Big Improvers 08

[The_Young_Gun]

Playing what role?

Centre for sure.

 

[Schmick]

Hopefully Knights plays Hislop through the middle instead of down back, we need his tough ball winning ability through the middle and to develop in the position as quickly as possible. I can't wait to see Dempsey, Hislop and Monfries all running through the middle regularly, im getting excited just thinking about it.........

Dempsey, Hislop, Monfries, Watson, Stanton, Winderlich, Lovett, Houli, Jetta, Hocking, Lonergan, Nash all possibly running through the middle in the future, midfield is looking very healthy

 

[hulld]

Some big calls there.

Given that Pratt and Taylor were mature age draftees, I don't think they should be included. In the long term they should, but not 3 years on. You'd expect them to have done more.

In addition, I don't think Wood, Rusling, Prismall, LeCras or Egan could be considered ahead of him just yet. They haven't taken games by the scruff of the neck any more than Angus, and have played less games.

I agree with you that Angus hasn't cracked it yet, but he isn't alone in the '04 draft.

egan was the all australian CHB, what more do you want???
i didn't say that all those players were better than gus, i said they were rated higher than him. do you think we could of got pick 14 for gus this year??? rusling has the makings of a gun FF. prismall is probably on par with gus, but has had limited opportunities compared to gus. whilst lecras has played a similar role to gus, but has played it in a much better side.

Tambling, you are kidding yourself, I'm not even going to talk about his stats, he's complete and utter crap!

i know he's not that good, but he has at least shown patches that suggest he will be a godd player. gus only played 3 or 4 good games this year.

I'm not Monfries biggest fan but you are selling him pretty short there.

Yes - Delidio, Griffen, Roughead, Franklin, Lewis, Van Berlo, Cloke.

Rusling - No - 6.3 disposals average for 1.2 goals a game. 4 goals in one game where Monfries has a 5. Currently the most overrated player in the league.

Tambling - No. Don't even need a reason!

Egan - Please.

Wood - ???. 16 games for not much.

Prismall - I rate him pretty highly but he hasn't done much.

Knights, Rosa - No. I don't rate these guys at all. Take them out of a pretty good midfield and they will struggle.

you are thinking of the wrong egan. gus wouldn't make west coasts best 25. rosa does

gus has shown just as much if not more than players in bold. 08 will be monfries break out season. From what ive seen of him is courage, work rate and match winning ability sure he has been inconsistent but i believe he will be the man to take us to the next level.

Im expecting a big year out of alot of the young guns and im enjoying being underrated cause its been so long since we have had kids to be proud of.

i agree with most of what you say. but i bet you were saying the same thing this time last year.

 

[lets_fly_up]

Big Improvers
Nash, Hislop, Dempsey, Laycock, Monfries, Davey, Jetta, Ryder, Neagle
I dont Know why every bags our list

 

[GoDons]

egan was the all australian CHB, what more do you want???
i didn't say that all those players were better than gus, i said they were rated higher than him. do you think we could of got pick 14 for gus this year??? rusling has the makings of a gun FF. prismall is probably on par with gus, but has had limited opportunities compared to gus. whilst lecras has played a similar role to gus, but has played it in a much better side.

I thought you were referring to Chris Egan who was Collingwood's first pick in that draft. Again, Matthew Egan was a mature age recruit. Three years on is too early to be making comparisons.

Ratings are purely subjective. Everyone has a different opinion. In my mind, Angus is a better play than LeCras and Prismall. I don't think either possess the talent of Angus, nor have they done anything more than Angus.

I agree that Rusling could end up a very good FF, and I really rated him as a junior, but as it stands now, he's far more unproven than Angus. If we are talking in the present, Angus is head and shoulders above him. Rusling's yet to have played as a 2nd tall forward, let alone a 1st.

 

[Giggidy Giggidy]

i'm not agreeing with the other bloke but:
deledio, griffen, roughead, tambling (yes i said it), franklin, lewis, bate, wood, rusling, van berlo, rosa, prismall, lecras, cloke, smith, taylor, knights, egan and pratt have either done more than gus or would be rated higher than him at the moment.

i'm not saying that they will all end up being better than gus, but so far he hasn't taken too many games by the scruff of the neck.

however in saying that i do agree with you that 08 should be a big year for gus......but i said the same thing this time last year......

In my haste I forgot to exclude father-son selections, as they obviously couldn't be picked by us (so take out Cloke & Smith). I disagree with Tambling, Wood, Prismall, Taylor & Knights at a minimum.

Would be interesting to see how many games each of the 17 non-FS players mentioned have played.

 

[Smokin]

There is a lot to be excited about on our list. As I have said numerous times, this is as exciting a bunch of kids we have had since the baby bombers of 93.

In relation to improvers, from an experienced POV Id say Laycock and Winderlich would be seen as "buys" if they were a stock - they have finally put a solid season together, got that AFL fitness base to the level where it is required, and can now put a big pre-season in to really springboard off.

I remember Shane Crawford commenting on AFL fitness, and he said the key was fitness ontop of fitness - ie starting a pre-season behind, then getting to AFL fitness by round 1 may look good, and think you are peaking at the right time, but you are not. The key is getting a body to the level where you can start your pre-season at the required AFL level, then taking it to another level. That means when the peaks and troughs of the season hit, you are at such a high point that you can deal with it and keep your consistency.

In this regard, we are hearing really good things re the club this pre-season which is very encouraging.

This is what I like about Laycock and Winda in particular - they have finally got their bodies to the AFL level, and can now use this as their base. In the past they would have been seen as unfit at AFL level going into the pre-season. Lloyd will probably get better as well, "they" say having a year off takes you a year to get back, and I think he got better as the season went on, especially his contested game. He looks raring to go right now as well. He is not at the age yet where you start the decline, I dont think anyway.

In relation to the kids - Im huge on Dempsey, Jetta, Davey and Gumby. They have talent to burn, and all of their bodies from reports to getting to the required level fairly quickly. I think Gumby may do a Ryder, and really propel in the 2nd year as the talent he has is unquestionable, as his improvement curve will be steep.

 

[Nuts4Bolts]

Our skipper.

 

[NathanS]

I think Courtney Dempsey will be the big improver. The only question is whether or not he can get his body right. I also think Houli and Hislop will be rotated through the side.

And I agree that all of our <24's will improve. All have potentials to be good players.

 

[hulld]

In my haste I forgot to exclude father-son selections, as they obviously couldn't be picked by us (so take out Cloke & Smith). I disagree with Tambling, Wood, Prismall, Taylor & Knights at a minimum.

Would be interesting to see how many games each of the 17 non-FS players mentioned have played.

the amount of games they have played doesn't necessarily illustrate whether or not someone is a good footballer. don't forget kepler has played quite a few games of senior footy. that doesn't make him a good footballer

 

[The_Young_Gun]

Courteney Dempsey will definitly be ready for next season. All i've been hearing from knights at the moment is how greatly fit Courtney dempsey is now and how fit our playing group is right now comparing from last years crap performance.

I think Matty Knights must be pinching himself right now.

 

[Here_we_come]

Providing Dempsey stays fit, he'll be our most significant improver. He's only played a few games but he's so exciting to watch, reminds me of Michael Long! Houli, Jetta, Hislop, and Gumbleton are also in for big years. And although he might not be rated by some, I think Monfries is one of our most important players. He may not find the ball so much, but that will improve. Out of all our current regular midfielders, I think he has the most class and potential to be great!

 

[Red Black and Blue]

i agree with most of what you say. but i bet you were saying the same thing this time last year.

The Angus stuff i was saying last year i was driving the bandwagon and the stuff about being exicted about our kids i haven't felt proud of essendon recruiters for a long time until now (even more exicted that kepler wont be taking up a spot of another kid)

 

[The Donners]

egan was the all australian CHB, what more do you want???
i didn't say that all those players were better than gus, i said they were rated higher than him. do you think we could of got pick 14 for gus this year??? rusling has the makings of a gun FF. prismall is probably on par with gus, but has had limited opportunities compared to gus. whilst lecras has played a similar role to gus, but has played it in a much better side.


i know he's not that good, but he has at least shown patches that suggest he will be a godd player. gus only played 3 or 4 good games this year.


you are thinking of the wrong egan. gus wouldn't make west coasts best 25. rosa does


i agree with most of what you say. but i bet you were saying the same thing this time last year.

http://finalsiren.com/PlayerCompare...mpare=Add+to+Comparison&SelectedPlayers=1525,

I was surprised that Tambling stats were anywhere near Monfries'... Tambling will NEVER be any good, he'll be joing Shane Harvey and Andrew Krakeur before too long!

 

[The Donners]

I didn't read every single post but I don't think one name in particular was mentioned or would be mentioned without this post...

Courtney Johns! Mock me now for you will end up with egg on your face!

 

[GoDons]

I didn't read every single post but I don't think one name in particular was mentioned or would be mentioned without this post...

Courtney Johns! Mock me now for you will end up with egg on your face!

100% with you.

I have a feeling things are going to turn for Courtney.

Also have a feeling that Ricky Dyson's going to prove a few people wrong as well.

 

[The Donners]

100% with you.

I have a feeling things are going to turn for Courtney.

Also have a feeling that Ricky Dyson's going to prove a few people wrong as well.

Hope you're right on both counts! I'm starting to get way too excited about our future, I was staying fairly grounded and honest about our list, all of a sudden our list looks pretty darn good and we haven't played a game... in fact that's probably it!!!

 

[Merv]

I didn't read every single post but I don't think one name in particular was mentioned or would be mentioned without this post...

Courtney Johns! Mock me now for you will end up with egg on your face!

I'm mocking you and have absolutely no fear of eggs and would love to have it all over my face.

Excuse me if i don't get the salt and pepper out just yet.

Worst player on our list.

 

[The Donners]

I'm mocking you and have absolutely no fear of eggs and would love to have it all over my face.

Excuse me if i don't get the salt and pepper out just yet.

Worst player on our list.

The thread is "big improvers 08", don't think I said where he sat in comparison to the other players on the list.

IMO, He's no Henneman! He's either going to grow some confidence which is painfully obvious he doesn't playing in the seniors or he'll bust, either way it's his make or break year... I'm tipping make!

 

[The_Young_Gun]

The worst player on our list now is probably either Andrew Lee or Jason Johnson. Definitly not Courtney Johns.

At least Courtney was good enough to get some playing time unlike the above.

 

[Schmick]

The worst player on our list now is probably either Andrew Lee or Jason Johnson. Definitly not Courtney Johns.

At least Courtney was good enough to get some playing time unlike the above.

Lee yes, Jason Johnson???? He has been one of our best players for the past ten years, yes he's declined but he still wouldn't be anywhere near our worst players.

 

[Merv]

The worst player on our list now is probably either Andrew Lee or Jason Johnson. Definitly not Courtney Johns.

At least Courtney was good enough to get some playing time unlike the above.

Speechless

 

[Giggidy Giggidy]

The worst player on our list now is probably either Andrew Lee or Jason Johnson. Definitly not Courtney Johns.

At least Courtney was good enough to get some playing time unlike the above.

JJ is an absolute champion and still has a lot to offer in 2008.

 

[Amazing Bombers]

The worst player on our list now is probably either Andrew Lee or Jason Johnson. Definitly not Courtney Johns.

At least Courtney was good enough to get some playing time unlike the above.

I disagree on Jason Johnson. He's a great player.

 

[Burzum]

Have some people forgotten that Jason Johnson is a gun?