Lesser Lights Shine

[Vdubs]

Thought our maligned players, Blake, Varcoe, Lonergan, even Byrnes & Tenace really stood up. Varcoe's 2nd/4 was exciting & creative, Blake must have dominated the hitouts & set up a lot of centre clearances, Lonergan was more than nuisance value, 10 & 17 also good contributions. Should keep Della pacified for a week or 2!

 

[Ricketts]

Trav is warming up nicely.
Ready to explode.

 

[CF]

the lesser lights always look good against weak opposition. I wouldn't go reading too much into tonights game

 

[Casey Cat]

While I was disappointed with Hawkins, Lonergan and Gamble for their sorry attempts at goal I was reasonably happy with Varcoe's game, pleased with Blake's efforts around the ground, but really happy with Tenace's work rate when he was given a go. It was good to see him finish with a goal, too. He also looks much more valuable to the team and dangerous to the opposition when he has license to run forward rather than play inside the defensive 50m.

 

[Vegas.]

Blake, Varcoe, Lonergan, even Byrnes & Tenace

I have to say I totally disagree with every single one of the players mentioned. I thought the majority of Blakes taps went straight to one of their blokes, Lonners was only good down back, Byrnes was quieter than usual, but still made mistakes and Tenace made his usual skill errors. Varcoe was again quiet but he was probably the best out of that lot. Our senior brigade of Selwood (scary to consider him a senior player), Chappy, Gaz, Boris and Mack shone for me tonight.

 

[Copernicus]

Gee, I dunno about that analysis. I was fairly happy with Travis' efforts, he really puts in but doesn't always get reward for it. I wouldn't have thought he touched it more than 10-15 times, though his disposal was quite good.

Didn't notice Byrnes much at all. He put his body in but it didn't seem like he had much game time. The beard is a bit off-putting!

I thought Blake did alright, won the ruck duels pretty easily and did the usual link-up role with some success. He'll never be a Dean Cox but he has a role to play.

Tenace kicked a nice goal but I thought aside from that he still struggled with his kicking. He did work hard, for sure, but his disposal by foot is just so dodgy that I can't overlook it.

 

[Ricketts]

 

[alfy!]

I was thinking the opposite about a quarter and a half in, when those fringe players were doing nothing. But a couple then warmed to the task. I still don't think Varcoe gets enough of the ball to justify a place in the team.

 

[thejester]

I think Tenace demonstrated perfectly why he shouldn't be in the side. Twice was waltzing down the corridor with all the time in the world and both times sent in absolutely atrocious floaters that gave the forwards no chance. Compare that with the laser-like delivery our other midfielders and half backs (Mackie in particular) were giving and it shows there's others who should be ahead.

 

[Belisarius]

It is quite something how we see a player's performance differently. Last night's successful NAB cup game obviously is no exception.

From what I saw ;

1. Byrnes put his body more on the line, got a reasonable amount of the ball but lacks consistent ball skills, especially by foot. Ok last night.
2. Tenace, like Byrnes, seems to lack the 'vision' to put the ball to the best option often enough. Foot skills poor. Not ok. Both these guys need to run the lines better, pick better options more consistently and kick better nearly all the time to make Geelong's best 22.
3. I thought Blake was ok last night. Cannot see him being replaced this year.
4. Varcoe was good in patches - but is too inconsistent for me.
5. Not a good performance from Gamble - however past performances indicate to me he will be in the line up more often than not.
6. Hawkins just did enough. You can see the potential if he learns to use his body better in the contest. In fact I think he is the most likely 'new' young player we have that could add something to the GF side of 08.
7. Lonegran was ok - but would have liked to see him play a bit more in defence. Just looks a little more comfortable there.

 

[Gaz_Brownlow]

Tenace was OK, could be a good depth player on the flank - but would not be in our 22; I think Hogan would have surpassed him in the pecking order.

Blake was OK, actually a little bit better than that. Despite what people continually say about his ruck work, more often than not he does tap it to advantage. Like the fact that he wants the ball these days and puts himself in good positions. Still would like to see him play a larger role in defensive contests; but dropped back nicely a couple of times. I think West has a far greater defensive capacity and would like to see him used more this season.

Loved the look of Lonergan, really stood up, led well and made a presence out there. Looked sharp in the backline as well; hopefully Bomber plays him a bit more down back. I think he is starting to feel a bit more confident as an AFL player. Will never be anything special, but could establish himself this year, especially in a more prominent defensive role.

Shouldn't read too much into Hawkins, he looked pretty good and presented well. Definately had the better of Presti, but needs to get confidence up with goal kicking; that will come though with greater exposure.

Gamble will be awesome!! Looks ready made to step up this year, missed three very regulation set shots, but i would back him in more often than not this season. I think he is a 40-50 goal player!

Byrnes is starting to find some consistency, wasn't anything special, but he just looks like he fits within our structure. Varcoe could be anything, has no left foot though which is a worry and would love to see him put the foot down when he is possession of the ball. However is obviously very capable and if he is getting the delivery will perform well.

 

[Poetic Justice]

I actually thought Varcoe sucked last night and thought that Byrnes seemed reliable.

Interesting...

 

[winty]

Think some people in here are being pretty harsh on Varcoe. 17 touches, 7 marks and a goal is a good return for a HFF IMO. I just wish he'd do it more often, but it is good to see him improving from the one-trick pony he was in his debut year.

 

[Ricketts]

Yep, 17 possessions is good for Trav.
Means he is more in the game.
Better than him having 1 fleeting flash of brilliance per quarter for a grand total of 4 possessions for the match.

 

[martyk]

the lesser lights always look good against weak opposition. I wouldn't go reading too much into tonights game

I can't agree more. The opposition could not have been much worse last night and player performances should be taken with a grain of salt. I'm still not happy with Blake, at all. When he does win taps he rarely seems to have a presence for where our players are. I was impressed with West. Much better skills in general game play, I'm also noticing consistently that the players are not happy to give Blake the ball due to lack of confidence. West also seems to have the strength/size advantage, though I haven't checked the stats.... just seems to have more physical presence.

West deserves a go with Ottens in the H&A season if you ask me... I still see Blake, Lonergan and Byrnes/Varcoe(although not necessarily that bad) as our weakest links. I think as good as the team is, it's improvable.

 

[Ruddeger07]

I can't agree more. The opposition could not have been much worse last night and player performances should be taken with a grain of salt. I'm still not happy with Blake, at all. When he does win taps he rarely seems to have a presence for where our players are. I was impressed with West.

You were impressed with West last week up against a guy who has played around 20 games,another who has played around 10 games and another who I believe is a new Rookie,yet you think Blake's opposition was worse last night.

 

[Gaz_Brownlow]

There is nothing wrong with Blake...he is doing the job he is paid for. You can't expect him to be a gun all round ruck/goal kicking machine...he is simply a number 2 ruckmen! The signs from West seem to be gradual improvement to the point where i think he is ready to be trialled alongside Otto.

People are also way to harsh on Lonnergan...he again is doing a fantastic job. Sure he has a few quiet games, but for a person who is still less then 50 games into his career he is starting to breach the gap between good and bad. I think everybody is hoping he can take on that swing man utility role and allow Hawkins in the side!

Varcoe is interesting...still has a way to go in my opinion, but as i said before, could be anything. The area i would most like to see him improve though is accelerating when he has the ball and developing some sort of left foot!

 

[Vdubs]

the lesser lights always look good against weak opposition. I wouldn't go reading too much into tonights game

Surely you are having a dig at Collingwood. They are the best team we have played in 09, missing Fraser, H Shaw, Rocca & their Harry, while we were without Mooney, Kelly, Harley, & Hunt for 3/4. Pretty even in the "missing" area. They were "weak" last pm possibly because we were hot. They could well be the team to win the 09 flag, & are a real chance to beat us in rd 3, & you must be tongue in cheek calling them weak opposition. We beat a genuine contender convincingly , our guys stood up this time, & I'm happy with tonjght's efforts If you are saying the pies tanked , well so be it. They must have a strategy, & we come out of it without Hunt.

 

[CF]

Surely you are having a dig at Collingwood. They are the best team we have played in 09, missing Fraser, H Shaw, Rocca & their Harry, while we were without Mooney, Kelly, Harley, & Hunt for 3/4. Pretty even in the "missing" area. They were "weak" last pm possibly because we were hot. They could well be the team to win the 09 flag, & are a real chance to beat us in rd 3, & you must be tongue in cheek calling them weak opposition. We beat a genuine contender convincingly , our guys stood up this time, & I'm happy with tonjght's efforts If you are saying the pies tanked , well so be it. They must have a strategy, & we come out of it without Hunt.

from watching that game if that is Collingwoods near best then they wont make the 8 this year. I wasn't being tongue in cheek it was one of those "flat track" games.

I do expect the pies will improve, but last night they were weak after the 1st quarter.

 

[martyk]

You were impressed with West last week up against a guy who has played around 20 games,another who has played around 10 games and another who I believe is a new Rookie,yet you think Blake's opposition was worse last night.

The fact remains that Blake almost always struggles against good ruckman. I'm tired of seeing this and would like to see the club improve if possible, West has shown at least as much as Blake at a similar stage of development but is much more able with his disposal.

Blake is possibly the worst disposer of the ball in the league. This is bad which ever way you look at it. Its not enough these days to be good in one area of the game, not that Blake is a good tap ruckman anyway.

 

[martyk]

Surely you are having a dig at Collingwood. They are the best team we have played in 09, missing Fraser, H Shaw, Rocca & their Harry, while we were without Mooney, Kelly, Harley, & Hunt for 3/4. Pretty even in the "missing" area. They were "weak" last pm possibly because we were hot. They could well be the team to win the 09 flag, & are a real chance to beat us in rd 3, & you must be tongue in cheek calling them weak opposition. We beat a genuine contender convincingly , our guys stood up this time, & I'm happy with tonjght's efforts If you are saying the pies tanked , well so be it. They must have a strategy, & we come out of it without Hunt.

I truly think Collingwoods midfield is greatly flawed, especially without Burns. They don't have enough ball winners, too many fairies who sit out the back. Lockyer, Pendlbury, O'Bree, Johnson, Thomas are all soft... Swan has a crack but on an off night, there isn't much left. Heavily reliant on their kick-to-kick down the boundary line style to be effective against Geelong also, this is easy at the MCG, not at the Dome.

Collingwood are not a contender... they look worse than last year without Burns IMO. Don't believe the media BS!

 

[Cattery]

Blake is possibly the worst disposer of the ball in the league.

Alright, I'll bite, you're takin the piss again aren't ya mate?

 

[Ruddeger07]

Alright, I'll bite, you're takin the piss again aren't ya mate?

More like on the piss again

 

[martyk]

Alright, I'll bite, you're takin the piss again aren't ya mate?

Well, lets hear some of us throw names up of those who are worse kicks / handballers than Blake. Not an easy task.

 

[winty]

Well, lets hear some of us throw names up of those who are worse kicks / handballers than Blake. Not an easy task.

Shannon Byrnes, Kane Tenace and Nick Gill from Adelaide are three who readily come to mind....

EDIT: Just did some research. Blake had a kicking efficiency last year of 65%. Some of the players that had a kicking efficiency worse than that include:

Richard Douglas, Nick Gill, Jonathon Griffin, Brad Moran, Jason Porplyzia, Brent Reilly, Brad Symes, Scott Thompson, Kurt Tippett, Nathan Van Berlo, Simon Black, Daniel Bradshaw, Jared Brennan, Jonathon Brown, Rhan Hooper, Travis Johnstone, Tim Notting, Michael Rischitelli, Cheyenne Stiller, Brendan Fevola, Ryan Houlihan, Marc Murphy, Travis Cloke, Paul Medhurst, Anthony Rocca, Dane Swan, David Hille, Jason Laycock, Scott Lucas, Angus Monfries, Brent Stanton, Jobe Watson, Andrew Welsh, Rhys Palmer, Matthew Pavlich, Aaron Sandilands, Chris Tarrant, Shannon Byrnes, Joel Corey, Steve Johnson, James Kelly, Cameron Ling, Cameron Mooney, Brad Ottens, Lance Franklin, Cyril Rioli, Jarryd Roughead, Mark Williams, Cameron Bruce, Mark Jamar, Russell Robertson, David Hale, Corey Jones, Hamish McIntosh, Brady Rawlings, Adam Simpson, Travis Boak, Dean Brogan, Chad Cornes, Brett Ebert, Danyle Pearce, David Rodan, Justin Westhoff, Nathan Foley, Matthew Richardson, Jack Riewoldt, Troy Simmonds, Richard Tambling, Luke Ball,
Michael Gardiner, Lenny Hayes, Steven King, Stephen Milne, Nick Riewoldt, Luke Ablett, Jude Bolton, Adam Goodes, Barry Hall, Brett Kirk, Jarred Moore, Ryan O'Keefe, Dean Cox, Chad Fletcher, Ashley Hansen, Daniel Kerr, Matt Priddis, Adam Selwood, Tyson Stenglein, Matthew Boyd, Ryan Griffen, Mitch Hahn, Ben Hudson,
Will Minson, Scott Welsh and Cameron Wight.

Seems Blake's kicking isn't that bad after all.