Have we gone too far?

[Retzlaff]

There have been many bouquets thrown at our recruiting team over the past couple of years for identifying hidden talent in the rookie/preseason drafts.

However, this weekend we are lining up with 11 such players, the most of any team. Collingwood has 9 and a couple of other teams have 7.

Given that you might associate rookie draft players with being hard at it, handy, persistent types (ie Barlow, priddis, broughton), rather than silky, supremely skilled footballers do you think we might be relying on these types of players a bit much?

Should our recruiting team have done better over the years in identifying talent through the National drafts, so that we're not eagerly awaiting the emergence of Sam Menegola for example?

 

[E Shed]

we haven't had enough time or deep enough drafts to field a team of first stringers.
The recruiters have done well to find this many in 4 years who can tie their shoelaces without tripping up.
As we run out on Sunday we are at least 6 class players off a top 4 footy team. 2 of them are Fyfe and Morabito. Crozier, Sheridan and Forster may well be 3, Mellington can play, Michie may well be able to play but who can tell? Walters can play but doesn't because he's still in the naughty corner. Pitt the jury is out on at this point.
We need to get a forward through free agency and pick up at least 2 promising KKP in this years draft.
2013 (5 years into rebuild) we can start making definitive calls about list balance and give a pass or fail mark to the recruiters.

 

[dominguez]

Should our recruiting team have done better over the years in identifying talent through the National drafts, so that we're not eagerly awaiting the emergence of Sam Menegola for example?

A lot of teams have players drafted 2001-2007 in the national draft still on their list where as we only have Ibbotson, Mundy and Mayne remaining from that era so it left a massive hole on the list forcing the club to load up in the national AND rookie drafts in 2008-2011.

 

[blue shark]

Freo always seem to favour the skinny, tall, skilled, potenial outside type flanker. The solid inside/outside players are overlooked.
Hurn, Darling, had apparenty reached their ceiling by the age of eighteen, men playing against boys, this is why they stood out in U18's.
The hard blokes in our team Deboer, Silvagni, Grover, are either out of favour or played in the wrong positions.
Have a look at the top teams, they dominate with size and strength, you need both power and speed to dominate.

 

[apuchar]

Freo always seem to favour the skinny, tall, skilled, potenial outside type flanker. The solid inside/outside players are overlooked.
Hurn, Darling, had apparenty reached their ceiling by the age of eighteen, men playing against boys, this is why they stood out in U18's.
The hard blokes in our team Deboer, Silvagni, Grover, are either out of favour or played in the wrong positions.
Have a look at the top teams, they dominate with size and strength, you need both power and speed to dominate.

Hurn? crikey that's a while ago. We took Dunn instead of Water's. Just one ended up with a career ending injury and the other didn't. We recruited for Subiaco, running flankers, but the problem is they are one way runners. Plus the game changed and we got caught out. So did Melbourne and the western bulldogs. We are trying to fix the problem but it takes time.
Try and get over the Darling thing. It's become almost like a shrine. We will be able to find someone like him, if we want one.

 

[IAMJUNGLEMUFFIN]

A lot of teams have players drafted 2001-2007 in the national draft still on their list where as we only have Ibbotson, Mundy and Mayne remaining from that era so it left a massive hole on the list forcing the club to load up in the national AND rookie drafts in 2008-2011.

A lot of teams were at different points in their rebuild and list management than we were also.

It's also not an honest representation to only count those 3, when we've had guys like Polak, Warnock, Palmer who have in one way or another contributed to kids like Mzungu, Suban, Crozier, Neale, and also unknowns like Faulkes, Forster and Sutcliffe etc.

You have also failed to account for the service we have received from players who we recruited during that time who are no longer on our list.

List management isn't a static system of tit for tat. It's constantly flowing and evolving.

 

[se17enteen]

Warnock makes me laugh. He left because he didn't want to be 2nd fiddle to Sandi, now his 3rd choice at Carlton.

 

[apuchar]

Warnock makes me laugh. He left because he didn't want to be 2nd fiddle to Sandi, now his 3rd choice at Carlton.

Couldn't have happened to a nicer bloke.

 

[Scham]

Couldn't have happened to a nicer bloke.

Absolutely!

Rumours are that he wants out of Carlton now. tosser!

 

[apuchar]

Absolutely!

Rumours are that he wants out of Carlton now. tosser!

 

[feds2000]

Our team structure is good from a recruitment perspective, its just our ball winners arn't performing, and we lost Palmer (and never played him in the right position) id imagine a hardnose ball winner is our top priotity at the moment in the draft, we'll ninja a key forward using free agency this year, Mundys contract review is up at end of year, that'll free up some $$ no doubt

 

[apuchar]

Our team structure is good from a recruitment perspective, its just our ball winners arn't performing, and we lost Palmer (and never played him in the right position) id imagine a hardnose ball winner is our top priotity at the moment in the draft, we'll ninja a key forward using free agency this year, Mundys contract review is up at end of year, that'll free up some $$ no doubt

Didn't Mundy sign a 5 year deal at around 700,000.

 

[blue shark]

Someiimes the kids that are dominating U18's are already on their way to an AFL career.
We seem to pick on Potenial, and think we can develop skinny athletes, instead of taking the manchild, and getting him fitter.
Or we take a gamble on players who are already injured, Bucovaz, Forster, Roberts, etc, then there is Houghton, the tall skinny kp, who is given two years to develop, then de-listed
Its like we are trying to find the diamond in the rough, instead of making the obvious choice.
Even if we recruit for Subiaco, what chance are we in Melbourne?

.
.

 

[apuchar]

Someiimes the kids that are dominating U18's are already on their way to an AFL career.
We seem to pick on Potenial, and think we can develop skinny athletes, instead of taking the manchild, and getting him fitter.
Or we take a gamble on players who are already injured, Bucovaz, Forster, Roberts, etc, then there is Houghton, the tall skinny kp, who is given two years to develop, then de-listed
Its like we are trying to find the diamond in the rough, instead of making the obvious choice.
Even if we recruit for Subiaco, what chance are we in Melbourne?

.
.

We didn't really give up much for Bucovaz and Roberts. They were low picks or rookie choices. Houghton was an error, he is struggling to get a game for Perth reserves. I think support for your argument is Murpy over Chaplin. Chaplin was the obvious choice and we went fancy.
We are not recruiting for Subiaco only, any more. I think we have learnt. and it would be pointless with a coach like Lyon anyway.
Pretty sure Forster won't disappoint.

 

[Patty_Moz]

We're not really suffering from anything done in the last couple of ND's but more what happening in the preceding decade of dismal attempts in the ND.

It doesnt help when the best of what we have got in the last few years in the ND has gone thru some serious injury troubles (Fyfe, Mora, Mellington and Mitchie). If those guys get back and Crozier, Neale, Sheridan and Sutcliffe keep coming on then I think you'll find there will be a lot less of those rookie selections playing or even on our list.

 

[apuchar]

We're not really suffering from anything done in the last couple of ND's but more what happening in the preceding decade of dismal attempts in the ND.

It doesnt help when the best of what we have got in the last few years in the ND has gone thru some serious injury troubles (Fyfe, Mora, Mellington and Mitchie). If those guys get back and Crozier, Neale, Sheridan and Sutcliffe keep coming on then I think you'll find there will be a lot less of those rookie selections playing or even on our list.

Agree. I'm very happy with our recruiting in the past few years. If Michie is anything like the last game he played for Peel with a broken foot, he will be a terrific recruit. If he ever gets back into footy.

 

[Scham]

Just wondering as I don't visit other teams boards, but do other teams supporters criticise their recruiters as much as we do?

We've got about 3 threads going at the moment to have a crack at our recruiting team and its been a common theme all year.

 

[apuchar]

Just wondering as I don't visit other teams boards, but do other teams supporters criticise their recruiters as much as we do?

We've got about 3 threads going at the moment to have a crack at our recruiting team and its been a common theme all year.

I think some of our posters have trouble finding the refresh button.
Our recruiting has been excellent (not perfect) for a fair while now.

 

[IAMJUNGLEMUFFIN]

Someiimes the kids that are dominating U18's are already on their way to an AFL career.
We seem to pick on Potenial, and think we can develop skinny athletes, instead of taking the manchild, and getting him fitter.
Or we take a gamble on players who are already injured, Bucovaz, Forster, Roberts, etc, then there is Houghton, the tall skinny kp, who is given two years to develop, then de-listed
Its like we are trying to find the diamond in the rough, instead of making the obvious choice.
Even if we recruit for Subiaco, what chance are we in Melbourne?

.
.

Worked well enough with Fyfe, who is in the best handful of players in the comp.

Can't have your cake and eat it too.

 

[dominguez]

Just wondering as I don't visit other teams boards, but do other teams supporters criticise their recruiters as much as we do?

We've got about 3 threads going at the moment to have a crack at our recruiting team and its been a common theme all year.

It's been a common theme since inception.

I'd say Melbourne have been having this debate a lot recently, but apart from the Demons I'd say this discussion comes up more on our board than most others.

 

[Clay Davis]

It's been a common theme since inception.

I'd say Melbourne have been having this debate a lot recently, but apart from the Demons I'd say this discussion comes up more on our board than most others.

Probably because the club remains so bad at it.

 

[IAMJUNGLEMUFFIN]

No, we just have muppet posters who simply don't understand the nature of the beast.

 

[Scham]

It's been a common theme since inception.

I'd say Melbourne have been having this debate a lot recently, but apart from the Demons I'd say this discussion comes up more on our board than most others.

Yeah, it was warranted in the early days though.

We've been great the last few years but it just seems that some of our supporters have an in built need to be critical even when things are going well. I guess some people want to see the glass half empty rather than half full.

 

[Clay Davis]

No, we just have muppet posters who simply don't understand the nature of the beast.

The nature of what beast? Club after club can turn it around quickly and contest for premierships and make finals. Freo can't.

 

[blue shark]

We have not one player who can consistently take a contested mark in the forward line, our best key forward is thirty years of age, and starting to show it.
Keplar, Jack Anthony, Grover will probably be gone next year, with Silvagni gathering plenty of interest from other clubs.
Our midfield of Mundy, barlow, Fyfe, Morabito, Sandilands have all had injuries, is it just bad luck or bad management?
Sandilands and Mundy we can thank Harves.
Forster is a strange draft pick, we went for a backman, which we have plenty of, and missed out on a forward.
I can see why we went for mids/flankers in the last draft, but you would think we could of used one pick on a key forward, even rookie one.