John McCarthy

[sr36]

Will be one of the pickups of the year then.

I reckon he'll be a great get for the tigers. Good luck to you and him.

 

[Rustof]

How is he defensively? Can he play as a tagger/run with player?

 

[themidlandmaster]

How is he defensively? Can he play as a tagger/run with player?

Nope, doesn't have the engine. Good in and under, though

 

[liz]

True but McCarthy has said publicly that he wants to go to the Tigers. Why would a club draft a player when they know he'd rather be elsewhere?

I am sure Port haven't forgotten about how the Nick Stevens saga panned out. Playing the rest of his career at Carlton didn't seem to bother Stevens once he landed there.

If Port see McCarthy as the best available player in the PSD they are well within their rights to pick him.

 

[TheGreatGrundy]

Think the Tiges need to play McCarthy in his correct position - That is primarily as a midfielder - can play inside/outside - probably more inside.

Watched him a few times at VFL Level - He was the ' pea in the pod ' -The 'Go-To man', who set up the plays. Unfortunately he was played primarily as a forward for the AFL team in which he struggled.

Richmond will give McCarthy every chance to transfer his VFL form to AFL level.

Would rate Houli higher because he has a better skill set.

McCarthy starred in the VFL in a midfield role. He also seemed injury free last year for the first time in his career. He could be a useful player for Richmond.

 

[Demon 86]

Better player than Houli, hasn't got a pea heart for starters. Durability is his main concern. Will be a good pick up for the Tigers, will play 22 rounds next year fitness providing.

Bachar Houli is criminally underrated on this site.

 

[Vinnie Vegas]

I rate him highly - Always have.

At various times, he's shown the ability to find the ball, good pace, good tackling and good skills.

However, he's perennially injury prone, which makes him unsuitable as depth in the midfield, and he hasn't really seemed to put it all together in the opportunities that he's had in the senior side.

He could be a good pickup for Richmond if they give him a game every week and he manages to stay healthy, but one would think that the likelihood is that he'll give Richmond something like what Brent Prismall has given Essendon since leaving Geelong - Sporadic good service interspersed with poor form and injuries.

 

[the mighty T]

Certainly should be picked up and used as an inside mid, probably doesn't have the kicking skills needed for someone to play outside. But this is a good thing for the tiges as they've got some really good users of the ball

Jmac seems like he could make it but I was never a fan simply because I thought his kicking skills weren't good enough to put him ahead of most of our mids and he wasn't damaging enough to play off half forward

 

[telsor]

Bachar Houli is criminally underrated on this site.

Generally it's just Essendon supporters, and those who listen to them because they don't see him play for themselves.



As for the topic at hand.

I think most acknowledge that Richmond has some quality at the 'top end', but lacks depth and falls off rapidly. McCarthy will add depth, and thus make the team better.

 

[Heisenberg_]

I am sure Port haven't forgotten about how the Nick Stevens saga panned out. Playing the rest of his career at Carlton didn't seem to bother Stevens once he landed there.

Different circumstances, Stevens got picked by a club from the same state as the one he wanted to play in.

 

[santa claws]

Bachar Houli is criminally underrated on this site.

no hes not. he was tried in the midfield and failed. he was tried forward and failed. he now swans around the backline picking up cheap kicks, its hard to judge exactly where he is at.
imo hes poor defensively and a risk playing back.some of his defensive efforts were cringeworthy and accountability is not a strong suit.

His run and kicking is very good finding a way to best utilise them to the teams advantage is what its about.
For me a wing spot is the go with an emphasis on accountability.Id very much describe him as an outside mid.

On mccarthy. 22yo, he dominates the vfl is still very young and for a psd pick he would be worth giving a go to for most clubs. At 189cm hes a good height for a mid. At 82kg he needs to put on 5kg if hes to survive and play inside at Afl

The one i like is a WA boy in Horsley. Dominated wafl for a couple of seasons. good skills, good motor, good size, finds heaps of ball. Definately well worth a go with a late nd or psd pick.

 

[Demon 86]

^^^

I'm not saying Bachar is a star, but so many people write him off as 'just an outside mid' like that's a bad thing. Guess what? Every team needs outside mids with elite kicking skills. Your own coaching staff agree and rated him fourth best player for the season.

 

[Spanish_Fly]

Bacher played some excellent defensive roles this year, the job on Davey our 2nd game against Dees this year is the first that springs to mind, There were a few others too where he was moved on to damaging players and did a great job.

 

[Asgardian]

Judd, McCarthy... similar

Quality of the player was not the basis of the comment, perhaps you can read further?

 

[DaVe86]

Would definitely be a good get for Richmond and I think would suit their needs.

He has bee summed up pretty well by the Collingwood fans in this thread. Has a good all-round game and is a good in and under...but kicking skills prevent him from really hitting the big time.

A good earlier point was made that he was played predominantly in a small forward role in the senior side which didnt suit him...although i thought he showed good signs in the few games he got this year.

If he is given a run in the midfield he'll grow into the role. Really needs to put on some size though.

In terms of his role at Richmond, he'll be a good rotation with Dustin Martin who will continue to play forward at times, whilst he'll free up guys like Cotchin and Foley in a similar way Ball has done so for Swan and Pendlebury who can play a bit more outside and not have to do all the in and under work.

Pendlebury's game has hit a new level since Ball came to Collingwood.


The obvious concerns with McCarthy is his injury history and lack of bulk to play that in and under role. But he is as good as any VFL player at the moment and is about to hit his peak age. Definitely deserves a second chance, because his form warranted more game-time in 2011. He is a victim of the strong Collingwood midfield