I was just thinking about our 'new' midfield, and how it might develop in a couple of years into a really good outfit.
Pagan was right when he said that we didn't have sufficient depth to help Kouta & Campo in the 'engine room' (an area that Carlton has really prided itself on in the past), and when you look at all the good teams going around, especially brisbane, they seem to have outstanding midfields.. And players who can step up in rotation and when there are injuries.
So our midfield goes:
Kouta - Its hard to see Mr Magnetic Hands turning into the dasher 2000 again, his role under Pagan this year was the 'in & under' player in the absence of Ratts. & he did it pretty magnificently too.
Campo - Got belted around a bit last season, and with some support should lift and give more of those arrow-straight runs and piercing kicks in 2004.
Hulmey - Was a bit injured at stages, but played alright with usual courage and grit. You can tell that Pagan loves him, and he should step up as well with more quality players around him.
Houlihan - The best kick in the side isn't explosively quick, but has good evasive skills. I reckon he's being groomed in the Campo role - provide a bit more run, and get his hands on the ball because his skills are so high (remember that goal this year against essendon from the boundary - with a wet ball?). I remember walls saying once that Carlton has a high regard for him, and once he develops the tackling and one-percenter side to his game he could potentially be a brownlow medallist. He should be in the action a bit more this season.
who we gained:
David Clark - Does he remind anyone else of Brent Harvey? Really quick, but doesn't have such a good kick. Pagan loves taking these project players from other clubs and getting the best out of them, so he should be a really good player in our side that hasn't got a huge amount of pace.
Harford - Again, it would be great to see Pagan get him going again. My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I read that he was only 26, seems like he's been around for decades. In his prime he is a very good midfielder, though he has fallen away in recent years. Should be handy for added depth to the midfield.
Johnson - Havn't seen much of him so I don't really have anything.
McGrath - Not sure if he will be used in the forward line or if Pagan will try and develop him into a midfielder. In the Michael Long build of footballer.
The kids
Davies - There's pretty big wraps on this kid, though he hasn't really shown that much in his few games.. I don't think he's that quick, but hopefully with game time (and time in the big city!) he should develop into a really good midfielder.
Campbell - This kid is pretty quick, but theres not much of him. Pretty much same goes for all these kids - given game time they should turn out good.
Kade Simpson - Surprise late pick up in the draft last year, everyone is looking at him to be a really good footballer... When he puts on some kilos that is. Can kick pretty well on both sides of the body.
Potentials
Pick no.2. - Will most likely be a midfielder I think, Silvia, Tenace, Walker, or in the unlikely scenario, Cooney. Could almost walk straight into the side, although with huge wraps on whoever it is they might take it a bit slower - a la Jarrod Waite in 2002.
Nick Stevens - The icing on the cake. Will provide the Blues with 3 stars in the midfield, and will be a brilliant addition in the side, which desperately needs more hard running ball carrying players.
If some of those other players step up and help out the top three, and provide actual rotation to give those guys a rest, we should see a huge jump of improvement in this area next year. And hopefully amongst those kids a couple of new stars are lurking...
thoughts? arguments? corrections?
Pagan was right when he said that we didn't have sufficient depth to help Kouta & Campo in the 'engine room' (an area that Carlton has really prided itself on in the past), and when you look at all the good teams going around, especially brisbane, they seem to have outstanding midfields.. And players who can step up in rotation and when there are injuries.
So our midfield goes:
Kouta - Its hard to see Mr Magnetic Hands turning into the dasher 2000 again, his role under Pagan this year was the 'in & under' player in the absence of Ratts. & he did it pretty magnificently too.
Campo - Got belted around a bit last season, and with some support should lift and give more of those arrow-straight runs and piercing kicks in 2004.
Hulmey - Was a bit injured at stages, but played alright with usual courage and grit. You can tell that Pagan loves him, and he should step up as well with more quality players around him.
Houlihan - The best kick in the side isn't explosively quick, but has good evasive skills. I reckon he's being groomed in the Campo role - provide a bit more run, and get his hands on the ball because his skills are so high (remember that goal this year against essendon from the boundary - with a wet ball?). I remember walls saying once that Carlton has a high regard for him, and once he develops the tackling and one-percenter side to his game he could potentially be a brownlow medallist. He should be in the action a bit more this season.
who we gained:
David Clark - Does he remind anyone else of Brent Harvey? Really quick, but doesn't have such a good kick. Pagan loves taking these project players from other clubs and getting the best out of them, so he should be a really good player in our side that hasn't got a huge amount of pace.
Harford - Again, it would be great to see Pagan get him going again. My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I read that he was only 26, seems like he's been around for decades. In his prime he is a very good midfielder, though he has fallen away in recent years. Should be handy for added depth to the midfield.
Johnson - Havn't seen much of him so I don't really have anything.
McGrath - Not sure if he will be used in the forward line or if Pagan will try and develop him into a midfielder. In the Michael Long build of footballer.
The kids
Davies - There's pretty big wraps on this kid, though he hasn't really shown that much in his few games.. I don't think he's that quick, but hopefully with game time (and time in the big city!) he should develop into a really good midfielder.
Campbell - This kid is pretty quick, but theres not much of him. Pretty much same goes for all these kids - given game time they should turn out good.
Kade Simpson - Surprise late pick up in the draft last year, everyone is looking at him to be a really good footballer... When he puts on some kilos that is. Can kick pretty well on both sides of the body.
Potentials
Pick no.2. - Will most likely be a midfielder I think, Silvia, Tenace, Walker, or in the unlikely scenario, Cooney. Could almost walk straight into the side, although with huge wraps on whoever it is they might take it a bit slower - a la Jarrod Waite in 2002.
Nick Stevens - The icing on the cake. Will provide the Blues with 3 stars in the midfield, and will be a brilliant addition in the side, which desperately needs more hard running ball carrying players.
If some of those other players step up and help out the top three, and provide actual rotation to give those guys a rest, we should see a huge jump of improvement in this area next year. And hopefully amongst those kids a couple of new stars are lurking...
thoughts? arguments? corrections?
