Gibbs needs a harder edge to take the next step

[mac25]

With Gibbs now in his 4th season and with Judd unavailable for the first 3 games, l believe the Carlton MC would have been hoping for Gibbs to take the next step in the AFL from becoming very good to elite level.

If we look at players like Voss, Buckley etc, the one thing that seems missing in his game is more intensity and a harder edge to his game, right now our list probably only contains one elite player Judd, we will need more to take a real step forward.

Let's hope Gibbs can improve this area over the course of this season, and if he wants the big $ which l am sure he is chasing in his next contract then the performance expectation will also will set at a higher level.

What are people's thoughts on this.

 

[Dramoth]

We are short that hard leader at the club...

The type of guy who will get the guys into a huddle before the coach gets there and reads them the riot act...

There is no one able to drag the guys up by the scruff of their necks and get them motivated without any extra input from the head coach...

 

[Pie_squasher]

Bang on Mac - I love the guy but he needs to harden up. Not sure if this ever present thumb injury is worrying him but definitely needs to get some mongrel in him.

Mind you - Ratts doesn't seem to play him to his strengths.

 

[The Coach]

It has always been so but I liked to believe it was maturity - the age has come.

 

[raymagoo]

the first time i've ever critisized him last night! seemed fairly soft and definitely didnt have enough influence on the game! really should have stepped up during juddys absence but imo hasnt done enough really?

 

[SWANSEA]

This thread is ridiculous. If Ratten would let Gibbs off the leash instead of giving him a job eack week we would see how good he really is.
Week 1 job on Deledio, Week 2 job on Brennan. He is a number 1 pick let the kid play his own game and leave him in the middle and we will see how good he is. He finished top 10 in the Brownlow as a 20 YO and is now just turned 21. He reminds me of a young James Hird, i think you are expecting way to much he is never going to match Voss in hardness not many players would.

 

[blue gunslinger]

Does he need Judd to hold his hand? Does he expect the game to come to him? Is he too scared of being beaten to have a crack?

 

[Blue since 72]

I definately have an expectation that he needs to and is capable of doing more than he does. As stated he's into his fourth season and is getting into that 'magic' number of games played so he needs to be using the tools he has to have more impact on games more often.

Murph is similar although more effective more often, but I reckon he can impact games more often and for longer than he does too.

 

[jono25]

Totally agree with the idea we need an aggressive leader in the mids - Kirk, Voss, Hird, Cousins etc were all great at taking the team aside and giving the rev when needed. This isn't Judd - he is a great player but he is introverted, not a vocal leader.

The best we have at this is Robbo, a second year player. Who is out there likely to be on the market at years end?

 

[blue_trinity]

He is close to being put on the rapidly growing list of carlton players who look disinterested during the game. Has all the skill and potential in the world and thinks that is enough to make it. ITS NOT!
May be a bit harsh but the alternative is to do and say nothing and watch him turn out into one of those "coulda been" players that we also seem to be cropping a lot of..

I for one am becoming increasingly worried with the way we are heading. Mainly because there are becoming more and more similarities with freo in the chris connelly era, in regards to trading blunders, coaching tactics and strategies, and development of players.

Just to name a few 'issues': Warnock trade, fev trade, mclean trade, even judd trade, ratts as coach, lack of quality talls, unnaccountable midfield, 1 good ruckman and 3 ruckman that for one reason or another don't look good enough, lack of leadership, ditto intensity, skills under pressure, skills under NO pressure (eg, kicking out on the full 8 million times last night. WTF!!!), kicking for goal, disinterested players. And these are just off the top of my head.

Aligned with this, in my opinion in regards to drafting we seemed to have gone about it in reverse. We have drafted all our midfielders first and now are looking to find some young key position talent; now is it just me or would it not make sense to draft KP players FIRST and then worry about the midfield as the come on quicker. So when the KP's are in their prime of around 25-30 yrs old the midfielders are around 22-27 yrs old?

Now I know iv'e gone completely off the gibbs topic in my ranting, but i dont care, just needed to get it off my chest.

I dunno am i the only one who feels like im looking at a train wreck in slow motion??

 

[Dramoth]

The way it looks, there is a few players who are 100% playing for the jumper and the club and are out there every week giving 110%...

The rest of the players look as if they are out there playing for themselves and if Gibbs is one of those ****ers and he is being tempted by the $$$ being splashed around by GC17... then we should send him off to those ***** and take half their first round picks as compensation... 3 years in the system as a former #1 draft pick... we would expect half their first round picks for him.

 

[blue gunslinger]

david Parkin said he should be an Agrader but is not at the moment and Parko loves the bloke

 

[thylacine60]

We are short that hard leader at the club...

The type of guy who will get the guys into a huddle before the coach gets there and reads them the riot act...

There is no one able to drag the guys up by the scruff of their necks and get them motivated without any extra input from the head coach...

Bang on, D-Man. The scrawniest bloke in navy blue seems to be the only one interested in sparking anything out there.

 

[Madblue]

FFS let Gibbs play to his strengths and not be used as a ne-gative stopper like Ratten has him doing. My mail is that this is the reason that he hasn't signed yet !

 

[da_champ]

trade him to adelaide before he does us over. his lack of intensity and emotion shits me. one of the most skilled players on the ground, but his heart is so far from the football field it's not funny...

 

[CUG81]

FFS let Gibbs play to his strengths and not be used as a ne-gative stopper like Ratten has him doing. My mail is that this is the reason that he hasn't signed yet !

he can be very damaging and should be the one getting tagged, not being a stopper.

 

[HBF]

Bang on Mac - I love the guy but he needs to harden up. Not sure if this ever present thumb injury is worrying him but definitely needs to get some mongrel in him.

Mind you - Ratts doesn't seem to play him to his strengths.

Hit the nail right on the head there PS.
Play him in the midfield or as a high half forward, and let the opposition worry about what they are going to do with him. Right now, he just gets thrown all over the shop.

 

[blue gunslinger]

Hit the nail right on the head there PS.
Play him in the midfield or as a high half forward, and let the opposition worry about what they are going to do with him. Right now, he just gets thrown all over the shop.

were we open for business last night?

 

[Lance Uppercut]

maybe Ratten needs to give him a bit of the Lyon Del Santo treatment?

Having said that, everyone is entitled to an off game

 

[mediumsizered]

This thread is ridiculous. If Ratten would let Gibbs off the leash instead of giving him a job eack week we would see how good he really is.
Week 1 job on Deledio, Week 2 job on Brennan. He is a number 1 pick let the kid play his own game and leave him in the middle and we will see how good he is. He finished top 10 in the Brownlow as a 20 YO and is now just turned 21. He reminds me of a young James Hird, i think you are expecting way to much he is never going to match Voss in hardness not many players would.

Got it in one. Last year Gibbs played predominantly in the midfield & showed what he could bring to the team. As you have pointed out, so far this year he has had to play more defensive roles (although his 2 goals when playing on Deledio demonstrated he can turn this into an attacking role). I'm a little concerned this may continue as we don't seem to have another player of similar size to Gibbs who is good enough to play a defensive roles on the likes of Deledio, Brennan, Goodes etc. Perhaps this is the role we should be grooming Davies for (he is the same height as Gibbs & only 1kg lighter).

 

[King Of The Hille]

Was at the game last night and didnt have much influence at all.

Wasnt playing close attention to him but can someone tell me if he did a negative role last night?

 

[KnaveyBlue]

I am extremely worried about Gibbs' contract status, and have been since I saw him in R1.

Appears to be simply going through the motions. He's playing like a bloke who has bigger fish to fry.

I wouldn't be surprised if he leaves at the end of this year, either for Adelaide or the GC.

 

[BlueTouchPaper]

Knavey, I wonder where would he be going if we won?

My mail is that this is the reason that he hasn't signed yet !

Sorry to blast you mate, but absolutely no-one GAF about your mail. Know why? 'Cause my mail says your mail is rubbish.

FWIW, Gibbs has courage - he doesn't like putting his body on the line but we were in the pocket where he was pretty frequently running back with the flight of the ball to spoil or mark and contest. He is a midfielder, with minimal run, trying to play HBF. Scotland and Stevens play this role with precision because they were natural movers. But with Scotland's form and Stevens' absence, he's being moved around a bit.

We've had a few player losses and injuries so far this year that will take some time to work around.

This 'end of the world' stuff gets tiring ****ing quickly.

 

[KnaveyBlue]

Knavey, I wonder where would he be going if we won?

I felt the same way even when we beat Richmond first up. Something about him just doesn't seem right.

I have no 'mail' or inside sources - just a gut feeling.

 

[da_champ]

Scotland, otherwise Simpson would be leading the John Nichols Medal BTP.