Recommitted Josh Dunkley [contracted and staying at the Western Bulldogs]

[Lore]

2020 discussion here: https://www.bigfooty.com/forum/thre...-requested-a-trade-to-essendon.1250264/unread

*2021 discussion here*

 

[Boristown]

Was awesome yesterday. But I’m sure everyone will focus on his 2 ruck contests he didn’t even compete in after Stef was put on ice. Sigh.

By everyone you mean salty Essendon fans who have to watch their mosquito midfield get bullied every week

 

[dazzledavey36]

Wonder if Daddy Dunkley is going to be heavily involved again this year....

Glad the Doggies didn't take a backwards step when old man Dunks tried to dictate both Dunkley brothers where and shouldn't they go..

 

[citizen-erased]

good thing we kept that future 1st for that tall inside contested gun we're screaming out for.......fml

 

[JayJ20]

Was awesome yesterday. But I’m sure everyone will focus on his 2 ruck contests he didn’t even compete in after Stef was put on ice. Sigh.

Yeah he was great. He's going to have to accept that he'll pinch hit occasionally considering he is the most versatile mid you have after Bontempelli.

I'd like to see him work on his forward craft a little more this year so he can impact games the way Fyfe, Martin, Dangerfield and Bont do. Do you see him spend significant time forward?

 

[JayJ20]

good thing we kept that future 1st for that tall inside contested gun we're screaming out for.......fml

Don't worry Dogs are keeping Dunkley safe for us while we develop Caldwell

 

[Boristown]

Don't worry Dogs are keeping Dunkley safe for us while we develop Caldwell

Will be interesting to see if Dunkley racks up 30 and 5+ clearances a week, if Dodoro decides to low ball again to try and win trade week.

 

[Mofra]

I'd like to see him work on his forward craft a little more this year so he can impact games the way Fyfe, Martin, Dangerfield and Bont do. Do you see him spend significant time forward?

Has has neither the pace nor kicking skills of those guys, but plenty of grunt.
He's not a bad mark and has played a decent amount of time before, but part of that is game style. Bevo tends to play 1-2 forwards very high and they become virtual midfielders in open play - that's the role Dunkley has played well early in his career.
Treloar played forward, mid and back when he had a run in the VFL yesterday, was subbed out at halftime with 19 touches so he seems set to play everywhere too.
Macrae and Libba are probably the least versatile we have so are less likely to be thrown around although Libba rested forward last year (he was only average at it).

 

[JayJ20]

Has has neither the pace nor kicking skills of those guys, but plenty of grunt.
He's not a bad mark and has played a decent amount of time before, but part of that is game style. Bevo tends to play 1-2 forwards very high and they become virtual midfielders in open play - that's the role Dunkley has played well early in his career.
Treloar played forward, mid and back when he had a run in the VFL yesterday, was subbed out at halftime with 19 touches so he seems set to play everywhere too.
Macrae and Libba are probably the least versatile we have so are less likely to be thrown around although Libba rested forward last year (he was only average at it).

Yeah he is a tad slow for a forward from the little I've seen of him playing as one.

If Dunkley were to be coming to Essendon, my hope for him would be a career like Watson. A dominant big-bodied inside mid that can drift forward and make an impact if needed. Jobe wasn't quick, but he made up for it by being very strong in contests with good hands. I see Dunkley in that mould.

 

[Bulldogs85]

Don't worry Dogs are keeping Dunkley safe for us while we develop Caldwell

If he keeps playing the way he did yesterday you just keep those juicy 2 first rounders nice and ready for us

 

[adogsfan5]

Yeah he was great. He's going to have to accept that he'll pinch hit occasionally considering he is the most versatile mid you have after Bontempelli.

I'd like to see him work on his forward craft a little more this year so he can impact games the way Fyfe, Martin, Dangerfield and Bont do. Do you see him spend significant time forward?

That’s a great question - I can’t see him spending too much time there - we have a fair few slow boys down there - Bruce, Wallis, English and Libba/Bont maybe spending time there too. Considering we now have English and Martin, I’d be filthy if he needs to ruck at all during proper games.

 

[BEaston]

If the Dogs aren't playing him in the middle, then it's hard to argue he should be valued as though he's a top tier midfielder. Especially in a draft that's regarded as being strong for midfielders at the top end.

Also, if a player asks for a trade two years running, it seems pretty unlikely they'll be held to their contract again, especially if they're being used out of position. A mid first would be reasonable in that case, higher if he plays as a genuine onballer and replicates his 2019 form.

If he's not playing in the middle, and they can facilitate a trade that nets them a genuine CHB, then it would seem like a win-win situation to me?

That's dumb. So Martin's not a top tier midfielder because he helps his team more by playing forward more? No. He's still a top tier midfielder and Dunkley is still a high level midfielder as well, with the added advantage of having positional flexibility which would increase his value.

 

[Foxx]

I don't think Essendon will need him. Based on the pre season so far our midfield is winning enough of the footy.

 

[owen87]

That's dumb. So Martin's not a top tier midfielder because he helps his team more by playing forward more? No. He's still a top tier midfielder and Dunkley is still a high level midfielder as well, with the added advantage of having positional flexibility which would increase his value.

That's quite the misnomer.

One is a four time All-Australian, three time Norm Smith Medallist, and a Brownlow Medallist, playing in the midfield for a number of seasons.

The other has played a run of games in the second half of a single season a few seasons back that were of a high standard and has received an AA Squad nomination.

Dunkley has the potential to be a very good midfielder if given the opportunity to play full-time midfield. He's never displayed that 2019 form across an entire season, let alone across multiple seasons.

Martin has proven that he's as good as any midfielder in the competition over the last decade.

If Dunkley isn't playing in the middle, he's not showing the form to argue that he should be traded as though he's a premium midfielder. That's not dumb, that's logic.

 

[BEaston]

That's quite the misnomer.

One is a four time All-Australian, three time Norm Smith Medallist, and a Brownlow Medallist, playing in the midfield for a number of seasons.

The other has played a run of games in the second half of a single season a few seasons back that were of a high standard and has received an AA Squad nomination.

Dunkley has the potential to be a very good midfielder if given the opportunity to play full-time midfield. He's never displayed that 2019 form across an entire season, let alone across multiple seasons.

Martin has proven that he's as good as any midfielder in the competition over the last decade.

If Dunkley isn't playing in the middle, he's not showing the form to argue that he should be traded as though he's a premium midfielder. That's not dumb, that's logic.

Well done in completely missing the point. You've somehow come to the conclusion I'm comparing Dunkley and Martin's individual abilities as a mid.

The point is, despite Martin playing forward for a large majority of his time, he still has the same capability when played as a mid... and therefore value.
The same applies to Dunkley, his value as a mid is a known quantity. Just because it helps his team to play in other positions, it does not lessen his value as a midfielder.

If anything it potentially increases his value as it demonstrates flexibility, something that is getting more important with less interchanges, etc. Gives a coach options.

 

[boncer34]

Well done in completely missing the point. You've somehow come to the conclusion I'm comparing Dunkley and Martin's individual abilities as a mid.

The point is, despite Martin playing forward for a large majority of his time, he still has the same capability when played as a mid... and therefore value.
The same applies to Dunkley, his value as a mid is a known quantity. Just because it helps his team to play in other positions, it does not lessen his value as a midfielder.

If anything it potentially increases his value as it demonstrates flexibility, something that is getting more important with less interchanges, etc. Gives a coach options.

Interesting post. Fairly certain one of you has missed the others point and it's not Owen.

 

[owen87]

his value as a mid is a known quantity.

It’s not though. That’s the point.

It’s assumed that he can reproduce the form he showed at the end of 2019 if played on-ball, for a full season, over multiple years. He hasn’t done this yet, therefore it’s not known.

I don’t think I’m the one missing the point here.

 

[BEaston]

Interesting post. Fairly certain one of you has missed the others point and it's not Owen.

It’s not though. That’s the point.

It’s assumed that he can reproduce the form he showed at the end of 2019 if played on-ball, for a full season, over multiple years. He hasn’t done this yet, therefore it’s not known.

I don’t think I’m the one missing the point here.

Yeah, no.

1. The original comment was that because he's not only played as a midfielder solely, his value as a midfielder is affected. That's stupid as f, because it's about the team circumstances and nothing about his actual ability as a midfielder, which is the criteria to his value as a midfielder.

2. You guys are now making a different point, which is that you think his ability as a midfielder is not known. You just have not watched him enough if you think that.

 

[boncer34]

Yeah,

Everything after this was superfluous. You missed his point, it's fine, it happens. No need to pretend otherwise.

 

[BEaston]

Everything after this was superfluous. You missed his point, it's fine, it happens. No need to pretend otherwise.

Lol okay. Go back read his original post I quoted, its there to see. It's talking about his value being impacted by position.

If his point was that his value as a mid is unknown, it was terribly made and easily refuted (see point 2 in my post above).

 

[owen87]

Lol okay. Go back read his original post I quoted, its there to see. It's talking about his value being impacted by position.

If his point was that his value as a mid is unknown, it was terribly made and easily refuted (see point 2 in my post above).

You’re using a whole lot of words to make up some kind of argument that doesn’t appear to make any sense, nor have any relevance to what I’ve posted.

So perhaps go back and re-read, if you don’t feel you come to a different conclusion, re-read again, if you still don’t come to a different conclusion, close your browser and don’t reopen it for 3-5 business days then repeat the above.

 

[boncer34]

Lol okay. Go back read his original post I quoted, its there to see. It's talking about his value being impacted by position.

If his point was that his value as a mid is unknown, it was terribly made and easily refuted (see point 2 in my post above).

Always fascinates me when people jump the gun and then refuse to admit they were wrong. It's the internet, why does it matter? Does it keep them awake at night? Is it a pride thing?

Bizarre to place such a high esteem on being right when discussing football with people who wouldn't even know it was you if they walked past you in the street.

 

[BEaston]

As I thought, no real discussion.

So let's be clear then; the fact that Dunkley has been employed as a forward at times has no real bearing on his value as a midfielder. If Essendon see him as a 100% mid then they assess his ability to play as a mid when determining his value. His history in sometimes playing forward is either irrelevant in this determination (or may add to it, as it provides a coach flexibility).

 

[BEaston]

Yeah he is a tad slow for a forward from the little I've seen of him playing as one.

If Dunkley were to be coming to Essendon, my hope for him would be a career like Watson. A dominant big-bodied inside mid that can drift forward and make an impact if needed. Jobe wasn't quick, but he made up for it by being very strong in contests with good hands. I see Dunkley in that mould.

That's a good comp.

 

[Boristown]

I don't think Essendon will need him. Based on the pre season so far our midfield is winning enough of the footy.

Foxx is here all week, try the veal.

 

[Foxx]

Foxx is here all week, try the veal.

Refute it then. Cant can you?