Free Agency Brad Crouch [joins St Kilda as a RFA for pick 23]

[BigFatNorthFan]

My reasoning is more that to get to that top of table level I believe the Crows would have to be to win a flag in the current restrictions (MCG Grand Final), more elite talent peaking at the same time is necessary. Otherwise its always going to be close but not close enough.

If Adelaide could add say Thilthorpe, Hollands, GWS first rounder -find a way to add second rounder to say Sydney to get Baldwin, Luke Edwards, Tariek Newchurch and James Borlase all in one off season.. yes theres going to be s**t tonne of youth on the list but more experience than GWS had in their startup.
Having added the likes of Doedee, Milera, Galluci (jury is out), Fogarty, Jones, McHenry, Hamill, McAsey, Schoenberg, Worrell (All top 30 picks) in 5 off seasons.. there is plenty of talent coming through for Adelaide to be without another very good player given this talent will need gametime.
Maybe Adelaide finishes bottom 2 in 2021.. but add that top 2 pick, with Isaiah Dudley (NGA) and all of a sudden there is more top end talent on the Crows list then at any time in its history bar perhaps 1991.

Okay yeah, I can see the logic there - Crouch probably isn't the player I'd want to get rid of, but he's the only one where you'd potentially get the currency you need to land someone like Thilthorpe or Hollands. If you're finishing bottom four and getting Band 1 compensation, it makes a kind of sense.

 

[Mego Red]

This.

Brisbane won't be genuine premiership contenders until 2021 in my view.
5 years.

Sure - I'd just think the rebuild started two years ago instead of now.

 

[Mego Red]

Okay yeah, I can see the logic there - Crouch probably isn't the player I'd want to get rid of, but he's the only one where you'd potentially get the currency you need to land someone like Thilthorpe or Hollands. If you're finishing bottom four and getting Band 1 compensation, it makes a kind of sense.

I'd be curious whether briztoon would trade their first for Rory Laird?

 

[DangerSloane]

I'd be curious whether briztoon would trade their first for Rory Laird?

I'd be much happier to trade Laird than crouch to be honest (or FA or whatever method)

 

[briztoon]

I'd be much happier to trade Laird than crouch to be honest (or FA or whatever method)

With Zac Williams coming in for free, and drafting and trading in four small and medium defenders, there’s not much need for Laird any more.

 

[DangerSloane]

With Zac Williams coming in for free, and drafting and trading in four small and medium defenders, there’s not much need for Laird any more.

Totally fair although i see them as quite different players.

There would be interest from elsewhere you'd think.

 

[Wickzki]

With Zac Williams coming in for free, and drafting and trading in four small and medium defenders, there’s not much need for Laird any more.

Hard to get multiple quality small and medium defenders. They're not as plentiful as you'd like to get that many of them in all at once.

 

[Sinjin Smith]

With Zac Williams coming in for free, and drafting and trading in four small and medium defenders, there’s not much need for Laird any more.

Zac Williams??? When did this happen?

 

[BigFatNorthFan]

I'd be curious whether briztoon would trade their first for Rory Laird?

I think you could definitely get a first-rounder for Rory Laird, but top 5 is probably unlikely. Better chance would be letting him walk as an FA at the end of 2021.

He's also in the "only 26" basket though which surprised me, feels like he's been around longer than that.

 

[briztoon]

Totally fair although i see them as quite different players.

There would be interest from elsewhere you'd think.

See my answer to the next post.

Hard to get multiple quality small and medium defenders. They're not as plentiful as you'd like to get that many of them in all at once.

In the last two years Brisbane has:

Drafted in:
Noah Answerth - small general defender.
Jaxon Prior - medium rebound defender.
Brock Smith - medium general defender.

Traded in:
Callum Ah Chee - small rebound defender.
Grant Birchall - medium general defender.

Plus we already have Daniel Rich and Alex Witherden as small and medium defenders, and an Irish rookie, James Madden, we have been training as a rebound defender, and he’s the fastest player on our list.

Zac Williams??? When did this happen?

After the season finishes and we have a trade and free agency period.

 

[Sinjin Smith]

See my answer to the next post.



In the last two years Brisbane has:

Drafted in:
Noah Answerth - small general defender.
Jaxon Prior - medium rebound defender.
Brock Smith - medium general defender.

Traded in:
Callum Ah Chee - small rebound defender.
Grant Birchall - medium general defender.

Plus we already have Daniel Rich and Alex Witherden as small and medium defenders, and an Irish rookie, James Madden, we have been training as a rebound defender, and he’s the fastest player on our list.



After the season finishes and we have a trade and free agency period.

So he has told Brissie he's coming over, it is 100% done and this is public?

 

[Elmer_Judd]

I reckon Brouch would have been out the door if The Crows knew they were getting either Lukosius or Rankine, now that that isn't a possibility (for at least 3 years), the Crows will retain him, even only a 3 year deal (no one way doe he get 5 years now IMHO)

 

[briztoon]

So he has told Brissie he's coming over, it is 100% done and this is public?

Of course not.

 

[Sinjin Smith]

Of course not.

Well you did state that Mr Williams is coming in for free........

No need for Laird....apparently

 

[philthy05]

Five years seems long. We're a couple of years into a rebuild so far. I'd think we go deep into a couple of drafts, then look to a third year where we start to pick up a free agent or two, and we're competing by year four.

most teams spend 10-20 years rebuilding from the bottom which the crows only just reached. For example isn’t this Brisbane’s first chance at a contending team since the early 2000’s?


when you hit on multiple draft picks building a core ie some top 15 of list players 2-3 years in a row you’re probably then 3-5 years away.

 

[briztoon]

Well you did state that Mr Williams is coming in for free........

No need for Laird....apparently

I did.

 

[Giant Strides]

hyperbole
/hʌɪˈpəːbəli/

noun

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.


wishful thinking
/ˌwɪʃ.fəl ˈθɪŋ.kɪŋ/

noun

the imagining or discussion of a very unlikely future event or situation as if it were possible and might one day happen

 

[briztoon]

most teams spend 10-20 years rebuilding from the bottom which the crows only just reached. For example isn’t this Brisbane’s first chance at a contending team since the early 2000’s?


when you hit on multiple draft picks building a core ie some top 15 of list players 2-3 years in a row you’re probably then 3-5 years away.

Yes we’ve been lost in the woods for a long time.

Realistically, our current rebuild started when Noble took over at the end of 2016, just before the trade and draft period.

We also traded out for first round picks, or let a player walk for the compo pick, Hanley, Rockliff and Beams in successive years.

But each of those players were realistically worn down and done physically.

We haven’t traded out any of the older players who can still offer something to the team. Martin, Rich, Robinson and Zorko.

The 2016 draft class will probably be the core of our next contending team.

I’m not sure we’re genuine contenders yet. Maybe another two seasons

Ideally I would have liked one more high draft pick, to add one more young potential match winner.

We only have two, McCluggage and Rayner.

 

[briztoon]

hyperbole
/hʌɪˈpəːbəli/

noun

exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.


wishful thinking
/ˌwɪʃ.fəl ˈθɪŋ.kɪŋ/

noun

the imagining or discussion of a very unlikely future event or situation as if it were possible and might one day happen

A lot of A and a little bit of B.

 

[Mego Red]

most teams spend 10-20 years rebuilding from the bottom which the crows only just reached. For example isn’t this Brisbane’s first chance at a contending team since the early 2000’s?


when you hit on multiple draft picks building a core ie some top 15 of list players 2-3 years in a row you’re probably then 3-5 years away.

We've rebuilt multiple times. The Crows have been in flag contention in roughly six year cycles for the last 30 years.

 

[DangerSloane]

We've rebuilt multiple times. The Crows have been in flag contention in roughly six year cycles for the last 30 years.

Here come the "but if you dont win it all it doesnt matter" crowd.
I see their point but as ive said before youve gotta be around the mark to have any chance.

Bulldogs were around the mark in 16 and things fell their way bigtime.

 

[Thetrader15]

Here come the "but if you dont win it all it doesnt matter" crowd.
I see their point but as ive said before youve gotta be around the mark to have any chance.

Bulldogs were around the mark in 16 and things fell their way bigtime.

You rang?

Do I play the 'Who are the most successful clubs of the last 20 years" card now or later?

 

[Thetrader15]

Here come the "but if you dont win it all it doesnt matter" crowd.
I see their point but as ive said before youve gotta be around the mark to have any chance.

Bulldogs were around the mark in 16 and things fell their way bigtime.

But if you've been around the mark for 150 years and never got there, you need to look at why you didn't win it. If you just do the Neil Craig 'we just keep putting ourselves in that position and things will change' approach, you're not going to get there unless all the other 7 teams fall over.

You need to say 'ok, we haven't won because of a, b and c, so we change things and overcome that'.

• It might be 'we didn't have enough match winners', so you go and buy / draft a Dustin Martin / Gary Ablett / Lance Franklin, and that would mean changing your salary cap strategy to accommodate them (unless you are gifted FS picks, but that only happens for Vic teams)
• It could be 'we didn't have enough emphasis on opposition plans and how to overcome them' -> go and get a great oppo strategist(s) and pay them for it, breaking the soft cap and paying tax if you need to.
• Maybe we handball too much in finals (*cough Neil Craig cough*) -> even if it works well in minor rounds, you need to change it.
• We need greater depth, so you need to play more players during the year and not stick to the same 25 in case you get injuries during the finals series (*cough Don Pyke cough*)

Playing in finals is great, but what did Malcolm Blight say about dancing with your sister?

 

[DangerSloane]

But if you've been around the mark for 150 years and never got there, you need to look at why you didn't win it. If you just do the Neil Craig 'we just keep putting ourselves in that position and things will change' approach, you're not going to get there unless all the other 7 teams fall over.

You need to say 'ok, we haven't won because of a, b and c, so we change things and overcome that'.

• It might be 'we didn't have enough match winners', so you go and buy / draft a Dustin Martin / Gary Ablett / Lance Franklin, and that would mean changing your salary cap strategy to accommodate them (unless you are gifted FS picks, but that only happens for Vic teams)
• It could be 'we didn't have enough emphasis on opposition plans and how to overcome them' -> go and get a great oppo strategist(s) and pay them for it, breaking the soft cap and paying tax if you need to.
• Maybe we handball too much in finals (*cough Neil Craig cough*) -> even if it works well in minor rounds, you need to change it.
• We need greater depth, so you need to play more players during the year and not stick to the same 25 in case you get injuries during the finals series (*cough Don Pyke cough*)

Playing in finals is great, but what did Malcolm Blight say about dancing with your sister?

1 team wins it every year out of 18.
Ive never seen a team win a grand final from 9th.

If you're not around the mark you cant win it, period.
The more often you're there, the more often you have a ticket in the draw.

Better teams have more tickets, sure, but if you're not there you dont have any.

A lot of those things simply arent possible. I would say even at our best in 2017 there's no way any of the top 15 players in the competition would come to the club no matter what the offer. I'd challenge you to name one, because the 3 you've named would never step foot in Adelaide regardless of offer or position. Ablett was handed the house, the car, the keys and as much money as he could imagine at gold coast and he couldnt wait to get out of there.

I get your concerns and agree that the club needs a shift in philosophy and it may take a little while, but that does not take away from the overall point here.
Crouch's age means if the job is done properly we are well and truly competing at his peak.

 

[Thetrader15]

1 team wins it every year out of 18.
Ive never seen a team win a grand final from 9th.

If you're not around the mark you cant win it, period.
The more often you're there, the more often you have a ticket in the draw.

Better teams have more tickets, sure, but if you're not there you dont have any.

A lot of those things simply arent possible. I would say even at our best in 2017 there's no way any of the top 15 players in the competition would come to the club no matter what the offer. I'd challenge you to name one, because the 3 you've named would never step foot in Adelaide regardless of offer or position. Ablett was handed the house, the car, the keys and as much money as he could imagine at gold coast and he couldnt wait to get out of there.

I get your concerns and agree that the club needs a shift in philosophy and it may take a little while, but that does not take away from the overall point here.
Crouch's age means if the job is done properly we are well and truly competing at his peak.

Who would have though Ablett would go to GC? Who would have thought Franklin would go to Sydney?

It takes innovation to win, not just multiple tickets in the draw. I'd rather 15/18 tickets in 1 year than 1 ticket a year for 15 years.

If players don't come here, then you need to find out why and do something about it. I think it we offered Grundy $1.5m for 7 years, he's coming over, but you don't wait for Collingwood not to do the deal. You work on it aggressively as soon as you realise you need a ruckman (for example)