Autopsy It's All About the Future - Port d Peel Thunder by 69, r23, AO

[Banker]

I'd rather have dawson leading out of the f50 come finals than tabs, let tabs get some more games under his belt next year.

there is a reason he gets subbed out so often, he's not ready to embark a finals campaign as an AFL key forward.

that said I'd rather have tabs in the team than clarke

Agreed would only want Tabs in team if it was only out of him and Clarke.

Against decent opposition Tabs will struggle. Which is a major problem because he doesn't even make it a contest.

 

[Agenfrida]

Not really, more like 90% of supporters, media, the coach felt Taberner played ok. Some people might accept their word over yours. Not surprising really.

That says it all really. As previously stated, my opinion is based on what I saw. The people disagreeing and telling me I'm wrong are doing it based on what OTHER people saw/thought. I stated plenty "tell me what YOU liked about his game/ what YOU saw that makes you think I'm wrong in forming the opinion I have". So far I've had nothing but crickets.

I've been vocal in the past and referenced the flak Tom Hawkins got early in his career as an example on why Tabs needs time. Watching him yesterday he had some nice passages of play, but was horrible for a large part of the game. His lack of movement and his fumbling below the knees the most disappointing.

He might get better, and I hope he does, but I stand by what I saw. It's a pitty that others are standing by what others saw, yet are trying to argue it's their own opinion. I now see where the term "sheeple" comes from.

 

[Cobbler]

OK I've read a few pages and can't be bothered reading the rest, but was no one actually disappointed? I felt it was a real opportunity for someone to stand up a fair bit. For me Brady Grey was it and Taberner responded nicely. I was actually hoping that Weller, Langdon, Blakely could have a 20+ possession game and show something. Perhaps it was the fact they were surrounded by other rookies, but I was truly hoping someone would step up in a much bigger way and announce themselves so to speak.

I actually thought Blakely was very poor, bordering non-existant and was the one I was really waiting to watch.

I understand it was great for development, but I actually hope this shuts a few people down when it comes to playing the kids. Mzungu, Suban and DeBoer who are often seen as the fringe players and spoken about as should make way for the youngsters are simply miles ahead.

Crozier was the standout poor player. Only got it a few times and just banged it long with his half a dozen touches. I'm willing to forgive Clarke for the simple fact he had a major head collision only 2 weeks ago. If he wasn't at all affected and was genuinely good to go and had no other issues like leg soreness, then that was as deplorable an effort as I have ever seen. Like I said I'm willing to give him this one.

I also like A. Pearce, but Taberner should be viewed as being in front of him, especially as a forward. Pearce hasn't actually done anything other then look promising and stick a couple of solid marks on the lead. We're quick to jump down Taberners throat, I think his game in a forward line with little entry was miles above any performance A.Pearce has delivered.

Both have great futures, Pearce probably more so, but Taberner gets the nod for finals.

 

[rgauci]

That says it all really. As previously stated, my opinion is based on what I saw. The people disagreeing and telling me I'm wrong are doing it based on what OTHER people saw/thought. I stated plenty "tell me what YOU liked about his game/ what YOU saw that makes you think I'm wrong in forming the opinion I have". So far I've had nothing but crickets.

I've been vocal in the past and referenced the flak Tom Hawkins got early in his career as an example on why Tabs needs time. Watching him yesterday he had some nice passages of play, but was horrible for a large part of the game. His lack of movement and his fumbling below the knees the most disappointing.

He might get better, and I hope he does, but I stand by what I saw. It's a pitty that others are standing by what others saw, yet are trying to argue it's their own opinion. I now see where the term "sheeple" comes from.

I saw a nervous young key forward. He shanked a set shot at goal he would reliably kick in the WAFL = nerves.

I saw him out body a defender under the ball and grab the crumb and goal = excellent.

I saw him soccer a ball forward but make a poor decision to try and take possession and be tackled. The ball spilled out, if we had better forwards around him they would of crumbed. = still learning.

I saw a senior player call for the ball in the pocket who should have never called for it (Neale = lucky he slotted it). Would have meant 3 goals for Taberner.

I saw him go quiet in quarters 2 and 4 while our midfield got pummeled.

I saw ken honkley double team him when we got a run on. Implies he was good.

Another preseason or two and we have a key tall. Whether he's good enough as a first key tall or second, time will tell. He's definitely good enough for AFL.

Forgot to mention he took 3 contested marks and was physically a handful for the Port defender. Appreciating they have trengove and Carlisle sidelined.

 

[13then7]

OK I've read a few pages and can't be bothered reading the rest, but was no one actually disappointed? I felt it was a real opportunity for someone to stand up a fair bit. For me Brady Grey was it and Taberner responded nicely. I was actually hoping that Weller, Langdon, Blakely could have a 20+ possession game and show something. Perhaps it was the fact they were surrounded by other rookies, but I was truly hoping someone would step up in a much bigger way and announce themselves so to speak.

I actually thought Blakely was very poor, bordering non-existant and was the one I was really waiting to watch.

I understand it was great for development, but I actually hope this shuts a few people down when it comes to playing the kids. Mzungu, Suban and DeBoer who are often seen as the fringe players and spoken about as should make way for the youngsters are simply miles ahead.

Crozier was the standout poor player. Only got it a few times and just banged it long with his half a dozen touches. I'm willing to forgive Clarke for the simple fact he had a major head collision only 2 weeks ago. If he wasn't at all affected and was genuinely good to go and had no other issues like leg soreness, then that was as deplorable an effort as I have ever seen. Like I said I'm willing to give him this one.

I also like A. Pearce, but Taberner should be viewed as being in front of him, especially as a forward. Pearce hasn't actually done anything other then look promising and stick a couple of solid marks on the lead. We're quick to jump down Taberners throat, I think his game in a forward line with little entry was miles above any performance A.Pearce has delivered.

Both have great futures, Pearce probably more so, but Taberner gets the nod for finals.

My thoughts exactly on this game. Many missed handballs and kicks under little to no pressure. Cream usually rises to the top and although we saw glimpses, that is not enough. The effort from all players was there and their size (lack of it) really does stand out so maybe that is what many of them need.

I also call for the continually bagging of De Boer, Suban and Mzungu etc etc to stop until the others are ready. From that performance there is no stand out. Would the next Lachlan Neale please stand up?

 

[hotchips81]

Agreed would only want Tabs in team if it was only out of him and Clarke.

Against decent opposition Tabs will struggle. Which is a major problem because he doesn't even make it a contest.

Against decent opposition, with Pav and Mayne in the side Tabs won't get the best tall defender.

 

[Agenfrida]

I saw a nervous young key forward. He shanked a set shot at goal he would reliably kick in the WAFL = nerves.

I saw him out body a defender under the ball and grab the crumb and goal = excellent.

I saw him soccer a ball forward but make a poor decision to try and take possession and be tackled. The ball spilled out, if we had better forwards around him they would of crumbed. = still learning.

I saw a senior player call for the ball in the pocket who should have never called for it (Neale = lucky he slotted it). Would have meant 3 goals for Taberner.

I saw him go quiet in quarters 2 and 4 while our midfield got pummeled.

I saw ken honkley double team him when we got a run on. Implies he was good.

Another preseason or two and we have a key tall. Whether he's good enough as a first key tall or second, time will tell. He's definitely good enough for AFL.

Forgot to mention he took 3 contested marks and was physically a handful for the Port defender. Appreciating they have trengove and Carlisle sidelined.

He actually took a nice grab on the wing and did some nice things, I've already acknowledged his body work was good, but he was still lucky to get the crumb after missing the mark. However, he was god awful below his knees. Three times he couldn't manage to pick up the ground ball. Two of them were missed goal opportunities and the third was in the south west pocket and Port cleared the ball easily. He didn't even chase. Many times when we had possession, he stood flat footed in the F50 - which really irked me because on a few occasions he had plenty of space to lead into on the fat side of the ground. He didn't lead nearly enough. On many occasions he didn't even try to seperate from his opponent and just expected to have the ball kicked to him. Honestly that lack of movement was what was most disappointing.

At least you listed some things you liked.

 

[ydraw]

He actually took a nice grab on the wing and did some nice things, I've already acknowledged his body work was good, but he was still lucky to get the crumb after missing the mark. However, he was god awful below his knees..

Must be an outlier then because in his career to date, his work below his knees has been one of his strengths. For a bloke who is 6'6" he is pretty good at ground level.

Then again you were AT THE GAME so what would I or 95% of the population who watched the game know?

 

[hoss]

Must be an outlier then because in his career to date, his work below his knees has been one of his strengths. For a bloke who is 6'6" he is pretty good at ground level.

Then again you were AT THE GAME so what would I or 95% of the population who watched the game know?

That's why Ballas is such a spud. His tap work and hitouts to advantage are just terrible.

 

[kp junior]

Tabs wasn't perfect, but the rest of out forward line was pretty non existent.
We had about 30 inside 50s for the match, mostly of dubious quality.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[freoextra]

Hmmm interesting argument fellas, for my part, I started watching with a mate and in the beginning Tabs slaughtered a few opportunities that basically had us saying he is just not AFL standard.

As the game progressed he did some reasonable things and he ended up being our best forward, so he had a mixed day.

Nothing more or less.

Is he the saviour that will make us better in the finals? Probably not if you ask me. I also doubt that he will get an opportunity barring injury.

Could he do a job if called upon, probably.

I wish him well if he gets a gig.

 

[Agenfrida]

Must be an outlier then because in his career to date, his work below his knees has been one of his strengths. For a bloke who is 6'6" he is pretty good at ground level.

Then again you were AT THE GAME so what would I or 95% of the population who watched the game know?

Someone hand this guy a tissue. It's tear central because I stated I didn't think tabs had a great game.

FTR - The original remarks came from someone comparing Pearce and Tabs as forwards. I made the argument that Pearce would be better below the knees at least. But, hey, what would I know?

As for Tabs being known to be so strong below the knees I can't recall that ever being a strength of his. Genuine question, since it's such a strength you must be able to recall pretty easily occasions when he's demonstrated this. I'd love to go back and watch the replays. Could you name a few games/instances when he's done this?

Wipe your eyes princess, it's my opinion, no need to get so upset.

 

[Grape Bear]

OK I've read a few pages and can't be bothered reading the rest, but was no one actually disappointed? I felt it was a real opportunity for someone to stand up a fair bit. For me Brady Grey was it and Taberner responded nicely. I was actually hoping that Weller, Langdon, Blakely could have a 20+ possession game and show something. Perhaps it was the fact they were surrounded by other rookies, but I was truly hoping someone would step up in a much bigger way and announce themselves so to speak.

I actually thought Blakely was very poor, bordering non-existant and was the one I was really waiting to watch.

I understand it was great for development, but I actually hope this shuts a few people down when it comes to playing the kids. Mzungu, Suban and DeBoer who are often seen as the fringe players and spoken about as should make way for the youngsters are simply miles ahead.

Crozier was the standout poor player. Only got it a few times and just banged it long with his half a dozen touches. I'm willing to forgive Clarke for the simple fact he had a major head collision only 2 weeks ago. If he wasn't at all affected and was genuinely good to go and had no other issues like leg soreness, then that was as deplorable an effort as I have ever seen. Like I said I'm willing to give him this one.

I also like A. Pearce, but Taberner should be viewed as being in front of him, especially as a forward. Pearce hasn't actually done anything other then look promising and stick a couple of solid marks on the lead. We're quick to jump down Taberners throat, I think his game in a forward line with little entry was miles above any performance A.Pearce has delivered.

Both have great futures, Pearce probably more so, but Taberner gets the nod for finals.

Disappointed that we couldn't keep it close, but as Ross said, the kids had two good quarters, the 1st and the 3rd - just couldn't hold it together to keep Port from getting a massive run-on in the 2nd, and completely ran out of legs in the last. Hard for an inexperienced anyone to get 20+ possessions when you got so little of the ball. Bit harsh on Blakely, as he has come off an ankle injury and was dropped into the deep end for his first game and sat on by a few Port players through a lot of it.

It's hard to be too disappointed when your team has effectively lost 2000 games worth of experience in one hit and end up with 4 debutants and most of the rest with less than 50 games experience. They'll look better with another pre-season and surrounded by more quality and experience as they get worked into the team next year. It gave the guys a taste of what it's like to verse a quality AFL team and they'll be given the right dose of honey and vinegar in the review to whet their appetites for more. Win/win.

I thought most of the senior players who played gave a good account of themselves, with the exception of Zac Clarke (already smashed from pillar to post) and Crozier.

Game won't really tell us much moving forward, as it is unlikely we'll have so many of the young uns introduced in one big plop into the team in the future.

 

[sproketman]

Was at the game, and I thought Tabs was shite. Beyond poor below his knees, slow and lumbering. Zero defensive pressure. Cannot take a contested mark consistently and only rarely do they stick. He doesn't run patterns inside the F50, rather he just stands stationary a lot of the time. This wouldn't be so bad if he was explosive off of the mark and could seperate from his defender, or was clever and agile enough to run patterns that would seperate him from his defender or if he was a decent pack/contested mark. Yet he's none of those things. He's a tall plodder with a big tank, but he doesn't run nearly enough for mine. If we weren't spread so thin in that department, I'd call for his delisting.

I watched Jonathan Patton live a couple of weeks ago, and you could not have a more pathetic and disinterested performance from a highly rated young forward. Slow, lacked defensive pressure, didn't impose himself. It happens.

Being a tall forward is difficult, and at this stage, Taberner is better than Pearce. People have stars in their eyes with Pearce. He will be a very good key defender, but his efforts in the forward line have been forgettable. Worse than Taberner, easily.

 

[Agenfrida]

I watched Jonathan Patton live a couple of weeks ago, and you could not have a more pathetic and disinterested performance from a highly rated young forward. Slow, lacked defensive pressure, didn't impose himself. It happens.

Being a tall forward is difficult, and at this stage, Taberner is better than Pearce. People have stars in their eyes with Pearce. He will be a very good key defender, but his efforts in the forward line have been forgettable. Worse than Taberner, easily.

As a pure forward yes, but Pearce is much better below the knees, has a bit more pace and is much better defensively. He's also more agile.

Tabs needs to get on his bike more and he needs to try and seperate from his defender more often by doubling back and running figure 8's etc... as he is slow for a kpp and at present his contested marking needs work.

 

[sproketman]

As a pure forward yes, but Pearce is much better below the knees, has a bit more pace and is much better defensively.

On the latter, how? What pressure has he put on up forward?

Are you rating him on how he plays defensively? Because when Pearce has played forward all I've seen is a guy who does not draw the ball, nor does he draw a defender.

 

[Agenfrida]

On the latter, how? What pressure has he put on up forward?

Are you rating him on how he plays defensively? Because when Pearce has played forward all I've seen is a guy who does not draw the ball, nor does he draw a defender.

He has better attributes for a start such as pace and agility. He actually appears to give a s**t about defending too. As for not drawing a defender I'm pretty sure Firrito payed him attention when he went fwd against Norf. Took a nice mark while outrunning him to the ball. I do agree that I prefer him as a defender though.

 

[ydraw]

Wipe your eyes princess, it's my opinion, no need to get so upset.

Ok chief

 

[The Anchorite]

Nice little (selective) quote from Ross's presser re finals:

"Port’s not there and we are."

 

[Agenfrida]

Ok chief

No example? Not one time that you can think of given it's such a well known strength. What a surprise.

Only quoting one line of my post? LOL again what a surprise.

It's ok sweetheart, everything will be ok.

 

[DudleyDocker]

No example? Not one time that you can think of given it's such a well known strength. What a surprise.

Only quoting one line of my post? LOL again what a surprise.

It's ok sweetheart, everything will be ok.

I think everyone's got your point by now Agenfrida.

Let's all move on.

 

[apuchar]

Its official. Our rookie tall forward pick is not Matthew Pavlich.

 

[Agenfrida]

I think everyone's got your point by now Agenfrida.

Let's all move on.

Just responding to responses, mate.

 

[DudleyDocker]

Just responding to responses, mate.

Yeah, I know - that can go on forever though.

Not disagreeing with you, just saying we all get your view (and others as well).

Peace

 

[imperial_oz]

That's why Ballas is such a spud. His tap work and hitouts to advantage are just terrible.

I never thought of that. Leave him at Peel until his taps to advantage improve.

....oh, wait