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I have always been a very vocal supporter of Walls, for one simple reason - he was a fantastic player, bloody good coach, and he knows football better than you or me. I like some of the things he says here, and there is an interesting part about Scott Thompson...
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/08/04/1154198332144.html
Craig's battle-hardened men
Robert Walls
August 5, 2006
DESPITE last week's loss to the Eagles, the Crows are firm favourites for the flag at $2.50. And they are entitled to be the punters' choice. In 2005 and 2006, they have won 32 of their 42 games.
The Crows are the most experienced team in the competition. For tonight's game against Collingwood, 12 of their 22 players have more than 100 games of AFL football behind them. The average number of games is 124.
They have battle-hardened bodies that can withstand the tough training programs that their coach puts them through.
This is a team that is able to run hard all game and that relishes the in-close physical stuff.
There is no doubt the team's window of opportunity is in the period 2005-07, so it already has let one premiership opportunity slip. But missing out last year has added a steely resolve to this outfit.
Seven of the Crows' regulars will be in their 30s next year. They know that time is not on their side. It is a credit to the veterans and to the coaching staff that they are playing so well in the twilight of their careers.
Five of the oldies, Mark Ricciuto, 31, Tyson Edwards, 30 tomorrow, Ben Hart, 32, Andrew McLeod, 30 yesterday, and Simon Goodwin, 29, played in the premierships of 1997-98. All, except Hart, are having excellent seasons.
Ricciuto, in his new role at full-forward, is the leading goalkicker with an average of three goals a game.
Goodwin is one of the favourites for the Brownlow Medal. He averages a staggering 28 disposals a game and leads his team in clearances and handball receives. He is a super-fit running machine with a strong appetite for contests — one of a rare breed in modern football.
Edwards is one of the most underrated players in football. With 238 games to his credit, the compact strong midfielder can create or close down depending on what is required at the time. His experience and durability is invaluable to his team.
McLeod will miss tonight's game as he recently had surgery on a troublesome foot, but the dual Norm Smith medallist has had a super season running off half-back. More than 10 times a game, McLeod runs to receive handballs and, with his precise foot delivery, repeatedly sets his forwards up.
Hart, the most experienced player on the Crows' list, is into his 15th season. Injuries have cost him, but now he is back in the side and very much enjoying being part of the meanest defence in the game, a unit that concedes only 70 points a game.
Coming up for game 242 is ruck giant Matthew Clarke. "Doc", as he is called, is a bit stiff. He started his career with Brisbane back in '93. He was a Lion when the Crows took the 1997-98 flags. After 130 games with Brisbane, he joined the Crows in 2000. He then saw his old teammates win three premierships in a row.
The Doc seldom gets his timing wrong with his leaps, which help make him the best tap ruckman of the past decade. He did, however, get his timing wrong with his choice of clubs. This season may well be his final chance to become a premiership player.
A real strength of coach Neil Craig and his coaching staff has been to resurrect the careers of four players from other clubs whose careers were floundering. And this has been done in the space of two years.
Matthew Bode played his 100th AFL game last week. It took nine years. Last year, Bode played only two games. This year, he has missed just one. The former Port Adelaide player has become super-fit and understands his role. He is a small forward crumber and the No. 1 pressure man on the opposition. He chases and tackles with ferocity.
Kris Massie was a disappointment at Carlton as a first-round draft choice and did little with Adelaide in his first couple of seasons. Last year, he played only three games; tonight, he will line up in the midfield as a regular starter for the top-of-the-ladder team.
I still have my doubts about him, but it can't be denied, coach Craig has Massie playing the best football of his career.
Scott Stevens is another who most thought was not much good. He did little with Sydney and couldn't even crack it for one game last year. Now he is the starting centre half-back, and has been for the last 12 weeks — amazing. Again, the coaching staff have triumphed as they have helped turn a lost cause into a increasingly important player.
The other reincarnation is Scott Thompson. This 23-year-old has real talent, yet at Melbourne, we rarely saw it. In four seasons with the Demons, he averaged fewer than 10 games a year. Since crossing to the Crows last year, he has played 40 of a possible 42 games, averages a goal a game, is third in the clearances and hard-ball gets and is recognised as one of the toughest goers in the league — what a transformation.
So when we see the Crows run out tonight at AAMI Stadium, again in front of a full house, we should salute the fine job that Craig is doing.
He has his team tough and fit. Each man knows his role. The veterans are hungry. The stars are shining and the battlers are playing to the best of their ability.
You can't ask for any more than that.
THE ADELAIDE GAMES COUNTHart 308
TONIGHT'S TEAM
Ricciuto 301
Clarke 241
Edwards 238
Goodwin 197
Bassett 168
McGregor 134
Burton 132
Biglands 128
Johncock 102
Massie 102
Bode 100
Doughty 93
Shirley 92
Thompson 79
Mattner 72
Reilly 61
Hentschel 57
Rutten 53
Stevens 50
Van Berlo 23
Porplyzia 6
MISSINGMcLeod 256
Torney 169
Welsh 138
Perrie 98
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2006/08/04/1154198332144.html
Craig's battle-hardened men
Robert Walls
August 5, 2006
DESPITE last week's loss to the Eagles, the Crows are firm favourites for the flag at $2.50. And they are entitled to be the punters' choice. In 2005 and 2006, they have won 32 of their 42 games.
The Crows are the most experienced team in the competition. For tonight's game against Collingwood, 12 of their 22 players have more than 100 games of AFL football behind them. The average number of games is 124.
They have battle-hardened bodies that can withstand the tough training programs that their coach puts them through.
This is a team that is able to run hard all game and that relishes the in-close physical stuff.
There is no doubt the team's window of opportunity is in the period 2005-07, so it already has let one premiership opportunity slip. But missing out last year has added a steely resolve to this outfit.
Seven of the Crows' regulars will be in their 30s next year. They know that time is not on their side. It is a credit to the veterans and to the coaching staff that they are playing so well in the twilight of their careers.
Five of the oldies, Mark Ricciuto, 31, Tyson Edwards, 30 tomorrow, Ben Hart, 32, Andrew McLeod, 30 yesterday, and Simon Goodwin, 29, played in the premierships of 1997-98. All, except Hart, are having excellent seasons.
Ricciuto, in his new role at full-forward, is the leading goalkicker with an average of three goals a game.
Goodwin is one of the favourites for the Brownlow Medal. He averages a staggering 28 disposals a game and leads his team in clearances and handball receives. He is a super-fit running machine with a strong appetite for contests — one of a rare breed in modern football.
Edwards is one of the most underrated players in football. With 238 games to his credit, the compact strong midfielder can create or close down depending on what is required at the time. His experience and durability is invaluable to his team.
McLeod will miss tonight's game as he recently had surgery on a troublesome foot, but the dual Norm Smith medallist has had a super season running off half-back. More than 10 times a game, McLeod runs to receive handballs and, with his precise foot delivery, repeatedly sets his forwards up.
Hart, the most experienced player on the Crows' list, is into his 15th season. Injuries have cost him, but now he is back in the side and very much enjoying being part of the meanest defence in the game, a unit that concedes only 70 points a game.
Coming up for game 242 is ruck giant Matthew Clarke. "Doc", as he is called, is a bit stiff. He started his career with Brisbane back in '93. He was a Lion when the Crows took the 1997-98 flags. After 130 games with Brisbane, he joined the Crows in 2000. He then saw his old teammates win three premierships in a row.
The Doc seldom gets his timing wrong with his leaps, which help make him the best tap ruckman of the past decade. He did, however, get his timing wrong with his choice of clubs. This season may well be his final chance to become a premiership player.
A real strength of coach Neil Craig and his coaching staff has been to resurrect the careers of four players from other clubs whose careers were floundering. And this has been done in the space of two years.
Matthew Bode played his 100th AFL game last week. It took nine years. Last year, Bode played only two games. This year, he has missed just one. The former Port Adelaide player has become super-fit and understands his role. He is a small forward crumber and the No. 1 pressure man on the opposition. He chases and tackles with ferocity.
Kris Massie was a disappointment at Carlton as a first-round draft choice and did little with Adelaide in his first couple of seasons. Last year, he played only three games; tonight, he will line up in the midfield as a regular starter for the top-of-the-ladder team.
I still have my doubts about him, but it can't be denied, coach Craig has Massie playing the best football of his career.
Scott Stevens is another who most thought was not much good. He did little with Sydney and couldn't even crack it for one game last year. Now he is the starting centre half-back, and has been for the last 12 weeks — amazing. Again, the coaching staff have triumphed as they have helped turn a lost cause into a increasingly important player.
The other reincarnation is Scott Thompson. This 23-year-old has real talent, yet at Melbourne, we rarely saw it. In four seasons with the Demons, he averaged fewer than 10 games a year. Since crossing to the Crows last year, he has played 40 of a possible 42 games, averages a goal a game, is third in the clearances and hard-ball gets and is recognised as one of the toughest goers in the league — what a transformation.
So when we see the Crows run out tonight at AAMI Stadium, again in front of a full house, we should salute the fine job that Craig is doing.
He has his team tough and fit. Each man knows his role. The veterans are hungry. The stars are shining and the battlers are playing to the best of their ability.
You can't ask for any more than that.
THE ADELAIDE GAMES COUNTHart 308
TONIGHT'S TEAM
Ricciuto 301
Clarke 241
Edwards 238
Goodwin 197
Bassett 168
McGregor 134
Burton 132
Biglands 128
Johncock 102
Massie 102
Bode 100
Doughty 93
Shirley 92
Thompson 79
Mattner 72
Reilly 61
Hentschel 57
Rutten 53
Stevens 50
Van Berlo 23
Porplyzia 6
MISSINGMcLeod 256
Torney 169
Welsh 138
Perrie 98
