Universal Love Dan Houston

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AwwThatsApples

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If he plays like he did yesterday he might be able to sneak into the AA squad.
Too late to make it into the AA team.
Either way, he's been one of our best players this year, glad to have him.
 
Dan The Rocket Man Houston is probably our most improved because he's gone from a reliable kicking defender to a midfield and forward weapon. Tim Ginever called him the new Roger James pre- Essendon game and his skills around the ball support Timmy. His forward play was constructive and clever, that lead between the tall targets was so sexy. Much more Apollo 11 than 13. The Eagle has landed.
 
Mar 1, 2014
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Good work Andrew Capel. Good to see Dan Houston getting some recognition as an elite skill midfielder. Houston has the ability to get the ball and deliver it which is some thing our midfield has lacked since the days of Shaun Burgoyne.

“I think he went at 90 per cent efficiency — that’s what we are looking for in our midfield and have been trying to build towards,” Hinkley said after Port stayed in the finals hunt by upsetting Essendon by 59 points at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.

I am not sure that Dan's elevation to and success in the midfield is such a shock though as Dan has always had the attributes to make a midfielder it was just a case of the Coach realising it.

Just as relevant in this thread.

It is amazing how the non Port supporting media suddenly experience a revelation from the heavens re our players. Most Port supporters have appreciated Dan Houston's disposal and his ability to get the football since his debut year. For some of us a move to the midfield was always on the cards, given the profusion of half backs on our list. It just took the Coach some time to realise what a gem he has on his hands.

I would pass comment on Ken's statement but given last Saturday's triumph I have decided to self impose a 'No Ken Bagging' moratorium until the next team selection.
 
I said back in April, on page 3 of this thread, that we have to get Dan closer to goal so he can improve our goal kicking conversion and that it might not happen until a lot later this season or maybe next season.

I talked about him playing in the midfield and as forward for part of the game. Get his kicking ability closer to goal to hit blokes on the lead as well as have shots on goal himself.

A few people wet their pants and said leave him where he is don't rock the boat. My counter argument was the game is about who has the best stats on the scoreboard, not the best intercept stats and kicking accuracy stats from the backline.

I was thinking Houston on the wing, but he has been fantastic in the middle, on the ball the last 6 or 8 games.

Saturday was a perfect example of what I wanted to see from Dan. Passes it to people inside our 50 and gets far forward enough to kick 2 goals.

First time in his AFL career he has kicked 2 goals - despite being drafted as a forward.

Dan has been a s**t load better in the guts than I expected him to be. He stays there or on the wing. No HBF seagull position or defensive HBF selections for Dan again.

Timmy G is right that he is the new Roger James. Not as tough as the Orchardist, but just as beautifully skilled. Tredders has always talked about loving it when Roger James got the ball, because he knew if he lead, Roger would put it in front of him to run onto, or give him a better than 50/50 chance.

Dunstall talks about Darren Jarman making life easier for him because he would "always" kick it to his advantage.

If you were Dixon, Marshall or any forward, and you saw our mids win the centre clearance, and with the amount of space which the 6-6-6 rule has allowed - who do you want getting the clearance or fed a handball from the clearance? SPP? Wines? Boak? Rockliff? Ebo? or Dan Houston. And its not just for centre clearances.

So lets double up and next year have Houston and Burton regularly in the centre of the ground, especially at centre clearances. Sometimes one or them, sometimes both of them in there, depending on how many mid field bulls the oppo have in there.

That's the future, not our best kicks being wasted at HBF, to deliver beautiful kicks to players who have poor kicks closer to goal but still 50-100m out from goal.
 
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Chrizzt

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While I agree that Houston has been bloody impressive on ball, he's still a support midfielder and I don't think we'd be able to play both him and Burton on ball at the same time.

His lack of height/strength/speed means he liable to being torn apart in contests. However, being supported by guys like Wines/Rockliff/SPP etc. who can do the grunt work gives Houston much more freedom to use his skills on the outside.
 

Tibbs

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While I agree that Houston has been bloody impressive on ball, he's still a support midfielder and I don't think we'd be able to play both him and Burton on ball at the same time.

His lack of height/strength/speed means he liable to being torn apart in contests. However, being supported by guys like Wines/Rockliff/SPP etc. who can do the grunt work gives Houston much more freedom to use his skills on the outside.
Dont get that ... at 185cm/83kg's he is on par with 50% of the A-grade midfielders out there. And Burton at 191cm/90kgs, can become anything! I definitely want those two as as our focal mids driving the ball out of the center in years to come! With players like Amon, and in future Rozee and Duursma to run through the middle, we potentially have a killer midfield group in future years.
 

Marat

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Danny Boy is so composed and forensic with ball in hand. Always seems to take the right option. I also want him playing through the centre and delivering into the 50. Exactly what we have been missing. With Amon transformed, suddenly the skilled outside mix is looking a whole lot better. With the Beard going back and with Marshall as the highly skilled link up / lead up, we are looking a whole lot more dangerous on transition and entry. But back to Dan, third round pick in the rookie draft - with a bit of luck he will play 250 and captain this club - drink to that campaigners
 
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Dont get that ... at 185cm/83kg's he is on par with 50% of the A-grade midfielders out there. And Burton at 191cm/90kgs, can become anything! I definitely want those two as as our focal mids driving the ball out of the center in years to come! With players like Amon, and in future Rozee and Duursma to run through the middle, we potentially have a killer midfield group in future years.

Dan Houston is listed as 187cm but I agree with your argument as I do not have a problem with Houston or Burton's size, after all Dangerfield, Pendlebury, Yeo are all around the 190cm mark and they do not do too badly in the midfield. I can see scope for a new mix in our mid field. We tried to load our midfield with the strong body types like Wines, Powell-Pepper, Rockliff, Ebert and Boak and it has not worked to our advantage so now is the time for a re think and get the mix right. I see Wines, Houston, Powell-Pepper, Burton, Rozee, Amon and Duursma as among our midfield mix into the future. That gives a good blend of height, strength, ball getting ability and accurate delivery.

The upshot is that we may have a couple of big names that will have to move out of the mid field mix and 2020 is probably the year to re cast our midfield. The experience of Travis Boak, Wines and Powell-Pepper probably demands they stay in the midfield mix but I am struggling to see how Motlop, Rockliff, Ebert, Sam Gray also stay in the mix if we want to tansition to youth run and skill. I am also not sure where relatively untried players like Atley and Drew fit. I will not deny that these players have a lot going for them but how many mids can we carry? Maybe a couple of these names go on the trade table come October?

I looked at our list on footywire and we have nineteen players listed as midfielders not including Dan Houston and Ryan Burton and that is a lot of mid field options. Probably half our list are midfield options so there is a need for some players to re invent themselves. It would be great if one of our older midfielders could morph into a Cameron or Walters.
 
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Hong-Kong Phooey

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i dont think he will ever win a Brownlow. Thatsd reserved for explosive guys like dangerfield. What he is a bloody good footballer who will be relied on week in and week out to support the team through ups and downs. Definitley captain material.
 

jakey

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i dont think he will ever win a Brownlow. Thatsd reserved for explosive guys like dangerfield. What he is a bloody good footballer who will be relied on week in and week out to support the team through ups and downs. Definitley captain material.
Priddis and Woewoeful were not 'explosive'.

Nor for that matter are Pendlebury or Tom Mitchell or Sam Mitchell etc.

Not saying Dan will, but if he regularly posts games like Saturday, he very well could.
 

PAFC66

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Was listening to Ginever on the weekend & he said on a number of times that Houston is our next Roger James. Can see similarities. Speaking of which he was a absolute gun.


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Roger James had exceptional foot skills and was as good as inside as he was outside .. he has a long way to go still to get to that level.
 
Roger James had exceptional foot skills and was as good as inside as he was outside .. he has a long way to go still to get to that level.
Houston's foot skills are as good as the Orchardist's. That is what Timmy G was talking about when he made the comparison. He doesn't have Roger's hard ball gets winning ability yet.
 
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Both late bloomers too. Roger was recruited as a mature age wingman and was very nearly delisted before becoming an inside mid and one of our most valuable players in 2001-2004. Houston was recruited with our last rookie selection as an undersized third tall forward (if that makes sense) and has steadily improved until this year where he has improved markedly.

As someone else said, our Most Improved Player this year (Houston, DBJ, Ladhams, Amon) will surely be the most improved Most Improved ever.
 
Tredders has jumped on the bangwagon, probably after Timmy G kept telling him, in the AA box on Saturday, he's the next Roger James and the orchardist always feed him. In his article on line for tomorrow's paper.

With Dan Houston in the midfield, Port Adelaide has eradicated a problem.
But as cliched as it sounds, moving Houston, 22, from defence to the midfield has been a ray of light to an on-ball brigade that has struggled for efficiency this year.The Power’s midfielders have done a lot right this season. Recently, they ranked first for inside-50s and forward-half turnovers, yet they’ve been unable to capitalise on their good work with poor efficiency and execution on goal.But the wheel is starting to turn. Whoever in Port’s coaching group came up with the idea of moving Houston into the midfield should be lauded.
........

After Saturday’s victory, coach Ken Hinkley revealed: “We understand our deficiencies, and Dan was one of our solutions.”

Originally Houston was thrust into Port Adelaide’s midfield training group as a way to improve his contested game. But it wasn’t until the Power lost co-captain Ollie Wines and clearance king Tom Rockliff to injury that Houston’s midfield training wheels were thrown into a game-day role — and the rest is history.
......
You also start to wonder could this be the emergence Port’s next wave of onballers. It doesn’t take much to see with Houston, Amon and rookies Xavier Duursma and Connor Rozee, when he eventually graduates to a genuine midfielder, the future is bright at Alberton.
.....
 
I don’t see the James comparison.

Dan is more mobile and Athletic. I think Dan has a huge white line fever aspect to him.

Can’t pin point a similarity yet
 
I don’t see the James comparison.

Dan is more mobile and Athletic. I think Dan has a huge white line fever aspect to him.

Can’t pin point a similarity yet

More in the mould of Wilson?
 
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