Universal Love Gazza Jnr

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Vdubs said:
Looks like it was May 10, 2018, before the Pies game.
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Yeah the article was then, not sure when the video itself was filmed. It was posted to YouTube only recently, but from memory the trainer refers to Gary’s hamstring tendinitis, rather than the more recent hamstrings, so it’s a little unclear. It could be from the preseason. But either way it was encouraging to see him train that way.
 
Jeff76 said:
Looking like a 9th to 12th team at the moment, I’m waiting for players to return but at the moment we’re not making finals.
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Good chance to win 8 or 9 more-surely that is top 8 this year? We are a good chance in -6 games at home ( a couple of tricky ones but should win), doggies at Etihad, Hawks at the G. Just have to knock off the tigers in one of our 2 encounters at the G, or GC up there for another!
How many of these games do you give us a good chance in?
 
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dazbroncos said:
Yes I think he'll be better in 4 months.

He's been hurt and providing his health remains stable he will be better for the run.

Sure its a reasonable concern if you say so. Never seen you so concerned over the age progression of a player for a 16 week period.

Not about injury, not about form.. but age.

Go Catters
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Age affects the amount of injuries you have, and therefore form. He's also not a fringe member of the team we're talking about. If he can remain how he looked in the first 3 games he'll be absolutely fine. If he's going to look like he did last Saturday he (and the team) are in trouble.

I've been wary about the sudden decline in veterans for ever. We tend to think in terms of seasons and think all players get a nice, neat, bookmarked ending in October. Sometimes the brick wall can arrive much faster than that.

If no one else thinks that's a problem then fair enough. Must be just me.
 
Partridge said:
Age affects the amount of injuries you have, and therefore form. He's also not a fringe member of the team we're talking about. If he can remain how he looked in the first 3 games he'll be absolutely fine. If he's going to look like he did last Saturday he (and the team) are in trouble.

I've been wary about the sudden decline in veterans for ever. We tend to think in terms of seasons and think all players get a nice, neat, bookmarked ending in October. Sometimes the brick wall can arrive much faster than that.

If no one else thinks that's a problem then fair enough. Must be just me.
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It’s a reasonable concern you have, but if he is managed sensibly whilst getting more match fitness into him, chances are it could work out well. He might be in good nick for the finals, or as you say, he may be finding the going really tough by then. Could go either way. It’s just wait and see isn’t it?
If his body is in good shape in September, then it’s real upside for us.
If not, I am sentimental enough to still be glad we brought him back to his home to end his career. And speaking as a pragmatist, he just might make a good midfield coach.
 
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Partridge said:
Age affects the amount of injuries you have, and therefore form. He's also not a fringe member of the team we're talking about. If he can remain how he looked in the first 3 games he'll be absolutely fine. If he's going to look like he did last Saturday he (and the team) are in trouble.

If no one else thinks that's a problem then fair enough. Must be just me.
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He was not alone on Saturday. That’s why I’m not too worried yet.
 
Sttew said:
He was not alone on Saturday. That’s why I’m not too worried yet.
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That’s a poor argument Sttew.....’he Wasn’t alone’.
You’re right, he wasn’t, but Abletts biggest issue at the moment isn’t form or confidence, it’s attitude
In one example on Saturday, Ablett turned over the footy right in front of me and a mate near the GSS.
Instead of chasing hard, he put his head down and casually jogged behind the ball carrier......and to make it worse, he didn’t even make a second effort when the bloke ( Fantasia I think) inexplicably doubled back and nearly ran straight back into him
A few strides later, Fantasia dropped the ball Geelong picked it up and like a sling shot, Ablett took off at a rate of knots towards the Geelong goal. The whole seating area around me noticed it......the Geelong supporters were yelling at him, and the Essendon supporters were laughing at him. It was a disgraceful effort
He doesn’t run both ways mate......except when he’s looking for a cheap handball at the back of a mark.
His attitude stinks.....he’s stated he wants to play mostly midfield, which is not in the best interest of the team, and he won’t do anything defensively.
He should be the ‘example’ to the younger blokes who look up to him, instead he’s ‘coasting”
 
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Mr Blicavs said:
That’s a poor argument Sttew.....’he Wasn’t alone’.
You’re right, he wasn’t, but Abletts biggest issue at the moment isn’t form or confidence, it’s attitude
In one example on Saturday, Ablett turned over the footy right in front of me and a mate near the GSS.
Instead of chasing hard, he put his head down and casually jogged behind the ball carrier......and to make it worse, he didn’t even make a second effort when the bloke ( Fantasia I think) inexplicably doubled back and nearly ran straight back into Ablett
A few strides later, Fantasia dropped the ball Geelong picked it up and like. Sling shot, Ablett took off at a rate of knots towards the Geelong goal. The whole seating area around me noticed it......the Geelong supporters were yelling at him, and the Essendon supporters were laughing at him. It was a disgraceful effort
He doesn’t run both ways mate......except when he’s looking for a cheap handball at the back of a mark.
His attitude stinks.....he’s stated he wants to play mostly midfield, which is not in the best interest of the team, and he won’t do anything defensively.
He should be the ‘example’ to the younger blokes who look up to him, instead he’s ‘coasting”
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I hear what you are saying. Fact is 90% of the team played crap football. Ablett knows he let his teammates down, so it will be interesting to see how he responds this week and next. Maybe then we can judge him
 
Sttew said:
I hear what you are saying. Fact is 90% of the team played crap football. Ablett knows he let his teammates down, so it will be interesting to see how he responds this week and next. Maybe then we can judge him
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I really hope so mate. I really hope he understands that he’s not just a player, but a benchmark for the kids

That’s what great champions do......they drag people up, not settle back with the pack
 
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romeohwho said:
Good chance to win 8 or 9 more-surely that is top 8 this year? We are a good chance in -6 games at home ( a couple of tricky ones but should win), doggies at Etihad, Hawks at the G. Just have to knock off the tigers in one of our 2 encounters at the G, or GC up there for another!
How many of these games do you give us a good chance in?
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I really don’t know, there’s no such thing as “Should win” anymore, it’s just what happens on the day now. I give us absolutely zero chance against the Tigers.
 
Jeff76 said:
I really don’t know, there’s no such thing as “Should win” anymore, it’s just what happens on the day now. I give us absolutely zero chance against the Tigers.
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Yep, agree ‘should win’ is a slippery concept these days.
It’s a long season and anything can happen- we play them in a few weeks, then round 20-giving us a chance to cause an upset. Better when Guthrie is back maybe. Looking forward to playing them actually.
 
Jeff76 said:
I really don’t know, there’s no such thing as “Should win” anymore, it’s just what happens on the day now. I give us absolutely zero chance against the Tigers.
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Know how you feel, yet I give the Saints a big chance to knock them off this week
-massive media scrutiny Saints
-Tigers back from a hot tough WA game..
All on the day.
Again, not WHO you play but WHEN
 

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romeohwho said:
Yep, agree ‘should win’ is a slippery concept these days.
It’s a long season and anything can happen- we play them in a few weeks, then round 20-giving us a chance to cause an upset. Better when Guthrie is back maybe. Looking forward to playing them actually.
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It’s definitely the test, mind you the Eagles did it easy and we should’ve defeated the Eagles over there if we didn’t die in that last quarter.
 
Partridge said:
Age affects the amount of injuries you have, and therefore form. He's also not a fringe member of the team we're talking about. If he can remain how he looked in the first 3 games he'll be absolutely fine. If he's going to look like he did last Saturday he (and the team) are in trouble.

I've been wary about the sudden decline in veterans for ever. We tend to think in terms of seasons and think all players get a nice, neat, bookmarked ending in October. Sometimes the brick wall can arrive much faster than that.

If no one else thinks that's a problem then fair enough. Must be just me.
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Agree.
Amazing the variability in players.
Bartel looked cooked well before Boris, yet is younger.
We recruit GAJ back when all other players of his draft have retired (bar Hodge)
Absolutely certain Boomer could still play today.
Lingy knew he was cooked after 2011 GF.
But James Kelly- had 2 awesome seasons at Ess after most thought he'd reached his expiry date with us.
 
Jeff76 said:
I really don’t know, there’s no such thing as “Should win” anymore, it’s just what happens on the day now. I give us absolutely zero chance against the Tigers.
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Then you are foolish. In this league there is no such thing as a certain result, the club should frankly intend to at least split the fixture.
 
Marcus DuQuesne said:
Not disagreeing in total...but have you seen Dusty Martin this year getting dragged down and caught with the ball seemingly lacking awareness...look at any player closely and you will see weaknesses at different times. DM is still in his twenties. Ablett is a playmaker don't wonder why he gets closer attention from opposition players. Young guys love to take on the old veteran coz they can be soft targets at times. One thing about football that makes no sense to me is how supporters and media focus on individuals. And AFL really is a TEAM game. If the bottom 9 yes 9 Geelong players contributed more the top 9 would have more space time and energy to get the job done. Geelong's bottom 6 is woeful at present and this puts more pressure on the A graders to perform and this takes it's physical toll.
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Doesn't happen too often … Dusty extricates himself from tackles better than any footballer I have ever seen.
 
Partridge said:
Sometimes the brick wall can arrive much faster than that.
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Totally agree - and in some ways, it's even more true for champions, where even running at 8/10 is still good enough for AFL level.

Chapman, Scarlett and Mooney were hard to watch in their last season. SJ, Podsiadly and Harley were definitely dried-and-friend by their last game, too, as was Bartel.
 
Partridge said:
Age affects the amount of injuries you have, and therefore form. He's also not a fringe member of the team we're talking about. If he can remain how he looked in the first 3 games he'll be absolutely fine. If he's going to look like he did last Saturday he (and the team) are in trouble.

I've been wary about the sudden decline in veterans for ever. We tend to think in terms of seasons and think all players get a nice, neat, bookmarked ending in October. Sometimes the brick wall can arrive much faster than that.

If no one else thinks that's a problem then fair enough. Must be just me.
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Of course the end can come quick and it's always a worry when an old player has a bad game because it might be the beginning of the end. But Ablett was 2nd week back from an injury lay-off which is notoriously difficult to back up for and off a 6-day break. Add that to the rest of the team playing crap and him watching most of the worst of it from the forward line and I think there's reason to think it wasn't more than just a very bad day at the office.

I think we also should remember he was in the coaches votes in all of the first 3 weeks. On that form he's a top 20 player in the comp. While the end can come quick it's pretty unusual for a guy to go from that level of performance to being a liability (or close to it) in the one season. The only real question for me is whether we can get him fully fit because his skill, creativity and ball-finding ability are still there. To be honest I'm more worried about Danger and Selwood who are absolutely essential to us being a good team than Ablett who everyone know was a bit of a risk when we picked him up.
 
This kind of thing happens in any team sport environment. So long as there's not too many vets in the team, and the younger players provide the other attributes, there are still elite skills these senior champions can offer. Not so different to comparing outside and inside players in general, they both need each other. It's no surprise that a really poor, sluggish team performance corresponded with Ablett being nowhere near it. Blame and credit will be shared this season for what we get out of him. But so far I still count 1 bad game, 1 decent one and a few very good ones (including WCE before injury).
 
My only contribution to the Gazza gone or not debate is....

Look out Carlton.
 
He says he is still adjusting to his new role...

http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au...0/news-story/8d76fdbf591f76d978f5e1e22c1dc573

For me, I am learning a new role on the run and while that’s not an excuse, I feel I will get better with time.

For 13-14 years, I’ve been running around as a midfielder, but since coming back from the hamstring injury this year, I’ve spent time forward, at times playing loose down back and at times the extra man at the stoppage. So we’re just working out the best fit for the team.


http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au...0/news-story/8d76fdbf591f76d978f5e1e22c1dc573


Id think the loose man role may be the way it goes. I heard Judd I think say that playing forward is not the way to finish a career if you can play another role. The dream forward role that many have predicted that he would be able to play is almost something from a previous era. GA will never being a pressure forward ... but he has always been good in traffic and giving and getting the ball. Perhaps getting the ball out of a congested backline is where is more likely to be used to advantage.
 
Turbocat said:
He says he is still adjusting to his new role...

http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au...0/news-story/8d76fdbf591f76d978f5e1e22c1dc573

For me, I am learning a new role on the run and while that’s not an excuse, I feel I will get better with time.

For 13-14 years, I’ve been running around as a midfielder, but since coming back from the hamstring injury this year, I’ve spent time forward, at times playing loose down back and at times the extra man at the stoppage. So we’re just working out the best fit for the team.


http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au...0/news-story/8d76fdbf591f76d978f5e1e22c1dc573


Id think the loose man role may be the way it goes. I heard Judd I think say that playing forward is not the way to finish a career if you can play another role. The dream forward role that many have predicted that he would be able to play is almost something from a previous era. GA will never being a pressure forward ... but he has always been good in traffic and giving and getting the ball. Perhaps getting the ball out of a congested backline is where is more likely to be used to advantage.
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Must admit, I thought pre getting him back, that he's be the ideal SF we lacked. But now, I think playing that link role around HB could be his go. Concern will be if some really zippy HFF makes him accountable, and his hammies ping again, or he is found wanting in the tackling area. Dilemma. First world problems....
 
Vdubs said:
Must admit, I thought pre getting him back, that he's be the ideal SF we lacked. But now, I think playing that link role around HB could be his go. Concern will be if some really zippy HFF makes him accountable, and his hammies ping again, or he is found wanting in the tackling area. Dilemma. First world problems....
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Footy is not like an Arnie movie where he never runs out of ammo... we can only go so far to fit him in , if his restrictions becomes overwhelming then its curtain time. .. but I thinks is a bit off yet.
 
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