Kouta in 07

[uptheguts95]

Carlton great. Football great. Great Leader in a difficult time. Changed the face of football by introducing the footballing world to the notion of the "Athlete".........but is he good for the blue baggers in 07? I saw that someone posted a possible carlton team for 07 which didnt include Kouta? Was it a mistake or do supporters now view Kouta to be less crucial to the teams ultimate success.

 

[Kaitsey]

i think hes in the best 22. kouta is still one of CFC best players.

 

[HBF]

i think hes in the best 22. kouta is still one of CFC best players.

Agreed!

Still very valuable in the middle and at the stoppages around the ground. I'd start him on the bench and then bring him on after the first 15 mins or so once the inital "sting" has gone out of the game.

Still a clearance king and still plays a valuable role for the footy club.

 

[btdg]

He is in the best 22 purely by default. Currently running on the fumes of his fumes' fumes at the moment, but is the last remaining Carlton premiership player on the list and a champion. He deserves respect for his desire to keep giving it his all even though it must be killing him to be out there while we are so crap, yet he is so powerless to do anything to stop it.

Would have retired 12 months ago at a decent club.

 

[waitey]

he is easily in our best 22, by a mile. All these people saying hes not, its just ridiculous. He is still one of our best players, you cannot doubt that.

 

[btdg]

he is easily in our best 22, by a mile. All these people saying hes not, its just ridiculous. He is still one of our best players, you cannot doubt that.

I think the people who don't have him in our best 22 drastically over-rate the likely level of improvement from some of our players next year. Blind optimism at its best, but now is the time for that. Come round 1 next year though when it all comes back to earth, Kouta will still be rock solid giving it his all...

 

[MickyB]

After he came back from his hand injury he played some damn good football. He provides a solid body out on the field, and can still be an effective impact player. Definately in our best 22.

 

[av76]

After he came back from his hand injury he played some damn good football. He provides a solid body out on the field, and can still be an effective impact player. Definately in our best 22.

Maybe need to play him one week on the ball and one week in the forward line...maybe the rest from the broken hand indicates that when fully rested he is great but because he is older can not fuller recover in one week after playing a midfield role. I would have him do sprints and weights over summer and try and play him more in the forward line this year. He'd be great either marking the ball, crashing the pack or just dishing the ball out at stoppages or spillages. If managed well he;s still got two season left...his clearance work will still be good and he will still be a 100 kilo player capable of clearing the ball.

 

[Bluebear]

He deserves respect for his desire to keep giving it his all even though it must be killing him to be out there while we are so crap, yet he is so powerless to do anything to stop it.

You managed to hit on a good point there btdg. I think the likes of Kouta, Stevens, and Lappin all had poorer years and seemed to lack drive. I think once they see some improvement in the younger guys they will spark up.
With the likes of Murph and Simo (and? Gibbs) to feed it out to the clearance King shall return in bursts.

I would have him do sprints and weights over summer and try and play him more in the forward line this year

Weights??? have you seen the guy. Strength is not a problem.
Sprints - that would prematurely end a great career. He still has a burst of speed (as we saw in the Port and Freo games late in the year) but after his knee injuries and osteitis pubis, wil never have, nor should attempt to get, speed back again.

Will play half forward/on ball/bench. I agree, bring him off the bench in a Riccardi style to have an impact.

Will this be Lappin's last year as well?

 

[BlueWorld]

Will probably be more of an impact player, coming off the bench a lot. Also showed he'd benefit from a rest every few weeks.

 

[vinny]

The koutaman is still a valuable asset around the club, what
people don't understand is when kids like walker & murphy
come to the club and now gibbs, playing alongside a champ like
kouta in the midfield is fantastic for there football tuition.

 

[av76]

[/QUOTE]
Weights??? have you seen the guy. Strength is not a problem.
Sprints - that would prematurely end a great career. He still has a burst of speed (as we saw in the Port and Freo games late in the year) but after his knee injuries and osteitis pubis, wil never have, nor should attempt to get, speed back again.
[/QUOTE]

Sure he's strong but a little stronger doesn't hurt to carry a few extra kilos of muscle if he doesn't have to run 20kms every game.

Strength training is very low impact compared to endurance activities like running laps, doing shuttle runs etc. I've rarely heard of short distance runners complaining of ostietis pubis. I'm no expert on these matters, and would like to know more...but in general, strength training is generally less high impact than other activities...sprints are probably a bit more intense on the joints but nothing compared to a 10k run. I think thats why a lot a player's play their twilight years in the forward line...less demanding during the game and in terms of training required to hold down the position.

 

[Effes]

Play him off the bench in bursts - maybe have him in the middle at the start of each qtr and then give him a break

 

[blues4flag]

^Agree. Still very valuable, and his experience will do wonders for the younger guys.

 

[Andyt30]

carlton could do what Essendon dose with James Hird and play him in spurts to extend his Career ? more to help out the young players. they need to be senior players thats how they learn so ya can;t really have too many under 24

 

[BlueDevil]

plant the big guy in the forward line next to fevs, then give him short bursts on the ball if required to help the young blue boys out, the mans a true great that still has heaps to offer the carlton football club in 2007.

 

[Bluebear]

Sure he's strong but a little stronger doesn't hurt to carry a few extra kilos of muscle if he doesn't have to run 20kms every game.

Actually carrying a few extra kilo's could hurt him a lot. The question is, is Kouta strong enough to hold off a player in a contest? To bullock a pack and win a hard ball?
The answer to both is yes. Every time you run your knees absorb around 2-3 times your body weight. Landing from a jump can be up to 5-6 times body weight.
3 extra kilos can mean between 6 and 18 extra kilos of weight going through his joints.
All players walk a fine line between carrying enouigh muscle to compete, but not so much that their bodies crumble under the weight.

Strength training is very low impact compared to endurance activities like running laps, doing shuttle runs etc. I've rarely heard of short distance runners complaining of ostietis pubis. I'm no expert on these matters, and would like to know more...but in general, strength training is generally less high impact than other activities...sprints are probably a bit more intense on the joints but nothing compared to a 10k run. I think thats why a lot a player's play their twilight years in the forward line...less demanding during the game and in terms of training required to hold down the position.

This is obvious.
I am.
If you have ever seen someone doing plyometric strength training then you would know that what you have just written is, to be nice......very incorrect.
Can you give examples of the abundance of players playing out their twilight years in the forward line?
There is no easy position on the ground, and some of the longest servants of the game have been midfielders. You are right in that the average Km's covered by a forward and a midfielder are vastly different, but how many mids stand for 5 seconds wrestling a 100+kg gorrilla every time the ball comes towards them?

 

[HomerThompson]

Play him off the bench in bursts - maybe have him in the middle at the start of each qtr and then give him a break

Other players will get improve next year, but others will also not go as well as they did this year. Kouta's winding down but still offers dependable quality & options.

 

[av76]

Actually carrying a few extra kilo's could hurt him a lot. The question is, is Kouta strong enough to hold off a player in a contest? To bullock a pack and win a hard ball?
The answer to both is yes. Every time you run your knees absorb around 2-3 times your body weight. Landing from a jump can be up to 5-6 times body weight.
3 extra kilos can mean between 6 and 18 extra kilos of weight going through his joints.
All players walk a fine line between carrying enouigh muscle to compete, but not so much that their bodies crumble under the weight.



This is obvious.
I am.
If you have ever seen someone doing plyometric strength training then you would know that what you have just written is, to be nice......very incorrect.
Can you give examples of the abundance of players playing out their twilight years in the forward line?
There is no easy position on the ground, and some of the longest servants of the game have been midfielders. You are right in that the average Km's covered by a forward and a midfielder are vastly different, but how many mids stand for 5 seconds wrestling a 100+kg gorrilla every time the ball comes towards them?

Its starting to get a little nerdy/technical, but what the hell...
All I'm saying is a few squats and sprints might help him improve his strength and speed so he is better able to play as a forward rather than purely as a midfielder. Running long kms will always reduce strength below your best. I'm not saying he should train for the triple jump...there is no way you would make him do plyometrics. But I think he should be as fast and as strong as he can possibly be to play optimally as a forward with only short bursts in the midfield...because that's how I'd like to see him played. Maybe he is perfectly trained to do this already, which is what you seem to suggest. I was just assuming he's been training to play every week in the midfield.

Unfotunately, there is not an abundance of guy playing in their twilight years...guys like Ablett certaintly did alright with dodgy knees and training limited to a few weights workouts...Neitz and Lynch spring to mind too...Hird and Buckley are playing forward roles too because they can train less and still play a good role there.

Ideally, I'd love to see Kouta lined up on the opposition's 3rd or 4th defender next year and the younger guys taking over the engine room.

 

[Bluebear]

Its starting to get a little nerdy/technical, but what the hell...
All I'm saying is a few squats and sprints might help him improve his strength and speed so he is better able to play as a forward rather than purely as a midfielder. Running long kms will always reduce strength below your best.

You're embarrassing yourself. You don't know what you're talking about, yet persist on arguing.

I'm not saying he should train for the triple jump...there is no way you would make him do plyometrics. But I think he should be as fast and as strong as he can possibly be to play optimally as a forward with only short bursts in the midfield...because that's how I'd like to see him played.

So you want him to improve his strength with "a few squats" and "do some sprints" to be the best forward he can be?
Who mentioned triple jump?
Sprinting is about power........Plyometrics are about power....Power is not just strength, but the rate of force development........as you don't seem to take a hint I have posted you a link to inform yourself a little.
http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/plymo.htm

Maybe he is perfectly trained to do this already, which is what you seem to suggest. I was just assuming he's been training to play every week in the midfield.

No. What I said was (sighs).......that training him to the intensity to actually achieve any sort of benefit to his speed would most likely cause injury and end his career. He already had osteitis pubis once when training to hard to come back from the knee injuries. Why do you want to flog him in his last pre-season.

Unfotunately, there is not an abundance of guy playing in their twilight years...guys like Ablett certaintly did alright with dodgy knees and training limited to a few weights workouts...Neitz and Lynch spring to mind too...Hird and Buckley are playing forward roles too because they can train less and still play a good role there.

The only guy that fits your suggestion of "retiring down forward" here is Bucks. All these others ALWAYS played forward.

Ideally, I'd love to see Kouta lined up on the opposition's 3rd or 4th defender next year and the younger guys taking over the engine room.

The only bit I agree with.
I would hazard a guess to say that NO AFL players over the age of 30 are introducing new sprint and power training regimes to their programs.
My point (for the ......?....time) is that Kouta will do a normal, if not slightly reduced pre-season compared to the rest of the guys. That's what his body will handle. Its about player management.
Please don't reply. Educate yourself first. Start with the link above.
If you want to know more PM me. i'm sure other poster's are not interested in amatuer training schemes.

 

[av76]

Please don't reply. Educate yourself first. Start with the link above.
If you want to know more PM me. i'm sure other poster's are not interested in amatuer training schemes.

Actually I am not completely ignorant on these things as you may think...I have a degree in human physiology...might not be a biomechanist but I know a bit. Plyometrics may be optimal but not the only way. Your own website has info on 40m dash program that shows a combination of weights and sprints that would be too intense but deliver results. But lets leave it at that...its really is turning into a chest beating exercise here (on both sides).

 

[Moss Rocket]

Plyometrics....WTF!

Anyway, If Kouta is not in the best 22 at the CFC, then we are a certain top 4 for 07.