Here he is... Heeney is ready to take over

[Xtreme]

Imagine what he would be like if he didn't get suspended pwoarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ marketing machine of the AFL would be in overdrive. Put him on Australia Post stamps, chuck him on Dancing with the Stars on channel 7.

 

[Lunchtime]

I agree. I'm starting to believe the Brownlow has lost a lot of its prestige in the last few years.

Don't get me wrong, the Bronwlow medal is still one of the most prestigious individual awards a player can win but it isn't everything.

Individual awards such as the Norm Smith medal (BOG in Grand Final) and Gary Ayres Award (Best Player in Finals) are just as prestigious because they recognise players who get the job done when the stakes are at it's highest, when the pressure goes up, when the expectation from fans, the media and clubs goes up and when it truly matters most.

That is something that Home & Away footy (whilst still important) simply can not replicate.

 

[Cleansweep17]

IF.....if he does win a Norm Smith....thats a very prestigious award as well. So is the Gary Ayres Award (Player of Finals)....if he were to win that as well.

Not everything revolves around Brownlow medals and neither should it.

NS (in a winning GF) is the hardest and most prestigious award in the AFL. Ask any player and they’ll tell you that.

You can see it amongst fans on BF right now, no swans fans give a stuff about those H&A awards right now, it’s all about the big prize.

 

[bloodsbigot]

Imagine what he would be like if he didn't get suspended pwoarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ marketing machine of the AFL would be in overdrive. Put him on Australia Post stamps, chuck him on Dancing with the Stars on channel 7.

Agreed. He's definitely the most marketable player in the AFL. Instantly recognizable. Easy to spot on the field. Nice guy. Good looking. Perfect teeth. Tanned. Well spoken. Takes speccies. Best player in the league.

I just wonder if the AFL handing the Brownlow to Naicos was worth it. They've missed out on plenty of cash.

 

[Lunchtime]

I agree. I'm starting to believe the Brownlow has lost a lot of its prestige in the last few years. There probably is a case to be made that Dusty is the goat.

NS (in a winning GF) is the hardest and most prestigious award in the AFL. Ask any player and they’ll tell you that.

You can see it amongst fans on BF right now, no swans fans give a stuff about those right now, it’s all about the big prize.

Yep. It's a bit like in Australian horse racing...not sure if you follow racing in Australia or world racing.....but in Australian horse racing there is the "unofficial" Grand Slam:

Golden Slipper (in April)
Caulfield Cup (in October)
Cox Plate (in October)
Melbourne Cup (in November)

These are the "Big 4" of Australian racing when it comes to Group 1 races. Bart Cummings for example as a trainer won a combined total of 28 "Grand Slams"...4 Golden Slippers, 7 Caulfield Cups, 5 Cox Plates and 12 Melbourne Cups.

Gary Ayres Award and Norm Smith medal are very prestigious awards because they signify a players performances at the right time if year - when it truly matters most.

 

[Lunchtime]

This is why I rate Chris Judd so highly. He won Brownlow medal (2) and a Norm Smith medal (1).

 

[RUNVS]

Didn't get enough out of Tom Mitchell either, strange coach

Would only play Mitchell as a tagger. Didn't think he was good for much else.

 

[RUNVS]

This is why I rate Chris Judd so highly. He won Brownlow medal (2) and a Norm Smith medal (1).

LRT was better on the 2005 Grand Final though.

 

[Lunchtime]

LRT was better on the 2005 Grand Final though.

Not that it means much because the decision stands.

Judd had 29 possessions, 2 tackles, 1 mark & kicked 0.0

Louise Roberts-Thomson had 17 possessions, 1 tackle, 6 marks & kicked 0.0.

 

[Seeds]

Don't get me wrong, the Bronwlow medal is still one of the most prestigious individual awards a player can win but it isn't everything.

Individual awards such as the Norm Smith medal (BOG in Grand Final) and Gary Ayres Award (Best Player in Finals) are just as prestigious because they recognise players who get the job done when the stakes are at it's highest, when the pressure goes up, when the expectation from fans, the media and clubs goes up and when it truly matters most.

That is something that Home & Away footy (whilst still important) simply can not replicate.

Lol trying to make out a norm smith medal is as special as a brownlow. Players from only two teams can win it and its for only 1 game. Isaac smith won a norm smith two years ago for eff sake. Yes isaac smith.

 

[liz]

Not that it means much because the decision stands.

Judd had 29 possessions, 2 tackles, 1 mark & kicked 0.0

Louise Roberts-Thomson had 17 possessions, 1 tackle, 6 marks & kicked 0.0.

The challenge with the 2005 NS was that Judd was the standout Eagle but the Swans had a few players who were great in parts. And they were lower profile players who probably need to be overwhelmingly BOG to win the NS. LRT was great in the first half. Fosdike and Buchanan critical in the second half.

It was also a time before the technology of today that facilitates the judges waiting until the end of the game and still having their votes submitted and tallied by the time the presentations begin. Back then they had to lodge their votes (on a metaphorical post-it note) ten minutes before the end of the game. In 2005 it was impossible to guess which team would win ten minutes before the end. Even ten seconds before the end it was far from certain.

I suspect it will be a very rare thing in the future that a player from the losing team wins the NS. I think it’s recognised that it’s a hollow award for a player from the losing side so they’d need to be head and shoulders the best to be awarded it.

 

[Lunchtime]

Lol trying to make out a norm smith medal is as special as a brownlow. Players from only two teams can win it and its for only 1 game. Isaac smith won a norm smith two years ago for eff sake. Yes isaac smith.

Well clearly common sense should kick in and tell you that a player who only wins a Norm Smith...well it's not enough

But when players start winning Brownlows AND Norm Smiths....it builds an impressive resume'

 

[Lunchtime]

The challenge with the 2005 NS was that Judd was the standout Eagle but the Swans had a few players who were great in parts. And they were lower profile players who probably need to be overwhelmingly BOG to win the NS. LRT was great in the first half. Fosdike and Buchanan critical in the second half.

It was also a time before the technology of today that facilitates the judges waiting until the end of the game and still having their votes submitted and tallied by the time the presentations begin. Back then they had to lodge their votes (on a metaphorical post-it note) ten minutes before the end of the game. In 2005 it was impossible to guess which team would win ten minutes before the end. Even ten seconds before the end it was far from certain.

I suspect it will be a very rare thing in the future that a player from the losing team wins the NS. I think it’s recognised that it’s a hollow award for a player from the losing side so they’d need to be head and shoulders the best to be awarded it.

I've got no issues with Judd winning the Norm Smith medal in 2005. From memory Ben Cousins also played well too: 27 possessions, 4 tackles, 7 marks and kicked 1.0.....but at the end of the day Judd was the winner and that's that I guess.

 

[liz]

I've got no issues with Judd winning the Norm Smith medal in 2005. From memory Ben Cousins also played well too: 27 possessions, 4 tackles, 7 marks and kicked 1.0.....but at the end of the day Judd was the winner and that's that I guess.

Most Swans fans do.
We’d waited 72 years for a premiership and we darn well wanted a NS medallist too.

 

[Lunchtime]

Most Swans fans do.
We’d waited 72 years for a premiership and we darn well wanted a NS medallist too.

Yeah oh well. Best to concentrate on the here and now I reckon

 

[TheUnicorn]

I seem to remember his name being mentioned more than anyone else's in those "Most Overrated Players" threads. Being moved into the midfield has transformed him. I wonder how many players out there are ready to thrive if just placed in the right position.

 

[bloodsbigot]

LRT was better on the 2005 Grand Final though.

I concur. Judd didn't deserve the Norm Smith.

 

[bloodsbigot]

The challenge with the 2005 NS was that Judd was the standout Eagle but the Swans had a few players who were great in parts. And they were lower profile players who probably need to be overwhelmingly BOG to win the NS. LRT was great in the first half. Fosdike and Buchanan critical in the second half.

It was also a time before the technology of today that facilitates the judges waiting until the end of the game and still having their votes submitted and tallied by the time the presentations begin. Back then they had to lodge their votes (on a metaphorical post-it note) ten minutes before the end of the game. In 2005 it was impossible to guess which team would win ten minutes before the end. Even ten seconds before the end it was far from certain.

I suspect it will be a very rare thing in the future that a player from the losing team wins the NS. I think it’s recognised that it’s a hollow award for a player from the losing side so they’d need to be head and shoulders the best to be awarded it.

I reckon fosdike was best on ground but didn't win it because he's a nobody.

 

[Heeney2Franklin]

Great call from March TheWhiteRhino he really has delivered this season and has been the best player all year and has backed it up in both finals so far.

 

[Trav 20]

Don't get me wrong, the Bronwlow medal is still one of the most prestigious individual awards a player can win but it isn't everything.

Individual awards such as the Norm Smith medal (BOG in Grand Final) and Gary Ayres Award (Best Player in Finals) are just as prestigious because they recognise players who get the job done when the stakes are at it's highest, when the pressure goes up, when the expectation from fans, the media and clubs goes up and when it truly matters most.

That is something that Home & Away footy (whilst still important) simply can not replicate.

I can't overly rate the Gary Ayres Award due to the flawed voting system.

Jack Macrae won in 2021 with 25 votes from 4 games. Petracca came second with 23 votes from one less game.

Petracca was the player of the finals that year but hasn't got the recognition.

 

[Cleansweep17]

I seem to remember his name being mentioned more than anyone else's in those "Most Overrated Players" threads. Being moved into the midfield has transformed him. I wonder how many players out there are ready to thrive if just placed in the right position.

I’m guilty of this, makes me wonder why it took so long to make the move though.

 

[Yellow Feathers]

Completely mismanaged most of his career. Imagine playing 200 games and this is the first season in the midfield. Disgusting.

 

[Cleansweep17]

I can't overly rate the Gary Ayres Award due to the flawed voting system.

Jack Macrae won in 2021 with 25 votes from 4 games. Petracca came second with 23 votes from one less game.

Petracca was the player of the finals that year but hasn't got the recognition.

They changed the voting system to the GF being 1.5 x the votes.

Trac would’ve won it if it was in 2023. Unlucky.

 

[RUNVS]

I’m guilty of this, makes me wonder why it took so long to make the move though.

Horse is very stubborn.

 

[liz]

Much of the reason why Heeney has been unable to sustain a level of performance over his career that raw talent suggests he should have is his propensity to get injured. Usually the kinds of injury that don’t keep him out of the side but that hamper his effectiveness.

He’s not alone in that. Most great players aren’t at their best when having to play through niggling injuries. He’s had an ongoing issue with his ankle that I believe he still has to manage carefully.

I don’t know what has changed this season that’s he’s been able to cope with it better. But I do think it’s one of the reasons he’s not been able to become a full time mid until now.

He’s also a damned fine medium forward, which might be one reason he’s not graduated until now.