Essendon's Depth

[TheCoach]

Brisbane's depth anyone? I don't think they have much and no one talks about them. Sydney's depth on the other hand is excellent. No name players but they get the job done.

 

[M29]

Essendon did OK for what talent they had out there.

For a half, yes.

 

[Longy413]

Brisbane's depth anyone? I don't think they have much and no one talks about them. Sydney's depth on the other hand is excellent. No name players but they get the job done.

Actually thought the same thing today when I watched their game on Fox. I guess four grand finals in four years takes the pressure off a bit.

 

[Tas]

We won't be very good this year, not on the basis of yesterdays game, unless you thought it was amusing seeing Henneman and Hunt standing next to each other in the forward line.

Carlton were equally as appalling in parts, missing simple set shots. The advantage they have on us is their coach had the balls to play youngsters for quarters at a time last year, instead of playing them for 10 mins and dragging them.

Dennis had no options. With so many players retiring and being unable to draft good players for a while he was pretty much forced to play a lot of kids in positions they were probably not quite ready for. They have done well so far but trust me, if Dennis had a good senior player with 100+ games experience available he would not put a kid up in front of them. He would make them earn their spot. He had to do a lot of improvising in less than perfect circumstances and he has done a pretty good job and got a good result so far.

Sheedy has the option to blood younger kids and not be as competitive and more than likely drop out of the finals or force the kids to earn their position when they are good enough and remain the most competitive team over a sustained period of success.

No club that has just abandoned senior players for youth has yet to win a premiership so who is to say it is the right thing to do?

 

[MOJOE]

No club that has just abandoned senior players for youth has yet to win a premiership so who is to say it is the right thing to do?

1993???

 

[MrAaron]

For a half, yes.

when thre are 3 inept umpires umpiring the game that willingly give out well over 50% of the match goals as free kicks that result in goals and the amount of free kicks overall were I think from memory pretty much over 40, the umpires have a very long long season ahead.

its only the end of teh 1st week and the umpires are already crap !

 

[Tas]

I think a lot of the Essendon young players showed a lot in the game against Carlton, there are a lot of positives there. For a half they were very competitive. The bomber young players do not have the same experience as Carlton's and are a few years behind most of them so the result was pretty good.

There are quite a few kids that showed the potential to make good AFL level players but they won't really get a whole lot of game time for the Bombers until they prove they are good enough.

Young players that need to work on their basic skill levels, their fitness levels and their overall strength and match fitness can do that at VFL level, there is no need to give them 40 or 50 rubbish level AFL games IF you have senior players that will do a better job of it.

For the handful of kids that are ready to go the year after they are drafted it is fine to let them loose, like Judd, but the vast majority of kids are just not up to football at AFL level until they are 20+

 

[Tas]

1993???

Kids like Watson?

Harvey was.. 27 or 28... Long was what 24. Thompson was 30, Wallis was 24,

Yeah, that team was very young but was full of awesome players. They were not getting games because there was nobody better to play in those positions but were very talented.

The baby bombers was just in reference to the likes of Hird, Wanganeen, Fletcher and Misiti that were around 20 years old and were playing fantastic football that year.

There was a hell of a lot of experience in that side still.

 

[pazza]

Zaccy's whacking off over a glorified practice match and 2/3rds of the sheep decided to follow. Nice to see nothing's changed.

 

[MOJOE]

Kids like Watson?

Harvey was.. 27 or 28... Long was what 24. Thompson was 30, Wallis was 24,

Yeah, that team was very young but was full of awesome players. They were not getting games because there was nobody better to play in those positions but were very talented.

The baby bombers was just in reference to the likes of Hird, Wanganeen, Fletcher and Misiti that were around 20 years old and were playing fantastic football that year.

There was a hell of a lot of experience in that side still.

The Baby Bombers: Calthorpe, Mercuri, Wanganeen, Misiti, Olarenshaw, Hird, Fletcher, Hills - and they were in the premiership team! 8 players who had been playing in bursts for 2yrs, in and out of the side. Add to that list the likes of Alessio and Hardwick - who were in and around the team during the Baby Bomber period.

Of course we had players like Thompson, Watson and Harvey - all teams have them - but rarely do you see a Premiership team with so many 'under 22's' in the team. I doubt it will happen again - but you never know! It was a flag we pinched - with North and Geelong clearly awesome outfits that year (along with Carlton) - but we'll take it!

 

[Chodders]

1993 - A very weak year that. Ess beat a young Carlton side. Nth was on top for most of the year under new coach Pagan but was bundled out in a final due to inexperience. The premiers from the year before suffered a bit of a hang over, hawthorn was on the way down and the fast finishing Geelong who I think beat every side in the 6 just missed out on the finals because Collingwood failed to beat Adelaide in Adelaide.

 

[Milanista]

Rob Shaw said on SEN that Watson was knocked out at the start of the game hence why he didn't have an impact on the game!

 

[eddiesmith]

Has he been knocked out early in all his games he has played? Or do they have other excuses for his pathetic efforts

Watson is a total dud

 

[Blues_Man]

when thre are 3 inept umpires umpiring the game that willingly give out well over 50% of the match goals as free kicks that result in goals and the amount of free kicks overall were I think from memory pretty much over 40, the umpires have a very long long season ahead.

its only the end of teh 1st week and the umpires are already crap !

 

[Tas]

The Baby Bombers: Calthorpe, Mercuri, Wanganeen, Misiti, Olarenshaw, Hird, Fletcher, Hills - and they were in the premiership team! 8 players who had been playing in bursts for 2yrs, in and out of the side. Add to that list the likes of Alessio and Hardwick - who were in and around the team during the Baby Bomber period.

Of course we had players like Thompson, Watson and Harvey - all teams have them - but rarely do you see a Premiership team with so many 'under 22's' in the team. I doubt it will happen again - but you never know! It was a flag we pinched - with North and Geelong clearly awesome outfits that year (along with Carlton) - but we'll take it!

My point is the modern era baby teams have very little experience in them. St Kilda do not have 10 or more senior players with a lot of experience. Geelong do not. West Coast do not. Fremantle do not. Essendon did well because they had a good blend of experience and youth. Port kept stumbling during the finals without that experience. Finals are tough for a team without a lot experience.

It is why I agree with the old school method of coaching. You might get a year or two less football out of a player but when they come in they will earn their spot and you need a good foundation of experience in a side.

 

[iameviljez]

The Baby Bombers: Calthorpe, Mercuri, Wanganeen, Misiti, Olarenshaw, Hird, Fletcher, Hills - and they were in the premiership team! 8 players who had been playing in bursts for 2yrs, in and out of the side. Add to that list the likes of Alessio and Hardwick - who were in and around the team during the Baby Bomber period.

Of course we had players like Thompson, Watson and Harvey - all teams have them - but rarely do you see a Premiership team with so many 'under 22's' in the team. I doubt it will happen again - but you never know! It was a flag we pinched - with North and Geelong clearly awesome outfits that year (along with Carlton) - but we'll take it!

What a ********ing waste of talent that was for us. WCE were suffering their premiership hangover (after winning the bloody thing from third), Carlton and North weren't quite good enough yet but starting to get there, Hawthorn were on the way down, Couch, Hocking, Bairstow, Hinkley, Stoneham and Ablett were all pretty much at the peak of their powers and we still didn't make the six even though we came home like a steam train. Most Geelong supporters would swear that if they had introduced the eight a year earlier we would've won the bloody thing from 7th - that's maybe going a bit too far but that's the year we should've won. The most even year I've seen - including 1997. Don't forget that Carlton went in favourites to that GF.
Kudos to the Baby Bombers though. It's a pretty fair side, that, with Long, Misiti, Harvey, Thompson, Mercuri and of course Hird running through the middle.

 

[topdon]

1993 - A very weak year that.

A weak year? It was one of the most even years on record!!

 

[Longy413]

Has he been knocked out early in all his games he has played? Or do they have other excuses for his pathetic efforts

Watson is a total dud

I know you were on holidays in September, but Watson pulled us back into the game against Geelong in the finals last season. The incident where he got knocked out, he saw the hit coming, took it and delivered a sublime handball in traffic that set up a goal to Lucas.

 

[Jaymin]

Once again great to see the Dons written off in February. When will you poor deluded fools learn?

The simple fact is that had Lloyd and Hird played yesterday Essendon would have won.

Robert Shaw even tipped Carlton on Friday afternoon.

 

[Longy413]

Once again great to see the Dons written off in February. When will you poor deluded fools learn?

The simple fact is that had Lloyd and Hird played yesterday Essendon would have won.

Robert Shaw even tipped Carlton on Friday afternoon.

Don't think it is that simple. Carlton are putting together a very tidy unit. Even with Hird and Lloyd in we still would have had to have been at the top of our game to win.

 

[local]

But our depth players were also missing. Mark Alvey, Ty Zantuck, Ben Haynes and Ted Richards also didn't play. Those four aren't in our best 22, but certainly are when Hird, Lloyd, Johnson, Johnson and Rioli are missing. We also lost Rama before quarter time.

How do you know Zantuck is any good? He hasn't played a game for Essendon yet!

 

[Longy413]

How do you know Zantuck is any good? He hasn't played a game for Essendon yet!

So you didn't have an opinion of Nathan Brown prior to 2004?

 

[Pevers-Legend]

Well if the logic on this thread is anything to go by, it must mean Brisbane and Sydney too are alos gawn for the year. They must be joining Essendon at the bottom of the table.

I didn't realise the wizzer cup form was so definitive on the season ahead.

Yes we were outplayed and yes the kids weren't that great, but thats what happens when you have no leadership out there cause they 90% of the leaders are in the stands. Its amazing how much kids can improve with more senior core players around them.

write us off when we lose badly to Melbourne, until then - just keep sprogging off to whatever makes you happy.

by the by does this mean we are going to finish last if we lose another practice match?

 

[nonchalance]

unless you thought it was amusing seeing Henneman and Hunt standing next to each other in the forward line.

Didn't you?

 

[local]

So you didn't have an opinion of Nathan Brown prior to 2004?

You can't compare Brown to Zantuck.
Brown was already a top player? Zantuck? We'll see this year how good he is.