the opposite end of the spectrum I was bullish about O'Connor making the grade but now I'm not so sure. I simply don't get the fanfare on this board about O'Connor.

 

[Turbocat]

Pitches for gaelic football are 130m to 145m length, and 80m to 90m width. So bigger than a soccer or rugby (or AFLX) ground. Season has started now and is in week 3 (the National Football League runs February to April), it's still taken seriously and isn't quite a pre-season event (it's the second most prestigious) but it is followed by Provincial Championships (there are four provinces in Ireland, these run through May and June) and then the most important of all the All-Ireland Football Championship with the final usually in August.

Very big game this weekend between Dublin and Mayo, you should try catch that if you are curious. It's not a weird sideshow like AFLX at least!

Why different sizes? Id have thought the advanatage of have 4 straight sides is that you could have some sort of standard size.

So the game runs thru the Irish summer ? So each area has its own champion ( my heritage is mainly irish ..cork and tipperary although know little)... so the teams play off for the Munster championships? ... and they come together in some sort of play off ? Interesting.

Thanks for the info.....

 

[Turbocat]

On the opposite end of the spectrum I was bullish about O'Connor making the grade but now I'm not so sure. I simply don't get the fanfare on this board about O'Connor.

I sort of place him with a few others..do they have something to sperate form the herd of other possibles. Still I guess he is still on an upward trajectory coming from a non footy path.

 

[Jhye Clark 13]

I sort of place him with a few others..do they have something to sperate form the herd of other possibles. Still I guess he is still on an upward trajectory coming from a non footy path.

I reckon O'Connor has gone backwards strangely enough. As with a few players who have shown promise in the VFL they just don't seem to be allowed to play their natural game at AFL level. Cockatoo was a prime example when he burst onto the scene taking the game on. He got caught once and his run and carry stopped. O'Connor just doesn't seem to play with freedom and confidence at AFL level and I think that's a coaching direction.

Watch these highlights against Box Hill to get an understanding of what I'm trying to say. https://www.geelongcats.com.au/video/2017-05-11/mark-oconnor-highlights

The biggest point of interest is at the 2:10 mark where he takes the game on with confidence. We don't see that now.

 

[Rimbaud82]

Why different sizes? Id have thought the advanatage of have 4 straight sides is that you could have some sort of standard size.

So the game runs thru the Irish summer ? So each area has its own champion ( my heritage is mainly irish ..cork and tipperary although know little)... so the teams play off for the Munster championships? ... and they come together in some sort of play off ? Interesting.

Thanks for the info.....

Not sure the reason, but some are bigger than others. And yeah runs through our summer.

And yep, ignoring the league for a second (which has different divisions) then aye each province has their champion (Munster, Connacht Leinster and Ulster), then the results of the provincials influence the match ups for the All-Ireland. The exact format has been tweaked now with Super 8s and stuff designed to make it more competitive (not all counties are equal of course), but thats the jist. Cork is in a bad way atm lol. Tipp is better at hurling than football

 

[Landgraft]

Not sure the reason, but some are bigger than others. And yeah runs through our summer.

And yep, ignoring the league for a second (which has different divisions) then aye each province has their champion (Munster, Connacht Leinster and Ulster), then the results of the provincials influence the match ups for the All-Ireland. The exact format has been tweaked now with Super 8s and stuff designed to make it more competitive (not all counties are equal of course), but thats the jist. Cork is in a bad way atm lol. Tipp is better at hurling than football

Where/how can Australians watch? Are the games streamed online? (Crucially with access to replays)

 

[Max Milburn]

Why different sizes? Id have thought the advanatage of have 4 straight sides is that you could have some sort of standard size.

So the game runs thru the Irish summer ? So each area has its own champion ( my heritage is mainly irish ..cork and tipperary although know little)... so the teams play off for the Munster championships? ... and they come together in some sort of play off ? Interesting.

Thanks for the info.....

Not all soccer grounds are the same size either. Just like Aussie Rules grounds.

 

[Rimbaud82]

Where/how can Australians watch? Are the games streamed online? (Crucially with access to replays)

I think you can via GAAGO if you're outside of Ireland - https://www.gaago.ie

 

[Landgraft]

I think you can via GAAGO if you're outside of Ireland - https://www.gaago.ie

Considering the price they're asking I'm surprised there's no free trial. And the players aren't even paid as professionals?

Maybe I'll go hunting for some more grey streams...

 

[Rimbaud82]

Considering the price they're asking I'm surprised there's no free trial. And the players aren't even paid as professionals?

Maybe I'll go hunting for some more grey streams...

Yeah its way too expensive to attract new fans imo. And no, not paid as professionals, though of course they are basically "professional" in terms of fitness levels etc.