Originally posted by Ford Fairlane
I think an argument can be mounted that some players' development was delayed on a number of fronts. Shaun Burgoyne could have been dropped any time after half way thru the season but he was retained ... was he delaying a player's development? Michael Wilson was good with the Magpies and contributed to the Power, but was he any more deserving of a place in the Power side ahead of say Brett Ebert on anything other than reputation? Hardwick was lucky to be playing league late in the season too. Don't get me wrong, I'm no rap for Kingsley and I would have maintained his delisting. But I don't think all the ills of the world can be laid at his feet. A lot of players came back from injury late in the season and he can only keep one player out. Ultimately that decision comes from higher up than him.
As for keeping Paco for insurance, I have the same view of that as keeping Kingsley for insurance. It won't work. The coach has shown time and again that he will revert to type and select his trusted experienced players when it "matters". It's like that old chestnut about it being harder to get out of the Australian cricket team than into it. Port is like that.
They realise there may be problems if a KP defender falls over, hence the bid for Rawlings in trade week, but thanks to Stevens' intransigence it never happened. Losing the next most likely back up in Morgan was unfortunate then, but he wanted to leave. And I don't blame him. This time around they will be forced to blood young players and rightly so. If they can't play at least we'll know now and won't have to wait around 5 years for a handful of games and still not be sure ....