Chopper should be captain

[estibador]

Well maybe not... but I reckon he already just about leads the team when it comes to desperation, willingness to chase and total commitment to putting his body on the line for the team.

Has everyone noticed that when he chases he sprints like his life depends on catching the bloke in front of him? Even when the other guy has a 20 metre headstart and there's very little chance of being caught you can see Chopper sprinting top pace in the background.

He genuinely wants to chase for the team - not one of those 3 quarter pace jogs some players do just to make it look like they are putting in the effort. He really does put in top effort every time.

And some of those last minute spoils and contests he creates when he just throws himself recklessly at the contest... when you thought there was no way he was going to make it... I just love him already.

If the work ethic and desperation shown by he and Palmer are any indication of the qualities we will be looking for in future draftees under Harves then we have a lot to look forward to.

 

[Kram]

Totally agree.

So early but he's showed such great composure and heart, exactly what we need.

 

[chook2734]

I reckon Phil Smart would like this thread Esti. Poor Phil does all the hard work of unearthing a gem in the third round, and you give all the credit to Harvs

Smarty may have got a few wrong over the years, but gee, he's certainly found a couple of pretty good ones in players like Chopper and Nockers.

 

[estibador]

I reckon Phil Smart would like this thread Esti. Poor Phil does all the hard work of unearthing a gem in the third round, and you give all the credit to Harvs

Haha yeah. Full credit to Smart of course.

I'm just referring to the fact that the coaches seem to give an indication to their recruiters about the sort of players they want to target.

Under CC we seemed to go for the sublimely talented types who occasionally had question marks over their work ethic (Collard and Mourish being two recent examples).

But I can't see Harves going for any youngsters unless they fit his requirements of being totally committed team players. All the pre draft reports I've read about Hinkley mention him being a very hard worker for the team as well.

 

[bigkev bleeds purple]

Well maybe not... but I reckon he already just about leads the team when it comes to desperation, willingness to chase and total commitment to putting his body on the line for the team.

Has everyone noticed that when he chases he sprints like his life depends on catching the bloke in front of him? Even when the other guy has a 20 metre headstart and there's very little chance of being caught you can see Chopper sprinting top pace in the background.

He genuinely wants to chase for the team - not one of those 3 quarter pace jogs some players do just to make it look like they are putting in the effort. He really does put in top effort every time.

And some of those last minute spoils and contests he creates when he just throws himself recklessly at the contest... when you thought there was no way he was going to make it... I just love him already.

If the work ethic and desperation shown by he and Palmer are any indication of the qualities we will be looking for in future draftees under Harves then we have a lot to look forward to.

Well said. Some of the things you mentioned there go unnoticed far too often, but I'm glad other people are picking up on them too. Today he got obliterated a few times and needed to take a second or two to remember where he was but then kept on attacking the ball at 110% intensity.

Ever since the South Africa game, I've been excited by this bloke. He's exactly what we need this year. Has anyone else noticed that he's forming a bit of a duo with Jeffrey? Every time Chop gets his hands on it he seems to find Jeff. Twice now he's unselfishly given off to the Wiz when he was in a position to take a shot I reckon he would've nailed.

 

[dugrene]

I'm happy to have Happy as my buddie but chopper is my my knew main man.

 

[Frigate]

It just shows why these guys : Palmer, Mayne, Ibbo and Warnock, should have all played round 1. Mayne and Palmer both improved from their first game. If they all keep getting better and show the work ethic they do it does rub off on the others and lifts the team.

Good things

 

[chook2734]

It just shows why these guys : Palmer, Mayne, Ibbo and Warnock, should have all played round 1. Mayne and Palmer both improved from their first game. If they all keep getting better and show the work ethic they do it does rub off on the others and lifts the team.

Good things

This is what irks me more than anything - supporters who think they know better than the selection committee and coaches who spend every minute of every day with these players

Warnock had a very interrupted pre-season and if you watched him in the game against North, you would have seen he was a long way off match fit. He would have been a liability against the Pies in round 1.

On Ch7s footy panel show, they said that the club felt Palmer was getting a bit ahead of himself and wanted to hold him back (I'm not saying this is the case, but it's a possibiity). A lot of clubs leave debuting a player until they are at home. The benefit of allowing Palmer and Mayne to have 3 games in a row in a familiar environment can't be understimated. They are just kids.

Ibbo tried hard last week, but in all reality, he was not very good (fine for a 2nd game, but he wasn't going to be the difference between a win and a loss)

Have a bit of faith that the people who know what's going on behind the scenes are making the right decisions. The coaching staff are not stupid - they've all been involved in the game for a very long time and have a pretty good understanding of it all.

 

[Nodgey]

Well spotted esti.

At one point Chopper was ordering Sandi about, telling him to move further up the ground, and that he (Chopper) would stand on the mark in his place.

Just a small thing, but it showed a lot. He's got confidence, a footy brain, and you can sense that he feels he belongs in the 22.

He also presented well across half forward, providing a taget for our rebound out of the backline.