Remove this Banner Ad

Player Watch Darcy Cameron

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Jen2310 said:
I think with Grundy back, they have a real opportunity to ease up on Brodie's workload. Has had to bear it mostly alone, but now with Cameron having proven he is capable; I hope we see some of the ruck split a little bit. Unlike Lynch, Cameron is able to play forward.
Click to expand...

sr36 said:
Just little things - as well as the standard Grundy rest, put Cameron in the ruck when the opposition have momentum, or when a defensive tall is having a spell, because he's so good at defending those hotspot balls.
Click to expand...
Yep. Grundy can work on his defensive stuff, filling holes and taking marks. Then we have ourselves a Gawn/Jackson type double ruck proposition. Very very handy!
 
Jen2310 said:
I think with Grundy back, they have a real opportunity to ease up on Brodie's workload. Has had to bear it mostly alone, but now with Cameron having proven he is capable; I hope we see some of the ruck split a little bit. Unlike Lynch, Cameron is able to play forward.
Click to expand...

Yep..... grundy will have the opportunity/challenge to reinvent himself a bit if he shares the ruck burden more equally.
 
Timmy from Thomastown said:
Yep..... grundy will have the opportunity/challenge to reinvent himself a bit if he shares the ruck burden more equally.
Click to expand...

Yep if we move the mix from 85/15 to 70/30 or even 60/40 then Grundy can develop another string to his bow which he’s going to need to do to play into his 30’s.

We also become less predictable which is always a bonus.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
Give the Grundy/Cameron combo some time to develop

Grundy need not ruck for 82% game time as he has averaged this year

Secondly… this talk of trading Grundy ignores that there is

1. No incentive for Grundy to agree to leave

2. Which means they’d have to force him out…

I think the club won’t be repeating the 2020 trade period again

Stephenson, Phillips and the Treloar trade in particular was messy, costly and really undermined the faith had in the football dept

Grundy is here to stay
 

Log in to remove this Banner Ad

whiskeytown said:
Give the Grundy/Cameron combo some time to develop

Grundy need not ruck for 82% game time as he has averaged this year

Secondly… this talk of trading Grundy ignores that there is

1. No incentive for Grundy to agree to leave

2. Which means they’d have to force him out…

I think the club won’t be repeating the 2020 trade period again

Stephenson, Phillips and the Treloar trade in particular was messy, costly and really undermined the faith had in the football dept

Grundy is here to stay
Click to expand...
Add Aish to that the prior year. Another player we had targeted since draft day, finally landed, and he was the first one flicked when salary cap pressures started to loom.
 
Timmy from Thomastown said:
Yep..... grundy will have the opportunity/challenge to reinvent himself a bit if he shares the ruck burden more equally.
Click to expand...

Necessity is the mother of invention.

Grundy will have to add strings to his bow and this is a great problem to have.

It's an opportunity that could lead to a renewed zest for the game from the player and a new competitive edge for the club.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Wow. Grundy’s won 2x AA’s and 2x Copelands off the back of huge ruck workloads and posters think giving him less time in the ruck is somehow a good idea.
Click to expand...

It's an opportunity.

What worked for Grundy in the past is no longer successful. We have seen that over the last couple of years.

He can work just as hard as before but perhaps the stints won't be as long.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Wow. Grundy’s won 2x AA’s and 2x Copelands off the back of huge ruck workloads and posters think giving him less time in the ruck is somehow a good idea.
Click to expand...

Playing him for less than 82% in the ruck will hurt… ? When clearly Cameron is a capable ruck?

Perhaps a little less game time might improve Grundys impact when on the ground

You cite all those AA’s and Copelands… when did he last win one ?
 
sr36 said:
The problem for Grundy is that his ball use and decision making stopped improving and has gone a bit backwards due to the league wide ramping up of pressure. I don't think McRae would want him receiving on the spread from the contest.
Click to expand...

Grundy needs to handball as a first option. He is good at getting to and winning the ground ball but can't kick under pressure. I think it's a matter putting away his kicks unless in space or with no receiving options.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Wow. Grundy’s won 2x AA’s and 2x Copelands off the back of huge ruck workloads and posters think giving him less time in the ruck is somehow a good idea.
Click to expand...

His strengths lie in his around the ground competiveness, not necessarily his ruckwork. I’m sure there’s a balance there somewhere. I don’t think people are calling for wholesale changes… maybe 85% ruck down to 70 or 60%. A bit more bench time to keep him fresher too.
 
Mollythedolly said:
I think people are getting a little carried away with Cameron’s form. IMHO there’ll be no hesitation installing Grundy back into the number 1 ruck role when he returns. Zero.
Click to expand...

We'll find out over the next several weeks if it was a fluke or not. I saw Camerons numbers from the weekend and thought that could well be the best game he ever has in his career. I must say I do like his marking around the ground and I'd expect that to continue.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

jathanas said:
It's an opportunity.

What worked for Grundy in the past is no longer successful. We have seen that over the last couple of years.

He can work just as hard as before but perhaps the stints won't be as long.
Click to expand...

stormskye said:
Even Stepho performed well in 18/19. He’s not that player atm. Will that change? Don’t know
Click to expand...

whiskeytown said:
Playing him for less than 82% in the ruck will hurt… ? When clearly Cameron is a capable ruck?

Perhaps a little less game time might improve Grundys impact when on the ground

You cite all those AA’s and Copelands… when did he last win one ?
Click to expand...

Timmy from Thomastown said:
His strengths lie in his around the ground competiveness, not necessarily his ruckwork. I’m sure there’s a balance there somewhere. I don’t think people are calling for wholesale changes… maybe 85% ruck down to 70 or 60%. A bit more bench time to keep him fresher too.
Click to expand...
Happy for you all to think what you like but imho Grundy will resume his number 1 ruck role as soon as he’s able to, and he’ll play at his typical 75+% tog in that role. Cameron’s actual ruckwork not even in the same discussion as Grundy’s. Even Cox is better imho. He may improve in time but at nearly 27 I’m not confident of that. A few extra marks around the ground don’t go anywhere near offsetting the reduced hitouts and clearances to justify it. Onus is on Cameron to continue making an impact forward and much reduced 2nd ruck opportunity.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Happy for you all to think what you like but imho Grundy will resume his number 1 ruck role as soon as he’s able to, and he’ll play at his typical 75+% tog in that role. Cameron’s actual ruckwork not even in the same discussion as Grundy’s. Even Cox is better imho. He may improve in time but at nearly 27 I’m not confident of that. A few extra marks around the ground don’t go anywhere near offsetting the reduced hitouts and clearances to justify it. Onus is on Cameron to continue making an impact forward and much reduced 2nd ruck opportunity.
Click to expand...

It's so hard to value. I suspect you're right, but not sure that all coaches would agree.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Happy for you all to think what you like but imho Grundy will resume his number 1 ruck role as soon as he’s able to, and he’ll play at his typical 75+% tog in that role. Cameron’s actual ruckwork not even in the same discussion as Grundy’s. Even Cox is better imho. He may improve in time but at nearly 27 I’m not confident of that. A few extra marks around the ground don’t go anywhere near offsetting the reduced hitouts and clearances to justify it. Onus is on Cameron to continue making an impact forward and much reduced 2nd ruck opportunity.
Click to expand...

We all want to see the best of Grundy again. On that I think we can agree.

Thanks for having the class to explain your position without resorting to :thumbsdown:.
 
Quicky said:
We'll find out over the next several weeks if it was a fluke or not. I saw Camerons numbers from the weekend and thought that could well be the best game he ever has in his career. I must say I do like his marking around the ground and I'd expect that to continue.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I’m not concerned about his around the ground work, that’s improving week by week. His ruckwork isn’t though.
 
Mollythedolly said:
Yeah, I’m not concerned about his around the ground work, that’s improving week by week. His ruckwork isn’t though.
Click to expand...

This is the point where the conversation becomes grey as sr alluded.

There's a train of thought that pure ruckwork is important but not critically important. This goes back as far as Leigh Matthews.

Grundy was valued highly more because of his roving and the work he did around the ball, less so by how good his tap-work was. Arguably, Witts was his equal as a ruck in that respect and the club was prepared to let him walk cheaply.

I do see your point though and agree that Grundy has been harshly judged because we're always reconciling his contribution with his salary; a futile exercise.

EDIT: This is the Cameron thread and as such we should focus on him, or at least conclude our posts with how they relate to him. Obviously, with my point above if you take the L. Matthews view the work that Cameron does as a forward is just as if not more valuable than the ruckwork.
 
Last edited:

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Timmy from Thomastown said:
If Grundy came back next week, Cox has made a statement. Cameron has serious competition.
Click to expand...
Really by the same token so does Grundy because if Cox and Cameron keep performing at this level atm, then Brodie has to force his way in which not many foresaw happening, a great problem to have really.
 
gouki88 said:
He looked seriously at home. Extend him asap!
Click to expand...
Growing into his role quite well, there were a few who thought he might get smashed this week but he held his own and it will do wonders for his confidence and there is no way Gawn and Jackson are inexperience rucks. I love the way he is growing in stature and competition for spots makes everyone better.
 
Hi Pies fans,

I write AFL analysis with video breakdowns that are sent to big AFL fans each week. During the bye rounds, I decided to focus on a few player profiles on interesting players and the impact they are having on their side.

Darcy Cameron was the focus last week.

I'll only post half the article here as it's long. If you'd like to read the full article - please click here Player Profile

If you like this kind of analysis, please subscribe to the newsletter! (it's free)

​

Darcy Cameron’s development​

‍
All Darcy Cameron needed was an opportunity to thrive in his primary position. Fortunately for him, that opportunity arose in Round 7 when Brodie Grundy went down with a PCL injury that would sideline him for many months.

‍
What do we make of Darcy Cameron?

‍Firstly, it's clear over the last month and a half that Cameron’s a ruckman first, forward second. But the latter had been his predominant position given the realities of Collingwood’s ruck division That is no longer the case. Cameron has assumed the primary ruck position immediately after Grundy went down.

‍
Collingwood are now 5-2 since the Grundy injury. Now, there’s a myriad of reasons why Collingwood are surging towards an unexpected finals campaign under new coach Craig McRae. Some of those reasons were dissected earlier this year.

‍
Yet, it's apparent that Cameron's emergence has provided significant value to this Collingwood group, as he has transformed into a top line AFL ruck men. Much of his contribution is similar to Grundy's output, yet there are some clear differences in his game that has unlocked other aspects of Collingwood's game.

‍

Let’s dive deeper:

The Ground Level Work​

‍

Much of what we came to love about Brodie Grundy has transferred onto Cameron. The desire and work rate to act as another midfielder at ground level, both when Collingwood don't have the ball and when it is in dispute, has been a hallmark of Cameron’s last two months.

‍

Cameron has averaged 5.14 tackles per game since the role change, which would rank him among the top 25 tacklers in the entire AFL!

‍

To signify how impressive that is for a 204cm ruckman, the only other key position player inside the top 25 is the positionless Mark Blicavs. The rest are all midfielders.

‍

His second and third efforts to either create a stoppage restart or cause a turnover has been so valuable for Collingwood, who have become lethal in transition on turnover this year. He effectively acts as an additional midfielder with his tackling pressure.

‍

‍

He is terrific below his knees for a big man, distributing handballs out to his midfielders and beginning offensive chains. Since Round 7, Cameron has averaged 5.42 scoring launches per game.

‍

That would rank him as the best player in the AFL by a large margin.

‍

It's because of his length to win advantageous hit outs and due to his ability to win clearances (3.4 since Round 7 ranked top 10) and generate intercept possessions (3.5 since Round 7 ranked top 5) that ranks him so highly in scoring launches.

‍

FYI - Score launches are scoring chains launched by an intercept possession, free kick, hitouts to advantage or clearance.

‍

Effectively, Collingwood has hardly lost any of Grundy’s ground work grunt with Cameron, however, Cameron provides his own unique qualities that Collingwood have greatly benefitted from.

‍‍

Aerial threat​

‍

Aerially, Cameron is an imposing figure for opposition teams to navigate around. He ranks 7th in the AFL for contested marks per game and has terrific positioning and running patterns that work hand in hand.

‍

He places himself in impactful spots to be a bail out option down the line AND can act as a safety net behind the ball when Collingwood have dominant field position, similar to a Max Gawn with Melbourne.

‍

This is Cameron’s biggest strength and it allows Collingwood to play more of a forward half game, knowing that they have Cameron patrolling a kick behind. When Collingwood's pressure is up, Cameron's intercept ability to rebound back into offense kills teams.

‍

It isn't just from the forward half either, which gets back to my point about Cameron's running patterns. Here is a compilation from the same game of Cameron intercepting Hawthorn's forward advances from a range of different positions on the ground:

‍


Cameron's a key part of the reason why Collingwood is currently ranked #1 for intercepts in the AFL.

‍
Cameron’s had games of 3, 4 and 5 intercept marks in his last 7 weeks, attesting to his ability to generate turnovers for Collingwood in the air.

‍
It's a rare skill combination for a tall ruckman to possess. Collingwood is able to leverage Cameron in a variety of ways, both at ground level and in the air.

‍
What this results in is a very high floor for Cameron's performances week to week. He has been uber consistent since taking over the sole ruck position, a kind of consistency that Grundy has struggled to maintain in recent years.

‍
There has to be a correlation between Cameron's emergence and Collingwood’s recent performances, even if considered minor.

‍
Nevertheless, Cameron’s impact doesn’t stop there.

Full Article Above
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Similar threads

thebaldfacts
Will possible changes to ruck rules help or hinder Cameron
Replies
5
Views
420
The Phantom
The Phantom

Remove this Banner Ad

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Back
Top Bottom